First published 2023
Gabriela Domenici and her boyfriend Daniel Red Deer set out for a September hike through Still Waters Chasm. Their peaceful afternoon turns deadly when they discover mysterious construction equipment in a cleared forest and find two people dying near the lake. When they return with help, the bodies have vanished along with all traces of the victims. The state police warn Gabriela to stay away, but her library work brings her to the nearby Town of Livery. There she encounters locals who watch her with equal parts curiosity and distrust. She befriends Lucinda Nanz, an herbalist with deep knowledge of healing and poisonous plants, and Wendy Haughton, a young woman trying to sell an old drawing to escape her violent marriage. Despite Daniel's pleas and official warnings, Gabriela cannot abandon her search for answers. Her persistence draws her deeper into Livery's secrets and closer to another murder, putting her directly in the path of people willing to kill to protect the truth about Still Waters Chasm.
Genres: adventure, suspense, mystery, thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-detective, investigation, secrets
Setting: Still Waters Chasm, Town of Livery
Period: September
310 pages · Kindle Edition · Woodhall Press
Content warnings: death, violence