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The Holiday Visitor
Tara Taylor Quinn
Table of Contents
With more than forty-five original novels, published in more than twenty languages, Tara Taylor Quinn is a USA TODAY bestselling author with over six million copies sold. She is known for delivering deeply emotional and psychologically astute novels. Ms Quinn is a three-time finalist for the RWA RITA® Award, a multiple finalist for the National Reader’s Choice Award, the Reviewer’s Choice Award, the Booksellers’ Best Award and the Holt Medallion, and appears regularly on the Waldenbooks bestseller list. Ms Quinn recently married her college sweetheart and the couple currently lives in Ohio with their two very demanding and spoiled bosses: four-pound Taylor Marie and fifteen-pound rescue dog/ cockapoo, Jerry. When she’s not writing or fulfilling speaking engagements, Ms Quinn loves to travel with her husband, stopping wherever the spirit takes them. They’ve been spotted in casinos and quaint little smalltown antique shops all across the country.
For Chelsea Barney - a beautiful young woman who is a new addition to my family and who is very, very welcome here.
Chapter One
Friday, September 4, 1992
Dear James Winston Malone,
They gave me your name as someone who wanted to write to someone else who had a parent that was a rape victim. My name is Marybeth Lawson. I am twelve years old. My mother was raped and killed last March. I just started eighth grade this year. If you want, we can write.
Sincerely,
Marybeth Lawson
Tuesday, September 8, 1992
Dear Marybeth Lawson,
I just turned thirteen last week. When will you be thirteen? I am in eighth grade, too. Writing’s cool if that’s what you want. Later,
James Malone
Saturday, September 12, 1992
Dear James,
I only want to write if you do. But if you do, I do, too.
Sincerely,
Marybeth Lawson
P.S. I turn thirteen in January. I’m the youngest in my class because I started kindergarten early.
Tuesday, September 15, 1992
Dear Marybeth,
Okay, yeah, I want to. What classes are you taking? I have shop. I like it. I make things out of metal. Right now I’m working on a shelf for the bathroom wall for my mom’s birthday. There’s no medicine cabinet in there. We just moved and the place isn’t all that great. I have art, too, and that’s cool. English and the rest of that stuff I’m not so good at. I get okay grades, I just don’t like ‘em. Like who’s ever going to need to know that that Shakespeare dude wrote about some guy who killed a king to be king and then had his wife commit suicide and then was beheaded? What kind of crap is that?
Sorry. You probably like that stuff.
Later,
James
Friday, September 18, 1992
Dear James,
I can’t believe you’re reading Shakespeare, too! In our school it’s only the advanced classes who get it in eighth grade. I didn’t much like Macbeth, either, but I loved Romeo and Juliet. They were almost our age. Not that that means anything. I wouldn’t be in love if they paid me a million dollars. I just liked that they were such good friends that they would die for each other. Someday I want to have a friend like that. (I can tell you that because you’re just a piece of paper in another city and I’ll never have to meet you or anything. That’s what they said in counseling.) You’re in counseling, too, right? So your mom lived? You’re very lucky.
Write back soon,
Marybeth Lawson
Thursday, September 24, 1992