Category: Adult Fiction 18+
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Literary, Humor
Publisher: Wren Park Publishing, 264 pages
Release date: July 2021
Content Rating: PG for the subject matter of adult relationships/marriage/divorce, but there is no bad language or explicit sex scenes.
Espouse: (v.) to take in marriage; to make a marriage permanent by court decree; the court-approved process by which couples may stay together beyond the legal 15-year term.
In the contemporary world, fifteen years is considered the legal life cycle of a marriage. If a couple wants to stay together (married), they must hire a lawyer and petition the court to become Espoused.
After 14 years of marriage, Sara and Thomas Healy are still in love. Their decision to go to court to be espoused permanently is a source of great embarrassment for their children. Avery is ready for the benefits of uncoupling, and Sam really doesn’t need the social stigma of parents who decide to stay together, on top of everything else. Lame! Their espouse attorney, Gwen Stevens, has other problems. The judge for the Healy case is her nemesis, Carly Abraham, also known as “the Wicked Witch of the Bench.” Judge Abraham was previously married to Gwen’s husband Dennis, from whom she uncoupled after the allotted 15 years. She hates espouse lawyers on principle, and seems to have an extra dose of dislike for Gwen personally.
While the Healys struggle through the espouse experience—trial separation, uncouple counseling, and ongoing financial burdens—Gwen has to deal with the judge and her own struggles at home. In this fight for love, who has the answers?
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Huntington, New York
I knew I wanted to write a book about marriage norms being flipped. The divorce rate is at or above fifty percent in the US. What if the couples who wanted to stay together had to go to court? What if the norm was marriage, by law, had to uncouple after 15 years? What would that world look like?
I needed a location. Write what you know. I decided to use my hometown of Huntington, New York. A suburban town on the North Shore of Long Island about 40 miles east of New York City. The novel’s premise was made-up and so are all the characters. I had thought of making up a location too. I could have easily made-up names for towns, restaurants, schools, and stores, but I decided it would be more fun to put this new, made-up world in my town.
In the book I speak about Oldfield Middle School located in Greenlawn, NY. Not only did I go to that school many, many years ago, but both my children went to the school as well. I have very fond memories of those years as well as remembering the awkwardness of that age. Too old for primary school, too young for high school, and stuck in the middle!
I still go to the Walt Whitman Mall located in Huntington. Yes, Walt Whitman the author, who lived directly across from where the mall was built many years ago. We would take the bus or cajole a parent into driving a bunch of us to the mall wandering in and out of stores (because we never had enough money to buy anything), buying a pretzel and soda, sitting on a bench to people watch for an entire afternoon. Part of my childhood that brings about happy memories.
My favorite location in the book – Meehan’s of Huntington – the restaurant. My brothers opened the restaurant over 20 years ago and it is one of the nicest places in Huntington. In the summer, the collapsible doors open the entire front of the restaurant so you can sit and enjoy the summer breeze while having a drink and some food. I’m so proud of the place they built. It is big, friendly, and an easy place to meet friends and family.
The hardest part of writing the book was keeping my focus on the nature of uncoupling and marriage and all of the characters. Writing about a location I knew and loved was the easy part of the book!
If you are ever in Huntington, NY, please stop by Meehan’s to say “hello”.
Jean Marie Davis was born and raised in Huntington, New York. After graduating from Southern Illinois University – Carbondale, she moved back to Long Island where she worked in the Marketing Research industry for over 30 years. She currently lives in Centerport, New York close to her daughter and son.
Connect with the Author: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ Goodreads
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Enter the Giveaway!
Thank you Celticlady for spotlighting my book and allowing me to write a guest post. I hope some day you can bring your Irish self to Meehan's for a drink! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome! That would be fun!
DeleteSounds like a good read.
ReplyDeleteIt sure does! Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteGood book for summer reading.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the contest.
You are welcome!
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