When Enemies Offend Thee

Viciousness can lurk beneath even the most

serene of surfaces

Recently widowed, Clementine Loftis returns to her hometown in North Carolina looking for comfort and peace. Instead, she finds an angry former high-school classmate who sexually assaults her in a bizarre attempt to settle an old score.

When her lack of evidence prevents police from charging him, Clementine vows to get even on her own. After her first attempt doesn’t pan out, she escalates her effort. When that fails, she escalates again … and again.

Clementine’s determination to make her attacker pay for what he’s done drives her to walk a fine, dangerous line between vengeance and justice, making her question who she really is and whether she can ever again be the woman she wants to be.

When Enemies Offend Thee is a provocative thriller that will have readers questioning their own friendships, loyalties, ethics, and the possibility of redemption.

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Praise for When Enemies Offend Thee

“An unflinching look at sexual assault, Clementine Loftis’ story is both timely and timeless. In the end, it isn’t Clementine’s quest for justice that saves her but the community she builds along the way. A hopeful tale of overcoming grief and trauma when you least expect it.”

–Amy Meyerson, bestselling author of The Bookshop of Yesterdays and The Imperfects

“With evocative prose, complex characters, and an amazing sense of place, When Enemies Offend Thee is a first-rate thriller. And Sally Whitney is a writer to keep your eye on for years to come.”

—Tom Bennitt, author of Burning Under

“In her story of a woman in the aftermath of a brutal attack, Sally Whitney probes the uncertain line between the demand for justice and the hunger for retribution. The taut narrative keeps the pages turning in this exploration of what is gained or lost in one woman’s struggle to rebalance the scales of her universe.”

— Jennifer Bort Yacovissi, author of Up the Hill to Home

“Sally Whitney’s novel, When Enemies Offend Thee, comfortably begins as the homecoming story of a widow returning to her roots and fulfilling her lifelong aspiration of opening her own antique shop—but her dream is brutally affronted by a relic from her past.

The warm and inviting prose makes it easy to stand alongside Clementine every step of the way, even when she takes justice into her own hands in unexpected ways. “You never know what you’re capable of until something pushes you to the edge,” muses Clementine when even she realizes she may be taking a step too far.

Whitney’s characters and plot twists offer up more surprises than the most richly curated antique shop.”

–Eric D. Goodman, author of The Color of Jadeite, Setting the Family Free, Womb: a novel in utero, and Tracks: A Novel in Stories

“When Enemies Offend Thee is a riveting tale of crime, retribution, and healing. Sally Whitney is to be congratulated for creating a protagonist rarely seen in contemporary fiction: a dynamic, sexy older woman.”

–Patricia Schultheis, author of St. Bart’s Way and A Balanced Life