I had never read one of Ad Hudler’s books before reading All This Belongs To Me: A Novel but it only took a few pages for me to add him to my list of favorite authors.

The plot of All This Belongs To Me: A Novel blends the lives of middle-aged runaway wife Geena Pangborn and 60-something Ellis Norton. Ellis, a bachelor, is a meek little man who is fixated on the private lives of Thomas and Mina Edison. Geena is running away from in-laws who blame her for her teenaged son’s accidental death and a husband who won’t come to her rescue.

Just as her money is running out, Geena finds Ellis’ credit card in mail that spills out of a mail truck. Because the name could be male or female, she is able to pass herself off as the card’s owner and she goes on a spending spree. Finally, she decides to locate the person whose identity she has been using. She is more than a little surprised when she meets the fragile little man who yearns to be Mina Edison’s lover.

I won’t go any farther with this as this very sweet and richly written book needs to be read to be appreciated. Buy a copy. You may be as surprised as I was that a man can write such good women’s fiction.