Why am I passionate about this?

I grew up in an extremely rural area before the internet, where there was no cable. So, I read. Reading led to my desire to write, and I have. When Jackie discussed the characters of The Waking Bell with me, I envisioned an American version of Rebecca, where the protagonist is a naïve young woman who follows her heart in a dark, gothic setting. While I didn’t grow up in the mountains, I have experienced the differences between people from different backgrounds that live in the same rural area. Those experiences are where The Waking Bell begins.


I wrote

The Waking Bell

By Jerri Hines, Jackie Weger,

Book cover of The Waking Bell

What is my book about?

A small Appalachian town is gripped in mystery. A missing child. A mysterious death. Clandestine love affairs. Soft-spoken Cady Blue…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Rebecca

Jerri Hines Why did I love this book?

Rebecca is suspenseful, creepy, and downright eerie. I loved it. The unnamed protagonist was a stroke of genius and added to the gothic feel. But it’s the story that is the most gripping. Daphne du Maurier did a masterful job of laying out the mystery of what happened to Rebecca. Was it a tragic accident or something more?

By Daphne du Maurier,

Why should I read it?

46 authors picked Rebecca as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

* 'The greatest psychological thriller of all time' ERIN KELLY
* 'One of the most influential novels of the twentieth century' SARAH WATERS
* 'It's the book every writer wishes they'd written' CLARE MACKINTOSH

'Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again . . .'

Working as a lady's companion, our heroine's outlook is bleak until, on a trip to the south of France, she meets a handsome widower whose proposal takes her by surprise. She accepts but, whisked from glamorous Monte Carlo to brooding Manderley, the new Mrs de Winter finds Max a changed man. And the memory…


Book cover of Peyton Place

Jerri Hines Why did I love this book?

Peyton Place. Saying the title conjures up all sorts of images. This book rocked the literary world when it was released by tackling the intricacies of small-town life, especially gossip. I will say it’s not just the characters that stand with me after reading the book, but the story itself. The book captures the reality of the consequences of these scandals and the secrets kept.

By Grace Metalious,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Peyton Place as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

When Grace Metalious's debut novel about the dark underside of a small, respectable New England town was published in 1956, it quickly soared to the top of the bestseller lists. A landmark in twentieth-century American popular culture, Peyton Place spawned a successful feature film and a long-running television series—the first prime-time soap opera.

Contemporary readers of Peyton Place will be captivated by its vivid characters, earthy prose, and shocking incidents. Through her riveting, uninhibited narrative, Metalious skillfully exposes the intricate social anatomy of a small community, examining the lives of its people—their passions and vices, their ambitions and defeats, their…


Book cover of The Lost Ones

Jerri Hines Why did I love this book?

The Lost Ones is set a few years before my book, but I found it intriguing, and it has ghosts. While I usually don’t write ghost stories, I have written with supernatural undertones. This book has what I love: mysterious twists and turns. What’s more, I wanted to recommend it because I kinda stumbled upon it and wanted to share.

By Anita Frank,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Lost Ones as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Some houses are NEVER at peace...

SHORTLISTED FOR THE GOLDSBORO BOOKS GLASS BELL AWARD
SHORTLISTED FOR THE HISTORICAL WRITERS' ASSOCIATION DEBUT CROWN

'A gothic gem of intrigue and atmosphere' HWA Debut Crown Judges

England, 1917

Reeling from the death of her fiance, Stella Marcham welcomes the opportunity to stay with her pregnant sister, Madeleine, at her imposing country mansion, Greyswick - but she arrives to discover a house of unease and her sister gripped by fear and suspicion.

Before long, strange incidents begin to trouble Stella - sobbing in the night, little footsteps on the stairs - and as events…


Book cover of The Tattered Gloves

Jerri Hines Why did I love this book?

I’m not certain how many readers know of this book. But even though the time setting isn’t the same, I related to Willow’s character and Cady Blue. Both haven’t had an easy life, but you will fall in love with them. If you read this book, let me know if you do. Perhaps it’s because both characters have had hard beginnings. 

By J. L. Berg,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Tattered Gloves as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 16, and 17.

What is this book about?

Head down.
Don't look up.
Never make eye contact.

Those were the words I lived by growing up, the words that protected me in an unsafe home. But words are only letters and eventually even they couldn't keep his hands off me.

Hoping to leave behind the shattered life of my past, I find myself in a boring, small town, with an aunt I've never met and at a school I loathe.

But soon I learn not everything in this world is as black and white as I've determined. Sometimes those we are so quick to judge often need a…


Book cover of The Four Winds

Jerri Hines Why did I love this book?

I loved The Four Winds because it made me feel a connection to my grandmothers who lived through the Great Depression. They never talked about it to me at all, but the ramifications were seen in their actions. I believe when you can make that kind of connection, it’s a triumph to the author. A great story.

By Kristin Hannah,

Why should I read it?

5 authors picked The Four Winds as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"The Bestselling Hardcover Novel of the Year."--Publishers Weekly

From the number-one bestselling author of The Nightingale and The Great Alone comes a powerful American epic about love and heroism and hope, set during the Great Depression, a time when the country was in crisis and at war with itself, when millions were out of work and even the land seemed to have turned against them.

“My land tells its story if you listen. The story of our family.”

Texas, 1921. A time of abundance. The Great War is over, the bounty of the land is plentiful, and America is on…


Explore my book 😀

The Waking Bell

By Jerri Hines, Jackie Weger,

Book cover of The Waking Bell

What is my book about?

A small Appalachian town is gripped in mystery. A missing child. A mysterious death. Clandestine love affairs. Soft-spoken Cady Blue finds herself caught in the middle of all the mysterious happenings when rumors splinter the mountain people and the townsfolk. Yet, despite asserting there is no threat, Cady Blue realizes something is very, very wrong in her small town. To make matters worse, the town war hero, Matt Pritchard, has awakened feelings she has never experienced, but she feels a lingering evil that could jeopardize her chance for happiness. Secrets whispered give way to a sense of foreboding that threatens the very soul of the town, and Cady soon discovers how deadly those secrets can be.

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Raising an Entrepreneur: How to Help Your Children Achieve Their Dreams - 99 Stories from Families Who Did

By Margot Machol Bisnow,

Book cover of Raising an Entrepreneur: How to Help Your Children Achieve Their Dreams - 99 Stories from Families Who Did

Margot Machol Bisnow Author Of Raising an Entrepreneur: How to Help Your Children Achieve Their Dreams - 99 Stories from Families Who Did

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve become passionate about telling parents how to raise happy, resilient, creative, confident, entrepreneurial children who are doing something that gives them joy. So many young people are unhappy; parents don’t understand how to help. They think their children should follow their path, but that no longer works for many. For the last 10 years, I’ve been speaking to parent groups; I was an Advisor to EQ Generation, an after-school program that gives children the skills to succeed; on the Advisory Board of MUSE School, preparing young people with passion-based learning; and on the Board of Spark the Journey, mentoring low-income high school students to achieve college and career success. 

Margot's book list on learn how to raise confident children

What is my book about?

This book shakes longstanding assumptions of parenting.

Through 99 stories of people who are now changing the world, it shows how to raise creative, confident, resilient children who are filled with joy and purpose. Based on interviews with top entrepreneurs and their parents, it guides you to help your children identify their passion and figure out how they can spend their professional lives doing something they love. 

Parents' well-intentioned efforts often boomerang. By ignoring their children’s skills and interests, parents can inadvertently create pressure and anxiety, thwarting their children's ability to excel and find happiness. Too often, following your heart…

Raising an Entrepreneur: How to Help Your Children Achieve Their Dreams - 99 Stories from Families Who Did

By Margot Machol Bisnow,

What is this book about?

Learn how successful entrepreneurs were raised! Could your children start a company that disrupts existing industries? Or a non-profit that helps people around the world? Or follow their passion as an artist or activist? And most important, lead a life of joy and purpose, to be happy and fulfilled? Margot Machol Bisnow, mother of two thriving entrepreneurs, reveals how to raise creative, confident, resilient, fearless kids who achieve their dreams, through 99 stories of families who did it.

Read stories from 70 families who raised true game changers. See family photos of these thriving entrepreneurs, both when they were young…


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