Originally from Toronto, Canada, the pandemic caused Patricia and her husband to move two hours north to The Blue Mountains with Georgian Bay in their ‘front yard’ and ski hills 8 minutes away. An admitted travel fanatic, Patricia can pack a bag in a flash and be ready to go anywhere … particularly the south of France, for her annual visit.
As of January, 2015, along with being an indie author, Patricia has also published with Lake Union Publishing. This is the women’s fiction arm of Amazon Publishing.
With a focus on her love of the south of France, women’s issues and ageing, her stories celebrate the feminine spirit and the power of friendship. Encouraging women of all ages to stare down the fear factor and embrace change, Patricia has heard from readers (men too!) ages 20 to 83.
Her award-winning debut novel The Bridge Club was published in 2010 and the audiobook, read by Patricia, is available on Audible. In December 2020, the Tenth Anniversary edition of The Bridge Club was published with added content and a new Epilogue. This version answers a critical question left hanging in the original publication.
Patricia’s second novel, The Promise of Provence received a 2014 National Indie Excellence Finalist Award in Literary Fiction. An Amazon Hot New Release in April 2013, The Promise of Provence was also a USA Best Book 2013 Finalist ~ Women’s Fiction.
As of today, February 6, 2025, there are over 12,000 reviews on Amazon with a rating of 4.3*.
The Promise of Provence, Promises To Keep, I Promise You This, comprise the three books of the Love in Provence trilogy, published by Lake Union, along with Patricia’s fifth novel, Drawing Lessons, on October 1, 2017. Drawing Lessons was a semi-Finalist for the Chanticleer Somerset Literary Award.
In 2019 and 2020, Patricia responded to requests from readers for more stories about the beloved characters in the Love in Provence trilogy. The three novellas of The Villa des Violettes series are the result. Book #4, Deck The Halls at the Villa des Violettes was published in December 2023.
As writers do, Patricia is currently at work on her thirteenth novel … taking her readers back to France! Untitled at the moment, she hopes to have this story ready for the world by December, 2025.
THE SECRETS WE HIDE, was published in August, 2022. This novel has been recognized with several awards including Winner of the 2022 Book Excellence Award for Womens Fiction and the 2024 International Impact Book Women’s Literary Fiction Award winner. It was also a Finalist in the 2022 Somerset Literary and Contemporary Fiction Awards.
And just when she thought she would return to writing in France, she was invited by 7 author friends to contribute a short novel (200 pages) to the brand new Sail Away series. It was too much fun to turn down and such a pleasure to collaborate with friends. All the delightful stories are standalone. Her book, LOST AT SEA, is available in ebook and print and will take you away on unforgettable cruise in the Mediterranean, including France … no surprise there! She hopes you will climb aboard and enjoy!
In 2024, with many of the same writers mentioned above, she contributed Book 9 to the Dragonfly Cove Dog Park series. A NEW LEASH ON LIFE was published on January 1, 2025, and a joy to write. The series is about a litter of eight yellow Labrador Retriever puppies and where each one goes when they leave the breeder. Dog lovers took these books to #1 on Amazon’s Best Sellers in Animal Fiction.
November 2025 brought readers her much-anticipated stand-alone novel, THE FRENCH EFFECT.
Until the pandemic interrupted life, since 2013 Patricia co-led tours of the French Riviera and the countryside of Provence based on the Love in Provence trilogy. The most recent tour was in September 2024. As unforgettable and satisfying as these tours were, Patricia has moved her shared travel experiences in France now to special events with the exciting new concept in travel for mature women, La Joie Homebase.
She invites you to read all about the brilliant travel opportunities offered on the homepage with much more to come. Her first travel experience with La Joie will be an intimate literary week this May on Cap d’Antibes in a lovely seven-bedroom villa. Already sold out, watch the website or contact the founders for future dates.
Find out more at Patricia’s Facebook Author Page, Amazon Author Page, Goodreads, Instagram or her blog where you will find links to her books, social media, and monthly newsletter. She loves hearing from readers, so don’t hesitate to email her.
Her newsletter, sent once a month, contains special giveaways as well as her photography and information about the south of France, her home away from home. Just click on this sign-up link.
And please don’t be confused by the different appearance from earlier photos. Like so many women who were unable to visit a hair salon during the pandemic, there’s been a change! This is still her! No more hair colour and she couldn’t be happier. And neither could her sweet grandpup, Georgia the Goldendoodle … who owns her!
THE SHIT NO ONE TELLS YOU ABOUT WRITING PODCAST WITH BIANCA MARAIS – NOVEMBER 2025
Watch her 2025 television interviews on CP24 Breakfast and CHCH Morning Live.
February 3, 2025 ~ Article in The Globe and Mail
Podcast fun with Blondie (KJ Waters) and the Brit (Suzanne Kelman)
Interview on Barb Taub’s website
Interview on The Riviera Woman website.
Read about Patricia and Kristin Espinasse here.
Busting a Myth about Writing ~Patricia writes about writing
Chatting with Deb about Drawing Lessons at Brook Cottage Books
