On Kaumaha Island (est. 1850), the statue of Amyas Lathrop conceals a terrible secret --- a legacy of massacres and madness that infects the island itself. Some will go to any lengths to keep it hidden, others to set it free. But which of them would kill? Cultural expert Winnie Te Papa, our very own Ms. Marple, will sift through the pieces to track a ruthless murderer through a tangled maze of family alliances, greedy developers, scholars, protestors and gangsters. Told in a dual timeline, Doug Burgess' intricate puzzle box mystery traces the consequences of an island's frenetic beginnings as they snowball through generations. Fans of HBO's “The White Lotus” will be intrigued by the ever hotly debated questions: What happens next, and who gets to decide?

When David left home three years ago, he never looked back. Now, the only connection to his tiny New England hometown is his grandmother Maggie, whose mind is unraveling as she slowly succumbs to dementia. But when her best friend turns up dead and she may be the sole witness to the crime, David has no choice but to return to a place that never accepted his trans-identity and only ever wanted him gone. Maggie's testimony is shrouded in doubt; in between moments of lucidity she talks about things that never happened, about apparitions, disappearances and murders. But are they really only stories? After a man's death sets off a hauntingly familiar chain of events, it seems there's some truth to Maggie's words.

When sudden tragedy brings David Hazard back to Little Compton to care for his grandmother during her struggle with dementia, he discovers that her fragile memories may hold the key to a bizarre mystery half a century old --- and perhaps to the sudden and brutal murder right next door. Once Chief of Police Billy Dyer names her as a witness, Grandma Maggie's recollections become vital. But can they be trusted, especially in a town where everyone has a secret, including David himself? The investigation stalls. Then eccentric millionaire Marcus Rhinegold's yacht disappears into the fog, bodies begin to wash ashore, and Maggie's stories come vividly to life, setting off a chain of events both horrifying and hauntingly familiar.