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Mary Volmer

Biography

Mary Volmer

Mary Volmer was born in Grass Valley, California, and now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She earned an MFA in Creative Writing from Saint Mary’s College and a master’s degree from the University of Wales, Aberystwyth, where she was a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar. She has been awarded residencies at the Vermont Studio Center and Hedgebrook and now teaches at Saint Mary’s College. She is the author of CROWN OF DUST and RELIANCE, ILLINOIS.

Photo Credit: Kory Hayden

Mary Volmer

Books by Mary Volmer

Reliance, Illinois
by Mary Volmer - Fiction, Historical Fiction

With a birthmark covering half her face, 13-year-old Madelyn Branch is accustomed to cold and awkward greetings, and expects no less in the struggling town of Reliance. After all, her mother, Rebecca, was careful not to mention a daughter in the Matrimonial Times ad that brought them there. When Rebecca weds, Madelyn poses as her mother’s younger sister and earns a grudging berth in her new house. Deeply injured by her mother’s deceptions, Madelyn soon leaves to enter the service of Miss Rose Werner, prodigal daughter of the town’s founder. Madelyn wants to feel beautiful and loved, and she pins her hopes on William Stark, a young photographer and haunted Civil War veteran.