Circle of Secrets: Caribbean Romance Trilogy

A Circle of Secrets is a romantic suspense novel with paranormal themes. Ghostly presences and secrets from two hundred years ago wait for Jamie Elliott when she follows her new husband to the lush Caribbean island of St. Lucia. It isn't long before island forces, powerful across the centuries, find deep echoes in her recurring dreams. How can what is happening now feel so familiar? At night her dreams intensify and pull her into the past. During the day, Jamie grapples with suspicions about her husband and her attraction to Andre Demontagne, son of a powerful island family. Andre has links to the family of former slaves, and all have secrets that lead back to Jamie. Should she make a decision for love or allow fate to determine her fate? "An intricately plotted story that is romantic, mysterious and entrancing. Recommended to anyone with a hint of romance in their blood and those who believe that fate has a hand in our lives." A "Must Read" Rating from Heather Froeschl, BookReview.com. "I couldn't have asked for a more captivating, intriguing and entertaining romance than Circle of Secrets. This author gets a perfect five stars." BJ Deese, Romancejunkies.com

From the Publisher

In the beginning there was a general story outline for A Dream Across Time but a lead character was needed who had characteristics we could admire. We wanted a woman who was gutsy, independent, committed, loving, creative, intelligent, and dedicated. Totally unacceptable was a woman who was a victim, weak willed, indecisive, and a poor communicator. How often have all of us suffered through books where, if the characters talked to each other, the story would have been over in ten pages? The woman who became Jamie had to be a modern woman with real strengths. Our setting and the story seemed to work better if she was married but, as a person living in the real world, Jamie needed to have a less than stellar marriage. When we sent early drafts out we found a surprising number of people who thought Jamie should have immediately dumped her husband, Paul. As psychotherapists and experts on stepfamilies, we wondered if these people who were so quick to bail out had ever made a go of a marriage. One of the objects of marriage is to try to grow together and it can be uneven. Jamie is not a quitter and marriages need to be given a chance. Maybe a new start for the marriage WAS indicated. Did she make an error with Paul in marrying him? Perhaps. We can go to pop psychology and speculate about how marriage to him was "just what she needed". That it was "perfect", etc. Baloney. Human beings are programmed to get married and have children. As much as we may love the characters on Sex and the City, we do not aspire to their lives. We aspire to what they aspire to. It’s a fundamental goal to want marriage and family. We can speculate about how Jamie might have been neurotically playing out deficiencies or pathology in her family of origin. Dredge up the collected works of Sigmund Freud and get out the fluffy duster. Now, let’s see. On second thought, forget it. Maybe that would be pointless. Not just because Jamie is a fictional character but also because people make honest efforts which sometimes don’t work out. Maybe Jamie married too soon after her father’s death and maybe Paul looked like a good bet. He might have grown up. Grown with her. We get married with high hopes and for half of us it ends in divorce. Move on. Now we really get to the heart of the issue. What did Jamie do? Her husband had turned out to be a philanderer who was working hard on a case of alcoholism. When that was fully dawning on her, Jamie had a choice to make. She could go back to the States and "safety" or stay in an alien culture and take the "risk". She made a rational decision. In the States Jamie had only "safety" and a familiar environment. On St. Lucia she had found a beautiful island, lovely people, a job she might not have found in the States, and she had such a good friend in Barbara. She also had to decide about a relationship. Her husband had turned out to be a "rat". Should she take a chance on another relationship, another man? Should she dream and go after the dream? As you can see in the story, life was hitting Jamie hard. Jamie was determined not to turn tail and leave. She picked herself up, dusted herself off and started all over again as the song says. We understand that sooner or later death will come knocking at our door. But what about when life is at the door? Do we pretend not to be at home? How did Jamie come to this position of being so willing to confront life as it came? Life came to the door, she answered and she was dealt a hand full of dreams. A hand she took willingly, with commitment. Did her mother do a really good job of instilling confidence in her daughter? Let’s hear it for her mother! But then did Paul’s alcoholic mother sow the seeds of his problems? Is she responsible, in the end, for how his life turned out? Oops! Was that "let’s blame it on Mom"? Parents get a lot of undue blame AND undue credit. We’d like to take credit for the accomplishments of our children but before we get too puffed up with their achievements or too guilty about their failures, it requires a close look at the record. Some really rotten kids come from great families and some great kids come from rotten families. Parents have an influence but kids have choices. And this is who Jamie is. She has beauty, brains and talent. Squandering all those gifts is one option. She chose to make the most of them as she faced loss and adversity. For Jamie, the book shows some possible answers to the questions, " Where will you be if you dream? Who will you be if you dream?" What will be true for you if you dream?

From the Inside Flap

When Jamie Elliott arrives from New York onto the lush Caribbean island of St. Lucia, she is swept up in island forces, powerful across the centuries, which find deep echoes in her recurring dreams.As her dreams intensify on St. Lucia, Jamie must grapple with a cheating husband and her own attraction to Andre Demontagne, son of a powerful island family. When her mother dies she bequeaths Jamie a mysterious child's cross and prayer book. Little does Jamie realize the impact these precious relics will have on the Demontage family - especially Clarisse, the matriarch - and on Bertille and Marcus Deroche, descendants of slaves who know the 200 year old secret.Jamie must assert her independence and come to terms with loss and love as she discovers who she is against swirling psychic forces and long guarded secrets. "This intricately plotted story is romantic, mysterious and entrancing. I loved reading this book and did not want it to end. This book is highly recommended to anyone with a hint of romance in their blood and those who believe that fate has a hand in our lives." A "Must Read" Rating from Heather Froeschl, Book Review.com "This is a fantastic novel! Annie Rogers has written a beautiful work of art, and A DREAM ACROSS TIME will remain with me for a long time to come. I couldn't have asked for a more captivating, intriguing and entertaining romance! The author gets a perfect five stars." BJ Deese, Romancejunkies.com Mala and Roger Burt write novels under the pen name Annie Rogers. The rich island tapestry of their first novel, A Dream Across Time, is rooted in their first-hand knowledge of the Caribbean and its mysteries. They are currently at work on their second novel, a continuation of this family saga. Bivens and Jensen Publishing PO Box XXX St. Michaels, MD 21663 Continue the adventure at www.annierrogers.com Join the Burts at their blog http://letmedigress.blogspot.com Jacket design by Lindsey Design Group, Inc. Cover photo by David Amundsen - Superieur Photographics Cover Model - Danielle Langlois Printed in the United States

From the Back Cover

When Jamie Elliott arrives from New York onto the lush Caribbean island of St. Lucia, she is swept up in island forces, powerful across the centuries, which find deep echoes in her recurring dreams. As these dreams intensify Jamie grapples with a cheating husband and her own attraction to Andre Demontagne, son of a powerful island family. An independent woman, she must come to terms with loss and love, discovering who she is against swirling psychic forces and long guarded secrets. "This intricately plotted story is romantic, mysterious and entrancing. I loved reading this book and did not want it to end. This book is highly recommended to anyone with a hint of romance in their blood and those who believe that fate has a hand in our lives." A "Must Read" Rating from Heather Froeschl, Book Review.com "This is a fantastic novel! Annie Rogers has written a beautiful work of art, and A DREAM ACROSS TIME will remain with me for a long time to come. This is one book that will be kept on my bookshelf to be read again and again. I couldn't have asked for a more captivating, intriguing and entertaining romance than A DREAM ACROSS TIME.! The author gets a perfect five stars."Five star rating from BJ Deese, Romancejunkies.com "Captivating as well as well plotted... A book that will never be out of date no matter when you pick it up and a story that will live on." Five hearts rating from Louise Riveiro-Mitchell, Theromancestudio.com Mala and Roger Burt write novels under the pen name Annie Rogers. The rich island tapestry of their first novel, A Dream Across Time, is rooted in their first-hand knowledge of the Caribbean and its mysteries. They are currently at work on a second novel, a continuation of this family saga.

About the Author

Annie Rogers is the pen name chosen by a husband and wife writing team for their works of fiction. Roger and Mala Burt are partners in marriage and work. Together they develop the plots and characters but the actual voice in their first novel, A Dream Across Time, is that of Mala. Their intimate acquaintance with Caribbean island life lend authenticity to the settings and characters in the novel. They were previously published in nonfiction and are experts in stepfamily relations. They have appeared on national TV programs such as Oprah and been interviewed extensively for newspapers and magazines as well as on NPR. .

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