Kathleen Ernst

Four months after her turbulent arrival, Pomeranian immigrant Hanneke Bauer is still struggling to feel at home on the Wisconsin farm she inherited from her husband. She does savor a growing friendship with tinsmith Karoline Ketzler, but that solace vanishes when Karoline's daughter Jacobine finds her father dead from a vicious attack. When the deputy sheriff's suspicions fall on Karoline, Hanneke employs her own talents to investigate the crime....

In the early 1700s, twelve-year-old Suzette, an Ojibwa-French girl, hopes that her father will win the fur-trapping contest so that he can quit being a voyageur and stay with his family year-round, but when he is accused of stealing, Suzette must use her knowledge of both French and Ojibwa ways to find the real thief.

Trying to leave painful memories behind her, Chloe Ellefson is making a fresh start. She's the new collections curator at Old World Wisconsin, an outdoor ethnic museum showcasing 1870's settlement life. On her first day, Chloe meets with an elderly woman who begs her to find a priceless eighteenth-century Norwegian ale bowl that had been donated to the museum years ago. But before Chloe can find the heirloom and return it to her, the woman dies in...

An island's history holds clues to a modern murder. Solitude at last! Museum curator Chloe Ellefson jumps at the chance to spend time on Wisconsin's Rock Island, a state park with no electricity or roads. Hired as a consultant for a project to restore the island's lighthouse, her research turns up fascinating tough-as-nails women from the past. Chloe's tranquility is spoiled when a dead woman washes ashore. Is it just another accidental drowning?...

Caroline and her mother make a dangerous journey across Lake Ontario to the British fort where Papa is being held prisoner. When Mama isn't allowed to see Papa, it's up to Caroline to pass a secret message to him--right under the nose of a British guard! She hopes desperately that Papa will understand her message and make an escape. But can she get to him in time? The illustrated "Looking Back" section explores how the War of 1812 affected women and...

A letter arrives for Caroline, asking her to come help her uncle Aaron and cousin Lydia on their new farm for the summer. Although Caroline is reluctant to leave her family, she's eager to lend a hand. So when she suspects that a thief has been stealing much-needed food from the farm, Caroline helps keep watch to guard against the uninvited visitor. Then she makes an unexpected discovery--and learns that some things are not as simple as they seem....

Caroline's father has just returned when they receive frightening news--British warships are sailing to attack Sackets Harbor. Every grown man, including Papa, has been called to defend the village. Mama and Caroline are left alone to guard Abbott's Shipyard as the battlefront draws ever closer. Caroline knows she must be brave to keep Papa's shipyard safe. But when the battle seems lost, Mama gives her a terrible order: burn the shipyard to the ground....

A stranger leads Josefina to believe that the old stories about buried treasure in New Mexico might be true.