The bequest of an unknown person—this is where many unpleasant troubles begin. But a governess’s life isn’t full of joys, so Miss Murray had no doubts, for even a second, about whether to accept the house on Maine Island and, though modest, the fortune that came with it. She also wasn’t alerted by the strange condition: for a year, the heir must live in the mansion without leaving the limits of the island. There’s no such thing as free cheese except in a mouse trap, and the walls of an old building conceal terrible secrets.
Miss Murray is far from the first owner of a house whose windows overlook the ruins of the ominous Cronk Castle. A black phantom dog foretells trouble—but the far greater danger is the darkness in people’s souls. And yet ahead of Miss Murray there will be not only dangers, but also an important meeting that could change her life.