In 1952, while vacationing in France, Eudora Winningham meets Alain Philidor. Searching for a perfect spot to capture the beautiful landscape on canvas she trespasses on his land. Enchanted by the man and his beautifully restored farmhouse, she soon learns that he exists in the year 2006. Will they be able to bridge the gap of time or will the years between them separate them forever?
Wanita Humphrey lives in Jefferson City, Missouri, with her husband, Glen. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends, writing, traveling, and going to concerts. While teaching for thirty-one years in Missouri’s Public Schools, Wanita was active in the Missouri State Teachers Association and served as state president in 1999. She is a member of Kappa Kappa Iota and PEO.
Interesting things about Wanita. She was the first girl to take Coaching of Baseball at Missouri University. She has a trophy for winning a late-model stock car race, and she has visited all fifty states. What is something that she would like to do? Go ziplining! Her debut novel, Only A Moment Ago releases in September 2021.
Under an Endless September Sky, Sometimes the Story Finds You.
Sapphire Sullivan has spent almost a year trying to forget the only boy she’s ever loved. One stolen kiss with her brother’s best friend changed everything. When Jack Murphy called it a mistake, Sapphire promised herself she’d stop wishing for something that could never be.
Then Labor Day weekend brings him back into her life.
Under the glow of carnival lights and an endless September sky, Jack looks at her the way he used to. Old feelings ignite, forgotten dreams come rushing back, and Sapphire starts believing that maybe first love deserves a second chance.
Until someone else appears.
Jett is the kind of boy who only exists in stories. He’s beautiful, mysterious, and seemingly devoted to only her. There’s only one problem—no one else can see him.
Except Jack.
Sapphire doesn’t know why Jett came into her life, what connects him to Jack, or what he truly wants from her. But as strange moments become impossible to ignore and the line between the real world and something more begins to blur, Sapphire is forced to question everything she believes about love, fate, and the stories we tell ourselves.
Because sometimes the hardest choice isn’t between the past and the future. It’s between the story you’ve been writing… and the life waiting to be lived.
One summer. One secret. One love they never saw coming.
Aliya Jacobs has always counted down the days to summer at Lake Carrington—sunlit swims in turquoise water, lazy afternoons at her uncle’s cabin, and every moment spent with her best friend, Nick. But this summer brings an unwelcome surprise… Nick’s cousin Wyatt.
Sharp-tongued, guarded, and openly resentful of the out-of-towners he calls “hillies,” Wyatt clashes with Aliya from the moment they meet. Yet when a late-night rescue leads them to a reclusive old man and a map tied to a long-lost treasure—their rivalry turns into something far more complicated.
Whispers of hidden clues begin to surface, suggesting the legend might be real. At the same time, the powerful Elias Corporation is closing in, determined to transform Lake Carrington into a luxury resort that could destroy Nick’s family store and the town Aliya loves.
Reluctantly forced to work together, Aliya and Wyatt race to uncover the truth before time runs out. But as danger grows and secrets unravel, they must decide what matters more: finding a treasure that could save the lake… or risking their hearts on something even more uncertain.
Washington County has nearly two centuries of stories to tell, and many of them have been forgotten.
In this follow-up to Forgotten Fayetteville, local historians J. B. Hogan and Susan Parks-Spencer uncover more of the people, places, and events that shaped Fayetteville and the surrounding county. Explore the violent early years of Evansville, revisit the shocking murder that led to the execution of the Burnett family, and discover what made April 1864 one of the deadliest months in Washington County history. You’ll meet John Rollin Ridge, the first Native American novelist, learn the story of Rebecca Brown Tollett’s life in slavery, and examine the tragic lynching of Reverend Anthony Bewley.
From vanished towns and frontier churches to forgotten cemeteries, pioneering families, and overlooked chapters of Native American, Black, and immigrant history, these stories reveal a richer and more complex past than many realize. Woven together, they form a portrait of the lives, triumphs, and tragedies that shaped this corner of the Ozarks and the communities that call it home.
Whether you’re a lifelong resident, a newcomer, or simply a student of Arkansas history, Forgotten Fayetteville and More Hidden Histories from Washington County invites you to look beyond familiar landmarks and rediscover the people and events that helped shape the Ozarks.
