Women’s Fiction
Date Published: August 22, 2020
Publisher: Heart Ally Books
When you lose everyone and everything you love, can you ever live again? Or love again?
An unimaginable trauma. A future that seems impossible. When your world shatters, how do you put it back together?
When Matt Nelson found Kathleen on the beach, she’d been hiding behind a scarf and sunglasses for three years. She couldn’t hide her loneliness, and he couldn’t turn away. But when her flashbacks start, they’re both unprepared for the repercussions and the depth of her emotional suffering.
Kathleen agrees to return to intensive trauma recovery at The Charlotte Center, where the sounds and the smells and the images from that terrible night await her, demanding she confront her demons.
The world of PTSD recovery is fraught with terror and pain for both Kathleen and Matt. Will their love prove strong enough to survive the agonizing and arduous journey? Can Kathleen move beyond her anger and learn to live again?
Catch up with the first book in the series
An unimaginable trauma. A future that seems impossible. When your world shatters, how do you put it back together?
For 950 days, Kathleen Conners has struggled with that choice. Behind a scarf and sunglasses, she hides from the world, from herself, from The Event, from any future with anyone.
After receiving a box of letters from his deceased mother, Matt Nelson is shoved from his predictable, controlled life to a secluded beach in North Carolina. While trying to understand his mother’s intent, he discovers Kathleen. Matt must choose whether to follow the path his mother orchestrated or rescue the woman who has captured his heart.
When the only person Kathleen blames more than herself reappears, can Matt be the strength Kathleen needs to create a new life, or will he be forced to walk away if she decides the climb is too great?
Is There a Message in Your Novel That You Want Readers to Grasp?
In order to have something beautiful, you have to
be willing to face the trauma in your life and you may have to do alone.
Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
Because my stories are so emotionally raw, I have
to force myself to feel it. Oftentimes, I’ll walk away from the keyboard because
I don’t want to put my character through the pain.
How many books have you written and which is your favorite?
Journey
to Hope is my second book and it’s my favorite because Kathleen finds her
courage and her reward.
If You had the chance to cast your main character from
Glenn Close because I think she would present the
depth of emotional pain Kathleen feels on the screen.
When did you begin writing?
I was 43 years old when Matt, my male protagonist,
started telling me his and Kathleen’s story. I’d never thought of writing but
he wouldn’t leave me alone.
How long did it take to complete your first book?
Over
four years.
Did you have an author who inspired you to become a writer?
Not exactly. It was the character who inspired
me. But now I’d like to be able to write like Jodi Picoult – deep issues and
deep emotion.
What is your favorite part of the writing process?
When I’m lying in bed at night and my character sits next to me and tell
me I didn’t put her on the page – that I wrote her reaction incorrectly. I love
when the character tells me to “start again.”
Describe your latest book in 4 words.
Raw Emotion. Painful Healing
Can you share a little bit about your current work or what is in the
future for your writing?
I’m working on the third in this series. My main
male character, Matt, is confronted with the consequences of a past decision.
I’m planning a fourth novel that takes place in
the Colonia Dignidad in Chile so I have some fun research ahead.
About the Author
A trauma survivor who struggles with mental illness, June is continuously reaching for hope like the characters in her books. She openly discusses her personal struggles on her blog, JuneConverse.com
Decide to Hope is her first novel and relies a great deal on her own experience with trauma, choices, recovery and hope. If you'd like to discuss trauma, coping and recovery, contact her at JuneConverse.com or DecideToHope.com
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