The Spiriting

Mazie Fontegne returns home, intent on one thing only, self pity. The plan is to hide out at her family s farm, lick her divorce wounds and return to San Francisco and her high-profile job at the publishing firm. For the first time in her life, Mazie is truly alone. Her marriage is over and the only family she had, her grandparents, died the year before in an odd, boating accident. As is so often the case with life, Mazie is not left alone or allowed any time to dwell on her wounds. With a ripening vineyard, the community s expectations and desire to pitch in to help, and a handsome, though mysterious, straw boss arriving on the scene, her immediate attention is required. When a hate crime occurs, Mazie is forced to confront the frightening and dangerous results. Set within the rolling clay and sand hills near the Gulf of Mexico coastline, the North Florida farm and the land it occupies along the riverbank have an ancient and colorful history. Once occupied by Native Americans, early Spanish explorers, Crackers, Gypsies and a small community of French settlers, it s fabric is woven deeply into Mazie s life, whether she likes it or not.