Nothing like Family!

By the time you see this, I will be on my way to a gathering of family. When we first conceived this particular gathering, our son, John, who has a better grasp on marketing than I, said, "If you call it a Family Reunion, that sounds like a bunch of old maiden aunts, sitting under a tree, drinking lemonade and gossiping." I had to give him props for that. His next suggestion? "You need a jazzy name, something that sounds like a rock festival, like . . . how about AylaPalooza?"

We now stage an AylaPalooza every two years with different family members hosting from one to the next. This year, our daughter, Rebecca, is the host of AylaPalooza 8. She and her husband, Jonathan, have found a resort lodge on the shores of Bear Lake in the northeast corner of Utah where we can all kick back, relax, and enjoy one another.

We will spend most of a week in the company of people we love. Since we'll be on the borders of two other states, we plan to visit caves in southern Idaho and a fossil dig in western Wyoming.

That's in addition to a day on the lake, family game night, a kids' talent show, posing for family pictures, and a variety of other silly, fun, share-the-love activities. This year I'm packing bubbles and beach toys for the little kids, puzzles for the slightly older ones, and a variety of nonsense photos to play 'Remember This?' with the teens and grown-ups.

The future of AylaPalooza will also be on the agenda. As the next generation grows up, will they want to take turns hosting? Will we recycle the hosting sequence we've run through once already? We will have plenty to talk about. Then, as we drive away at AP's end, my husband and I can look at one another and say, "We started all this!"

Past AylaPaloozas have seen us gathered on the shores of Lake Almanor in northern California and on the shores of the great Pacific in Baja. We've gathered in mid-summer and once, at Thanksgiving. The planning takes up plenty of time and there's expense involved for everyone, but the moment AP8 is over, we'll be planning for AP9. It's worth it. There's nothing like family.

Susan Aylworth is the author of 18 published novels. Her latest is SUNNY'S SUMMER, a romance set in the Sierra foothills near her northern California home in the aftermath of the devastating #CampFire. She lives with her husband of 49 years, Roger. She loves to hear from readers. Find her at www.susanaylworth.com, @SusanAylworth, susan.aylworth.author@gmail.com, or facebook.com/Susan.Aylworth.Author. Also on Pinterest and Instagram.

Where I've Been This Summer

This summer may be just getting started, but I've already been to some fascinating places. At the end of May, my husband and I made the trip across the desert to visit friends and family along the Wasatch Front in northern Utah. We heard an amazing concert (if you ever get a chance to hear the Millennial Choirs and Orchestra, go!) in which our daughter and her twelve-year-old sons both sang. We spent time with people we love and even enjoyed the trip across the Nevada desert. I've never seen Nevada look so good!

That is the only trip I've made in person, but through the miraculous power of books, I've visited a number of places and have even traveled through time.



Heather Moore's All For You took me to the very romantic small town of Pine Valley. Last I checked, this book is one of eleven in the Pine Valley series. I've read three now, and I find them all light, fun, satisfying romances. I can recommend them highly.

Moore is also one of a group of authors who've collaborated on a series called the Belltown Six Pack. Grizz, one of the pack, is the catcher in the book you see at right. This is another fun and satisfying romance.


Until I Met You, by Kimberly Rose Johnson, took me into rainy Seattle. It's a novella, short and sweet, but the story is complete and satisfying. Somewhat longer, and perhaps a bit darker, is Magdalena Scott's Midnight in Legend, TN. I expected the story would start, or largely take place, in the middle of the night. Not so! Midnight, very aptly named, is the heroine of the tale. Although I identified this as  "a bit darker," it's a sweet romance with the emphasis on the characters' emotions and their involvement with the complex but welcoming community of Legend. I enjoyed it greatly.

Equally sweet and satisfying were The Sweetheart Test, by Alicia Street, and Cowboy Boots, by Christine Bush. Sweetheart carried me to Long Island's North Fork with a clever, sweet story about a young woman who devised her own test for a man who could be "a real sweetheart." You'll enjoy it, too! Meanwhile, Christine Bush shared a short story of "love that blooms in the second half of life." I've seen a few second-half romances. Chester and Annie are a cute older couple and the cowboy boots are real. Anyone who appreciates country living is likely to enjoy this short book. Meanwhile Roxanne Rustand took me to a productive, but still struggling, working ranch in Montana and introduced me to a cowboy I loved reading about and a woman who is in every way his equal. Who wouldn't love a Montana Legacy?


Because books have the power to transform our everyday lives, I've even visited another time. Josie Riviera's Seeking Patience delivered me safely into the England of 1913. Lady Patience Blakwell is a wonderful, compassionate heroine who happens to fall for a "traveler," a Romany man who has inherited responsibility for his tribe. Luca Boldor is a dashing, handsome, brave and flawed hero who knows better than to love an English aristocrat, but can't help being drawn to her. I thoroughly enjoyed this sweet story and I think that you will, too.

From Montana to Tennessee to Long Island and even into the England of 1913, I've traveled a great deal this summer. I've met some fascinating people and have enjoyed sharing their stories. I expect to travel a great deal more before this season is over. Stop back later in the summer and I'll happily recommend more such trips you too might enjoy.