The Pines Were Watching

Summary

The pines are watching, the shadows are creeping closer, and no one—not even the sheriff—is safe from the secrets of the Northwoods.

When Joanie Crea is found strangled on the grounds of the crumbling Grandgeorge estate, Sheriff Red Hammergren faces a chilling mystery as dark as the dense forest surrounding the crime scene. All eyes turn to Derek Grandgeorge, the reclusive heir with a penchant for wearing a green jacket—even in the sweltering Minnesota summer.

But soon, a second body surfaces—a victim found with Joanie's house key shoved into their mouth.

The gruesome discovery sends a shiver of dread through the tight-knit community. The key isn't just evidence—it's a macabre message from a killer who's growing bolder and more brazen with each passing day. As the oppressive summer heat bears down and the shadows deepen, Red glimpses unsettling flashes of green at the edge of her vision. With a cunning murderer on the loose and the town spiraling into panic, Red must unravel the connection between the victims . . . before she becomes the final piece in the killer's twisted game.