The River House is a gripping and emotionally charged memoir detailing the trials and tribulations you faced when purchasing and renovating a seemingly idyllic waterfront property in Cape Coral, Florida.

I appreciated the candid nature with which you told your story. What was the hardest thing for you to write about?

The hardest thing for me to write about was moving out of our beautifully restored house after enduring 27 months of emotional and physical turmoil to get it reconstructed after Hurricane Irma.  My husband and I had invested so much ourselves and our lives in creating the perfect home within the shell of the house that was left from the hurricane damage.  We honestly thought we would live in that house forever when we purchased it, and through much of the renovation process.  It was only through the COVID lockdown, after we moved back into the reconstructed house, that we realized our best course of action was to move out of Florida. 

What were some ideas that were important for you to share in this book?

It was important for me to share the shockingly laborious process we encountered to reach a claim settlement with our home insurance company; the astonishing amount of time and effort it took for us to manage the design, permitting, and construction process for the house reconstruction; and the completely unexpected hurdles that we continuously encountered during the entire 27 months of the insurance claim and home reconstruction process.

What do you hope is one thing readers take away from your story?

When a natural disaster does significant damage to a house, it can take years to get that home reconstructed.  When I filed a claim with my homeowners insurance company due to the hurricane damage, I had no idea it would take years before we could move back into our reconstructed home.  My hope is that this book can convey the many lessons we learned from our misfortune so that others can be more prepared to avoid the life-changing pitfalls we faced.  

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