Anna Katharine Green 
Dark Hollow 

In a small town shrouded in secrets a woman seeks to find the truth behind a terrible injustice in this classic mystery from "the mother of the detective novel"A mysterious veiled woman slips into the home of the secretive Judge Ostrander in the town of Shelby. The people of the town rush after her to protect their respected judge, but in the confusion and furor that follow, a servant of the house dies. In the solemn atmosphere succeeding this drama, the veiled woman refuses to show her face, insisting on telling her story from under her swathes of purple veil. Her name is Deborah and she is the widow of a convicted murderer, a man sentenced to death many years before by Judge Ostrander. She took her young daughter and fled the town in shame when it happened, but now she must confront the truth. Determined to prove her husband’s innocence, Deborah believes the judge who convicted him is the one person in the world who can help. But a secret so long buried cannot be uncovered without serious repercussions. Dark Hollow is a truly a compelling and classic tale of hidden guilt, honor, and remorse.