Search results for ""author barbara harken""

Amber Helm begins her third year of teaching full of excitement, glad to be back in the comfort zone of the classroom. At the beginning teacher inservice, she discovers that for several weeks, a former lover from college will be the Artist in Residence, the man she walked out on three years ago. Set back by the inevitable confrontation, she resolves to treat him as an adult, a resolve not likely to happen. Just as Amber thinks life is under control, in walks Jocelyn Quint, angry sophomore and abused child. When Amber reaches out to Jocelyn, she is falsely accused of assault on Jocelyn's mother and suspended. The ripples of her own relationship with a toxic mother surface, and she must do more than get her job back. She must learn to love herself, and then be open to a love that waits for her.

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At her mother's funeral, Jocelyn makes a startling discovery—she has an aunt, her mother's sister. Not only does this woman offer college-student Jocelyn much needed employment, but Aunt Paula holds the key to unlocking family secrets, secrets Jocelyn needs to confront.With the help of her best friend Alex, Jocelyn begins a journey of knocking down inner walls she has erected from years of abuse. The question is—will those broken walls free her or bury her? And what about this new-found aunt, a restaurateur/artist who signs her paintings "Charlie"?In this psychological novel, enter the world of trauma survival through dissociation and redemption through love and courage. This mental health issue (Dissociative Identity Disorder) is complex and a difficult topic to undertake in a fictional book. I applaud the author for taking on this subject. ~ Dr. Debra Johnson, MD

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