This book is just published on Amazon Kindle, I'm working on the paperback which will be soon. The book is set in Aledo, Illinois, near the Windhill Range, and is a collection of events that happened. The description below is from my editor. The names are changed to protect the participants.
In a town where everyone knows your business, the hardest thing to find is yourself.
When Gerry Taylor steps off the bus in his rural Illinois hometown, he’s not sure if he’s coming home or running away. Ten years of naval service have left him restless, staring down another decade of desk duty that feels more like surrender than success. Helping on his family’s farm seems like a temporary reprieve, but the quiet life hides more tension than he expected.
A few miles down the road, Rick Bottsford has just bought the local bar. He dreams of transforming it into a cinematic showpiece—“Rick’s Café American”—a place straight out of Casablanca. But ambition and arrogance don’t mix well in a town that values humility and handshake deals. His big ideas (and bigger ego) rub more than a few people the wrong way.
Then there’s Carol Woodford, who once chased the open road selling custom T-shirts, but now finds herself back where she started, trying to rebuild a life that feels both too familiar and strangely foreign. Drawn to both Gerry’s steadiness and Rick’s spark, Carol becomes the thread connecting two men on opposite paths.
When a petty rivalry escalates into an unforgettable act of revenge, the fallout ripples through the entire community—from the stoic sheriff who listens more than he speaks, to the brother who plots, to the woman caught between ambition and forgiveness.
Rich with dry humor, Midwest realism, and the bittersweet pull of home, Where We Belong captures what happens when the past won’t stay buried. When the only way forward is through forgiveness, folly, and the slow rediscovery of self.
Farm boy from Illinois, living in the magical Pacific Northwest
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