August 2026
Hi, friends.
I can’t believe it’s August already. I go back to work in less than two weeks, which feels like too soon and too far away all at the same time. I wrote earlier this year about planting tiny seeds and waiting for them to bloom. I’m happy to report that my garden is currently overflowing, and I’m about 50,000 words into a new manuscript that I’m so excited to work on every day. Am I exactly where I thought I’d be at the end of the summer? No. But I’ve tried to be patient and gentle with myself, and I’m so, so proud that I’ve showed up every day and let the words come.
Not that this summer has been all work. I’ve spent long, lazy afternoons at the pool with my daughter and had adventures to the beach and the waterpark and the Smithsonians. I’ve spent weekend mornings exploring our local farmer’s market. We spent a week in the Outer Banks with my in-laws and nieces and nephew, and danced the night away to celebrate my cousin’s wedding. I’ve read more books than I can currently keep track of (more on that below). I’ve walked the dog and baked sourdough and slept in almost every morning. I’m currently at the point in the summer where I can’t pick the tomatoes fast enough, where I am tired of being hot, and I’m constantly thinking about the books I want to read in the library this year. In short, I’m just about ready to go back to school.
What does that mean for this manuscript? I’m no stranger to writing during the school year; in fact, I drafted almost all of A Poisonous Silence between the hours of 4:30-6:30AM because I was on such a strict deadline. I actually really love writing in the early morning hours. Everyone else is sleeping, the house is quiet. I probably won’t set the alarm for 4:30 right now (remember, I’m trying to be gentle!) but I might shoot for 5:15 or so. I want to be finished as soon as I can, but I also know the beginning of the school year is exhausting, so I’ll let it happen at its own pace (I also learned this lesson this summer while baking approximately seventeen loaves of sourdough–it’s going to take exactly as long as it takes, and rushing just leads to something that could have been great).
I hope you’ve had a restful, restorative summer, too. And since there’s still some time left, I wanted to share a few books I’ve devoured lately:
Beneath, It Sleeps by Maria Tureaud, which I loved so much I blurbed! It’s out this January, but you can pre-order it now.
Maria Tureaud once again delivers a Gothic masterpiece rooted in the darkest corners of Irish history and centered on a perfectly flawed heroine. As Charlotte Boyle descends into the horrifying bowels of the infamous Hellfire Club at the behest of the notorious Dorcas Kelly, Beneath, It Sleeps serves as a gorgeously haunting examination of love, loyalty, and reminder that we cannot outrun the demons of our past…we can only face them.
Potshot by Laura Piper Lee. I’m a huge fan of Laura Piper Lee and this one had me falling off of my chair giggling from the first page. I read it in one sitting.
Unfinished Business by Cara Calloway. Another contemporary romance, but this one has ghost hunting AND storm chasing! And an absolutely scorching second-chance romance!
Where Ella Went by Laurie Morrison was one of my summer reading picks for my students and I listened to the audiobook. I am a huge, huge fan of Laurie’s middle grade books, and this one was just so perfect. The kids were so real and the mystery itself was gripping (and it made me cry twice).
The Twice Dead Man by Jess Armstrong. I’m such a huge, huge fan of Ruby and Ruan and I just loved this novella, which may just make the wait for Book 4 totally worth it. (You can pre-order it now).
A Botanist’s Guide to Tradition and Treachery by Kate Khavari. I LOVE Kate’s Saffron mysteries, and this one has AN EXPEDITION. It’s everything I ever wanted. You’re going to love it.
My Books:
A DEADLY ENDEAVOR
2025 Agatha Award Nominee for Best First Novel
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