Every photograph was at one point a moment intended to be remembered. Ruby Constantine works tirelessly to give old film new life, salvaging forgotten and discarded rolls. There is a gamble to the process; she may end up with a priceless treasure or a stack of meaningless photographs. The job provides a level of excitement the rest of Ruby's life lacks. That is, until a particularly unique set turns out to have captured a grisly crime that Ruby knows the local police on Bolton Bluff Island off the coast of Maine are not equipped to solve.
Patrick Sullivan has given up his job as an investigative reporter in Boston in order to write articles about bumble bees and pizza crusts for a tiny newspaper in Maine. Why? Because no one dies as a result of something he’s written anymore. Though his goal is to keep his head down and mind his own business, a call from Ruby changes everything. She holds a special place in his heart and helping is a pull he can’t resist.
Success seems impossible when their hunt for a killer becomes more dangerous than anything they could have imagined. Ruby and Patrick must decide if their lives are worth more than the truth.