Heart of Glass

While a standalone mystery, Heart of Glass is the second novel set in the fictional town of Seaside, Washington, following Jennifer Hillier’s 2015 thriller Wonderland. The previous book details a scandal at the town’s titular amusement park. In this earlier novel, Deputy Police Chief Vanessa Castro investigates a body found at the park and a missing teenage employee. Her search exposes murder and sexual abuse stretching back decades and the secrets protected by people with a stake in Wonderland’s success. Exposing these crimes leads to the amusement park’s closure, destroying the local economy. This background is important for understanding Seaside in Heart of Glass, a community defined by its former dependence on a single economic engine. This mirrors the real-world struggles of single-industry towns, such as the decline of manufacturing centers in America’s Rust Belt, where the closure of a primary employer leads to widespread unemployment, population loss, and increased crime. 

In Heart of Glass, the reopening of the park under new ownership shows a fragile hope for recovery, while the characters still carry secrets associated with it. This context illuminates the immense pressure on local authorities to protect the town’s comeback at all costs.