The Tea House at Hollowmere Pond
Dessa Pickerel arrives at the village of Hollowmere by canal boat, expecting little more than a quiet cup of tea at the weathered establishment whose sign has long puzzled passing travelers. But the village by the pond is not what it seems. Strange letters begin arriving, signed only by the name Pell Rowant, and they speak of debts, disappearances, and a past Dessa does not remember living. The locals, Tom Brisket the boatman, Fen Imbry the keeper of the tea house, the Vesper twins Lotta and Corin, the watchful Briony Callow, and the elusive Esle Marrow, each guard their own piece of the puzzle, and each seems reluctant to let it go. As Dessa digs deeper, the boundary between memory and myth begins to blur. The pond itself holds something: reflections that do not behave as they should, and a truth that has waited years to be spoken aloud. When the final letter arrives, Dessa is forced to choose whether to walk away from Hollowmere forever, or to claim the place, and the history, that may already belong to her.