Tag: book-review
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What a Difference a Year Makes!
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Late Morning, Wednesday, May 7, 2025, Miami, Florida What a difference a year makes. On this date last year, I lived in rural New Hampshire, some 1,600 miles from where I am sitting now. It was a Tuesday, not a Wednesday, and spring felt more “real” there than here because the four seasons are more…
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A Milestone Worth Celebrating: My First U.S. Review for ‘Reunion: Coda’
Late Afternoon, Tuesday, May 6, 2025, Miami, Florida When you pour two years of dedication, passion, and no small amount of stubborn perseverance into a novel, there’s nothing quite like seeing it resonate with readers. On May 3, 2025, Reunion: Coda received its first U.S. review—and second overall—on Amazon, and to say I’m thrilled is…
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A Story Concludes, A Legacy Begins: The Reunion Duology Is Complete
The Reunion Duology is Complete! On April 5, 2025, I published Reunion: Coda, the second book of a duology that began with my 2018 novella, Reunion: A Story. My first novel, it serves as both a prequel and sequel to what Amazon reviewer Meg Learner called a “lovely lyrical book” about “how the angst of…
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From Childhood Dreams to Grownup Reality: My Hopes and Aspirations for ‘Reunion: Coda’
Midday, Tuesday, April 29, 2025, Miami, Florida “Write the book you want to read and can’t find.” – Ilona Andrews Writer’s Log: Stardate 2504.30 It’s been four weeks since I typed the last lines of the closing chapter in Reunion: Coda, yet I still can’t quite believe that I’m now part of the 3% of…
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Waiting for My Copy of ‘Reunion: Coda’ – and Thinking of a Promise Kept
Late Afternoon, Thursday, April 17, 2025, Miami, Florida Well, two years and eight days after I began working on what I briefly called “The New Story” in another writing room in another part of Florida, I can now say that tomorrow I will hold a hardcover edition of Reunion: Coda in my hands. For me,…
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Behind the Scenes of Publishing My Debut Novel
Late Afternoon, Thursday, April 10, 2025, Miami, Florida It’s a gray, gloomy, and somewhat sticky South Florida afternoon. Outside, the skies are shrouded in a blanket of gray-white clouds. For a while, it seemed like there would be light rain showers, but they never came—at least not to Coral Terrace. My room feels as dark…
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Dear Reader, Let Me Tell You About….My Reunion Duology
The Curtain Rises on the Complete Reunion Duology: A Milestone in Storytelling It’s official! The Reunion Duology has reached its emotional—and ambitious—final act. With the Kindle edition of Reunion: Coda launching on April 5, the saga that began with Reunion: A Story is now complete. A heartfelt thank-you to all my readers, beta reviewers, and…
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Completing My First Novel: A Journey of Passion
Midday/Early Afternoon, Tuesday, April 1, 2025, Miami, Florida “Write what you love, and love what you write. You are your first audience, and if you don’t love it, why should anyone else?” – Caroline Linden I’m almost finished. It’s been 754 days since I embarked on writing Reunion: Coda. Not on a mere whim, but…
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Dear Reader, Let Me Tell You a Story…: Hesitation, Regret, and the Power of Unspoken Words
As I continue to work on Reunion: Coda, I wanted to share with you a brief excerpt from the novel’s Prologue. Serving as the connecting tissue between Reunion: A Story (Book One of the Reunion Duology) and this new installment, the Prologue revisits some of the key plot threads from the earlier story while propelling…
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Dear Reader, Let Me Tell You a Story…About the Characters and Settings in ‘Reunion’
Q: Is Reunion: A Story inspired by real people and events, or is it purely a product of imagination? A: It’s a mix of both. When I began crafting this story in the mid-1980s, the primary setting was always South Miami Senior High, my high school in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Even in its earliest form—a…
A Certain Point of View, Too 