Yes, I agree that she is an ideal, in some respects. But she is very focused, and I find very focused people in real life a little annoying at times, too.
I was intrigued by some of the plot devices in the books - the white feather organization, for example. I had to research that to realize it was real. And the hops harvest - because we are growing hops here and so the harvest information and the smell made things more interesting to me.
Whereas, the Railway Detective used, I thought, hackneyed character relationships, etc. The railroad history itself was ok - but I was bored so didn't research it to see what was fact and what was not. Of course, I think it was the first of the series, so a lot was packed in that maybe should have been developed more slowly. However, at my time of life, I know there's something better out there, so I may not go back to that series. It's hard to find, so I had to buy the first one, and I certainly wouldn't spend money on any more.
