Welcome to Oysterback - the sleepy town on Maryland's Eastern Shore that's been misplaced by mapmakers and forgotten by time. Once you find yourself in Oysterback, you may never want to leave. Nothing beats Desiree Grinch's corn soup at the Blue Crab Tavern. There's never a wait at The Curl Up 'N Dye Salon de Beaute. In season, you can buy your produce (as you pay your respects) at Dreedle's Funeral Parlor. There's bingo every Tuesday at the V.F.D. The Mosquito Festival is next week. And when the moon hangs over Widgeon Marsh as full and yellow as one of Miss Nettie's oyster fritters, you'll know you're in a place like no other.

Helen Chappell lives on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, where she covers the waterfront in fiction and non-fiction. She has been awarded the Manderly Prize and The Jane Austen Society of Maryland Award. Grants include The Maryland State Arts Council and The Sumner T. McKnight Foundation. She has received a Maryland-Delaware Press Association Award and the E.A. Emmart Prize. She is looking for a foolproof plan and an airtight alibi.