NO PLACE FOR NAKED DOWSERS (The sequel to Corrigans' Pool, which was prestigious Foreword Review's 2011 "Book of the Year" - Historical Romance division) NO PLACE FOR NAKED DOWSERS: Even after Civil War decimated Ella Corrigan's revered Georgia plantation and post-war efforts to revitalize it met with one setback after another, she never dreamed that her new husband, Gentry Garland, would want to leave it all behind and take her and their son to his ranch land in the wilds of Texas. She refuses to go, but Gentry does something that will give her no choice-something that, overnight, turns her love for him into a bitter obsession for revenge. Ella finds Texas in the midst of a killer drought and filled with strange characters that either terrify or revolt her. In constant longing for her family's ancestral plantation home back in Georgia, she devises a plan to return there someday and reclaim her property ... but it will take time and money to do so. The wedge between her and Gentry thickens ... as does the plot. Will Gentry's vast herds of Longhorn cattle be the answer to his money problems or will his need to save his land drive him to a danger that will force Ella to a decision that could have disastrous consequences for them both...

ELLA CORRIGAN'S despair at being jilted pales in light of what follows after she makes the hasty decision to marry a man she has long avoided. Unaware that a friend's secret act of jealousy is responsible for her bitter heartache, she enters an existence never imagined during sweeter days as Mistress of her father's Savannah River plantation - where a mystery is building around the family's phenomenal natural spring, Corrigans' Pool. . . . The South is embroiled in a bloody Civil War by the time Ella discovers that Corrigans' Pool, on her family's property, is much more than the exquisite pond she had thought it to be all her life, but by the time she learns its dangerous secret, she is trapped by a secret of her own, blackmailed, and powerless against one man's unspeakable evil. Haunted by the threat of scandal, she struggles against the horrors of her new existence, an existence she must keep private even from the very people who could help her. Her life comes full circle when the past she has long blamed for her wretchedness steps unexpectedly out of the darkness to face her . . . FIVE STAR FOREWORD CLARION REVIEW (EXCERPT): Ryan's storytelling ability and masterful use of setting, dialogue, and characterization, adds up to an exquisite piece of historical fiction. Corrigans' Pool manages to blend romance, mystery, humor, and tragedy with flawless precision. The romance is moving but subtle, the mystery is suspenseful, and the story flows smoothly to a dramatic and satisfying conclusion. Readers are sure to be enthralled with this exceptional novel. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

NO PLACE FOR NAKED DOWSERS: Even after Civil War decimated Ella Corrigan's revered Georgia plantation, and post-war efforts to revitalize it met with one setback after another, she never dreamed that her new husband, Gentry Garland, would want to leave it all behind and take her and their son to his wild Texas ranch lands. She refuses to go, but Gentry does something that will give her no choice-something that, overnight, turns her love for him into a bitter obsession for revenge. Ella finds Texas in the midst of a killer drought and filled with strange characters that either terrify or revolt her. Among them are the old ex Texas Ranger, foul-mouthed, irreverent, and professed woman hater, Hempstead Grouse; twelve year-old Molly Barton, a victim of incest and ignorance; young Dan Meaney, who would have looked like an innocent schoolboy to Ella upon their first meeting ... if the two 44 colts on his thin hips hadn't contradicted every charitable thought she tried to have of the boy. In Texas, Ella sees her and Gentry's old antagonist, Timon Pledger, in a way she'd never dreamed anyone would ever see the shy, fallen preacher from back home in Savannah-naked as a jaybird, and with a dowser stick clamped to his exposed groin. In constant longing for her family's ancestral plantation, Ella devises a plan to return there someday and reclaim her property; thereby, the wedge between her and Gentry thickens ... threatening the love that both had thought would last forever. Will Gentry's vast herds of Longhorn cattle be the answer to his money problems or will his need to save his land drive him to a danger that will force Ella to a decision that could have disastrous consequences for them both ...

ELLA CORRIGAN'S despair at being jilted pales in light of what follows after she makes the hasty decision to marry a man she has long avoided. Unaware that a friend's secret act of jealousy is responsible for her bitter heartache, she enters an existence never imagined during sweeter days as Mistress of her father's Savannah River plantation - where a mystery is building around the family's phenomenal natural spring, Corrigans' Pool. . . . The South is embroiled in a bloody Civil War by the time Ella discovers that Corrigans' Pool, on her family's property, is much more than the exquisite pond she had thought it to be all her life, but by the time she learns its dangerous secret, she is trapped by a secret of her own, blackmailed, and powerless against one man's unspeakable evil. Haunted by the threat of scandal, she struggles against the horrors of her new existence, an existence she must keep private even from the very people who could help her. Her life comes full circle when the past she has long blamed for her wretchedness steps unexpectedly out of the darkness to face her . . . FIVE STAR FOREWORD CLARION REVIEW (EXCERPT): Ryan's storytelling ability and masterful use of setting, dialogue, and characterization, adds up to an exquisite piece of historical fiction. Corrigans' Pool manages to blend romance, mystery, humor, and tragedy with flawless precision. The romance is moving but subtle, the mystery is suspenseful, and the story flows smoothly to a dramatic and satisfying conclusion. Readers are sure to be enthralled with this exceptional novel. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED