REST IN PEACH

Rest In Peach is based on a relatively unknown historical fact - the temporary use after Pearl Harbor of a West Virginia luxury resort to house over four hundred German diplomats, kicked out of their embassy and consulates. 

As the State Department overseers lose control and the Nazis act more like conquerors than prisoners, a local girl is killed. To get even, the women in town put aside old jealousies and rivalries to conduct an elaborate heist involving the diamond encrusted gold medals that many of the Nazis so arrogantly wear. 

But the story is really about Sally, a twenty-year old in a small town where the decent boys have enlisted. The close knit community is quietly seething as their need for jobs trumps their patriotism. Her outlet is photography. She candidly chronicles the Nazis as the debauchery of the liquor houses, brothels, opium establishments, quack spas, and gambling clubs in the rough end of town moves up into the sedate world of the hotel. She faces a tough choice—publication of these photos might get her a job at a big city paper, but may also ruin the reputation of her town and expose her boyfriend who has become too chummy with the Germans.  

MY BOOKS