From the USA Today Bestselling author of The Magician’s Lie “A Spunky Spy Saga.” – NPR Books “Macallister is becoming a leading voice in strong, female-driven historical fiction. Exciting, frightening, and unspeakably moving…”-Erika Robuck, bestselling author of Hemingways’s GirlFor the first female Pinkerton detective, respect is hard to come by. Danger, however, is not. In the tumultuous … respect is hard to come by. Danger, however, is not.
In the tumultuous years of the Civil War, the streets of Chicago offer a woman mostly danger and ruin-unless that woman is Kate Warne, the first female Pinkerton detective and a desperate widow with a knack for manipulation.
Descending into undercover operations, Kate is able to infiltrate the seedy side of the city in ways her fellow detectives can’t. She’s a seductress, an exotic foreign medium, a rich train passenger-all depending on the day and the robber, thief, or murderer she’s been assigned to nab.
But is the woman she’s becoming-capable of lies, swapping identities like dresses-the true Kate? Or has the real disguise been the good girl she always thought she was? As the tensions between the north and south escalate, Kate takes on a job in which the stakes have never been higher. The nation’s future is at risk, even as the lines between disguise and reality begin to blur.
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GIRL IN DISGUISE by Greer Macallister is a historical fiction book based on the life of Kate Warne, the first female Pinkerton agent. I always love to read about the “first” females in any role and this being the first detective agency in the U.S. made it sound even more interesting. Kate’s story is perfectly suited to be told in as a historical fiction due to the fact that a lot of the actual paperwork from her time in the Pinkerton agency went up in flames the Chicago Fire of 1871.
Kate was the daughter of traveling actors, who were also con-artists. She was forced into a loveless marriage that ended with her becoming a young widow and unable to have children. She is out of money with no job prospects and answers the ad for Pinkerton agents. There is always a sadness and aloneness about her, but her life has given her the basic skills to become a great detective. Pinkerton takes her on and not only does she become one of Pinkerton’s top agents, she also heads up the Female Detective division for him.
The author has written the adventures of a complicated woman, her relationship with Pinkerton himself and her interactions with the other agents in his employ. I felt the characters were all true to their time period and the situations could have happened just as written. This is a story that was very well told.
“Girl In Disguise” is a love story between a woman and her job. I’m a sucker for books like that, and thoroughly enjoyed this one, happily following alongside the resourceful Kate Warne as she makes her way through hostile 1850s Chicago, first getting herself hired as Pinkerton’s first female detective, then getting sent out on a variety of jobs ranging from the dangerous to the absurd, finally landing up to her neck in Civil War espionage. A page turning yarn with a heroine to root for.
This was a fairly quick read on the first female Pinkerton operative. I found it interesting, as I hadn’t realized Allen Pinkerton utilized female detectives as early as he had. An entertaining story.
Intriguing story of the first woman Pinkerton agent and her cases.
I was rooting for Kate from the beginning. Diving right into her story and watching her blossom was delightful. My heart broke for her and I shed many tears. I was absorbed by this story, and read it in just a couple of days. I will be watching for MacAllister’s next release. She is a very talented author.
historical and strong female character
I know this book took me long to finish but it wasn’t because I didn’t get it or it was boring that wasn’t the case. I really enjoyed it. And didn’t want it to end. I was not disappointed by Greer Macallister at all this being her second book. I read her first one and loved that too. Her strong women characters and how they deal and handle things amazing. Kate I think is my favorite woman character of 2018. She was forced into a marriage she never wanted. Her parents well they go to where the sun doesn’t shine. But after husband dies Kate decides to be become the first woman investigator. And that’s where she is trained by her boss Pinkerton. Helps her along the way and gives her cases. And she kinda questions herself about all the different disguises and who she really is. She meets a lot of people on cases. I loved the civil war times and how this is inspired. This book is amazing and needs more people who love history and strong women who we don’t hear about read this book.
Girl in Disguise is a historical novel that takes place in Chicago in the 1860’s. The protagonist Kate, becomes the first female detective for Pinkerton Detective Agency. Kate becomes a successful and competent operative, and as she resolves cases, we come to learn about her past. As a child, Kate’s father was an actor, a gambler, and a con man. Her mother was distant and verbally abusive. Kate was then married off to a cruel man who later left her widowed. I really enjoyed the twists the plot took, as the Kate continued her career into the Civil War. The backdrop of such an explosive era of history really enriched the narrative and I especially enjoyed such a strong female character. A wonderfully imagined story during an interesting period of history.
Based on several real life characters. For me, the book did lag in places. I found myself getting bored and wondering if I should continue, then suddenly the pace would pick up for a while and then lag again. There were some exciting parts though, that made it worth the read. Not near as good as her previous novel, The Magician’s Lie, in my opinion.
Girl in Disguise is an intriguing story about Kate Warne, the first female Pinkerton detective. The story takes place in the 1800s and even includes activities Kate was involved in as a spy during the civil war. A very interesting read!