When your husband dies suddenly, you expect shock, pain, grief – and many changes. But for Merle Bennett and her son the surprises keep on coming – the depleted accounts, the house in France, the other woman. Even her boss at Legal Aid in Harlem wants her out. So out she goes, all the way to France to fix up the tumbledown cottage that her husband’s parents left him. France seduces her with its sunshine and charm, but the secrets she unearths about her husband make her reexamine her life. A beautiful garden mysteriously tended, dark red wine, a sexy roofer, a nasty pissoir, and an unfriendly village make Merle’s journey in Blackbird Fly a sensual pleasure dampened with intrigue, murder, and the dark secrets of the past.

Publication of Blackbird Fly has been delayed. Stay tuned for the latest by checking in here often. Thanks for your interest.

The France Travel Book
Photos & Essays