Dog Days of Summer

My goodness, it seems like the whole country is going to burn up, and I’m not talking politics! LOL The temps are searing everywhere. Fort Worth hit 100 before July which is our usual time to climb into the oven. Worse than that, we have no wind to speak of. And we always have wind. Yes, I know the wind increases fire danger, but it also makes the temps more tolerable. God bless the poor souls in southwestern New Mexico with their fires.

We had a heron sitting on our dock Sunday with his little wings open trying to cool off. I felt so sorry for him.  Oddly, we’ve just begun to see deer again after a couple of months without sightings. I worry about all living creatures when it gets above 100. Even when we’ve been in the upper 90s the heat index has been above 100. We’ve had several heat alerts.

I’d thought because of the enormous amount of rain we had all spring (We went from having beach to having no beach in one weekend.) that this summer wouldn’t be as bad as sometimes. Silly me!

Eight years ago I broke my ankle and had to stay off of my foot for two whole months and this was in the summer. Later in the fall, I heard people talking about what a beastly summer we’d had. I thought, “What are they talking about? I don’t remember that.” Of course the reason I didn’t remember what they were talking about is because I wasn’t out in it. I stayed in the AC all summer. So, I will try to limit my time outside time and especially out of cars where the temps reach 120 degrees.

Now there is one wonderful thing about Texas summers. The Crepe Myrtles. And this year, they’ve been spectacular. I smile every time I see one of these giant tree-like bushes. Do they grow where you live? What’s your way to handle the dog days of summer? Is your summer hotter or less hot than usual?

My book THE THEATRE takes place mainly in the summer in a small Texas town.

Blurb: Forty-year-old, never been married stage and TV actress Kelly Lawson returns to her Texas home to choreograph and star in the Glenview Theatre summer season. Kelly’s mother has made a hobby of trailing out every new man in town for Kelly’s inspection, hoping she’ll fall in love and use Glenview as her home base, especially now that Kelly’s father has entered the beginning stages of Alzheimer’s. Two years ago, Kelly broke off an engagement shortly before she discovered her former fiancé dead, a gun in his hand and a hole in his head. Reason enough to guard her heart.

When Kelly accuses a Glenview police officer of harassing two of their gay actors, Police Chief Josh Kincaid, her mother’s candidate for this trip, becomes involved in the investigation. Incidents pile up, making it clear someone has it in, not only for the theatre, but for Kelly as well. Josh searches for clues to the person behind the attacks and the reason for them, all the while trying to ignore his developing feelings. How could he trust his heart to a New York actress?  

Universal Link: https://books2read.com/u/mKyG2V

Next month I’ll celebrate the 11^th Book Birthday for my first published book, VERMONT ESCAPE. It will be on sale for 99 cents from July 15-22. Here’s the blurb:

Two years after the murder of her husband, someone guns down Jill Barlow’s father, a Texas State Representative. The authorities suspect a connection between the murders but can’t find proof. Jill longs for the peace she found when she visited Vermont after her husband’s death. With the perpetrators still at large, she flees Fort Worth to the small town of Woodstock. 

The gambling syndicate, believing she has damning evidence against them, pursues her, shattering her dreams of peace. Trying to protect her grown children, she doesn’t tell them violence continues to stalk the family.

Despite having lost so much already, with the lives of her family and friends at stake, will Jill be required to make more sacrifices? And what about the second chance at love with a Vermont politician, Jerrod Phillips?

Universal Link: https://books2read.com/u/3JXxZK

Love to hear from you.