The heroine of The Hidden Hand is Capitola. She is an orphan and is quite possibly the feistiest heroine in American literature. When we first meet her, Capitola is dressed as a boy to get employment – boys can work, girls can’t. She is taken in by a rich relative and then the plot thickens. Along the way Capitola meets with long-lost relatives and dastardly villains. She survives storms, kidnap attempts and fights a couple of duels, including one with a bad guy named Black Donald. (She wins, of course). And like all good heroines at the conclusion of the book, she ends up with the handsome, stalwart hero.