Innocent Strangers

by Millys Altman

“Innocent Strangers is filled with suspense and twists! I read this book in one sitting, because I literally could not put it down! It is filled with characters that anyone can relate to. The lead female character breaks all gender stereotypes, and is strong and independent, which is definitely something I enjoyed. The only thing that I was disappointed about was that this book wasn’t long enough! Thank you Mrs. Altman for a wonderful read!” – Amazon Reviewer, 5 Stars

For most of my life, I have lived in Uniontown, a small town tucked into the southwest corner of Pennsylvania at the foot of the last ridge of the Allegheny Mountains. I was born before the stock market crash of 1929, lived through the Depression when hungry men would knock on our door for a meal, the bank failures (ours among them), and the fireside chats of Franklin D. Roosevelt – events I remember that most people today can only read about. My father was Dr. H. J. Nixon, an obstetrician, widely known in the area as “the baby doctor.” I wanted to follow in his footsteps and become a doctor but he discouraged it. I was more fortunate than most girls my age since after high school, I was able to go to Hood College. One day my husband-to-be and I were driving down the Summit Mountain when we heard the news of Pearl Harbor on the car radio. We were shocked, but neither of us realized how quickly our lives would change. In three months, he was in the Navy. That summer we were married in a hastily planned wedding and had a week-end honeymoon at Hershey. I quit my teaching job and became a camp follower. After the war, we settled into a mid-Victorian home, my husband practiced architecture, and we raised three sons, Mark a third-generation architect, and Gary and Dan, both lawyers. At one point, the older two boys were professional race car drivers, and their experiences were the inspiration for my young-adult novel, “Racing in Her Blood”. It is a story of a young girl’s desire to be a racing car driver. As a child, I was always fascinated by the first hand stories of the glamorous high living in my little town during the prosperous years of the golden era of the coal and coke industry. One famous society belle imported none other than Tchaikovsky to perform at one of her evening soirees. “Innocent Strangers” is a similar fictional town in the late Victorian period. I published it as an e-book and almost had to learn as much about a computer as I did about writing a book to do it. At ninety two, I have to be satisfied with the golf swing I have and focus on other goals. I hope to write another novel and—top priority—I hope to not be a pain to my children. My email address is: maltman@atlanticbb.net.

Visit Millys’ website at http://www.millysaltman.com/index.php.