HAIL MARY
Pitched as Six Feet Under by way of Rebecca, Hail Mary follows Mary Foreman, who returns to her hometown to help her estranged family during a scandal-plagued election. But when the opening of a decades-old time capsule draws her into a criminal investigation tied to her family’s funeral empire, she must fight to prove her innocence. Not only of recent crimes, put past ones, too. For this is the North Shore of Lake Huron, and the past is always present where the dead don’t die. Read more.
About the Book
For fans of Simone St. James and Jennifer McMahon, Hail Mary is a thriller about a woman returning to her small hometown and a haunted family business, where generational secrets and cold cases refuse to stay buried.
Welcome to North Shore Township.
Where you can never dig a grave too deep, and you can never keep a secret for too long.
The Foreman family has made their fortune burying the dead (and not just funeral services, allegedly). Mary Foreman fled North Shore Township years ago to escape her family’s legacy. But when her estranged mother reappears during a local election, reigniting rumors of corporate corruption and criminal activity, Mary’s uncle summons her to help with his campaign.
Mary leaves Toronto and takes up residence in Foreman House—the now-vacant gothic mansion once home to the Foremans and their infamous funeral business. She also secures a teaching job at her alma mater, St. Joseph’s School for Girls, set to unearth the time capsule her great-grandmother helped mastermind. But when the time capsule is opened, the family’s legacy rears its ugly head once again.
Embroiled in a criminal investigation—one with eerie parallels to several cold cases—Mary begins to unravel a truth rooted in her cursed matrilineal line, the haunted funeral home she grew up in, and the crime her mother stood trial for decades earlier. Crushed by the weight of the township’s suspicion, Mary must fight to prove her own innocence. Not only of recent crimes, but past ones, too. For this is the North Shore of Lake Huron, and the past is always present where the dead don’t die.
Praise
"Gripping and deeply atmospheric, Elizabeth Urso's debut HAIL MARY, follows Mary Foreman, as she's dragged back to her small hometown to face the plague of long-standing rumours, deeply-buried family secrets, and the burden of generational trauma (plus a few vengeful nuns, and a ghost or two haunting her family's ancient funeral home). This rhythmic, mystery-filled gothic horror, is engaging, witty, and oh-so-perfectly gruesome." —Ashley Tate, bestselling author of Twenty-Seven Minutes
"A bloody portrait of generational female rage and revenge. With snappy dialogue and elegant prose, Urso has created a propulsive thriller that's as haunting as it is suspenseful, and will linger like a ghost long after you finish the final page." —De Elizabeth, author of She Haunts Me Still
“Prepare to be enraptured by a compelling mystery and the macabre. This is a story that’ll keep you up late into the night wondering if ghosts have the ability to leap from the page.” —Elora Cook, author of In the Company of Killers
CONFESSION
Elizabeth is thrilled to welcome readers back to North Shore Township when her sophomore novel, CONFESSION, publishes in May 2027. Keep an eye on this space for more information. In the meantime, readers can look forward to a sneak peek of CONFESSION when HAIL MARY releases on September 22, 2026. The first two chapters of CONFESSION will be included at the back of HAIL MARY.
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