Set between Cubas twenty years apart, Havana native Teresa Dovalpage’s new murder mystery explores lingering grudges between old friends and lovers separated by Castro’s final sanctioned raft exodus.
Juan, a Cuban construction worker who has settled in Albuquerque, returns to Havana for the first time since fleeing Cuba by raft twenty years ago. He is traveling with his American wife, Sharon, and hopes to reconnect with Victor, his best friend from college—and, unbeknownst to Sharon, he also hopes to discover what has become of two ex-girlfriends, Elsa and Rosita.
Juan is surprised to learn that Victor has become Victoria and runs a popular drag show at the local hot spot Café Arabia. Elsa has married a wealthy foreigner, and Rosita, still single, works at the Havana cemetery. When one of these women turns up dead, it will cost Padrino, a Santería priest and former detective on the Havana police force, more than he expects to untangle the group’s lies and hunt down the killer.
Queen Of Bones is available in ebook and hardback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.
My Review:
I thought this was a very enjoyable murder mystery set in Cuba which is a country that’s always held some intrigue for me.
Firstly I found it interesting to learn about the modern day Cuba compared to how it was in the past. The reader gets to experience the differences through Juan’s eyes as someone who hasn’t been in the country for years. I didn’t know much about its history so it was fascinating to find out more about it.
The cultural changes are further emphasised by the contrast between transgender Victoria and the descriptions of the Santeria religion which is quite conservative. I’d never heard of this religion before which is a mix of African deities and Catholic saints so I enjoyed finding out more about it, especially as it helped me to realise why some of the characters acted the way they did.
The murder mystery was fun to follow and to try to work out everything alongside the characters. I did guess who it was fairly early on but did want to keep reading so I could find out why they did it. There are a few stories happening alongside each other, with some false leads along the way which did have me second guessing myself but it was satisfying to see it all come together at the end.
Huge thanks to Rachel from Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
Teresa Dovalpage was born in Havana, Cuba. She earned her BA in English literature and an MA in Spanish literature at the University of Havana, and her PhD in Latin American literature at the University of New Mexico. She is the author of twelve other works of fiction and three plays, and is the winner of the Rincón de la Victoria Award and a finalist for the Herralde Award. She lives in New Mexico.
The drinks are flowing. The music is playing. But the party can’t last.
With the Blitz over and London reeling from war, jazz musician Lawrie Matthews has answered England’s call for help. Fresh off the Empire Windrush, he’s taken a tiny room in south London lodgings, and has fallen in love with the girl next door.
Touring Soho’s music halls by night, pacing the streets as a postman by day, Lawrie has poured his heart into his new home – and it’s alive with possibility. Until, one morning, he makes a terrible discovery.
As the local community rallies, fingers of blame are pointed at those who had recently been welcomed with open arms. And, before long, the newest arrivals become the prime suspects in a tragedy which threatens to tear the city apart.
Atmospheric, poignant and compelling, Louise Hare’s debut shows that new arrivals have always been the prime suspects. But, also, that there is always hope.
Ths Lovely City is available in ebook and hardback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.
My Review:
This Lovely Life is a fascinating look into postwar London which manages to be both poignant and hopeful at the same time.
Firstly the author does a great job of setting the scene in this book and I felt completely transported to postwar London. As you could well imagine the atmosphere at the time was quite unsettled, tense and suspicious after so many years or fear which is vividly described in the book. I haven’t read much about this period so found all the historical details very interesting especially learning more about the windrush generation and their experiences here. The shabbiness of London is contrasted well with the fun and hopefulness of the time too which helped bring some light moments in an otherwise sad book.
There are some fantastic characters in this book who I enjoyed getting to know. Lawrie was definitely my favourite character and I loved how positive he tries to be even when faced with daily discrimination. DI Rathbone on the other hand- ooh how I hated him! He’s such a nasty, cruel and racist man that I wished I could have reached into the book to give him the slap he really deserved. I felt my blood rise with indignation for Lawrie as he was so horrible to him!
This is a book that is great to get lost in as there is always something going on to keep the reader absorbed in the story. There are some twists that took me by surprise but ultimately this is a story of joy and hope in a bleak time which was brilliantly written. I think this would make a great book club read as there would be lots to discuss.
Huge thanks to Joe Thomas for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
LOUISE HARE is a London-based writer and editor with an M.A. in Creative Writing from Birkbeck, University of London. In 2016, her short story “The Odyssey of Dee Lennox” was shortlisted for the Just Write Creative Writing Competition, and in 2017 she was a finalist for the prestigious Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize. This Lovely City is her first novel.
A year ago, Charlie’s life seemed to be following a plan: she had a beautiful house, a lovable dog and an upcoming wedding. But she felt trapped. A few months before the big day, ignoring the warnings from her family, she abandoned her life and fled to the other side of the world in a bid for freedom.
But when her mother unexpectedly falls ill, Charlie has to cut her trip short. She flies home, but by the time she gets to the hospital, it’s too late.
Her mother is gone, but she’s left a mystery behind. Why did she buy a canal boat, and where did the money for it come from? As Charlie attempts to work through her grief and pick up the pieces of her life, she follows the threads of her mother’s secret past – but has she missed her chance to learn the truth?
You Never Told Me is published in ebook and paperback on the 19th March 2020. You can pre-order your copy using the link below.
My Review:
Firstly I have to say that this book was not what I was expecting. It was a far deeper, emotional book then I thought and I have found myself continuing to think about it long after I’ve finished reading it.
This is a book about identity and how well we know ourselves which was fascinating to read about. I liked following Charlie as she tried to solve the mystery and whilst doing so learns more about herself and her family. It was interesting to see how we can be wrong about our assumptions and how quick we can be to form an opinion on a person.
I loved the wonderful, vivid descriptions of what life is like living on a narrow boat. I went on many narrow boat holidays as a child so have a bit of an idea about what it would involve, so I really enjoyed this part of the book. The smallness of the narrow boat also helps create some atmosphere too as it makes things quite claustrophobic which makes things very intense at times.
The author cleverly takes the reader on a journey of discovery which is incredibly absorbing and hard to out down as I was soon lost in the story I liked the gradual unraveling of family secrets and hidden secrets which was very intriguing to follow. I will be recommending this book to everyone.
Huge thanks to Emma from Damp pebbles tours for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
Sarah Jasmon lives on a canal boat in Lancashire, which is also the setting for her two novels – The Summer of Secrets and You Never Told Me. She has written short stories for a wide selection of publications and in 2018 was shortlisted for the Harper’s Bazaar short story competition. She is an Associate Tutor in Creative Writing at Manchester Metropolitan University, and is currently studying for a PhD in Creative Geography.
Minnie Price married late in life. Now she is widowed. And starving. No one suspects this respectable church-goer can barely keep body and soul together. Why would they, while she resides in the magnificent home she shared with Peter? Her friends and neighbours are oblivious to her plight and her adult step-children have their own reasons to make things worse rather than better. But she is thrown a lifeline when an associate of her late husband arrives with news of an investment about which her step-children know nothing. Can she release the funds before she finds herself homeless and destitute?
Fans of ‘The Hoarder’s Widow’ will enjoy this sequel, but it reads equally well as a standalone.
The Widow’s Mite is available in ebook and paperback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.
Guest Post:
Article for Over The Rainbow Book Blog
Personally, I love a book written in multiple time frames. I have recently discovered Sarah Maine who uses this narrative technique very well. Her books flip between the past and the present, each chapter ending on a sort of cliff-hanger before the reader is whisked off to another time. Lots of others exist. Barbara Erskine’s Lady of Hay is a brilliant example. Daphne du Maurier’s The House on the Strand is another. But these deal with time frames which are centuries distant from each other and involve time travel in some form or another. Many writers use the discovery of hidden diaries or letters, messages and clues to link the past and the present. I enjoy books like that. I am reading one currently; The Memory Tree, by Linda Gillard. Others employ ghostly figures or mysterious moanings. I’m not so keen on those, unless the supernatural is handled delicately, by suggestion and implication. Of course the past always informs the present and all characters have backstory which sometimes comes out in a straightforward way through narration or via dialogue. Occasionally, though, it turns out that it is too important to simply slip in. It deserves proper telling. In The Hoarder’s Widow, the main thrust of the story concerns the huge task faced by a widow (Maisie) as she disassembled her late husband’s hoard of clutter. I hadn’t expected the deceased man to feature at all, except as his obsession impacted his wife. But I found that he (his name is Clifford) also had a story to tell and I needed him to tell it if he wasn’t to come across as just a crazed and selfish monster. I discovered that I also needed to trace something of the early married life of the couple, to show how gradually Clifford’s addiction had developed and how Maisie had rationalised it in her mind. Otherwise readers would not understand why she allowed or endured it. My solution in this case was to intersperse Maisie’s story with some first person interjections from Clifford. His voice is disembodied, ghostly in that it is from beyond the grave, but he doesn’t know that he is dead. Hearing him explain his ‘collecting’ really humanises him, I think. It also chimes in with Maisie’s sense that he is still in the house, somehow, lurking, picking over his boxes and bags, disapproving as she gradually has his stuff hauled away. As part of Maisie’s emergence from the shadow of her bereavement, she meets a group of similarly circumstanced women. These, too, began to intrigue me. They all had backstories too. I deliberately didn’t explore or explain them in The Hoarder’s Widow and thus the next book in what I envisage to be a series, came to be. My main problem for the second book, The Widow’s Mite, was that I wanted to carry on the story of Maisie (because by that time she had not one but two possible new love interests) while at the same time going back in time to explore the story of one of her women friends, Minnie Price. I needed these two story threads to coincide at some point, and carry on together. Technically, this was challenging. Readers of The Hoarder’s Widow would want Maisie’s tale to make progress, so it had to move forward, however slowly. But Minnie’s story had to start a year or so beforehand and then catch up. In the end I decided on three narrative techniques to achieve this end in The Widow’s Mite. The final book has alternating chapters that flip backwards and forwards between the two threads, but I wrote each thread in its entirety beforehand because it was just too hard changing tone and setting; Minnie’s story is sad and heart-rending, Maisie’s is bright and optimistic. I found I struggled to leap from one to the other either in my head or on the page. Plus, they are written in different tenses. Maisie’s story is written in the present tense, Minnie’s in the past tense. While Maisie’s story unfolds right before her and the reader, Minnie’s is retrospective until it catches up with Maisie in time, when both narratives assume the present tense. This was my second narrative strategy but it was tricky not to lapse into the wrong tense while I was still trying to write them side by side. Lastly, I decided that Maisie’s story would take place on one day (more or less), while Minnie’s would evolve over the space of one year. Thus, (I hope) the pace in Maisie’s chapters is languorous and introspective, while the pace of Minnie’s story is brisk. I wasn’t wholly sure until the book was finished whether I had pulled it off, worrying up to that point whether I had one book or two. In the end I think I’ve nailed it but, as always, the reader is the final arbiter. You shall be the judge. I hope you’ll give The Widows series a try. I’d be delighted to know what you think. You can contact me via my website or (far better) leave a short review.
About The Author:
Allie Cresswell is the recipient of two coveted One Stop Fiction Five Star Awards and three Readers’ Favorite Awards Allie was born in Stockport, UK and began writing fiction as soon as she could hold a pencil. Allie recalls: ‘I was about 8 years old. Our teacher asked us to write about a family occasion and I launched into a detailed, harrowing and entirely fictional account of my grandfather’s funeral. I think he died very soon after I was born; certainly I have no memory of him and definitely did not attend his funeral, but I got right into the details, making them up as I went along (I decided he had been a Vicar, which I spelled ‘Vice’). My teacher obviously considered this outpouring very good bereavement therapy so she allowed me to continue with the story on several subsequent days, and I got out of maths and PE on a few occasions before I was rumbled.’ She went on to do a BA in English Literature at Birmingham University and an MA at Queen Mary College, London. She has been a print-buyer, a pub landlady, a book-keeper, run a B & B and a group of boutique holiday cottages. Nowadays Allie writes full time having retired from teaching literature to lifelong learners. She has two grown-up children, two granddaughters and two grandsons, is married to Tim and lives in Cumbria.
It’s 1952. The switchboard operators in Wooster, Ohio, love nothing more than to eavesdrop on their neighbours’ conversations, and gossip about what they learn. Vivian Dalton is no different (despite her teenage daughter’s disapproval), and always longs to hear something scandalous. But on the night of December 15th, she wishes she hadn’t. The secret that’s shared by a stranger on the line threatens to rip the rug of Vivian’s life from under her.
Vivian may be mortified, but she’s not going to take this lying down. She wants the truth, no matter how painful it may be. But one secret tends to lead to another . . .
This moving, heart-felt and ultimately uplifting novel brilliantly weaves together an irresistible portrayal of a town buzzing with scandal, and an unforgettable story of marriage, motherhood and the unbreakable ties of family.
The Operator is available in ebook and hardback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.
My Review:
I absolutely loved this book which I flew through in a couple of days as I found it very addictive.
The great combination of historical details with the gossipy writing style was just brilliant and helped perfectly capture the atmosphere of a small town where everyone knows each others business. It was great fun to follow the characters and learn more about their lives.
The main story is set in the 1950’s but the author takes us through flashbacks of Vivian’s life from her childhood to the present day. This covers some interesting historical events which I found fascinating to learn more about especially the War Of The World’s broadcast which I’d never heard about before and the descriptions of which had me in stitches. The story also covers some of the attitudes of the time towards black people and the focus on class which helped add to some of Vivian’s panic as she tries to sort everything out.
Most of the characters in this book weren’t very likeable and I was glad that I didn’t know them in real life. I couldn’t decide what I thought about Vivian as sometimes I liked and felt sorry for her but others I found her very annoying. I absolutely hated Betty though – what a horrible person. I found my toes curling with some of her self righteous opinions and wished I could go into the book to have a word with her myself.
Overall I thought this was an absolutely fantastic, addictive read which was hugely enjoyable. I’ve been recommending it to everyone and look forward to reading more from this author in the future.
Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Headline for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
Gretchen Berg grew up in the US Midwest and now lives in Oregon. She has always been curious about history and families, and has a personal family tree of over 16,000 people. Her family research started with her own grandmother’s little brown notebook full of details, and it was the story of her grandmother – herself a switchboard operator in Wooster, Ohio, in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s – that inspired THE OPERATOR.
THREE EXTRAORDINARY LIVES INTERTWINE ACROSS OCEANS AND TIME
On the banks of the River Seine in 1899, a young woman takes her final breath before plunging into the icy water. Although she does not know it, her decision will set in motion an astonishing chain of events. It will lead to 1950s Norway, where a grieving toy-maker is on the cusp of a transformative invention, all the way to present-day Canada where a journalist, battling a terrible disease, risks everything for one last chance to live.
Taking inspiration from a remarkable true story, Coming Up for Air is a bold, richly imagined novel about the transcendent power of storytelling and the immeasurable impact of every human life.
Coming Up For Air is published in ebook and hardback on the 19th March 2020. You can pre-order your copy using the link below.
My Review:
Wow this was some read! I so enjoyed reading this moving but hopeful book which was just beautifully written.
The story centers around three woman from different times and countries whose lives are told brilliantly so it is easy for the reader to get absorbed into their world. I found I enjoyed learning more about them and the problems that they face. Each person has a different thing that they have to overcome, two with a tragic loss and one person trying to overcome an illness that they have struggled with since birth. I felt their stories were beautifully told, almost poetically at times and that all of the issues they face were handled sensitively.
I found this story deeply moving as it was interesting to see how others dealt with their problems and how things changed through the years. The author manages to include a range of important issues in the book respectfully and without ever seeming like she’s preaching which was quite thought provoking. It’s a story that might help others going through similar problems as it’s a great reminder that sometimes things happen which we can’t control but it is possible to heal and grow from them.
Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Transworld for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
Born and raised in Canada, Sarah Leipciger lives in London with her three children, and teaches creative writing to prisoners. Her short fiction has been shortlisted for the Asham Award, the Fish Prize and the Bridport Prize. Her first novel, the critically acclaimed THE MOUNTAIN CAN WAIT, was published in 2015. COMING UP FOR AIR is her second novel.
The gripping new Scottish crime thriller that you won’t be able to put down. Perfect for fans of L J Ross and Val McDermid.
‘A deliciously dark and twisted tale that kept me reading late into the night’ Graham Smith, bestselling author of A Body in the Lakes
Four friends with dark secrets. One killer out for revenge.
DI Frank Farrell and DS McLeod are tasked with investigating the brutal murder of a defence solicitor’s wife in Dumfries.
It’s been over a year since they left the town after an investigation robbed them of a dear friend. But now they’re back and must find a way to move on.
When the son of another defence solicitor is murdered, a strange tattoo etched on his body, the case takes them into darker, more disturbing territory.
It leads them back into the past – to a horrific fire in a cottage that took a woman’s life, to four friends harbouring dark secrets – and finally to a killer waiting patiently for revenge.
Avenge The Dead is available in ebook now and in paperback on the 16th April 2020. You can purchase or pre-order your copy using the link below.
My Review:
This was a highly addictive, gritty crime novel which I thoroughly enjoyed. This is actually the third book in the series but can easily be read as a standalone.
Firstly I liked how the author let’s the reader see the more personal side of a police officer and how deeply affected they can me by a case. I thought this made the story and characters seem more realistic, which made me warm to them.
This book features a very engrossing case with lots of twists and turns in it which kept me guessing. Just when I thought I had figured it out, that person would be killed and I’d have to start all over again. I found that I was constantly thinking about the book when I wasn’t reading and couldn’t wait to get back to it to find out what would happen next.
I thought this was a fast paced, well plotted book which I enjoyed trying to solve alongside the characters. The ending was very satisfying and I liked how everything was explained at the end.
Huge thanks to Emma from Damp pebbles tours for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book. Thanks to both of you for your kindness and understanding when I couldn’t post this yesterday due to my daughter having a severe allergic reaction.
About The Author:
Jackie Baldwin practiced as a solicitor in a rural town for twenty years specialising in family and criminal law. She then trained as a hypnotherapist and now works from home. She is married with two grown up children and loves to walk with her two dogs in local forests. She is an active member of her local crime writing group.
Perfect for fans of Me Before You and One Day, this heart-breaking story of love, loss and life will have you questioning everything you thought you knew about destiny… Where do you see yourself in five years? Type-A Manhattan lawyer Dannie Kohan has been in possession of her meticulously crafted answer since she understood the question. On the day that she nails the most important job interview of her career and gets engaged to the perfect man, she’s well on her way to fulfilling her life goals. That night Dannie falls asleep only to wake up in a different apartment with a different ring on her finger, and in the company of a very different man. The TV is on in the background, and she can just make out the date. It’s the same night – December 15th – but 2025, five years in the future. It was just a dream, she tells herself when she wakes, but it felt so real… Determined to ignore the odd experience, she files it away in the back of her mind. That is, until four and a half years later, when Dannie turns down a street and there, standing on the corner, is the man from her dream… In Five Years is a love story, brimming with joy and heartbreak. But it is definitely not the love story you’re expecting.
In Five Years is published in ebook and hardback on the 10th March 2020. You can pre-order your copy using the link below.
My Review:
This was a very clever, emotional read which wasn’t at all what I expected. I absolutely flew through it and finished it in a couple of days as I was so absorbed in the story.
Firstly Dannie was a very interesting character who took me a little while to warm to. She seemed so perfect and controlled at the beginning that it was hard to like her, but as the story goes on and we learn more about her I started to see her in a different way. She’s actually a very realistic character and I enjoyed the normal conversations she has in the book as it made the story seem more real. Her friendship with Bella was lovely to read about and similar to the friends I have in real life. It was great to see how two very different people could support each other the way they do.
This is a hard book to review as I don’t want to give too much away but it is easily one of the best books I’ve read this year. It’s surprisingly fast paced and very addictive which ensured I stayed up too late as I couldn’t stop reading it. The ending was very emotional and unexpected which ensured I have kept thinking about it long after I have finished reading it.
Huge thanks to Milly Reid from Quercus for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book via Netgalley.
About The Author:
Rebecca Serle is an author and television writer who lives in New York and Los Angeles. Serle developed the hit TV adaptation of her YA series Famous in Love, and is also the author of The Dinner List, and YA novels The Edge of Falling and When You Were Mine. She received her MFA from the New School in NYC. Find out more at RebeccaSerle.com.
When a young boy falls from a balcony in a block of flats, DS Grace Allendale witnesses the shocking aftermath of the tragic event. But strangely, no one will admit to seeing anything – and the parents will only tell the police that it was an accident.
Determined to sort the truth from the lies, Grace is thrown into a case that takes her to the darkest corners of the criminal world – and strikes closer to home than she could have ever imagined…
A gripping and pacey thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat from the moment you turn the first page. The perfect read for fans of Martina Cole.
Liar Liar is available in ebook and paperback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.
My Review:
I’m a huge fan of this author and this series which in my opinion keeps going from strength to strength. Liar Liar is another gritty, terrifying and just heartbreaking read which will stay with me for a long time.
The case revolves around how and why two year old Tyler managed to fall from a balcony. As the story develops and we learn more about the characters background it soon becomes clear that it’s not as simple investigation as it first appeared.
There are some very interesting characters in this book including some who I absolutely hated which I always think is a sign that they have been very well written. Some of their actions made me feel physically sick as I can’t believe some of the stuff they did. How anyone would want to inflict so much pain and misery on another person is beyond me.
This was a very fast paced and incredibly gripping story which I managed to read in a couple of days. The lack of evidence or witnesses makes it a very intriguing case to try and solve. I so enjoyed following the case and trying to work out what was going on. The ending although heartbreaking was a satisfactory way to end the book.
Huge thanks to Sanjana from Avon for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
Mel Sherratt is the author of fourteen crime novels, all of which have become bestsellers. For the past four years, she has been named as one of her home town of Stoke-on-Trent’s top 100 influential people.
She regularly appears at festivals and speaks at writing conferences throughout the UK, and pens a column for her local newspaper, the Sentinel, as well as feature articles for other newspapers and magazines.
She lives in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, with her husband and terrier, Dexter.
When Sadie moves with her husband Will and their two children to a tiny coastal town, it’s a fresh start. Will swears the affair he was having back in the city is over and Sadie believes him. But their new beginning is tainted when a local woman is murdered, leaving Sadie convinced there’s a killer in their midst.
Hot-headed, beautiful Camille is obsessively in love with Will. She’s even prepared to follow him thousands of miles to stake out his new home in secret – and in doing so, becomes the only witness to a brutal crime.
But who is Camille really, and what is her connection to the dead woman? And as the murder investigation deepens, whose secret will be revealed as the darkest of them all? ___
Unsettling, compelling and with a jaw-dropping twist, you won’t be able to put this novel down. Perfect for fans of Behind Closed Doors and Sometimes I Lie.
The Other Mrs is available in ebook and paperback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.
My Review:
The Other Mrs is a dark, atmospheric read which was very enjoyable!
Firstly I just loved how the Island itself helped contribute to the tension and atmosphere in the book. It helps to bring a level of claustrophobia to the story too as you realise how isolated the island is and how easily it’s cut off from anything by bad weather. The islanders help contribute to the feeling that no one cares about the family as they like to keep to themselves and are very cautious of all strangers.
I thought the story developed well, with the slow release of information and reveals about the family keeping me very intrigued. As you might expect things aren’t as straight forward as they first appear and I especially liked finding out more about the character’s history. There are some very interesting, complex characters in this book though not many are likeable I still enjoyed learning more about them. My favourite was definitely Mouse though as she was a very relatable character and I enjoyed following her take on things.
The pace of this book gradually increases as the story develops and I found some of the scenes very nail biting to read. I did figure out part of the story early on but this didn’t stop me enjoying the book as I wanted to keep reading to figure out the other part of the story and see if I was right.
Huge thanks to HQ Stories for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.
About The Author:
Mary Kubica is the New York Times bestselling author of six novels, including THE GOOD GIRL and her upcoming release, THE OTHER MRS. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, in History and American Literature. She lives outside of Chicago with her husband and two children. Visit Mary at http://www.marykubica.com/
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