When Detective Lucas Grey arrives in the eerie town of Ashwood, he expects a routine case. But the brutal murders of three men-each linked by a secret past-turn the investigation into something far darker. The victims, once childhood friends, share a chilling mark carved into their skin-a signature of a killer with a deadly purpose. As Lucas delves deeper, he encounters Emma Carter, a quiet yet resilient bakery owner with a past just as tangled as the town's. Emma's parents died in a supposed car accident when she was a child, but when Lucas uncovers a star-shaped necklace tied to her mother, long-buried truths come to light. The town whispers of an ancient brotherhood leaving behind a trail of blood and betrayal. With Sheriff Margaret Cole, a sharp yet haunted officer, by his side, Lucas pieces together a conspiracy decades in the making. But as the body count rises, trust erodes. Who among them is next? And when the past refuses to stay buried, will Lucas escape Ashwood's deadly grip, or will he become another name on the killer's list?

Retired octogenarian schoolteacher Myrtle Clover is fit to be tied when her book club votes to change to a supper club. Who wants chips and dip when they can have Dickens and Twain? The first supper club is a progressive dinner...where Myrtle loses interest during the hors d'oeuvres. But when a body is discovered during the main course, the evening quickly gets interesting. Myrtle pits her sleuthing skills against her police chief son's to find the killer....if the killer doesn't find her first.

Pretty on the outside may not mean pretty on the inside. Parke Stockard was certainly sitting pretty. Blessed with good looks and business sense to boot, she should have been content. Instead, Parke makes trouble in her small town. When retired octogenarian schoolteacher Myrtle Clover discovers her body, no one in Bradley is particularly upset. Myrtle decides to show up her police chief son and investigate the crime herself. And, just in time to play detective, she meets a widower newcomer who proves the perfect sidekick.