Kara Moulter

When Frankie brings a special friend home to her conservative Italian-American family, the two encounter a myriad of cultural obstacles, make an unexpected ally, and try to open stubborn minds in 1970s New England.Growing up in a big, rowdy, Italian-American New England family myself, Sundays were always noisy, cousins were always rowdy, and food was always plentiful. I wouldn't change my family or my childhood for the world.However, as I grew up and ventured out into the rest of the world, I began to see the imperfections and flaws in my warm, loving extended family as well. I noticed culturally inherent racism, bias, and homophobia, especially in the older generations, and even among some of the relatives I love the most. It's been an ongoing struggle to reconcile my intense love for my extended family with our sometimes diametrically opposed world views.To write this story, I took parts of my own history - the Sunday dinner at basement picnic tables was my parents' first date, for example - and intertwined it with experiences shared by friends and colleagues. My hope was to create a relatable, loving, deeply flawed family narrative to use as a tool to shed light on some of the various biases - both subtle and glaring - still common in our society today, and start a conversation about how to move forward.Thank you so much for reading!

When Julia starts receiving ominous text from an unknown caller, she and her younger sister Mari are determined to get to the bottom of it. Things get worse as the texts escalate, and they learn that their family is in danger... or is it? The pair must face their fears, and get to the bottom of this mystery texter, but the truth might just throw them for a loop.