Gatekeeper III - The Keeping

What happens after the dream comes true?

Surely this must be "happily ever after." Anna Merritt is going to live in England, she has a job with the Truman Foundation, and she is being reunited with all her old companions - even Nicholas. But when life in London turns out to be quite different from how she'd imagined it, and when Mr. Diggs turns up again with a plan to destroy what the Trumans have worked so hard to build, Anna and her friends must all reconsider the dream of "home" - and what they are willing to sacrifice for it.

Interview with the Author

Q: What makes the Gatekeeper trilogy special?
A: Who doesn't like a bit of adventure, particularly of the European kind? The Gatekeeper trilogy takes the reader through adventure in every form. In the first book, adventure finds us unexpectedly; in the second, we learn the dangers of trying to manufacture adventure for ourselves; in the third, we realize that the truest and biggest adventures always turn out to be rather different than what we've planned.

Q: What is the main character like?
A: Anna Miranda Merritt is a girl very much like me - a likeness which is the cause of most of her woes, alas. Her unquenchable thirst for beauty and meaning leads her right into the literary, cultural arms of Oxford University, a place which captures her heart and awakens new dreams in her soul. It is this love of all things British - and, more importantly, the deep and surprising relationships she discovers in England, Ireland, and beyond- that makes her coming of age story uniquely poignant.

Q: Do I have to read the books in order?
A: I have an abiding devotion to order, particularly of the chronological kind. I wrote these books over a period of thirteen years, so they are a kind of authorial autobiography. Ergo, reading the trilogy in order certainly gives some insight, as you can chart the personal and artistic growth of the author along with the main character. That being said...I also have an abiding commitment to personal freedoms. Do what you will; I believe you will enjoy Anna's story in whatever sequence.: -)

Q: Why should readers give these books a try?
A: This is a story about beginnings, endings, and all the quietly real drama that occurs in the most ordinary of lives during these "in-between" times. For anyone who's ever found themselves, lost themselves, or is still searching, these characters have something to say. I wish you joy of the journey

Born in North Carolina and raised in Atlanta (with a brief sojourn in Massachusetts), R. A. Nelson embarked on the fulfillment of a lifelong dream when she wrote Gatekeeper I: The Finding as a senior honors project at King University in Bristol, TN. Like Anna, she studied abroad at Oxford, and much of the first book in the Gatekeeper trilogy comes directly from her journal, lending a sense of authenticity to the mystique of European adventure. The Leaving, Book Two in the trilogy, follows Anna back to the United States for her final semester of college. Everyone who has ever struggled with uncertainty about the future will recognize Anna’s journey as their own, and hopefully draw encouragement from her failures and triumphs. R. A. Nelson graduated from King with a BA in Music and Theatre, with Honors in Independent Study in English; she received a Master of Fine Arts in Acting from the University of Georgia. Along with writing, she enjoys acting, directing, running, cooking, and - of course - reading. She aspires to be a ＂minstrel＂, spinning stories and songs and cultivating beauty in a multitude of forms, from the page to the stage to the table and beyond.