What is family?

Questions.

That's where all stories start. 

What if?

Something Perfect (the last book of the Hometown Weddings and the second last book of the series) started with the question What if...? and then proceeded with a daughter asking, Who am I? Where am I from? What is family? 

You've seen me ask and answer those particular questions over and over again in my books.  Each character and each story has a slightly different answer. But all those answers are rooted in the same place...Love.  That's what makes a family.

For me, that question of where I'm from—who I'm from—is foundational.  I didn't meet my bio-father until I was in my thirties. Knowing he was out there but not knowing anything about him left me with so many questions.  And as a writer, questions are part of my job description. I had a burning need to find the answers. When I first met him, he tried to answer as many questions as he could. (I come from generations of Appalachian stock with a titled Englishman, a Scottish laird and some Quakers.) He was nice but he wasn't family. As time went on and I grew to know and love him and one day he was. Just like that. Like magic. He was family. Love...that makes family more than DNA.

The Hometown Hearts Wedding trilogy (Something Borrowed, Something Blue and Something Perfect) is all about how a family is made.  Three women become friends and grow into family. Each of them finds their own true love...and their own true family!

There's a short story, Something Unexpected, this summer, then the final book, A Hometown Christmas in September. 

Thanks all of you who've taken these journeys with me! 

Holly

Hometown Hearts

Crib Notes: Hometown Hearts #1

Kindle, Nook, Kobo, iBook

A Special Kind of Different: Hometown Hearts #2

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Homecoming: Hometown Hearts #3

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 Suddenly a Father: Hometown Hearts #4

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Something Borrowed: Hometown Hearts #5

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks

Something Blue: Hometown Hearts #6 

Kindle, Kobo, Nook, Apple Books

Something Perfect: Hometown Hearts #7 available 5/21

Apple Books, Nook, Kobo, Kindle

Preorder: Something Unexpected: A Hometown Hearts short story, available 7/21
Amazon

Preorder: A Hometown Christmas: Hometown Hearts #8, available 9/21
Kindle 
Nook
AppleBooks
Kobo

My Month of May by Susan Sands

My birthday, Mother's Day, and my 32nd anniversary are all in the month of May. This sounds like a merry month, right? But it's the same as having one's birthday on Christmas day, pretty much. Everything happens as if it's only one thing. Nothing extra. My birthday often coincides with the same weekend as my birthday, so it shares a meal, gift, and celebration. Yes, first-world problems, I know.

My daughter and my oldest son and his girlfriend over the weekend from Charlotte, NC. We attended a fun Kentucky Derby party in our local downtown. We all ended up getting new sunglasses for my birthday. 

I'm looking toward May as my month of great weather, new beginnings for some publishing stuff (will let you know), and lots of writing. May really is my favorite time of year because it's so filled with the promise of summer, but not nearly over yet. Everything fun is still coming up.

I finally cleaned the pollen from my deck and furniture and got all my outdoor cooking gear ready to go. It's my go-to way to spend some time outside at the end of the day. The birds must agree with the promise of May as well because they are singing loudly out there all day right now. There are also books to read in my pile...

My pent-up need to go out and breathe fresh air and feel the sunshine on my skin is great this year. The community pool is already open to the residents in our neighborhood. A great excuse to wear my new sunglasses, yes?

Have a fantastic month of May!

Susan