Harvesting Stones - An American Woman's International Journey of Survival

When a Catholic farm girl, raised in the heartland of California, met an international foreign photographer in San Francisco after college, her life transformed. She spent fourteen years on a journey through Europe, the Middle East and the Far East. To outsiders she had it all, except she hid terrible secrets that almost cost the lives of herself and her children. The night before she fled Dubai, she made a covenant with God that if she escaped she would help other abused American women and children in foreign countries. She did. Reaching the USA she thought her nightmare was over. It wasn't. Homeless, aged 40, with three small boys, they lived in hiding from the man who threatened, "I will hunt you down and slaughter you like animals wherever you are in the world." From victim to victor, Paula Lucas weaves you through her astonishing life in this tell-all memoir. She founded the Americans Overseas Domestic Violence Crisis Center (AODVC), while living in a women's shelter. In 2012 she launched the Sexual Assault Support & Help For Americans Abroad Program (SASHAA). "... an unforgettable memoir, and a teacher for us all." Gavin de Becker, Bestselling Author, The Gift of Fear "... more than a cautionary tale, it's an inspiration and a model for anyone who seeks to transform their lives and help others in the process." Jackson Katz, Ph.D., Author, The Macho Paradox, creator of the award-winning documentary Tough Guise "Terrifying, unimaginable, harrowing, chilling... a testament to Lucas' strength, bravery, tenacity and will." Linda Janssen, Author, The Emotionally Resilient Expat: Engage, Adapt and Thrive Across Cultures