The Enigma Journal

On a Minnesota farm in 1944, life isn't easy for Abigail Stahl. Her mother is dead, but no one will talk about her. A father she can't remember dictates her behavior via scathing letters from overseas while deflecting her pleas for the truth. Circumstances beyond her control thrust Abby into the clutches of a patriarchal uncle who demands unquestioning obedience. In the midst of the turmoil, Abby determines to solve the mystery of her mother's death. Aided by her scheming cousin, Darrell, she discovers tantalizing clues--unsigned love letters, a faded photograph of a man aiming a gun, a safari dress with a bullet hole. Enigmatic entries in her father's journal serve to deepen the mystery. As a young woman, a spirited and persevering Abby begins a journey of revelation when she travels to Africa to seek closure. Even there, ambiguity prevails. Was Ellen Stahl's death an accident? Or murder? As Abby manipulates a final confrontation between two brothers to expose the realities of the past, she discovers that love, acceptance, and reconciliation can transcend everything--even the truth.