A smiling woman with gray hair, wearing earrings, a purple shirt, and standing outdoors near a tree with blurred green and yellow background.
Book cover of 'Shinbone Lake' by Laura McHale Holland featuring a colorful bird on a wooden flute with a beaded necklace, set against a sparkly, pastel background.

On San Francisco’s Shinbone Lane in 1974, sixteen-year-old runaway Maddy finds refuge among a spirited group of wanderers, artists, and dreamers. Taken in by elderly Clara and her neighbor Ted, she discovers a place where magic blends with reality — and secrets emerge to heal, haunt, and transform lives.

Looking for a book to carry you away right now?

Book cover of "The Kiminee Dream" by Laura McHale Holland, depicting a woman with a ponytail and a dog sitting on grass, looking at a colorful landscape with houses, trees, and a river, with a gold badge indicating recent independent book awards.
Book cover titled 'Aunt Trulys Tales: Enchantment for Story Lovers' featuring whimsical illustrations including a fox, an eagle, fairies, birds, a frog, and a whimsical house in a fantasy forest scene.
Book cover titled 'Reversible Skirt: a memoir' by Laura McHale Holland, featuring a black-and-white photograph of three young girls in vintage dresses, with a sepia-toned background.

  • "If you haven't yet enjoyed Laura McHale Holland's writing, start now! In my world, Holland is the most creative writer I know."

    — Skye Blaine, author of Unleashed, Must Like Dogs and Born to Love

  • "Richly written, full of magical realism and deeply atmospheric, The Kiminee Dream is as much a love letter to the interconnected lives of small town residents as it is a testament to how inexplicably linked our lives are, no matter how far removed."

    — Kristin Fields, Author of A Lily in the Light

  • "I thought I would take my time and just read a little at a time. Nope, each of Aunt Truly's Tales was so fun; I powered through the entire book in one sitting!"

    — Gina R. Mitchell, iReadBookTours

  • "I was hooked on this story from the first page and carried along to the end by a fast-paced plot, believable, dynamic characters, and vivid sensory details."

    — Kathleen Pooler, author of Ever Faithful to his Lead

  • "Reversible Skirt is the tender telling of a odyssey through an abusive childhood. The voice is honest. I feel as if I've known her all my life."

    — Harry Reid, author of The Connected

  • "This book is for writers who want to see the craft at its best and for readers who want to be titillated and thoroughly amazed. I know I was."

    — Linda Loveland Reid, author of Touch of Magenta and Something in Stone

  • "Reversible Skirt is the tender telling of a odyssey through an abusive childhood. The voice is honest. I feel as if I've known her all my life."

    — Harry Reid, author of The Connected

  • "The Kiminee Dream remains a deeply poetic and riveting novel, full of family secrets and the complex relationships right underneath the cheery façade of American normalcy."

    — Royal Young for Indie Reader

  • "Aunt Truly's Tales is such a wonderful escape from the stress of life. And the illustrations are absolutely beautiful with an old-world feel, yet timeless. This is the kind of book to curl up with and savor the magical moments."

    — Tanya Savko, author of Slip and Enough to Go Around

  • "If you love stories of perseverance and survival, if you love books that celebrate the human spirit, if you love books whose words bring the characters to life, you must read Reversible Skirt."

    — C. Hoelter, Amazon Reade

  • "I haven't got a clue how the author gets to these mysterious locales, but she has surprises in store for me when I get there, and it's always a fascinating ride."

    — Barbara Toboni, author of Light the Way and The Bunny Poets

  • "Magical yet grounded, Laura McHale's flash fiction packs a gratifying punch."

    — Olivia Boler, author of The Flower Bowl Spell

  • "The author is an extraordinary storyteller. The slow-building of the story, the twists in the path, and how it all ties together in unexpected ways at the end make The Kiminee Dream one of the best books I've read in a while."

    — Gina R. Mitchell, iReadBook Tours

Work in progress

My current project is a novel set in 1974 on the fictional Shinbone Lane in San Francisco. It's a magical place that draws footloose people seeking things they can't quite articulate. I’ve reached a point in the narrative where I need to divulge how Shinbone Lane got its name. This will be a short story within the main story. I did a lot of brainstorming and discarded several ideas on the name’s origin, but I’ve landed on one now that I think has legs. Click below to read the beginning of the story within the story.

Latest posts

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Shinbone Lane has new reviews!
Shinbone Lane has new reviews!

“Shinbone Lane is one of those books that stays with you. The atmosphere of San Francisco in the 70s feels alive on the page, and the everyday life is done so beautifully.” – Carola Schmidt

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Summer’s waning, and plenty is going on
Summer’s waning, and plenty is going on
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Shinbone Lane just got some love!
Shinbone Lane just got some love!
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