Recently-divorced Mary leaves behind the Boston suburbs for tiny Lawson, New Hampshire, hoping for nothing more than blessed peace, a chance to heal from her bad marriage, and maybe a cat.

Soon there are attentions from Arthur, the unhappily-married Episcopal priest who’d like to save her heathen soul, but may also be susceptible to more earthly temptations. Then there’s Winslow, the handsome cop who charms Mary even as he confuses her by being an excellent kisser who’s in favor of gay rights – but also opposed to sex before marriage.

Before long, Mary is also coping with a crushing job loss, scandal, a secret she must keep even at the expense of all her hopes, and an ex-husband whose steady disintegration threatens all she has left.

In this witty, often affectionate tale of small town life, Mary discovers that the connections we make can result in terrifying risks, but also unexpected blessings.

Performing well for an indie debut by an unknown author, The Awful Mess currently has over 270 Amazon (US) reviews, maintaining an average rating of 4.2 stars, and has also earned critical praise in blogs and reviews. It was one of five general fiction semi-finalists for the 2014 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. In 2019, a sequel called The Complete Disaster will be published, to be followed in 2020 by The Utter Catastrophe.

Audiobook

Tantor Media has also published an audio edition.

Paperback

A paperback edition is available by order at your local independent bookstore. (This version is a bit more explicit than the current e-book and audio edition.) You can also purchase it at Amazon.