I’m almost done writing the last chapters of the final book in the 1979 portion of the series, but editing, cover design, etc. will take until at least autumn 2025. With luck, it will go on sale in time for Christmas next year.
For those of you waiting impatiently to know what’s next for KD Stuart, Matt Hunter, and their friends…and enemies, rest assured you will find out. I have not abandoned them. Chestnut Cove: Revenge and Rapprochement picks up days after the end of Chestnut Cove: Belles and Balls. I promise an eventful end to Matt and KD’s quest. Stay tuned for more information in 2025!
I know how many of you are waiting not so patiently for my next novel. Well, your wait is over because the paperpack is available at Amazon! The Kindle version will be out on October 27. Click on the graphic below to link to the Amazon site. And now for some details…
After a brief trip back to 1955 to learn about John and Sandra Stuart’s history in Chestnut Cove: Love and Lessons, we return to 1979 in Chestnut Cove: Belles and Balls, which picks up shortly after the end of Chestnut Cove: Poseurs and Portraits. When we last left KD Stuart, she had confirmed information proving the hit and run which claimed the life of Elizabeth Kohler in 1958 had been deliberate murder. Now, with no legal evidence against the perpetrators, KD and Matt Hunter–KD’s godfather and Elizabeth’s fiancé–must find another way to bring the killers to justice.
Other returning fan-favorite characters include John and Sandra Stuart and their other children, Doug, Maggie and Chris, as well as the Jones family and new Chestnut Cove Inns clerk Laura and her grandmother. Then there are the foils, including John’s mother and stepfather, Jeanette and Winston, as well as nemisis Vaughn Michaelson and his cronnies. There will be a few corporate and political twists and turns and some downright dirty dealings. I hope you enjoy the ride right up to the end!
Now it’s time for me to get back to writing and editing. Enjoy this one because it will be about a year before my next book is ready. In it, we’ll retreat to the past again to meet one of the most important characters in the Chestnut Cove world: Elizabeth Kohler. Set in 1958, Chestnut Cove: Devils and Daughters will introduce you to the young woman who stole Matt’s heart at college and take you through the tragic events which shook the lives of Matt, John, Sandra, and, of course, little KD and her namesake greatgrandmother, the elder Kathryn Stuart.
While Devils and Daughters is suffering through the editing process, I’ll continue forging onward toward 1980 to write the followup to Belles and Balls. So be on the lookout for Chestnut Cove: Devils and Daughters about this time next year. Until then, I hope you enjoy reading my first three Chestnut Cove books!
The next installment of the Chestnut Cove saga takes us back 24 years prior to Poseurs and Portraits. Chestnut Cove: Love and Lessons is set in 1955 and explores the events surrounding the engagement of John Stuart and Sandra Duncan. We also meet a much younger Matt Hunter, John’s cousin and best friend, and the family matriarch, Kathryn McDougal Stuart.
More information will be available soon, but for all of you chomping at the bit for more from the small town of Elkford and its Stuart family, the wait shouldn’t be much longer. The manuscript is frozen, the cover artwork is being prepared, and all the other tedious details required for publication are being worked through.
Thank you to Annie for another stellar job of editing. All remaining errors are the result of my post editing tweaks and occasional refusal to bow to the dictates of the English language and style manuals.
Thank you to Kristen who is finalizing the cover. I’ll post that here soon along with the Amazon link and the official release date. I’m anticipating the first week in March assuming no last-minute issues. I’ll post another update by then.
One other note of possible interest. I now have an official author page at Amazon to help locate all of my novels. OK, for now that remains at one, but soon Love and Lessons will be added to the list. Click here to see the BA Howell Amazon author page.
