In 1880, Rose Litkin, a nine-year-old orphan from the tenements of the Lower East Side, is adopted by Lucien Boyesten, a widowed banker seeking a companion for his spoiled ten-year-old daughter, Emma. Rose is whisked away to Boston-to a sister who resents and torments her-and struggles to find her place in a family where secrets abound. Eight years later, impoverished and fleeing the disgrace of Lucien's fraudulent business practices and tragic death, Rose and Emma board a train bound for New York to live with Lucien's estranged sister, Frances. But a raging blizzard strands their train in the path of a runaway railway coach, and Emma perishes in the collision. Alone and frightened, Rose makes a desperate decision... Rose is warmly welcomed into Frances's home as "Emma" and quickly becomes a part of her aunt's extended family. But the happiness that has always eluded her is still out of reach-clouded by the unbearable weight of her deception and the fear of losing everyone she holds dear. Set against the glitter and greed of the Gilded Age and rich in historic detail, The Other Emma chronicles Rose's journey from the despair of the tenements to the mansions of Fifth Avenue. The novel is both tragic and sweet-a rags-to-riches tale and a testament to the enduring power of family and forgiveness.
I was born and raised in South Florida and now make my home in Georgia with my husband, a growing stack of to-be-read books, and a trail of unfinished New York Times crossword puzzles. I love movies, boxers—the breed, not the pugilists—long walks, rainy days, the University of Florida Gators, and all things chocolate. I am a former English teacher who left the classroom to raise our daughter and son, and found a new career as a freelance writer and copyeditor. My articles and essays have appeared in The Boston Globe, Woman's World Magazine, andYahoo News. My debut novel, Ashes, is the 2019 winner of the Next Generation Indie Book Award for Historical Fiction, and the 2019 New Apple Summer E-Book Awards Solo Medalist winner for Historical Fiction. Historical novels, In Freedom's Light and The Other Emma followed.
