A book signing by two local writers will be held at the newly renovated Fountain Hills Community Center on Saturday, Dec. 11. Rosemarie Malroy and Effie-Alean Gross invite friends, neighbors, students, teachers, veterans, business associates and winter visitors to share their love of reading and writing. They each celebrate the release of their fiction and nonfiction books.

Malroy’s “Forever Loving”is a Christian romance taking place during the American Revolutionary War with the two divided groups: Tories, loyal to England, and Whigs, loyal to American colonies. Research into Malroy’s family ancestry brought surprising discoveries and fueled the imagination for her novel.

In contrast, Gross is releasing three nonfiction books including “Hillbilly He’ven,” “Ecclesiastes: Sonnet Digest” and “Stories That (Really) Matter: Biblical Reflections.” The latter is a literary work with an endorsement by Dr. Leland Ryken, Professor Emeritus, Wheaton College (Billy Graham’s alma mater). He has authored or edited over 50 books including “The Christian Imagination.”

Malroy and Gross first met at a writers’ group in Fountain Hills nearly 30 years ago. Though they have never collaborated on a book, the two critiqued each other’s work and gained insights for improving their manuscripts. Monthly meetings with the Fountain Hills Christian Writers Group benefited them and others in attendance. Over the years writers have met at four different churches in the community. For a time, a smaller group also met at the local Denny’s Restaurant to discuss everything pertaining to writing: ideas, markets, characters, plot, readers and literary agents.

The duo said writing is very personal, so it’s no wonder that deep friendships can and do evolve. Malroy and Gross have traveled to writers’ conferences as far away as Texas and Indiana, and as close as Scottsdale. Gross attended the famed Iowa Summer Writers Workshop on two occasions. There she studied under the late W.P. Kinsella, author of “Shoeless Joe,”which was later adapted to the movie, “Field of Dreams.” On another occasion she studied under the late Ray Bradbury, science fiction writer famous for “Fahrenheit 451.” Malroy has studied under Oregon Poet Laureate, the late Dr. William Stafford, who wrote 35 books and won a National Book Award for “Traveling Through the Dark.”

Both Malroy and Gross have traveled extensively, sometimes together. They visited Estonia, Russia and Sweden on one occasion where they experienced cultures, people and ideas as fodder for future writings. Malroy’s historical fiction, “Forever Loving,” is set in the North American colonies ending in St. Edwards Island, Canada. Ancestors of Malroy once lived there, and recently she visited the island with family members.

Gross has published over 200 articles and has been a fan of classical short stories since her college days at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. From her love of literature and the Bible, she has compared 15 famous short stories with 15 biblical stories. The result is an analysis based on critical thinking and resulting in a reading experience she said can be enjoyed by teen students on up to baby boomers.

Both books by the two authors were favorably reviewed by Elsie Hoffarber in the Fountain Hills Presbyterian Church’s publication, “Library Footnotes.” She said, “In our library, there is a waiting list for the books by Effie and Rosemarie.”

On Saturday, Dec. 11, from 2 to 4 p.m., a book signing will be held in Ballroom 1 at the Fountain Hills Community Center. A program beginning at 2:30 p.m. includes local soloist Cassie Hanson, readings by Malroy and Gross, a drawing for prizes (valued up to $300), singing, refreshments and personalized/signed copies. The community is invited to attend at no charge. Book sales will be available. They are also available on Amazon.

The authors promote literacy through an international charity, ProLiteracy.org. For more information, contact Effie-Alean Gross at effiegross@msn.com and 480-540-1906, or Rosemarie Malroy at rosemalroy@gmail.com and 480-837-8494.