The trouble at Pinelands : $b A detective story

The Trouble at Pinelands by Ernest M. Poate is a detective novel written in the early 20th century. Set in a small North Carolina town, it follows elderly bachelor George Uhlman as he keeps watch over Dorothy McGregor, her exacting invalid aunt Mary, and their sleepy nurse in a gloomy, possibly haunted house. Rumors of a mischievous “poltergeist,” simmering feuds, and town rivalries quickly give way to a sudden death that throws suspicion on Dorothy’s fiancé, young Dr. Lewis Parker. The mystery promises a blend of ghostly mischief, family tensions, and a hard-nosed investigation. The opening of the novel finds George sleepless in Fort House, unnerved by eerie clanks, crashes, and a terrible scream that Dorothy and Aunt Mary attribute to a “poltergeist” that breaks dishes and steals food. By morning, Aunt Mary—who prides herself on saintly patience—rails at the piercing bobwhite calls; Lewis vows to shoot the quail, even as a flippant telegram from his best man arrives. After Aunt Mary suffers a dramatic “spell,” Lewis summons the senior physician, Dr. Gaskell, who brusquely calls it hysteria, sparking a bitter quarrel. Meanwhile, Lewis also learns Gaskell has taken one of his cases, and a hulking mountaineer, Lafe Rutledge, publicly threatens Gaskell before sunrise; the family’s nurse, Miss Christie, panics at Rutledge’s name and refuses to explain. That night the shotgun is set by the door for Lewis’s dawn errand. At daybreak a single blast rings out: Gaskell lies dead in the scrub oaks, and the constable arrests Lewis as a hostile crowd gathers. Sheriff Redden arrives, scatters the would-be mob, and begins the investigation into whether a tragic accident or something darker has occurred.