A woman is found buried in an English peat bog. At first, a local man confesses to her murder. But further examination reveals the remains are actually 2,000 years old.

That mystery is the starting point for Bog Queen, the latest novel by author Anna North, now available in paperback. The book blends archaeology, folklore and forensic science, moving between Iron Age England and the present day to explore the lives of women whose stories have largely disappeared from history.

“I was so interested in this idea of mistaken identity and how you could maybe use that to kind of build a murder mystery around it,” North said. “And that became kind of the seed for Bog Queen.”

North’s research took her to Lindow Moss in England, the site where the remains of two famous bog bodies were discovered. The visit helped her understand not only the unusual landscape but also its environmental significance.

Peat bogs, North explained, cover only about 3% of the world’s land area but store more than 30% of the world’s carbon, making them important natural defenses against climate change.

“I knew that I would have a piece of the book that was about environmental activism,” she said. “But it wasn’t really until I got to Lindow Moss that I realized the immense amount of threat that these landscapes are under.”

The novel also gave North an opportunity to imagine a world for which historical records are limited. The Iron Age Britons left behind no written language that researchers have discovered, leaving questions about their lives, beliefs and customs.

North imagined an Iron Age Druid woman navigating political intrigue and disputes, grounding the story in archaeological research while filling in the gaps with fiction.

For North, putting women at the center of those adventures is part of what makes storytelling compelling.

“I don’t think I saw enough quest stories where a woman or a girl got to go on that quest,” she said.

North will be appearing this Friday, November 13, at The Hound Books in Roscoe. The event will include photographs from her research, recommendations for other books about bogs and, as North promises, a look at a bog dog.

“It’s just been really fun to share bog love with readers,” she said.

More information and reservations are available at The Hound Books website.