I Wish't I Was in Peoria

About the Book

Her Tarot cards promised her love, travel, and adventure. However, the Tarot didn’t tell Dorothy she would go back in time fifty years to experience them.

Dorothy Kansas and her dog Toto come to Peoria, Illinois to work at Big Al’s Speakeasy in the spring of 1981. While there she meets a ghost that has been haunting the club since the early 1930’s. Before Dorothy can say no, the ghost enlists her help to right a wrong and takes Dorothy back to Peoria in 1931.

Dorothy and her dog Toto have the opportunity of a lifetime to see history come to life. Well researched, this novel gives the reader an insightful glimpse of the rollicking days of Peoria’s wide open past. The characters come to life as does the city. Interviews conducted with people who lived in Peoria at the time were the heart of the research, as well as old newspapers.  The reader will enjoy seeing Prohibition through Dorothy’s eyes.

The ghost introduces Dorothy to a friend and they are her tour guides in the past. The ghost’s murderer hires Dorothy to dance at his speakeasy and it’s there she finds love. There isn’t time for love while Dorothy uncovers the murder and brings a powerful bootlegger down. She has information to get to Big Al; however, can she get it to him in time?

Just when things seem the bleakest, a rescue comes from the most unexpected place.

This story is full of action. The cast of characters includes many names from Peoria’s past. Flappers, bootleggers, gangsters, and local politicians find themselves wound into the plot.

About the Author

Victoria Michaels resides on a farm in the Peoria, Illinois area with her high school sweetheart. She has led a varied and colorful lifestyle including work as a stand-up comedian. She enjoys photography and writing. She has traveled to the U.K. several times, including an extended stay in Dublin, Ireland. She is currently working on another novel and is planning a trip back to England in the fall. Her works of fiction have been published in several national magazines. She has been writing since grade school and gained honors in her college writing courses. Although she considers herself semi-retired, but she says there is never a dull minute in her life. When she is not writing she likes camping, canoeing, and drives through the countryside.