This is the compelling story of Emalee Rawlings, a young woman trying to find her way through life after the murder/suicide of her parents. At age twenty, Emalee is trying to understand those close to her: Audrey and Karl and their fifty-five year old friendship; Peter, an artist and dear friend that seems to lack the ambition to make his art known to anyone but himself; and Stuart - a quiet, intelligent philosopher with whom she finds herself falling in love. Emalee's journey takes her from the shores of Lake Erie to the Algonquin wilderness. Along the way readers will explore the meaning of...

This first novel in a trilogy is set in the 1870s, the dawn of the Gilded Age, while the American economy is reeling from over-speculation in railroads. Imaginary Brightness tells the story of William West Durant and his sister Ella, the children of the powerful American industrialist and railroad tycoon Dr. Thomas C. Durant. William and Ella find their fortunes and reputations threatened by their father's questionable business dealings as head of the Union Pacific Railroad. As the family's finances teeter on the brink of bankruptcy, both brother and sister are whisked from their privileged...