Call My Name: A Novel

Jenni Ogden

Sep 2022 · Sea Dragon Press

About this ebook

Two women, bound together by opposite personalities, friendship, love and family—until motherhood rips them apart.

From Jenni Ogden, author of bestselling novel A Drop in the Ocean (Gold Nautilus Award for Fiction) comes a compelling family saga set in the Australian Tropics and spanning the 1960s to 1990s. 

Her mother dead from a drug overdose, thirteen-year-old Olivia is rescued by Cathie Tulloch, her mother’s friend throughout the years they were held captive in Japanese prison camps in Sumatra in WWII. Welcomed into the Tulloch’s remote family home in the Australian tropics, introverted Olivia is claimed by dramatic, generous, controlling Cassandra Tulloch as her sister and best friend. Moving to the UK at 18, Olivia finds her independence, and partner Ben. But in 1970, after five years away, she is homesick, and ready to fulfill her long-held dream: to make a family of her own. In Brisbane she and Ben share a hippie lifestyle with Cassandra and husband, Sebastian. But while earth-mother Cassandra effortlessly produces beautiful babies, for Olivia, becoming a mother is hard. Even harder is discovering the truth about her own mother. And when the unimaginable happens, destroying the friendship with Cassandra that has been her bedrock for so long, Olivia tells herself that she doesn’t deserve a family, nor a place to call home.

Praise from Paula McLain, New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Wife & When the Stars Go Dark

"An emotionally piercing and absorbing account of turbulent female friendship over time, Call My Name is also a keen meditation on the powerful pull of connection and belonging—the places and people that shape and change us, forever calling us home."

Editorial Reviews

“A gripping story that’s hard to put down—draws the reader into complex and deeply human questions as her characters’ lives intertwine over three decades of joy, loss, grief, and below it all, like a sustaining chord, loyalty and kindness. Call My Name reminds us that love calls us to be generous rather than possessive and that we can go on, even when terrible things happen, because we’re profoundly connected. Layered, sometimes shocking, yet shining with goodness and hope, it’s exactly the kind of story we need right now.”

—Barbara Linn Probst, Sarton and Nautilus award-winning author of The Sound Between the Notes & The Color of Ice

"Jenni Ogden's done it again—given us a beautifully crafted novel filled with the complexities, mysteries and joys of human connection within a family and between sisters, lovers and friends. Filled with authenticity, compassion and grace, Call My Name will find its way deep into your heart and soul, and stay with you long after the last page has been turned."

—Sally Cole-Misch, Award-winning author of The Best Part of Us

“Vivid setting, dynamic plot, and likable characters come together beautifully to deliver an emotionally compelling tale of friendship, love, loss, and forgiveness. Call My Name is a fantastic read.”

—Jodi Wright, Award-winning author of How to Grow an Addict & Eat and Get Gas.

“This is a love story ... of couples, of friends, of families. A page turning saga that is fresh in its story, yet provides the warmth of an old-fashioned classic.

—Romalyn Tilghman, Award-winning author of To the Stars with Difficulties, 2018 Kansas Notable Book of the Year

"...so intense and raw that I choked up a few times…brings out the true essence of friendship… Powerful and inspirational"

—Readers Favorite, 5 Star Review

“…realistic, pulled at my heartstrings… unforgettable characters…A masterpiece”

—Readers Favorite, 5 Star Review

Ratings and reviews

What a great story! It recounts the story of two friends Olivia and Cassandra who are almost sisters. Cashiers parents took Olivia in as their foster child when the girls were young and they grew up as sisters and friends. But this is more than just their story even though their two are the central characters; it's also a multi generation tale of their family, friends and those they love. At one time, for example, Olivia and her husband shared a house and lived together with Cassandra and her mate. I loved this beautifully written touching novel! I cant wait to read more from Jenni Ogden. Check it out for an entertaining read! I recommend it.

An intensely powerfully heartbreaking story. The storyline is very well written I just would have liked to have seen a little bit more light for the characters but other than that I immensely enjoyed reading this from start to finish. This is a new to me author but I will definitely be on the lookout for more by this author as she writes in a way that really has you feeling for the characters, with an immensely engaging storyline. Highly recommend.

MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK #iReadBookTours Call My Name: A Novel by Jenni Ogden is one of the most heartwrenching books I have ever read. Emotions are all over the place as I read about thirteen-year-old Olivia and how she is left alone because of her mother’s drug overdose. Olivia is rescued by her mom’s friend, Cathie Tulloch. Cathie’s daughter Cassandra and Olivia become best friends. But as the years go buy Olivia moves to pursue her career, and this is where she meets Ben Call My Name is a

About the author

Jenni Ogden lives with her husband on a rugged, remote, off-grid island 100 kms off the north-east coast of New Zealand. It is a place her four adult children and five grandchildren love to visit. During the NZ winters she escapes to the Australian tropics or travels to the US or UK, travel being another passion, along with reading (writing!) and conservation. Her new novel, CALL MY NAME, another great read for bookclubs, will be published on 15th September, 2022. Set mainly in Queensland, Australia, it is the story of two women, bound together by contrasting personalities, friendship, love and home—until motherhood rips them apart. It is available for preorder now at a special pre-order and launch discount price of $3.99. The price will increase to $7.99 soon after publication date. THE MOON IS MISSING, published in 2020, was set in London, New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, and on the very island Jenni lives on in NZ. A DROP IN THE OCEAN, her debut novel, set on another remote island on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, features a woman over forty, and explores Jenni’s favorite themes: friendship, family, love, hard choices, and coping with neurological or medical illness. In 2016 it won the Gold in the Nautilus Book Awards for Fiction, Large Publisher, the Gold for the Sarton Women's Book Awards in Contemporary Fiction, the Gold in the Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPYS) for Best Fiction: Australia and NZ, and the Silver in the Readers' Favorites International Book Awards for Women's Fiction.

 

Writes Jacquelyn Mitchard, New York Times #1 best-selling author of 'The Deep End of the Ocean' — “Reading A Drop in the Ocean was everything a reading experience should be, endearing and enduring, time spent with characters who seem to be people I already knew.”

 

And from Ann Hood, New York Times best-selling author of 'The Knitting Circle' and 'The Obituary Writer'—“In A Drop in the Ocean, protagonist Anna Fergusson learns that love is about letting go. Jenni Ogden takes us on a sweeping journey, rich with unique characters and places, moving backward and forward in time, to reach this poignant and heartfelt lesson.”

 

Before she took up fiction writing, Dr. Ogden enjoyed an international reputation as a neuropsychologist, and was awarded the Distinguished Career Award by the International Neuropsychological Society in 2015. Her non-fiction books include the classic text, FRACTURED MINDS, and a book for the general reader, TROUBLE IN MIND. Both relate the courageous struggles and triumphs of people who have suffered brain disorders.

 

Sign up for her occasional “Off-Grid” e-newsletter (http://www.jenniogden.com/newsletter.htm) and read her blog posts on Psychology Today (https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/trouble-in-mind-0).

 And if you want to see pics of her beautiful island check out her website (www.jenniogden.com)