Delilah Devlin's Blog, page 6
August 5, 2025
Flashback: Watch Over Me (Contest — Two Winners!)
I love doing flashback highlights! It’s not only a reminder to you but also to me of the many stories I’ve written. Did you know that before I wrote bounty hunters, I had this entire series of SEAL-hero stories? Yup—twelve of them. With Book # 10, Big Sky SEAL, not only was the story part of my sister Elle James’s Brotherhood Protectors world, but it was also the book that kicked off my Montana Bounty Hunters series.
So, if you’re looking for something to binge, a complete series to enjoy, start with Watch Over Me. Enjoy an excerpt from the opening of the first Uncharted SEALs book!
Enjoy! ~DD
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Click on the covers to learn more about these stories!
ContestWin your choice of one of my Uncharted SEALs stories! There will be 2 winners! All you have to do to enter is answer me this…
What author’s older series have your recently discovered and devoured? Spread some love!
Watch Over Me
When Deke Warrick accepts an unsanctioned detail to keep tabs on a congressman’s niece while she vacations in the Caribbean, he expects the only dangers he’ll face are sunburn and a rum hangover. Determined to keep his distance, his resolve is challenged by a chance encounter with the beautiful Nicky Martir—and then shattered when she’s snatched from their hotel room.
Excerpt from Watch Over Me …
Deke Warrick pushed his sunglasses down his nose to peer at the woman stretched on a chaise not five feet away. She laid face down, her head turned away, thick brown hair held in place by a clip. From the slowness of her breaths, he knew she was dozing. And since he figured she wouldn’t be leaving the beach anytime soon, he relaxed, forcing his fingers to stretch around the teak wood arms of his lounge chair.
After two connecting flights and a short leg in a specially chartered puddle-jumper, at last he had eyes on Nicky Martir. He knew the woman was her because a hotel staff member he’d bribed had pointed her out. Assistance he’d needed because at the moment she didn’t look anything like the air-brushed Facebook photo he’d been given. After finding her, he’d checked out the hotel’s parking and lounge area, all entrances and exits, the stairwells, and then greased the palms of the concierge and wait staff. His initial recon over, he now had time to focus on his target.
From his vantage point, he’d already determined his former commander’s “little girl” was all grown up. In fact, she was a very well-proportioned woman with lush curves above and below a narrow waist. Must have taken after her mother, he mused, because her father’s frame didn’t sport an ounce of excess flesh. At the moment, her bottom was most prominent—rounded, firm, and displayed all too well by the narrow thong bisecting her cheeks. Not that he wanted to notice, but hell, it was right there, and with more than enough curve a healthy, hetero man could well imagine his hands gripping each mound as he…
“Señor, would you like another drink?”
Deke jerked. No one had managed to sneak up on him in a long time, which said a lot about Nicky’s attractiveness.
The cabana girl’s voice held a note of irritation. Her dark brows were drawn into a frown, her lips pursed in disapproval. But not because he’d been ogling a sleeping girl. He’d claimed a spot beneath a thatched umbrella at the edge of the small tiki bar’s outdoor seating area, and he had yet to deliver on the promise he’d made with his smile when he’d asked for this prime piece of real estate. The seat with its attached table provided a perfect view of the beach, as well as the private gated entrance of the hotel parking lot. More importantly, the chair was situated near Nicky. Not close enough to touch, but from here, he could watch over her, amidst the other sunbathers.
Giving the waitress an equally irritated glance, he reached into his pocket and took out several bills, more than enough for five drinks and a generous tip. “Bring me a virgin mojito,” he murmured quietly. A ruse to disguise the fact he hadn’t had a sip of alcohol, because he was on the job—even if this mission was strictly off the books and a favor to a man he admired.
His gaze swung back to the dozing woman. She’d turned her head while he’d been talking to the waitress and was facing him now, a dark fringe of long lashes resting against her cheeks. Yeah, her photo hadn’t done her justice. Sure, he’d known she was pretty, but this close, he could see a smattering of freckles across her nose—a feature she must hide beneath makeup, but which he thought was cute. Made her seem more approachable. Her mouth was full, the bottom lip a little puffier than the top and wide. A mouth made for kissing.
Deke winced and glanced away, feeling guilty over lusting after Commander Martir’s daughter. He was here to do a job. Although Martir had retired from the navy and now held a seat in congress with special oversight of the administration’s war on drugs, he had maintained close ties with the SEAL community, working with his contacts inside the Drug Enforcement Agency to find positions for several of Deke’s friends when they’d started the next phases of their lives. Their special skill set had been a perfect fit for the spec ops work the agency did, and Martir wanted men he could trust working there—disciplined, honorable men. Martir had promised Deke he’d keep a spot open for whenever he was ready to leave DEVGRU/SEAL Team 6, something Deke had automatically refused a year ago. But after his last deployment in the sandbox, he was having second thoughts. Martir’s timing, approaching him the day after Deke set boots back on the tarmac at Oceana, VA, had seemed like a sign.
Deke answered a summons to his present commander’s office and instead found Martir standing with his back to the door as he stared out across the green, hands clasped behind his back. Other than the gray at his temples, Fred Martir looked exactly as he had when he’d been the one in charge here.
Deke entered the room and shut the door behind him. “Sir,” he said, coming to attention—out of respect for a former officer who had been a SEAL himself.
When the congressman turned, he raked his gaze over Deke, dressed in a fresh uniform, but still looking scruffy due to the beard he kept while deployed and the non-reg hair he’d let grow well past his collar. “At ease, Deke. Callahan,” he said, referring to the team’s present commander, “tells me you’ve accumulated leave which you refuse to take.”
As he narrowed his gaze, Deke slid his hands behind his back and braced his feet apart, wondering where that statement was leading. “I didn’t exactly refuse, sir. I prefer sticking close to base.” That he didn’t have family to visit or a girlfriend to spend time with was no one’s business but his own. And no one needed to know how uncomfortable he’d come to feel wandering outside his close-knit community.
The older man’s gaze locked on Deke. “This last rotation—I hear things got pretty rough.”
Deke straightened his shoulders. Not a secret, but definitely not something he wanted to discuss. “We lost two good men. Happens.” And while his words were spare, maybe even a little too nonchalant, he couldn’t keep the gravel from his voice at the thought of Sting’s death, or the fact he’d been the one to gather what was left of Mark’s body before he’d humped it back to the helo.
“Callahan says your OIC would prefer you take a break. But since I know you’re a stubborn son of a bitch, I have a proposition for you. Something that’ll get your commander off your back. A job. Strictly off the books. Something personal.” He cleared his throat. “For me.”
Deke met Martir’s gaze, steady as always, but noted there was a hint of worry there, a tension reflected in the deepened lines of his face. Whatever his reason for being here had to be pretty important because he’d never seen that expression on the older man’s face. “I’m listening.”
Deke learned that Martir had received death threats from a drug cartel unhappy with recent crackdowns he’d helped orchestrate. And while his ex-wife and daughter lived well-away from DC and out of the public eye, he was worried about their safety.
“I have eyes on my wife, but my daughter…” He shook his head. “She has vacation plans she’s refused to postpone. And she wouldn’t accept my offer of a bodyguard.” Martir winced. “If you haven’t guessed already, we’re not on the best of terms. She tends to do the exact opposite of anything I suggest.”
A situation that almost made Deke smile—the thought that anyone would stand up to the tough old bird. And just as quickly, he decided this “job,” even if it was a boondoggle, was an assignment he needed. A purpose to focus on beside the sorrow and guilt that weighed him down. “What exactly do you want me to do?”
Just a day later, he’d managed to track down his former commander’s daughter on this little speck of an island in the Caribbean. Despite Martir’s fears his family might be targeted due to recent media leaks, Deke doubted Nicky Martir was in any serious danger of retaliation. Not here. The island was too small—both in size and in population—for any group to infiltrate undetected among the small tourist population. But Martir was picking up the tab for this working vacation, so Deke would keep frosty.
Not that doing so required effort. Deke had forgotten how to relax. The attitude was one he had to force himself to try because he knew his constant edginess wasn’t healthy. Might even be a sure sign of some nasty issues he’d never admit to, but that could wind up biting him in the butt if he didn’t handle them on his own. A vacation in the Caribbean should have fit the bill. Not that an island getaway would have been on his short list of places he’d want to chill after a long deployment. He was sick to death of heat, even if a light sea breeze made the hot sunlight bearable. Still, the view wasn’t bad.
Again, he shifted in his chair, trying not to stare too long at Nicky’s lovely ass. Dressed in Hawaiian-themed swimming trunks, the only style he’d found in the hotel gift shop other than skin-tight bikini Speedos, he worried he couldn’t hide his growing interest in the pretty brunette’s many assets. She was off-limits. Any woman would be, because he wouldn’t allow any distractions. Even if this mission was a cake-walk, he’d give the work a hundred-ten percent of his attention. He was a SEAL; after twelve years on the DEVGRU team, mission focus was part of his DNA.
A movement caught his eye. Small hands slid up the side of the chaise, going for the bow securing her bikini top.
Deke gritted his teeth. As the ribbons loosened and the bra fell away, he had a glimpse of pretty white breast, just the side, but the swell was generous. Now he was imagining a full frontal view. Would her nipples be pink or brown? Once he’d dated a girl with pale beige nipples that had turned a lovely rose when…
“Dammit,” he said under his breath and looked away again, breathing deeply as he willed his body not to tighten. He scanned the other chaises and then looked out to the ocean, counting through the approach of three sets of waves.
When he glanced back at the chaise, he spotted those pink-tipped fingers reaching to the ground and scooting a bottle of sunscreen across the sand. Toward him.
His gaze shot to her pretty cognac brown eyes, and he caught her small, one-sided smile.
“Do you mind?” she asked, her voice a little raspy, like a woman might sound when she first woke in the morning. Like maybe he was the first person she’d spoken to today.
What the hell? Some covert operator he was—he hadn’t managed to hide his attraction. If he didn’t act on her question, she might come to the conclusion he was a perv or a stalker. Better to make a move, but he’d keep it light.
Slipping off his chair, he strode toward her, bending to snag the bottle. “Just the back?” he asked, keeping his tone amused.
“And anywhere you think needs it,” she said, her voice breathier this time.
Deke blew out a long stream of air then turned back to where he’d been seated, carefully placing the rolled-up towel he’d brought that hid the compact Beretta Nano the pilot on the puddle jumper had provided beside him. Then kneeling, he dribbled creamy liquid that smelled of coconut and Shea butter across her shoulders and gently laid his hands on her hot, golden skin. Under his fingers were firm muscles cloaking her slender frame. And tension knotting her shoulders. “Relax. I can’t get too fresh. Too many people around, anyway.” He smoothed the thick liquid over her shoulders, fingers wrapping around the tops to give her a light massage. “How’d you know I spoke English?”
“I heard you talking to the waitress.”
“Oh.” He’d tried to keep his voice lowered so he wouldn’t attract her attention. Either he was slipping, or she had super-power hearing.
“You here on vacation?” she asked.
Why would she think otherwise? He pressed his thumbs against the knots at the back of her neck. “I am.”
“Alone?”
“Yeah.”
“My dad send you?”
His hands stilled, then he massaged again, but he figured she couldn’t have missed his immediate response. So, the question hadn’t been stupid after all. “How’d you guess that?”
“You have a SEAL’s body.”
He grunted, not giving her verbal confirmation, but then, he didn’t have to. Nicky Martir was as smart as she was pretty. Now that his cover was blown, he wondered how far she’d let him continue his casual massage. Irritation at having been made so quickly gave him an itch to turn the table on her, make her squirm, but only just a little. He rubbed her back, moving downward, fingers wrapping around her sides, touching the sides of those creamy breasts.
Her breath hitched, lifting her body a scant inch. “Careful there.”
“Just being thorough.” A smile tugged at his mouth, but he moved down again, leaning over her, kneading the small of her back.
Her breaths deepened. So did his. When he paused to drizzle more hot lotion over the tops of her exposed buttocks, she chuckled—a soft, choked sound. But she didn’t reach back to shove away his hands, so he guessed she was okay with him getting fresh.
Her ass was toned, the skin a smooth tan. When he shifted the top of the sea blue thong, a pale line betrayed the fact her immodesty wasn’t something she reserved for only when she was on vacation. Something he liked in a woman—courage, confidence, and an animal sensuality.
He kept his hands on the tops of her cheeks, fingers well away from the crease bisecting her anatomy…although the temptation to follow the deep curve was there.
“Don’t be shy now,” she whispered. “I’ll have a pink stripe down my butt.”
He shook his head, his grin widening. “You this bold with every stranger you meet?”
“Since you’re here at my daddy’s request, I figure you’re safe to flirt with.”
“Think I won’t take advantage?”
Her head turned, one eye raking his frame, then clinging to his face. “It’s not taking advantage since I asked.”
The thing he’d fought from the moment he’d first spotted her nearly nude body happened. His cock stirred, thickening. “Damn,” he said, his fingers curving, smoothing lotion into the sweet divide. “I’ll have to borrow your towel.”
“You could always lie down beside me, seeing as you have to keep watch over me anyway.”
“Gonna rub lotion on my back?”
“And anywhere I think needs it,” she said in an amused drawl.
“Lady, anyone ever tell you you’re a tease?”
She smiled and came up on an elbow, rolling onto her side and exposing her lovely breasts. “I don’t tease.”
Pink. Her nipples were pink. “You trying to get us arrested?” he whispered due to a suddenly dry throat.
“No one cares.” Her glance went to his rigid cock. “No one except you.” And her mouth curved into a cat-like smile.
The post Flashback: Watch Over Me (Contest — Two Winners!) first appeared on Delilah Devlin.
August 4, 2025
Gabbi Grey: When Visiting Someone Else’s Town (Contest)
Hello, Delliah! Thank you for inviting me to visit today and to share my newest release! Finding Noah is part of Foggy Basin Season 2. Foggy Basin is a fictional town in Northern California. Small town, mostly friendly folk, plenty of queer people to go around.
The multi-author series is in its second year, and I was asked to join. I didn’t hesitate. I love shared worlds and, of course, I write gay romance. Most specifically, I tend to write small-town gay romance. I’ve been part of several other series (Gaynor Beach, Deerbourne Inn, The Haunting of Pinedale High, to name a few), so the concept isn’t new to me. Still, every time I embark upon one of these projects, I worry.
Once I get over that stress and actually settle down to write my book, I do investigations. I read previous books (if there are any), and I ask questions. I try to find ways to connect my book to previous or future ones. I did that with Finding Noah. In particular, there’s a character who will be in a later book this season. I coordinated with that author, wrote my couple of scenes, and then had them read over what I’d written. They were thrilled. I did something similar with two other characters, although they were more passing references than in-depth dives.
In the end, I believe I’ve told a story that is both true to the town and the series, as well as the characters I borrowed from. I have, I hope, made connections that will intrigue readers and make them want to pick up other books. Most of all, I had fun. That’s what it’s all about, right?
I will continue to sign up for these projects because I want to expose my readers to books beyond just my own. I’m grateful they’re willing to give me a shot, and I’m even more pleased when they branch out.
That’s it! Pretty simple. I’m in two more shared worlds coming up — back to Rocktoberfest for my third kick at the can – and I’ve co-written the final Friends of Gaynor Beach Animal Rescue book with a friend. Details of both of those projects are coming soon!
Thank you, Delilah, for hosting me. I would love to hear from your fans.
Contest: Do you enjoy shared worlds? How important is it for authors to make connections between the books? Let me know! Leave a comment. Random will pick one winner who will receive a copy of Yorkie to My Heart – my latest contribution to the Friends of Gaynor Beach Animal Rescue series. Good luck!
Finding Noah
About the Author
Noah
I need a fresh start, and Foggy Basin, California, is the perfect place to begin my new life. The accepting small town is such a contrast to the large town I came from. Making a success of my dog-training business—Tricks, Tips, and Backflips—is important to me, and I totally lucked out when my straight best friend, Christian, decided to move with me. He makes my life easier. I just hope he’ll be as happy here as I am.
Christian
Following my best friend to Foggy Basin was a no-brainer. I’ve been in love with him since we were five years old. Problem is, I’ve never had the guts to say so, and while he’s out and proud, I’m still in the closet. Somehow, I need to find the courage to make a move before he finds someone else in this gay-friendly town, but Noah thinks I’m straight, and I’m not sure what he’ll do when I tell him that’s not exactly true.
Finding Noah is a 44k small-town, friends-to-lovers, interracial, gay romance with fresh starts, well-meaning but nosy neighbors, and some special critters who are along for the ride.
Welcome to Foggy Basin, Season Two. Just passing through? No problem. Here to stay? Well, better find your place. Sit back, relax, and get to know the townsfolk. They love hard and play even harder. Each book is a standalone, but why not stay and get to know us and read them all?
Links:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Finding-Noah-Foggy-Basin-Season-ebook/dp/B0DZRZ3XHV
Universal Book Link: https://books2read.com/FindingNoah
Add it to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/229030712-finding-noah
USA Today Bestselling author Gabbi Grey lives in beautiful British Columbia where her fur baby chin-poo keeps her safe from the nasty neighborhood squirrels. Working for the government by day, she spends her early mornings writing contemporary, gay, sweet, and dark erotic BDSM romances. While she firmly believes in happy endings, she also believes in making her characters suffer before finding their true love. She also writes m/f romances as Gabbi Black and Gabbi Powell.
Personal links:
Website: https://gabbigrey.com/
Newsletter sign-up: https://sendfox.com/gabbigrey
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorgabbigrey/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/gabbi-grey
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15456297.Gabbi_Grey
Amazon Author Central: https://www.amazon.com/Gabbi-Grey/e/B07SJVFX1M
Audible Profile: https://www.audible.com/author/Gabbi-Grey/B07SJVFX1M
Facebook (page): https://www.facebook.com/AuthorGabbiGrey
August 3, 2025
Open Contests! Enter while there’s still time!
I just arrived home after a visit with my sister! I have to unpack and get organized, but I thought I’d go ahead and post something quick about open contests before it’s too late for you to enter! ~DD
Open Contests
Be sure to check out these posts and enter to win the prizes that are still up for grabs:
Gabbi Grey: Rucking Yet Again?!?! (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win a FREE book!Sliding Puzzle: A visit to the apothecary… (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!Story Cubes — Tell Me a Story (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!Health Update & a Trip News (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!Anna Taylor Sweringen/Michal Scott: Jessie Redmon Fauset — Mother of the Harlem Renaissance (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!Puzzle-Contest, Report Card & More Open Contests! Tons of prizes to be had! — Win an Amazon gift card!Ava Cuvay: Family Members, Family History (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!Word Search: Packing for a Trip (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!Tell me a story… (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!Puzzle-Contest: Sisters, sisters… — Win an Amazon gift card!July into August (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Lazy Dog — Win an Amazon gift card!The post Open Contests! Enter while there’s still time! first appeared on Delilah Devlin.August 2, 2025
Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Lazy Dog
This is the last day of my mini-vacation. 
The visit has been lovely. We’ve shopped. We’ve eaten lots of great food. We’ve had many, many laughs. We swam! Tomorrow morning, we’re packing up and hitting the road to get back home. I’ll miss my sister, niece and nephews, but I’m ready to sleep in my own bed.
I’m holding up well, though I do have a nagging backache that my daughter thinks was caused by laughing so hard when I fought the floatation device in the pool on the first day. Sounds like something that would happen to me.
Anyway, I’m going to do the most with the time I have left here with sis. I think we’re hitting Hobby Lobby and maybe Outback Steakhouse today. The 11-year-old sure perked up when I mentioned that possibility. I need a cup of coffee and to get moving this morning, so I’ll leave you with another puzzle.
The picture, when you finish it, will be me when I get home tomorrow. For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then tell me what you’re doing today!
The post Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Lazy Dog first appeared on Delilah Devlin.August 1, 2025
July into August (Contest)
Health-related:
I underwent two more infusions of Keytruda, this month. I felt fatigued for a couple of days afterward, but no worrisome side effects.I restarted the targeted immunotherapy, Lenvima, but dropped to an every other day dosage due to side effects. I’m tolerating the dosage better than the daily. I’m still fatigued, but not quite as much, and the diarrhea has subsided somewhat.Happiness-related:
I’m currently visiting my sister for a small vacation!I continued my participation in #the100dayproject. I have just one more piece to finish my commitment. Here are a few small pieces I completed in July:
August
For work-related, I plan:
To finish reading the Burn submissions and announce the lineup for the next anthology!To finish writing Ignition ! Again—no excuses! This will complete the Delta Fire series, my erotic firefighter stories. The book will be out by the end of the month!To begin work on Built Like Mack , the next story in my We are Dead Horse series.To complete working on the edits I have for one author and await the arrival of two other editing projects to start working on.For health-related, I plan:
To continue to focus on recovery! Rest when I need to, and some light exercise—housework and swimming (when the pool pump gets repaired!!!).To endure another immunotherapy session this month.For happiness-related, I plan:
To spend time what little time we have remaining of the summer break with the family. We have plans for more fun meals, movies, flea market shopping, back-to-school shopping, and lots and lots of swimming.To complete #the100dayproject and create more art.ContestComment on anything you’ve read in this post. Tell me what you’re doing to make yourself happier and healthier, or tell me what you plan to read in August …
Like I said, comment on anything for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!
The post July into August (Contest) first appeared on Delilah Devlin.July 31, 2025
Puzzle-Contest: Sisters, sisters…
I’m visiting my sister at the moment. We arrived yesterday and already we’ve had some great laughs—mostly at my dignity’s expense.
Yes, the trip exhausted me, but I didn’t head straight to a bed to nap; I soldiered on because I didn’t want to miss a thing. My niece and her boys joined Elle, my dd and SIL, a couple of our girls, and I for the afternoon and evening. We went to a pizza joint with retro pinball machines then came back and spent time in the pool together. I provided the entertainment while trying to get my fat a$$ into pool hammock chair. I needed lots of help to get myself balanced. Imagine beached whale/half-drowning, lots of sputtering while we were all dying laughing.
Anyway, I’m ready for another exhausting, happy day.
I’m sharing my favorite photo of my sister and I, playing dress-up when we were kids. For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then share a memory from your childhood!
The post Puzzle-Contest: Sisters, sisters… first appeared on Delilah Devlin.July 30, 2025
Tell me a story… (Contest)
Yes, I’ve been watching too many crime series lately. My current binge is Jane Seymour’s Harry Wild.
I love a good mystery. Heck, I love a middlin’ one, too. I delight in a chance for our sleuth to wander through a crime scene, pick up details no one else sees, then head off to track down more clues to unravel the mystery. So, let’s have some fun today.
You’re the detective. The body’s already been removed. You have an outline and a few evidence markers around it. How about you tell me a story about who you are, who is with you, and what you see (make up all the details!)? Where’s this taking place? Man or woman? Indoors, outdoors? Is it an establishment? Have fun with it!
Comment with your little story (doesn’t have to be fun or clever!) or list of clues for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!
The post Tell me a story… (Contest) first appeared on Delilah Devlin.July 29, 2025
Word Search: Packing for a Trip (Contest)
I have a huge To Do List today. I have work to finish for another author, a myriad of chores to complete, and I need to pack for my trip. Since packing is on my mind, and I couldn’t think of anything else to load my puzzle with, that’s today’s theme! Yay for you, right?
For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, what would you add to your packing list? I can already think of one I left off—my laptop!
The post Word Search: Packing for a Trip (Contest) first appeared on Delilah Devlin.July 28, 2025
Ava Cuvay: Family Members, Family History (Contest)
Today, I had planned to talk about my newest children’s picture book I released in May… just in time for Summer and all the adorable flamingo goodies that are out there. Here is the Amazon link if you’re interested: https://www.amazon.com/Floria-Finds-Flavor-Tippi-Hickey/dp/B0F7FTR24P/
But what I really want to talk about—what’s been weighing heavily on my mind and heart these past several months—is family, family memories, and family history. And my seeming lack of.
Last December, my unmarried aunt passed away. I had been her POA the last several years as her health declined, taking care of the details so she could enjoy her final years living in the house her mother had built, surrounded by her beloved collections, and out in the quiet solitude of her rural home away from people. Then my task of settling her estate commenced. A huge part of that meant going through her house. The house my grandmother built just before I was born (so, just a few years ago 
), which was large enough to tuck things away and forget about them.
I’ve unearthed three-plus generations’ worth of stuff while going through my aunt’s house. Framed photos, diaries, photo albums, Christmas and birthday and 50th wedding anniversary cards and letters from people I never heard mentioned. Land deeds dating back to the late 1800s and even as early as 1810. The occasional random “momentos” such as Red Robin coupons from 2015 and canceled checks from the 1980s, in chronological order. But also the sketches of horses my aunt had drawn in high school, her binder of poems she’d written on work stationery, and “while you were out” notepads. My father’s baby clothes. And the Army decorations my grandfather, who passed away when my dad was headed to college, had earned as a Captain during WWII.
I’ve spent the past half year discovering my family and some of its history. And I’m bitter.
I’m going through the keepsakes and memories of people I never really knew. Many I didn’t know because they were long gone by the time I was born and no one talked to me about them. Or maybe I was too immature growing up to listen. But these are all strangers to me, even my aunt to an extent. This is a rich heritage no one ever felt was important enough to ensure the knowledge was passed along to me so I can pass it along to my own children. These are pictures of strangers.
Maybe it stemmed from the pragmatic attitude of being farmers. Maybe it stemmed from my grandmother being widowed and struggling as a single mother in the 1960s. Maybe it’s my own fault for not appreciating history until these past several years, when it was too late to ask anyone.
Whatever the case, I might as well be going through an antique flea market, for the emotional attachment I have with these items. And that’s sad; these treasurers should spark more than a simple “wow, that’s so interesting” from me. These people, their story, the items that were important enough to store for decades (but not important enough to store so that vermin and water wouldn’t ruin them), this heritage… most of it will fade away like a morning mist once I’m gone because I don’t have more than a smattering of family knowledge to pass along.
Fortunately, there are a couple of cousins who have more historical knowledge than me, and they are invested in documenting a lot of it. In fact, I’ve learned more about my own family from a couple days with them than I’d accumulated over a lifetime. Unfortunately, my own children are teens, and not at all interested in learning about family history. Hmmmm, sounds a lot like me when I was their age.
I urge you, if you haven’t already, to document your family history and share the stories and the people. Repeatedly. If we don’t know our roots, how can we truly grow?
Since I didn’t really talk about a book, I’ll give away a $10 Amazon gift card to a randomly-chosen person who comments.
The post Ava Cuvay: Family Members, Family History (Contest) first appeared on Delilah Devlin.July 27, 2025
Puzzle-Contest, Report Card & More Open Contests! Tons of prizes to be had!
I didn’t post the puzzle-contest yesterday, so I’m adding it to my weekly Report Card! I have tons of excuses, but they all add up to me being extremely lazy yesterday. I couldn’t be bothered to post. I slept late, swam long, and watched a Chinese reel about a woman who was a goddess and didn’t know it. Perfect day, actually.
Puzzle-ContestFor a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then let me know what content you enjoy on my blog. What catches your eye? What contests are fun for you? Do you like the puzzles? The visitors? Glimpses of my personal life?
Enjoy today’s puzzle! It’s of the now-11-year-old being her not-so-angelic self when she was little. ~DD
Report Card
Last week…
I continued working on edits for two authors.I’ll continued reading entries for the Burn: A Boys Behaving Badly Anthology !I had my every-three-week infusion on Monday and was hit hard with fatigue and other unpleasant side effects for the following three days. (I’m feeling better today!)I swam every day, at least once!I didn’t paint a thing. *sigh* And I only have one more piece to complete to finish up #the100dayproject.This next week…
I’ll complete edits of a manuscript for another author and continue working on another author’s story.I’ll continue reading the Burn: A Boys Behaving Badly Anthology entries!I’ll get some chores out of the way—laundry, packing—in preparation for my trip to visit my sister this week!I’ll pre-post blogs for the days I’ll be on trip so you have some fun things to read/do while I’m away from my desk!I’ll (hopefully) paint my last piece for #the100dayproject.I’ll swim every day the weather cooperates!Open Contests
Be sure to check out these posts and enter to win the prizes that are still up for grabs:
What are your favorite romance tropes? (Contest) — Last day to enter! Win an Amazon gift card!Gabbi Grey: Jane Austen as a Muse for Queer Romances (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win two eBooks and an audio book!Saturday Puzzle-Contest: What are they doing? — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!Gabbi Grey: Rucking Yet Again?!?! (Contest) — Win a FREE book!Sliding Puzzle: A visit to the apothecary… (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!Story Cubes — Tell Me a Story (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!Health Update & a Trip News (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!Anna Taylor Sweringen/Michal Scott: Jessie Redmon Fauset — Mother of the Harlem Renaissance (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!The post Puzzle-Contest, Report Card & More Open Contests! Tons of prizes to be had! first appeared on Delilah Devlin.
