A THEORY OF EXPANDED LOVE: Hilarity & drama in a huge California family in 1963

Rebel Catholic daughter. Huge military family. Sixties. Feel-good fiction. Humorous, award-winning novel.

'enough charm to fill the corridors of Vatican City twice over' - Foreward Reviews

Number six and trapped in her huge, devout family in 1963, desperate-for-attention Annie Shea creates a hilarious campaign of lies when the pope dies and their family friend, Cardinal Stefanucci, is unexpectedly on the short list to be elected the first American pope.

Driven to exaggeration and trying to elevate her family to be the holiest of holy rollers in the parish, Annie is tortured by her own dishonesty. But when 'The Hands' visit her in her bed and when her sister finds herself facing a scandal, Annie discovers her parents will do almost anything to uphold their reputation and keep their secrets safe.

Questioning all she has believed and torn between her own gut instinct and years of Catholic guilt, Annie takes courageous risks to wrest salvation from the tragic sequence of events set in motion by her parents betrayal.

'Annie's disarming voice evokes nostalgia for a bygone era and hope for humanity in a weary, modern world.' - Kirkus Reviews