Mount Vernon Love Story by Mary Higgins Clark

In Mount Vernon Love Story -- famed suspense writer Mary Higgins Clark's long-out-of-print first novel -- the bestselling author reveals the flesh-and-blood man who became the "father of our country" in a story that is charming, insightful, and immensely entertaining.

Always a lover of history, Mary Higgins Clark wrote this extensively researched biographical novel and titled it Aspire to the Heavens, after the motto of George Washington's mother. Published in 1969, the book was more recently discovered by a Washington family descendant and reissued as Mount Vernon Love Story. Dispelling the widespread belief that although George Washington married

Martha Dandridge Custis, he reserved his true love for Sally Carey Fairfax, his best friend's wife, Mary Higgins Clark describes the Washington marriage as one full of tenderness and passion, as a bond between two people who shared their lives -- even the bitter hardship of a winter in Valley Forge -- in every way. In this author's skilled hands, the history, the love, and the man come fully and dramatically alive. ~review

Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon is the most popular historic estate in America. Located just 16 miles south of Washington, D.C. and 8 miles south of Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, the plantation rests on the banks of the Potomac River. ~Virtual Tour of Mount Vernon

The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory

Two sisters competing for the greatest prize: the love of a king
When Mary Boleyn comes to court as an innocent girl of fourteen, she catches the eye of Henry VIII. Dazzled by the king, Mary falls in love with both her golden prince and her growing role as unofficial queen. However, she soon realizes just how much she is a pawn in her familys ambitious plots as the kings interest begins to wane and she is forced to step aside for her best friend and rival: her sister, Anne. Then Mary knows that she must defy her family and her king, and take her fate into her own hands. A rich and compelling tale of love, sex, ambition, and intrigue, The Other Boleyn Girl introduces a woman of extraordinary determination and desire who lived at the heart of the most exciting and glamorous court in Europe and survived by following her own heart.

Mary Boleyn

Mary Boleyn was the sister of the more famous Anne Boleyn. Mary was one of the mistresses of King Henry VIII of England and also, allegedly, of his rival, King Francis I of France. She married twice. During the affair or sometime after, it was rumoured that one or both of Mary's children were fathered by the king. One witness noted that Mary's son, Henry Carey, bore a resemblance to Henry VIII.

The Six Wives of Henry the VIII
copyright "six wives of henry VIII"

                        

   Catherine of Aragon                  Anne Boleyn

      m. 1509 - 1533                     m. 1533 - 1536

            Divorced                               Executed

                       

     Jane Seymour                       Anne of Cleves
    m. 1536 - 1537                   m. 1540 Jan. - July

             Died                                    Divorced

                     

   Kathryn Howard                    Katherine Parr

    m. 1540 - 1542                   m. 1543 - 1547

         Executed                             Widowed  

            

Interview with Philippa Gregory 
~authors website

Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote

"Truman Capote I do not know well, but I like him. He is tart as a grand aunt, but in his way is a ballsy little guy, and he is the most perfect writer of my generation, he writes the best sentences word for word, rhythm upon rhythm. I would not have changed two words in Breakfast at Tiffany's which will become a small classic." 
-Norman Mailer

Truman Capote was already a celebrity by the time Breakfast at Tiffany's was released in 1958. It was written at the end of what he called his second cycle of writing which began with his first published novel, Other Voices, Other Rooms. Although it was never assumed by the critics at the time, Breakfast at Tiffany's was to become one of the most famous and influential works Capote ever wrote. ~website

Capote Quotes

"I don't care what anybody says about me as long as it isn't true."

"I like to talk on TV about those things that aren't worth writing about."

"My major regret in life is that my childhood was unnecessarily lonely."

Audrey Hepburn Quotes

"I was born with an enormous need for affection, and a terrible need to give it. "

"I never thought I'd land in pictures with a face like mine."

Breakfast at Tiffany's Movie Trailer

The Greater Good by Casey Moreton

If he didn't get out now, he'd never forgive himself..." (from the first line)

This high-velocity political thriller from a gifted first-time novelist follows the hunt for a videotape that terrifyingly reveals Washington's deadliest secret: the shocking identity of the vice president's assassin. 

Hours before an assassin's bullet rips through his bedroom window, Vice President James Ettinger makes an explosive confession on videotape. When the smoke clears in the aftermath of the assassination, the tape has vanished. And the race is on. From the dizzying heights of Washington insider power to the subterranean realm of win-at-all-costs political maneuvering, the quest to find the mysterious videotape snatches readers up in a relentless whirlwind of espionage, brutal policy warfare, and the intricate machinations of no-holds-barred power brokering. Only one thing is clear: those responsible for Ettinger's death will stop at nothing to make sure his final words are never heard. Putting his crew of engaging, multidimensional characters through their paces as they negotiate a treacherous political maze, novelist Casey Moreton proves himself a natural storyteller with seemingly unlimited surprises up his sleeve. 

About the Author

Casey Moreton lives with his wife, Kari, in Rogers, Arkansas. This is his first novel.