Extinction of all Children

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. L.J. Epps will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

The futuristic world of Craigluy has been divided into three territories and three economic classes. A large wall separates the territories, so the poor cannot mingle with the rich.



Since President Esther, the ruler over all of Craigluy, believes the poor do not have adequate means to take care of children, they are no longer allowed to procreate. Pregnant mothers are imprisoned until their babies are born, then the infants are taken away.



Emma Whisperer is the last child to survive. She is the last child born in lower-class Territory L before the law was instituted in the year 2080. She is the last eighteen-year-old.



Emma struggles to understand why she was spared while others weren’t. She doesn’t like the laws and believes they should be repealed. Her family doesn’t agree with her; they discourage her rebellious streak. Yet, she helps them to cover up their own family rebellion. She helps them to hide a big secret, a secret that could be both disastrous and deadly for members of their family.



As she meets new people along the way, Emma learns who she can and cannot trust. And, in the end, she makes a gut-wrenching decision that may be disastrous for everyone.



She finds herself in danger for doing what she feels is right.

Read an Excerpt



“I see your side is still bothering you.” He looks me up and down. “That’s why I came by in regular clothes. I knew you wouldn’t feel much like training. You should rest your side for a few days, like the doctor said.”



“How do you know what the doctor said?”



“Samuel told me. He said we should put off training, for a while.”



“Until I recuperate.” I groan again, pushing the pack more into my skin. “I don’t want to lose my newfound skills. Pretty soon, I will be good enough to beat you.”



“Now wait a minute.” He holds up his hands. “Slow it down, a little. You’re doing well, but don’t get ahead of yourself. I think the nickname Whisper has caused you to lose all sense of reality.”



“No, I’m still in my right mind,” I say. I grin like baby Abigail when you tickle her stomach.


“Seriously, though.” His eyes find mine. “Is your side all right?”



“It’s fine, or it will be.” My fingers sting, holding the pack.



“What about your hand?”



“They gave me some ointment to use.”



“Why did you let Samuel take you?” His chest rises and falls like the words were hard to say. “I mean, I asked to take you to the hospital and you refused. Why would you let Samuel take you, instead of me?”


About the Author: L.J. Epps is a lover of all things related to books: fiction and nonfiction novels, as well as biographies and autobiographies. She has also been known to sit and read comic books from cover to cover, several times over.



Over the last few years, L.J. has written several manuscripts; her mission is to publish all of them. She enjoys writing fiction in several genres, including contemporary romance and women’s fiction, as well as young adult dystopian, science fiction and fantasy. She loves to write because it immerses her into another world that is not her own.



Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ljta6b1c

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ljeppsauthor

Website: http://www.ljeppsauthor.com

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Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GM2YTHE

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The American Crusade

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Mark Spivak will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. 

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BLURB:

A power-hungry vice president, a bad batch of shady intelligence, and a sinister plot to destroy Western civilization.

Just another day in America.

On May 1, 2001, a group of radical Islamic terrorists crash a Boeing 737 jet airliner into the Mall of America—and Vice President Robert Hornsby knows his moment is coming. 

The attack kills three thousand American citizens and throws an entire nation into a panic, but all Hornsby sees is an opportunity, a chance to imprint his fanatical values on the soul of the country he loves and become the most powerful vice president in American history. 

With the aid of his affable but ineffectual president; the reluctant, conscience-stricken secretary of defense; and a preening, foppish faith leader with more than a few skeletons in his closet; Hornsby declares war on terror—and anyone who stands in his way. But as media scrutiny of the administration’s actions overseas intensifies, Hornby’s one-man campaign against evil begins to unravel—with striking parallels to the thirteenth century’s doomed Fourth Crusade—and sends the nation spiraling toward another deadly tragedy. 

The American Crusade paints a grim and often cynical picture of America’s recent past, reflecting the attitudes, politics, and fears that shaped our nation in the new millennium. By sampling the contemporaneous French text on the Fourth Crusade, On the Conquest of Constantinople, author Mark Spivak reminds us of that ever-vital adage: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” 

Fans of The Castle by Jack Pinter, The President Is Missing by Bill Clinton and James Patterson, House of Cards by Michael Dobbs, The Whistler by John Grisham, and the Aaron Sorkin–penned TV drama The West Wing will love this book.

My Review...

Neither politics nor thrillers are necessarily my favorite genre and when I began to read my first thought was “oh no, not another 9/11”. But I didn’t have the same thoughts by the time I’d finished the book. Being extremely cynical myself, I loved the spoofs, the obvious fun-making of politicians in this book. I spent time trying to figure out who was “whom” because while all of the names are fictitious, most mimic a prominent figure in our past or previous government. The same is true of events. While somewhat masked, most could be likened to some well-known trauma in our past. While I have said I was cynical there were also hidden plots that I so hoped were not based on anything true. I don’t want to be fooled too much and Spivak’s book did leave you wondering what might be fiction and what might not. An enjoyable read.

Read an excerpt...

Sitting in the White House Situation Room that day, Vice President Hornsby thought he was witnessing the perfect storm. All those years we thought it would end with a nuclear launch from the Soviets, he thought bitterly. Now I have to watch a bunch of jokers in turbans destroy                                                                                                                                            

the world.

FBI Director Edward Gambelli entered the room and approached the head of the table.

“Most of the planes are out of the sky, sir. The airspace is almost secure.”

“What do you mean, almost? For shit’s sake.” The Vice President gesture toward the electronic map on the wall, where aircraft were represented by red dots. “That’s a lot of dots, Eddie.”

“They’re mostly private planes, sir. Joyriders out for a spin. We’re contacting the ones that have radar. The fighters will intercept the others and escort them down.”

“What about the other plane?”

“It’s still heading for Washington, sir. Just passed Wilmington.”

“How long before it gets into rural airspace?”

“Five minutes, sir. Ten at the most.”

“What’s happening on board?”                                                                                                                                         

“We’ve received radio and cell phone communications. The passengers are still fighting. They’ve overcome two of the hijackers, and they’re trying to get into the cockpit.”

Hornsby glanced to his right, to the chair occupied by his protégé, CIA Director Admiral Mike McCardle. McCardle nodded.

“When it gets over unoccupied land, I want you to shoot it down.”

“Sir?”

“Eddie, we have the tapes, correct?”

“Yes, but—”

“These people are dead already. None of them can fly the plane. It’s the least we can do to bring comfort to their loved ones. The public will eat it up. The passengers will be heroes.”

“But”

“Eddie, that’s an order. Shoot it down once it gets over unoccupied land. I’ve got your back.”

“Yes, sir.”

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

In the realm of non-fiction, award-winning author Mark Spivak focuses on wine, spirits,

food, restaurants and culinary travel. His first book, Iconic Spirits: An Intoxicating History, was published by Lyons Press in 2012. He followed this with Moonshine Nation (Lyons Press, 2014), hailed as the definitive book on illegal corn whiskey in America. From 1994-1999 he was the wine writer for the Palm Beach Post, and was honored for excellence in wine criticism “in a graceful and approachable style.” Since 2001 he has been the Wine & Spirits Editor for the Palm Beach Media Group, and contributes to a number of national magazines. He is also the holder of the Certificate and Advanced Diplomas from the Court of Master Sommeliers.


Mark’s first novel, Friend of the Devil, was published by Black Opal Books in May 2016. Set in Palm Beach in 1990, it tells the story of America’s most famous chef, who has sold his soul to the Devil for fame and fortune. 


Mark also has an endless fascination with the American political system and is an avid follower of Washington politics. His second novel, The American Crusade (a gripping political thriller set during the invasion of Iraq, which dips into the shadowy world of government conspiracy and political sabotage), will be released by TCK Publishing on April 4. He is currently at work on Impeachment, the sequel to The American Crusade.

Pre-order The American Crusade on Amazon:

https://geni.us/americancrusade

Visit Mark's website at www.markspivakbooks.com, and sign up for his free newsletter and political blog www.markspivakbooks.com/free

Amazon buy link: https://www.amazon.com/American-Crusade-Political-Thriller/dp/1631610708/

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Tales from the beach house

Commercial
Adult Fiction

Date
Published: June 14th 2019

Publisher:
Beautiful Arch

Tales from The Beach House is a satiric work of fiction that sharply captures the
“Man-Bites-Dog” world of contemporary South Florida. The Beach House, a crumbling old motel, is home to a collection of eccentric residents.

Dragon's Revenge

Mystery/Suspense

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. C.J. Shane will be awarding his original artwork - an ink drawing of ocotillo on handmade paper in a wooden frame ready to hang with hooks and wire. Size of frame: 6 1/2" by 8 1/2" (U.S. ONLY), via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

When Tucson private detective and Iraq War vet Letty Valdez is hired to investigate a murder, she immediately finds herself targeted by a violent criminal. To find the killer, Letty turns to an old memoir of life in late 19th century Tucson. Clues in in the memoir, with its tale of love between two immigrants - one, an Italian widow, and the other, an exiled Chinese revolutionary - launch Letty on a suspense-filled struggle to find answers, to stop the murderer – and to stay alive!

Read an Excerpt:

from the memoir:

Mama agreed to sing at the rededication of the cathedral. She considered this a great honor and a spiritual responsibility. She wanted to do well to show her respect and devotion. Because of this, she began practicing every week as she had time, even though the rededication was six months away. She liked to climb a ladder up onto the flat roof of our adobe house and sing there. I asked her once why she went up on the roof.

"It's the right place to talk to God and that's what I'm doing when I sing. Singing here helps me to be strong." Mama said. Mama was very religious. She talked to God a lot. She also talked to Jesus, the Virgin, and all the saints. Me, I never had much use for all that.

She was up on the roof one day when Drago came up the street with his cart. When Mama didn't appear at our front door, he entered the gate to the side yard hoping to find her at the outdoor ovens. It was then that she began singing. Drago moved into the yard and stepped away from the adobe wall so that he could see her on the roof.

Mama stood straight upright, her long skirts moving slightly in the breeze. Her hands were clasped in front of her. She took another deep breath and out came that glorious mezzo-soprano, full and textured, subtle, rich with emotions I was too young to identify but would later know, emotions like passion and longing. Tendrils of curly dark hair escaped from the knot on her neck. Her northern Italian skin, pale like a pearl, glowed in the sunlight, and her dark eyes sparkled. My mama was a beautiful woman and she sang like an angel.

Drago stood transfixed in our garden, his hands at his side, his head bent upward to watch her. He was utterly still, utterly silent. I know this because I was hiding high in the branches of a tall mesquite tree behind him where he couldn't see me. I was supposed to be doing my chores but I, too, liked to watch Mama when she was singing.

Drago stood for the longest time listening to Mama. I was watching Mama but when I looked at Drago, I saw that tears were running down his face.

I think that was the day that Drago fell in love with Mama, the day he first heard her sing.


About the Author:

C.J. Shane is a writer and visual artist in Arizona. In addition to her mystery fiction, she is the author of eight nonfiction books. Her first fiction book, _Desert Jade: A Letty Valdez Mystery_, (11-2017) is a finalist for Best Suspense-Thriller novel, New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards.



Learn more at https://www.cjshane.com/

https://www.cjshane.com/dragons-revenge.html

Rope’s End Publishing: https://www.ropesendpublishing.com/fiction.html


Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/29448.C_J_Shane

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/cj-shane

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Ropes-End-Publishing-329334338020782/?modal=admin_todo_tour



Buy Links:



https://www.amazon.com/Dragons-Revenge-Letty-Valdez-Mystery-ebook/dp/B07KQQL5F2/

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/910170

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dragons-revenge-c-j-shane/1129915766?ean=9780999387450

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/dragon-s-revenge-a-letty-valdez-mystery

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/dragons-revenge-a-letty-valdez-mystery/id1445245747?mt=11



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The Thirteenth Guardian

Sci-Fi

Date
Published: June 11, 2019

Da Vinci’s secret pales. Michelangelo concealed an explosive truth in his famous
Creation of Adam fresco in the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican. Eve did not cause the fall of man. She carried a far more devastating secret for millennia—one that will change the world forever.

As the modern-day world suffers the cataclysmic effects of the “Plagues of Egypt,”
Avery Fitzgerald, a statuesque Astrophysics major at Stanford, discovers that
she is mysteriously bound to five strangers by an extremely rare condition that
foremost medical experts cannot explain. Thrust into extraordinary
circumstances, they race against time to stay alive as they are pursued by an
age-old adversary and the world around them collapses into annihilation.

Under sacred oath, The Guardians—a far more archaic and enigmatic secret society than
the Freemasons, Templars, and the Priory—protect Avery as she embarks on a
daring quest that only legends of old have been on before. Avery must come to
terms with the shocking realization that the blood of an ancient queen flows
through her veins and that the fate of the world now rests on her shoulders.

Read an excerpt...

Remi had always dreamed that he would do meaningful work in his life. His parents
repeatedly told him that he had a great destiny ahead of him and that one day
he would do amazing things. Remi believed that perhaps one day he would become
a senator or congressman and would change the lives of millions of people. The
fact that at twenty-one, he was now in a room with the President of the United
States, his chief of staff, and possibly the only congressman left alive,
working on a plan to keep the United States government functional, left him
with mixed feelings. It was awe inspiring on the one hand, but on the other,
the circumstances around which it was happening were terrifying.

As the four men conferred around an old coffee table, which had now become the
platform on which the future of the United States was being shaped, the door to
the war room burst open and a Marine rushed in with terror in his eyes. He
doubled over, choking, like something was stuck in his throat. Remi rushed to
his aid.

“What now?” the president barked. He was frustrated and at a loss after everything
that had happened over the last few hours. He had run out of patience, and his
capacity for sympathy was completely eroded.

“Mr. President, you need to come up to the surface entrance. You need to do it now,”
the Marine said, gasping for air.

The president knew enough about the Marines’ degree of professionalism that he did
not object.

Everyone followed the Marine down the hall and hopped into the Humvee for the
three-minute ride up the steeply inclined roadway to the entrance of the
bunker.

“Maybe you should slow down for a minute and catch your breath.”

“I am going to be fine, Mr. President. I am able to breathe a lot better now,
sir.”

“Sorry I was curt earlier. It’s been a rough few days, and my nerves are a little
frayed. I should have been more compassionate.”

They stopped at the head of the roadway, which was protected by a steel gate large
enough for a semi-truck. Instead of opening the gate, the Marine walked to the
side and opened a smaller door that led down a short hallway and to a steep set
of stairs. The group of men climbed up the stairs in silence and emerged at the
top of the guard tower.

The president was the first to step out of the stairwell and into the guard tower
opening. He let out a loud gasp. His chief of staff followed and let out an
equally loud expletive. As Remi stepped out of the stairwell, he had instinctively
braced himself for anything; yet still, what he saw shocked him to his core.

About the Author

K.M.
Lewis has lived in multiple countries around the world and speaks several
languages. Lewis holds a graduate degree from one of the Universities featured
in his book. When he is not writing, Lewis doubles as a management consultant,
with clients in just about every continent. He does much of his writing while
on long flights and at far-flung airports around the globe. He currently
resides on the East Coast of the United States with his family.

Contact
Links

Website 

Instagram 

Twitter  

Goodreads

Purchase
Link

Amazon 

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The Fixer Upper

Contemporary Romance

Welcome to the cover reveal of Maggie Mae Gallagher's latest book The Fixer Upper which will be released September 6. Enter the Rafflecopter at the end of the post for a chance to win a $15 Amazon/BN GC.

Abby Callier is more in love with Shakespearean heroes than any real man, and she’s beginning to wonder if there is life for her outside the pages of a book. It doesn’t help that her esteemed parents tend to view her as they would one of their science experiments gone wrong. On the eve of finishing her dissertation, she escapes her staid existence to live in the house she inherited from her Great Aunt Evie in the small town of Echo Springs, Colorado. Because, let’s face it, when a woman starts comparing her life to horror films, it might be time for a break.

Sheriff Nate Barnes believes in law and order and carefully building the life you want. In his spare time, he has been remodeling his house in the hope that one day it will be filled with the family he makes. But Nate doesn’t like drama or complications and tends to avoid them at all costs. And yet, when Miss Abigail Callier, his newest neighbor, beans him with a nine iron, he can’t help but wonder if she might just be the complication he’s been searching for all along. It doesn’t hurt that he discovers a journal hidden away by the previous tenant and decides to use Old Man Turner’s advice to romance Abby into his life.

Abby never expected her next-door neighbor, the newly dubbed Sheriff Stud Muffin, to be just the distraction her world needed. The problem is she doesn’t know whether she should make Echo Springs her home, or if this town is just a stopover point in her life’s trajectory. And she doesn’t want to tell Nate that she might not be sticking around—even though she should because it’s the right thing to do, the honest thing—because then all the scintillatingly hot kisses with the Sheriff will come to an abrupt halt. Did she mention that he’s a really great kisser?

Enjoy an Excerpt...

Abby opened the door to two delivery men wearing Styman and Sons logos on their polos. Greg Styman Junior and Teddy Styman were the sons part of the company. They were both relatively attractive guys in a down-home Mayberry type of way, and were young—far, far too young.

While Abby might be nearing her twenty-ninth birthday, these two reminded her of students—fresh-faced, with that innocent wide-eyed wonder of youth that people tended to lose by their mid-twenties.

One of the things that had drawn her to the local appliance shop, instead of heading into Denver and one of those big-box stores to make her purchase, had been their willingness to haul away the old freezer free of charge. Styman and Sons would strip it and refurbish any of the old parts that weren’t rusted or still viable and resell them online. It made Abby feel like she was doing something good for the environment because the whole thing wouldn’t end up in a landfill.

Abby was standing on her porch, watching the two guys pull her handy-dandy new deepfreeze from the truck, when she was flattened.

She’d barely had time to issue an umphff before she was on her back on the ivory wooden porch, a hulking brute covered in dark black fur towering over her. She lay on her back, trying to assess the damage as a large, wet, pink tongue slobbered over her face. From this angle, she could tell there were a few parts of the roof overhang that needed to be fixed before winter arrived.

Her hands slid into the soft, short fur, attempting to move the massive beast as it said hello with an almost rabid enthusiasm. Abby would have had better luck moving one of the fourteen footers nearby.

“Rufus, stupid mutt, get off her.” Abby heard the deep baritone filled with abject horror.

Rufus, the mammoth Great Dane, listened about as well as a toddler playing with his favorite toy and, instead of moving off her, decided he really wanted to cuddle and lie on top of her. Her breath whooshed out of her again at the dog’s impressive weight. He had to outweigh her by twenty pounds.

“Jesus, Rufus.” Nate Barnes tugged and yanked the hulking beast of a dog off Abby’s prone form. Rufus seemed to think that meant Nate wanted to play and wrestle around. They skirmished on her porch for a minute or so, until Rufus spied a rabbit and took off after the poor creature.

She was starting to push herself up, mentally assessing the damage, when Nate held out a hand to her, a mask of apology adding a deep line to his furrowed brow. “I’m so sorry. Are you all right? He’s harmless, really. The lamebrain just thinks he’s more of a lap dog and doesn’t realize how big he is.”

Abby felt a few brain cells faint as she accepted his help, placing her hand in his much longer one, noticing that the fingers were rough with calluses.

“It’s okay,” she said as she gained her feet, only to be shocked—and a little turned on—as he ran his hands over her, checking for injuries. As much as she tried to rationalize that it was a police-style frisking, a low burn ignited in her belly. Before she did something entirely stupid, like invite him in where he could give her body a private inspection, she batted his hands away. “No harm done. He seems like a big lover.”

Nate smiled sheepishly as he retreated a step, and it did nothing to lessen his impact.

She almost sawed her tongue in half. See? I shouldn’t talk to people, ever. Especially not after Sheriff Stud Muffin put his hands all over her. The action had short-wired and fried her brain, leading to her precarious foot-in-mouth disease. As if he knew she had been talking about him, Rufus loped back up her porch, making a beeline directly for her or, better yet, her crotch, as he planted his wet nose there by way of greeting.

“Rufus, get off her. Jesus, I’m sorry. He’s normally not like this,” Nate explained, more than a little flummoxed and embarrassed as he tried to yank him off.

It was nice to know the guy was human. After their initial and rather violent meeting, she’d wondered if he was a superhero in disguise. She had hit him with the golf club with her full force and the guy had barely flinched.


About the Author:

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Maggie grew up listening to Cardinals baseball and reading anything she could get her hands on. She remembers her mother saying if only she would read the right type of books instead binging her way through the romance aisles at the bookstore, she’d have been a doctor. While Maggie never did get that doctorate, she graduated cum laude from the University of Missouri-St. Louis with an M.A. in History.



Maggie is a bestselling and award-winning author published in multiple fiction genres. She also writes erotic romance under the name Anya Summers. A total geek at her core, when she is not writing, she adores attending the latest comic con or spending time with her family. She currently lives in the Midwest with her two furry felines.



Visit her website here: http://www.maggiemaegallagher.com




Visit her on social media here:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MagMaeGallagher/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/magmaegallagher

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7846308.Maggie_Mae_Gallagher

Twitter: https://twitter.com/magmaegallagher

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/maggiegallagher

BookBub Author Page: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/maggie-mae-gallagher



Don’t miss these exciting titles by Maggie Mae Gallagher!



The Mystic Series



REMEMBER ME: https://amzn.to/2GuwEpY

CASKET GIRL: https://amzn.to/2Dmw9MD



The Cantati Chronicles



RUPTURED: https://amzn.to/2GueJ2L

ANOINTED: https://amzn.to/2Gu0Xgm

ASCENDED: https://amzn.to/2VRGSpz



And if you like your romance with a bit of spice and kink be sure to check out Maggie Mae Gallagher writing as Anya Summers on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/Anya-Summers/e/B01EGTVRKC/



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Knightmare Arcanist

YA Fantasy

Date Published: June 18th 2019

Publisher: Capital Station Books

Magic. Sailing. A murderer among heroes.

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dahlias delight

My Review

Well, well, well. What a surprise. Not being familiar with Karen Tjebben’s work, I thought Dahlia’s Delights was a cozy. I even made some notes that it had quite a few of what I now call your “every day cozy pieces”.  A handsome cop, a thwarted female returning to her small coastal hometown, taking over or inheriting the family business, etc. Sounds like a cozy doesn’t it? I’m not making fun of them. I like them…easy and quick to read, always a little mystery, not too much violence. Well it was cozy, let me tell you. Really cozy between the baker and the cop.

I am making fun of my own naivete about Dahlia’s Delights. It was rather nice to have a detour from other stories…to have someone trying to ruin a business for a change instead of killing the owner. No dead bodies here. Not even an amateur sleuth. However, there is a certain amount of sexual content here, and I suppose it seemed even more explicit to me because I didn’t expect it. Romance, especially somewhat erotic romance are not my choice of genre. Although a surprise, this did not contain enough of either to ruin the read for me. While Dahlia might be a good baker and a delight to her old crush Mark, now a cop in little Avenel, she was also a delight as a character. All the important characters in Tjebben’s book were well-defined; easy to picture. 

This is Book 2 of a series titled “The Flowers of Avenel”. Karen Tjebbin has several other books published. All look to be of the romance genre and all have good reviews.