Book Cover Photo Shoot

Today was perfect for my graphic designer, Jody Christian, to meet me at the setting of my latest novel! We had a wonderful time snapping photos to use for the book cover, and enjoying the warm sunshine and gorgeous flowers at Locust Hill. Bill Turpin has generously agreed to allow me to use his family home and name for the historical fiction novel, "On Grounds of Honor," the first in the two book series, "My Brother's Flag."

Locust Hill has been in the Turpin family since 1812 and was occupied by Turpins during the Civil War. Although my stories are purely fictional, they are meant to represent what it might have been like to live in Centreville, or anywhere on the Eastern Shore, during that time in history.

Maryland was a Border State, sitting right on the Mason Dixon Line between the nation's capital and the rebellion. Culturally, Maryland identified with the South, having an agricultural economy that depended on the labor of slaves. Most residents of the state sided with the Confederacy in their pursuit of States Rights, but were thwarted in their desire to secede from the Union. As a result of this tension, men in Maryland joined both armies, Union and Confederate.

"My Brother's Flag" will explore the divided loyalties of the time, exemplified within the Turpin household by the opposing views of the two brothers.

The first book, "On Grounds of Honor," tells the story of the older brother, Jeremiah, who chooses to fight with the Union. The second, "For the Cause of Freedom," will tell Charlie's story, the rebel who crosses the Potomac River to join the Confederacy.

More information coming soon!