The Dream Is the Truth

On the day their daughters start kindergarten, Hannah Lively meets Maggie Whitefield, recently moved to the small mountain town of Coal Valley. Hannah has longed to leave Coal Valley her whole life, even though her grandmother - Granny Zee - is as much a part of the mountains as are her magical remedies. When Hannah and Maggie bond over their unhappy marriages, they make a pact to leave their husbands. But the secrets they have held close for years are hard to reveal. Maggie must face her husband’s infidelity and her daughter’s uncanny ability to find lost things. Hannah must face her family legacy of magical abilities and answer the question, did she use magic to make the husband she says she does not love, fall in love with her? Only Granny Zee can help Hannah and Maggie untangle their dreams for the future by turning to the ancient magic of the mountains which is her heritage.

Rebecca D. Elswick is the daughter and granddaughter of coal miners. She lives in the mountains of central Appalachia where she was born. She has an MFA from West Virginia Wesleyan College. Her debut novel, Mama’s Shoes, won Writer’s Digest Pitch2Win Contest in 2011 and was runner-up for Foreword Magazine’s 2012 Book of the year. Elswick has published award-winning short fiction and nonfiction in many journals and anthologies, including Still: The Journal and Appalachian Magazine. She currently is the writer/crafter in residence at the Appalachian Arts Center in Cedar Bluff, VA.