Mysteries of Martha's Vineyard

Series · 23

books · 2015-2025

By Elizabeth Penney, Cara C. Putman, Janice Thompson, and more

Books in series

A Light in the Darkness

2015

Priscilla Latham Grant has inherited a lighthouse. She loads up her SUV, says goodbye to her lifelong home in Kansas, and heads as far east as one can possibly go without swimming! On the quaint and historic island of Martha's Vineyard just off the coast of Massachusetts, Priscilla comes face-to-face with adventure—one that includes rediscovered family, new friends, old homes, and head-scratching mysteries that crop up with surprising regularity.

Like a Fish Out of Water

2017

Priscilla finds an inscribed WWI sword hidden behind a painting in her bedroom wall. A generations old mystery comes to light. Will she be able to solve it?

Adrift

2017

2017 Guideposts Books hardcover, 2nd printing. Beth Adams (Never the Twain Shall Meet). Captain Gerald tells Priscilla that there is an abandoned houseboat moored anonymously in Vineyard Haven Harbor. The houseboat shows signs of foul play. Where is the owner and his dog? - Amazon

Maiden of the Mist

2017

As autumn leaves and cooler temperatures fall on Martha’s Vineyard, Priscilla finally seems to be finding her sea legs and feeling at home on the island. However, a ghostly visitor,known as the “weeping Woman,” begins to show up nightly on the cliff outside of her home. Why is she there? Is someone trying to scare Priscilla away from her beloved cottage and lighthouse! If so, could a local art dealer be involved? Does an eccentric woman with a crush on Gerald imagine Priscilla to be such a threat to her unrequited romance that she wants her gone? Or are the eerie apparitions part of a cruel Halloween prank played by a gang of troubled teens? A chain of mysterious events pushes Priscilla to find an answer to the unearthly visitation before someone takes things to a dangerous level!

Making Waves

2017

When a Congressional Medal belonging to World War II veteran Deanie Spangler goes missing at her hundredth birthday party, Priscilla is determined to find answers to the theft. Who would stoop so low to steal a keepsake from a decorated war hero? Can they recover the medal before all traces of its whereabouts dissolve? As Priscilla and Mildred scour the museum where the party was held, they begin to notice other artifacts missing. Is the thief preparing to strike again? Priscilla follows the clues to find a more sinister scheme in the making. Through the process of solving the mystery, she discovers a piece of the nation’s past she didn’t know existed and comes to a greater appreciation of the ordinary women and men who sacrificed so much to keep their families and friends safe—and their country free.

Don't Rock the Boat

2025

Priscilla is adjusting to her new life on Martha’s Vineyard. She loves waking each day to the sound of waves lapping the shoreline and the scent of fresh sea breezes. Though she’s still learning the culture, she no longer feels like a tourist in the community. But when a suitcase washes up on shore, Priscilla wonders if there’s more in store for her at Misty Harbor than just a change of scenery. Intrigued by the luggage and its mysterious contents, she begins a quest to find its owner. As clues draw her closer to the truth, she realizes life at the lighthouse could turn out to be anything but quiet.

A Port in the Storm

2017

Martha's Vineyard is buried in snow. Priscilla's first winter in the cottage drags on and snow continues to fall. She finds herself struggling with feelings of loneliness. She reaches out to others like an elderly neighbor and a lady who just arrived in town looking for her long lost family.

Thicker Than Water

2018

Has bookshelfwear

Swept Away

2018

A Hollywood film crew revives memories of 3 dramatic events in Martha's Vineyard's history. Priscilla learns they all occurred over the course of the same weekend and is convinced they are related. Priscilla has also painted her door a lemon yellow. Someone begins leaving ugly scratches in the paint.

#10

Bridge over Troubled Waters

2018

In the throes of a rough election season, the wife of the town’s slyest, most-reelected politician goes missing from the Woods Hole ferry. Victor Fox’s chief opponent, Tony McClaren, has sworn he’ll do whatever it takes to topple Victor’s iron-fisted reign. Could that include kidnapping Fox’s wife, Betty? Priscilla hears rumors that Victor has been seeing another woman—his secretary, Eliza, and Priscilla’s investigation takes on new urgency when she discovers the woman was on the same ferry as Betty. Did Betty take her own life—or meet with foul play? Or has she simply slipped away, hoping to start anew? As Priscilla digs further into Betty’s disappearance, she soon realizes that finding the truth presents her with her greatest challenge yet. In the midst of the investigation surrounding Betty’s disappearance, Tony McClaren asks for Priscilla’s help on the campaign trail. However, Priscilla soon begins to think he’s interested in more than just a volunteer for his campaign. Will Priscilla be able to assure him—and Captain Gerald O’Bannon—that all she can offer the would-be politician is friendship?

#11

Smoke on the Water

2018

Has bookshelf wear

#12

Shifting Sands

2018

The summer tourist season is in full swing, and Priscilla Latham Grant is enjoying the visitors to the family history museum, housed in the lighthouse she inherited from her aunt Marjorie. But when one visitor comes bearing a deed he claims gives him rights to the land upon which the lighthouse sits, Priscilla is compelled to learn more.

#13

Shark Bait

2018

As the annual Martha’s Vineyard International Film Festival is set to begin, Priscilla accompanies Mildred and a group of islanders to receive delivery of one of the giant sharks used as a prop in the blockbuster hit Jaws, which had been filmed on the island. But when they arrive t the beach where the shark was to be delivered, it’s not there. Mildred quickly enlists Priscilla’s help in finding the shark, but Priscilla doesn’t know where to begin. Meanwhile, Priscilla agreed to host an event for Third Time Productions at the lighthouse, but everything seems to be going wrong. Can Priscilla possibly find the missing shark while racing to fulfill all the production company’s many needs?

#14

Seascape in Shadows

2018

Priscilla decides to take the painting down that is hanging over her fireplace to be cleaned. She finds out that under all the layers paint hides a famous painting that was stolen 50 years ago. The painting then vanishes she finds she is both suspect and in danger from the real thief.

#15

Storm Tide

2018

Another entry in this series from Guideposts. Priscilla Latham Grant, and her cousin discover a woman’s skeleton under a tree during a storm. Heiress Bitsy Parker disappeared in the 1930s, thought to have run away. Priscilla digs into the mystery of Bitsy’s death while helping Bitsy’s descendant bring embezzlers in the family firm to justice.

#16

Water Flows Uphill

2018

It's Christmas and Priscilla wants to find the perfect gifts for her friends and family. At a local art store a man approaches them that seems to know Joan. Priscilla doesn't trust him. Why hasn't Joan talked about him before?

#17

Catch of the Day

2018

When hard-earned fishermen pension funds disappear, all eyes are on the only person with access to the online account—Sonya Fleming, the flashy selectwoman with high-dollar fashion sense. When Joan asks Priscilla to get involved on her dear friend’s behalf, Priscilla learns that Sonya is no spendthrift, despite her reputation of extravagance. But if not Sonya, who could be bilking funds from the island’s fishermen? And can the depleted funds be replenished for the fishermen on Martha’s Vineyard waters? As Priscilla looks for the answers that seem so elusive, Uncle Hugh suffers a medical emergency that causes Priscilla to, once again, reflect on how frail and precious life truly is. Can Priscilla offer her cousins the support they each need as Uncle Hugh begins the road to recovery?

#19

Wider Than An Ocean

2018

When Priscilla sees a small plane go down over the marsh, she immediately calls 911. But the authorities insist no distress calls were made, and no planes were reported missing. When she finally locates the downed craft, she discovers that the pilot has vanished, and all signs indicate he wanted to disappear. What was on that plane that the pilot was so desperate to hide? Priscilla sets out to solve the mystery—and soon finds herself enmeshed in a plot that might prove too dangerous even for her. Meanwhile, when Gerald asks Priscilla to put together an Easter egg hunt at the Coast Guard station, she looks forward to working with him on it. But the reality doesn’t match her expectations as the ever-more-complicated project drives a wedge between them

#20

Sheeps Passing in the Night

2018

It’s springtime in Martha’s Vineyard, and Priscilla attends the annual Lambapalooza festival going on at Derry Wilson’s farm. When a cryptic message is sheared into Derry’s prize sheep Sally, just as the animal is about to go into auction, Priscilla—aided by Gerald and her cousins—sets out to find out who’s behind the prank. Is it the animal activist who pickets the event each year, the rival farmers with a history of conflict with Derry, or someone else intent on mischief? Meanwhile, something is troubling Gerald, and Priscilla finds it almost as much of a mystery as the sabotaged sheep. Can she uncover answers to both puzzling mysteries?

#22

Waves of Doubt

2023

Prickly Virginia Lawrence, a preeminent scholar of Vineyard history, is also a notorious recluse. Therefore, the island is abuzz when Priscilla manages to book a library lecture with the local eccentric. However, on the evening of the event, Virginia is a no-show and nowhere to be found, and the valuable museum artifacts in her possession are now missing as well. As Priscilla delves into the mystery of Virginia’s ill-timed disappearance, a seemingly unrelated puzzle emerges. Could a rash of random cemetery plunderings somehow be connected to the missing historian? As pressure builds to find Virginia and the missing priceless artifacts, she begins to doubt her own instincts—especially when she spies Gerald having mysterious dinner meetings with a lovely blonde-haired woman.

#23

Lifeline

2019

In this entry in the Mysteries of Martha's Vineyard series, Priscilla Latham Grant volunteers to help with a Wild Food Challenge featuring a talented group of young chefs, including Gerald's cousin. But one of the chefs is bent on winning—at all costs. At the same time, preparations are ramping up for her daughter’s wedding. Then Rachel’s FBI agent fiancé disappears…can Priscilla and Gerald find him before it’s time to say I do?

#24

Flotsam & Jetsam (Mysteries of Martha's Vineyard #24

2019

Priscilla and Gerald’s preparations for their upcoming nuptials are interrupted when Gerald’s heirloom eighteenth century ship’s figurehead is stolen from the East Shore Historical Museum. While the police try to track down the culprit, elderly Alzheimer’s patient Tom Campbell claims he knows how it was done, but he doesn’t remember who did it or when. It soon appears, however, that the thief would rather get rid of the old man than have him remember too much. Can Priscilla find the figurehead and the thief before Tom is silenced forever? Meanwhile, when Gerald’s grandson surprises him with a puppy, Gerald wants to keep little Matey at Priscilla’s house until Gerald and Priscilla’s wedding. But with everything else going on in Priscilla’s life, this latest added burden makes her wonder—is she really ready to give up her independence and get married again?

#25

Just Over the Horizon

2019

Wedding bells are ringing for Priscilla and Gerald. But when someone repeatedly sabotages a popular pirate-themed tourist ship and island attraction, Captain Jack’s High Seas Adventures, of course, Priscilla, Gerald, and the cousins jump in to help. Can they figure what’s going on before the saboteur drives the island’s much-loved Hale family out of business? Unfortunately, the time they must devote to sleuthing threatens to sabotage Priscilla’s efforts to put the final touches on her wedding plans. And when a falling steeple thwarts their hopes for a lovely church wedding, can Priscilla and Gerald find a perfect last-minute change in venue for their big day?

Authors

Cara C. Putman lives in Indiana with her husband and four children. She is a clinical assistant professor in law and ethics at Purdue University's School of Business. She has loved reading and writing from a young age and now realizes it was all training for writing books. She loves bringing history and legal romantic suspense to life. An honors graduate of the University of Nebraska, George Mason University School of Law, and Krannert School of Management, Cara left small town Nebraska and headed to Washington, D.C., to launch her career in public policy. Cara is an author chasing hard after God as she lives a crazy life. She invites you to join her on that journey. She's currently writing her 41st book with more on the way. Please check out her website to learn more about her books and read first chapters.

Janice Thompson

Author · 50 books

Welcome to the wacky, wonderful world of inspirational author Janice Hanna Thompson, where romantic comedy rules the day! I hope you love to laugh, because I make it my goal to tickle your funny bone at every turn in my light-hearted tales. Whether you’re looking for inspirational romance, quirky cozy mysteries, light-hearted historicals or fun books for younger readers, you will find it here. You will also find an abundance of non-fiction books, guaranteed to ease life’s burdens. Why do I focus on the light-hearted stuff? Because life is hard! My readers lead busy, chaotic lives and need those special “Calgon, Take Me Away!” moments! Providing “Love, Laughter and Happily Ever Afters” brings me great delight. Lest you think it’s all fluff, think again! Woven between the lines of each cheerful tale you will find the ultimate love story, one guaranteed to stir your soul and get your heart fluttering. Talk about a real happily ever after! There’s something for everyone on my site, so settle back in your chair, grab a cup of Earl Grey tea, and get ready to discover a light-hearted approach to life!

Tricia Goyer is a busy mom of ten, grandmother of two, and wife to John. Somewhere around the hustle and bustle of family life, she manages to find the time to write fictional tales delighting and entertaining readers and non-fiction titles offering encouragement and hope. A bestselling author, Tricia has published thirty-three books to date and has written more than 500 articles. She is a two time Carol Award winner, as well as a Christy and ECPA Award Nominee. In 2010, she was selected as one of the Top 20 Moms to Follow on Twitter by SheKnows.com. Tricia is also on the blogging team at MomLifeToday.com, TheBetterMom.com and other homeschooling and Christian sites.In addition to her roles as mom, wife and author, Tricia volunteers around her community and mentors teen moms. She is the founder of Hope Pregnancy Ministries in Northwestern Montana, and she currently leads a Teen MOPS Group in Little Rock, AR. Learn more about Tricia at www.triciagoyer.com.

DeAnna Julie Dodson has always been an avid reader and a lover of storytelling, whether on the page, the screen or the stage. This, along with her keen interest in history and her Christian faith, shows in her tales of love, forgiveness and triumph over adversity. A fifth-generation Texan, she makes her home north of Dallas with four spoiled cats and, when not writing, spends her free time quilting, cross stitching and watching NHL hockey. Her first books, In Honor Bound, By Love Redeemed and To Grace Surrendered, are a trilogy of medieval romances and have just been redesigned and freshly edited for Kindle. She is also the author of the contemporary mystery, Letters in the Attic, and has recently signed on to write another Annie's Attic Mystery: The Key in the Attic, due out in 2012. Her newest books, yet to be released, are A Dinner of Herbs, a Civil War drama, and a 1930s English mystery, Rules of Murder. Civil as an Orange, her current work in progress, is the sequel to Rules of Murder. You can find out more about DeAnna and her books, including sample chapters, at her website: http://www.deannajuliedodson.com/

Nancy Mehl

Author · 42 books

Nancy Mehl is the bestselling author of over 50 books. She’s won the Daphne Du Maurier Award, as well as an ACFW Mystery Book of the Year Award and a Carol award. She was also a finalist for the prestigious Christy award. Her short story, Chasing Shadows, was in the USA Today bestselling Summer of Suspense anthology. Learn more about her at www.nancymehl.com and on her blog, the Suspense Sisters: www.suspensesisters.blogspot.com.