We don’t often get do-overs in life. But I’ve just gotten one and I couldn’t be happier. Now let me back up a little.

This past September I received word that one of my publishers was shutting down. I’d like to say this was the first time I’ve faced such a closure, but it’s not. Since I became an author 30 years ago, I’ve had three publishers call it quits. Which shouldn’t surprise anyone considering the crazy state of the industry.

According to the 2023 Brett-Koehler Publishing article “10 Awful Truths about Book Publishing,” “The book publishing world is in a never-ending state of change. The thin margins in the industry, high complexities of the business, intense competition, severe supply-chain disruptions, churning of new technologies, and rapid growth of other media lead to constant turmoil in bookselling and publishing, including the closure and sale of many publishing companies and publication programs each year.”

What does this mean to an author? Orphan books. When a publisher closes, book rights generally revert to the author. But what happens then? When you consider that approximately three million books are published annually in the U.S. alone—two million of which are self-published—it would seem unlikely that orphan books would make it back into circulation, unless an author wanted to foot the bill.

But I am delighted to say that I am getting a do-over courtesy of Next Chapter Publishing, where two of my novels—Your Forgotten Sons and Wild Horses on the Salt—currently have a home.

The book in question is called Wolf Catcher, a work of historical fiction that takes place in the American Southwest both in modern times and in the 11^th century. Of all my books, this one is the most personal. One of the protagonists is a reporter tasked with ferreting out the identity of a man buried outside of Flagstaff, Arizona almost 900 years earlier. A man whose mummified remains looked different from the people who occupied the area at the time, one who was buried with 600 exquisite funerary objects, identifying him as a man of power and prestige.

The story of the man they call The Magician was my assignment when I worked as a reporter for Arizona Highways Magazine. That the reporter’s name in the book is Kate Butler might be a tipoff that she and I traveled the same path in search of the story. With the exception of the time when bullets are flying, everything that happened to Kate also happened to me.

Note that as a girl who grew up in New Jersey with little knowledge of Native Americans, the investigation was a long learning curve. I charged into my research with little understanding of the cultural traditions I might be trampling and, like Kate, changed a lot along the way.

I’m also happy to have a do-over on Wolf Catcher for another reason. In 2021, before the book was scheduled to launch, I contracted Covid, passed out, and suffered a severely broken leg that had to be surgically repaired. I carry a titanium plate and eleven screws as a reminder. Subsequently, there was no book launch and little marketing, as I spent eight months learning to walk again. As you can imagine, few people ever read the book. I’m hoping to change that this time around.

So my thanks to Next Chapter Publishing for taking Wolf Catcher on. I’m not yet sure of the timeline, but I’ll let you know when the mysterious story of The Magician is back.

Your Forgotten Sons

Inspired by a true story

Anne Montgomery

Bud Richardville is inducted into the Army as the United States prepares for the invasion of Europe in 1943. A chance comment has Bud assigned to a Graves Registration Company, where his unit is tasked with locating, identifying, and burying the dead. Bud ships out, leaving behind his new wife, Lorraine, a mysterious woman who has stolen his heart but whose secretive nature and shadowy past leave many unanswered questions. When Bud and his men hit the beach at Normandy, they are immediately thrust into the horrors of what working in a graves unit entails. Bud is beaten down by the gruesome demands of his job and losses in his personal life, but then he meets Eva, an optimistic soul who despite the war can see a positive future. Will Eva’s love be enough to save him?

Release Date: June 6, 2024

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Anne Montgomery’s novels can be found wherever books are sold.

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