A divorced sleuth in her thirties must bring peace back to her small town
after a murder tears neighbors and family members apart in this series debut
from Agatha Award nominee Allison Brook, perfect for fans of Cynthia Riggs and
Eva Gates.
Delia Dickens has come home to Dickens Island, a small island in the Long
Island Sound, after a twelve-year stint in Manhattan. She’s looking forward to
helping her father revitalize the general store that the family owns as well as
curating a small book nook. Most importantly, she wants to reunite with her
fifteen-year-old son. But Dickens Island isn’t the peaceful town Delia
remembers–and she might be in more danger here than she ever was in the big
city.
Delia’s Aunt Reenie and Uncle Brad, both prominent community leaders, are at
odds over the sale of a farm and its future use. This has created friction, not
only in their marriage, but amongst the citizens of the town. When a young
woman, new to the town council and friendly with Brad, is found murdered,
everything escalates and reaches a new boiling point.
With Reenie and Brad both suspects in the case and at each other’s throats, the
townspeople start to take sides. When the ghost of her grandmother visits her,
Delia learns how past events have impacted the present, and it is up to her to
expose the farm’s sordid secrets in order to catch a murderer and restore peace
to her beloved island.
Delia Dickens, the main character, has a problematic past involving a psycho ex-husband and an estranged fifteen-year-old son. When she inherited her grandmother’s house on the island, she decides to move from her Manhattan apartment to the island and reestablish a relationship with her son, who was staying with her parents on the island. Her father asked for help in restoring the family’s general store’s profitability. But before she can do any of that, she must solve a murder. E. B. Davis
Dickens Island is located between Long Island and Connecticut in Long Island Sound. Is the island based on a real island in a similar location? Since no bridge exists, a ferry must be taken to get to Long Island. How long would it take to get into Manhattan from Dickens Island?
Dickens Island is purely my creation and not based on any actual island. There is a ferry from Dickens Island to Long Island. The ride is half an hour long. From there, commuters can get the Long Island Railroad in Riverhead and travel to Penn Station in Manhattan. The train ride takes about two hours.
Delia Dickens, your main character, is thirty-eight years old and divorced. She owns an apartment in Manhattan, but she moves into a house on Dicken’s Island that she inherited from her grandmother. What job did Delia leave when she moved from Manhattan?
She had an important position in marketing.
Delia’s mother and father both
have younger siblings, who also married. Because they were the older
siblings,
did they assume the role of overseers of their siblings’ relationship? Or at
least her father, Graham, took on that role, but why does he then put the
mediating to his wife and/or daughter?
As the older brother, Graham is the patriarch of the Dickens family and feels responsible for the welfare of the island's residents. That said, he's basically mild-mannered and dislikes confrontation. Which is why he has depended on his wife to mediate family differences and other matters. Now that Gillian is living in Manhattan, he's put his daughter Delia in the position of mediator.
Conner, Delia’s fifteen-year-old son, feels that Delia abandoned him. Why does he feel that way, and has he given her the chance to explain?
Delia has escaped from a marriage that turned abusive when her son was born. After divorcing her husband, Delia lives and works in Manhattan. After Connor's daycare folds, and many babysitters have simply not shown up, Delia finds herself leaving Connor more and more often with her parents on Dickens Island. Because of her long working hours and the trauma of her divorce, Delia believes her son will have a more settled life living with his grandparents. But Connor, while loving his grandparents, feels that Delia has abandoned him. He's resentful toward her when, at the age of fifteen, he's once again living with Delia. Though Delia has tried to explain that she had his welfare at heart when she arranged to have him live with her parents, Connor refuses to hear her out. Their relationship improves when a stray dog enters their lives.
When a farm comes up for sale, Delia’s Aunt Reenie is for commercial development of the site. As town manager, she supports businesses and increased revenue for taxes. Her husband, Delia’s Uncle Brad, is the head of the town council. He doesn’t want the island over run by tourists and supports a historical farm site for tours. This opposition is very realistic. Here on Hatteras Island, we’ve had the same problem. Did you imagine the problem or did you research island commercial issues?
This was one aspect of the book that I didn't have to research because the reason the two Dickens brothers, each in his own way, does his best to stop progress is emotionally driven.
Yes, William Kidd married a wealthy woman and lived in lower Manhattan and owned property there.
Delia is trying to update the General Store’s stock to increase sales and move merchandise. Although her dad asked for help, he seems resistant to change and the updates Delia makes, even though her sales are increasing. What is with Graham and Brad—are they both not being realistic?
They aren't realistic. While their wives see the need to keep up with the times, Graham and Brad have a problem moving ahead. Though Graham tells Gillian and then Delia that he welcomes their suggestions to improve and update the Dickens General Store, he does everything he can to maintain the status quo. Brad does the same when it comes to supporting new housing and a ferry to Connecticut. Their mother Helena, who appears to Delia in ghostly form, says her sons are trying, each in his own way, to keep the island how it was when their father was alive. Ironic, Helena says since their father was always for progress that would bring more residents and visitors to the island.
Wayne, Delia’s brother, a successful novelist and local newspaper owner, warns her not to get involved in their father’s plots to save his brother’s marriage or the fractured locals. Their mother has taken over Delia’s Manhattan apartment for the last four months. How does Wayne’s warning to Delia relate to their mother?
Wayne has the wonderful ability to lead his life exactly as he likes, while maintaining a good relationship with both his parents. Now that their mother isn't around to smooth things over, Graham has asked Delia to "do something" about the rift between Brad and Reenie. Wayne tells his sister that she doesn't have to take on the role of arbiter simply because their father wants her to.
The same day a local woman, who serves on the town council, is murdered, Conner goes missing. Conner said he was going to school and then would spend the afternoon with his friend Trevor, who has a rough and somewhat criminal family. But when the school calls wondering why Conner didn’t come to school, Delia covers for him, letting them think Conner was sick. Why did she do that?
Delia is surprised to find herself lying to protect her son from being considered truant that day. Her maternal protectiveness has taken over. Of course, Connor is glad that Delia has covered for him, and it goes a long way to improve their relationship. But Delia insists on giving him a punishment for cutting school--finally removing his possessions from the garage.
A stray dog finds Delia and her house. She takes him in and buys him food and treats and then names him Riley. She likes the dog, but does she think having a dog will bribe Conner into trusting her?
Delia has no intention of bribing her son. Both she and Connor fall instantly in love with the Bearded Collie that follows Connor home one day. This new shared interest brings mother and son closer together. Delia takes the dog to Jack Morrison, the local vet who's her former boyfriend, to be examined and groomed. When Jack finds out that Riley's owner has died, Delia arranges to adopt Riley.
Conner found a secret room he shows to Delia. It stores her grandmother’s correspondence and historical books and journals. Does sharing that secret draw Delia and Conner closer?
Jack Morrison, the local vet, and Delia had a hot and heavy teenage romance, until he went to college and emailed her breaking it off. He basically ghosted her. For Delia, who loved him, it was a devastating experience that set her up for the bad relationship she had with her ex-husband. But she has to see him to find out if Riley has a chip and if he was a patient. How did it set her up for a terrible later relationship? When he asks her out, why does she say yes?
When Jack ended their relationship, Delia was devastated. She thought their love would last forever. She convinces herself that the break up happened because she doesn't have what's necessary to keep a man interested in her. And so her self-confidence flags. When she meets her future husband in college, she ignores small signs of danger, unconsciously telling herself that she can't afford to be too picky. Things are okay until she becomes pregnant and becomes aware that her husband won't tolerate anyone who takes her total attention from himself, including their infant son.
Delia's first reaction when Jack asks her out is to say no. She's been burned once by him. But at the reception following the funeral service for the murdered woman, Jack tells Delia that he regretted breaking up with her all those years ago, and he did it because he was afraid he'd fallen in love with her. Hearing this, Delia agrees to go to dinner with him.
When Delia enters her grandmother’s secret room with Riley, she encounters her ghost. When Riley bolts for the door, Delia opens the door for Riley to escape, but her grandmother pleads with her to stay and tell her what has been happening in town. Why does she want to know about the town’s current events?
Helena was always actively involved in Dickens Island affairs. She taught elementary school on the island, ran the Dickens General Store, and became the island's first manager (mayor.) When Delia was young, her grandmother told her she'd return to Dickens Island and would be involved in its management. Delia insisted this would never happen, but it seems Helena might have been right. Helena, while wanting to know that her sons' marriages will be all right, is also sort of the island's Guardian Angel
What’s next for Delia, Conner, and Riley?
More mysteries and adventures.
