Welcome back to Jen’s Jewels, your weekly must-read for all things fiction. Today, I am shining the spotlight on THE REFUGE by Carly Hillman. Set against the breathtaking Montana wilderness, this story is filled with mystery, secrets, and a woman determined to uncover the truth. If you love atmospheric settings and stories that keep you turning the pages, this one is for you. Read on!
LIGHTNING ROUND
What’s your favorite way to spend a crisp September afternoon?
My favorite activity in the world is walking around my local park with my husband, my daughter, and a fresh hot coffee in hand. This September, the walks are a bit slower than normal because I’m eight months pregnant—but that’s still where you can find us most weekend afternoons.
What simple ritual helps you settle into a productive writing day?
I am a procrastinator, so creating a ritual was vital to my writing routine. Otherwise, I would intend to write then distract myself with random tasks and suddenly look up hours later with a newly organized junk drawer and not a single word written. So, I created a system: on writing mornings, I put on music that reminds me of whatever character I’ll be focusing on that day. I listen to the playlist while I brew my morning cup of coffee. By the time I’ve finished the mug, I’m fully caffeinated and in the right headspace to dive in.
THE FALL INSPIRATION
What was the very first spark that inspired this story?
I’ll forever be baffled by how this story came to me. I was on a hike, looking at the landscape, and the opening scene just arrived in my mind. I had no intention to write a book at the time, but I jotted the scene down, then started asking myself questions about this character I had pictured. By the end of the day, I had an outline.
Did any character unexpectedly take the story in a direction you hadn’t planned?
Yes! One of my main characters is only mentioned in passing in my original outline. I intended for her story to be inferred by the reader, but as I was writing, she kept nudging her way forward in my mind. I realized that she was one of the main characters, and I had to add sections from her POV. She added so many complex layers to the story that had not been there at the beginning.
Your setting feels like a character in its own right. What inspired you to choose it, and how does it shape the story?
THE REFUGE is set in paradise. That was the concept I started with before figuring out where exactly that paradise was. Ultimately, I chose Montana, just north of Yellowstone. I wanted to touch on the concept of stewardship: many of the characters in my book love the land and feel like keepers of it, rather than owners. I think that idea of stewardship grows more and more the closer you get to the National Parks, so that really helped me decide where to place my paradise. It shapes the story in every way: each character has their own relationship with the land, and the entire book asks questions about how we often try to use new places to solve our problems.
As the seasons change, many of us find ourselves reflecting on the past. Did any personal memories, traditions, or meaningful places influence this book?
So much of my life is woven into this book, mostly in little moments. To give a specific example without giving anything away, the scenes that show a mother comforting her daughter through a difficult time were inspired by the way my mom helped me through my own childhood cancer treatment: she created games and crafts and ways for us to pass the time during long chemo sessions that helped me maintain my childhood innocence. I didn’t even mean to include that in the book, but when I read back those sections, I realized that I had clearly been inspired by her. I’m so grateful I had the chance to pay homage to her incredibly bravery.
THE PERSONAL TOUCH
Can you share a behind-the-scenes fact about writing this book that readers may find surprising?
I found out that the book was going to sell the same day that my first daughter was born. I was literally in the hospital when I got the news. It was the only possible day of my life where that news was the second most exciting thing to happen to me that day.
If readers could step into one scene from your book for a day, which would you choose and why?
I would love to experience any of the scenes where Ava is exploring the refuge, whether hiking up to viewpoints at sunset, relaxing by the river with Sam, or driving through the grasses looking for the bighorn herd. Writing a novel is a funny thing, because you spend so much time mentally in the setting, trying to get yourself to picture the place. I felt so lucky that my setting was somewhere so beautiful that I didn’t mind spending so much mental time there.
LOOKING AHEAD
Can you give readers a sneak peek at what you’re working on next—without giving away any spoilers?
I’m working on my next book, which also takes place in a hyper-specific and isolated setting—but one that is nothing like the setting of The Refuge. I cannot wait to eventually be able to share more!
Where can readers connect with you and stay up to date on your latest books? Please share your website, newsletter, and social media links.
I post updates on my Instagram—where I also share a lot of photos of my cat Sponge, who loves the spotlight. You can also learn more about me and my work on my website. I’d love for you to follow along!
BONUS: The Author’s Playlist
Share 3–5 songs that capture the mood of your book or inspired you while writing.
I always use music to get into the right headspace before I start writing, and I have a four-hour long playlist for THE REFUGE full of songs that inspired different characters. But I also chose one single song for every main character, which I would listen to on repeat when I needed to feel more connected to them while writing. Here’s that list:
Johnny: “Gimme Shelter” by The Rolling Stones
Ava: “I Know The End” by Phoebe Bridgers
Winona: “Closer to Fine” by the Indigo Girls
Evelyn: “Both Sides Now” by Joni Mitchell
Maeve: “come into my arms” by November Ultra
Ava loves the wildlife refuge where she grew up, but the long‑buried secrets she discovers there threaten to destroy her family—and the paradise they call home.
But is it really paradise if you’re trapped inside?
When wildlife ranger Johnny Hayward discovers a terrified young girl hiding in the grasses, he joins the tight‑knit staff in trying to solve the mystery of how the girl, Maeve, came to their land. But when the police arrive, she tells them that Johnny is her father. He goes along with the lie, a split‑second decision that entangles them both in a lifelong cover‑up.
Decades later, Maeve’s daughter, Ava, grows up believing that same lie. Ava’s love for the Refuge, where she lives in the staff cabins with her mother and is training to be a tour ranger, prevents her from dwelling on the fact that her mother never leaves the grounds—and won’t explain why. But after starting to date a local boy, Ava begins to question her sheltered upbringing, shocked to discover that life outside their fences is not the nightmare her mother always taught her to fear. She is obsessed with answering one question: What is her mother so afraid of?
Angry that her mother and Johnny won’t give her answers, Ava follows a string of clues to investigate the disturbing events that led to Maeve’s arrival all those years ago, unearthing secrets that some will do anything to keep buried.
Thriller Historical [ Crooked Lane Books, On Sale: September 8, 2026, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9798892426824 / eISBN: 9798892426831 ]
Carly Hillman is a Peabody award-winning producer who has spent the past ten years working at The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, where she produces the interviews.
Previously, she worked for Good Morning America, The Colbert Report, and NBC-10 Philadelphia. She earned a degree in English from Harvard University, where she graduated with honors.
Her debut novel The Refuge will be published by Crooked Lane Books in September 2026.
She splits her time between New York City and Philadelphia, where she lives with her husband, daughter, and their cat named Sponge.
Most importantly, here is a picture of Sponge.
Jennifer Vido is the award-winning author of the Gull Island series, a collection of sweet Lowcountry romances inspired by her love of coastal living and small-town charm. Her debut novel, Serendipity by the Sea, won Best First Book from the New Jersey Romance Writers Golden Leaf Contest. Jennifer has been named Baltimore Magazine’s Best Local Author for three consecutive years (2024–2026) and was named The Baltimore Sun’s Best Author in its 2026 Best of Readers’ Choice Awards. When she’s not writing romance, Jennifer shares her love of books through her weekly Jen’s Jewels column, where she spotlights exciting new releases and talented authors.
No comments posted.
© 2003-2026