The Bronze Hand 1897

"The Bronze Hand" by Anna Katharine Green is a late 19th-century crime fiction novel that explores themes of loyalty, intrigue, and moral choices amid the political tensions in Baltimore before the Civil War. Abbott finds himself drawn into a web of secrets when the puzzling Miss Calhoun asks for his help in recovering a stolen ring, leading him to a secret political group with dark plans. As Abbott investigates, he uncovers the ring's role in a system that decides who lives and dies within the group, forcing him to confront a moral crisis as he tries to save an innocent man from a deadly judgment, resulting in a showdown that questions ideas of justice and sacrifice in a time of political chaos.