The Secret Ranch - by Hillary Tiefer (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

After a journalist takes an interest in eighty-five-year-old Jean Warner's experience as an enemy code interceptor during World War II, Jean reflects upon her past, which was often challenging and painful.

Jean relives her experiences during the war when she was in the Women's Army Corps and did grueling secret work deciphering enemy Morse Code at Two Rock Ranch Station, near Petaluma, California. During this time, she has a challenging friendship with another WAC, pursues a rocky relationship with a soldier, and constantly fears for the lives of her two brothers who are fighting in the war. As difficult as it has been to dwell on her past, Jean eventually realizes that she has acquired insights that have helped her understand herself and strengthened her relationship with her troubled daughter, who has assumed that her mother conducted her life perfectly.

The novel takes place in the 1940s and 2006.

Review Quotes

The Secret Ranch by Hillary Tiefer is a rollicking adventure that will delight readers with its
little-known history, vibrant setting, and vivid characters. Life doesn#39;t stop when a war begins,
and The Secret Ranch weaves messy family relationships, matters of the heart, and wartime
tragedy and sensibility with riveting precision.--Jennifer M. Lane, Author of Downriver and Of Metal and Earth

The Secret Ranch is a well-researched novel that draws us into the tumultuous lives of Jean Warner and her daughter Carolyn. This story is more than merely an engrossing family drama, or an exploration of the complex mother-daughter relationships, strong friendships, and ill-fated romances of these two headstrong women; although it is, indeed, all of those things. It's also a much-needed narrative of the smart members of the Women's Army Corps, who affected the world behind-the-scenes during World War Two.--Debby Dodds, author of Amish Guys Don't Call and Beyond Where Our Monsters Lie

THE SECRET RANCH sweeps readers into the little-known world of WWII's heroines. Follow
Tiefer's deeply woven protagonist through her personal trials in the WAC. I enjoyed learning
more about the Pacific Theatre. A joy to read.--Sandra Haynie, Attorney/Writer

Hillary Tiefer tells the absorbing and heart-wrenching story of Jean Kimball, a Women's Army Corps soldier who intercepted enemy codes during World War II. Jean, who struggles to please her mother, looks for love while working to end the war so her two brothers can return home safely. After six decades of being silent, Jean grapples emotionally about revealing her secret work at Two Rock Ranch and her relationship with a handsome soldier during the war to a journalist. The author does a compelling job capturing the life experience of a fiercely dedicated woman soldier.--Denise Yaffe, PhD - Editor of Wordsmiths and Author of Earth Kids: Environmental Superheroes

The novel's prose is a delight, illuminating at turns the evanescent beauty of nature and the vulnerability in human interactions. In particular, we learn about mother-daughter relationships and how shame is transmuted to intimacy when we risk divulging our secrets to those we love.--Karla Bennett Brunner, Professor of English (retired)

This novel is a tribute to American women in World War II--those who fought to make a
difference on the world stage despite the constraints of society and family pressure. It is an
important tale of courage and self-discovery.--Suzanne Parry, author of Lost Souls of Leningrad

About the Author

Hillary Tiefer has a PhD in English and has taught at Southern Oregon University and other colleges in the Pacific Northwest. Her short stories have been published in Descant, Red Rock Review, Mission at Tenth, Blue Moon Literary Review, Gray Sparrow Journal, Poetica Magazine, Poydras Review, Crack the Spine Literary Magazine, JuxtaProse, The Literary Nest, Smoky Blue Literature and Art Magazine, Five on the Fifth, The Opiate, The Manifest-Station, Pennsylvania Literary Journal, and Minerva Rising Press's The Keeping Room. Her novel, Lily's Home Front, was published in 2018. Her essays on the author Thomas Hardy have been published in scholarly journals.