The House on Fifth Street

When Bailey Rae Vaughn inherits a weathered Victorian on Fifth Street in Galveston, she expects dust, memories, and maybe a few family secrets. What she finds instead is a house that feels...watchful. Inside, her great-aunt Midori's belongings remain untouched, stacks of papers, hand-stitched quilts, and fragments of a past no one ever fully explained. Hidden among them are clues to a buried history tied to a long-forgotten community whose story was never meant to survive. Then a squatter is found dead on her porch. As developers close in on Fifth Street and pressure mounts to sell, Bailey realizes this is no ordinary inheritance. The deeper she digs, the more she uncovers: missing records, hidden messages, family secrets, and a legacy that stretches back generations. With her sharp-witted best friend Lorna at her side, a keen-eyed Maine Coon named Captain Morgan nearby, and a neighborhood full of whispers and half-remembered truths, Bailey follows a trail of clues that someone is determined to keep buried. Because this is not just about a house. It is about history. It is about legacy. And someone is willing to kill to erase both. A Southern Cozy Gothic Mystery filled with hidden histories, family secrets, coastal Southern charm, and a clever feline companion. What others have said about The House on Fifth Street: "A don't-miss atmospheric debut brimming with clever plotting, deftly drawn characters, and a lovingly described Galveston setting." - Elizabeth Spann Craig, author of the Village Library series "This intriguing gothic mystery includes colorful characters, a cat who knows too much, and a house stuffed with clues from the attic to the cellar. The House on Fifth Street has a mysterious history that reaches back more than a hundred years." - Jenni Stand, author of the Pond Investigations Mystery series