Bøger af Erin Bartels

Esther Markstrom and her artist mother have always been proud of their ancestor, painter Francisco Vella. They even run a small museum and gallery dedicated to raising awareness of his scandalously underappreciated work. But when Esther reconnects with her former art history professor, she finds her once-solid family history on shaky ground as questions arise about Vella's greatest work--a portrait entitled The Lady with the Dark Hair.In 1879, Catalan orphan-turned-fugitive Viviana Torrens has found sanctuary serving in the home of an aging artist in Southern France. It is in his studio that she meets Francisco Vella, a Gibraltarian merchant who sells artists' pigments. When her past catches up to her, she is compelled to pose as Vella's sister and join him on his travels or be deported back to Spain to stand trial. Along the way she will discover that the many parts she has been playing in order to hide her identity have far-reaching implications she never could have foreseen.This dual-timeline story from award-winning author Erin Bartels takes readers from the sleepy Midwest to the sultry Mediterranean on a relentless search for truth, identity, and the freedom to follow one's dreams.

Love and hate. Dreams and nightmares. Luck and misfortune. In twelve engaging stories, the joys and sorrows of life glow against such varied backdrops as a snowy wood, a quaint country inn, a crumbling metropolis, the shore of Lake Superior, and a lonely country highway. A man in the twilight of his career falls in love with a young woman at the dawn of hers. A girl at the end of her rope finds an unexpected friend in an eccentric stranger. A young man haunted by memories finally gets a chance to forget his troubles. An artist takes stock of his life's work and discovers an unwelcome truth. With prose that evokes wonder and fear, regret and relief, Erin Bartels draws meaning from the small moments of life, challenging us to be still, to notice, to dream-and to hope.

A charismatic man with a legacy that long outlives himA forgotten woman whose fate is forever tied to hisAnd the family whose history is still being written***Toulouse, France--1879 Catalan orphan-turned-fugitive Viviana Torrens has found sanctuary serving in the home of an aging artist in Southern France. It is in his studio that she meets Francisco Vella, a Gibraltarian merchant who sells artists' pigments. When her past catches up to her, she is compelled to pose as Vella's sister and join him on his travels or be deported back to Spain to stand trial. Along the way she will discover that the many parts she has been playing in order to hide her identity have far-reaching implications she never could have foreseen.East Lansing, Michigan--Present DayEsther Markstrom and her artist mother have always been proud of their ancestor, painter Francisco Vella. They even run a small museum and gallery dedicated to raising awareness of his scandalously underappreciated work. But when Esther reconnects with her former art history professor, she finds her once-solid family history on shaky ground as questions arise about Vella's greatest work--a portrait entitled The Lady with the Dark Hair.This dual-timeline story from award-winning author Erin Bartels takes you on a captivating journey across time and continents, where past and present converge in a relentless search for truth, identity, and the freedom to follow one's dreams.

It was just one of those nights. One of those crazy, impossible nights that change your life. Forever.When guitarist Michael Sullivan gets kicked out of his band (and his apartment), landing a record deal seems an impossible dream. And nothing about Michael's prospects points toward a better future. Until the invitation for a swanky New Year's Eve party shows up in the mailbox. It's addressed to his uncle, with whom he shares both name and living space, but his uncle is going out of town . . .On the effervescent night of December 31, 1989--as the Berlin Wall is coming down, the Soviet Union is falling apart, and anything seems possible--Michael will cross paths with the accomplished and enigmatic young heir to a fading musical dynasty, forever altering both of their futures.What people are saying about the novels of Erin Bartels"Emotions leap off the page."--Library Journal"Taut and engaging."--Foreword Reviews"Deftly crafted, entertaining, thought-provoking."--Midwest Book ReviewsErin Bartels is the award-winning author of We Hope for Better Things, The Words between Us, All That We Carried, and The Girl Who Could Breathe Under Water. She lives in Lansing, Michigan, and misses the 1990s more with every passing year. You can find her at www.erinbartels.com.

An anonymous letter from a Very Disappointed Reader sends a novelist back to the lake where she spent her childhood summers in order to prove that what she wrote happened the way she'd remembered. But the truth turns out to be far more complicated, showing that sometimes the story we think we're telling is another story altogether.

"Bartels proves herself a master wordsmith and storyteller."--Library Journal, starred review"This subdued tale of learning to forgive is Bartels's best yet."--Publishers Weekly"A deeply personal, thoughtful exploration of dealing with pain and grief."--Life Is Story"Taut and engaging."--Foreword***Ten years ago, sisters Olivia and Melanie Greene were on a backcountry hiking trip when their parents were in a fatal car accident. Over the years, they grew apart, each coping with the loss in her own way. Olivia plunged herself into law school, work, and a materialist view of the world--what you see is what you get, and that's all you get. Melanie dropped out of college and developed an online life-coaching business around her cafeteria-style spirituality--a little of this, a little of that, whatever makes you happy.Now, at Melanie's insistence (and against Olivia's better judgment), they are embarking on a hike in the Porcupine Mountains of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. In this remote wilderness they'll face their deepest fears, question their most dearly held beliefs, and begin to see that perhaps the best way to move forward is the one way they had never considered.Michigan Notable Book Award winner Erin Bartels draws from personal experience hiking backcountry trails with her sister to bring you a story about the complexities of grief, faith, and sisterhood.

A reclusive bookstore owner hoped she'd permanently buried her family's sensational past with a new name. But when the novels she once shared with an old crush begin appearing in the mail, it's clear her true identity is about to be revealed, threatening the new life she has painstakingly built.

In this richly textured debut novel, a disgraced journalist moves into her great aunt's secret-laden farmhouse and discovers that the women in her family were testaments to true love and courage in the face of war, persecution, and racism.