The World of She Doesn’t Have A Clue

Jan 22, 2025 | 2025 Articles, Mysteryrat's Maze

by Jenny Elder Moke

When I first envisioned writing what would become my debut adult novel, She Doesn’t Have A Clue, I knew I wanted to set it in the Pacific Northwest. I needed somewhere beautiful, and wild, and deeply unique to meet the tone of my half-mystery, half-romantic comedy story about a writer on deadline at her ex-fiancé’s wedding who stumbles over the bride’s lifeless body and becomes the prime suspect in her poisoning. The San Juan Islands serve as the perfect remote, storied setting for Hempstead Manor, the old-money family house where the wedding takes place. And the history of Elliot Bay created the perfect opportunity to bring that family history to life.

Seattle was in a unique position when Prohibition was first enacted in the United States in 1920. Washington State had passed their own Prohibition several years earlier, which meant the bootleggers and speakeasy owners already knew the lay of the land by the time the country outlawed alcohol. Being on the water, and only a few hours away from Canada, meant that Seattle became a major bootlegging hotspot in the 1920s. And the waterways of Elliot Bay were the highways by which they operated.

My imagination ran wild at the idea of what kind of family could stake their fortunes during such a tumultuous time, and so the Hempstead legacy was born:

The private island of the Hempstead family that included Kennedy Hempstead had once been known as Rum Island. Situated to the northwest corner of the San Juan Islands archipelago, it was a prime location for hiding contraband alcohol from police boats during Prohibition. Russell Hempstead took the profits from his timber mill and purchased good Canadian whiskey, selling it back to Seattle’s elites at triple the cost. He then opened his own bank, solidifying his family’s fortune for generations to come.

From there, it was a matter of building all that rich history into the architecture of the house itself. Hunting lodges designed by the likes of Frank Lloyd Wright, a vast collection of European statuary, an entire wine cellar still full of barrels of Canadian whiskey, and hidden doors all fit seamlessly into the Hempstead family lore, while creating ample opportunities for mischief in a murder mystery:

Jenny Elder Moke
Photo by Brenna Hodge

Kate headed for the wine cave. A puff of cool, dry air greeted her from the top of the stone steps. It certainly had the feel of a hidden distillery as Kate descended. Earthy and dark, the walls set in close like they were meant to inspire claustrophobia. Or stop the G-men from gumming up the works while you made a quick escape.

And of course, no house built during Prohibition and used to hide bootleg liquor would be complete without its own complicated network of secret passageways:

“The secret passages,” Kate said. “What do you know about them? Where do they go?”

“Who knows?” Richie said. “All over the house, I think. Apparently great-grandpa Russell built them to hide his imported Canadian whiskey. He was super paranoid about the G-men even up to his death, so he never told anyone where they were or how to open them. Aunt Rebecca spent years trying to clear them out and catalog them after she inherited. Found four skeletons. Four. Two were animals, but one was a child-sized human and the other was clearly a man in a suit. We have no idea who they were, how they got in there, anything. I never set foot in those passages.”

Secret passages, bootleg whiskey, and plenty of spooky stories bring the true history of Prohibition in the San Juan Islands to life in She Doesn’t Have A Clue. I had so much fun learning about this time in Seattle’s history, and I only hope readers lose themselves in the world of Hempstead Manor the same way I did while creating it.

You can click here to purchase this book from Amazon.

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JENNY ELDER MOKE is the author of award-winning children’s and adult literature. She enjoys fast-paced adventures with plenty of mysteries, surprising turns, and laughs along the way. When she’s not writing, you can find her knitting, puzzling, or fighting imaginary crime as a black belt in Tae Kwon Do. She Doesn’t Have a Clue is her adult debut. Jenny lives in Denver, CO.

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.

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