MY REVIEW
It’s 1918. We’re on Orcas Island in Washington state with Lucy Nowhere. We have a seal head here, a seal head there, and a human head that adds to the mystery. There are so many suspects, I need a murder board to flush out the killer. I love when an author throws red herrings into the mystery. It makes my mind work overtime trying to find the killer myself, before the author does the reveal.
I love the connection Lucy had with the orcas. Many townfolk thought they were to blame for the seal heads and murders.
When Lucy’s benefactor dies, she finds she has inherited the island. Is she in danger? She has two romantic interests that are keeping their eye on her.
All things considered, I did enjoy my time on Orcas Island and feel you might too.
My thanks go out to NetGalley for the opportunity to read Heiress To Nowhere.
GOODREADS BLURB
An orphan races to uncover a killer—who may have come from the sea—when she and her beloved orcas fall under suspicion in this “atmospheric…beguiling” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) historical gothic mystery from the New York Times bestselling author of The Downstairs Girl, Stacey Lee.
1918. Orcas Island, Washington.
Lucy Nowhere has spent her eighteen years working on the vast estate of the eccentric shipbuilder who took her in after she washed ashore in a green canoe as a baby. But she has long wished for a life off the island, and in a matter of days, she is set to leave for college—and, for the first time, choose her own future.
Then she finds her employer’s severed head on the beach. Rumors swirl that a mischievous spirit and its minions, the sea wolves, have struck again. Lucy doesn’t believe in myths. She knows that a human—a human murderer—killed him. And when she is unexpectedly named heiress to the estate, she understands the next target is her.
Her closest friend, the estate’s vigilant young guard, begs her to escape while she can. But Lucy knows the only way she can discover who she is, and free the island of its curse, is to find the real killer—before she becomes the next victim.
- Genre: Fantasy, Fiction, Gothic, Historical Fiction, Gothic, Mystery
- 400 pages, Kindle Edition
- Expected publication March 17, 2026 by Sarah Barley Books / Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
ABOUT STACY LEE
Stacey Lee is the New York Times and Indie bestselling author of historical and contemporary young adult fiction, including THE DOWNSTAIRS GIRL, Reese’s Book Club Late Summer 2021 YA pick, and her most recent, LUCK OF THE TITANIC which received five starred reviews. A native of southern California and fourth-generation Chinese American, she is a founder of the We Need Diverse Books movement and writes stories for all kids (even the ones who look like adults). Find her
@staceyleeauthor on Instagram and Twitter, and @staceylee.author on Facebook.
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