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Book details
  • Genre:BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY
  • SubGenre:Personal Memoirs
  • Language:English
  • Pages:350
  • eBook ISBN:9781098356040
  • Paperback ISBN:9781098356033

Finding Mary

A Journey of Reclamation

by Julie Rumrill

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Overview

Finding Mary is the story of one sister's journey through the dark confines of unresolved grief toward forgiveness and understanding. What begins as a simple wish to visit her sister Mary's grave, turns into a compelling quest for truth, honor, and justice in the face of murder. The author, Julie, invites you to re-examine forgotten promises, old secrets, and the complicated ways families cope with traumatic loss. Part mystery, part reclamation, Finding Mary is threaded with beautiful descriptions of the natural world, and is a heartfelt experience you won't want to miss. It will make you laugh, cry, and celebrate the enduring and precious gift of family.  

Description
Julie Rumrill was only four when her 16-year-old sister Louise was murdered. Three years later, her 13-year-old sister Mary died as well. Her broken family did what was necessary to survive, and mostly, that meant silence—silence about death, about grief, and about them. For nearly four decades, Julie abided by the family script, burying the memories of her sisters deep within her subconscious. Then, after her dad revealed that he had never been to Mary's grave, she decided they should go together. But there's one major complication: no one actually knows where Mary is buried. Her quest to find Mary leads Julie on a spiritual journey to an Abode in the Appalachians, an Ashram in the Himalayas, and into the darkness of a 250-page police report that recounts her sister Louise's murder. But when a close friend of Julie's is suddenly murdered too, a derailing mix of anger, fear, and guilt surfaces. Desperate to find peace, she's forced to draw on the wisdom of several generations to see this journey to its fruition.
About the author

Julie Rumrill is a faculty member in the Department of Earth Science at Southern Connecticut State University and Gateway Community College in New Haven, CT. She holds an M.S. in Geology and is a doctoral student at the University of Hartford. In addition to her academic life, Julie is a certified yoga and Mindfulness instructor. When she is not writing, teaching, consulting or leading workshops, she enjoys adventure travel, volunteering, reading, painting, bird watching, and spending precious time with family.

To connect with the author:

http://www.julierumrill.com/

Book Reviews

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Robyn
Finding Mary This book from the introduction page to the last word ,captured every bit of my attention. I didn't want to put it down! Her writing is so easy to follow you feel as though you are on the "quest" to find Mary. Julie's writing is captivating and pulls at your heartstrings. A definite great read for anyone who either reads daily or hasn't picked up a book since school. Read more
Hank
This book gets a grip on you early, and never lets go. With great writing, we’re told, you don’t just learn what’s happening; you feel what’s happening. And you’ll feel every moment, every emotion, in Finding Mary. The author has amazing recall of the events she’s relating, to the point that you’ll understand what it looked like, how it sounded, how it smelled. And clearly her background as a scientist is a huge plus for her descriptive powers. When choosing a headstone for a family member, she doesn’t pick just any material: "The Barre Granite is revered by geologists, builders, and quarrymen for its uniformity, strength, and beauty. It was born 345 million years ago from magma that cooled slowly, deep within the earth, growing large, well-defined, interlocking crystals. Peaceful, protected, honored — it was the perfect stone for Mary’s monument." Rumrill’s “journey of reclamation,” as she calls it on the book’s cover, is anything but simple. When it feels as if she’s reached satisfactory closure on the devastating loss of her sister Mary, she’s plunged into another gut-wrenching search for her sister Louise. By the end, the author has tied her whole ordeal together immaculately. This book gets a grip on you early, and never lets go. Read more