Description
From the moment she heard about the engagement party Rebecca Bartlett had her doubts she'd be able to return to her family home. Rebecca, eighteen and ready to move on to college, does not want to spend her summer working at of Rose Hill Plantation on Hilton Head.
Three year ago, she attended a party to celebrate the wedding of Bethany Upton and her father, Maxwell Bartlett. The party turned into a tragic accident. A Gazebo burned and Bethany was found dead. Rebecca along with her father, uncle and aunt all witnessed the fire and the chaos. Rebecca is haunted by the image and has nightmare which her best friend helps her through.
Rebecca was shocked this past Christmas at her home in Beaufort when her father, Max, announced his engagement to Anna Lee Templeton Ashton. Anna Lee is an old friend who recently moved back to the adjoining plantation.
Rebecca thinks it is too soon for her father to get involved again. Her Aunt Isabel, who lives at Rose Hill with her husband John, disagrees and thinks it's time to reopen Rose Hill.
All is well until the new local sheriff hears about the wedding and tries to reopen the arson case. Rebecca's Uncle John, not wanting to put up with the sheriff, accepts a job assignment in England. Without a John, Max turns to his daughter and says, "You can do the planning."
Completely unnerved Rebecca faces her return to Rose Hill. The moment her aunt doesn't answer the door she knows things are not going to go well. Aunt Isabelle, who works at home as a librarian, has no empathy about Rebecca's plight. Her major concern is that her husband, John has left her to plan the party.
Her best friend Liz is fascinated by Hilton Head and the spooky plantation She cheerfully agrees to help her plan the party and be there if she has any more. She hopes Rebecca will share more details of the accident. And she can help her.
Liz, the practical friend has great suspicions about anything ghostly. But she does agree to do some research on ghost and help her friend plan the party.
Aunt Isabelle is having her own angst about her decision. The Templeton's and the Bartlett's neighbors and friends for decades. What she thought would be a fun reunion between old friends is sprinkled with surprises. Anna Lee is more California than she thought. John, her husband, is not there.
Best friendships are tested when Rebecca encounters an apparition and believes it to be Bethany. Liz learns Bethany was a local woman and a concert pianist.
The father daughter relation becomes tense. Rebecca knows how important his new love is, but she's not his top priority. However, she agreed to help and now she must plan the party.
There is a plantation history that her uncle has documented with his map of Underground Railroad tunnels.
The girls uncover the property history, its secrets, a murder, and its ghost.
Family and friendship tension runs high as door rattling's and ghostly apparitions haunt Rebecca and Liz while they work their way through planning a party in Rose Hill's historic ball room.