Skeleton Key

In this Golden Age mystery series opener set in World War II-era California, a widowed mother literally stumbles into a murder case.

Georgine Wyeth is a young widow keeping house for herself and her young daughter, and paying the rent by typing for a local academic, a scientific gentleman. Working late one night (there's a war on, you know), she gets caught in a blackout, only to trip over the dying air-raid warden. A simple snatch-and-grab gone wrong? Or something more sinister? And could Georgine's work for that scientist have put her in jeopardy?

Perfect for fans of Margaret Maron and Craig Rice
"Lenore Glen Offord is one of the truly underrated writers of the World War II and postwar periods." —Susan Dunlap, 1001 Midnights