Small Town Affairs

By Joyce Brennan

New York advertising executive Olivia McDougle discovers her fianc? with another woman. She flees to her childhood home in Rexford, Ohio, and takes over the family newspaper. Olivia falls in love with Dr. Mitch James but their wedding plans are destroyed after she writes an editorial exposing the misdeeds of a powerful, local judge. The judge retaliates by spreading lies and rumors about her, which divide the town. Olivia discovers that standing by her editorial has put her life in danger, and neither her friends nor Mitch can help her avert a catastrophic confrontation..

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 141962833X
• ISBN13: 9781419628337
• Release Date: January 2007
• Publisher: BookSurge Publishing
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 0.8" x 5.3"

Customer Reviews

Small Town Romance

Small Town Affairs is a warming romantic novel with the element of suspense that keeps the reader wondering what will happen next to Olivia McDougle. The characters are very believable and the plot has twists that make for an interesting story. From the beginning, it grabbed my interest as I enjoy small town lifestyles. It's intriguing and very well written. I highly recommend this book.

An Affair to Remember

Joyce Brennan has crafted a balanced, well-constructed story of intrigue, killing and small-town gossip. The characters are convincing, believable and well-drawn, Olivia McDougle, after discovering her faithless fiancé in a compromising position, leaves a high-paying job in New York City, and returns to the comfort and security of the small town she was raised in and her elderly aunt. But her life is neither comfortable nor secure. It is subject to gossip, rumors and speculation, all of which, lead to dire events. A very satisfying book, highly recommended.

Romance, Rejection, and Retaliation

Olivia McDougle abruptly left a promising career with an adverting agency in New York City to return to her hometown in Rexford, Ohio. Engaged to be married Olivia was traumatized when she discovered her fiancé was unfaithful in their relationship. She returned to the home of her Aunt Etta, who had raised her when her parents were killed in tragic deaths. In Rexford Olivia became the editor of the local newspaper. Shortly after taking the assignment, she was confronted with a disastrous conflict with the local, influential, and powerful Judge Gillette, his supercilious daughter, and his subservient wife. Joyce Brennan has a flair for blending a romantic novel with suspense, greed and misdirected political power. In a plot that includes blackmail, retaliation, attempted murder, and integrity in news reporting, Joyce includes plot twists, sub plots, and dialog that kept the story moving to a climatic surprise ending. Joyce brilliantly created a cast of characters that insure her readers of more to come. The development of Olivia McDougle, Dr. Mitch James, a trio of Olivia's friends, and the townspeople of Rexford all play an important part in the development of the plot. The flow of the narrative and the appeal of the locale add to the genuine feeling of reality that I experienced throughout my reading. I found "Small Town Affairs" entertaining, suspenseful reading. Filled with believable characters, a creative plot, and a natural flow of dialog, the story lends itself to a follow up sequel. I want to hear more of the surprising events in the lives of Olivia McDougle and Mitch James, and am looking forward to Joyce Brennan's next book. *

Small Town Affairs

Small Town Affairs is one of those books that you can curl up by the fire and just keep reading. That is exactly what I did with this book! I needed to escape working for awhile and this book with its twists and turns did exactly that! The chapters are intriguing and you wanted to know what was going to happen to Olivia next. As I continued on with my reading, I never good guess which way the story was going to go. I look forward to reading more of Joyce Brennan's books in the future.