Admiring Conegliano through the vines
Earlier this summer, I was up in Conegliano, Italy – in the Veneto region – with my younger son for a track and filed race he had there. It was my first time in Coneglaino, a pleasant little town. But its real claim to fame is all the vineyards surrounding the towns in the hills…
Read MoreJoining the book tour for The Lost Garden launch
Very pleased to join the launch tour for Angela Petch’s newest novel, The Lost Garden. Like me, Petch is an expat who lives in Italy, so I know I’m in good hands for her Italian tales. I enjoyed Petch’s latest novel, a coming of age tale set in Italy’s Emilia Romagna region in the 1930s.…
Read MoreThe beauty of Armenian khachkars
We had a wonderful vacation in the Caucasus last month – and I’ll be writing more about what we saw in beautiful Georgia and Armenia in the coming weeks. But one of the beautiful objects we saw throughout Armenia were the traditional khachkars, or carved, cross-stone stele. These khachkars are typical of medieval Armenian Christian…
Read MoreGreat to see Drink Wine and Be Beautiful featured on Trip Fiction’s blog on book covers
Thanks to talented author Lya Badgely, who brought this blog post to my attention. Great to see my short story collection cover, Drink Wine and Be Beautiful, featured in the blog for Trip Fiction entitled The Power of a Book Cover. It’s an interestting post, speaking about the power of book covers. Honestly, I’m not…
Read MoreA Tuscan hideaway in Civitella Marittima
My sprinter son qualified for the U23 Italian track & field championships. This year’s edition was held in Grosetto, Tuscany. Because we booked late, everything in this Tuscan town was fully booked. Having been to Grosetto’s fabulous track for earlier races, I decided to seek out something new. I started looking for hotels further inland…
Read MoreNew Kirkus review for Dark Blue Waves
Pleased to have received a new Kirkus Review book review for my time travel women’s fiction/historical romance novel, Dark Blue Waves. I’ve loved writing all my novels, but as a huge Jane Austen fan, writing this one imagining a modern girl transported back to 1813 was a dream come true. Here’s the full review below.…
Read MoreGhost town? No, ghost castle – in Tuscany…
You’ve probably heard of ghost towns. Towns where residents moved away, and which are now quaint relics from the past. But on a recent trip to Tuscany, I visited a “ghost castle”. Truthfully, it’s not a real ghost castle, since there were a couple of elderly residents who resided there. We spoke to them, and…
Read MoreLast day to download my Easter at The Three Coins Inn for free!
Just a reminder that – not only did my latest novel pick up four book awards, but Easter At The Three Coins Inn is also FREE for downloading this month over at the Book Cave Summer Book Bash. Today is your LAST day to download my novel for free if you sign up for my…
Read MoreThe State Capitol in Austin, Texas
I’d been to Texas a couple of times, but had never visited its capital of Austin until a few years ago. My son was at a running camp in Texas, and we traveled through the state, including its capitol building. It was a hot, summer day, and we were happy to take an (airconditioned) break…
Read MorePick up an escape to Rome for 99 cents, with Three Coins
My first novel, Three Coins, is on sale through Monday for ninety-nine cents in the US, the UK, the euro zone, Canada and Australia (and in equivalent currencies internationally) through Monday on Amazon and Kobo. Hope you’ll pick up this women’s fiction novel, with a touch of romance, set in Rome and focused primarily on…
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