A whole decade has passed since the launch of Sundrop Sonata, the first suspense tale in my series of piano-oriented novels. With the recent release of its 2^nd edition under the imprint of Prairie Island Press, I have had a chance to review and update the story and found it astonishingly relevant to our situation today, ten years later.

The storyline of Sundrop Sonata came to me in a rush the summer of 2003. My mother had just died after a prolonged decline with congestive heart failure. That summer my family traveled from our Kansas home to Oregon, to visit friends who summered there in a cabin on the coast. Much of the road trip in Sundrop Sonata was inspired by our travels that summer, from the basic route, to the idyllic setting on the Oregon coast, to the river raft trip on the McKenzie River. Though we weren’t fleeing for our lives, in my imagination we were. Perhaps this was one way I set about healing the hole in my heart from my mother’s death. It was an escape from reality.

Also on that journey, we did a bit of racing through Idaho to arrive in a town with a movie theater in time for the late show. The first episode of Pirates of the Caribbean had just hit theaters and we wanted to see it. We loved the show.

The mesmerizing plot in the film gave my developing story a few notable quirks and by the time our journey was over, Sundrop Sonata had written itself in my mind. A few details had to be fleshed out, and the whole thing had to be converted from scenes in my imagination to a manuscript, but the story was there. And I was excited. I was convinced that it was a good story. My challenge was to write it so that others would enjoy it too and appreciate an escape from the reality grinding away at their lives.

That brings me to today, 2026. Once again, many of us could use a harmless escape from the severity of the atrocities brought to us daily on our news sources.

What else do we need in today’s world? We need to believe that the good guys will win in the end. We need to believe that no matter how dire the situation, we will be able to prevail. If all you have is the sincere desire to help someone else, and to make the world a better place for the coming generations, you will be able to find a way. Humans are resourceful and resilient.

Another message I wanted to share in Sundrop was the issue of integrity. We all may be lured into situations that could end up hurting those we love most. But it’s okay to resist. It’s okay to honor your morals, to stand up to temptation. If it’s important to you, you will find a way.

I wrote Sundrop Sonata for readers who enjoy the same kind of stories I enjoy, so in essence, I wrote for myself. Who am I? Who would enjoy the story? I wrote for women, for piano and music lovers, for those with adventurous hearts, and most importantly, for those who want to believe that integrity matters.

I wrote for those who believe that our words are as good as a contract, that oaths hold power accountable, and that the choices we make have ripple effects around the whole planet. I wrote for readers who believe that good-hearted people exist in every location and every time in history, and for readers who believe there are things more important than exercising selfish power over others.

With these things in mind, it’s clear that the story remains pertinent today.

What will readers gain by reading Sundrop Sonata? There are three Easy takeaways. I hope readers gain Encouragement to take action on issues that they care deeply about. I hope that they benefit with a few hours of Escape from the dire situation we face in 2026, and I hope they are ultimately Entertained as they read.

Three E’s from Sundrop Sonata:

Entertainment

Escape

Encouragement

Sundrop Sonata: a Novel of Suspense, 2^nd edition is now available from Lulu.