The official blog of Denise M. Baran-Unland, author. Discover her books for all ages at bryonyseries.com.
Sunday, November 30, 2025
Saturday, November 29, 2025
Friday, November 28, 2025
Story Round-Up: Features in The Herald-News, Nov. 22 through Nov. 28
Good morning!
I have eleven stories online to share with you today - and twelve "Thank You, Veterans" section, which posted on Nov. 8
More stories will go live over the weekend, So please check back at shawlocal.com/the-herald-news.
To see the stories that ran in print this week and aren't online yet, click on the e-edition option at the top of The Herald-News website.
Also, TODAY, we are participating in the 2025 North Pole Christmas Market: 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Renaisssance Center, 214 N. Ottawa St. in Joliet. This event is part of the Joliet City Center Partnership's "Light Up the Holidays Festival and Parade."
For details, please read "BryonySeries at the 2025 North Pole Christmas Market."
And during this holiday season, please consider becoming a "Herald Angel" in Will County or Grundy County. The need for your help is high and - in some cases - truly unprecedented.
Before the stories, I also have a list of additional updates, resources, and information. Please check them out, too.
And if you'd like to find more kindness in your life, consider this book.
And have a great Friday!
Events (or where to find the BryonySeries this fall) - so far:
Dec. 4: WriteOn Joliet Anthology Release Party: 6 to 8 p.m., Joliet Public Library, 150 N. Ottawa St. in Joliet. Everything is free at this event unless you buy a book: free chef-created small bites, free photos with Santa, free opportunity to chat with local authors, who will also be selling their books and other products. WriteOn Joliet will also be selling its 2025 anthology, along with all other anthologies from 2017 onward, including its holiday anthology and "cheetah" anthology.
Dec. 20: BryonySeries "A Gift of Reading" Christmas Party, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., The Book Market in Crest Hill.
What is the BryonySeries?
BryonySeries books-in-progress
Bertrand the Mouse: We have plenty of Bertrand photos and ideas. Several are at the top of the list. At some point, we will assemble and release some more.
The Adventures of Cornell Dyer: Cornell Dyer and the House of Horreur" (because the toymaker's last name is "Horreur.") is stalled until Timothy finished his master's degree, which he did. So now we just have to stop having family emergencies (they just keep coming) and carve some time for a Cornell breakfast (it's been three years since our last one, way, way too long). I'm had surgery July 17 and that further stalled the process. But I'd love to give Sue Midlock ideas for art (she illustrates all the Cornell books), especially since she's actually eager to get drawing.
Brainy Ann: The fifth book in The Girls of the BryonySeries is outlined and the first chapter is written, hurray! Jennifer Wainwright, who welcomed her first child into the world last year, is nearly done with the cover portrait. I let this book slide for other BryonySeries projects...and I'm still letting it (overall) slide, I'm afraid. But I'm hoping we release it early 2026.
Jennifer designed the cover portraits for "Julie and the Too-Hard Homework," "Katie and the Big Fear," "Summer Sisters." and "Karla Joins In," as well as the frontispiece for "Lycanthropic Summer."
Other books: I am not writing a novel this year. But I have an idea for a BryonySeries Christmas anthology that I'd like to release in 2026.
Rebekah is also slowly (very, very slowly) updating the BryonySeries YouTube and Pinterest accounts. And she' catching up with Kindles for some of the BryonySeries books. So do watch for those.
For books and more information about the series, visit bryonyseries.com.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Sue's Diner is a fictional restaurant in the fictional Munsonville that only exists in the BryonySeries.
Each Wednesday, we post a new recipe. The recipe is either featured in one of our cookbooks, will be featured in an upcoming cookbook, or is just an "extra" we want to share with you.
Check out the weekly recipe here.
WRITERS
If you'd like to officially join WriteOn Joliet, we have two tiers of dues and two ways to attend meetings. We also have a marketing arm that's getting longer every year. Check us out at writeonjoliet.com.
Daily updates: I haven't posted anything on Twitter/X (except a daily Bible verse) since September I can no longer schedule posts in advance. I'm not sure yet how to manage the account without that option. But you're welcome to follow me at @Denise_Unland61.
BryonySeries stuff: I used to curated content relating to the BryonySeries on Twitter/X at @BryonySeries and still post assorted related content at facebook.com/BryonySeries, youtube.com/user/BryonySeries, and themes of each book in the BryonySeries at pinterest.com/bryonyseries.
Again, not sure yet about the direction of the BryonySeries Twitter/X account. Still mulling that over.
And of course, please follow the adventures of Bertrand the Mouse on Instagram at bertrand_bryonyseries.
QUESTIONS
Email me at bryonyseries@gmail.com.Thank you for reading The Herald-News. And for reading this blog. And if you've read (or plan to read) any of my books. Your support is greatly appreciated.
FEATURES
Be a Herald Angel: Help Will County United Way meet
‘unprecedented’ community need
Be a Herald Angel: Help Grundy County United Way meet
high community need
Silver Cross Hospital in New Lenox earns another ‘A’
rating for patient safety
Joliet Rotary hosting Merry Merry Margarita 2 fundraiser
Plainfield Portillo’s drive-thru opening Monday
Wetzel’s Pretzels opened inside Romeoville Walmart
Celebrate Small Business Saturday in Plainfield
Craft’d Plainfield hosting stout beer release party
https://www.shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/2025/11/26/craftd-plainfield-hosting-stout-release-party/
Will County Pets of the Week: Nov. 24, 2025
Will County rescues have dogs and cats for adoption
https://www.shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/2025/11/24/will-county-pets-of-the-week-nov-24-2025/
THANK YOU, VETERANS
The dedicated dozen: 12 veterans serve at Joliet School District 86
Joliet emergency medicine tech, veteran found new way to serve
Joliet Marine veteran is ‘huge advocate for mental health’
Marine veteran serves memorial squads at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery and Wilmington
NuMark Credit Union supports veterans year-round
‘Nearly every board member is a veteran’
Marine veteran serves families now as Silver Cross nurse practitioner
Serving veterans is a priority for Crest Hill business owner
Illustration by Matt Coundiff for "Visage"
Thursday, November 27, 2025
“Thanksgiving” by Edgar Guest
“Thanksgiving”
by Edgar Guest (1881-1959)
Gettin'
together to smile an' rejoice,
An'
eatin' an' laughin' with folks of your choice;
An'
kissin' the girls an' declarin' that they
Are
growin' more beautiful day after day;
Chattin'
an' braggin' a bit with the men,
Buildin'
the old family circle again;
Livin'
the wholesome an' old-fashioned cheer,
Just
for awhile at the end of the year.
Greetings
fly fast as we crowd through the door
And
under the old roof we gather once more
Just
as we did when the youngsters were small;
Mother's
a little bit grayer, that's all.
Father's
a little bit older, but still
Ready
to romp an' to laugh with a will.
Here
we are back at the table again
Tellin'
our stories as women an' men.
Bowed
are our heads for a moment in prayer;
Oh,
but we're grateful an' glad to be there.
Home
from the east land an' home from the west,
Home
with the folks that are dearest an' best.
Out
of the sham of the cities afar
We've
come for a time to be just what we are.
Here
we can talk of ourselves an' be frank,
Forgettin'
position an' station an' rank.
Give
me the end of the year an' its fun
When
most of the plannin' an' toilin' is done;
Bring
all the wanderers home to the nest,
Let
me sit down with the ones I love best,
Hear
the old voices still ringin' with song,
See
the old faces unblemished by wrong,
See
the old table with all of its chairs
An'
I'll put soul in my Thanksgivin' prayers.
Wednesday, November 26, 2025
Sue's Diner: Thanksgiving Salad Dressing
Each week for the last couple of weeks, we've featured one selected recipe from the Thanksgiving menu that's featured in the BryonySeries cookbook: Memories in the Kitchen: Bites and Nibbles from "Bryony," which is a permanent fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Will and Grundy Counties.
For the Marchellis’ first Thanksgiving in Munsonville, Melissa’s little brother Brian shows off the depth of his newly acquired culinary skills, under the direction of his mentor, Steve Barnes, the village maintenance man.
This week, I'm featuring a really delicious salad dressing attributed to Steve in the novel and submitted by Janet Cooney for the cookbook.
Now, you won't be able to receive a print copy before Thanksgiving (unless you live near me, and you arrange for pickup), but you can download a Kindle version now.
You can try also try the salad dressing recipe on the Sue's Diner page on the BryonySeries website. Proceeds from the Kindle version also benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Will and Grundy Counties.
But try the recipe this week. It will be gone some time next week. A new non-Thanksgiving recipe will take it's place.
For troubleshooting questions, email us at bryonyseries@gmail.com.
By the way, Sue's Diner is only real in the BryonySeries world. But didn't Timothy do a great job making the page look like a real menu at a vintage diner?
Here is the full diner page: bryonyseries.com/sue-s-diner. You can't really order, of course (wouldn't it be great if you could?).
For more BryonySeries recipes, check out our three cookbooks at our BryonySeries bryonyseries.com/general-store.
Tuesday, November 25, 2025
12 Quotes from Cornell Dyer and the Flu
When we were getting ready to release Bryony back in 2011, my daughter Sarah (who did a lot of the marketing for me) suggested I pull thirty teaser quotes from the book that she could post on Facebook, one each day.
It’s Christmas Eve and a very sick Cornell Dyer is
stuck in the hospital, frustrated because he can’t find the vending machine and
because he’s too sick to solve his latest supernatural mystery. Another patient
tries to help Cornell, not with food and medicine, but with a journey into
realms Cornell doesn’t want to go.
Prologue:
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!
Chapter 1: Snacking to Death
“I said look at me. What do you see?”
“I see an
old, white-haired man in a bathrobe sitting at a desk who won’t let me ask him
for a quarter for the vending machine.”
“No, no! You’re focusing on the outside. What do you see?”
Chapter 2: Walkers and Wheelchairs
“This is not a regular hospital, Charlie.”
“Sure it is.” Charlie gestured around him. “It has doctors, nurses, patients, loved ones. Some people get well and go home. And some people get well in other ways and go to their eternal home.”
“What about the golden cords? I’ve never seen cords like this in a hospital.”
“The golden cords have nothing to do with the hospital, Professor. Here, look.”
Chapter 3: On a Thin Line
The cats continued playing and prancing as if they were frolicking in a spring meadow instead of a subterranean laboratory.
Chapter 4: Opposites Attract
“We heard you saved him,” one nurse said. “How’d you know he wasn’t faking?
“We didn’t. That’s why we ordered pizza first. He wasn’t going to fool us again.”
Chapter 5: Darkness is Dangerous
And he heard a
friendly voice, the friendliest voice he had ever heard, a voice he had never
expected to hear ever again.
It’s the fever, Cornell told
himself. The last time he heard that voice, Cornell had a fever.
Chapter 6: A Trip to the Beach
"I didn’t think I’d see you for a long, long time yet,” Jack continued. “Are you sure you’re supposed to be here?”
Cornell sighed happily. “Who cares? It’s perfect here. Wait. What’s that noise?”
Chapter 7: Sudden Shocks
The sun had nearly set, and twilight had nearly arrived by the time Charlie exited the long highway and pulled into a gas station.
Finally! Snacks!
Chapter 8: Grandpa Mo
“I know you’ve helped a lot of people, Cornell,” Grandpa Mo said. “But you’ve missed out on the most important part of life.
“It’s true,” a thick syrupy voice piped up.
Oh, no, Cornell thought. It couldn’t be.
He whirled around.
Chapter 9: Larry the Llama
"I am the Llama of Cornell Present, and I am here to help you
with your attachment issues.”
“I don’t
have attachment issues!”
“Oh, no? Then why didn’t you go to prom?”
“You were there! I was making a potion!”
“You were too afraid to spend an entire evening with the very pretty Amy Whitefield!”
“Who?”
“See? Attachment issues.”
Chapter 10: Picture Perfect
After taking two
slices, he positioned himself in the middle of the room, to best answer their
questions and quote his prices.
Epilogue:
No potato chips. No orange drink.
Not even a candy cane or a chocolate Santa.
What kind of food was this?
Monday, November 24, 2025
BryonySeries at the 2025 North Pole Christmas Market
We are thrilled to participate for the secpond year in a row at the North Pole Christmas Market at Joliet's annual "Light Up the Holidays" event, which is held every year in several downtown locations the day after Thanksgiving.
The Joliet City Center Partnership hosts a wonderful event with live entertainment, ice skating, horse-drawn carriages, visits with Santa, ice sculpture demos, children's Ferris wheel, slide, tree lighting, and a large parade towards evening.
Bertrand and Uncle Barty are super excited to attend the Christmas Market portion of the event, especially we are helping to spread the joys of reading to children of all ages while also finding home for some of their mouse friends.
Here is an overview of BryonySeries books we'll have for sale.
And for every two BryonySeries children's books you donate for Santa Services and the Will County Children's Advocacy Center, you may adopt one of Bertrand's friends (while mice area available for adoption).
Available mice may not resemble these former adoptable mice.
Sunday, November 23, 2025
Saturday, November 22, 2025
Friday, November 21, 2025
Story Round-Up: Features in The Herald-News, Nov. 15 through Nov. 21
Good morning!
I have nine stories online to share with you today - and twelve "Thank You, Veterans" section, which posted on Nov. 8
More stories will go live over the weekend, So please check back at shawlocal.com/the-herald-news.
To see the stories that ran in print this week and aren't online yet, click on the e-edition option at the top of The Herald-News website.
Before the stories, I also have a list of additional updates, resources, and information. Please check them out, too.
And if you'd like to find more kindness in your life, consider this book.
And have a great Friday!
Events (or where to find the BryonySeries this fall) - so far:
Nov. 22: BryonySeries "Day of Gratitude" at The Book Market: 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., The Book Market in Crest Hill.
Nov. 28: Christmas Market: 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Renaisssance Center, 214 N. Ottawa St. in Joliet. This event is part of the Joliet City Center Partnership's "Light Up the Holidays Festival and Parade."
Dec. 4: WriteOn Joliet Anthology Release Party: 6 to 8 p.m., Joliet Public Library, 150 N. Ottawa St. in Joliet. Everything is free at this event unless you buy a book: free chef-created small bites, free photos with Santa, free opportunity to chat with local authors, who will also be selling their books and other products. WriteOn Joliet will also be selling its 2025 anthology, along with all other anthologies from 2017 onward, including its holiday anthology and "cheetah" anthology.
Dec. 20: BryonySeries "A Gift of Reading" Christmas Party, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., The Book Market in Crest Hill.
What is the BryonySeries?
BryonySeries books-in-progress
Bertrand the Mouse: We have plenty of Bertrand photos and ideas. Several are at the top of the list. At some point, we will assemble and release some more.
The Adventures of Cornell Dyer: Cornell Dyer and the House of Horreur" (because the toymaker's last name is "Horreur.") is stalled until Timothy finished his master's degree, which he did. So now we just have to stop having family emergencies (they just keep coming) and carve some time for a Cornell breakfast (it's been three years since our last one, way, way too long). I'm had surgery July 17 and that further stalled the process. But I'd love to give Sue Midlock ideas for art (she illustrates all the Cornell books), especially since she's actually eager to get drawing.
Brainy Ann: The fifth book in The Girls of the BryonySeries is outlined and the first chapter is written, hurray! Jennifer Wainwright, who welcomed her first child into the world last year, is nearly done with the cover portrait. I let this book slide for other BryonySeries projects...and I'm still letting it (overall) slide, I'm afraid. But I'm hoping we release it early 2026.
Jennifer designed the cover portraits for "Julie and the Too-Hard Homework," "Katie and the Big Fear," "Summer Sisters." and "Karla Joins In," as well as the frontispiece for "Lycanthropic Summer."
Other books: I am not writing a novel this year. But I have an idea for a BryonySeries Christmas anthology that I'd like to release in 2026.
Rebekah is also slowly (very, very slowly) updating the BryonySeries YouTube and Pinterest accounts. And she' catching up with Kindles for some of the BryonySeries books. So do watch for those.
For books and more information about the series, visit bryonyseries.com.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Sue's Diner is a fictional restaurant in the fictional Munsonville that only exists in the BryonySeries.
Each Wednesday, we post a new recipe. The recipe is either featured in one of our cookbooks, will be featured in an upcoming cookbook, or is just an "extra" we want to share with you.
Check out the weekly recipe here.
WRITERS
If you'd like to officially join WriteOn Joliet, we have two tiers of dues and two ways to attend meetings. We also have a marketing arm that's getting longer every year. Check us out at writeonjoliet.com.
Daily updates: I haven't posted anything on Twitter/X (except a daily Bible verse) since September I can no longer schedule posts in advance. I'm not sure yet how to manage the account without that option. But you're welcome to follow me at @Denise_Unland61.
BryonySeries stuff: I used to curated content relating to the BryonySeries on Twitter/X at @BryonySeries and still post assorted related content at facebook.com/BryonySeries, youtube.com/user/BryonySeries, and themes of each book in the BryonySeries at pinterest.com/bryonyseries.
Again, not sure yet about the direction of the BryonySeries Twitter/X account. Still mulling that over.
And of course, please follow the adventures of Bertrand the Mouse on Instagram at bertrand_bryonyseries.
QUESTIONS
Email me at bryonyseries@gmail.com.Thank you for reading The Herald-News. And for reading this blog. And if you've read (or plan to read) any of my books. Your support is greatly appreciated.
FEATURES
Joliet Rotary raffle dives in to help Boys & Girls Club
on pool renovations
211 helpline connects Will County residents in need to those who can help
Food, shelter, mental health just some of services addressed
Joliet Jewish Congregation searches for its next leader
Joliet Rotary hosting Merry Merry Margarita 2 fundraiser
Joe’s Hot Dogs in Joliet for sale
https://www.shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/2025/11/11/joliets-joes-hot-dogs-for-sale/
New Shell station, Dunkin’ opens in Crest Hill
https://www.shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/2025/11/18/new-shell-station-dunkin-opens-in-crest-hill/
Plainfield Portillo’s drive-thru opening in November
Joliet man arrested following stabbing
https://www.shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/2025/11/17/joliet-man-arrested-following-stabbing/
Will County Pets of the Week: Nov. 17, 2025
Will County rescues have dogs and cats for adoption
https://www.shawlocal.com/the-herald-news/2025/11/17/will-county-pets-of-the-week-nov-17-2025/
THANK YOU, VETERANS
The dedicated dozen: 12 veterans serve at Joliet School District 86
Joliet emergency medicine tech, veteran found new way to serve
Joliet Marine veteran is ‘huge advocate for mental health’
Marine veteran serves memorial squads at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery and Wilmington
NuMark Credit Union supports veterans year-round
‘Nearly every board member is a veteran’
Marine veteran serves families now as Silver Cross nurse practitioner
Serving veterans is a priority for Crest Hill business owner
Illustration by Matt Coundiff for "Visage"
Thursday, November 20, 2025
Saturday is Gratitude Day at The Book Market
Wednesday, November 19, 2025
Sue's Diner: Turkey and Dressing
This week's recipe for Turkey and Dressing is part of the Thanksgiving menu that's featured in the BryonySeries cookbook: Memories in the Kitchen: Bites and Nibbles from "Bryony," which is a permanent fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Will and Grundy Counties.
For the Marchellis’ first Thanksgiving in Munsonville, Melissa’s little brother Brian shows off the depth of his newly acquired culinary skills, under the direction of his mentor, Steve Barnes, the village maintenance man.
You can try our Turkey and Dressing recipes on the Sue's Diner page on the BryonySeries website.
But try the recipes this week. It will be gone some time next week. A new recipe will take it's place.
If would you like all the recipes for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow, the cookbook is available immediately on Kindle from Amazon.
If you have any troubleshooting questions or comments, email us at bryonyseries@gmail.com.
Here is the full diner page: bryonyseries.com/sue-s-diner. You can't really order, of course (wouldn't it be great if you could?).
For more BryonySeries recipes, check out our three cookbooks at bryonyseries.com.
Tuesday, November 18, 2025
BryonySeries: Limbo Trilogy
I think vague ideas for the BryonySeries Limbo trilogy started coming into my mind in 2018.
I wanted to explore what happens when a place becomes frozen in time.
But I didn't start jotting thoughts (none saved anyway) until spring 2019.
However, I realized as I wrote the three books in the Limbo trilogy ("The Phoenix," "Call of the Siren," and "House on Top of the Hill") that the value of this series was more than a fun exploration of the activity in a seemingly stalled and stagnant locale.
The Limbo series actually connects the ends of the original "drop of blood" young adult vampire trilogy and its prequel (the five-installment "Before The Blood"), filling in the blanks, answering (and raising) questions, and creating a seamless story loop without any real beginning or end.
As I wrote at the end of my second writing retreat in 2024:
Now, I could be wrong about “House on Top of the Hill” being the last novel. But at age sixty-three, I want to be sure I finish these other BryonySeries books, while I’m still able to finish them. So I'm definitely not bidding creative writing good-bye. I have plenty of book projects to last me a long time.
Also, for anyone who has read the BryonySeries, this "House on Top of the Hill" brings the series to a nice full circle.
You see, if one starts with the drop of blood trilogy (“Bryony,” “Visage,” and “Staked!”), the five installments of “Before The Blood” becomes a terrific prequel to the series. Limbo then fills in the time period between “drop” and BTB, the eighty years when nothing seemingly happens.
Or if one reads the books in chronological order – beginning with “Before The Blood,” and then moving onto to Limbo and then “drop of blood,” the novel “Staked!” gives a nice finish to the series.
And if you start with Limbo, you can read BTB and “drop” to see what happened before and what happens after, which also works quite logically, especially since "drop" seamlessly follows "House on Top of the Hill."
Now, I don’t want to forget HOW to write a novel. And who knows? I might have another lurking in my brain somewhere, just waiting for the right time to show itself.
Or perhaps I’ll co-write a novel or helps other authors polish theirs. But from my viewpoint on this Monday morning, “House on Top of the Hill” is likely my last novel.
Of course, I did say that after “Before The Blood,” too.
And if we want to travel down that path, I really only intended to write one novel, “Bryony.” But the story was too big for one book.
Fine, I thought. I’ll write a sequel. But the story was too big for THAT book, too.
Fine. A trilogy then. Except now I had all this background backstory and my little band of fans for “drop of blood” wanted to read the series back story, which turned into an eight-year project for the five installments.
So there you have it. A series that overtook itself much like the poisonous bryony took over Simons Mansion, the Simons estate, and worked its way into the woods (which wasn’t Simons Woods after all, as you shall see in "House on Top of the Hill").
And with that, here is a summary of the trilogy, along with the back cover copy of all three books.
Limbo
The Phoenix
Late 1895 in Munsonville, Michigan is all about survival and rebuilding: for the fishing village still reeling from deadly tragedies, for twelve-year-old Marie Clare who is grounded at Munsonville Inn with her dying father, and for two newly turned vampires foraging their meals from a dwindling supply of villagers.
But to rise strong and unscathed, some will be sacrificed along the way. Who gets to live and thrive? And who decides?
Call of the Siren
Sue Bass is haunted by dreams of her father, who died in a boating accident before she was born, alluring dreams of water and song. But then a soft-spoken outside man with an inside plan comes to town, and Sue's sleepwalking fades, only to resurface with greater magnetism when he leaves.
Two voices beckon. Which one will she heed?
House on Top of the Hill
Change comes slowly to Munsonville, and for Steve Barnes, who spends his entire life in the village, that's just fine. From boyhood to manhood, he savors the slow pace and friendly smiles, even while working by his parents' side from sunup to sundown to run the family diner.
The only blight is this fishing village's preoccupation with an empty mansion in the woods, whose tales of former glory and catastrophe fueled a rampage of ghost stories. Steve doesn't believe them, but some do – and no one can deny the power the crumbling old building holds over them.
Especially when it changes everyone, including Steve, forever.
