Years later, Cilla McGowan is in a career she loves - that of flipping houses.  She worked for others at first, then with her ex-husband, Steve, but has been on her own for two years.  When she finally manages to buy her grandmother’s farm home in Front Royal, Virginia from her mother, Cilla fixes it up partly to honor her grandmother, but mostly to make it her home and headquarters for her renovation business.

Ford Sawyer, a well-known graphic novelist, sees Cilla wielding a sledge hammer and crosses the street with his ugly but loveable dog, Spock, to greet his new neighbor.  He’s surprised when he recognizes Cilla as the child actress his sister adored, but after speaking with Cilla, admires her tenacity.  As he heads home, he runs upstairs to his drawing board and soon a new heroine is born.  The real Cilla, however, fills his thoughts in more realistic and tempting ways.

When Cilla clears out the attic, she finds a bundle of unsigned letters written to Janet and discovers that her grandmother was having an affair with a local married man, and was pregnant when she died.  Even though she has work to do, Cilla longs to discover who the married man may have been.

Complications arise when her ex-husband, Steve, arrives to help.  First, Steve is nearly murdered and then Cilla’s home is ransacked.  When the threats continue to escalate, it’s clear someone means her harm.

Tribute is an engrossing tale of family and small town relationships, combined with an intriguing mystery and a fascinating plot.  The rapport between Cilla and Ford is deeply woven with understanding and tenderness, and the plot keeps moving to the ultimate, exciting and satisfying end.