The First Warm Evening of the Year
The first time I saw Marion Ballantine she looked like a burst of bittersweet among the winter branches in her bright red coat and orange scarf, her hair thick and dark, the way certain secrets are dark.
Best First Lines of a novel (O, the Oprah Magazine.)
Why does anyone write a novel?
I wrote The First Warm Evening of the Year because I wanted to tell an upbeat love story that was just a little personal. But there is more to a novel than story, otherwise it's nothing but an anecdote.