Mirror Image follows a couple preparing an estate auction who discover an eerie portrait, a restless spirit, and a killer with his sights set on their little town. Where did the idea for this novel come from? 

I have always enjoyed antiques and attending auctions. I learned to refinish furniture in high school and refinished my great-aunt’s washstand and my grandmother’s kitchen table. That table had four coats of paint on it! The washstand is next to my bed, and the table is in my office.

My husband and I enjoyed attending live auctions, but busy schedules made it difficult to attend them on a regular basis. After retiring, my husband discovered online auctions and purchased a few items. The auction company was located in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, near James Madison University, my college alma mater, and when we travelled there to pick up his purchases, I found myself observing the terrain, twisting back roads, then this huge warehouse situated in the midst of a big field that had been converted into a little complex that included a wholesale bookstore and the auction house. I was in seventh heaven.

But as we followed the attendant to where my husband’s items were stored, I found myself imagining a family-owned auction business on the outskirts of a small town on a huge plantation that had been made into the Bennett compound where the family lived but had built the business in a warehouse on the property close to the main road. My husband and I are also friends with an auctioneer who for twenty-plus years conducted auctions for my public library as a fundraiser. He was very charismatic and always held lively auctions. He was my inspiration for Gilbert Bennett.

So, that “what if” moment in a new-to-me setting planted the seed for the Bennett family, their auction business, and the mysteries that would follow, including a ghost and a serial killer I couldn’t resist adding to the mix.

The opening premise is immediately eerie and intimate. What drew you to the idea of a woman confronting a portrait of someone who looks exactly like her?

Another “what-if” situation. When the idea of the story grabbed me, I started recalling auctions I had attended and remembered one estate auction where framed family portraits were for sale. Firstly, I hated that they had callously chosen not to keep the family heirlooms, but as I studied the faces, I thought, “what would you do if you found a portrait that was the image of you?”

That reminded me of another instance when I saw a Cousin’s Facebook post with a 1910 picture of a young woman that looked very familiar. I texted her and asked, “Is that Grandma?” to which she responded, “Yes, and she looks like you!” Well, that explained the skipped heartbeat when I saw the picture, but it also had me thinking, “what if a woman discovered a spitting-image portrait of herself from an earlier era.”

The story started percolating then. One thing led to another, and once I had the image, I wanted Abby’s reaction to be more than fear. I wanted her to feel a pull toward this woman, almost a responsibility to her. That compassion became the emotional heart of the story.

You have a strong eye for physical detail, especially heirlooms and rooms. Do you often begin scenes with objects before dialogue or action?

As a retired librarian, I value education and helping people better themselves. I also strive to include something new or educational in my stories. In Mirror Image, I decided to elaborate on the beauty of the antiques in the White house. The Lladro sculptures, the grandfather clock, the furnishings, the china. Some are unique and exquisite, but they also help to set the tone of a setting or scene, give the reader a sense of being there and maybe wondering, “why is she describing this?” I hope readers will google some of them as they read the book and let me know if I accurately described them.

Sometimes, objects can be the reason for dialogue, or action. It may play a major role in a mystery as some of them do in the Bennett Auction Series. I like to keep my readers alert, on their toes.

To directly answer the question, yes, I often begin with an object or a room before dialogue enters. The setting tells its own story first, and I find that when a reader is grounded in the physical world of a scene the emotional beats that follow land more powerfully.

Can you give us a glimpse inside the second installment of the Bennett Auction Series? Where will it take readers?

Broken Image, book two of the series, was released on Mother’s Day 2026. I like to launch my books on days that are important to me. In Broken Image, Sage Grimes is dealing with a mild case of amnesia and the grief of losing her four-year-old daughter in a car accident. She is also grieving the death of her great-uncle, Joe who was like Edmondsville’s local historian. He collected local memorabilia from estate auctions and yard sales. Remember my use of objects?

Broken Image is Sage and Jay Bennett’s story where they discover the local artifacts in Joe’s house that turn out to be clues to mysteries that have haunted the town for hundreds of years. It is also a story of emotional healing and finding peace with someone who understands and values you.

Isabella, the ghost who is Abby’s twin, picks up on Sage’s sorrow as she too, has lost a child. Another mystery.

The serial killer who has an affection for Abby still lives among them and despite a few setbacks, his threat continues to cast a shadow over Edmondsville and the people Abby loves most.

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