ELIZABETH MCKENNA

ROMANCE AUTHOR

EL IZABETHMCKENNA .COM

@EL IZAMCKENNA

“GRAB SOME T ISSUES

AND DIG IN . I T I S A

WARM AND HEARTFELT

STORY WORTH

READING OVER AND

OVER AGAIN . ”

TANE ISHA ’S BOOK

BLOG

REVIEWS

Remember your f i r s t c rush ? How

your hear t r aced and your cheeks

f l u shed wheneve r you saw h im ?

Jes s i e Baxte r does , and i t ’ s

happen ing aga in . Ten yea r s ago ,

desp i te her bes t e f fo r t s , Lee Archer

wanted to be j u s t f r i ends . Now , he

wants more , but Jes s i e ' s s t i l l

r ecove r ing f r om a psycho ex -

husband . Can she l ea rn to t rus t

aga in and make her f i r s t c rush i n to

her l a s t l o ve ?

E l i zabeth McKenna wi l l have you

r emember ing the angs t o f h igh

schoo l , the gr i e f o f a f a i l ed

r e l a t i onsh ip , and the happ iness o f

t rue l o ve .

"NOT ONLY WERE THE

CHARACTERS EXTREMELY

BEL IEVABLE IN TH IS STORY ,

I T FELT AS THOUGH THEY

WERE AL IVE…TH IS STORY

HAD EVERYTH ING I LOVE IN

A ROMANCE . I T WAS

HEARTWARMING , SOMET IMES

HEARTBREAK ING WITH A

HINT OF SUSPENSE THAT

MADE YOU TURN THE PAGES

SO FAST THAT I T FELT AS

THOUGH THEY WERE

TURNING ALL ON THE IR

OWN . ” PAPERBACK DARL ING

"ABSOLUTELY LOVED

TH IS BOOK ! I T ’S A

HISTORICAL , A MYSTERY

AND A ROMANCE THAT

PEAKS OVER AND OVER

AGAIN WITH EVERY

CHAPTER . "

L I TERARY CHANTEUSE

REVIEWS

Cons ide red use le s s by h i s co ld -

hear ted f a the r , Nico Fosca r i h ides

h i s pa in beh ind gambl ing , dr ink ing

and woman iz ing .

Af te r her husband ’ s unt ime ly

demise , Mar ie t ta Gat t i r e tu rns to

Ven ice to s ta r t a new l i f e and f i nd

the happ iness tha t was miss ing i n

her f o rced marr i age .

When Fa te th rows them toge the r ,

f r i endsh ip beg ins to grow i n to l o ve

unt i l Mar ie t ta l ea rns a Fosca r i

f ami l y sec re t tha t may have cos t

her f a the r h i s l i f e .

E l i zabeth McKenna t akes you back

to e ighteenth centu ry Carn i va l ,

where l o ve r s meet d i sc ree t l y , and

masks make eve ryone equa l .

" I T ’S BEAUT IFUL AND

BRILL IANT AND I CANNOT

F IND ANY FLAWS WITH IN THE

DEPTHS OF THE WORDS . . .A

REMARKABLE STORY OF

ENDURING LOSS , SUFFER ING

AND IN THE END LOVE , AND I

WILL FOREVER CARRY I T

WITH ME . "

FOR THE PASS ION OF

ROMANCE

" I GOT EMOT IONALLY

INVOLVED WITH ALL OF

THE CHARACTERS IN THE

BOOK FROM THE

MOMENT EACH HIT THE

SCENE . THE WAY THAT

EL IZABETH DESCR IBES

HER CHARACTERS MAKES

YOU E ITHER LOVE THEM

OR HATE THEM RIGHT

AWAY . "

THE BOOK BURP

REVIEWS

Sa loon owner Cera Cass idy

d i scove r s the Tong i s k idnapp ing

Ch inese g i r l s and se l l i ng them to

bro the l s . Out raged , she vows to se t

th ings r i gh t .

Jake Tanner i s on a miss ion to

fu l f i l l a f r i end ’ s dy ing wish . The

t r a i l has brought h im to Cera ’ s

door . Capt i va ted by her beauty , he

wants to j o in her f i gh t – i f on ly she

would l e t h im .

E l i zabeth McKenna ' s debut nove l i s

a f a s t -paced adventu re f i l l ed with

memorab le cha rac te r s tha t wi l l

l eave you want ing more . Get l o s t i n

a t ime gone by and f a l l i n l o ve

today !

"ALL THE CHARACTERS WERE

VERY WELL DEVELOPED AND

BELIEVABLE . THE STORY WAS

PACED WELL AND

DESCRIPTIONS SENT VIVID

PICTURES TO MY MIND . THIS

STORY IS A ROMANCE BUT IT IS

WRAPPED IN A VERY

SUSPENSEFUL MYSTERY . THERE

ARE A FEW STEAMY MOMENTS

TOO ."

ESCAPE WITH DOLLYCAS

EXCERPT - COPYR IGHT 20 17 BY EL IZABETH MCKENNA

Part I Senior Year (1983-1984)

Chapter 1 – June 1983

"Martin?” Jessie Baxter dropped her overstuffed backpack at the front door. She

kicked off her leather sandals and danced halfway up the stairs to the second floor.

“Are you home? This former junior is now a senior and ready to celebrate!”

She cocked her head and listened to the quiet house. Frowning, she backed down

the stairs to check the kitchen. “Martin? I couldn’t wait for school to end. I think I

have senioritis already. Is that possible?”

A dirty plate and glass sat in the sink, along with a dried out sandwich. After loading

the dishes into the dishwasher, she grabbed an apple from the refrigerator and

headed upstairs.

“Sarah and I are going to the beach. Do you want to come?” She knocked on her

brother’s bedroom door. “I’m coming in. You’d better not be doing anything weird.”

The curtains were pulled against the June sun, leaving the room dark and gloomy,

and Martin lay curled in a ball on his bed.

“Are you sick?” Jessie padded across the room until her bare feet came down on

several hard pebbles scattered by his bedside. She stopped and rubbed a foot along

her shin. “What the heck, Bro, don’t you ever clean your room? Mom is going to have

a fit if she sees crap on your floor.”

“I’m sorry.” His voice sounded thick as if he had been sleeping.

“No one will ever want to live with you if you’re a slob,” she said in her best imitation

of their mother. When her brother didn’t laugh, she laid a hand on his forehead and

frowned at the heat radiating from his skin. “What’s wrong?” 

“I’m just tired of—” A large shudder cut off the rest.

The first seeds of dread took root in her stomach. “I’m calling Mom.”

She reached for the phone on the nightstand and in her haste knocked over an

empty medicine bottle. The bottle bounced once on the wood floor and then spun

in a half circle. Jessie picked up one of the “pebbles” that had offended her foot.

Dread sprouted and worked its way from her stomach into her chest.

First Crush, Last Love

EXCERPT - COPYR IGHT 20 1 3 BY EL IZABETH MCKENNA

Chapter One

Gatti Family Villa Near Verona, Italy, September 1, 1753

Marietta Gatti smashed a pea with the back of her silver spoon. Across the mahogany

dining table, her husband Dario’s unfaithful eyes simmered with lust as the young

maid served the evening meal. When the girl replenished his crystal wine glass, his

fingertips brushed against her skin, lingering longer than well-bred manners allowed.

Marietta fisted the linen napkin in her lap while Dario’s parents, sitting on opposite

ends of the table, ignored the antics of their only child.

The maid’s rosy cheeks and full pouty lips reflected the child she once was, but her

body showed the curves of the woman she would be. Dario liked them young, naïve,

and fully ripe for the picking—as a barely fifteen-year-old Marietta was when they first

met.

Drawn to his thick, dark eyelashes and heavy coin purse, these girls came willingly to

Dario. Six . . . seven . . . eight . . . Marietta crushed a pea for each dalliance in their five

long years of marriage. When she finished the tally, only two peas remained whole.

At least his affairs kept him out of her bed most nights.

Admittedly, she welcomed his affections at first, considering she was the daughter of

an artist who hadn’t painted in two years. Dario courted her as any other respectable

nobleman would with nights at the opera in Venice and strolls by the Grand Canal

on Sunday afternoons. However, he couldn’t conceal his faults forever, and when they

became obvious, she wanted no part of the man. By then, it was too late. Her father

insisted a bad marriage was better than starvation, and she couldn’t change his

mind.

Dario’s disrespect bothered her the most. Her father cherished her mother until the

devastating day that she died when Marietta was only thirteen. She assumed her

own marriage would be the same, full of love and laughter, but it wasn’t. Now, she

spent her days and nights trying to survive the cold-heartedness of the Gatti family.

Marietta relaxed the grip on her napkin and pushed at the lamb on her plate. When

bloody juice oozed from the meat, she let out a small sigh and reached for a piece of

bread instead.

At the break in the room’s silence, her mother-in-law’s head snapped up, almost

dislodging the mountain of dark curls that compensated for her diminutive height.

The black beauty patch that she carefully applied to her painted white cheek each

morning twitched in displeasure before she returned her attention to her dinner.

Venice in the Moonlight

EXCERPT - COPYR IGHT 20 1 1 BY EL IZABETH MCKENNA

Chapter One

“You should have told me you were with child.”

Ever since he had walked through the front door of his home in Boston and had seen

Martha’s swollen belly, Jake Tanner had repeated those words like the chorus of a

favorite song. In that moment, he had never been so angry—or so in love—with his

wife. Now, as she lay on their bed fanning herself in the early summer heat, he gave

in to the urge to say it again.

Martha turned her head away and sighed. “Now what good would that have done,

my love, but to give you a needless worry?”

He tugged her thick, honey blond braid until she looked at him again. “I could have

gotten leave sooner, maybe even more than once.”

“And what makes you more deserving than the other Union boys with wives and

children at home?” She patted her bulging stomach. “We are fine. Even better now

that you are here with us.”

The bed creaked when Jake shifted beside his wife. He closed his eyes for a moment

and allowed himself to enjoy the coolness of the cotton sheets next to his skin. It had

been months since he had slept on anything softer than a horse blanket. His hand

wavered above her belly before it gained the courage to join hers. “It was just such a

shock. You must have known when I was home for Christmas.”

Martha’s shrug broke the slow rhythm of her fan. “I wanted to be sure. Things can

happen.”

His stomach did a nervous flip. “But you are all right now?”

“Mama said I can do anything a woman would normally do.” She moved his hand

down her belly and under her thin shift.

He leaned over and tasted the sheen of perspiration forming between her breasts.

They were fuller than he remembered, straining against the soft cloth that hid them

from his hungry eyes. “I’ve missed you more than I can say.”

She flicked her wrist and the fan snapped shut before it hit the floor. “Show me

then.”

Cera's Place

ELIZABETH MCKENNA

ROMANCEAUTHOR

THOUGH EL IZABETH ’S LOVE OF

BOOKS REACHES BACK TO HER

CHILDHOOD , SHE HAD NEVER

READ A ROMANCE NOVEL UNT IL

ONE CHRISTMAS WHEN HER

S ISTER GAVE HER THE LATEST

BESTSELLER BY NORA ROBERTS .

SHE WAS HOOKED FROM PAGE

ONE (ACTUALLY , SHE ADMITS I T

WAS THE F IRST LOVE SCENE ) .

EL IZABETH L IVES IN WISCONS IN

WITH HER UNDERSTANDING

HUSBAND , TWO BEAUT IFUL

DAUGHTERS , AND A SASSY

LABRADOR . WHEN SHE I SN ’T

WRIT ING , WORKING , OR BE ING A

MOM , SHE ’S SLEEP ING .

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Goodreads

Amazon