The Shotgun Princess

In the community of Bildad Road, thirty-seven-year-old Orla Wilkins has perfected domestic defense: a double-barreled shotgun mounted on his kitchen wall, loaded with buckshot and trained on any man foolish enough to court his sister Doris. His philosophy is simple, he'd 'rather do manslaughter than lose a good housekeeper', and the neighborhood believes him. But Johnny Trumbull is either very brave or very foolish, and he's determined to win Doris's affection despite the lethal obstacle. What follows is a wonderfully absurd kitchen showdown: a persistent suitor, a gun-wielding brother who prefers pointing shotguns to swinging fists, and a delicious apple pie that may be the unlikely key to resolving everything. Rouse crafts this brief tale with sharp, affectionate humor, skewering the ridiculous extremes of sibling protection while celebrating the stubborn persistence of young love. It's a comic gem about hunger in more ways than one, for romance, for pie, for the comfort of family, even when that family is armed and threatening to shoot you.