When I Fall

Mel Hawthorne’s prospects with Sarah Gavin appear slim, particularly once her fiancé announces to the world that his pharmaceutical firm has cured cancer—despite knowing the drug’s side effects. While washing windows of a Philadelphia building, Mel believes he's witnessed a murder, but unfortunately the police can’t find a body nor any evidence of foul play. Mel races to solve the alleged crime, but what Sarah’s fiancé doesn’t realize is that concealing the drug’s side effects immediately sparked a twist of fate that’s been smoldering for years, leaving a trail of evidence that no one but Mel and his closest friends cares enough about to pursue.

Mel Hawthorne’s prospects with Sarah Gavin appear slim, particularly once her fiancé announces to the world that his pharmaceutical firm has cured cancer—despite knowing the drug’s side effects. While washing windows of a Philadelphia building, Mel believes he's witnessed a murder, but unfortunately the police can’t find a body nor any evidence of foul play. Mel races to solve the alleged crime, but what Sarah’s fiancé doesn’t realize is that concealing the drug’s side effects immediately sparked a twist of fate that’s been smoldering for years, leaving a trail of evidence that no one but Mel and his closest friends cares enough about to pursue. With the novel's premise and ending inspired in part by the BNL song by the same title, WHEN I FALL examines the differences between the haves and the have-nots—in this case, the corporate robot in the Ivory Tower and the unassuming window washer who rappels down the building to provide him a clear view of the river. Somehow, though, Mel manages to find common ground, regardless of social status, wherever he goes. As Mel's sidekick, Liam, acknowledges, "My friend here is the most grounded person I know, considering he makes a living out of not being on the ground at all." Set in the City of Brotherly Love, the novel is sure to leave you wishing you had pieced the puzzle together before you realize you've been taken on a ride yourself.

A graduate of Penn State University, Barb McClatchy has made a career in business communications within the health care industry. Her twenty-five years experience inside corporate America inspired her to pen this second of three novels, which examines the dichotomy between short-term gratification and finding meaning beyond the daily grind. When not working the day job to put food on the table or writing to keep her sanity, she runs, plays volleyball and works on her tennis game. She lives outside Philadelphia with her very patient and supportive husband Mickey and, when blessed with their presence, her daughter Alison and three stepdaughters, Maureen, Maggie and Jamie, all four of whom are beautiful young women, both inside and out.