Vanilla Heart Publishing
Charmaine Gordon



Charmaine Gordon writes books  about women who Survive and Thrive.  Her motto is take one step and then another to leave your past behind and begin again. Six books and several short stories in three years, she’s always at work on the next story. The books include To Be Continued, Starting Over, Now What?, Reconstructing Charlie, Sin of Omission and The Catch, just released.

“I didn’t realize at the time while working as an actor in NYC, I’d become a sponge soaking up dialogue, setting, and stage directions. I learned many tools of writing during the years watching directors like Mike Nichols and actors including Harrison Ford, Anthony Hopkins, and Billy Crystal. And would you believe, I was Geraldine Ferraro’s stand-in leg model, my first job giving me entrée into all the Unions needed to work. When the sweet time ended, I began another career and creative juices flowed.”

You can reach Charmaine at http://authorCharmaineGordon.wordpress.com

And on her FB page  http://www.facebook.com/charmaine.gordon






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Tom Donnelly, once known as The Catch – every woman’s dream guy, has fallen down every rung of the ladder he once worked so hard to climb. On New Year’s Day, he realizes just how far he’s fallen, and makes a list of resolutions to change his life. He vows to regain the trust lost from his family, his law firm, and his friends – and maybe even find the right woman this time.

He crosses paths with Joanne McKenna Friedman – a smart young lawyer, beautiful on the outside, damaged on the inside. Joanne’s secret past leaves her distrustful of everyone. Until a court case comes up to threaten her career and even her life, and she turns to Tom for help.





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Sin of Omission
by Charmaine Gordon

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Seems easy enough. Jimmy Costigan will deliver supplies to sister Charlie's projectm Haven, a respite for the needy, and leave. Simple.

Instead, Shelley Jackson answers the door, says she needs him and soft-hearted Jimmy stays to protect the family seeking refuge from a sociopath. He didn't count on falling in love.

A twist of fate intervenes when Shelley keeps a secret that threatens to break apart the Costigans and her future. A mysterious client, Deanna Rose, enters Haven, victim of a savage beating under strange circumstances. Using Internet resources, Shelley digs in to find Ms. Rose has an unsavory past.

With the reputation and safety of Haven at stake, Shelley is at risk to lose everything ... and everyone she cares about.




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To Be Continued  by Charmaine Gordon           

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Starting Over by Charmaine Gordon           

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Now What?  by Charmaine Gordon

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Reconstructing Charlie  by Charmaine Gordon

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Sin of Omission
by Charmaine Gordon

Seems easy enough. Jimmy Costigan delivers supplies to sister Charlie’s project Haven, a respite for the needy, and leaves. Instead Shelley Jackson answers the door, says she needs him and soft-hearted Jimmy stays to protect the family seeking refuge from a sociopath and falls in love with Shelley.

A twist of fate intervenes when Shelley keeps a secret that threatens to break apart the Costigans and her future. A new mysterious client, Deanna Rose enters Haven, victim of a savage beating under strange circumstances. Using Internet sources, Shelley digs in to find Ms. Rose has an unsavory past. With the reputation and safety of Haven at stake, Shelley is at risk to lose everything she and her loved ones have worked for.





Reconstructing Charlie by Charmaine Gordon

Charlie Costigan has a secret. Home life gone from bad to the worst when she protects her mother from another vicious attack by her drunken father. Midnight. Clothes thrown into an old suitcase, she races for the bus with a letter to an unknown aunt and uncle. “This is my daughter. Embrace her as if she were your own.”

Determined, Charlie begins again. Alone with her secret.






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Now What? by Charmaine Gordon

It was 2:30 a.m. when the phone rang. I fumbled for it, my heart starting a race toward bad news. Our doctor’s voice urged me to hurry. I crammed into clothes as if I expected this call.

It is only a fever that won’t go down, isn't it?

Our doctor shook his head. "...We did everything possible to save him. I held him in my arms when he took his last breath. Carly, I’m so sorry.”

Settling in beside my Bob, I held his cooling hand and asked the two words spoken many times during our years together. “Now what?” This time there was no response. I was on my own for the first time. When my fingers touched his wedding ring, I slipped it off and held it in my fist. The gold band was warm. I clung to him. “Come back to me, dearest.”

Sometimes what you wish for is more than you can live with.





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Starting Over by Charmaine Gordon

Each morning, Emily Kendrick runs on the hard-packed sand of St. Augustine Beach. She runs to clear her mind and heal her heart. From the widow’s walk of the house perched high on the dunes, a man trains his binoculars on Emily…

One early morning run, he sees tears spill down Emily’s tanned face. She stumbles and falls, crumpling into a heap in the sand. . .and doesn’t get up. A lone runner reaches Emily’s side. Her watcher slams his binoculars onto the railing as he throws his coffee cup against the steel and Plexiglas windscreen…




Reviews





Starting Over by Charmaine Gordon
Publisher: Vanilla Heart Publishing
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Full Length (240 pages)
Heat Level: Spicy
Rating: 4 books
Reviewed by Camellia

......


Some days Emily Kendrick’s mind is a twisting kaleidoscope of shifting memories as she struggles to keep grief at bay after the death of her husband of thirty years. She runs on the beach to ease her mind and body. There she meets Pat Corwin who changes the directions of her life and, unknown to her, is secretly watched by another man whose warped mind dreams of possessing her.

Pat, a lawyer with mysteries surrounding much of his past, stirs a spark of life in Emily that gives her courage to be someone she’s never been before. He brings joy, fun, and love into her life, different from that which she shared with her late husband.

Input from family, friends, and the predatory Clifford Lansdale makes Starting Over thought provoking as well as captivating. It is a story with humor and complications, but most of all it is a story of a woman learning to be independent for the first time as she picks up the pieces of her past and embraces a new way of life only to have more shattering woes befall her.

The reader shares a poignant, vicarious experience with Emily that is realistic and heartbreaking at times, but joyful and full of hope at other times. How Emily handles the stages of grief is evocative. Like a Phoenix rising from the ashes, Emily absorbs the blows of life, accepts the inevitable, and survives to thrive.

The secondary characters are remarkable in so many ways. They add subplots and a wealth of emotions to the main story that helps the reader realize that Emily is not living in a vacuum without support and, of course, a few adversaries.

Charmaine Gordon does much more than just tell a delightful story with romance and sizzling love scenes. She also gives the reader a peek at how grief influences a surviving partner and how that person copes. Starting Over is a celebration of life.



 






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To Be Continued by Charmaine Gordon


Elizabeth Malone wakes up the morning after an amazing night of passion with her husband of forty years to find a note: "Dear Lizzie, it's not you, it's me."

Abandoned by her husband, disappointed in daughter Susie's casual attitude – ‘Dad's having a mid-life crisis’, Beth decides to re-establish herself as the winner she once was.

When Frank Malone returns, he's in for a big surprise!


Reviews of To Be Continued

To Be Continued by Charmaine Gordon
Publisher: Vanilla Heart
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Full (272 pages)
Heat: Spicy
Rating: 4 Books
Reviewed by Camellia


...Everyone should be fortunate enough to have a new friend like Lisa, a pool man like Maverick (WOW), a new lawyer like Elise Bergen, and a Sister Mary Margaret type to help rekindle the fire to be a “winner” after feeling like a total “loser”. Besides these supportive new people in her life, Elizabeth’s life is influenced by a tempting but troubled psychiatrist that wrote a book entitled “Get A Grip”, a remarkable son-in-law, and some super guests at “The Night for Possibilities” not the least of which is Sam Taylor.

Charmaine Gordon brings the characters to life with humor, decisive action, shared tears and stories. In To Be Continued Ms. Gordon takes the reader from a situation of despair to one of joy and love with lots of living done with mature and some not-so-mature exuberance.

To Be Continued with a survive-and-thrive attitude is captivating.


To read the rest of this fabulous review...The Long and Short of It



This book captivated me from the first page. The main character in the story is an inspiration as she overcomes struggles in her life and transforms herself into a confident woman. I enjoyed the relationships formed in this book between the main character and the interesting people that she encounters throughout the novel. I loved it because it contains sadness, humor, warmth and triumph. Once I started reading i couldn't wait to continue it each evening. I finished the book in three days and now I look forward to reading the next book by this author! I have pre-ordered her next book, Starting Over and I will be thrilled to receive it soon, I hope! I highly recommend this book to anyone age thirty and up.

 

A.Malone, from Amazon Print Edition Review




Excerpt

   
Elizabeth Malone wanted to revel in memories of the great sex she and Frank, her husband of forty years, had last night.  At his insistence, for God’s sake.  She practically had to seduce him before they did it anymore; was on the verge of suggesting those little blue pills the girls talked about, when out of nowhere he became amorous.  And it was great.  No. . .wonderful.  No. . .Fan—fargin’—tastic!
    “Mmmm.”
    Her fingers crept along the sheets searching for her mate.  They groped to where Frank could be found most early mornings except on golf days or scheduled surgery.  She touched the edge of  his pillow but no Frank.
    Turning her head, she called his name.  At the same time she saw an envelope lying on top of the pillow. Never like Frank to leave a note but how sweet is this?  A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth and she sat up.  The sheet slipped down and there she was. Naked.  Liz, you’re such a slut. Where oh where is your nightie, you naughty girl.  A heap of green satin lay on the floor next to the bed, evidence of last night’s pleasure.  
    With care, one long polished nail sliced through the envelope.  The nail snagged on an edge and broke.  “Damnit.”  Nothing was going to spoil the moment because this was the first letter from Frank in all the years of togetherness and she planned to keep it. Stumbling off the bed, letter clutched in her hand, she groped for reading glasses, found them, dropped them, on hands and knees patting the carpet, found them again.  Naked on the floor, she read: Dear Lizzie, It’s not you.  It’s me. I have been uncomfortable in my own skin for a long time and have decided I must make a change in my life.  I sold my half of the practice to George. You, dear Lizzie, are well taken care of.  Call Bruce Bradley.  He has all the papers, investments, everything you will need to live in comfort. The house is yours. Last but not least, I signed my portion of divorce papers so whenever you want to, sign yours. Bruce will take care of it.” 
    She leapt up—made it to the toilet... and retched.  Foul taste in her mouth, Elizabeth returned to the bedroom and stared down at the despicable letter.  “He called me Lizzie. Twice. He knows I hate that name. Liz was okay but the despised Lizzie, never.” Her skin crawled with pain and fury. “Oh God.  What am I going to do?” No answer in the silent room.  “Divorce,” She shouted to the empty house.  “People like us, we don’t divorce, you stupid ..” Tears streaming, she pounded her chest with the letter, crumpled it into a ball and flung it across the room.