By rssfeeds-admin 
Her 76th published book, “The Lost Book of First Loves”, is set to launch on June 3. It follows the story of Allison Wells, the daughter of a famous literary icon, Carson Wells. After he passes away unexpectedly, Allison makes a shocking discovery through a DNA test — she has a half sister named June she had never known about.
Determined to meet her half-sister and discover the truths of the past, Allison sets off to be an intern at her company, when suddenly, June experiences a cardiac event. After she wakes up in the hospital, Allison invites June to join her back to her family’s cabin in Wyoming — the trip leading to an adventure where the two unravel secrets from their past, and build their new sisterhood.
“This is really a book for anybody who understands the healing power of story,” Thayne shared.
The two sisters find each other when they need each other the most, such as June, who is used to being alone, now needing to navigate her new condition.
“I liked the idea of writing about a really high-powered athlete, woman, very busy, very active, who ends up dealing with a health crisis that suddenly changes what she thinks about herself, how she how she envisions the rest of her life,” Thayne explained.
At the same time, Allison is currently trying to find herself and is second-guessing the future she thought she always wanted.
“[She’s] not sure that she even wants to be an attorney now that she studied so hard. She went to the University of Utah Law School … She’s just at that juncture in her life, trying to figure out what comes next. I liked the idea of bringing them together at that particular point,” Thayne said.
In addition to learning more about their family, themselves, and strengthening their bond together, unexpected romances await both sisters, giving this book several elements that will keep readers eagerly turning the book’s pages.
Personal inspiration
Many parts of the book take inspiration from Thayne’s personal life, such as the setting in Wyoming. Thayne shared that she spent a summer working at Grand Teton National Park in college.
“It’s been a place that I’ve loved visiting ever since then, and so it was fun to be back in that area that I’ve spent so much time in,” she said.
Additionally, in the book, June is diagnosed with Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia. Thayne said she knew people with the same condition in her life who didn’t find out until they were older, inspiring her to learn more about it and include it in one of her books.
Like Allison, Thayne said that her husband was also able to discover family through a DNA test — including an uncle who only lived a few blocks away.
“I loved that idea of discovering family as an adult,” Thayne said. “Being able, as an adult, to create a new relationship, I think that is so tantalizing, and it’s been quite a wonderful journey for us.”
Lessons
“The Lost Book of First Loves” carries with it many powerful lessons about life and love that she hopes readers can take away from the book, Thayne explained.
“We don’t always know people’s stories. We think we do. But everybody’s story is sort of being rewritten as they go — and then sometimes there’s history that we have no idea about. Sometimes it’s good to let those things lie in the past. But sometimes figuring out those things can help survivors move forward with their lives,” Thayne said.
In addition, Thayne shared that readers can learn from June’s experience as she comes to terms with her medical condition and the emotions that surround it.
“There are so many people who struggle with certain health conditions and feel like they’re not worthy of love … and I hope readers take away that whatever we’re dealing with, that doesn’t mean that we don’t have so much more to give to the world. Even though we might have some health problem or a mental health issue, we still have so much to give to the world and so much love to receive and to give,” she said.
Writing Advice
Thayne always loved telling stories, leading her to study journalism and work as a reporter and editor for The Herald Journal for ten years. In 1990, when she had her first child and was on maternity leave, she decided it was time to write book.
After continuing to learn and hone her craft, Thayne published her first book in 1996, and continued writing since, several of her stories becoming New York Times best sellers.
For other writers, Thayne shared it’s important to read as much as you possibly can, and write in the genres that you enjoy the most.
“You can’t think that you can step into a genre and know all there is to know about it by reading a few books and think, ‘well, I should try my hand at that because that’s big right now — romantsy is huge right now. Maybe I should try to write a romantsy.’ If you don’t like that kind of book. If you don’t read that kind of book, it’s not going to be authentic to the readers. So read everything you can,” she said.
Thayne also said to consider reading a book twice, once for enjoyment and another for learning.
“I also tell people if you find a book that you love, if something about the characters, if something about the pacing and the dialogue, or whatever, really hits you hard when you finish it, reread it again immediately, and you will learn so much,” she said. “You read it for the first time as a reader for the joy of it. All writers are readers and we love books and we love story … You can read it through once for pleasure, read it through a second time or to learn, and that’s basically how I learned. I just read things.”
Thayne said that reading the book several times taught her more about other authors’ approach to writing and what could be helpful as she wrote her own books. She also read books about how to write and tried her hand at it.
“Really, it is about just sitting down and doing it. I always tell people, you’ll never regret having written a book. You’ll never regret that you sat down and did it. You’ll regret that if you didn’t, but you’ll never regret that you did,” she said.
What’s next?
Thayne said she just finished writing the follow-up to the “The December Market” series, a fun, romantic holiday read. ABC4 interviewed her about around its release.
“There’s a lot of sweet things and a lot of fun things. It’s a relaxing read. My books have been described as comfort reads. I’m totally great with that because I feel like life is so stressful that we need things in our lives that can give us a place that we can feel at peace and that we can enjoy and enjoy reading somebody else, overcoming their problems, and that’s what I hope readers find in my book,” Thayne had told ABC4 about the book.
She said the next installment of “The December Market” is set to release in October, and she is already starting next summer’s book.
To stay updated on Thayne’s virtual events and learn more about her projects, follow her on Facebook and Instagram.
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