This story uses strong language and is intended for MATURE audiences.
What you don't know CAN hurt you.
After years of bouncing from town to town, Anna Michelle Jenkins and her off-beat parents settle down in Oak Shores, North Carolina. It's a sleepy coastal village, the kind of place where the only gossip occurs at the weekly Baptist service and the sheriff--who doubles as the mayor--knows everybody's business. Sparked by rumors surrounding the last mayor's disappearance, Anna enlists the help of the charming sheriff's boy to begin crafting her own true-crime documentary featuring a few willing and conspiratorial citizens . After conducting interviews and asking around, it becomes clear that these conspiracies aren't far-fetched. Brushing the sand from the town's coldest case, Anna realizes Oak Shores might not be as sleepy as it appears. In fact, many things may not be as they appear. Secrets are unearthed and tensions escalate as Anna concludes there's one more secret she's overlooking--one that's been hiding right beneath her eyes.
Adele knows she witnessed a murder - what she doesn't know is just how personal it is.
*****
A girl was brutally murdered in the basement of a sorority house in spring 2011. Adele Theroux thinks she saw the killer - and the killer definitely saw her. What she doesn't know is why this all happened and who this guy is. As she tries to solve the mystery from a distance while in witness protection, the connections keep getting weirder and more personal. Might she be able to relate to the killer in a way that no one else can? And what does that mean about her own psyche?
*2019 Watty Award for Mystery/Thriller*
[[word count: 50,000-60,000 words]]
Cover designed by April Alforque