Reckonings

For all her adult life, Roxy suppressed the impact of two traumatic events—being abandoned by her mother at the age of twelve and being raped by her boyfriend, Spider, at eighteen. She never told anyone but her best friend about the rape. Though happily married to Carl, they both long to be out from under the thumb of Carl’s domineering father, for whom they both work. And she’s convinced that her first play—being staged at the community theater with her movie-star friend from high school in the lead role—is the ticket to that better life.

But now Spider is back, a successful land developer with a proposal to revitalize the town and solve the theater’s financial woes. When he takes an interest in Jewel, Roxy’s eldest daughter whose paternity she’s not entirely sure of, and engineers a big win for Carl in a private poker game, Roxy knows he’s up to his old tricks. She’s determined to expose him before he can harm her family or her beloved theater.

Karen E. Osborne traces the treacherous path between good intentions and poor decisions rooted in the shame of toxic secrets.

Karen E. Osborne's novels followed a forty-year career, first as an academic administrator and then co-owner of The Osborne Group, serving as a consultant, trainer, and motivational speaker. She is the author of three suspense/women's fiction novels. Getting It Right (Akashic Books) June 2017. It was featured in Poets & Writers and Essence Magazine as a Best Read. Tangled Lies (Black Rose Writing) July 22, 2021. And Reckonings (Black Rose Writing) June 16, 2022. Karen hosts a weekly video podcast, What Are You Reading? What Are You Writing? where she interviews authors about their artistic journeys and book recommendations. Karen and her husband, Bob, have two grown children and three grandsons. They live in Port Saint Lucie, FL.