There’s something about walking into an independent bookstore that never gets old. The smell of paper and possibility. The spines lined up like old friends. The quiet hum of a place built entirely around the love of stories.

So when I tell you that I’ll be signing copies of Anywhere But Here at Page 1 Books on June 28, I hope you understand why it means so much to me.

I’ve been going to Page 1 since I moved to Albuquerque in 1984. Long before I ever imagined publishing a novel of my own, I wandered those shelves looking for stories and ideas and spending far too much time browsing books I couldn’t always afford to take home. Back when the store still had a coffee shop inside, a friend and I used to spend afternoons there browsing books and drinking coffee, the kind of small ordinary memory that stays with you for decades. Over the years, Page 1 became one of those places woven into my life as a reader and writer.

Page 1 has been part of the Albuquerque community since 1981. It’s the kind of place that feels like home, and that feels exactly right for a book that is, at its heart, about home. About the places we leave and the ones we carry with us.

In a lot of ways, this event feels full circle. A lifelong reader who spent years wandering those aisles is coming back with a story of her own.

About the Book

Anywhere But Here follows Michelle Martinez across two timelines as she investigates the disappearance of her best friend Sylvia. It’s a story rooted in Albuquerque’s North Valley, with the Sandias watching over everything. A novel about friendship, memory, family, loss, and what we owe the people we love most.

I’ve been telling stories set in New Mexico for most of my adult life. I’m a high school history and government teacher by day, a historian by training, and a writer by something closer to necessity. I’ve been doing it too long to stop now.

Anywhere But Here is my debut novel, and bringing it to one of Albuquerque’s most beloved independent bookstores feels like the right way to celebrate it.

Come Say Hello

If you’ve been curious about the book, this is a great chance to pick up a signed copy, ask questions, and talk books for a little while. I love meeting readers in person. There’s nothing quite like it.

And if you want something to look forward to after June, I’ll also be talking a little about my second novel, The Space Between Songs, coming in August. It’s a literary romantic suspense set in western Colorado and New Mexico, and I’m genuinely excited for readers to meet Jessi and Ryan.

But first things first:

June 28
Page 1 Books
5850 Eubank Blvd NE, Albuquerque, NM
page1book.com

Come find me.

Anywhere But Here is also available now on Amazon, including Kindle Unlimited, and through IngramSpark.