Heidi Barnes

The Bellman

All young men want to run away and join the circus. For Stanley Douglas, a naïve but determined young man, the closest he could find is The Maycliff.

When Stanley takes the first real job in his life as a bellman at an historic mansion turned luxury inn on the majestic coast of Maine, he has no idea what he’s in for. The Maycliff attracts eccentric guests of all types, from brash Texan lotharios to African dictators with suitcases full of cash. But the guests can’t compare to the staff. The Cook is a prima donna, the manager is a prissy militant, the maids are brassy pranksters, the bartender’s a drunk, and someone’s got their fingers in the till. The only bright spot may be Mindy, the pretty waitress who misses Stanley’s attempts at impressing her but always seems to find a way to bear witness to his bumbling gaffs.

Trying his best to keep order in chaos, Stanley finds that joy and loss, humor and tragedy, friendship and betrayal are all part of the job—and life. Most important, though, is the discovery that everything is going to be all right even if everything is going very, very wrong.

With wit, humor and a sense of nostalgia, The Bellman brings readers back to a day of classic American storytelling, with colorful characters, a picturesque backdrop, and a story that inspires and delights.

The Bellman's Secret

The Bellman’s Secret continues the adventures and misadventures of nineteen-year-old Stanley Douglas, the sometimes bumbling, often unlucky, and always endearing hero from Heidi Barnes’s acclaimed debut novel, The Bellman.

Working at the historic and stately Maycliff Inn on the picturesque coast of Maine, Stan must balance a revolving coterie of eccentric guests, solve the mystery of the disappearing beets, and stop an invasion of lovemaking fish from keeping everyone up at night. Above all, Stan must navigate the fickle, everchanging moods of the girl he’s sure he loves before she falls into the arms of his rival.

A mad romp through workplace hijinks, friendships, betrayal, and the joys and pains of first love, The Bellman’s Secret is a coming-of-age tale that will humor and delight.

Angélique Jamail

Finis.

Elsa’s family grows more unkind by the week. Her boss, a seven-foot-tall rage demon, has control of everything but his anger. And her cat wants to eat her. Things could be better.

In a world where one’s Animal Affinity is a sign of maturity and worth, Elsa’s inability to demonstrate hers is becoming more than a disappointing nuisance; it’s becoming a danger. She has no confidence she’ll ever conquer her Plainness by “blossoming.” She also fears both the wolf packs that prowl her neighborhood and being stuck in a life plummeting rapidly from lackluster to perilous. Fortunately, she has a cousin and a co-worker who know her better than she knows herself and can see through to what society won’t.

Finis. is the magic realism of our time, a story of finding one’s way to the end of things, of persevering through the dregs of life to discover something more.

The Sharp Edges of Water

This is a book of stories as much as a collection of poems. In it, the characters swerve between the rain-drenched, tree-lined, concrete plains of Houston and the voluptuous, dynamic terrain of Los Angeles. They face multiple realities, and though they’re earnestly grounded, they sometimes swim in the waters of magic realism. Their story is both relatable and a little bit surreal. 

Margaret WIlson Reckling

Woody Creek, views from a homestead

When Margaret Reckling traded life in a major metropolis for a remote ranch in the mountains outside Aspen, she soon discovered that beyond initial impressions of reclusive celebrity and eccentric artists Woody Creek has a deeper story that often goes unrecognized by tourists and part-time residents. Early homesteaders moved to Woody Creek to support mining activities in nearby Aspen when it was still Ute Territory, and their resilience and respect for the land remains part of the community's character today. Living in a homestead that belonged to one of these families, Reckling travels in their footsteps during her summer irrigation rounds, experiences the same variable mountain weather that they endured, and rests her weary head at night within four walls built by their hands. When the winter wind swirls around her sturdy ranchhouse and stacks snow against its sides, she knows that they too heard that same fierce howl and wondered what the morning light would reveal. 

In Woody Creek: Views from a Homestead, Reckling captures the essence of this place. With her skills of close observation and patience forged by long solitary mountain winters, she creates stunning images—intimate and panoramic—of its visual riches: the handiwork of early ranchers and farmers, the sensory overload of the changing palette of the seasons, the habits and habitats of both prey and predators. From the smallest wildflower to the tallest snow-clad peak or the brightest harvest moon, this collection of images conveys the deep mysteries of the Woody Creek terrain and the way of life that the free spirits who live here have preserved with an astounding resoluteness.