About the Book:
After aspiring opera singer Tessa loses her voice in a fire, she needs both a place to heal and a way to keep music in her life. She retreats to her aunt's apple orchard in rural North Carolina to collect folk ballads. But amid the autumn splendor of this isolated Appalachian community, she uncovers an unnerving connection between a murder case and a long-ago disappearance. Tessa gets a glimpse into an almost-forgotten world, encounters a corrupt, small-town political dynasty, and finds superstition and prejudice at every turn.
She's also drawn to Zeke, the handsome but enigmatic orchard caretaker, who shows her that mountain justice is neither impartial nor just. But battling a conspiracy of silence, Tessa isn't sure if she can trust him. Yet somewhere in the mists of the Blue Ridge Mountains, evil lurks, and a killer is determined to keep the past where it belongs--dead and buried.
About the Author:
Lisa Carter is the best-selling author of seven romantic suspense novels, four historical novellas, and a contemporary Coast Guard series. Her book Under a Turquoise Sky won the 2015 Carol Award for Romantic Suspense. Blending Southern and Native American fiction, she likes to describe her suspense novels as "sweet tea with a slice of murder." Lisa enjoys traveling to romantic locales and researching her next exotic adventure. When not writing, she loves spending time with her family and teaching writing workshops. A native North Carolinian, she has strong opinions on barbecue and ACC basketball. Visit her online at lisacarterauthor.com
My Thoughts:
"Ouida sighed, the sound like the rustling of autunm leaves. 'Knowing is a far different thing than having the power to stop it. Such a power is reserved for God Himself." (p. 126)
This story combines two very unlikely characters, Tessa, an opera singer by trade, and Zeke, an undercover detective working for her aunt. The setting is also unusual, an Appalacian community where innocents like Ouida and Tess' Aunt Dicey live, but fail to thrive, because of the dark cloud of evil that reigns over the valley in the form of the Cozart family. Apparently, this wicked family has extended its power over the people of this town for decades, and they have finally encountered folks who are angry and greived enough to fight for justice - no matter the cost.
Tessa sort of stumbles into this battle when her own life circumstances are dramatically and unalterbly changed through another very dark and untimely tragedy. The only thing that seems to keep her boueyed to hope and healing are her Aunt Dicey, and her unexpectedly handsome orchard supervisor, Zeke.
Zeke is less than thrilled for an outsider to disrupt his already complicated undercover assignment. As the story unfolds, there is a depth of human emotion that the reader will find to be as thrilling and heart stopping as the mystery and espionage taking place right under the community's collective noses! With more twists and turns than the rural roads running through this Appalacian town, the reader will be burning the midnight oil to find out who survives this novel!! Talk about a nail biter!!
I HIGHLY recommend this story! It is well written, well paced and filled with characters you will want to hold close to your heart. I know my heart ached for them all at one point or another!! Don't wait to add this book to your reading list!!
