Meet Cora
Writing from the granite coast of Maine, where the Atlantic sharpens itself against the ledges and four hundred islanders know everything—except who is telling the truth.
Pull up a chair.
The ferry can wait.
I’m Cora. I write mysteries set on an island where the coffee pot is always on, the weather has opinions, and every neighbor knows at least one thing they are not telling you.
I have always loved old New England houses: leaning sheds, attics that smell of pine and salt air, drawers that refuse to open until you know which way to lift. Give me a house full of curious objects and I will start wondering who put them there—and why.
That curiosity became The Saltstone Mysteries. Saltstone is a fictional island eleven miles off the Maine coast. A nor’easter can strand you with an inconvenient guest list; a short walk to buy coffee can turn into a very long conversation about someone else’s business.
Maeve Vance, my estate appraiser, sees what others overlook. A scratch on a brass fitting. A missing weight. A page torn from a maritime ledger. She would rather have a cup of coffee than an audience, but the island seldom lets her choose.
I hope you’ll enjoy the small pleasures alongside the puzzles: a woodstove roaring after a wet crossing, a familiar face at the dock, a plate of something warm. Keep an eye on the clues. Keep a closer eye on the person offering to help.
Especially when one object has been moved and nobody will admit touching it.
The trouble begins when two neighbors remember the same night differently.
The ferry runs on the captain’s schedule. The gossip travels ahead of it.