The Black Velvet Coat

Twenty-eight-year-old struggling San Francisco artist Anne McFarland is determined to get a one-woman show, even though no one, including herself, believes she can do it. But when she buys a coat at a thrift shop with a key in its pocket, strange, even magical, occurrences begin to unfold, and she is inspired to create her best work ever.

Fifty years earlier, it’s 1963, and the coat’s original owner, young heiress Sylvia Van Dam, is headed toward a disastrous marriage with a scoundrel. In a split-second reaction she does the unimaginable, which propels her on a trip of self-discovery to nature-filled Northern Arizona. When Anne and Sylvia’s lives intersect, they are both forced to face their fears―and, in the process, realize their true potential.


Genre: General Fiction

"Spellbinding. Readers will feel they are watching an Alfred Hitchcock movie as they turn the pages of this vivid, fast-paced novel about how uncovering the past can lead to discovering oneself. You’ll never look at vintage clothes quite the same way again." - Jennifer Coburn

"The Black Velvet Coat is a story about fate and friendship and love. These characters will break your heart in all the best ways." - Tammy Greenwood

"In Jill G. Hall’s lovely debut novel, a vintage coat and the brass key discovered in its pocket provide the foundation for the alternating stories of two women from different eras. As we read, we follow Anne and Sylvia as they navigate love and loss, heartbreak, and triumph. The Black Velvet Coat is an absolute delight." - Midge Raymond