Past Imperfect

Sometimes the past does not lie quietly in its grave.

When private detectives Seth Augustine and Bethany Hale take a vacation to the picture-postcard village of Finn Hill in the Adirondacks in mid-December, they figure it'll be an opportunity for some down time—skiing, snowshoeing, and lots of basking in front of a fire or lounging together in the hot tub. But after a chance purchase in an antique store turns up a thirty-year-old note foretelling a murder, they realize that their vacation might not be as relaxing as they'd hoped.

The cryptic note, from a desperately unhappy high school student, explains that she's likely to be killed—because of what she overheard at the funeral of the school custodian. Bethany and Seth soon find out that the student, Martha Darnell, did indeed die a week after the custodian's funeral, and that there are some dark and deadly secrets hidden beneath Finn Hill's perfect, Christmas-card appearance.

But the roots of the murders have lain buried for thirty years. To uncover the truth, they'll have to pry into the private lives and secrets of the townspeople—at least some of whom are very, very reluctant to have the events of three decades ago come to light.