Flaming Tree - Hardcover

Although Jody Hammond and his mother Ruth have survived a terrible fall off the ocean cliffs at Carmel, Calif., Jody can't speak or recognize anyone, and his tyrannical father, Tyler, gives up hope for his recovery. In the Hammond household at La Casa de la Sombra, life has never seemed hopeful anyway, troubled as it is with dark secrets from the past. Meanwhile, Kelsey Stewart, struggling to forget the death of her own small son, has arrived in Carmel to stay with her aunt, the owner of a local inn. A therapist for brain-damaged children, Kelsey offers to help Jody, but her efforts seem blocked by mysterious forces. Visiting Flaming Tree ranch where a Hammond friend was murdered, she unravels the shocking story that has kept Jody silent. A skilled and graceful storyteller, Whitney provides a romantic backdrop for the novel in her descriptions of Carmel and the Monterey Peninsula. Paperback rights to Fawcett; Literary Guild selection. January 3
Copyright 1985 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Having lost her son in a car crash and her husband to divorce, Kelsey Stewart travels to Carmel, California and her aunt's inn for a period of rest and recuperation. A physical therapist specializing in work with brain-damaged children, Kelsey is drawn, against her will, into the midst of the troubled family of film-maker Tyler Hammond, whose wife and young son were seriously injured in a fall from the cliffs. In her efforts to reassure Jody and help him relearn his motor and communication skills, Kelsey confronts a web of suspicion, deception, and danger which at length resolves itself into a hopeful, if not totally happy, ending. Less predictable than many of this genre, this Literary Guild selection will enjoy brisk circulation among Whitney's legion of fans. Judith A. Gifford, Salve Regina Coll. Lib., Newport,
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.