Family secrets, scandals, gossip, and murder — the small town of Tilden has it all.
Set in the 1950s, The House Guest takes readers on a nostalgic journey with the townspeople of Tilden, a quaint community in Madison County, Nebraska. At the center of the story is Maggie Davis, a middle-aged widow and heiress of a grand Victorian manor. The stately home, which Maggie shares with her spunky nine-year-old daughter Jenna, also serves as a bed-and-breakfast to a once regular, but now transitory, clientele.
The kitchen table serves as the epicenter of conversation at the manor, where no topics are off limits. Maggie and guests gather to share the latest town gossip. Maggie’s outspoken, spinster neighbor delights in keeping everyone on guard with her opinionated tirades, but she is frequently reined in by an elderly, equally forthright family member who has recently become a permanent dweller at the manor.
Gentle-spirited Maggie finds herself struggling with the painful memories of her husband’s tragic death, as well as the stirrings in her heart associated with a new house guest. A scandalous scheme to swindle Maggie out of her property rides on the heels of a sudden, unexpected death, pointing to a member of the family as a suspect. Set against a backdrop of humor, tragedy and love, the story culminates with an emotional twist.