Maggie's Mechanics

Book excerpt: The opening scene in this story, set in California during the early 1980s, instantly propels readers into the world of Maggie McIntyre, a woman whose occupation as an auto mechanic makes her unusual and somewhat of a mystery-especially to Bett Holman, the young lesbian who has fallen in love with her. Maggie is injured as she attempts to rescue a man caught up in a roadside explosion. Could the victim be her friend Scotty? Or has he managed to simply disappear into the night? In the days that follow, Maggie must rely on the survival skills she honed as an orphaned child and young adult. But falling in love complicates things. Bett, who has turned her back on healing as a way of life, now finds that she must turn again, taking huge risks in the process, to help Maggie heal on many different levels.