I want to share why I wrote the Dove Pond books. If you’ve read any of them (and #4 is out right now – THE BOOKSHOP OF HIDDEN DREAMS), you’ll notice there’s a delicate bit of magic threaded throughout each book. I’m firmly of the belief that we need more magic in our lives right now, so you’ll find some in each visit to Dove Pond. You’ll meet the seven Dove sisters who are able to bring happiness into the lives of others, but they’re not the only ones. Read closely and you’ll see that other families in Dove Pond have other, less mentioned abilities.
But Dove Pond is more than magic. As a reader, I’m very drawn to books set in small towns. That’s not surprising as I grew up in one, and I live in one now. I love walking downtown, visiting unique shops where I personally know the owners, and stopping to have coffee with my neighbors. Small towns are about the people who live there, and their relationships with each other. They feel safe to me. And comfortable. And welcoming. And—best of all—like home.
When you visit Dove Pond, you aren’t only visiting the Dove family (although I love visiting them, too), but you’re also visiting Aunt Jo, the old family friend who doesn’t hesitate to tell you when you’re about to make a bad decision, and Nate at the hardware store who always stops to ask how your brother is doing as they played on the same high school football team years and years ago. There’s Zoe at the bank who saw you at the Moonlight Café and, when you asked a question, sat with you over coffee and explained the difference between an IRA and a 401k and didn’t make you feel the least bit uninformed. When you head to the library, there’s Sarah the librarian who knows just what books you checked out last Wednesday and held Sabrina Jeffries’ newest book for you even though you didn’t ask.
And when you stop by the tea shop to pick up a cupcake, Ava the owner stops by your table and when she hears you’ve been having trouble sleeping, immediately brings you a canister of her famous helps-you-sleep-chamomile tea made from plants she carefully grew in her own greenhouse.
Life in a small town is personal, and warm, and—well, it’s home. I want every visitor who visits Dove Pond to close these books feeling as if they’ve just had a cherished, happy visit with a place (and people), they know really, really well.
I worked especially hard to do that in this book THE BOOKSHOP OF HIDDEN DREAMS, because what’s more personal and warm feeling than a small town bookshop, one where everyone knows you, what you read, who you read, and how much you read. One where the other customers are your friends, acquaintances, and family. One where the shelves are filled—not with games and calendars—but actual books, those selected by an owner to loves every inch of the store.
If you’re like me, and read a few books a week, then you probably already have a bookshop you love.
The sort of place that talks to a reader’s heart.
The sort of place you come back to when you’re having a bad day because you know, without question, you’ll walk out the door feeling better than when you came in, your arms stacked with exciting new stories that someone who actually knows you, helped you find.
I hope you’ll take spend some of your valuable time in Dove Pond this week. It’s a magical place. Not just because there are certain citizens in this town who are just that—magical—but because Dove Pond itself will welcome you home with open arms and a visit to the sort of bookstore we all know and love.
Happy Reading!
Dove Pond
When an antique tin of love letters is found hidden in her family home, noted historian Tay Dove rushes home to Dove Pond to investigate. Tay is still reeling from a romantic betrayal, so she’s relieved to refocus her energies on her latest project: a biography of her great-great-grandmother Sarafina, a star reporter who began her career in Dove Pond in the late 19th century before abruptly leaving town.
Tay believes the letters could be the key in solving what happened, but they only add to her questions—especially when they reveal a forbidden love affair with William Day, a wild youth who took part in a notorious train robbery. Some answers might be found in eighty-year-old Rose Day’s bookshop, which doubles as a town archive, but Rose is curiously resistant to give Tay access. Just when Tay thinks she’s reached a dead end, she finds an unlikely ally in Rose’s grandson, Luke, a fellow puzzle lover. Together, they set out to uncover what really happened all those years ago…and find the truth behind a love story that could be more precious than gold.
Perfect for fans of Alice Hoffman and Sarah Addison Allen, The Bookshop of Hidden Dreams proves that adventure is always waiting to be found, especially within the pages of a book.
Fiction Adventure | Fantasy Magical Realism | Women's Fiction Friendship [Gallery Books, On Sale: August 27, 2024, Hardcover / e-Book, ISBN: 9781982195977 / eISBN: 9781982195991]
A little puzzle, lots of love and a bookshop
New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Karen Hawkins is known for her wonderfully humorous and emotion-tugging historical and contemporary romances. The author of over 30 novels, Karen writes for a living between shopping for shoes, playing around on Facebook and Pinterest, looking for fun items for Hawkins Manor, and napping, although usually not at the same time. Sometimes, for fun, she takes Instagram pictures of her two rescue dogs, Sadie and Teke, and posts them online.
Yeah, she's a wild one.
Karen lives in balmy Orlando, Florida, with her husband, aka Hot Cop, and her two dogs. Her children are both out of college and have become productive, non-violent members of society. Karen writes six to eight hours a day when not obsessively reading research books on Regency-era Scotland, snacking on chocolate, or looking out the windows of her house and thinking about gardening. Her hobbies include sculpting, oil painting, playing badminton, and -- ok, ok, she doesn't have any hobbies, but if she did, she's sure they'd be something refined and fascinating.
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