About Me
I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start, with perhaps a bit of magic waiting somewhere behind the morning.” - J. B. Priestley
I too look for the magic waiting somewhere behind the morning. That’s when I love to write, in the early morning when the day is filled with the fresh promise of an exciting plot development or a new character who may jump off the page and take over the story. That’s what happened when I was writing my debut novel, Appaloosa Sky. What I thought was a minor character became the most significant person in the novel. This is what is so astonishing and so much fun about the writing process, I sit down in the morning and never know what is about to happen.
I started my writing career after being a Montessori educator for many years, co-founding a Montessori school for children who are deaf. I had no idea that I was preparing myself for the next chapter of my own life, working with my husband, Tom, a gerontologist. We created a program for positive dementia care using the methods and philosophy of Dr. Maria Montessori. We co-authored and published two books about our work in dementia, You Say Goodbye and We Say Hello and The Montessori Method for Staying Connected to People with Dementia.
I grew up in North Texas in a family of musicians who raised horses and holy hell. Appaloosa Sky is loosely based on that place and the strong women who greatly influenced my life. As a young woman I lived in England with my two sisters and young nephew. We ran away together to find some peace and joy after experiencing many tragedies in our young lives. Trinity Rivers Trilogy is a family saga that takes place in Louisiana, Chicago and Britain. This novel connects the places I have lived and loved. Being the author of two novels has fulfilled my lifelong dream to be a writer. These books represent years of my life, much research and many, many very rough drafts. But, through it all, I learned so much and had a wonderful time. So, to sum it up: I’m an old dame who writes novels that her grandchildren are not allowed to read. But YOU can.
Trinity Rivers Trilogy
Trinity Rivers Trilogy is a family saga that explores this central question: Life is feckless and random or life is filled with meaning and revelation. This is the story of the Quinn family, musicians who believe that music can change lives. It is also the story of a Scottish soldier, Robbie MacKaye, whose life of order and discipline is completely upended when he meets a girl at a train station, a girl named Lisabet Jordan Quinn. Three rivers flow through lives shattered by violence and betrayal. They bear witness to the healing power of music and the grace found in battered but enduring love, love that survives the lengthening shadows of time.
Courageous and determined 11-year-old Ginny Spangler is orphaned after a horse theft gone bad, but she soon finds a new family and learns to do what is necessary to take care of those she loves. As she grows from a spunky girl to a fiery matriarch, Ginny passes on her resilient and persistent spirit to her nieces, Scottie, Rory, and Georgie O’Brien. These three sisters are growing up with a distant mother and a fun loving but alcoholic father. Even as little girls, the O’Brien sisters know they must solve their own problems and take charge of their own lives. They look to Nancy Drew as their guiding light; facing each difficulty with the question, “What would Nancy do?” Each in their own way, the girls cope with the thrilling ups and terrible downs of life as they find love, experience loss, and raise their own families. Over the years, Ginny becomes old and frail, and the O’Brien sisters must reunite and rekindle Ginny’s fierce spirit – both within her and within themselves – in order to free her from physical and financial abuse and save the idyllic ranch the family calls home. But their rescue mission is no merry heist – the peril is real, and the consequences have the potential to shatter the family’s spirit entirely.
Appaloosa Sky
Critical Praise for Trinity Rivers Trilogy
“Brenner tells this sprawling story with crisp clarity and page-turning power. Scenecraft is fleet and strong, and themes of music and love resonate throughout.” — Publishers Weekly
Critical Praise for Appaloosa Sky
“A breezy, engaging family saga about spirited women and their beloved horses.” — Kirkus Reviews
Contact
Feel free to contact me with any questions you might have about my books,
my editorial writing, essays, or to book me for an artist talk, book club, or book signing.
Email: kbbrenner47@gmail.com