First published 2021
Amy Webber has settled into married life with dancer Richard Muir in Taylorsford, Virginia. She researches folk tales and music for Richard and his partner Karla's new dance suite when a woman's corpse appears in Zelda Shoemaker's gazebo. Chief Deputy Brad Tucker finds a blackmail letter in the victim's pocket and suspects Zelda. Amy's aunt Lydia asks Amy to clear her best friend's name, but Zelda refuses to explain why someone would blackmail her. Amy discovers old records of a past tragedy that make Zelda look guilty. She recruits Richard, Lydia, art dealer Kurt Kendrick, Mayor Sunny Fields, and other townspeople to prove Zelda's innocence. Amy worries that learning the truth might send Zelda to prison forever. The real killer remains free and threatens Amy's safety.
Genres: american-fiction, mystery, contemporary, adult-fiction
Vibes: community-driven, puzzle-solving, small-town-intrigue, suspenseful
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, found-family, small-town-secrets
Setting: Taylorsford, Virginia
Period: 21st-century
305 pages · Paperback · CROOKED LANE BOOKS
Content warnings: death, murder