“How’s Zoe doing Honey?” Rory asked when he walked through the surgery door. He heard the steady beep, beep, beep of the respiratory monitor, a welcoming sound. When breathing stopped for more than a minute, an alarm went off. The dog was lying on her back, her four feet tied to the surgery table to keep her long body from tipping side to side. The shaved patch on her belly was colored brown from the betadine spritzer Honey added as the final prep. “She’s good. Her breathing

“I would like to build something up on the hill at San Simeon. I get tired of going up there and camping in tents. I’m getting a little too old for that. I’d like to get something that would be a little more comfortable.” — William Randolph Hearst “William Randolph Hearst said this to the architect Julia Morgan,” Denise said. Russ and Denise were seasoned guides, and tonight they were overseeing the matriculation of newly graduated docents at Hearst Castle. Enamored with the

I call the second part Ancient Katie. These next four books deal with Katie's life in 1326 BC, when she becomes Ishtar, the Goddess of Love and War As an author I have an ability to land these guys anywhere in space and time, allowing me a wide-open palette from which to paint their actions. Using time travel, and magic I place our heroes in unique situations and locations all over the world, and anytime in history, intertwining factual history with religious myths and miracl

“What were you saying about Hearst's mistress, Marion?” Rory asked. “He saw Marion in a chorus line in 1915. Hearst was fifty-two, with a pregnant wife at home. But he still haunted the theaters, second row, one seat for him, and one for his hat. He was familiar to the showgirls, one of the wealthy men who would give a girl something nice if she favored him with her company.” “Really.” Russ nodded. “Marion was eighteen, but she knew what she was doing. She was already a pract

“Did Marion spend much time at the castle here in San Simeon?” Katie asked. “Yes, but she disappeared when Mrs. Hearst visited. Hearst loved Marion and vice versa. They found a note she wrote to a friend; ‘God, I’d give everything I have to marry that silly old man. Not for the money and security, he’s given me more than I’ll ever need. Not because he’s such cozy company, either. Most times, when he starts jawing, he bores me stiff. And certainly not because he’s so wonderful