Friday Guest: Linda Juliano

I have a lot of dream vacations, actually, but at the top of the list would be a trip to the Amalfi Coast (preferably with my husband, no kids, pure romance). I adore family vacations, but some types of vacations are better as romantic getaways. I confess the last romantic vacation I took alone with my husband was on our 10th wedding anniversary. That was eight years ago! That may help to explain why, of all the world, a “romantic vacation” is at the top of my list. Plus, I’m a diehard romantic through and through.


Why Italy? My husband’s family (both maternal and paternal) is from Italy, so that’s one draw to the country. I’d love to visit the small towns his family (both sides) originates from in both middle Italy and very Northern Italy. We’ve been to Rome and Venice, but I’d like to see more of Italy, more of its romantic destinations. And I’m sure most of you would agree that romantic destinations abound in Italy.

Another, almost silly reason for choosing the Amalfi Coast, is that years ago we purchased a large lithograph of the Amalfi, and whenever I stop and gaze at it I think how much I’d love to climb inside the picture, into its sunny warmth, dazzling blue sky and breathtaking expanse of endless, azure waters.

Sure, visiting the countries of my own family origins would be great (I’ve already hit two, England and France), but as I’m a “mutt” (a mix of Swedish, Norwegian, French, English, and even American Indian); I’m fascinated by people with only one “ethnicity” or country of origin. So, I’ve developed a fascination with my husband’s. I’ll get to “my own countries” one day, but if we are talking “dream vacation”, the Amalfi coast is definitely at the top of my list. And truth be told, cliché or not, Greece isn’t far behind!


BLURB:

Soon after Josie Gianni moves to Cadence Beach, Oregon, she’s immediately thrust into a strange and chilling interplay with a demented stalker who believes the soul of the wife he murdered has returned through Josie.

Fueled by jealousy and fear of betrayal, the stalker's intentions grow increasingly dangerous when Josie falls for Gordon Forrester, the aloof, attractive owner of the local bookstore.

Will Josie's wit and Gordon's love save her, or will Josie fall victim to the madman's destructive behavior as he attempts to reclaim his wife's soul?



EXCERPT

Allan released his wife’s neck and sealed her swollen, blue mouth with a kiss. “Not even in death shall we part,” he whispered against her wet cheek before rising to dress slowly, methodically.

Like a photographer adjusting his model, he fanned Suzanne’s long, dark hair across the pillow. He pressed her legs together and gently arranged her arms by her sides then sat in the chair by the window and waited for darkness to fall.

At midnight, he scooped Suzanne carefully into his arms and carried her to their back yard where he’d often found her on her knees, lovingly tending the plants. He lowered her into the hole he’d dug earlier beneath the maple tree.

“Goodnight, my love,” he whispered, shoveling dirt over her naked body. “I’ll be seeing you.”

He pulled out 15 of the yellow daffodils Suzanne had planted along the edge of the yard and replanted them in three rows of five in the mound of soil that concealed his wife.

About the Author:

I spent the first 24 years of my life living in a suburb of Portland, Oregon until I was offered a job with United Airlines that took me to San Francisco, CA where I subsequently met my husband and accepted San Francisco as my new home. As strikingly different as Oregon and California (San Francisco, particularly) are from one another, I have a great deal of love for them both.

After the first of my two children was born, I left my job with the airline to become a full-time mother (what an adventure!). When both children were well into school, I began my pursuit of a writing career, following my lifetime love of the craft. I’ve done some children’s stories and several poems, three of which have been entered into a poetry anthology, but found my place as a novelist despite my initial fears and reservations about taking on such a demanding form of writing.

Like most writers (or any artists, really), I’m happiest when I’m engaged with my craft, and for me that means constantly tapping in to the endless supply of story ideas roaming the corridors of my mind.

Every day is a journey with writing (as with life), and with each bit of knowledge I gain, I feel a growing sense of strength and accomplishment. Perusing this as a career is not an easy road, but one of my favorite quotes (from Hebrews 11:1) helps to ease some of the angst. “Faith is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead”.

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