Books published by publisher Francine Pascal

Mystical Creatures, Witches, and Talking Animals live in a Gold and Silver Forest. What adventures await beyond the magic door in grandma's closet? Grandma's house is always a place of fun, games, cooking, and imagining, but not today. An extraordinary storm is brewing outside—and a weird one is brewing inside, too. As the midday sky turns dark, the atmosphere becomes warlike. Mary and Lynda are fighting and throwing playing cards at each other. Tomas and Daniel fight over the trains on the floor. When Andrew tries to break them up, he gets a punch in the eye. Callista has her earphones permanently affixed in her ears and her nose firmly planted in one of her fantasy books. Only Baby JR is peaceful, sleeping in his carrier."Enough!" Grandma shouts over the din. She puts all of them in time out. Thunder booms. Rain hits like pellets, and tree branches whip and crack against the sides of the house. Lightning bolts flash in the windows across the back of grandma's house. W-A-A-N-K-! blares from the TV. It’s a tornado warning. Grandma orders the children to take the pillows and cushions from the couch, and she leads them into her ginormous closet. The older children are sullen and obstinate. The younger ones cry and don't want to stay, but Grandma comforts them, saying that her wardrobe is a very fun place. "What could be fun in a clothes closet?" Andrew asks. With twinkling eyes, Grandma answers, "You'll tell me when the storm is over." Then pointing at the chest of drawers, she says, "Don't open the top drawer. The things in there cannot be played with." Mary thumps her fists on her hips and demands, "What things?""Things that cannot be played with," Grandma answers. With that, she leaves the closet and closes the doors. The storm outside rumbles, louder and louder, but before the next crack of thunder echoes, Andrew hears the CLICK! Grandma has locked them in! Now what? he wonders. The children continue to argue. During a lull in the storm, Mary announces that she's bored. Always curious, she decides to open the forbidden drawer, despite the others telling her not to, and out flies the strangest creature they've ever seen. "Ne-e-e-bey," it’s shrill squawk makes the children cover their ears. The bird flies up, and sits on the clothing rod above grandma’s dresses, but Mary forgets to close the drawer. Before they can think about what to do, more of the same creatures in different colors fly out and run up the walls of the closet. While Andrew and the children try to coax the strange birds back into the drawer, all the lights go out. They are in total darkness. Then, a sliver of light filters in behind Grandma's dresses. It spins, twinkles, and grows stronger and bigger, until it becomes a door. Andrew reaches for the handle and pulls with all his might. When the door opens, bright light floods the closet. The strange birds, hidden behind the clothes, begin to chirp. "Ne-e-bey," they squawk, and fly through the door. Mary runs after them, shouting, "C' mon. We need to get them back."Thus begins the adventure into the Gold and Silver Forest, where they meet strange, talking creatures and witch-sisters, Befana and Cattiva, one good and one evil who fight for control of the magical Nonnaland. Will the children become involved in this battle, and how will they get back to Grandma's closet? Give the gift of imagination! Buy The Magic Door today and send the children on an adventure of fantasy, good versus evil, and self-discovery.

An uptight priest and his high-spirited housekeeper, who likes to gossip. Is this oddball detective team Heaven-sent?Busybody Mrs. B has her heart in the right place—even if her nose isn’t. As the housekeeper and assistant to Father Melvyn Kronkey, she knows everything about everyone in their little Catholic church. But when a public spat fueled by a mischievous pussycat leaves one parishioner dead and another the prime suspect, an old woman’s freedom depends on her snooping.Sorting through the victim’s pilfered journal, with help from an uncannily intuitive cat, the amateur sleuths uncover a shadowy trail of vice. But when the sanctuary suffers a break-in and a mysterious prowler is spotted around town, exposing the truth could send them to an early appointment with St. Peter.Can Mrs. B, Father Melvyn, and their feline friend nab the culprit before the church’s reputation goes to Hell?I’m Going to Kill that Cat is the deliciously intriguing first book in the Housekeeper Mystery cozy series. If you like character-driven stories, quirky personalities, and crime-solving kitties, then you’ll love F. Della Notte’s furry ball of fun.Buy I’m Going to Kill that Cat for a holy rolling whodunit today!

Things have turned deadly at the old Rue de L’Histoire Theatre, in Austin Texas. A stage manager goes missing; a dead body falls to the stage from the light bridge. A prop breaks loose from its fly, and severely injures the ballet mistress, and a young dancer fears for her life. Everyone is shaken and on edge. A police investigation begins, but the dancers and crew fear that it’s the Macbeth curse at work, causing the deadly havoc. In their second case together, stodgy Father Melvyn and high-spirited Mrs. B. confront whatever evil has been unleashed on the new owners of the old theater: the Bernardi-Bono Ballet Company, in which Mrs. B.’s son and daughter-in-law are part owners, making the case very personal.To save her son from financial ruin and worse, Mrs. B. and Father Kronkey become involved in another high stakes drama. Can this heaven-sent, odd-ball detective team, along with LaLa, the uncanny cat-boss of the rectory, piece together a puzzle of murder and betrayal and answer the question, is it a crime or a curse before it’s too late? Find out. Begin reading Catwalk Dead, Murder in the Rue de L’Histoire Theatre today, and enjoy a holy rolling whodunit!

Learn the power of giving everyone a chance to be the best they can be.Being different can hurt. Can being different be fun? It can if you’re given a chance. Mama’s Little Lady was not like the other ponies. One of her front legs was shorter than the other one. When the other ponies walked to the riding pen, their feet went clip-clop, but Mama’s Little Lady’s feet went clippity-thump. The other ponies on the farm teased and made fun of her. The children who came for rides never picked her. Mama’s Little Lady’s heart was broken. Would anyone give her a chance? Buy this heartwarming story of how a pony learned from a handicapped little girl that being different is okay.