On a secluded, dead-end street in a Pacific Northwest suburb, Haley Milston, a history teacher, purchases her first townhome and awakens to unnerving discoveries. Not only are neighbors reclusive and noise-intolerant, but her bedroom overlooks a field where, decades ago, a man murdered three women. Heading the complex’s derelict Homeowners Association is a garrulous, easily distracted President with a host of prejudices and a fascination for true crime. Haley, who has always rejected notions of the supernatural, soon finds herself wondering whether a town’s crime-ridden past can affect the mental stability of its residents.

Curiously, the President safeguards the mystery surrounding her next-door neighbors, and his refusal to hold Association meetings flouts the HOA’s “Codes, Covenants, and Restrictions.” Though he regularly cites residents for minor transgressions, years of records have gone missing. Most unsettling, however, are the peculiar sensations Haley experiences when walking by the field behind her house. When residents’ imaginations get hijacked by rumor and speculation, incisive exchanges between close friends and a canny, diverse group of neighbors deepen Haley’s understanding of herself—and of America’s past. Codes and Covenants portrays the myriad ways people most in need of connection sow rancor and division in their communities. As Haley tries to unlock the street’s secrets, she is forced to examine her life choices—and contend with an American history she thought she knew.

V. Rizsami received a Master’s in English and Ph.D. in Irish Literature from Binghamton University in 1999. Her novel The Pardoners was published in 2021. She lives in Oregon, where she teaches English Composition and Irish studies.