Even though I already have another story bouncing around my brain, as I finish editing Jilted, I’m sad to be completing the Mended Hearts series. Over this three-book journey, the best thing has been the readers I’ve met along the way. For those of you living with depression and anxiety, I pray Lynda Turner’s story will give you strength as you fight the battle. I’d love to hear from you, so feel free to contact me through my website, varinadenman.com, or one of the social media hangouts.
Thank you for reading,
Varina
Acknowledgments
The more I write, the more I appreciate the team of family, friends, and professionals who help make it happen. I owe you all a Texas-sized thank you.
To Don, more than anyone, for making it possible for me to write at all. Thank you for your encouragement, your help with laundry and dishes, and for not complaining about all the frozen pizza and ranch dressing we’ve eaten in the past year.
To my children, Jessica, Drew, Dene, Jillian, and Janae. You guys motivate me more than you know, because I realize someday (far in the distant future), I won’t be around to talk to you anymore … but my books will.
To Marci and D’arci for telling me I’m doing it right and for walking arm in arm as we battle our family’s version of depression. Lynda Turner called it a beast, and I simply call it Satan. But Satan’s a dork. And God is bigger. And we’re winning the battle. Oorah.
To Mom and Dad for instilling in my heart a love of West Texas. For hauling my siblings and me to the ranch year after year in the old, blue station wagon, for teaching us the difference between cottontails and jackrabbits, and for showing us how a family—even an imperfect one—can love each other deeply.
To Sudona Lombard for reading an early draft of Jilted and talking me down off the ledge.
To Linda Wise for proofing the galleys of all three books. Honestly, by that point, I’d read the manuscripts so many times, I couldn’t even see the words. Thank you for being my eyes.
To my church family for falling in love with Clyde and Lynda, JohnScott and Fawn, and Dodd and Ruthie. You guys have been a tremendous support and have made this journey even more fun.
To John Boren for loaning me Picnic Hollow and offering to keep it a secret that Clyde and Lynda couldn’t actually have hiked there. I’ll always consider it an honor to have experienced the satisfaction of standing in the shadow of all those names.
To Ann Montgomery-Moran for advice regarding the legalities of Clyde’s registered sex-offender status, Neil’s threat of a restraining order, and Hoby’s abandonment. You saved me much embarrassment, though I could have avoided a timely rewrite had I contacted you six months earlier. I live and learn.
To John Corp for explaining the basics of wind-farm procedures, the dangers involved for workers, and all the details that brought the turbines up close and personal. I regret not finding a good spot for one of my characters to use a turbine for target practice. That was my favorite detail from all that you told me, so maybe I can use that tidbit in another book someday.
To James M. Childers, PhD, for walking me through the stages of crime scene investigation and allowing me to pick your brain … where I was surprised to find a mother animal scavenging human body parts for her pups, a waterlogged corpse floating to the surface of a lake … and Boy Scouts. I can’t make this stuff up.
To my agent, Jessica Kirkland. Thank you for watching the news that day at the lake house. Those two headlines (the car in the lake and the tornado in the small town) supplied me with Jilted’s basic plot skeleton (pun intended). And as always, thank you for talking me through the jumble of ideas in my head and helping me figure out my crazy, messed-up characters.
To my developmental editor, Jamie Chavez, not only for cleaning up my story line until it became a sensible plot, but also for teaching me countless secrets of the craft of writing, all while boosting my spirits and counseling me through writer angst. You make an excellent therapist.
To Ingrid Beck, Nick Lee, Helen Macdonald, and Susan Murdock, for turning a mess of typewritten pages into a book. To the marketing people, Lisa Beech, Darren Terpstra, Karla Colonnieves, and Jeane Wynn, who helped put Jilted in front of readers. To the copyeditor, Jennifer Lonas, for going over the manuscript with a magnifying glass and remembering miniscule details across all three books. To the cover designer, Amy Konyndyk, for bringing the wind fields to life. And to the folks at David C Cook for taking a chance on a series from a debut author. I will forever be grateful.
Book Club Discussion Guide
1. Jilted opens with Lynda Turner wallowing in bad memories. Have you ever been “stuck” in a pity party for yourself? What steps did Lynda take to pull herself out of her depression? How long did it take?
2. Lynda’s depression has been fueled by a lifetime of abandonment. First her parents, then Neil Blaylock, and finally Hoby. How did these abandonments affect Lynda’s life in the past and present? Have you ever experienced feelings of abandonment? How did you cope with your feelings?
3. Clyde feels like an outsider at the Trapp congregation. Why do you suppose he feels that way? How could he take actions to change the status quo? What might happen if he did? How else could this problem be remedied? When have you felt like an outsider in your own church? Have you ever inadvertently caused another Christian to feel unwelcome?
4. Lynda’s brother-in-law, Ansel Pickett, is like a father to her in many ways. How does his declining health affect Lynda? Explain Ansel’s actions near the time of his death. What steps did he take to prepare? Have you ever felt abandoned when a loved one passed? How did Lynda eventually handle his death?
5. Neil Blaylock has caused problems for Clyde and Lynda for years. Have you ever known anyone like him? What motivates his actions? What part of his character can you relate to? How do Clyde and Lynda deal with him? Do you approve of their attitudes? Explain.
6. Clyde and Lynda share a passionate kiss after the football game, but the action is uncharacteristic for both of them. What do you think prompted them to behave in such a way? Were their actions justified? Why or why not? What effect do you think the situation had on Neil? When have you acted rashly because of an emotional reaction?
7. When Hoby’s wrecker is found at the lake, some of Lynda’s feelings of abandonment shift to grief. What must that have been like for her? How did you feel when she locked herself in her bedroom again? What emotions does she work through as she ponders all that happened when Hoby disappeared and everything that has happened in the years since?
8. Hector Chavez is not only the sheriff but also Lynda’s lifelong friend. When he brings news that shakes her world, how does Lynda react? How do you think the truth affected her grieving process? Explain.
9. The author makes gruesome references to Hoby’s body, both on land and in the water. Why do you think she included those details? What do the descriptions add to the underlying current of the story? What parallels can you draw about Lynda’s depression? Clyde’s imprisonment? Neil’s bitterness?
10. Clyde enjoys reading. How did this fact influence your opinion of him? What did he learn from books while he was in prison? How did his reading positively influence his post-incarceration syndrome (PICS)? How might this be different for other ex-convicts?
11. Throughout the book, windmills are used as a metaphor. What different ways does the author tie them to Lynda’s life? What effect do the turbines have on Lynda? Does Clyde understand this? How do you know? Do you have a special place that gives you peace? Describe it.
12. Neil becomes increasingly unhinged toward the end of the story. How does he attempt to divert the blame from himself? What effect do his actions have on the other characters? What do you think Neil is feeling? Do you think he will ever find peace? Why or why not?
13. Lynda has several “psychological tokens” that she burns on her back porch. Have you ever kept something that reminded yo
u of a painful time in your life? Did it help you? How do you think Lynda’s psychological tokens helped or hurt her? What emotions does she feel when she destroys them? How does Clyde’s burning his shack on the Caprock bring Lynda’s grief full circle? Are psychological tokens always a bad thing? Explain.
14. Lynda deals with two huge losses at the same time—realizing Hoby is dead and losing Ansel. At one point, she says she has too many things distracting her from her grief. When have you had similar times in your life? What helped you to grieve effectively?
15. Clyde and Neil are trapped in a walk-in freezer during the tornado. How do the two men differ in their reactions to this entrapment? What might they have been feeling? Can you relate to either of the men? Both of them? How does your own past affect your outlook on difficult situations?
16. The tornado destroys much of the town, and Lynda wonders if God simply got fed up with the narrow-minded ways of the townspeople. Do you think God would really do something like that? When have you wondered the same thing or been aware of others wondering about it? The town pulled together because of the devastation, but do you think their common bonds will last? What else might need to happen to prevent the citizens from slipping back into their old ways?
17. Neil is eventually imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit. Why is this appropriate? What feelings did you have as you read his verdict? How do you think Neil will manage his imprisonment? What do Clyde and Lynda do to help? Do you think you would have been as compassionate as they are? Why or why not?
18. In the end Lynda and Clyde get their happily ever after. Does Lynda think she will always be happy? What has she discovered about happiness? How have you learned this lesson in your own life? What else has Lynda learned?
About the Author
Varina Denman is a native Texan who lived her high school years in a small Texas town. Now she and her husband live near Fort Worth, where they enjoy spending time with their five mostly grown children. Jilted is her third novel. Look for other books in the Mended Hearts series online and in bookstores.
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