Stepping back in time to summer, 1932
Visit Woodhill, Ohio, the village featured in my Firehouse Family books.
In MEMORIES, New York City Fire Captain Jake McCann is appointed fire chief in a small town near Cleveland, Ohio, where his twin brother is a physician. Until Jake's arrival in Woodhill, Laura Darvey's life has been completely predictable; she is 31, married, a nurse, and breeder of Appaloosa horses. Jake and Laura share an interest in horses that deepens into a love affair and leads to terrifying consequences when Laura's husband, Dan, a small-time racketeer, exacts his revenge after Jake inadvertently exposes Dan's deepest secret.
THE QUARRY introduces elderly Maudie Hegerty, whose son, Boris, is foreman of the local quarry. Boris is facing not only potential labor problems, so rife in the 1930s, but he must also come to terms with the colon cancer that is killing his mother. Maudie is being cared for by Dr. Jessica Malloy, the physician in charge of the emergency department at Woodhill Memorial Hospital. In the course of her work, Jess befriends Woodhill Fire Department First-Aid officer, Eli Sheffler, who becomes her steadfast friend through the course of Maudie's illness and events at the quarry that threaten everything they hoped was in their future.
In THE FARM FIRES, a small palomino horse brings Glynis Hampton, daughter of dairy farmer Ben Barneshill, into a chance meeting with Woodhill Fire Department Captain Freddy Pratter at the scene of the horseowner's death. During his investigation of a series of field and farm fires, Freddy falls in love with Glynis even as his investigation leads him to suspect that a member of her family could be the serial arsonist who has killed twice and could kill again in his thirst for revenge.
I wrote these novels to explore problems that haven't changed much over time. MEMORIES deals with the emotional trauma of firefighting and how Jake McCann and his firefighter friends cope with their memories. THE QUARRY looks at medical ethics dilemmas that we still grapple with today, and THE FARM FIRES illustrates an arson problem that may never be stopped no matter how technologically advanced we become.
Woodhill, Allen Falls, and Dalebridge are fictional towns in northeastern Ohio based on attributes from many of the communities in this area. If situated on a map today, Woodhill would be in the southeast corner of Cuyahoga County, bordering on rural Geauga County. I hope you’ll visit Woodhill and enjoy meeting some of the very nice, interesting folks who live there.
The Firehouse Family Book Series is available at Amazon.com, Booksurge.com, and by order through most retail bookstores.
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