SOMEWHERE to Fall in Love

by Verna Clay

Is there somewhere that the edges of reality and fantasy overlap? (A Beauty and the Beast Tale)

Saul Flanahan, a physically challenged young man, has lived an off-grid, solitary life with his parents, and for as long as he can remember he has enjoyed their tales about mermen and mermaids inhabiting the oceans. As a child he believed their stories, but now in his mid-twenties, he indulges their whimsical proclivities because of his love for them. However, when a beautiful young woman "supposedly" washes ashore and claims to be the Princess of the Pacific, he is sure that his parents have hired a consummate actress. As to their motive, he hasn't a clue.

Raymond Johnson, III, decides to expand his non-profit veteran's organization headquartered in Portland, Oregon, to the charming and friendly coastal town of Somewhere, the birthplace of his deceased grandfather. While dining at Mama Pink's, the most popular eatery in town, he meets a cute, but clumsy waitress named Suzy, who trips and dumps his order in his lap. Rather than berate her, however, he hires her as his personal assistant. When Raymond meets Suzy's grandmother, he is confronted by a mystery involving his grandfather. Soon Raymond and Suzy are trying to piece together the senior Raymond's reason for leaving Somewhere in 1950.

172 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 15, 2018

About the author

I love a book that makes me forget everything except what I'm reading. As a preteen, I devoured Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys' Mysteries. When I reached my teens, romance novels became my favorite genre. Many years later, I decided to try my hand at writing and I've been doing so with a passion ever since. I have released over twenty-five romance novels, including a contemporary western series titled "Romance on the Ranch." The initial story, "Dream Kisses," started out as a single novella, but turned into an ongoing saga when secondary characters cried out for their own stories. The series was completed with book 10 and its one of my proudest accomplishments. As for historical romance, I ventured into that genre with a four book series titled "Unconventional," and enjoyed it so much that I wrote another collection titled "Finding Home." After that I returned to contemporary romance with the unlikely setting of a trailer park in the Arizona Desert, and, believe it or not, romance abounds at Desert Princess Trailer and RV Park in the middle of nowhere. There are three books in the "Oasis" series. Of course, I couldn't overlook writing in the paranormal/fantasy genre and released "The Shapeling Trilogy" about shapeshifters. In that series, my shifters travel the world, solve mysteries, and fall in love.

Using the pen name of Colleen Clay, I published a YA novel titled, "Fragile Hearts."

Now that I've been writing for so many years, I can't imagine doing anything else.