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Donna Mumma, a first-time guest joins us on the show this week to talk about her new book, The Women of Wynton's. She tells us about the four women who are the novel's main characters, about why she set it in the 1950s, and her love for alligators. Oh, my! Patrons get to hear about her dogs and why she thinks each one is special.

The Women of Wynton's by Donna Mumma
Mid-Century Glam Meets Murder Mayhem

Get swept away to the glamor of a 1950’s department store where four women’s loyalties, vanity, friendship, and detective skills are put to the test.

Audrey Penault once led a glamorous life as a model but now works as devoted secretary to Mr. Wynton. To her fellow employees, she is too vain and uppity.

Mary Jo Johnson, a wife and mother, longs to find her worth in the cosmetics department, but it may take a while for the shy housewife to discover her voice.

Vivian Sheffield owns and runs the bridal salon within Wynton’s. She is proud of her accomplishments and won’t let anyone take them away.

Gigi Woodard dislikes her job as waitress in the store’s lunchroom, but she is determined not to let her secret shortcomings cause her to lose the position.

These four women have much to dislike about each other, but they unanimously agree that Mr. Wynton is the best of employers and must be protected at all costs from someone who seems determined to see him gone for good. When other employee deaths occur, can the women band together to solve the murders, or will they discover it is one of their own bent on destroying Wynton’s from within?

Get The Women of Wynton's by Donna Mumma.

Meet Donna Mumma
I am a native Floridian, farm kid and dreamer. I was blessed with two wonderful parents who taught me how stories enable us to learn, escape, connect and be inspired.

My writing inspiration also comes from the folks I knew in my growing up years. I came from a small town in Central Florida filled with some of the greatest storytellers. Tales of hunting trips gone awry, flipped airboats, eccentric relatives and beloved dogs seasoned my childhood.

From the stories of my parents and neighbors, I learned two important lessons. First, life comes with sunshine and hurricanes. Second, with God’s help, we can flourish in both.

My parents had a saying. It’s not important that you get knocked down but that you get back up. I write stories about people who fall, stand and press forward with God’s help.

I invite you to come with me on this writing journey. My hope is somewhere along the way we can discover all the Good Lord intended when He set us on this path.

Visit Donna's website.

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Michelle Griep stops by this week to talk about her new book, Of Gold and Shadows. We discuss how a Christian author deals with supposed curses, her English Garden, and she tells the story of Iron Bridge in England. Patrons hear what makes her a hippie homesteader.

Of Gold and Shadows by Michelle Griep

The shadows hold secrets darker than they ever imagined. . . .

In 1888 Victorian England, Ami Dalton navigates a clandestine dual life. By day, she strives to establish herself as a respected Egyptologist, overcoming the gender biases that permeate academia. But with a heart for saving black-market artifacts from falling into the wrong hands, she is most often disguised as her alter ego, the Shadow Broker.

After eight years in India, Oxford's most eligible bachelor, Edmund Price, has come out of the shadows to run for Parliament and is in search of an Egyptologist to value a newly acquired collection. Expecting a renowned Oxford professor, Edmund instead finds himself entangled with Ami, the professor's determined daughter. As they delve into the treasures, their connection deepens, but trouble emerges when a golden griffin--rumored to bear the curse of Amentuk--surfaces, and they're left to wonder if the curse really is at play, or if something more nefarious is hiding among the shadows. . . .

"Don't miss all the romance, adventure, and danger in [this] new page-turner."--JULIE KLASSEN, bestselling author of Shadows of Swanford Abbey

Get your copy of Of Gold and Shadows by Michelle Griep.

Michelle Griep is an author, blogger, and occasional super-hero when her cape is clean.

Dare I be so bold as to call myself an author? Being that I’m one of those freaks who attended poetry workshops instead of summer camp during my formative years, yes, I will. While other teens busied themselves throwing parties when their parents weren’t home, I was the nerd holed up in my room with pen and paper.

A RELATIVE

I’m a wife of thirty-something years and mother of two sons and two daughters. And yes, it’s true…boys are way easier than girls, unless drama is something you crave. The last of my nestlings has flown the homeschooling nest and I’m now a crazy hippy homesteader.

A PRINCESS

No, I’m not currently on medication for delusions of grandeur. I am a daughter of a King. Seriously. I take the Bible as inspired truth and that’s what it says (Romans 8:16, 17).

AN ANGLOPHILE

What’s the deal with me and Great Britain? Beats me. I’m as passionate about anything English as I am about chocolate and java. Oddly enough, I prefer Bronte over Austen, and if you’d like to debate the qualities of Typhoo versus PG Tips, feel free to e-mail me.

A CHEF

Sorry, I did not graduate from the Cordon Bleu. I didn’t even cough up the cash to attend. I am, however, a veteran of once-a-month cooking, and you can be, too. Also, if you’d like to email me, I’ll send you my favorite brownie recipe. Just go to my contact page and gimme a holler.

Visit Michelle's website.

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Become a patron and enjoy special perks and bonus content.

Amanda Dykes joins us as a first-time guest on the podcast, talking about her book, Born of Gilded Mountains. We chat about the power of language, how friendships change over time, and why she puts Easter eggs in her books. Patrons hear about what she does to encourage her children to read.

Born of Gilded Mountains by Amanda Dykes

Legends are tucked into every fold of the Colorado mountains surrounding the quaint town of Mercy Peak, where residents are the stuff of tall tales, the peaks are taller still, and a lost treasure has etched mystery into the very terrain.

In 1948, when outsider Mercy Windsor arrives after a scandal shatters her gilded world as Hollywood's beloved leading lady, she is determined to forge a new life in obscurity in this time-forgotten Colorado haven. She purchases Wildwood, an abandoned estate with a haunting history, and begins to restore it to its former glory.

But as she does, her every move tugs at the threads of the mountain's lore, unearthing what became of her long-lost pen pal Rusty Bright, and the whereabouts of the infamous Galloping Goose Railcar No. 8, which vanished years ago--along with the mailbag it carried, whose contents could change the course of countless lives. Not to mention the fabled treasure that--if found--could right so many wrongs.

Among the towering mountains that stand as silent witnesses, the ghosts of the past entangle with the courage of the present to find a place where healing, friendship, and hope can abide amid a world forever changed.

Get your copy of Born of Gilded Mountains by Amanda Dykes.

Amanda Dykes is a drinker of tea, dweller of redemption, and spinner of hope-filled tales who spends most days chasing wonder and words with her family. She's the winner of the 2020 Christy Award Book of the Year, a Booklist 2019 Top Ten title, and the winner of an INSPY award for her debut novel, Whose Waves These Are. She’s also the author of Set the Stars Alight (a Christy Award finalist), Yours is the Night (recipient of the Kipp Award, Christy Award finalist), All the Lost Places (starred reviews from Booklist, Library Journal, and Foreword), and three novellas. Find her online at amandadykes.com.

Create your podcast today! #madeonzencastr