The public is invited to join Donna Pagano at a gala celebration and book signing where she will present her first novel, “Merging Lives.” The event will take place at 6:30 p.m., Saturday, July 18, at Limetree Beach Bistro at Bluebeard’s Beach Club.
There will be a tempting array of complimentary hors d’oeuvres prepared by Chef Jerry DeFreitas. A cash bar will be available and DJ Tahra Richardson will provide a mix of upbeat music.
“Be sure to bring your dancin’ shoes,” said the ever-enthusiastic author. Celebrated for hosting memorable holiday parties during the 1990s while at the helm of the Island Trader, Pagano is determined to revitalize the spirit of those grand gatherings this weekend. “Everyone is invited to join the fun,” she added.
Raised in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the author spent her college years studying forestry in the frosty climes of the Montana wilderness. Her passion for nature was rivaled only by a growing interest in publishing. To that end, she accepted a position with a small independently owned newspaper — the Mountain Trader, and that experience became the foundation for her initial career goal: to one day establish publications of her own. That dream became reality when she founded two popular tropical newspapers and a tourist publication in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
A resident of St. Thomas since 1986, Pagano is perhaps best known for creating and publishing the Island Trader. Delighted by her ability to provide freelance writers with byline opportunities – some for the first time – she soon felt a growing need to find her own voice in the world of writing.
In 1999, Pagano sold the publication to The Virgin Islands Daily News in order to devote more time to crafting novels. Her first book, “Merging Lives,” published by BookSurge, a subsidiary of Amazon.com, will be officially unveiled Saturday evening. A second book, “Connected Souls” is scheduled for release in 2010.
Set partly in the Caribbean, the novel takes a stunning approach to relationships intertwined throughout time. More than unexplained déjà vu moments, the book follows “one woman’s journey through three separate lifetimes.”
Within the 383 pages of the multi-layered novel, the reader should prepare to feel an elusive yet undeniable energy flow that binds some souls together while ripping others apart. In each chapter of this page-turner, Pagano’s fascinating characters struggle, clash, thrive and survive in distinctly different time periods, cultures and geographic locations.
Retailing for $17.99 at Dockside Bookshop and other area bookstores as well as on Amazon.com, all guests attending Saturday’s release party will have the opportunity to purchase copies of it for a special price of $15 each. The author will be on hand to sign books throughout the evening.
