Sycamore Hill

Return to the gorgeous terrain of Northern Virginia's horse country where three families - the Hills, the O'Connells, and the Browns – find their lives intertwined with the nuns of the Convent of the Sisters of Mercy. A crime committed by two brothers serves as a catalyst to bring the families and friends together in the village of Braverton Mill. Meanwhile, new births are happening all around them, from the horses at Greyson to the inhabitants of both the Hill home and the O'Connell home. When expectant parents Charlie and Sue O'Connell decide that their small home won't hold another infant, they look around for something larger. Finding a classic brick manor, they buy the house and its acreage and begin restoring it. In the process, an astonishing secret is discovered in the basement of Sycamore Hill, a secret that will affect all the families as well as the nuns. Inspired by the extraordinary courage of actual conductors on the Underground Railroad during the Civil War, this captivating book is a reminder that no matter what era we live in, we are all connected through our shared histories. Family is not necessarily determined by whose blood you carry, but by the love you share.

Janet Morris Belvin has been a writer almost all her life. Her first published works were in the Bones Review, the newspaper for her childhood Bones Club (circulation: 5 if you count the members' parents). Over the next five decades, she raised a family, taught school, and wrote for magazines and newspapers. She loves old houses and dreams of restoring one when she wins the lottery. She enjoys traveling with her husband and recently took a river cruise through several European countries. Her favorite thing to do is to spend time with her three children, three bonus children, and nine grandchildren. She enjoys reading, quilting, horseback riding, and telling stories from her Virginia home.