Early signs of spring in Vermont and Ireland

Hi everyone!

Early spring here in Vermont means maple sugaring. I love seeing the traditional buckets to collect sap but tubing is more prevalent. Sugarhouse visits are a favorite activity this time of year, including in my hometown in western Massachusetts.

And I love, love visiting Ireland in spring. Bluebells! Lambs!

A number of my books are set this time of year. My work-in-progress Sharpe and Donovan novella is set in April. I can’t wait to get it into readers’ hands!

A memorable scene for me is when Olivia Frost and Dylan McCaffrey meet in Secrets of the Lost Summer on a not-gr… Read More

Irish Roses for Valentine’s Day :-)

Hello from cold, snowy Vermont. We won’t see roses in our garden for quite a while, but I love looking at photos of roses. These are a few of mine, taken casually in Ireland. Southwest Ireland in particular is a prominent setting in a number of my books from The Angel to the Sharpe and Donovan series, starting with Saint’s Gate. 

Enjoy, and I hope your 2026 is off to a great start wherever you are.

Red roses on a wall in Killarney National Park:

Red and yellow roses in beautiful Kenmare on the southwest Irish coast: 

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Spring on the southwest Irish coast

The snow is melting fast now on our Vermont hilltop, with green grass, flowers and tulips not far off. Spring in northern New England! I’m loving the longer, warmer days, but I also love this beautiful time of year on the southwest Irish coast. It’s one of my favorite places.

Lambs hiding in tall grass. Pink blossoms on a “secret” trail. Wildflowers on a hedgerow.

I can walk forever this time of year (that’s me in my Irish mack!). I’m always refreshed when I return to writing.

Wherever you are, happy spring, and happy reading!

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Walking on the southwest Irish coast

Walking and writing go together for me, whether I’m working out a specific issue, letting my wander, taking a break or not thinking about writing at all. I love getting outside and heading off on a trail or a garden walk or a beach or a city street, whether for a short distance or f0r miles.

Ireland, of course, is one of my favorite places to walk (and run). Below are some of the places I wandered recently on the southwest Irish coast, coming away energized, refreshed and filled with creative ideas. The top two photos are in Derreen Garden and the bottom one is in Kenmare. Azaleas and rhododendro… Read More

Yes! “Write postcards.” ~Maeve Binchy

Long before either of us visited Ireland, my mother introduced me to Irish novelist Maeve Binchy’s books. I, too, became a fan. I can see my mother, who died a little over two years ago, reading one by the fire in the back room.

Ms. Binchy, who died in 2012, left behind a few tips for us:

“Learn to type. Learn to drive. Have fun. Write postcards. (Letters take too long and you don’t do it; a postcard takes two minutes.) Be punctual. Don’t worry about what other people are thinking. They are not thinking about you. Write quickly. (Taking longer doesn’t usually make it b… Read More

Adventures await!

“It’s bad manners to keep an adventure waiting.” ~Unknown 

My mother would appreciate that quote. She lived into her mid-eighties and went through some hard times, but she was always up for an adventure. It was her mindset, even when funds were tight, and a great example for me as the third of her seven kids.

She was with us on our first trip to Ireland in 2006. I said, “Mom, would you like to go to Ireland with us?” I swear she started her packing list before she said yes. She didn’t let health issues and knee troubles stop her. I remember her delight as we trekked through a muddy pastu… Read More

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

It’s a great day to celebrate and appreciate love and those we love.

Also for flowers and chocolate. 🙂

Here in Vermont we enjoy Lake Champlain Chocolates and everything Mother Myrick’s. Our roses won’t be in bloom for a while yet (our gardens are still covered in snow) but here are some Irish roses to enjoy.

Now it’s back to writing for me!… Read More

An Irish castle walled garden

It’s no secret I love visiting gardens. On our recent trip to Ireland, we once again wandered through the walled garden at beautiful Dromoland Castle, now a stunning hotel near Shannon Airport.

My photographing abilities don’t do the garden justice but hope you get the idea! 

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Ireland’s Black Valley

Ireland’s Black Valley is one of our favorite spots to hike on our many visits to this beautiful part of the world. When I came up with the idea for my next Sharpe and Donovan installment, I knew part of it would be set in the Black Valley. Tentatively titled Return to Declan’s Cross, it doesn’t have a pub date yet but I’m working on it. I’ll be offering a “sneak peek” in the coming weeks.

Here’s a photo I took on our first hike in the Black Valley. The cottage ruin is a well-known site on the Kerry Way, a marked hiking trail we crossed on our own route. … Read More

The Elusive Finian Bracken

Creating and now working with the characters in my Sharpe & Donovan suspense series has been fun, difficult, exciting, exasperating, creatively fulfilling and…interesting.

Yes, interesting!

Take Finian Bracken, an Irish priest and whiskey man who appears in every Sharpe & Donovan tale. Writing about him has meant I’ve learned more about whiskey, sheep in Ireland, Maine bean-hole suppers, early Irish saints and so much more.

Finian came together and started to feel real for me during a writing getaway to Ireland. One afternoon, I took long walk to a historic cemetery on the sout… Read More