Читать книгу A Turn in the Road - Debbie Macomber - Страница 5

Dear Friends,

My husband, Wayne, and I love road trips. Because we have two homes, one in Washington State and the other in Florida, we drive back and forth twice a year. In case you’re interested, that’s 3,323 miles, door to door. Wayne plans the route and we’ve visited nearly every state between Washington and Florida. Perhaps because of that, I’ve always wanted to write a book that involved a cross-country drive.

Since I first wrote A Good Yarn, which introduced the character Bethanne Hamlin, she’s been on my mind. When her husband left her and their family for a younger woman, Bethanne was devastated and eventually joined a knitting class as a kind of therapy. The friends she made in Lydia’s yarn store helped her deal with the abrupt change in her life.

The idea for Bethanne’s party business actually came from my daughter, Jenny Adele, who held a wonderfully creative party for our oldest grandson when he turned eight. They were living on a one-family income, so money was tight. Using her imagination and playing on Cameron’s interest in the army, she mailed out draft notices as party invitations. Then my son-in-law designed an obstacle course on their property. Adding to the fun, my oldest son, Ted, a former Army Ranger, provided camouflage makeup and MREs. The boys had the time of their lives and the entire party cost little more than a cake mix and a few stamps.

I was proud of Bethanne and the success of her business and I wanted to do more with this character. I didn’t like Grant, her ex-husband, the first time around, but when he reappeared in A Turn in the Road he was much more sympathetic. He’s recognised his mistake and wants his family back. This is a difficult decision for Bethanne. As it happens, she has an opportunity to travel across the country with her daughter and her ex-mother-in-law. Three generations of women each facing … a turn in the road. By the way, if you’re a committed film buff, you may notice that I’ve moved the release date of Breakfast at Tiffany’s forward by a few months. I took this liberty because—well, frankly, it worked for the story.

As always, I’m eager to hear from my readers. You can reach me in two ways: either by logging on to my website at www.DebbieMacomber.com and signing the guestbook, or by contacting me at PO Box 1458, Port Orchard, WA 98366, USA.

Warmly,