THE BOOK: Raven’s Grave
PUBLISHED IN: September 19, 2023
THE AUTHOR: Charlotte Stuart
THE EDITOR: Jessica Bell
THE PUBLISHER: Vine Leaves Press
SUMMARY: A young boy dies during a midnight ceremony. A fish buyer and $75,000 goes missing. And a runaway becomes the object of an Alaskan wilderness search.
It is 1979 in a small native village in Alaska accessible only by boat. The local Tlingits continue to honor many traditions of the past, although increased contact with the outside world is accelerating a cultural shift. Caught in a slipstream of time, the village has become a curious blend of old and new.
When a young boy dies from a potion that was supposed to cure his limp, all the evidence points to the teenage shaman as the killer. It is up to Jonah St. Clair, the only police officer in the village, to solve the murder and, at the same time, find the missing fish buyer. To do so, he must use both his police skills and his knowledge of the local culture.
During his investigation, Jonah becomes prey and predator in a nighttime chase through the Alaskan wilderness and barely survives a rugged boat trip in dangerous waters. In the end, he not only apprehends a killer but discovers the bittersweet secret of the Raven’s Grave.
THE BACK STORY: Jonah St. Clair spends five years commercial fishing out of a remote native village with his father in the late 50s and becomes close friends with a Tlingit boy. When his mother dies unexpectedly, his father leaves Jonah in Koloshan where he lives with his friend’s grandfather for several years. Then, after a tour in Vietnam and six years with the LAPD Jonah returns to Koloshan as their only police officer. Although trained in modern criminology, he also relies on the wisdom gained from the stories told by his adopted Tlingit grandfather.
WHY THIS TITLE: “Raven” refers to the clan of one of the victims in the story.
WHY SOMEONE WOULD WANT TO READ IT: Raven’s Grave gives readers a glimpse into what it was like living in an isolated Alaskan fishing village in the late 70s. A reader who wants a smattering of adventure intertwined with a human story of cultural change mixed with guilt and greed should find this book interesting.
REVIEW COMMENTS:
“…in the tradition of Dana Stabenow’s beloved Kate Shugak novels. St. Clair emerges as a stolid, self-possessed rock of a hero for the book, and Stuart is equally adept at fleshing out her cast of supporting characters.”—Kirkus Review
“In Raven’s Grave, Charlotte Stuart has woven all the elements of a classic murder mystery, using a setting and knowledge of life in a rapidly disappearing piece of Alaskan culture, to masterfully evoke a gripping effect on readers.” —Vagabond Librarian Publishing
“The mystery plotline is written with complexities so the more it unfolded, the more twists and turns appeared. As a voracious mystery reader, I found myself enthralled with the story. Charlotte Stuart brings sophistication and cultural relevance to the mystery genre.” —NN Light’s Book Heaven
“This small town mystery set in South-eastern Alaska will keep you guessing until the end.” —Love Reading
“The author captures the ambiance of the remote Alaskan wilderness and the Native culture and its people perfectly. They charm their way into your heart with their ordinary lives and salt-of-the-earth personalities.” — Pikasho Deka for Readers’ Favorite
AUTHOR PROFILE: Before Charlotte Stuart PhD started writing full time, she left a tenured faculty position to go commercial fishing in Alaska, spent a year sailing in the Washington and Canadian San Juans, was a partner in a management consulting group and a VP of HR and Training.
Her current passion is for writing character-driven mysteries with twisty plots that include diverse topics such as friendship and betrayal, hidden treasure, chimeras, commercial fishing, phobias, and survival groups. She has published eleven mysteries since 2019 and recently received a 1st Place Series Award in the Chanticleer International Mystery & Mayhem competition for her Discount Detective Mysteries. Her books have also placed or made finals in other competitions including: a Reader Views Silver, a Global Book Bronze, and finals in Foreword Indies, Killer Nashville’s Silver Falchion and Eric Hoffer Awards.
Charlotte lives and writes on Vashon Island in the Pacific Northwest and is the past president of the Puget Sound Sisters in Crime and a member of the Mystery Writers of America.
AUTHOR COMMENTS: I fished out of an Alaskan village for nine seasons and became fascinated with the challenges people living in isolation face when confronted by outside influences. I also find the Tlingit culture and art appealing and value the time spent getting to know more about it.
SAMPLE CHAPTER: https://tinyurl.com/36z35tt9
LOCAL OUTLETS: Powell’s Books: https://www.powells.com/book/ravens-grave-9783988320223
WHERE ELSE TO BUY IT: Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Ravens-Grave-Charlotte-Stuart-ebook/dp/B0C7H927JN/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr= Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/raven-s-grave Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/ravens-grave-charlotte-stuart/1143633367?ean=9783988320230
PRICE:
Ebook: $5.99
Paperback: $17.99
CONTACT THE AUTHOR: https://www.charlottestuart.com
Snowflakes in a Blizzard 