A stand-alone historical novel, The Depth of Beauty follows on the heels of A.B. Michaels’ award-winning fiction debut, The Art of Love.
Born to wealth and prestige, handsome and successful in his own right, Will Firestone is the crème de la crème of 1903 San Francisco society. But when a business venture draws him into the city’s reviled Chinatown, his notions of what matters in life are tested in the extreme. With the help of an exotic young mother and a mysterious orphan, Will embarks on a journey of self-discovery, where love, danger and tragedy will change his life forever.
The Depth of Beauty is part of a dual-genre series, “Sinner’s Grove,” which chronicles the family and friends of a world-famous artists’ retreat on the northern California coast. The stories follow both historical and contemporary tracks, and can be read separately or together for greater depth. Other titles in the series include the contemporary suspense novels Sinner’s Grove and The Lair.
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The parade was boisterous and joyful. Mandy delighted in being part of it, even though she was disappointed that Gus and Lia were too busy at The Grove to make it this year. Despite her resolve, she found herself thinking about Will and couldn’t help but look for him in the crowd. He had probably seen the parade countless times. He no doubt knew the mission girls were marching, but would he care enough to watch them?
Mandy continued to scan both sides of the street until, near the corner of Dupont and Commercial Street, she actually saw him. She couldn’t believe her luck. She started to wave, but stopped herself just in time.
He was not alone.
He was standing next to a pretty blond woman, his head tilted down so that he could hear what she was saying over all the noise in the street. The lady was smiling up at him and pushed playfully against his chest. They looked perfectly matched standing there so close together. Mandy’s heart contracted. She’d met the woman at the Firestones’ New Year’s Eve party. What was her name—Beatrice? Bea?
She was so discouraged to see Will with the blond that she didn’t notice the first rotten tomatoes being lobbed toward her group. Only when one of them hit Chin Moon, causing the girl to stumble, did she cry out, “Hey!” She quickly scanned the sidelines and saw to her dismay that spoiled fruit was being lobbed at them from both sides. She heard shouts and winced. The angry voices were hurling insults in Cantonese.
“Whores!” they cried, and “Hundred Mens’ Wives!”
She was so busy searching for the source of the hatred that she didn’t realize the fruit had been replaced with rocks … until one struck her in the head.
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Born and raised in northern California, A.B. Michaels holds master's degrees in history and broadcasting, and worked for many years in the public relations and marketing fields. An avid quilter and bocce player, she currently lives in Boise, Idaho with her husband and two furry "sons" who don't seem to realize they're just dogs.
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