Caitlin Mullen - "Heather"
Dear Reader,
I’m honored to have the opportunity to introduce you to my sophomore novel, HEATHER. Set in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, HEATHER tells the story of newly instated Chief of Police Callie Hauser, who makes an unexpected arrest that resurrects a cold case from thirty years ago.
Callie takes on the case of the Riley sisters, teenagers who disappeared without a trace in the 1990s, uncovering long-buried secrets about the town where she grew up and about the people she thinks she knows best.
As a New Jersey resident, I relished the opportunity to dig more deeply into the history and ecology of the Pine Barrens as I wrote. The eerie beauty and isolation of the Pine Barrens made for a rich and vivid setting for a mystery: a place where secrets could remain hidden over decades, where the myth of the infamous Jersey Devil was born, where the landscape felt unknowable in the same way the cold case at the heart of the book felt unknowable for Callie.
The book is being described as a literary mystery for fans of Tana French and Liz Moore. As with my first novel, PLEASE SEE US, it was my goal for HEATHER to tell a layered, interesting story while also raising questions about what our collective ideas about justice—who gets punished, for which crimes—say about our values as a country and a culture.
As a Princeton resident, it feels particularly special to share more about the book with all of you with the help of Cloak and Dagger. I’m so lucky to be a part of this mystery-loving community.
All my best,
Caitlin
Author Bio
Caitlin Mullen is the author of Please See Us, which won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel and was named a New York Times best crime novel of the year 2026. She lives in New Jersey with her husband and children.
Visit Caitlin’s Website and follow her on Instagram.