Gray Ledges (A Novel)

Inspired by true events about a coastal Maine village in the 1930s, Gray Ledges explores the lives of two women who operate competing hotels in an idyllic summer resort. Amidst the strife of the Great Depression, economic instability, and political upheaval, nothing is as it seems in the quaint seaside village of Gray Ledges, where tensions simmer between innkeepers and their guests, visitors and residents, shopkeepers and their families—all of whom have less than they pretend . . . and much more to hide. Hailed by documentary filmmaker Ric Burns as “a new American Downton Abbey,” Gray Ledges is full of drama, intrigue, humor, and a generous portion of Down East charm.

In July 1935, two years after her husband’s mysterious sailing accident in Great Bay, former silent film star Charlotte Hylander returns to her summer estate in the tiny coastal village of Gray Ledges. Her husband’s death has left her without means to manage their lavish summer estate. Now Charlotte is faced with selling her beloved “Bourne End” at auction.

Nearby, the efficient Clara Dyar and husband Morris run the ever-popular Bayberry Lodge. Despite hard times, the hotel business is booming.

When the mysterious Edward Nadir rolls into town on his new Vincent motorcycle, he artfully maneuvers his way into Charlotte’s estate, and tensions heat up. When Mrs. Dyar sees Mr. Nadir kneeling at the edge of the sea in a pool of blood, she witnesses what will be the beginning of a very strange summer.