I’d almost forgotten I’d answered Readers’ Favorite’s call for submissions for the RF’s annual international competition. It seems a hundred years ago that I’d submitted my novel, The Angry Woman Suite, though somewhere in the back of my brain, I more or less remembered it was September that winners would be notified.

Yesterday was September 1. I sat down to my computer first thing, like always, and there it was, a big congratulatory announcement: The Angry Woman Suite had been awarded the Gold in the Historical Mystery category. Wow! The award ceremony is next month in Miami. Thank you, Readers’ Favorite!

Following is the lead judge’s critique (I’m amazed how s/he summed this book up—great job!):

“The Angry Woman Suite is quite a ride. Set in the early 1900s, it is a story of family conflict, mystery, drama, and love. Young Francis Grayson grows up with a slew of women referred to merely as “the women,” consisting of two aunts and a grandmother. Unfortunately, Francis is subjected to abuse at their hands. Young Francis does not know much about his history and even the true identity of his father is kept from him. Elyse, Francis’ stepdaughter, tells the story from her point of view in a rather compelling manner. A third narrator is history buff and schoolmaster, Aiden Madsen, who also plays the roles of music teacher and friend to young Francis. Francis is talented, something that runs in the family, but he lets his desire for fame get the best of him.

Filled with deceit, outright lies, anger and resentment, this book is very cleverly written, with different points of view bringing unique perspectives to the story. The characters are fully developed and easy to understand, and as the story comes together one finds oneself empathizing, loving and sometimes even hating them. The novel is quite a trip through time as the characters tell history as they see it. It seems that each character is on a quest for truth. It is hard to decipher whose version is correct, but this adds to the flavour of this outstanding novel.”