Messages from readers

Praise for 'The Duchess of Cypress'

"My only regret was that it was too short...The writing is smooth and mature, and, as the portrait of a woman slowly losing her mind, the storytelling achieves the right balance of comedy and tragedy." Glen Rotchin, author of 'The Rent Collector'

Praise for "Sam's Will"

"PLEASE read this terrific little book. How the author manages to tell this phase of her life without whining and doing nothing but being funny when she needed to, shows the type of person she is so clearly I feel as if I know her. I certainly would like to." -Carol Gold

"...a compelling read...Rotchin has a great eye for detail and this imbued with her sense of humour provides an engaging backdrop to her accounts of dealing with Hasidic businessmen, to tackling the many lawyers and lawsuits associated with Sam's will and to her interactions with the privileged of the Palm Beach community. The real message here is that being an executor of a multi-million dollar estate may sound intriguing - but the reality is fraught with those basic human emotions: mistrust, suspicion, greed, and ultimately grief. What is encouraging is how Rotchin manages to face those demons and survive, somewhat wiser and clearly empowered. For anyone facing the entanglement of inheritance issues now or in the near future, this is a must-read. For those of us who love a well written story that takes place in Montreal - don't miss it!"

"The author's segue from the abrupt closing of her father's estate into three moments, a visit to the dentist, a morning at Alexis Nihon Plaza in Montreal, and a Water Taxi trip down the Intercoastal, replays and refines the opening theme: "This is our last day of Shiva. In a few hours we will be taking our walk around the block, signifying our return to daily living...we'll do a ceremonial walk around the block and like a well-rehearsed troupe, on the count of three, toss our mourner's raggedy necky-things into the wind, symbolizing the escorting of a soul departed and signifying our return to daily living... It's a symphony in print and, like a richly textured piece of music, the notes linger."