John Hilferty

Moonlight in Vermont: a Novel John Hilferty

Named the best Romance Novel of 2007 by the IndieExcellence awards , Moonlight in Vermont opens with a wicked New England Blizzard and the discovery of a frozen body trapped overnight on a ski lift.

From BookReview.com: ?And then we begin the examination of the life of Ethan Atwood, World Cup skiing athlete. Taking the world by storm on the Italian slopes, embracing the joy of the hometown mountains in Vermont and paying homage to ski gods of the Colorado Rockies all comes naturally to Ethan. Coming out of his personal shell is another matter. He is somewhat shy and very much focused on what needs to be done when he straps on the skis. When a fan club invites him to dine, he cannot refuse, and the wheels of fate are set in motion. After a terrible accident, Ethan finds a twisted comfort in one fan's attention. This time in his life will have drastic affects on his future, and dealing with the injury he sustains is only the half of it. Will the love of his life see him through?

This novel so immerses the reader into the atmosphere that is Vermont. I cannot praise the author enough on this aspect of the book. Vermont weather is not simply put up with, it is experienced, and it is obvious that the author lives in it. The intensity that is downhill racing is sent to the reader's mind in images so vivid you will feel the rush of wind and ice crystals on your cheeks. The feel of the ski town comes right off the page and is as real as it gets in a novel. The descriptive writing here is absolutely well done. Characterization, plot and pace are all masterfully executed in John Hilferty's, "Moonlight in Vermont, a Novel." From the very beginning, readers will be hooked and the last few chapters will not allow you to out the book down.?
Review by Heather Froeschl.

A peek inside the Book:
Lina had been shopping. She was carrying a plastic sack of groceries in one hand and a large bag in another with the printing "Just for Baby" on the side. As she walked on the footpath, the sun was showing a pink upper lip as it sank over the mountains. It cast massive, dark shadows upon the lake and the town. She loved the purple twilight when the harsh contrasts of daylight became blends of pastel. People moved indoors. She looked around, counting dots of white and yellow lights of windows. She failed to notice the snow-packed trail made a hitch to the left. The faintly dark roofline of the condos was just ahead. The snow crunched beneath her boots.

She heard nothing when it happened, only a sudden coldness around her ankles.

"My God."

She knew immediately and screamed as a small blanket of ice began slowly collapsing beneath her, sucking her legs and lower body into the lake.

The bags flew in the air as she flung herself on her back, arching her stomach. At the same time, she flailed with her arms, attempting to keep her weight distributed over the cracked and broken surface. An icy path of cold water began shooting down her neck and spine. Her legs were already heavy weights. They began aching. Her heart raced wildly. Panic-filled eyes fastened upward at an evening star and then to the shore onto the little row of houses. The lights of neighbors' kitchens were only a few hundred yards away, but it was an eternity in time. Would they hear the screams? Again and again, she shouted, "Help!" In Italian, she yelled, "Aiuto!" Lina kept her arms flailing backward with her back and head against the ice. She must not go under!

Steve Porino, World Cup skiing analyst for NBC-TV, Outdoor Life, ESPN; former U. S. Ski Team member, wrote that the book is ". . . remarkably perceptive and plausible. Frankly, I feel like I'm taking a walk down memory lane in someone else's boots. . . .it was so incredibly accurate. I could not put it down."

?First Place Award-Winner in the Romance Category of the National Indie Excellence 2007 Book Awards.?PubInsider.com

"Author John Hilferty delivers a knock out romance-suspense!? ?USABookNews.com