Books
Historical Fiction
Silver Harvest
In 1893 California wine country, high-society vineyard heiress Nicola Antelini finds her world turned upside down after she is caught in a compromising position with a married man. Banished from her elegant Napa home, her life further dissolves into a torrent of disaster when her stagecoach is robbed and the notorious Pinstriped Bandit steals her valuable family heirloom—a magnificent emerald and diamond ring. Dressed in torn haute couture, she arrives stranded and penniless in primitive San Luis Obispo, where she must resort to the unthinkable to survive.
The stakes are raised when the Pinstriped Bandit becomes intent on eliminating the witnesses to the stagecoach robbery and develops a psychotic obsession with Nicola. When Nicola realizes her life is in danger, she turns to her newfound friends for help, but little does she know she’s far from safety.
This Silver Harvest celebrates the female spirit with a timeless story of courage and resolve by exploring what it takes to change your nature to one of acceptance without judgment and discover your self-worth. Primarily narrated in the sophisticated voice of Nicola, the story finds ironic humor in many of her misgivings
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Non-Fiction
San Luis Obispo: A History in Architecture
San Luis Obispo was founded in 1772 as a mission in the foothills of the Santa Lucia Mountains on California’s Central Coast. The city that grew from a rustic pueblo, with its scattering of adobe buildings, today has a wealth of architectural styles. From the simple barns of the outlying farm community, to the grand hotels and lively saloons kept busy by the Southern Pacific Railroad depot, and back full circle to the Mission Revival style edifices of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo’s architecture has echoed its history. Motor travel brought the world’s first motel to this half-way point on California’s historic Highway 101, and the famously zany tourist attraction, the Madonna Inn.
Author Janet Penn narrates this visual tour of the town’s architectural treasures and tells about the people who built and lived in them. Photographs are drawn from the extensive collection of the History Center of San Luis Obispo County.
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San Luis Obispo County Wineries
San Luis Obispo County’s world-renowned wine country presents California’s Central Coast residents and visitors with an unforgettable adventure in wine tasting. Dozens of picturesque tasting rooms set among vineyard-covered valleys and rolling hills offer guests a feast for the eye and unique, award-winning vintages to please the palate.
In San Luis Obispo County Wineries, author and photographer Janet Penn makes the journey among the region’s many historical and newly established wineries easy and fun as well as informative. She profiles 60 of the area’s premier wineries, providing wine tasters with clear and simple directions to the vintners and wines of their choice. Striking color photographs illustrate these perfect destinations for wine sampling, gourmet gifts, attractive décor, and enchanting landscape.
This comprehensive guide outlines the setting and history of each profiled winery, its precise location, the winemaker’s specialty, tasting-room hours, banquet facilities, and contact information. Special recipes to match featured wines are also included, as well as a list of available lodging for visitors who wish to stay overnight in this spectacular wine region.
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Santa Barbara County Wineries
Santa Barbara County’s internationally acclaimed wine region offers visitors and residents a memorable wine-tasting odyssey. The area features unique tasting rooms set among bucolic, vineyard-covered valleys and rolling hills and in the charming villages of Los Olivos, Santa Ynez, Los Alamos, and Solvang, as well as in the city of Santa Barbara
In Santa Barbara County Wineries, author and photographer Janet Penn makes the tour of the county’s many early and newly established wineries easy, fun, and informative. She profiles 50 of the area’s premier wineries and includes six wine-tasting venues representing 26 additional wineries, providing wine tasters with clear and simple directions to the vintners and wines of their choice. Her striking color photographs illustrate these perfect destinations for wine sampling, gourmet gifts, attractive décor, and enchanting landscapes.
This user-friendly guide outlines the setting and history of each profiled winery, its precise location, the winemaker’s specialty, tasting-room hours, banquet facilities, and contact information. Special recipes to match featured wines are also included, as well as a list of available lodging for visitors who wish to stay overnight in this spectacular wine region.