A family of outsiders arrives in a tiny Canadian fishing village, and murder soon follows, in this witty, fast-paced mystery.

It's Christmas at The Shores. There's no snow yet, but there are so many outdoor lights that the tiny coastal village can be seen from space. Apart from Ian Simmons' place (and he was from away), there was only one house that wasn't lit up. It had been dark for years. That was about to change. Wild Rose Cottage was about to come to life, and death, once again.

Meanwhile, the villagers wished for snow to complete the Christmas portrait. When it came, they would regret it. With the snow comes the body of newcomer Fitz Fitzpatrick, a former acrobat turned bully and drunk. Mountie Jane Jamieson has seen murder here before, but none where she'd rather not catch the killer. She has to decide whether Fitz fell during a flip—or was pushed, so that his chain became tangled in a tree limb. Either is possible. But though Jamieson's doing a lot of questioning, no one's talking . . .

"A natural storyteller, superbly equipped both by her character and experience to fashion stories of the lives of everyday people who make their living from the sea." —Ottawa Review of Books