Debby Giusti: My Old Kentucky Home & Giveaway

This week we welcome Debby Giusti to Author Memories.

Debby Giusti is a medical technologist who loves working with test tubes and petri dishes almost as much as she loves to write.  Growing up as an Army Brat, Debby met and married her husband--then a Captain in the Army--at Fort Knox, Kentucky.  Together they traveled the world, raised three Army Brats of their own and have now settled in Atlanta, Georgia, where Debby spins tales of suspense that touch the heart and soul and have garnered several prestigous awards.  Debby has also written magazine articles for Southern Lady, Woman’s World, Our Sunday Visitor, and Army and Family.

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My Old Kentucky Home
By Debby Giusti

I grew up as an Army brat, which means my dad was in the service. I married a great military guy so I’m also an Army wife.  Our son is in the military.  You guessed right!
I’m an Army mom, as well.

My Military Investigations Series for Love Inspired Suspense is set in Fort Rickman, Georgia, a fictional Army post I created.  Despite the Georgia locale, when the stories play out in my mind, the scenes take place at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

I attended kindergarten at Knox and went to 7th and 8th grades on post.  My parents lived there when I was in college, and after graduation, I worked in the hospital on post.  It was at Knox that I met and married my husband, said goodbye to my parents and traveled to Fort Bliss, Texas, where hubby and I started our new life together.

My husband was never again stationed at Fort Knox, and I didn’t return to post until our son and daughter-in-law were assigned there a few years ago.  The first time we visited, I felt an overwhelming sense of coming home.  Seeing signs for Fort Knox, as we neared, filled me with excitement, almost a giddiness I hadn’t expected.  Entering post, I had a lump in my throat, and tears stung my eyes.  Everywhere I looked was a déjà vu experience. 

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The United States Bullion Depository (Gold Vault)

The first landmark I spotted was The United States Bullion Depository or Gold Vault as it’s often called. During my kindergarten years, my family lived in quarters nearby, and I often stared out my bedroom window, wondering about the riches stored within that sturdy structure.  Later, my father had the opportunity to tour the Vault.  He told me about the elevator that took him to the depository where gold bars were kept as well as the precious gems also guarded at the facility.  
 

Fort Knox Main Chapel

Driving on, we passed the Main Post Chapel where hubby and I had been married years earlier. The church predates the post and was built in 1899 for the tiny town of Stithton, Kentucky.  When land was used to create Fort Knox, the church was given to the military and has served military personnel since that time.

Fort Knox Quarters

My parents have passed away so seeing the house where I lived before my marriage was bittersweet.  The quarters had been built in the early 1930s when Camp Knox became a permanent military installation. I always wished the walls could talk and tell stories about the people who had lived there down through the decades.  

When I write my stories, I see the Post Headquarters where my father worked and the parade field where his retirement ceremony was held.  The chapel my characters attend is the church in which I was married.  Houses play an important role in a number of my stories and are modeled after the brick quarters I lived in long ago. 

Thanks for allowing me to share a few of the many memories that are woven into the stories I love to write, and I hope you will enjoy reading.

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Leave a comment with a valid email address by midnight, Nov 6th
to be entered to win a copy of Debby's latest novel,
 The Captain’s Mission.
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The Captain's Mission, Love Inspired Suspense, Oct 2011

A Demonstration Turned Deadly
 
When one of his soldiers is killed by live ammunition during what was supposed to be a simple training exercise, Captain Phil Thibodeaux wants answers. Even if it means working with the Criminal Investigation Division that seems certain to pin the blame on him. But after CID agent Kelly McQueen defends his conduct, Phil realizes that there’s more to the dedicated agent than meets the eye. Maybe she’s someone he can trust, after all. And he’ll need someone to rely on as investigations lead him to doubt everyone else—even his own soldiers.

Read the Excerpt

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Military Investigations by Debby Giusti:
Each story stands alone so the books can be read in any order

Book 1 - The Officer's Secret, May 2011 (still available)
Book 2 - The Captain's Mission, Oct 2011
Book 3 - The Colonel's Daughter, Aug 2012

You can find Debby online at:

www.DebbyGiusti.com
www.seekerville.blogspot.com
www.craftieladiesofromance.blogspot.com/