We tend to believe that waking up to our natural state of joyfulness comes with huge claps of thunder or miraculous events. Yet How Did I Miss All This Before? shows that life's magic happens in the most ordinary of moments, if only we are willing to see with fresh eyes. The process of awakening asks us to be fully present to life as it is right now. A psychotherapist for more than thirty years, author Alexandra Kennedy has written an intimate account of courageous transformation in the midst of life's common challenges truly a woman's path of awakening to the Divine. Alexandra's three-decade quest begins with an unusual transcendent experience, unfolds through epiphanies at three sacred Earth sites, and culminates in the discovery that her yearning for union was always available to be fulfilled right here, in the most ordinary aspects of daily life. Through the medium of a compelling, multilayered story that is both personal and accessible, How Did I Miss All This Before? offers a unique combination of rich prose, deep professional and personal experience, suggestions and questions for readers to explore, and a wealth of references from pioneers of both spirit and psychology. This book is for everyone wishing to find greater openness to life in each precious moment.

The Devereux is a nice residential hotel which caters for a nice class of guest. But the arrival of Mrs Pargeter, an attractive widow, seems to act as a catalyst of disaster for everyone connected with the hotel. On the morning after her arrival, the corpse of one of the frailer residents is found at the foot of the main staircase, and shortly after that another death shakes the gentility of the hotel. Deciding to investigate herself, Mrs Pargeter discovers that more than one person in the Devereux has a motive for murder.

Bertha, is a slave on Master Jackson's plantation in Mississippi before the start of the American Civil War. She is young, sassy, driven, head-strong, and beautiful. Bertha is allowed to work inside of the big house, which is taboo at the time because of her darker skin color. Upon starting working inside of the house she is met with many unexpected challenges that she has to overcome and these challenges do not prepare her for her biggest challenge yet, when she meets a similarly feisty Julia, who is the niece of Master Jackson. Julia's and Bertha's personalities clash initially however, they eventually develop an unspoken friendship through unlikely circumstances and their mutual adoration starts to develop that contradicts their time, their circumstance, and their race.