A fun Q&A I had up on my website for a while and just updated. Enjoy!

What’s the most important thing you learned as a reader?

I learned that I love to read! As a kid, I’d clean out shelves in the library and read everything I could get my hands on. Reading opened up the world to me. Nowadays, I love to sit by the fire on a chilly, rainy day at home or on the Maine or Irish coast and read one book after another.

What’s your guiltiest pleasure?

I’m not big on guilt but when the local berries are in (as they are now), I have been known to have strawberry shortcake for dinner. Two helpings. Okay, two-and-a-half helpings…

What are your methods for relieving stress?

Rest, exercise and healthy eating are all important during an episode of stress but I’ve been known to get out the credit card and hop onto a plane to Ireland. It’s easier to get to the green isle from Boston than other places! (If only it wasn’t a five-hour time difference!)

You’re having a dinner party, and you may invite six guests, living or deceased. Who will you invite?

I’ll invite my grandparents, who all died before I was born, as well as my father and his sister Dini, whom I corresponded with up until her death in Holland but never met. What a great party that would be!

You enjoy the great outdoors. What’s your favorite outdoor activity?

I love to walk. I’m a runner, too. I recently completed the Covered Bridges Half-Marathon near my home in Vermont, but walking is different. Whether I’m home or traveling, I love setting out on a long walk. I dream about certain trails I’ve walked many times on the southwest Irish coast! There’s always something new to see.

Did you always want to be a writer?

Yes! As a kid, I would climb a tree with a pad and pen and spin stories. I’m living my dream and couldn’t be happier or more grateful. Readers are the best.

Name the top three items on your Bucket List.

I want to visit Newfoundland. I almost got there a couple of years ago but had to cancel due to a family emergency. Running a half-marathon in Ireland was on this list but I ran the Dingle Half-Marathon last September. Now…I’d love to do an inn-to-inn hike in Scotland. I suppose I should say I want to finish the cross-stitch sampler I started for my sister’s wedding in 1983 but we can go to a spa together instead.

What are you working on right now?

I’m writing Stone Bridges, the next installment in my Swift River Valley series, and researching my 2019 Sharpe & Donovan novel. I’m also gearing up for Impostor’s Lure to hit stores on August 21. I’m looking forward to meeting readers and signing books on August 23 at Phoenix Books in Rutland, Vermont, not that far from where I live. Check out this cover. I love it! Can’t wait to see everyone. Meantime, it’s back to writing.