Hello again friends. Today's book review will also include some fun history about Harvey Girls! I hope you enjoy it and are as intrigued as I am to learn more about them, and you also give this book a try.
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| CLICK HERE to purchase |
Calico Spy – Undercover Ladies Book 3
Margaret Brownley
•°o Wonderful Pinkerton
Mystery Set in Kansas o°•
1880 Calico, Kansas
Two women have been murdered and it’s up to Katie Madison to
go undercover as a Harvey Girl and find the killer. Unfortunately she has NO experience as a
waitress, hostess, or food handler of any sort.
It was fun to watch her muddle through and try to learn the “cup code”.
P. 9 “Tonight you’re the drink girl. Do you think you can handle that?” Plastering
a smile on her face, she nodded. How hard could it be to pour tea?
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| china made especially for Harvey House by Syracuse China. Pictured above is the Harvey House Normandy hand-painted pattern of a bowl, plate and cup. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO. |
P. 10 “You do know the cup code, right?” “Uh?” There was a code for cups? “Cup in the
saucer means coffee.” “A flipped cup against the saucer for ICED tea. A cup next to the saucer –milk.” “As for hot
tea, the cup will be flipped upon the saucer.” He then explained how to tell if the customer wanted black, green or orange pekoe tea by the direction of the
cup handle. “Any questions?”
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| A 'Harvey Girl' in Emporia, Kan., where that restaurant opened in 1888. UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA LIBRARY |
Harvey Girls were required to where clean, starched uniforms
of a black dress with high collar, starched white apron (which must be clean at
all times, and therefore several were changed throughout the day), black shoes
and stockings, and always, always have a big smile pasted on (uniforms would change and evolve with the times).
There were prominent restaurants located along
the train stops, which made them very successful. While it did give young women an opportunity
to earn an honest living, it was also very hard on them. They worked long days, and they had to live above the restaurant
with a strict curfew, and were not allowed to marry while under contract. I enjoyed getting to know the ins and outs of it
all.
Here is an interesting 2013 blog link with more detail on Harvey House: CLICK HERE
Fun FB page: CLICK HERE
Wall Street Journal Article: CLICK HERE
Katie has a lot of issues with her past. She lost her fiancé to her sister. She believes she is ugly with her red hair
and freckles. She feels she is to blame
for her father’s death. But, she is a woman
of faith, and a good detective. P. 31 “God, don’t let me mess up this job. You know how my mouth gets away from me and I
say things I shouldn’t. You have my permission to bang me on the head if I don’t
curtail my tongue. And please forgive my
envious heart. I’m sure You had a good
reason for giving me hair the color of a rooster’s comb, and maybe one day You’ll
let me know what that reason is.” (Ha!)
- She reminds me of Anne Shirley!
Throughout her investigation, she keeps putting herself in
harms way.
However, a certain local sheriff is there to keep an eye on
her. Branch Whitman has absolutely no use for Pinkerton detectives, but he
has no idea she is one, until it’s too late.
He’s intrigued by the new Harvey Girl, and insists on keeping an eye on
all the girls since two have already wound up dead, and he has an open
investigation to run. But, he dare not
get to close since his wife died 8 years ago, and his responsibilities are
stretched thin between his son and his job.
He is stubborn, but kind and a praying man.
There are past secrets to uncover, old wounds that need
mending, and trust is a hard thing to give when so many are suspect, and some
might just be plain crazy.
Amusing tea reference: P.43 "He was a high-strung man with a pencil-thin mustache and a tea-strainer nose." {Yikes, can you imagine?}
Definition: I had to look up what what cackleberries were from P.87. They are diner talk for hens eggs. -smile.
I give it 5 out of 5 stars and would recommend it to others.
The author has shared she has written these as
stand-alone-stories, so you can read them in any order. They simply have the same theme of female Pinkerton
agent. The story ends well, with no lingering questions which is
always a plus.
Included at the end of the book: Discussion Questions, and a
bit of interesting commentary on detective work.
I purchased this book from CBD and I am offering my honest
opinion for no compensation.
©2016/01 Shiloh Run Press-Barbour Publishing
312 Pages
Read 01/25/2016
Reviewed 01/26/2016
SERIES: Undercover
Ladies
*Petticoat Detective – Book 1 – 2014 (5 stars) MY GOODREADS REVIEW - CLICK HERE
*Undercover Bride – Book 2 – 2015 (5 stars - MY BLOG REVIEW CLICK HERE)
*Calico Spy – Book 3 – 01/2016
Hugs and a cup of tea,
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