Friday, March 4, 2011

HIGH SCHOOL REUNION

   
By Kate McMurray


I went to a high school reunion a few years ago without any idea of what to expect. All things considered, I had a pretty easy time of it in school, but I'd fallen out of touch with nearly everyone. It was a surprise then to learn that all these people I'd known as teenagers were welcoming and mature and friendly. It was interesting, too, to see how people changed, who'd gotten married, who had kids, who'd moved the farthest away. My family moved from our hometown in suburban NJ when I was in college, and I've only had occasion to go back once. I've lost touch with the town, too, not just the people who lived there, which I think made me feel especially far removed. At the reunion, I talked to one of my childhood best friends, who said, "You know, I drove by your old house the other day, and it looks completely different!"

I started writing THE BOY NEXT DOOR not long after the reunion, with these ideas about what we leave behind and what we come home to swirling around. Would I recognize the streets where I visited friends or trick-or-treated as a kid? Would I shop in the same places? Would I see the same people around? What would I do if confronted with a high school crush again? (Well, in this last case, probably nothing, since I've heard all of mine are married now.)

In THE BOY NEXT DOOR, Lowell moves back home to take care of his mother, who has been having a rough time of it since Lowell's father died. Figuring he'll be there for the long haul, he buys a house in town, and it's not until after he's moved in that he realizes he's bought the house right next door to one in which he played as a child. His next-door neighbor is none other than Jase, whom he'd been close to as a boy. They drifted apart as they became teenagers and they haven't seen each other for years. When they start to rekindle their friendship, something between them just clicks.  But Jase's life went on without Lowell in the intervening years, and now he's got a daughter and an ex-wife and a dozen other complications that could easily spell doom if these men ever try to take their relationship further.

Note that I am writing the sequel which will be Neal’s story. 


Click here for the excerpt.



Kate McMurray writes primarily contemporary romance and romantic suspense. Sometimes she gets adventurous and tackles historical fiction. By day, Kate is a nonfiction editor. Also, she is crafty (mostly knitting and sewing, but she also wields power tools), she plays the violin, and she dabbles in various other pursuits. She’s maybe a tiny bit obsessed with baseball. She lives in Brooklyn, NY, with a presumptuous cat.  Visit her at www.katemcmurray.com; follow her on Twitter, @katemcmwriter.
  

1 comment:

  1. The book sounds great... I love going home stories. Jeanine

    ReplyDelete