Granite

In Granite , I have captured the essence and spirit of rural Ontario through the characters that inhabited its farms, villages and towns during the mid-twentieth century. Settings include the beautiful Hills of Mulmur in Dufferin County,  Southern Ontario interspersed with scenes in Orangeville, Fergus,  Hornings Mills, Creemore, Midland, Collingwood and Elmvale.

The Plot:  In June 1962, Lish MacPherson, leaves Toronto with several boxes of pirated files and a jar of earth which label contains place-names that seemed important to her father. Lish's quest for information about her parents leads to Seven Springs and Thalia Logan Russo's property, Hunter's Mark, where she feels compelled to assist the eccentric elderly woman to save her ancestral lands on the Niagara Escarpment from development.

Lish is quickly introduced to the rural characters who inhabit the Springs and Valley - Charlie Barnes, Noah Curlew, store & café owner Georgie, Jeff the mechanic and Len his father,  the Delaney brothers, Bud, Glenn and Reginald Russo. However tenuous his hold on Hunter's Mark, land developer, Reginald is determined to get his hands on Thalia's property. The plot involves murder - both ancient and possibly more recent, deception, deceit, blackmail, love of land, love of life and the tenacity of people to fight for what they believe in.

Author: Pat Mestern
Published 2008
ISBN 978155002943078  Publisher:  The Dundurn Group


Also available under the ISBN number through www.ingallspublishinggroup.com   and at book stores throughout North America as well as through online book sellers such as
www.amazon.com
www.barnesandnoble.com   
www.chapters.ca

No Choice But Freedom

England, Scotland and British Colonial America, in particular Virginia and the Carolinas are the settings for a regency novel that is full of murderous intent, deception, revenge, questionable loyalties and intrigue.

Joanna Turnbull's marriage to Talbot Showcroft is foundering in the wake of his emigration to the colonies, leaving her and their baby son in the care of her dictatorial father who encumbered her marriage with an unusual nuptial agreement. Her best friend Katie has been disowned by her father for taking up with a fugitive Scot fleeing the aftermath of the battle of Culloden. Joanna resolves the issues by moving to the Colonies, taking Katie and her husband with her. The book's title is appropriate. As the plot wraps around the issues of loyalty to family and personal principles, each of the characters faces his or her own choices of depravity or virtue, slavery or freedom.

Author: Pat Mestern
Published 2006 – Soft Cover
ISBN 1932158766  Publisher:  Ingalls Publishing Group, Inc., Boone, North Carolina, U.S.A.


Also available under the ISBN number through www.ingallspublishinggroup.com   and at book stores throughout North America as well as through online book sellers such as
www.amazon.com
www.barnesandnoble.com   
www.chapters.ca

Magdalena's Song

For the novel Magdalena's Song , I've chosen to place the characters in rural Ontario. The book's story takes place during a twelve day period in 1947 when a mysterious old man visits a fictional village on the Saugeen River in Grey County. Like any small communities, the man's visit is considered to be suspicious by a number of local residents, especially when the lives of some of the most influential villagers begin to unravel quickly after his arrival. Is Daniel the ghost of a gypsy who once loved a woman from the area? Is he a labor organizer with a very slick cover story? Whatever - or whoever - he is, the village will never be the same after Daniel leaves.

Magdalena's Song was written as a lasting tribute to the Romani who traveled through southern Ontario during the 1920's - early 1950's? The story immortalizes those individuals who traveled "the road" and whose music has always remained in my heart.

Author: Pat Mestern
Published 2003– Soft Cover
ISBN 0971304580   Publisher: Ingalls Publishing Group, Inc., Boone, North Carolina, U.S.A.


Also available under the ISBN number through www.ingallspublishinggroup.com   and at book stores throughout North America as well as through online book sellers such as
www.amazon.com
www.barnesandnoble.com   
www.chapters.ca

Rachael's Legacy

From the sophistication and glamour of upper-class New York City life during the roaring twenties, Erie Carliss travels in distance and time to discover her secret past in the Mennonite country of rural Wellington County. Her journey is filled with intrigue, gangsters, whisky running and romance. The book is a an exciting and moving story of a young woman coming to terms with her heritage and her future, a tale about the clash of cultures, a story of love.

Author: Pat Mestern
Published 1988 - Republished 2005 – Soft Cover - ISBN 09691381-7-2

ANNA, a Child of the Poor House

Born into the Poor House in Fergus, Ontario, bound out to a wealthy family, Anna Ellington returns to Fergus c1904 as a beautiful woman in search of her family. She finds romance, wealth, mystery, intrigue and answers to many questions. Readers will never forget Anna and the folks that enter her life.

Author: Pat Mestern
Published 1981- Republished 1988, 2005, 2006, 2007. Soft Cover
ISBN 0969138164

Clara

There is a Clara is every small Ontario town, a woman from a different age who has lived through the melting pot of pioneer Ontario. Clara has seen the immigrant Scots, English and Italians settle the province, establish homes, businesses and adapt their lives to their new country. Set in Fergus, Ontario, Clara tells the poignant story of a passing time, missed dreams.

Author: Pat Mestern
Published 1979. Reprinted in 1983 - 2nd reprint 1988 - 3rd reprint 2005. Soft Cover - ISBN 0968964524

Stonehome Cookery

Stonehome Cookery: 120 pages of tested, tried and true recipes accompanied by anecdotes and personal observations.

Author: Pat Mestern
Published 2005 - Reprinted in 2006. Soft Cover. - ISBN 0968964516

So You Want to Hold a Festival: The A – Z of Festival & Special Event Organization

This book is a must-read for anyone in the festival and special event industry. Chapters cover all aspects of organizing your special event with lots of good information on marketing and promotion. The book also includes a workbook that can be used at round-table and committee meetings.

Author: Pat Mestern
Soft Cover.
ISBN  0968964508  Publisher:  CFBMC, Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Fergus, The Story of a Little Town :

Author Hugh Templin. Originally published in 1933. Republished with permission in 1983. The book is an easy-to-read history of the early days of Fergus, Ontario, Canada. Available in very limited number.

Author: Hugh Templin
Hard Cover.

Fergus, A Scottish Town By Birthright :

For those who want a light, introductory history and reminiscences of Fergus, Ontario, Canada. Lots of pictures and great information.

Author: Pat Mestern
Soft Cover.
ISBN 0920474-977  
Publisher: Natural Heritage/Natural History, Inc., Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Reminiscences of Canada and the Early Days of Fergus :

Author A.D. Ferrier. Rare c1990 reprint of a book first printed in 1865. Three lectures which were given to the Fergus Mechanics Institute in 1864/65. Excellent information on the early history of Fergus and the Gore District. Republished in very limited number left.

Author: A.D.Ferrier
Soft Cover.

The Beginning of Things :

Author A.E. Byerly. Reprint of a book first published in 1932. An excellent history of the Gore District - Waterloo and Wellington Counties c1770 - 1830. Fairly rare book as the reprint was done in very limited number of copies left.

Author: A.E.Byerly
Soft Cover.

Immortal Caesar:

This novel is the product of years of thorough research, including some carried out in Rome and Egypt . It covers the main events of Gaius Julius Caesar's career from age 19 until his murder. A wily statesman, brilliant general and the object of women's desire, he lived with a courage and passion that will keep readers enthralled.

They will find politics and conquests, but also Caesar's personal relationships with his mother, daughter, three wives, and two of his favourite mistresses - Servilia, the mother of Brutus, and Queen Cleopatra VII.

Reviews of the book and details about buying it are on www.romanwriter.plus.com

Author: Patricia Anne Hunter
Soft Cover.

Judith Geary:
GETORIX: The Eagle and The Bull

A Celtic adventure in ancient Rome
By Judith Geary

Getorix has one last opportunity to gain his father's respect and earn welcome into the Otherworld as a man. At almost fifteen winters, he marches beside his father, a defeated Celtic leader, in the Roman triumph parade, a celebration that ends in death. Instead, the gods throw him an entirely different challenge. Can Getorix accept friendship with the Roman who spares his life if the cost is his honor?

Modern readers will relate to the challenges these two young men from opposing cultures face in reconciling their differences in experiences and value systems. The ancient Roman setting lends a fantastic quality, yet the political turmoil and social upheaval evoke parallels with our own time. 

Reviews of the book and details about buying it are on www.judithgeary.com