Found At Last by Madlyn Epstein Steinhart

Found At Last: A Heartfelt Journey of Love, Loss, and Hope

In Found At Last, author Madlyn Epstein Steinhart delivers a moving story of resilience, love, and the enduring power of hope. Through deeply relatable characters and heartfelt storytelling, the novel explores life's unexpected twists, reminding readers that healing, connection, and new beginnings often arrive when they are least expected. Rich with emotion and inspiration, Found At Last is a compelling read for anyone who believes it's never too late to find where you truly belong.

*****************************************

IF you ever felt like something was missing in your life but you couldn’t quite pinpoint the source, soul searching may be on your mind.

For author Madlyn Epstein Steinhart, the incomplete piece of her life was a deep-rooted connection to her lineage - and taking on an emotional ride to find relatives she never knew existed!

“I didn’t know my whole life who I was,” Steinhart said. “There was a part of me that was missing. It’s not completely healed yet but thanks to this book, a lot of it is back.”

In her new novel, “Found At Last: A Journey of Family, Memory and Belonging,” Steinhart shares the investigative process into her past after a DNA match appeared and she eventually reunited with long-lost family. The memoir, released earlier this year, is filled with heart, a plethora of genealogy wonder and fascinating captures of historical records.

Preferred Health Magazine spoke with Steinhart about how her emotional journey began. “I miss my parents and love them both, but five years ago there was an awful lot of information about my dad’s side of the family that I needed to know -but knew very little or nothing about,” Steinhart said. “Why people in the family seldom visited us, or we didn’t visit them, was not questioned [when I was growing up] because children were to be seen, not heard in the 1960s and 1970s. At least that’s how it was in my family. You accept that and move on with your life. But somehow, deep inside, I’d known something was missing - a sense of familial connection and history.”

Steinhart, 68, is a professional search angel and knows what the grueling process is like. Being a resource that helps adoptees find their birth family gave her a sense of compassion - but also respect and courage for those who are conflicted about reconnecting with one’s biological parents. Although it could take as little as months to get her clients’ information, it took six years of dedicated research to comb through the life-changing information she hungered for for herself.

Steinhart knew how to utilize her resources. She spent countless hours in the New York City Library, months digging through websites like Ancestry.com, Genealogybank.com and FamilySearch.org. She also spent time tunneling through records on the National Genealogical Society. Another helpful place to turn for records are cemeteries, where simple names and dates can open endless doors to the past.

“I discovered there was a DNA match in my own life that kept haunting me,” she admitted. “Several unsuccessful attempts to contact a mystery relative created more questions, but no response…I knew I had to go beyond birth, death and marriage certificates.”

With her father's passing decades prior, Steinhart had many unanswered questions that reuniting with long lost family helped reveal and heal. “There’s a mental health component to this that I never expected. A lot of things that were bothering me went away. I learned that if I don’t take care of Maddy, I’m good to nobody. I also realized the search was bigger than me and connecting everyone, including a lot of nieces, sharing photos and things I found out - it changed everything. I felt like I had a whole new family and identity.”

Her newfound paternal family spanned Oklahoma, California, Massachusetts, Texas, New York and Florida. ‘Found At Last’ reveals the tedious connect-the-dots sleuthing Steinhart had to endure. At one point, when she was connected to her cousins and other relatives, she also learned where she inherited many of her characteristics and personality traits - something many of us assume come only from our environment.

Currently planning a family reunion with relatives, Steinhart is also having book signing opportunities at Barnes & Noble in the New York/ New Jersey area. Additionally, Steinhart’s written and published three poetry books, ‘Beautiful Heart’, ‘Put Your Boots On and Dance In The Rain’ and ‘Shades of Grey.

Found At Last: A Journey of Family, Memory and Belonging, proudly stands on its own as a notable read that transcends the challenges of discovering one’s true identity.

Scan the QR code and get your copy today!