The year is 1875 and many of Philadelphia's medical establishments are reluctant to accept female doctors, which makes Dr. Lydia Weston—who teaches at the Woman's Medical College and works at a nearby clinic—something of a trailblazer. One of her favorite patients, a literature-loving chambermaid named Anna, has gone missing. When a body matching Anna's description is pulled from the river, Lydia suspects foul play. Ritu Mukerji uses period detail and her formidable medical knowledge to create a fully immersive reading experience, meticulously reconstructing Gilded Age Philadelphia with its lampposts and mist. Lydia has a scientist's brain but a poet's heart, and her debut adventure— lovingly crafted, impressively researched—should appeal to many.