Fire in the Foothills: From the moment Tory’s eyes catch the cold steel of Steve’s in the smoky mirror of the bar, she experiences an unease she cannot shake. When he blocks her vehicle on a lonely stretch of farm road later that night, she is terrified but determined not to go down without a struggle. As the layers of this man with a history of violence are revealed, Tory wonders if she has bitten off more than she can chew. She came west to comfort an aging aunt, prepared to stay for only two months. She is not expecting a life sentence. A colorful thread of humor, honesty, and raw emotion weaves through this tale fraught with suspicion, murder and hope.
The Wilderness: Thinking the pristine woodlands and peaceful river would give her the sanctuary she desperately needs, Hanna Davidson, a 56-year-old divorcee, flees from southern Ontario to a northern Canadian wilderness. She soon learns that the four-legged creatures lurking in the shadows are not the only predators to fear. There’s a terror outside trying to move inside — or is it just her imagination? When the wilderness closes in and her own sanity is in doubt, her nearest neighbor, the handsome Nelson Everett, is always there offering advice, comfort and sanctuary. After she disappears, her family looks suspiciously at him. Is she an accidental victim of the wilderness or has she been taken?
The Track: When do dreams become reality … and reality become nightmares? Forty-two-year-old Kathleen Kennedy is on the highway happily planning a future in the city of Ottawa with a new job and a baby on its way. A tragic accident cruelly puts an end to those dreams. The surgeon who repairs her broken bones appears to have more than a professional interest in her … and her dreams. When life goes from bad to worse, a world she never would have thought existed suddenly opens its doors and sucks her in. She must find her way back, but how, with no identity and no one to trust?
Tomorrow’s Promise: Jo Henderson’s idyllic life on a remote, family-operated resort is shattered one April day by a killer snow storm. A happy marriage spanning more than three decades hasn’t prepared her for the road ahead — one with seemingly impassable roadblocks painted with the names love, uncertainty, ecstasy and guilt.
During the first season on her own, she misinterprets an encounter with sports figure Mike Talbot and literally starts off on the wrong foot. One misstep leads to another and tragedy follows. Who do you turn to when your brain is telling you one thing, your heart is telling you another, and your gut instinct is saying “listen to me”? A solid shoulder named Tony offers his strength for her to draw on.
From the incredible beauty of Northwestern Ontario where the sunsets are beyond description to the cosmopolitan streets and skyscrapers of Toronto; from a small fishing resort on a Canadian lake to scuba diving in the waters off the Florida Keys, uncertainty follows. Try as she might, Jo can’t forget — but the real problem lies in the remembering.
A strong woman, Jo is determined to fight her way through the miasma of pain and guilt threatening to keep her from finding her promised tomorrow.
Never Marry a Farmer: Mystery, romance and family are intertwined in this tale of greed, need and heartbreak set in the vast prairie region of southern Saskatchewan. It’s the ’60s. Corporations are buying farmland. Some farmers sell and find instant wealth. Some farmers don’t sell and still prosper. Some farmers don’t sell and die in the struggle to survive. Is love enough? A bitter old woman says no. A young man is determined to prove her wrong. Maisie, Glen and an innocent child are caught in the conflict.
The 73 Windsor Novels
Helen Whittaker: A 73 Windsor Novel: Edward Joseph Whittaker is dead. He’s lucky. A quick death in a car accident robbed his widow of the satisfaction of killing him slowly. After Helen Whittaker’s husband dumped her for a much younger woman then is killed in an automobile accident, she learns that her finances are as dead as he is. How can a 56-year-old bridge player compete in today’s competitive work force? Several failed interviews and one part-time job later, she starts her own head-hunting agency for seniors. With a little help from her friends, she has a successful career launched. Add an interesting man from her past, a train wreck, a greedy mistress, and a hitherto unknown little bundle of joy and life as Helen knows it is changed forever.
“A beautiful story that encompasses the fundamentals we all desire: compassion, humour, romance, mystery, friendship and misadventure. Helen Whittaker wondered why her high-school sweetheart, Gerald Mercier, had disappeared. Now, 25 years later, she bumps into him in the lobby of the building she calls home. Will Helen fully recover from the accident? The gals, Stella, Olivia, Sarah and Margaret set out to find the truth, but every action causes a reaction. Edward is gone but the mess he left behind cannot be swept under the rug. ‘He had the audacity to die before she could kill him.’” — Catina Noble, author of Katzenjammer (Twig Works, 2015)
Two women are murdered a decade apart in the same area of the prairies. No witnesses. No motives. A skid mark at the scene of one, the only clue.
Margaret McFarland: A 73 Windsor Novel: Margaret, you need a man in your life they said. You have to get out more they said. You’ve got to add some excitement to your life they said. So she added Clarke Ingram to her life — her very own superman they called him, sight unseen. Then she abruptly disappeared.
So what should her friends do now? After all it was on their advice she sought changes to her simple, uncluttered life. Is Clarke Ingram really a dream catch as Margaret had described him or is he a controller preying on unsuspecting older women?
When they finally hear from her, it’s only to learn of her involvement in one catastrophe after another. A near death in a swimming pool accident. A suspicious bus accident in South America. The disappearance of several more people. The forced care of two innocent children. Murder. Drugs. Ransom. Events none of them had ever thought would be a part of their lives.
Margaret is caught in a labyrinth that only draws her deeper and deeper into a complicated chaos. All her friends can do is to jump in and help her find a way to come home — no matter what.
Sarah Eisenboch: A 73 Windsor Novel: It wasn’t the song “The Coldest Night of the Year” that was going around and around in Sarah Eisenboch’s brain, plaguing her thoughts night and day. It was the memory of the frigid night she literally gave the boot to a pile of dirty rags outside her downtown Ottawa condo. To her horror, a human form had risen from the mass then limped away and disappeared into a nearby alley. The dark eyes that had momentarily captured hers continued to haunt her.
A wealthy, kind-hearted philanthropist, she was dev-as-tated by the thought she had sent a homeless human being into a bitterly cold January night – maybe even to his death. She made it her mission to track him down and make amends.
But life kept getting in the way. “Things” kept placing obstacles before a badly timed Florida vacation, a family tragedy, falling hopelessly in love, a granddaughter who needed her. Still … that unfortunate figure and his poignant dark eyes kept reappearing. Not just in her dreams but in the shadows and doorways around her.
Who was he? She wasn’t aware the answer was only a gunshot away.
Stella Jacobson: A 73 Windsor Novel: Stella recently lost a friend. A friend who left her a legacy. Two legacies, actually, both life changing, both attitude altering. One she can share, one she cannot.
Stella has a history — one she’s not proud of, but from which she now has a chance to break free. A chance to leave the grey clouds behind and enjoy a little sunshine.
A man coincidentally appears on the scene when she’s most vulnerable … when she’s building the courage to try her wings, so to speak.
He’s perfect — tall, dark, handsome, caring, funny, attentive, intriguing, and most delightful of all … he’s a terrific dancer. He’s also much younger.
Should she take a chance? Her friends say hell yes. Her gut says absolutely not. Her heart says … well, that’s a whole other story.