Gibson’s Bookstore has an exciting lineup of March events in Concord. From steamy fantasy to realistic fiction set in the heart of New Hampshire and more, there are literary gatherings for readers of all interests. Visit https://gibsonsbookstore.com to register for these events.
Emma Hamm presents “The Heartless One” with Ariella Isabella: Tuesday, March 3 at 6:30 p.m.
USA Today bestselling author Emma Hamm presents “The Heartless One,” the steamy second book in her Gravesinger trilogy. Emma will be joined in conversation by her friend and fellow Romantasy author, Ariella Isabella (“A Secret Shared with Death”).
About the book:
She won the heart of Death…now she must fight for the hearts of her people. Jessamine never expected to be on the Deathless One’s side — let alone be in love with him. But now that Elric has returned to his corporeal form and Jessamine has joined the coven of witches that sustain his power, the two are stronger than ever. But the kingdom is still in turmoil. Jessamine and Elric must prepare their coven of witches to meet the kingdom’s forces in battle — before the man who’s usurped her throne learns how to harness the power of Elric’s fellow gods. How can Jessamine accept that to fight for her kingdom, she might have to fight against it?
Toggling between the point-of-view of the strong-willed princess and her dark-hearted lover, Jessamine’s quest for revenge must go on. The twisted pair are joined by a found family of magical characters all bent on worshipping their god and riding alongside their rightful queen into inevitable battle. With her latest, Emma Hamm continues to empower readers to fight for what they believe in.
About the authors:
Emma Hamm grew up in a small town surrounded by trees and animals. She writes strong, confident, powerful women who aren’t afraid to grow and make mistakes. Her books will always be a little bit feminist, and are geared towards empowering both men and women to be comfortable in their own skin. The USA TODAY bestselling Gravesinger series is her trade debut.
Living in New Hampshire with her partner and a small menagerie of animals, Ariella Isabella writes stories that bruise the heart and challenge the line between desire and danger. Her work is shaped by the legacy of Anne Rice, and the decadence of Southern Gothics. When she is not traveling or lost in a book, she can be found plotting new obsessions, and discovering fresh ways to channel her inner femme fatale onto the page.
Dan Simon presents “Ashland“: Wednesday, March 4 at 6:30 p.m.
Dan Simon, founder and editor-in-chief of Seven Stories Press, presents his debut novel, “Ashland.” He will be joined in conversation with his friend, cofounder and publisher of the Maine-based Sandorf Passage, Buzz Poole.
About the book:
A deeply moving family story unfolding in richly evocative prose and a poetic portrayal of a town in decline during the final decades of the American century, “Ashland” is a book of metamorphoses, of the dance between permanence and transformation.
In Ashland, New Hampshire, Carolyn, born of a teenage pregnancy, grows up alongside her mother Ellie, her aunt Jennie, and her cousins. Ashland is the type of place that most people plan to leave, but few do. Beauty can be found in small things — the trees in the wind, the sky’s particular shade of blue, a swim in the river, love, and family. But life can often be unforgiving and solace hard to come by. Carolyn reconciles the losses in her own life with an education at Plymouth State, the local university, and then by capturing in words her world and the people who inhabit it.
Recalling the novels of Richard Russo, Paul Harding, Marilynne Robinson, and Elizabeth Strout, “Ashland” is a debut novel of great intensity and poetry told in the voices of many vivid characters and, through them, in the voice of Ashland itself.
About the author:
Dan Simon is the founder and editor-in-chief of Seven Stories Press. “Ashland” is his debut novel. He lives in New York and New Hampshire.
Mary Anne Totten presents “Silos, Secrets, and Silence“: Thursday, March 5 at 6:30 p.m.
Mary Anne Totten presents her powerful memoir, “Silos, Secrets, and Silence: Forgiving My Family’s Alcoholism.” This book relates events and experiences of growing up in a family plagued by the demons of alcoholism and the effects of emotional distance and abandonment on one’s self-esteem.
About the book:
Totten chronicles her journey through a childhood shaped by alcoholism, family dysfunction and emotional isolation, exploring the winding road of forgiveness she finds herself on as an older adult. The narrative spans decades, tackling her struggles with parental abandonment, her mother’s alcoholism and the silos of silence that defined her family’s communication. Totten’s path to becoming a physician, her relationships and her quest for self-acceptance and reconciliation form the backbone of this deeply personal story, as, through moments of trauma, resilience and eventual healing, she reflects on the complexities of family dynamics and the lifelong impact of unresolved pain.
Totten’s writing is raw and introspective, offering readers an unfiltered look into her emotional landscape. She openly discusses her confusion and heartbreak in relationships — including her first sexual encounter and later discovery of a boyfriend’s infidelity — in detailed storytelling that weaves vivid memories with reflections on trauma and self-discovery. One of the memoir’s most powerful moments occurs when Totten describes being called to testify during her parents’ contentious divorce, thrust into an impossible position while questioned about her mother’s alcohol use. She candidly explores the sense of manipulation she experienced, as she later realizes that her testimony significantly influenced the case’s resolution.
“I still harbor anger toward my father but have awakened to the fact that he was narcissistic and manipulative,” she writes.
Themes of alcoholism, generational silence and the search for identity resonate deeply, making the memoir relatable and poignant. Totten’s ability to confront painful truths while seeking understanding and closure is inspiring, and her emotional honesty reverberates throughout. From a young age, she acknowledges that her “need for acceptance overrode everything else” — an admission that echoes both a loss of innocence and an important step in her healing journey. This testament to resilience is ideal for readers interested in family dynamics, addiction recovery, and personal growth.
About the author:
Mary Anne Totten, MD, is a retired physician who practiced primary care, endocrinology, and geriatrics in Boston, Massachusetts, Parkersburg, West Virginia and Manchester, New Hampshire. She is a graduate of the University of Kansas School of Medicine. After she retired from the practice of medicine in 2015, she was ordained as an interfaith spiritual minister by the Chaplaincy Institute of Maine. She currently volunteers in the Spiritual Care Department in her retirement community in Concord, New Hampshire. She has traveled around the world twice, has lived in eight different states, and visited forty-six of the fifty US states. She and a colleague edited “Case Studies in Primary Care for Nurses and Nurse Practitioners” (Kowalski and Totten, 1990). Future writing will include blogs related to spirituality of elders. Mary Anne had to break through the wall of non-communication and the demons of alcoholism to write her memoir, “Silos, Secrets, and Silence.” This is a story of growing up in a family plagued by alcoholism and walking the road to forgiveness.
Karen E. Olson presents “A Defiant Woman”: Tuesday, March 10 at 6:30 p.m.
Karen E. Olson returns to Gibson’s to share the second novel in her genre-defying crime series, “A Defiant Woman.” She will be joined in conversation by her friend and fellow author, Sarah Stewart Taylor.
About the book:
Kate Tudor’s marriage to billionaire Hank Tudor continues to fray when his ex-wife resurfaces in the wake of their daughter’s kidnapping. Eight years ago, Nan Tudor escaped her husband, billionaire businessman Hank Tudor, afraid for her life and leaving a dead body behind — but in doing so, she abandoned her three-year-old daughter, Lizzie. Still wracked with guilt for that decision, she is living a quiet life as a restaurant cook in France with her son when she receives a mysterious text: “We have your daughter.”
Lured back to the scene of the crime on Martha’s Vineyard by a threat against Lizzie’s life, Nan believes the kidnapper is exacting revenge against her, stopping at nothing to do so — and discovers that she and her daughter may not be the only targets. Kate Parker — Hank’s sixth and latest wife — is also on the island and drawn into the kidnapper’s elaborate web of retaliation.
About the authors:
Karen E. Olson, author of “An Inconvenient Wife,” is the winner of the Sara Ann Freed Memorial Award and a Shamus Award finalist. She is the author of the Annie Seymour mysteries, the Tattoo Shop mysteries, and the Black Hat thrillers. Karen was a longtime editor, both in newspapers and at Yale. She lives in North Haven, Connecticut.
Sarah Stewart Taylor is the author of the Sweeney St. George series and the Maggie D’arcy series. She has been nominated for an Agatha Award, the Dashiell Hammett Prize, and the MWA Sue Grafton Memorial Award and her mysteries have appeared on numerous Best of the Year lists.
Marek Bennett presents “Freeman Colby, Vol. 4“: Thursday, March 12 at 6:30 p.m.
Marek Bennett returns to Gibson’s Bookstore with the latest volume of his Freeman Colby series: “The Civil War Diary of Freeman Colby, Vol. 4: Summer 1864.”
About the book:
June – July, 1864: Freeman Colby rejoins his regiment for yet another march on Richmond, but there’s no end in sight to the wider struggle…. The book is an epic account from the trenches of a nation at war with itself, drawn entirely from the actual diaries, letters, & sketchbooks of eyewitnesses to history!
About the author:
Marek Bennett makes & teaches comics & music in New Hampshire, USA, and the world beyond….
“Mistakes Were Made” – Authorless Launch Party: Friday, March 13 from 5-7 p.m.:
Join us for an authorless launch party celebrating Lucy Score’s new romance novel, “Mistakes Were Made,” on Friday, March 13 from 5-7 p.m.!
Preorder your special signed deluxe edition (RSVP in the order comments at checkout) and pick it up at the party along with some other fun swag! We can’t wait to celebrate with you all!
“Love Song” – Authorless Launch Party: Friday, March 20 from 5-7 p.m.:
Join us for an authorless launch party celebrating Elle Kennedy’s new romance novel, “Love Song,” on Friday, March 20 from 5-7 p.m.!
Preorder your special signed deluxe edition (RSVP in the order comments at checkout) and pick it up at the party along with some other fun swag! We can’t wait to celebrate with you all!