Watkinsville Author Denise Weimer Releases First Book in Georgia Gold Series

On April 1^st the release of Denise Weimer’s Sautee Shadows, the first of a four-book series that links antebellum Georgia’s coast and mountains from the time of the Georgia Gold Rush through The War Between the States, hit the bookstands.

The public is invited to a book launch party on Monday, April 8 at 7 p.m. at the Oconee County Library. Denise Weimer will be available to read and sign copies of Sautee Shadows: Book One of the Georgia Gold Series. Oconee County Library Friends will serve refreshments.

During her residence in Habersham County, Georgia, Weimer became fascinated with the historical buildings that surrounded her, and when a well-known regional historian and artist offered his help with her future research (after reading a novella she had published), she eagerly accepted. She then began crafting a story about “the summer people” like the ancestors of the local historian, coastal tycoons who had in the 1800s built fanciful mountain retreats near Clarkesville. She wanted to show how their lives mingled with those of the hardy pioneers and Cherokee Indians. Weimer discovered that never before had a historical fiction novel been written about the area.

In Sautee Shadows, the lives of four families intertwine through romance, adventure and murder. The novel introduces three main characters: Jack Randall, the son of a wealthy shipping magnate who abhors slavery and longs to return to his original homeplace in New York; Mahala Franklin, a beautiful young woman who endures prejudice and rejection because she is half-white and half-Cherokee; and Dev Rousseau, a true Southerner who plans to enter the military if the perceived war between the North and South becomes reality. When Jack purchases a hotel in Clarkesville, he enters into direct competition with The Franklin Hotel and the spirited granddaughter of the owner, whose life revolves around unraveling the mystery of her father’s murder and missing gold.

Weimer hopes the series will appeal to men as well as women since it details the business of the shipping industry of the coastal southern states and the military action of the war. So far the reviews have been very positive. C.T. French, of Midwest Reviews says, “Chocked full of history, with dialogue true to the time, characters that intrigue and beguile, and what promises to be an adventurous and exciting journey, this is certain to be an interesting, entertaining series.” Paul Yarbrough of Southern Literary Review says, “An exciting historical novel, its roots in the forced emigration of southeastern tribes and the story expanding into mystery as the Union divides.”

The attractive cover designs for the series will feature paintings by acclaimed artist, John Kollock. Kollock’s ancestors’ letters and diaries were used in research for the Georgia Gold Series.

Weimer is a native resident of Georgia. She earned her journalism degree with a minor in history from Asbury University and graduated magna cum laude. She is the author of romantic novella Redeeming Grace, and her magazine articles about Northeast Georgia have appeared in numerous regional publications. Weimer is also a wife and the mother of two young daughters, a life-long living historian, and for many years directed a mid-1800s dance group, The 1860s Civilian Society of Georgia. She now resides in Watkinsville, attends Watkinsville First Baptist Church, and supports her daughters’ swim clubs, Athens Bulldog and Shamrock.

Sautee Shadows: Book One of the Georgia Gold Series is available nationally in bookstores and online retailers as of April 1, 2013. Canterbury House Publishing, ISBN: 978-0-9829054-8-7, trade soft cover, $15.95. Local booksellers who will stock the novel include Books Galore and The Carpenter’s Shop in Athens.

For more information about the Georgia Gold Series visit http://deniseweimerbooks.webs.com and www.canterburyhousepublishing.com. For more information about the book launch party and directions to the Oconee County Library located at 1080 Experiment Station Road, Watinsville, 30677, call (706) 769-3950.