Cast Me Gently
Teresa Benedetto and Ellie Ryan couldn’t be more different, at least on the surface.
Teresa still lives at home. As much as she loves her boisterous Italian family, she feels trapped by them and their plans for her life. Their love is suffocating her.
Ellie has been on her own for years, working hard to save up enough to live her dream of escaping from Pittsburgh to travel the world. Except leaving isn’t that simple when she knows her brother is out on the streets of the city somewhere, back from Vietnam, but not home.
When Teresa and Ellie meet and fall in love, their worlds clash. Ellie would love to be part of Teresa’s family, but they both know that will never happen. Sooner or later, Teresa will have to choose between the two halves of her heart—Ellie or her family.
Set in 1980, the beginning of the Reagan era and the decline of Pittsburgh’s steel empire, “Cast Me Gently” is a classic lesbian romance.
Release Date: Oct. 15, 2015
Release Date second edition: 7 November 2020
Length: 101,000 words
Awards: Winner 2016 GCLS Tee Corinne Award; 2016 Rainbow Award Honorable Mention
Reviews
“Cast Me Gently is a story of growing up, of loneliness, of coming out and the transformative affects of falling in love. Caren Werlinger always writes intriguing novels about complex and very real people. Once again her well-crafted plot and elegant prose transport us into the lives of her characters with all consuming intensity.”
– Velvet Lounger –
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“Werlinger does a great job of recreating that first romance, that spark that is felt for the first time, that realization of the emotions, and then all the rationalizations that go through your head trying to conjure a reality where you can just bring your female lover over for Thanksgiving.”
– Cynthia Corral –
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“This is my kind of book! Gentle love story with complications created realistically via relatives, friends, jobs, and life in general.”
– Dorothy Bennett –
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