Additional information
by Mary Daheim (Author)
" A] well-paced and compelling murder mystery."--Romantic Times
Quilters at the Burl Creek Thimble Club in Alpine, Washing-ton, are planning a f te to welcome back returning member Genevieve Bayard. But Gen's homecoming is cut short when she dies suddenly at a dinner party. Emma Lord, owner and publisher of the local newspaper The Alpine Advocate, vows to sleuth her way to the truth, and enlists the help of her trusted "House & Home" editor, Vida Runkel. Surprisingly, Vida seems downright unwilling to get involved. To make matters worse, murder isn't the only crime in Alpine. There have been several burglaries, which may or may not be connected to Gen's de-mise. As Emma digs, she uncovers a shocking scandal that may point the finger of guilt at one of her nearest and dearest . . . while changing the history of Alpine itself. " Daheim] amiably captures the rhythms and crosscurrents of small-town life."--Kirkus ReviewsFront Jacket
USA Today bestselling author Mary Daheim knows how to spin a mystery with a tight plot and captivatingly eccentric characters. And her vivid Pacific Northwest setting-a character in itself-has garnered her a plethora of devoted fans. Now her resourceful and resolute journalist Emma Lord is back with a new mystery to solve-and an even tougher deadline to meet.
Members of the Burl Creek Thimble Club, a quilting circle in small-town Alpine, Washington, are planning a fete to welcome back Genevieve Bayard, who left the group, and Alpine, decades ago. But Gen's homecoming is cut decidedly short when she dies at a dinner party. Emma Lord, owner and publisher of the local newspaper, The Alpine Advocate, immediately arrives on the scene to report the incident and sleuth her way to the truth.
Though it appears that Gen wasn't adored by everyone in the Alpine community, her untimely death still comes as a shock. To help solve the mystery, Emma turns to Vida Runkel, the Advocate's trusty House & Home editor. Such a notorious story would normally have Vida chomping at the bit, but to Emma's surprise Vida is hesitant, even downright unwilling to get involved.
The demise of Genevieve Bayard, however, isn't the only crime in Alpine. There has been a rash of burglaries, including at Emma's own cozy log cabin. Are the break-ins and the murder connected? As Emma digs, she uncovers a shocking scandal that may point the finger of guilt at one of her nearest and dearest . . . while single-handedly changing the history of Alpine itself.
"From the Hardcover edition.
Author Biography
Mary Richardson Daheim started spinning stories before she could spell. Daheim has been a journalist, an editor, a public relations consultant, and a freelance writer, but fiction was always her medium of choice. In 1982, she launched a career that is now distinguished by more than sixty novels. In 2000, she won the Literary Achievement Award from the Pacific Northwest Writers Association. In October 2008, she was inducted into the University of Washington's Communication Alumni Hall of Fame. Daheim lives in her hometown of Seattle and is a direct descendant of former residents of the real Alpine, which existed as a logging town from 1910 to 1929, when it was abandoned after the mill was closed. The Alpine/Emma Lord series has created interest in the site, which was named a Washington State ghost town in July 2011. An organization called the Alpine Advocates has been formed to preserve what remains of the town as a historic site.
