STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK

Hailey author Julie Weston will discuss how she researches her historical Nellie Burns and Moonshine novels Thursday at Hailey Town Center West.

The Hailey Public Library will present “Bringing an Historical Setting to life: LIVE Author Talk with Julie Weston” at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26, at Hailey Town Center West.

Weston’s mystery novels have followed a young Chicago photographer and her dog Moonshine into the area around Sawtooth City, the Craters of the Moon, the Stanley Basin and even the Warm Springs area of Ketchum, offering readers a look at Chinese, Basque and pioneer history in the area enroute.

“Julie promises to take us on a deep dive on her research process for her 1920’s heroine and sleuth, Nellie,” says Lahela Maxwell, HPL’s marketing coordinator. “Her last presentation took us into the world of the daredevils who first pioneered the treacherous whitewater of the Salmon River.”

A Kellogg native who practiced law in Seattle, Weston published her first book in the series--“Moonshadows”--in 2015. It was a finalist in the May Sarton Literary Award. “Basque Moon” (2016) won the 2017 WILLA Literary Award in Historical Fiction. “Moonscape” (2019) placed third in the Foreword INDIES Awards. And she recently received a Finalist award from WILLA Awards for Mystery and Thriller for “Salmon Moon: River of No Return.”

Hailey Town Center West is at 116 S. River St. near the Hailey Public Library. The event will be livestreamed on the library’s YouTube channel.