Forensic accountant Maggie Martin survives the sudden death of her husband, the charismatic President of Windsor College, only to uncover the secrets of his carefully-concealed double life. Dealing with the financial and emotional wreckage left in Paul's wake, she is stunned to learn he inherited an estate known as Rosemont in the seemingly-serene Midwestern town of Westbury. Why had he never told her?
Maggie travels to Westbury for the stated purpose of listing Rosemont for immediate sale, but what she really seeks are answers to her all-consuming questions about her sham of a marriage; her sham of a life. She never anticipated the seductive charm of Rosemont. Throwing her trademark caution to the wind, and over the objections of her opinionated grown children, she pulls up stakes and moves halfway across the country, determined to make a fresh start in Westbury. Behind closed doors, however, lurks a cadre of evildoers, playing with multiple wild cards of fraud, embezzlement and arson.
With a quiet, orderly -- and distinctively solitary -- life in mind, Maggie is instead thrown headlong into a crusade against political corruption, where defeat and retreat are not an option. Still bearing the scars of betrayal, will she find joy, romance and possibility in Westbury?
This fast-paced, smart novel has enough twists and turns to make the reader want to buckle in!
Coming to Rosemont is the first book in the Rosemont series.
Interview with the Author
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Q:Â Have you always wanted to be a writer?
A: I'm an attorney and have done a lot of technical writing, but knew I wanted to write novels. I thought I'd find time when I retired. Fate stepped in, as it often does, and put me on this path sooner. I broke my neck in an auto accident and suffered from double vision for months. I couldn't read or watch TV, so I conceived the plot for my 5 book Rosemont series.
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Q:Â Why did you decide to write a series?
A: I prefer television series to movies. The longer format of television allows for deeper character development. The same holds true for series fiction. I like to fall in love with a character or hate a character (but root for them to change their ways). I feel like Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi from Alexander McCall Smith's Ladies' Detective Agency series are old friends. I wanted to recreate that sort of connection in the Rosemont series.
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Q:Â What other authors do you read or admire?
A:  I'm a fan of women's fiction, women's sagas, and romance. I love Rosamunde Pilcher's later trilogy -The Shell Seekers, Coming Home, and September. Jan Karon's Mitford series creates an enchanting world, as does Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove. My Rosemont series is set in the current day, but I've tried to capture a feeling of comraderie and connection (among the good guys) that takes us back to a slightly simpler time and place.
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Q:Â What are your favorite book?
A: In addition to the works I've already mentioned, I adored Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, and A Long Way from Chicago.
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Q:  Who is your greatest influence in your author life?
A: My dad--without question. He told me or read me a bedtime story every night of my childhood, often adding his own twists and turns to the plots or dialogue. He had an incredible, gentle sense of humor. He also wrote novels--who-done-its--when he retired. I have 17 of his manuscripts and can feel his comforting presence in the room with me when I pick up his pages and read.
Q: Â What of your
own interests have you written about in the Rosemont series?
A: Â I love my home
and all things related to homemaking: cooking, gardening, decorating, and
entertaining. I love celebrating all of the seasons and I change my decor for
Easter, 4th of July, fall, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and spring. I'm
also addicted to vintage silver and all sorts of china, with a special fondness
for teapots.
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