Unravel the secrets of a small town where every memory is a lie. Clara Hayes, a celebrated journalist whose career has just imploded, is forced to return to her picture-perfect hometown of Candlewick, Vermont. It's Christmas, the snow is falling, and the air is thick with the cloying scent of beeswax and manufactured nostalgia. She expects quiet dread, not a mystery that will dismantle her past. It begins with a single, cream-colored envelope.
Then another. Thirteen anonymous letters, each containing a confession that rewrites a cherished memory from her youth. The stolen sled, the first kiss, the scholarship that never was-each event she remembers with certainty is presented back to her through a startling new lens. As the town prepares for its annual Festival of Lights, Clara is drawn into a haunting game of cat and mouse with three men from her past: Liam, the steadfast hardware store owner, who once promised her forever.
Samuel, the brooding musician, whose kiss in a snowy church felt like a beginning and an end. Ethan, the quiet archivist, who has always watched from the shadows, seeing more than anyone knew. One of them is her ghost, forcing her to question not just who she loved, but the very story she has told herself about her own life. Before the last candle is lit on Christmas Eve, Clara must uncover the truth behind the letters-and decide if the greatest Christmas miracle isn't finding love, but rediscovering the truth of your own heart.
A captivating holiday mystery for fans of slow-burn romance, small-town secrets, and second chances.
Unravel the secrets of a small town where every memory is a lie. Clara Hayes, a celebrated journalist whose career has just imploded, is forced to return to her picture-perfect hometown of Candlewick, Vermont. It's Christmas, the snow is falling, and the air is thick with the cloying scent of beeswax and manufactured nostalgia. She expects quiet dread, not a mystery that will dismantle her past. It begins with a single, cream-colored envelope.
Then another. Thirteen anonymous letters, each containing a confession that rewrites a cherished memory from her youth. The stolen sled, the first kiss, the scholarship that never was-each event she remembers with certainty is presented back to her through a startling new lens. As the town prepares for its annual Festival of Lights, Clara is drawn into a haunting game of cat and mouse with three men from her past: Liam, the steadfast hardware store owner, who once promised her forever.
Samuel, the brooding musician, whose kiss in a snowy church felt like a beginning and an end. Ethan, the quiet archivist, who has always watched from the shadows, seeing more than anyone knew. One of them is her ghost, forcing her to question not just who she loved, but the very story she has told herself about her own life. Before the last candle is lit on Christmas Eve, Clara must uncover the truth behind the letters-and decide if the greatest Christmas miracle isn't finding love, but rediscovering the truth of your own heart.
A captivating holiday mystery for fans of slow-burn romance, small-town secrets, and second chances.