A Long Walk Home

By Diane Amos

DO TEENAGE GIRLS COME WITH INSTRUCTION MANUALS?

The call came out of the blue–Annie's sister Dana is in rehab can her thirteen-year-old daughter come stay in Maine with Annie? But the wild child in black and piercings is not the sweet little girl Annie remembers.

So much for the new pink towels.

Surly, sullen and scared, Summer puts a gigantic wedge between Annie and her lover, her friends, even her wonderful ex-motherin-law. Yet Annie has always described herself as a dandelion: not the prettiest flower perhaps, but the most determined and resilient. She refuses to give up on Summer. As days become weeks, downs (slowly!) become ups and risks turn into rewards. And for Annie, the long walk home to what matters most has been worth every step.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Australia
• Release date: Aug 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781743695173

Diane Amos

The thought of writing a book never entered my mind until a friend mentioned she was writing a romance and belonged to the Maine Chapter of the Romance Writers of America. I accompanied her to a meeting, and I was hooked. Undaunted, to me, writing a book was simply stringing together sentences to form paragraphs, arranging the paragraphs into scenes, then placing the scenes into chapters. If I wrote enough chapters-viola, I had a book. Little did I know! Finally, nine books and seven years later I received "The Call" at 10:11 AM on October16th, 2002. The editor of Five Star wanted to discuss my book! The rest is history. I live in a small town north of Portland, Maine with my husband, Dave. We have four grown children, four grandsons and two granddaughters. I operate an art studio in my home where I teach both children and adults. Many of my adult students have taken classes from me for years and have become great friends. We have so much fun in class, at times, I wonder whether I should be paying them. I hope they don't read this bio. I'm an established Maine artist. My paintings are in private collections across the United States. When I'm not writing or painting, I'd like to say I'm either racking up miles on my exercise bike or jogging in a marathon-sounds impressive, but don't believe it. I know that exercise is good for me, but why can't it be as much fun as it looks on the television infomercials that persuade us to buy their torturous machines? I enjoy spending time with my family at our camp on a small Maine pond or watching television-I confess I'm a reality show addict-what better place to find characters for my books! I've been married for over thirty-five years to my real-life hero, a man who's supported and encouraged me over the years and still puts a smile on my face.