Belle City (Paperback)
This interracial, intergenerational saga of love, land and loss is told from the disparate perspectives of Ruth Thatcher, who is Black, and Jonas Thatcher, who is White, and spans nearly a century. The story begins in 1917 when Ruth and Jonas are farm children and ends in 2005 as their descendants struggle to unravel and understand the legacies of this star-crossed pair. During the course of their lifetimes, Ruth and Jonas-- and their respective families-- have evolved and ultimately have prospered, but it is left for their descendants to come to grips with the long-unacknowledged truth that the two families are actually one.
Penny Mickelbury is the author of ten mystery novels in three successful series: The Carole Ann Gibson Mysteries, the Mimi Patterson/Gianna Maglione Mysteries, and the Philip Rodriguez Mysteries. Mickelbury is also an accomplished playwright and was a pioneering newspaper, radio and television reporter based primarily in Washington, D.C., an experience which provided the basis for her richly drawn characters and their myriad experiences. She is a fifth generation Georgian.