The Flathead Valley sets the scene for a new murder mystery novel, “Sapphire Trails,” that’s set to launch at Festival of the Arts next week by award winning writer Marilyn Jax from Minneapolis. Jax has family history in the Bitterroot dating back to 1906 and has vacationed at Mountain Lake Lodge for the last 12 years.

“I have felt a special tie to Montana, when I am there it’s like stepping out of the rat race of the big city,” Jax said. “Smelling the clean air and seeing the wildlife and being able to really let go and relax means everything to me. It is one of my favorite spots in the U.S.”

On Aug. 2 she will be on “Montana Today” to talk about her new book and about how she is releasing it at Bigfork’s Festival of the Arts. Then she will be at the festival from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 4 and 5 to talk about the book and sign copies.

“Sapphire Trails” is the third part of an on-going series about two fictional private investigators, Claire Caswell and Gaston “Guy” Lombard, who take a vacation at a lodge that’s based on Mountain Lake Lodge. They soon find themselves involved in solving a murder at the lodge while a crime wave of burglaries occurs at the Iron Horse development in Whitefish.

Using relaxing places in the valley as a scene for a murder mystery novel may seem odd, but Jax says she is the type of author who sees a good murder mystery everywhere she goes. The predeceasing books in the series take place in Crete and France.

“I write about the places I have been or lived and traveled, and I think it gives authenticity to my writing,” Jax said. “When I go, I try to absorb the culture and food and essence of the area.

The main plot follows the two private investigators as they solve the murder at the lodge while working with local law enforcement agencies who believe the crimes in Whitefish are connected to the murder, though the investigators think otherwise.

Some of the places mentioned in the book or that inspired it in the Bigfork area include Woods Bay Grill, S.M. Bradford & Co., Eagle Bend Golf Course, Moraldo’s Italian Restaurant, Eva Gates, Frame of Reference, Eric Thorsen’s Gallery, Brookie’s Cookies, Roma’s, and Jest Galley. The main streets and downtown area of Whitefish along with the Buffalo Café, and Whitefish police department can also be found in the novel.

Jax said she spoke with the Lake County and Flathead County sheriffs, the state crime lab and Whitefish sheriff while writing the story in 2010.

“I write mysteries with heart, they are not cookie cutter mysteries,” Jax said.

Her first mystery novel, “The Find,” won six awards, including the Eric Hauffer Award and the Best Books USA award. Her second book, “Road to Omalos” won the Benjamin Franklin Best Mystery Suspense Award in 2011 and the International Book Award in fiction thriller suspense.

Prior to her writing career, Jax was an investigator and senior enforcement investigator for Minnesota for nearly 20 years. Her childhood memories of reading “Nancy Drew” kept the idea of being a writer in the back of her mind and she now teaches at mystery writers’ workshops.

“So far, no reader has been able to guess the culprit until the very end,” Jax said. “The people that read it say they can’t wait to go to Montana, it might even help people plan their vacations in that area.”

Bookworks in Whitefish and Kalispell will sell copies of “Sapphire Trails” after its release next week and it will also be available on amazon.com in eBook format.

For more information about Jax and her writing, go to www.marilyn jax.com.