Andrea is a life long lover of reading, love, and chocolate, whose work embraces her strong matriarchal heritage. She hopes her writing will instill in her readers the idea that a woman can find their independence while keeping homegrown values. Still living in her childhood home, Andrea hears the voices of her past. She has relied on them to tell her stories. “My mother always said I would find my way. I never knew what she meant until after she was gone. Then her voice came loud and clear, and I used it to write this book,” she says. Wife of 25 years and mother of three children, she had dedicated her early life to helping her family business grow. She now works for the city of New York. Five years ago, she found herself in the hospital. A simple trip home from work went awry, breaking her hip. Not used to being idle, six months in a wheelchair gave her the time to write. It was there her mind was once again allowed to wander. Starting with her vivid imagination, she scrolled through pictures of her honeymoon in Jamaica; her mind went back into the past. Not her past, but the past of others who could have lived in a large mansion at the top of a hill covered in sugar cane. She stepped into a world with vivid colors and magic. Having already developed a polish to her writing abilities while gaining a B.A. degree with a dual major in Marketing and English Literature, she wrote what she saw and what she heard as if someone whispered in her ear. Andrea’s hard work and long hours have paid off. Upon completion of her manuscript, she described feeling the same whoosh she felt when she delivered her children into the world. She is thankful she can bring her work to her readers.