How ‘The Ghost and Mrs Muir’ inspired my new cozy mystery series!
There’s something about a good ghost story that’s always captivated me. Maybe it’s because I’ve had my own brush with the unexplained—those moments where the air turns thick, the shadows seem to breathe, and you just know you’re not alone. Or maybe it’s because I’ve always been drawn to the idea of spirits lingering, unfinished business keeping them tethered to our world. Whatever the reason, my love for ghostly tales is woven through all my books, from the small-town magic of my Mosswood series to the celestial mysteries of my Death series. And of course, it’s at the very heart of my new Sleepy Hollow Mysteries series, which was deeply inspired by one of my all-time favourite paranormal love stories: The Ghost and Mrs. Muir.
A love story between worlds
For those who haven’t seen it, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir is a classic 1947 film (based on the novel by R.A. Dick) about a young widow, Lucy Muir, who moves to a seaside cottage only to discover it’s still inhabited by the ghost of its former owner, a gruff sea captain named Daniel Gregg. What begins as an uneasy truce between the two soon turns into something deeper—a love story that transcends time, space, and even death itself. The film is romantic, melancholic, and full of that wistful longing that comes with knowing that some love stories are never meant to exist in the physical world.
It’s that very feeling that inspired my own take on a ghostly romance. My protagonist, Ivy Hearst, is a woman who can see ghosts—a gift (or curse) that puts her at odds with both the living and the dead. When she moves to Sleepy Hollow to escape a demon haunting her past, she takes up residence in the caretaker’s cottage at the historic cemetery. The catch? The cottage is still occupied by its previous caretaker—who just happens to be a ghost.
Ghosts, grief, and finding home
Like Mrs. Muir, Ivy is a woman seeking independence, a fresh start, and a place to belong. And like Captain Gregg, Jude (the ghostly caretaker) is a bit of a relic from the past—grumpy, territorial, and completely unprepared for a stubborn woman barging into his afterlife. Their dynamic echoes the slow burn of The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, but with an added layer of mystery and danger as Ivy’s ability to see spirits draws her into solving supernatural crimes.
Beyond the romance, what I love about these kinds of stories is how they explore themes of grief, healing, and the idea that love (in all its forms) doesn’t end just because someone is no longer among the living. That theme runs through much of my work, whether it’s Rosie in Mosswood discovering that magic runs through her bloodline, or Bunny in the Death books finding herself entangled with Death himself. These women are all facing the unknown—sometimes with fear, sometimes with defiance, but always with sass and a determination to uncover the truth.
Why I’ll always write about the paranormal
Ghosts, spirits, and the mysteries of the afterlife aren’t just tropes to me—they feel real, tangible, and deeply personal. I’ve had enough unexplained experiences in my life to know that our world is full of things we can’t always see or understand. Maybe that’s why I can’t resist writing stories where the paranormal isn’t just a backdrop, but a living, breathing force shaping the characters’ lives.
At its core, my Sleepy Hollow series (and the rest of my work) is about learning to embrace the unknown. It’s about standing at the edge of the supernatural and deciding whether to run—or to step forward and find out what’s waiting on the other side. So if you, like me, have ever felt a chill when there was no draft, or heard a voice when no one was there—maybe it’s just your imagination.
Or maybe, just maybe, it’s something more.