Close Enough for Jazz

After her boyfriend dumps her for the singer in his jazz band, teacher and trumpet player Jill Sarton leaves San Francisco and moves back home to take care of her dying mother. She finds herself surrounded by the familiar world of Lemon Springs, the sleepy suburb where she grew up and fantasized about moving to New York City to pursue her dream of being a professional musician. When her mother dies, Jill packs up the contents of the house, hires her childhood friend Martin to do some repairs, and plays her last few remaining jazz gigs. After all, there is nothing keeping her in California now. Or is there?

Laura Austin Wiley has a B.A. in English from Columbia University and an M.A. in English from Holy Names University. She grew up in rural Indiana but now lives in northern California with her husband, Aaron, and five cats. Her writing has appeared in the Oakland Tribune, the Columbia Alumni Magazine, Conscious Choice Magazine, Zillah Quarterly, Wild Violet Literary Review and Wilderness House Review, among other publications. This is her second novel. Her first novel, Playing Hooky, was published in 2012.