Gabriele Wills on location in Muskoka - Credit: Gabriele Wills

The eldest child of “Displaced Persons”, evicted from Hungary in the aftermath of WW2, Gabriele Wills was born in former army barracks in Mosbach, Baden, Germany. Her family emigrated to Canada when she was three, and she grew up in the small town of Lindsay, Ontario, where her brother was born.

After graduating from the University of Toronto with an Honours B.Sc. in Psychology and Sociology, and a B. Ed., she had a varied career as an educator, literacy coordinator, and website designer. She’s been an active community volunteer, particularly in heritage preservation and the arts. In some of those roles, she wrote numerous newspaper articles detailing historic buildings and local history, and produced an award-nominated feature on CBC Radio. But writing fiction has always been her passion. Her first short story appeared in the Canadian Authors Association Winners' Circle 5 Anthology.

Gabriele loves to recreate an era in which she can immerse herself (and readers), by weaving compelling stories around meticulously researched facts. Her characters are best friends, whom others are now calling "cherished friends". She’s also thrilled that readers consider her novels enlightening as well as entertaining.

Her first novel, A Place to Call Home, was inspired by the rich but neglected social history of her hometown, and pays homage to the indomitable pioneers who carved thriving communities out of the inhospitable backwoods of early Canada.

Her “Muskoka Novels” sprang from her love for that magical land of granite, pines, and water, which speaks to her soul. She’s also fascinated by the era, and the contrasts between the genteel, pre-war years and one of the most turbulent times in modern history - a time when an entire generation was “lost”, and Canada earned its nationhood on the world stage.

Not being able to leave all her extensive research on the Great War behind, Gabriele created a website of quirky facts - 4yearsofWW1.info - which is being used by international researchers and educators.

She’s currently engrossed in the Roaring 20s as she works on Book 3 in "The Muskoka Novels" series.

Gabriele is married to her university sweetheart, and has one daughter, who is a scientist, award-winning author, and filmmaker.

Visit Gabriele’s website to see more photos of her.

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