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The Old Cape #1
The Old Cape House
The Old Cape House is historical fiction that follows two Cape Cod women - centuries apart.
In the spring of 1715, Maria Hallett falls in love with Sam Bellamy. He leaves her behind on Cape Cod to find his fortune in the West Indies and promises to return. Maria finds herself with child and unwed. Left alone to face the wrath of church elders, she longs for Sam.
In present day, Nancy Caldwell moves into an 1880 house on Cape Cod with her husband and four children. In her backyard, she uncovers a root cellar and at its bottom she finds a baby’s skull, gold coins and evidence that link her land to the Bellamy/Hallett legend.
American Book Fest - American Legacy 2025 WINNER of MYSTERY/SUSPENSE/HISTORICAL
The author, Barbara Eppich Struna uses alternating chapters between the 18th and 21st centuries, to unfold a mystery that has had the old salts of Cape Cod guessing for almost 300 years. This is the first in a series involving contemporary Nancy Caldwell and her innate ability to uncover historical secrets.
In the spring of 1715, Maria Hallett falls in love with Sam Bellamy. He leaves her behind on Cape Cod to find his fortune in the West Indies and promises to return. Maria finds herself with child and unwed. Left alone to face the wrath of church elders, she longs for Sam.
In present day, Nancy Caldwell moves into an 1880 house on Cape Cod with her husband and four children. In her backyard, she uncovers a root cellar and at its bottom she finds a baby’s skull, gold coins and evidence that link her land to the Bellamy/Hallett legend.
American Book Fest - American Legacy 2025 WINNER of MYSTERY/SUSPENSE/HISTORICAL
The author, Barbara Eppich Struna uses alternating chapters between the 18th and 21st centuries, to unfold a mystery that has had the old salts of Cape Cod guessing for almost 300 years. This is the first in a series involving contemporary Nancy Caldwell and her innate ability to uncover historical secrets.
320 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 28, 2013
203 people are currently reading
657 people want to read
About the author
Barbara Eppich Struna
6 books59 followersA storyteller at heart, Barbara bases her tales on her own personal experiences. She has created a contemporary character, an amateur sleuth, who becomes the vehicle that moves her stories between time periods in alternating chapters. Aided by Barbara's imagination and her love of history, myth, and legend, she continues to create winning novels.
Her first suspenseful historical, The Old Cape House, won "First Place - Historical Fiction, Royal Dragonfly Awards 2014", which led to the second, The Old Cape Teapot and the third, The Old Cape Hollywood Secret, also awarded, "First Place Historical Fiction - Royal Dragonfly Awards 2017", "Hollywood Book Festival - Genre Based 2017", "Finalist Fiction: Mystery/Suspense IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards 2018", "Finalist Eric Hoffer Book Award 2018", "Finalist/Suspense - 2018 Next Generation Indie Book Awards".
She is an International Best Selling Author, a Member in Letters of the National League of American Pen Women, International Thriller Writers, Panelist Thrillerfest 2016, IBPA, Sisters In Crime: National, New England, LA, and President of Cape Cod Writers Center. Always a journal writer, she is fascinated by history and writes a blog about the unique facts and myths of Cape Cod.
Her first suspenseful historical, The Old Cape House, won "First Place - Historical Fiction, Royal Dragonfly Awards 2014", which led to the second, The Old Cape Teapot and the third, The Old Cape Hollywood Secret, also awarded, "First Place Historical Fiction - Royal Dragonfly Awards 2017", "Hollywood Book Festival - Genre Based 2017", "Finalist Fiction: Mystery/Suspense IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards 2018", "Finalist Eric Hoffer Book Award 2018", "Finalist/Suspense - 2018 Next Generation Indie Book Awards".
She is an International Best Selling Author, a Member in Letters of the National League of American Pen Women, International Thriller Writers, Panelist Thrillerfest 2016, IBPA, Sisters In Crime: National, New England, LA, and President of Cape Cod Writers Center. Always a journal writer, she is fascinated by history and writes a blog about the unique facts and myths of Cape Cod.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 104 reviews
March 14, 2020
We stepped back to admire our work and then closed the sliding barn door to the old carriage house, now a country gallery.
The Old Cape House by Barbara Eppich Struna
The Old Cape House is a work of Historical Fiction, taking place in Cape Cod. The book has two stories in one. In current times, Nancy and her family have just relocated to Cape Cod and purchased a beautiful old house that they are also planning to convert into a gallery. Not long after moving in, they stumble upon some items that appear to be quite old, maybe hundreds of years old. The family are slowly pulled into the mystery of the C ape Cod House and events that happened in the Seventeen Hundreds.
The second story is the mystery of the people or person who dwelled in the house before..all those years ago.
Way back, Maria Halleck, just a young girl, falls in love with Sam. There is a significant age difference between them and Maria's father orders Sam to stay away from her. They fall in love anyway and Sam leaves to plunder for Gold in the High Seas, promising to come back for his love. Only he doesn't..
Alone and seemingly abandoned, Maria finds she is pregnant. The townspeople are not happy about this and brand Maria as evil. There is a trial held.
I will not say anymore. I thought this book was utterly charming, with breathtaking descriptions of The Cape. If you are reading this and have never been to The Cape, you may not appreciate it to the extent that Fans of Cape Cod do.
I used to vacation in The C ape. I knew the sights and smells since almost before I could walk. As a proud New Englander, I know how unique and special The Cape is and it was delightful to read a work of historical fiction that takes place there.
I was surprised to see many low ratings. I agree the writing was , at times, rather stilted in the conversations. I did not care about that. I could easily imagine this happening and my personal only complaint is that I was so caught up in the Historical story, I really did not care about present time and skimmed much of t hat part. I find this happens in many Historical works that switch back and forth from present to the past.
For me, Maria was such a compelling character, that I rushed through the present, skipping pages, impatiently thumbing through, to get to the past again.
I would recommend The old C ape House to fans of Historical Fiction. It's a beautiful book and makes me want to buy a cottage in Cape Cod.
The Old Cape House by Barbara Eppich Struna
The Old Cape House is a work of Historical Fiction, taking place in Cape Cod. The book has two stories in one. In current times, Nancy and her family have just relocated to Cape Cod and purchased a beautiful old house that they are also planning to convert into a gallery. Not long after moving in, they stumble upon some items that appear to be quite old, maybe hundreds of years old. The family are slowly pulled into the mystery of the C ape Cod House and events that happened in the Seventeen Hundreds.
The second story is the mystery of the people or person who dwelled in the house before..all those years ago.
Way back, Maria Halleck, just a young girl, falls in love with Sam. There is a significant age difference between them and Maria's father orders Sam to stay away from her. They fall in love anyway and Sam leaves to plunder for Gold in the High Seas, promising to come back for his love. Only he doesn't..
Alone and seemingly abandoned, Maria finds she is pregnant. The townspeople are not happy about this and brand Maria as evil. There is a trial held.
I will not say anymore. I thought this book was utterly charming, with breathtaking descriptions of The Cape. If you are reading this and have never been to The Cape, you may not appreciate it to the extent that Fans of Cape Cod do.
I used to vacation in The C ape. I knew the sights and smells since almost before I could walk. As a proud New Englander, I know how unique and special The Cape is and it was delightful to read a work of historical fiction that takes place there.
I was surprised to see many low ratings. I agree the writing was , at times, rather stilted in the conversations. I did not care about that. I could easily imagine this happening and my personal only complaint is that I was so caught up in the Historical story, I really did not care about present time and skimmed much of t hat part. I find this happens in many Historical works that switch back and forth from present to the past.
For me, Maria was such a compelling character, that I rushed through the present, skipping pages, impatiently thumbing through, to get to the past again.
I would recommend The old C ape House to fans of Historical Fiction. It's a beautiful book and makes me want to buy a cottage in Cape Cod.
February 5, 2015
I loved the premise of the book - I love old houses and they all have a story to tell. For example, I live in an old house (1780) and I know that a baby was born here "out of wedlock" around 1815 - but I know that I could not write a book about it. This book was a string of cliches, disjointed dialogue and shallow characters. I have a theory that when an author first publishes a book, she/he has their friends and acquaintances provide reviews - maybe even make up new friends to get good reviews. For example, one review said something about the two "torrid" love scenes - one consisted of "making sweet love", the other was about "skin against skin". I didn't count, but the entire story is a string of cliches, one right after another. Honestly, I gave the book two stars based on effort. The writing is so undeveloped and immature, I cannot finish the book. The lesson I learned from this book - wait until a book has over 200 reviews that are predominantly positive before believing them. Was there an editor for this book?
March 22, 2025
Folks in the town of Eastham on Cape Cod know that the ghost of 16-year-old Maria Hallett haunts the Old Cape House (as if one particular house among all the 164,885 housing units would have the moniker “the Old Cape House” — they’re nearly all old houses on Cape Cod!). The poor girl was allegedly abandoned by her handsome swain, adventurer Samuel Bellamy. Despite this, Paul and Nancy Caldwell abandon Ohio to move to the derelict house with their three children.
What form does this haunting take? Are the Caldwell children affected? Have previous tenants experienced the haunting? Does it turn out, as I imagine, that — as in all soppy, badly written novels — poor Maria was not wronged at all by her beloved, but both were victims of some villainy? And what happened to Maria, who opens the book as a pregnant unmarried girl in a prison cell? Was she accused of witchcraft? What became of Sam?
Alas, I will never know because author Barbara Epich Struna took so long to reveal anything of interest that I got bored and abandoned the book. I can’t remember what I spent on this book, but, even if it was 99 cents, I still regret the expense.
What form does this haunting take? Are the Caldwell children affected? Have previous tenants experienced the haunting? Does it turn out, as I imagine, that — as in all soppy, badly written novels — poor Maria was not wronged at all by her beloved, but both were victims of some villainy? And what happened to Maria, who opens the book as a pregnant unmarried girl in a prison cell? Was she accused of witchcraft? What became of Sam?
Alas, I will never know because author Barbara Epich Struna took so long to reveal anything of interest that I got bored and abandoned the book. I can’t remember what I spent on this book, but, even if it was 99 cents, I still regret the expense.
June 12, 2014
Just finished reading The Old Cape House and thought it was a great book. Two story lines come together blending history with mystery. One story chronicles the life of Maria Hallett -- her young adult life, stuggles and decisions during the early 1700s. The other story is about a modern day family taking residence in Brewster, MA and uncovering clues linking the past and the present. Part of the reason why I selected this book is that it takes place on Cape Cod, one of our favorite places to vacation. As I started reading, this book became a real page turner. Well written and a quick read, this book kept me interested until the end.
March 17, 2023
This story had it all: pirates, buried treasure, love and even a couple of steamy scenes. :) I have heard many presumptions over the years about Maria Hallett, her relationship with Sam Bellamy and the fate of the pirate after the Whydah wrecked just off the coast. This was my favorite by far! Ms. Struna seamlessly blended historical fact and portrayal of the time with her own tale of the Hallett/Bellamy legend...and also managed to parallel an interesting present-day story as well.
My copy is autographed and purchased from a local bookstore, and it included a simple but very helpful map which I referred back to a few times throughout the story. While I am obviously familiar with the present day lay of the land, things were quite different back in 1715! The little map is quite fascinating on its own, but it also offered a nice perspective in relevance to the story. I'm not sure if every copy comes with it, but if not I'd suggest googling and printing out a map of 1715 Cape Cod to accompany your reading.
Definitely give this book a go and, if you're local...buy local and support our lovely community and this promising author!
My copy is autographed and purchased from a local bookstore, and it included a simple but very helpful map which I referred back to a few times throughout the story. While I am obviously familiar with the present day lay of the land, things were quite different back in 1715! The little map is quite fascinating on its own, but it also offered a nice perspective in relevance to the story. I'm not sure if every copy comes with it, but if not I'd suggest googling and printing out a map of 1715 Cape Cod to accompany your reading.
Definitely give this book a go and, if you're local...buy local and support our lovely community and this promising author!
November 30, 2019
How can someone write a book set on Cape Cod, and evoke none of its beautiful atmosphere? One dimensional characters and silly plot. I only finished it because it was a book club book, and I like my book club.
July 3, 2014
I can't believe I got past more than 10 pages in this horridly written book.
December 4, 2015
Mediocre historical novel
Pirates and witches and old cape legends come together with a contemporary family, telling a reasonably good story set in Eastham and Brewster in 1715 - 1718 and today. I love historical novels, especially set in places I know, so was looking forward to reading this; however, it was poorly written. There was way too much telling not showing. Words were misused; for example, as she found him respectful clothing (sic). The contemporary narrator went from one emotional extreme to another with little reason or explanation - again, just telling us. And certain elements and phrases were repeated again and again, ad nauseam, to make sure the reader "got it," as when the contemporary narrator and her husband kept discussing that there must be some connection between Maria Hallett, the legendary witch of Eastham, and their discovery in the root cellar. These sorts of poor writing bounce me right out of the story and irritate me no end. I'd have given it one star for the writing, but added one for the 1715 storyline. The contemporary storyline tied things together in an obvious way, but really wasn't very interesting, and those characters were pretty undeveloped.
For a good read about pre-revolutionary Cape Cod, try "The Widow's War." Don't bother with this one.
Pirates and witches and old cape legends come together with a contemporary family, telling a reasonably good story set in Eastham and Brewster in 1715 - 1718 and today. I love historical novels, especially set in places I know, so was looking forward to reading this; however, it was poorly written. There was way too much telling not showing. Words were misused; for example, as she found him respectful clothing (sic). The contemporary narrator went from one emotional extreme to another with little reason or explanation - again, just telling us. And certain elements and phrases were repeated again and again, ad nauseam, to make sure the reader "got it," as when the contemporary narrator and her husband kept discussing that there must be some connection between Maria Hallett, the legendary witch of Eastham, and their discovery in the root cellar. These sorts of poor writing bounce me right out of the story and irritate me no end. I'd have given it one star for the writing, but added one for the 1715 storyline. The contemporary storyline tied things together in an obvious way, but really wasn't very interesting, and those characters were pretty undeveloped.
For a good read about pre-revolutionary Cape Cod, try "The Widow's War." Don't bother with this one.
September 7, 2015
The author's last name caught my eye even before the beautiful cover art by her husband Tim Struna--I have a number of his prints from Cape Cod vacations a number of years ago. For me, this book is an example of vacation (not just "beach") reading. It's (almost) always a pleasant pastime to read about a place when you're actually visiting there. You may pick up a bit of history, recognize some of the places and things being described, or just feel the local color. It doesn't have to be great literature to be a satisfactory "vacation read." In fact, the quicker it goes, the better, since you don't want to occupy all your time when all that sand, sun and ocean are beckoning. So, fellow readers, forget analyzing the writing style and enjoy the "it is what it is" genre. And then go to the beach.
(Added note: the two stories are woven together very well, and this is really a quick and pleasant read.)
(Added note: the two stories are woven together very well, and this is really a quick and pleasant read.)
July 10, 2014
I love books about Cape Cod and my family has been to the Whydah museum. I loved the combination of old Cape Cod with new Cape Cod that this book offered. Throw in some romance, pirates, and pirate treasure and it ended up being a really great summer read (even for a summer when I'm not going to Cape Cod). :-)
September 20, 2020
A novel that follows parallel story lines; one from
1715 and one present day both set, more or less, in the same acreage. I found the historical fiction story of Maria Hallet and Sam Bellamy more compelling and interesting than the present day story of the Caldwells.
1715 and one present day both set, more or less, in the same acreage. I found the historical fiction story of Maria Hallet and Sam Bellamy more compelling and interesting than the present day story of the Caldwells.
November 21, 2014
I liked the story but the characters were shallow. The writing seemed less developed than I would have liked. She could have done more with this story.
September 22, 2022
Great historical fiction about the Cape and pirates and present day. I loved being able to relate to the places and towns mentioned.
November 3, 2014
Genre: Historical Fiction
Author: Barbara Eppich Struna
Book: The Old Cape House
My Star Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Will I read I read it again? Yes
I was given this book to read and give an honest review. This review is my honest opinion and I have fully read this book.
This book has two different tales into it that intervenes with each other. It starts off in the present day in Cape Cod. The Caldwell family is moving into their new “old” house.
The story goes from present day to 1715 telling us the story of Maria Hallett and love Sam Bellamy and how they fell in love and her having a child out of wedlock while Sam leaves without knowing…
I found this a great story, although it did start off a little slow. It had action and romance and of course pirates and treasure! Although the pirates don’t come into play until the middle to end of the book. Can’t wait to read the continued story.
Author: Barbara Eppich Struna
Book: The Old Cape House
My Star Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Will I read I read it again? Yes
I was given this book to read and give an honest review. This review is my honest opinion and I have fully read this book.
This book has two different tales into it that intervenes with each other. It starts off in the present day in Cape Cod. The Caldwell family is moving into their new “old” house.
The story goes from present day to 1715 telling us the story of Maria Hallett and love Sam Bellamy and how they fell in love and her having a child out of wedlock while Sam leaves without knowing…
I found this a great story, although it did start off a little slow. It had action and romance and of course pirates and treasure! Although the pirates don’t come into play until the middle to end of the book. Can’t wait to read the continued story.
March 26, 2014
This is a compelling read that imagines what happened in a pirate's legend from colonial Cape Cod. In the 18th century, Maria Hallett falls in love with the pirate, Sam Bellamy. Sam heads off to plunder gold and leaves Maria pregnant, unmarried, and impoverished, an outcast in her town of Eastham. A parallel story in modern times tracks Nancy Caldwell. Nancy finds a baby's skull and some gold coins in her cellar, and unravels the history of the two lovers, even as she courts danger in doing so. The historical side of this novel is particularly good, and Struna keeps her audience reading on to find out what will happen to Maria, who has no one to rely on in her desperate situation. The book is beautifully designed, especially the cover, which was created by Struna's artist husband, Tim.
February 17, 2015
History, folklore and fiction - A great combination.
Being a Cape Cod resident, I was intrigued by the storyline right away. I was not disappointed. A very nice way to intertwine history, folklore and fiction.
A "might have", "could have" been angle swirling around the Whydah, Captain Bellamy and Goody Hallett.
Loved reading a story set in the familiar Cape Cod towns along King's Highway. Thank you Ms. Struna. Looking forward to reading The Old Cape Teapot.
Being a Cape Cod resident, I was intrigued by the storyline right away. I was not disappointed. A very nice way to intertwine history, folklore and fiction.
A "might have", "could have" been angle swirling around the Whydah, Captain Bellamy and Goody Hallett.
Loved reading a story set in the familiar Cape Cod towns along King's Highway. Thank you Ms. Struna. Looking forward to reading The Old Cape Teapot.
December 3, 2014
Set in Cape Cod, stories unfold in alternating chapters of a family buying a new home in Brewster MA and the settlers who lived there in the early 1700's. There's treasure, romance and mystery. Somewhat predictable and not the most creative prose, but suitable for a long day at the beach- preferably on the Cape!
March 14, 2015
I had a great time reading Barbara's book, in large measure because I love the technique of telling two stories from different periods that become connected. William Martin's Cape Cod introduced me to this type of storytelling and Barbara has done a fine job with the techniques also. If you love stories about love, history, pirates, treasure, greed and local history, dig into this one.
March 21, 2014
The present day... Back in time ...present day, was a little off putting at first... But once the story developed it wasn't as distracting. Both stories present day and past were great. Great Cape lore story, so much fun.
May 20, 2014
Very enjoyable book with a solid storyline! I loved the back and forth timeline between the 1700's & present day! I had a difficult time putting it down - always one more page! Cape Cod history is wonderful and Barbara does a great job at enticing the reader to want more and to go explore!!
July 17, 2014
I hated to put this book down in order to get on with my day. Part folklore, part legend, part mystery all wrapped up into one. I found this book by chance at my local library, and I was pleasantly surprised that it was such a wonderful story!
November 9, 2014
Bought this one at the actual Pirate Ship Museum in Ptown and read it while we were at the Cape this year so it was especially delicious.. but this was just the kind of book I love that weaves two tales of modern and past eras...
March 17, 2014
This a fun 'back in time' read! The pirate story is exciting and you can't help but worry about, and root for the young Maria Hallet. The author puts her own spin on this Cape legend.
July 6, 2014
A very fun and good read historical fiction of two eras 1700 and the present day loved it
December 3, 2015
Loved it!
An absolutely fun way to read about Cape Cod history! Well written with great characters! I couldn't put it down!
An absolutely fun way to read about Cape Cod history! Well written with great characters! I couldn't put it down!
July 14, 2017
The author clearly did not research life in the early 18th century. Poorly written and researched.
January 21, 2024
This was an interesting story. The story is told in alternating chapters - one part is told from the story of Maria Hallett who lived in 1715 in Cape Cod. The other part of the story is told from the viewpoint of Nancy and her husband Paul who just moved to Cape Cod in the present day. As you might imagine, their stories intersect at some point in the backyard of Nancy and Paul. This book had mystery, colorful and warm characters, some romance, interesting situations, and a few villanous individuals. We begin with Maria, who is about 15 years old. Her mother is dead and she's living with an abusive alcoholic father. She works to make ends meet. She experiences romance and tragedy. Back to the present, Nancy makes a fascinating discovery when she's digging in her back yard. I don't want to ruin any of the surprises for you. It's an entertaining book that moves along pretty well and I enjoyed reading it.
September 24, 2024
The Old Cape House is a story of historical fiction combined with a modern fiction story. Maria Hallet is the primary character in the historical fiction. She encounters Sam Bellamy, a soon to be pirate, and sees her life in North Harwich, MA come unglued. The modern story is of Nancy Caldwell who relocates with her family to Brewster, MA - which is the modern name for North Harwich. So as you might expect from the title, the old Cape house ties the two stories together.
I'd put the story as a 3.5. It was a nice story, perhaps a little bit too much on the romantic side for my taste.
I'd put the story as a 3.5. It was a nice story, perhaps a little bit too much on the romantic side for my taste.
January 16, 2024
I loved it!
August 13, 2025
I read Tide Rising last summer and this was better! I understand this is historical fiction, but the way Maria’s life is described seems more possible. I also appreciate how this focuses more on Maria since the other book focused on Maria and Sam.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 104 reviews