Description
"Like a love song to my Oklahoma roots. Henderson House offers a sweet window into a past when lives and loves moved to the gentle rhythm of small-town cafes, front porch swings, and old two-lane highways." - Lisa Wingate, New York Times bestselling author of Before We Were Yours
In May 1941, Bartlesville, Oklahoma, hums with talk of spring flowers, fishing derbies, and the growing war in Europe. And for the Blackwell sisters, who reside in a quiet neighborhood boarding house, the winds of change are blowing.
Bessie Blackwell, copy room manager at Phillips Petroleum and faithful churchgoer, is the reluctant owner of a new pair of glasses. The young women in the office swear by Bessie's romantic advice, despite the fact she's a self-proclaimed spinster. Frank Davis, Henderson House's newest tenant, throws that status into question with his gentle eyes and ready smile. But the scar on his forehead and rumors of divorce speak of a troubled past.
Bessie's sister, Florence, a sales assistant at the men's clothing store downtown, knows all about troubled pasts. Her husband is dead, and it's only with her sister's help that she's able to raise Johnny. Life at Henderson House is luxurious compared to growing up in Cherokee Indian Territory, but Florence wants more for her boy than a rented room. When the flagship store in Tulsa offers her a management position, Florence sets her sights on the future and keeping the family together. And neither future nor family includes Frank Davis.
Mrs. Henderson, the landlady, cook, and adopted matriarch of the Blackwell clan, possesses an uncanny intuition about all her boarders. She knows true love when she sees it. But soon even her vision becomes clouded as Florence schemes to undermine her sister's budding romance. In a desperate attempt to keep Bessie by her side, Florence exposes the sisters' darkest secret. A secret that will change their lives, and the lives of those they love, forever.
About the Author
Born in Oklahoma, Caren Simpson McVicker lives in Vermont with her hubby, a rescue pup, and a barn cat turned happy house kitty. Caren is also a mom to two incredible humans and is an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation. Henderson House is her first novel.
Reviews
"One of those rare novels that just makes you smile, [with] plenty of betrayals and secrets to keep you turning pages." -Addison Armstrong, author of The Light of Luna Park and The War Librarian
"In Henderson House, McVicker has created a world that is both cozy and yet brimming with dark secrets, the possibility of new love, and conflicting plans for the future. The very walls of the building buzz with the hopes and dreams of its variety of inhabitants, from sweet Bessie, to scheming Florence, to the mysterious new boarder, Frank Davis. Alive with small-town, 1940s details, readers will be charmed by this sweet story." -Juliette Fay, bestselling author of Catch Us When We Fall and The Half of It
"A charming novel about real people, flawed but lovable. Promises, heartbreaks, and betrayals are tenderly rendered, always with a dash of humor." -Kathryn Holzman, author of The Cost of Electricity and Real Estate: A Novel
"A heart-warming tale of lost love and seemingly never found family, faith, and the deep dark secrets we all keep. McVicker's Henderson House is far more than it seems, as she bursts into the Romance world with her innovative debut novel. McVicker's writing breathes life into the story, much like the Henderson House itself. A story virtually decades in the making, McVicker's ability to paint a picture with words proves that some things are worth waiting for." -M.B. Lewis, author of the Award-Winning novel The Pilate Scroll
Book Information
ISBN 9781950301553
Author Caren Simpson McVicker
Format Paperback
Page Count 434
Imprint Inkshares
Publisher Inkshares
