![Joan Sauers has set her first mystery thriller Echo Lake, in the Southern Highlands. Picture by Gary Heery. Joan Sauers has set her first mystery thriller Echo Lake, in the Southern Highlands. Picture by Gary Heery.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/123048163/1071be2d-1fb5-45fb-894d-20a72f08fe82.jpg/r0_0_4724_3543_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
When people dive into Joan Saur's debut thriller novel Echo Lake and go on a journey with its protagonist, they might recognise some familiar places that are not too far from home.
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Gumnut Patisserie, the Burrawang Village Hotel, Seymour Park, Fitzroy Falls and Morton National Park are places the recently divorced Rose McHugh visits when she moves to the region.
Echo Lake's author Joan Sauers, who is a also a screenwriter and producer, had the idea for a mystery novel for a while.
It only became a reality when she moved to the region 2020 - deciding it had to be set in the Highlands.
"Everywhere I went, it suggested a story," she said, and the book was released earlier this month.
As Rose is settling into her 1930s cottage just outside of Berrima, she discovers a roll of film buried in her back garden, which has photos of a woman who went missing six years prior.
![Echo Lake was released at the beginning of May. Picture supplied. Echo Lake was released at the beginning of May. Picture supplied.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/123048163/d01530d0-eee5-42a6-bb19-cf0c2f384071.jpg/r0_0_534_815_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The historian goes against the advice of a detective to pursue the case, and she makes friends and enemies along the way.
When people open the book, they will also see a map of Highlands villages and towns, which sets the scene.
Places that appear in the novel come from Ms Sauer's visits around the region, and some of her experiences.
For instance, when she went to the dog park in Moss Vale, she heard a man playing bagpipes in the distance, which is what Rose encounters.
Others provide pivotal plot points - when Rose goes to Dirty Janes in Bowral, she discovers some artefacts that help her discover more about the case.
![Bowral's Dirty Janes provides pivotal plot points in Echo Lane. Picture by Google Maps. Bowral's Dirty Janes provides pivotal plot points in Echo Lane. Picture by Google Maps.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/123048163/2f8f95e0-1699-40c8-a812-be521c11e53f.JPG/r0_0_660_469_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
"They were not there decoratively, they were organically integrated into the story," she said.
Breathing the cool Highlands air and soaking up the atmosphere was essential to bringing the story to life, the author said.
A reporter from the Southern Highland News will also be an essential character.
Ms Sauers hopes the book offers people a sense of escapism, and while it is a thriller, it is comforting at times.
Those who enjoy the story can be assured that it is only the start in a series she has planned.
The screenwriter approached the fictional tale differently to the 14 non-fiction books she has written.
Instead, she employed the same techniques she has used for shows, with the goal for it to be adapted as a television series.
Ms Sauers has written for the ABC series Wakefield - which was also shot in the Highlands, with other show credits including Rake and The Principal, has been a script editor, as well as a variety of screenplays.
She grew up in New York and has worked there, in London and Los Angeles, and has been a lecturer for screenwriting in Sydney, London, Paris, Berlin and Casablanca.
The producer, screenwriter and author spends time between Sydney and the Highlands.
Echo Lake can be purchased through allenandunwin.com, or through any book retailer.
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