A Gripping Mountain Mystery That Will Keep You Turning Pages
"In these hills the rivers keep secrets"
A wealthy developer is found dead. A Black Cherokee herbalist faces a lifetime in prison. And a former drug smuggler turned dog treat baker holds the key to the truth.
Mary Susan Baade thought she'd buried her past as a marijuana kingpin when she opened her charming dog treat bakery in Franklin, North Carolina. But when Atlanta developer Hollis Blackwood arrives with plans to bottle and sell sacred Cherokee spring water, her peaceful mountain sanctuary explodes into deadly conflict.
When Blackwood turns up murdered, seventy-three-year-old Eliza Whitaker-who publicly threatened him with ancient Cherokee justice-becomes the obvious suspect. But Mary knows better. As she and Walter Allen, a former congressman with his own hidden government connections, dig deeper into Franklin's secrets, they uncover a shocking web of corruption that reaches from local pharmacies to corporate boardrooms.
Because some secrets are worth killing for... and some are worth dying to protect.
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"Sanctuary" delivers everything mystery lovers crave: a puzzling murder, complex characters with hidden depths, and a setting so vivid you'll taste the mountain air. But it's the moral questions-about justice, community, and protecting what's sacred-that will stay with you long after the final page.
From the Author of Confluence
Walter A Cook brings his experience with Florida marijuana smuggling, politics, and even dog bakeries to create this authentic tale of murder, corruption, and redemption in the Smoky Mountain hollows.
What Readers Are Discovering:
Authentic Appalachian Setting - Experience the real Franklin, NC, from Main Street's dog bakery to hidden mountain hollers where meth labs operate alongside sacred Cherokee springs
Complex Murder Mystery - Multiple suspects with deadly motives, from corrupt pastors and pharmaceutical conspirators to environmental activists with fake identities.
Moral Dilemmas That Matter - When the legal system fails and justice conflicts with law, how far would you go to protect the innocent?
Environmental Thriller Elements - Corporate water theft, contaminated watersheds, and the fight to preserve Cherokee sacred sites from modern exploitation
Walter A. Cook is what locals in the Great Smoky Mountains call a "Halfback"-not the gridiron kind, but the breed of human who fled the cold out of New England, got sand in his shorts and shoes down in Florida, and then retreated to the relative sanity of Franklin, North Carolina before he could be swallowed whole by a condo developer or eaten alive by invasive iguanas.
He's the kind of guy who's lived enough lives to make a cat jealous and like that cat is still alive. Armed with a couple of degrees (actual framed ones, not honorary tattoos from dive bars), Walter's sold sailboats to dreamers, served drinks and grouper sandwiches to schemers, and baked dog treats for pooches who were much more appreciative of his cooking art.
This wasn't the plan. The plan went off-road years ago-detoured by fate, folly, and a muse named Mary Susan, who is part co-conspirator, part soulmate, and wholly responsible for making the detour look like destiny of life's dreams.
Walter's trajectory reads like a Jimmy Buffett B-side: part memoir, part misstep, full of motion. There's tragedy in the tequila and magic in the moonshine, and through it all, he's embraced the chaos with a grin and a shrug that says, "The GPS lied, but the view's pretty damn nice."
He's telling stories now, layered with wit, grit, and that "I'm old enough not to care" disdain for the absurdities of modern civilization. So, if you're ready for crooked politicians, eccentric small-town heroes, and a dash of environmental vengeance, saddle up. Walter may not know exactly where he's headed, but he promises the ride will be worth it and the view will be loved.
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