(This was originally my guest post over at Christy’s Cozy Corners during the recent blog tour. I like it so much I wanted to repost it on my own site. Thanks again to Christy for highlighting Driftless Spirits!)

My husband and I live a mile deep on a dead-end country lane, which itself is six miles of winding county roads away from a two-lane state highway.  Our driveway has one switchback to get partway up the hillside of a long, narrow valley.  First-time visitors are wide-eyed when they exit their car and we greet them at our door.  They usually say one of two things:

1. “Wow!  You’ve really found a little slice of heaven!”

OR

2. “If you kill me here, they’ll never find the body.”

Fitting for a cozy mystery setting, don’t you think?  The first response evokes the warmth of my favorite genre.  The second response suggests a perfect backdrop for hidden crimes.

When we retired in 2020 from jobs in the Chicago suburbs, I didn’t anticipate the sense of place the Driftless Area of Wisconsin would give me.  That sense became a catalyst for my writing.  For Driftless Spirits, I created the fictional Casten’s Horn by imagining how a small town might have been founded in the secluded valley I now call home. 

The title of the book has several meanings.  The main character, Charlotte, begins in a mental state much like mine at the end of my career.  Everything had become routine and that sameness had made me complacent.  It was a driftless feeling, like sleepwalking through life.  In hindsight, I found it strange that I wasn’t uncomfortable until I became aware I was in that state.  Then I became increasingly restless.  I drew on those feelings to launch Charlotte on her journey.

Of course, the title is also a literal reflection of the setting.  I’m in love with the Driftless Area and I hope to pass a little of that love on in every book in the series.  From the quirky festivals in small towns to the bountiful nature on display, this is a great place to visit or live.  It also provides endless inspiration.  The traditions in Casten’s Horn are a fictional reflection of small-town life inspired by the region.

Finally, “spirits” has one other meaning.  Appropriate to the area, Casten’s Horn was founded in 1860.  I needed present-day characters with distant memories to tell its rich backstory.  I wanted to write with a sense of history but avoid writing historical fiction.

Charlotte doesn’t arrive in Casten’s Horn knowing anything of its past.  She’s following her instincts as she searches for a strange house and a mysterious woman she encounters in a recurring dream.  She has many secrets to uncover as she also finds her sense of place. As it turns out, Casten’s Horn is a little slice of heaven AND a great place to hide crimes, both past and present.

If you’re interested in Charlotte’s journey, and the mystery she becomes entangled in when she reaches a small town in the Driftless, here are some links: