Books

Uncover Extraordinary Tales of Courage,
Mystery, and Inheritance
A Journey of Loss, Mystery, and Magic

Discover How Phoebe Changes Lives

It’s hard to face her father’s passing. Annette Rylan can only hope to give her best friend in the world comfort in his last hours by placing his constant companion next to him as he lay dying. When he passes from this world, his hand is resting on Coco, a miniature chocolate poodle and Sonny Rylan’s constant companion. His wife, Stella, is in the room and witnesses his transformation. Days later, Coco gives birth to one puppy, one special puppy Annette named Phoebe.

     Annette convinces herself it would be best if she left her Louisiana home because everything she does and everywhere she goes reminds her of the things she and her father did together.

     As she heads west with Phoebe, with no destination in mind, she notices Phoebe has an uncanny awareness of what’s happening around her. After settling in San Diego, Annette fears people will take notice and make too much of her dog’s capabilities. Some people claim to have seen the image of a man wearing a brown flight jacket and floppy hat in place of Phoebe when she mysteriously disappears.

     Readers of all ages who enjoy romance, suspense, and magical realism will find it fascinating how Phoebe affects the lives of each character in this story.       

Unraveling Secrets

Mary Lynn's Quest Through Legacy and Loss

Mary Lynn Bennett unknowingly carries the DNA of an ancient civilization but has learned to cope with the oddities the genome has put upon her. The rarity was inherited from her mother, who lost a child because of it, or so everyone thinks. If navigating life isn’t complicated enough, her mother insists she keep the peculiarities to herself. Because of her mother’s encouragement and the loyalty of her best friend, Harry, she managed to graduate from a rebellious teenager to a gifted nurse.

Mary Lynn is devasted when her mother is kidnapped and presumed killed. Making matters worse, her father and brother leave her alone to deal with the aftermath alone. When Mary Lynn is kidnapped, Harry joins an FBI agent, hoping certain clues left behind will lead them to her whereabouts.

From Battlefields to Breakthroughs

Leo’s War and the Legacy of an Innovator

Leo’s War is a true story based on the life of Leo P. Ortego. Leo served in WW1 as a pilot and observer for the Expeditionary Forces after spending grueling months in the trenches. He comes home and builds and patents the first manned helicopter in the world.

Leo also returns with a German bride, hoping to settle down and find peace. Instead, he finds himself dealing with the effects of the war and unresolved issues with a local racketeer.

         Leo’s epic story is told with utmost admiration by his youngest brother, Louis (Bud) Ortego after reading the journals Leo leaves him after his untimely death at the age of 52.

Within the journal’s pages, Bud learns why the horrors of the Great War haunted him so badly. And through his second wife, Verdie, how he was finally able to move past it.

This is the best book from this author so far. I love the way she weaved the known facts about Leo Ortego into a great story about old Alexandria, LA. and his role in aviation history
Michael Wynne
Author, Historian
Although we were cousins, she was Aunt Verdie to me. Whenever she visited, she always had me play the soundtrack to the movie Dr. Zhivago and then sing along, “Someday, we’ll meet again, my love.”
Larry Milford
This is a rich story of the horrors of war and the enduring bonds of friendship set against the backdrop of small-town life in central Louisiana in the early twentieth century
Marie J. Coreil
Author, Editor