Nearly two decades ago a charismatic man called Colin controlled an isolated community hidden in foothills north of San Francisco in what was supposed to be a life free of materialism. Instead, Colin turned The Refuge into a mass grave as he completed a sinister plan to exterminate his followers-all except three children, who slipped through his fingers and escaped with his secrets.Today, Nick Board and the two beautiful sisters, Sarah and Aurelie, who escaped with him, are living quietly under the radar in the little bayou town of Point Judah, Louisiana. But when the bodies at The Refuge are uncovered, the nightmare of the past forces the friends out into the open. To survive, they must stay one step ahead of the man who has been waiting for them to surface. Driven by greed and anger, he intends them to take his secrets to their graves.
Stella Cameron was born on December 5, 1943 on the southern coast of England. As a young girl, Stella was a self-professed reading "addict", devouring all types of literature. "I grew up surrounded by a dear, but wildly dysfunctional family," Stella says. "Very early I learned to retreat from the raging, sometimes threatening demands of others into a gentler world -- my own. As a child and a young adult, books saved me because they helped free me while they entertained me. Those books were part of what I mean by 'my own world.' My love of reading always marched side-by-side with a love of writing. When the other children in my English classes watched the clock and prayed for the period to end, I wrote furiously on such grabbing topics as: A Walk In My Garden!"
Nineteenth-century author Jane Austen was a particular favorite, and Stella admits that she particularly enjoys reading and writing books set in the 1800s, as well as contemporary novels. Author Mazo de la Roche's turn-of-the-century series about the Whiteoak family is another favorite. Stella is also a fan of such modern authors as Suzanne Simms, Jayne Ann Krentz, Ann Maxwell, Anne Tyler and Anita Brookner. These authors capture Stella with their "multi-faceted characterization, with plot that never stops me, and with conflict that keeps me on the edge of my seat," she says. "I want to laugh and cry with the books I read, just as I want to laugh and cry with the books I write. The authors I admire are those who put their hearts -- and their guts -- on the page. I'm not interested in pure fluff, but I can often see through the frills to the poignancy beneath and I set to work to ferret it out -- with enormous pleasure."
Stella met her American husband at a party in London. So mesmerized was she by the sight of the Fab Four through the window, she was taken aback when asked by a handsome stranger to dance the Mexican Hat Dance. "The rest, as they say, is history," says Stella laughingly. When she still lived and worked in London, they had one very cold winter and she didn't have a warm coat or the money to buy one. Her fiancé, Jerry showed up with a new wool coat he'd gone out and bought on his own! Then she decided that really he was the man of her life. After their marriage, she left England and went with husband Jerry to Washington State to make a home and raise a family. "My husband is a dear, loyal man. The day we met was the most blessed day of my life," said Stella, in a interview from her home. "He has allowed me to be all that I can be and this is a reciprocal trust."
In 1980, Stella decided she wanted to write professionally. She attended writing classes and wrote short literary fiction for a year. It was during this period that Stella discovered how well-written and intense romantic fiction could be. Using her newly acquired writing skills, she began to write contemporary romantic fiction for Harlequin since 1985. She collaborated with Linda Rice as Alicia Brandon and with Virginia Myers as Jane Worth Abbott. Now, she is the New York Times, USA Today, and Washington Post bestselling, award-winning author of more than 45 historical and contemporary romantic suspense novels and novellas. Stella has won numerous awards and accolades.
Stella lives near Seattle with her husband. They have three children, one married. Her pets, a dog named Spike and a cat named Raven, are her constant buddies. When she's away on trips, buying gifts for the two furry friends is at the top of her list of "musts." Are they spoiled? You betcha. "If I don't have tickets for a performance waiting on my desk, I go into a funk. I should have put my animals before the theatre...."
