*This post has been slightly updated since it first appeared in 2014. The grandkids (as well as us!) are much older now. As the busy days of December flurry past and we march through our… More
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Sale On My First Novels
Hey Readers!
For a limited time only, my two-book Young Adult/New Adult Calmer Girls series is now on sale on Amazon. These full length novels are recommended for mature young readers, but are popular with older readers as well.
Both are only .99 each on Kindle and 9.99 in Paperback. They are also available on Audible on Amazon.com.
Here’s the scoop on the series:
Calmer Girls, Jennifer’s debut YA novel, is a realistic coming of age tale set on the island of Newfoundland in the summer of 1993. Samantha Cross, a sensitive sixteen-year-old devastated by recent losses, discovers first love and a possible escape from her despair when she meets magnetic Ben Swift.
However, there are problems. He happens to be the new boyfriend of her biggest adversary and life-long irritation, her vivacious sister, Veronica. Then she finds out the boy driving the vintage Thunderbird has some complex and mysterious issues of his own.
This realistic Young Adult novel allows an honest and introspective glimpse inside a teenage girl’s self-deprecating, sometimes humorous angst. Navigating the obstacles of individuality, sibling rivalry and parental divorce, Samantha ultimately learns poignant lessons about love, betrayal and sacrifice.
Calmer Secrets, a New Adult novel, picks up the story four years later. Samantha Cross is all grown up, busy with art school, and free of romantic entanglements. That’s how she prefers it, having renounced love ever since Ben Swift came between her and her sister Veronica four years ago, changing their lives forever. But when an old friend turned sexy bass player rocks Samantha into a wild infatuation, she rethinks her abstinence.
While feeling out this intense relationship, Ben barges back into their world with devastating news, sending both sisters into a tailspin. In an explosive climax, Veronica reveals long-buried secrets of her own, secrets that could impact all their futures and any hope of reconciliation between the Cross women—a.k.a. the Calmer Girls.
My Shrinking Island: Could This Actually Happen?
While I was writing my novel The Women of Wild Cove, I visualized what my beloved island of Newfoundland would look like in the year 2203. Following the science of sea level rise—due to melting glaciers, ice sheets, and the thermal expansion of water—I imagined it would appear something like this.
My husband Paul drew the map for me. I wanted it to show the renaming of some communities, and where my fictional Wild Cove is located (there are two other actual Wild Coves in the province). But more importantly, I wanted to show how this large island had shrunk from over 40,000 square miles to nearly half that, with peninsulas reduced to archipelagos, tiny islands and shoals. (By the way, Red Indian Lake had a name change after this map was made. It was changed to Beothuk Lake.)
A friend wondered to me why sea level is rising while many lakes are now showing lower levels. So I asked Google: “Yes, you can have sea level rise and low water levels in lakes simultaneously, because they are different phenomena influenced by different, though sometimes connected, factors. Sea levels are rising globally due to climate change, while individual lake levels fluctuate based on local factors like precipitation, evaporation, snowmelt, and water usage, and can also be impacted indirectly by rising sea levels.”
And of course, science tells us sea level rise is due to human activity.
Have you noticed changes in water levels in your neck of the woods? Do you think there is any possibility of a reversal at this point?
September Revisited: Gotcha Day
Happy October, Friends and Followers!
It’s been a busy few weeks for me lately, but I didn’t want the date of September 27 to go unnoticed here on my blog, as it marked the first anniversary of our adoption of Louie and Gordie.
In some ways, their Gotcha Day seems like only yesterday. But then I think of how much these two little darlings have flourished in the space of a year. Remembering how Gordie was so skittish and food insecure, and how at first he didn’t know how to use the little flap door to his litter box, it seems like eons ago.
And then there was Louie’s behaviour when we first brought him home, hiding under my treadmill or the spare bed until he felt more comfortable with us.
Nowadays, they are both well adapted to life here with us on Perry’s Point. And we can’t imagine a single day or night without them!
They are still young cats at ages two and four, so we look forward to many more years—and anniversaries—together.
There are no ordinary cats. – Colette
The Women of Wild Cove has Launched!
Hi Everyone,
My new speculative fiction novel has been released as of September 1st. What has me excited is that it’s already been selected as an Amazon Editors’ Pick for September in the Best Science Fiction & Fantasy category! It is now available in paperback and ebook, with audiobook to follow. Also available at Indigo.ca, Apple Books, Bookshop.org, and other book sites.
After global collapse, the island of Newfoundland in the warming waters of the North Atlantic has survived under female rule. Children are raised by a network of caregivers, guided by the principles of “It Takes a Village.” But the civilization is threatened when its birth rate suddenly stagnates.
THE WOMEN OF WILD COVE is a survival tale of divided loyalties, love and sacrifice, gender equality, and uneasy alliances in a climate-changed world.
Photo Challenge: The “Window” Seat
Lou and Gordie’s favourite seat? Any window ledge in our house! And by the way, we don’t have another cat in the microwave. 😉😻
Photo Challenge: Pull Up a Seat
Sunday Snaps: My Neighbourhood*
“Through the farm” is a shortcut path here in Newtown that has existed, perhaps, since the village was first settled. It is no longer a farm, but I love to start my walks through there because it is so peaceful.
Granted, these are not your average neighbourhood photos, but I enjoy taking in the view of some homes on Perry’s Point along the way.
I hope you are enjoying a peaceful Sunday too, friends. ☀️
A Purry Point of View Part 3: Happy International Cat Day!
Hey there, friends and felines! Lou and Gordon Purry here, delighted to be back on WordPress to spend a part of International Cat Day with you all.
To commemorate the occasion, Jennifer asked us to share some of her favourite cat quotes on her blog today, as well as some of her much-loved photos of us.
So here goes!
“One cat just leads to another.” – Ernest Hemingway
“I have lived with several Zen masters—all of them cats.” –Eckhart Tolle
“Perhaps one reason we are fascinated by cats is because such a small animal can contain so much independence, dignity, and freedom of spirit.” – Lloyd Alexander
“I’m not spoiled, my human is just well trained.” – Unknown
“Cats: the original supermodels.” – Unknown
“There’s no need for a piece of sculpture in a home that has a cat.” – Wesley Bates
“Heaven will never be Paradise unless my cats are there waiting for me.” – Unknown
🩷 🐾 💙 🐾. 🩷 🐾. 💙 🐾. 🩷 🐾. 💙 🐾. 🩷
If you are spending part of today with a fellow feline, please give him or her some love!
~ Head Bumps & Nose Kisses, Louie & Gordie 😻😻
Free Library Swag? Thank you!
I was pleasantly surprised this week to get a bonus with my local library checkouts: a lovely new mug! Our librarian only had a few come in, so he was limited in who he could give them to. But because my husband probably uses the local library more than any other patron(and perhaps me as a close second), the first name that came to him was Paul. Much appreciated, Austin!
As for that book in the photo, Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, I am absolutely loving it so far. Weir is the author of The Martian, a popular novel that was made into a very popular movie. Science fiction at its best.
Do you use your local library? Do tell. 📚
Further reading in my post from 2019: In Praise of Librarians. Many supportive comments of our libraries and of those who work in them.
“The very existence of libraries affords the best evidence that we may yet have hope for the future of man”
― T.S. Eliot
Book News!
Hello friends, followers, and my fellow book lovers.
I am pleased to share some news.
My latest novel, The Women of Wild Cove, will be published on September 1st.
Publisher: Running Wild Press
A short synopsis:
After global collapse, the island of Newfoundland in the warming waters of the North Atlantic has survived under female rule. Children are raised by a network of caregivers, guided by the principles of “It Takes a Village.” But the civilization is threatened when its birth rate suddenly stagnates.
THE WOMEN OF WILD COVE is a survival tale of divided loyalties, love and sacrifice, gender equality, and uneasy alliances in a climate-changed world.
At this time, the book is available for pre-order in e-book form only. Here’s the Amazon link.
When the book is officially released on September 1st, the paperback will then become available.
About the Author:
Jennifer Kelland Perry is a Canadian blogger, writer, avid reader and animal lover. Born in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, she left the city behind in 2010 to enjoy rural life beside the ocean with her husband and two spoiled cats. Jennifer is the author of Calmer Girls, a two-book coming-of-age series, and a proud member of WritersNL. Visit her writing and photography blog at: jenniferkellandperry.com
By the way, if you are a member of LibraryThing, their April 2025 Batch is now available for Early Reviewers! Hit the link and scroll down to my book if you’d like a chance to review my new novel for free.
A Purry Point of View Part 2: Louie
Hi Folks and Felines! Louie here, finally getting my turn to guest blog on Jennifer’s Journal.
Gordie really let me have it on his guest post last time, didn’t he? Well, guess what? I’m here to spill the tea on him! You see, my new brother for the last six months is not as innocent as he would have you believe.
It all happened last fall on Thanksgiving Sunday. After Jennifer and Paul had their meal of roast turkey with all the trimmings, they were about to relax in the living room and leave the turkey, covered in foil, on the counter to finish cooling before putting it in the refrigerator.
But knowing how hungry Gordie seemed to act all the time, Paul suggested putting it back in the oven with the door just ajar.
Lo and behold, when Jennifer came out to get a drink, what did she see? My brother Gordie SITTING ON THE OVEN DOOR, FACE INTO THE TURKEY! He had torn the foil neatly away and had taken a perfect circle of bites out of the drumstick. He looked at her as if to say “Nothing to see here!” All Jennifer could do was laugh.
You see, as was explained to me, Gordon had a somewhat severe case of what is known as food insecurity. Because he had been a runaway stray for a long period of time before his adoption, he was overly anxious about when he would get his next meal. He isn’t as bad as that anymore, thank goodness. The worst he’s done since is grab a pack of deli ham off the counter where it was defrosting. Jennifer found his unsuccessful attempt to open it on the floor with a few tooth marks in it.
I’ve grown to love my silly sibling, even though he does weird things sometimes—just like me.
Oh, I almost forgot: look what Jennifer’s daughter included with her and Paul’s Christmas presents:
Aren’t we cute? These socks were made specially by soxos.ca, a proudly Canadian company. 🇨🇦
Thanks, Jennifer, for letting me share my two cents on your blog. Purrs and nose bumps to all, love Louie. 🐾
Jennifer's Journal 