I'll Be Seeing You

 

This is going to be a different sort of post than what you usually read here at Heroes, Heroines, and History. It'll be my last post on the blog (unless I stop by for a visit), so I want to leave everyone with some nostalgia and a song.

Authors often mention particular songs in their stories to help create the feeling of the time when the story is set. In my novel Season of My Enemy (2022), farm workers--including German prisoners of war--sang along to Don't Fence Me In while they worked the Wisconsin harvest. It suited the story so well, I couldn't resist, expressing the desire for freedom and peace while showing a camaraderie among the workers even during war.

We're probably all familiar with the swoony number I'll Be Seeing You, another  song written about missing a loved one across space and time. It's an historically popular song written in 1938 by lyricist Irving Kahal with music by Sammy Fain, and was first recorded by Dick Todd on the Bluebird music label. But the haunting melody and simple yet heartfelt lyrics have been picked up by a myriad of singers through the decades. The song still finds its way into current popular culture with fresh performances and in film. 

The tune became a WWII wartime hit when it was crooned by Bing Crosby, making it's way to number one on the charts in 1944. It's popularity continued with renditions by Frank Sinatra and Tommy Dorsey, Jimmy Durante, Dinah Shore, and even Barbara Streisand. 

While probably not as popular as some of the other recordings by artists like the above or Billie Holiday or Peggy Lee, I particularly like this smooth 1959 version by Tommy Sands:

Never seeming to grow old, I'll Be Seeing You was used in various films also, a couple popular ones being The Notebook and, surprisingly, Deadpool and Wolverine. One movie even carried the title. At the height of the song's popularity in 1944, I'll Be Seeing You--the film--starred Ginger Rogers, Joseph Cotton, and a teenage Shirley Temple. Add it to your list of classics to watch. You'll be glad you did.

Anyway, why am I writing today about this perennially popular piece of culture? After all, there are hundreds, maybe thousands of songs that have stood the test of time or suggest certain periods specifically. Glad you asked! 

The tune began to play through my mind as I reflected on the many posts I've written and the historical treasure trove I discovered along the way here on the HHH blog. I've covered topics ranging from the preservation of historic barns to the adventuresome history of the fur traders and voyageurs of the Great Lakes; and from Wisconsin's prisoner of war camps to the stories that inspired many of our favorite hymns. There are dozens of topics I've written about in between these. I always enjoyed finding tidbits of wonder in these historical posts, and the research for these posts continues to feed my imagination and my stories.

Research is fun for an historical author. Just last week, I took a road trip to delve deeper into the setting of my fall 2026 release, Cinder Smudged, a 1930s realistic retelling of Cinderella. I can almost imagine my heroine humming this tune (if only it had been written by then).

This is the main reason why I am stepping back from writing for HHH. With writing and family life (I'm now a grandma to TWENTY, twelve girls, eight boys!), I've simply had to make decisions about what to set aside. I'm also trying some new ventures, like reviving my YouTube channel. Besides that, I'm soon to release a new 2-story compilation called A Haven for Love, I'm making edits to a Revolutionary War story, and The Girl from Tomorrow's Town will release next spring from Barbour's Enduring Hope series. 

All told, I have four books scheduled for release over the next fourteen months! So, yes, of course, I'll continue to write fiction as long as God gives me the opportunity.

I hope you'll stop by my channel, visit me on social media, and follow along with all of my adventures and updates in my newsletter, which you can sign up for on my site. But for now. . .

I'll Be Seeing You,

Here, There, or In the Air,

Naomi

www.naomimusch.com

Amazon Author Page

Dr. Kenneth Taylor: Founder of Tyndale House Publishers

By Michelle Shocklee

Long before I had the privilege of writing historical fiction for Tyndale House Publishers, the story of this company and its founder would become part of my story. I was 10 years old when I received The Children's Living Bible from my Sunday school teacher. Seven years later, as a senior in high school, my parents gave me The Living Bible for Christmas. They knew I was headed out into the world in a few months and would need the foundation of God's Word to direct my path. These two precious books are still on my bookshelf in my office, reminding me of God's never-ending faithfulness to his children and how cool it is to be part of his family!

My precious Bibles

So, what is The Living Bible and how did it come into existence? 

I'm glad you asked! Let me tell you a story. 

Kenneth Nathaniel Taylor was born in Portland, Oregon on May 8, 1917 to a Presbyterian minister and his wife. After high school, Ken attended Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois, graduating in 1938. Desiring to further his education, Ken went to the Dallas Theological Seminary. While there, he was offered the position of editor of HIS Magazine based in Chicago and returned to Illinois. He finished his Th.D at Northern Baptist Seminary, married his sweetheart, Margaret, and started a family. He also became an author of Bible storybooks for children, worked with Good News Publishers on translating and distributing Gospel tracts to countries around the world, and served as the Director of Moody Press.

Dr. Taylor and some of his children
https://www.tyndale.com/timeline

As the Taylor family grew, so did Ken's concerns that his ten children were having a difficult time understanding the King James Version of the Bible. As a young man, he had also been frustrated by the complicated 17th century language of the King James, and he didn’t want his children to have to struggle in the same way. So to help his family make better sense of the Bible, Taylor began to reword specific passages in simple, conversational language, easy enough for even his youngest child to understand. Soon the children were responding to what they were hearing, and Taylor knew he was on to something. He began to paraphrase more passages from the New Testament, often during his daily train commute from Wheaton to Moody Press in downtown Chicago.

Ken finished his paraphrase in 1962, but much to his disappointment, he could not find a publisher. No one was interested in publishing a paraphrase of the Bible. Convinced The Living Letters, as they were called, would benefit others as it had his own children, Ken and Margaret decided to publish the letters themselves, despite having little money and two children in college already. Ken named his fledgling company Tyndale House Publishers, after William Tyndale, the 16th century reformer who was burned at the stake for translating the Bible into English.

Ken and Margaret Taylor
https://www.charlbury.info/news/2615

In its early days, Tyndale House was literally a kitchen-table operation. The older daughters typed Ken’s manuscripts, Margaret typed invoices and mailing labels, and the younger children stuffed envelopes and packed books ordered by bookstores. Things would change, however, when Reverend Billy Graham received a copy of The Living Letters. Mr. Graham was so impressed with them, he began ordering copies to be distributed at his crusades. Word quickly spread and Ken quit his job at Moody Press to work full-time as Publisher of Tyndale House. 

Rev. Billy Graham and Dr. Kenneth Taylor
Tyndale House/ https://youtu.be/feXzT4MyKlE

In 1967 the Living New Testament was published, and in 1971 the complete Living Bible was released to an eager public. It became the best-selling book in the United States for the next three years, after which Publisher’s Weekly decided not to allow Bibles to compete with “regular books” for a spot on the best-seller list. Ken and Margaret committed right from the start to deposit all profits from The Living Bible into a charitable trust. Rather than reaping a financial reward from his years of labor, Taylor insisted that the Bible’s royalties be donated to Tyndale House Foundation, whose purpose is to support mission projects around the world. In 1984, Dr. Taylor turned over the reins of the company to his son, Mark, but continued to be involved until his death in 2005.

Today, Tyndale House Publishers is one of the largest independently owned Christian publishers in the world. They continue to publish Bibles, as well as a broad spectrum of Christ-centered material... including fiction. 

And that's where my story re-connects with Tyndale's. In 2020, my novel Under the Tulip Tree was published by Tyndale House. My latest novel, Count the Nights with Stars, is my second with them. Next year, I'll have another novel release. It still amazes me how God worked out the details for me to write for the publishing company whose faithful Kingdom work has had such a big impact and influence in my life. 

Your turn: Have you read The Living Bible?

Michelle Shocklee is the author of several historical novels, including Under the Tulip Tree, a Christy Awards and Selah Awards finalist. Her work has been included in numerous Chicken Soup for the Soul books, magazines, and blogs. Married to her college sweetheart and the mother of two grown sons, she makes her home in Tennessee, not far from the historical sites she writes about. Visit her online at www.MichelleShocklee.com

               COUNT THE NIGHTS BY STARS

*A 2023 Christianity Today Book of the Year Finalist*

1961. After a longtime resident at Nashville’s historic Maxwell House Hotel suffers a debilitating stroke, Audrey Whitfield is tasked with cleaning out the reclusive woman’s room. There, she discovers an elaborate scrapbook filled with memorabilia from the Tennessee Centennial Exposition. Love notes on the backs of unmailed postcards inside capture Audrey’s imagination with hints of a forbidden romance . . . and troubling revelations about the disappearance of young women at the exposition. Audrey enlists the help of a handsome hotel guest as she tracks down clues and information about the mysterious “Peaches” and her regrets over one fateful day, nearly sixty-five years earlier.
https://www.tyndale.com/p/count-the-nights-by-stars/9781496459930

A Brief History of Lake Superior's Fabulous Apostle Islands (Lake Superior Pearls & Perils, Part One)

In just another month, I will be celebrating the release of Song for the Hunter, a new novel set in a place which people from all over the world have come to admire and enjoy, the magnificent Apostle Islands. The archipelago of twenty-two islands (no, not twelve!) sits off the Bayfield Peninsula, the most northern point in Wisconsin. Twenty-one of the islands as well as part of the mainland are protected by the National Park Service making the area part of the Lake Superior National Shoreline. The Apostle Islands have a vast history of culture and commerce. Let's take a short overview.

Lake Superior is truly an inland sea. It is wild and unpredictable, a blue gem covering 31,700 square miles. It averages 483 feet deep, but at its deepest point is nearly three times that at 1333 feet. By surface, it is the largest lake in the world, and it holds more water than all the other Great Lakes combined, plus three more Lake Eeries. Are you amazed yet? Having claimed hundreds of shipwrecks (including the famous Edmund Fitzgerald which sunk during a horrific storm on my 14th birthday), the lake is said to have taken more than 10,000 lives, and those are the ones history tells us about. Now consider... 

Wild Lake Superior photo courtesy of Dan Grisdale Photography

The islands have been home to the Ojibwe people for some 600 years, at least. Some say thousands. In any event, they consider these islands to be a sacred place, and commerce has traveled the lake by canoe for centuries. Then came the fur traders and voyageurs. 10,000 lives gone to a watery grave probably falls far short of the actual number, or so I would imagine.

Canoes in a Fog, Lake Superior (1869) Frances Anne Hopkins

Although Frenchman Pierre Francois Xavier de Charlevoix is credited for giving the islands their current name--purportedly either to honor Jesus' twelve apostles or to recognize the twelve largest islands--the natives place name for the islands has always been Wenabozho ominisan. Wenabozho is the name of a cultural hero who, they claim, made the islands. The Ojibwe's main village was on Madeline Island, the largest of the islands (and where the adventures in my new novel largely take place). The Ojibwe name for the island is Moningwunakauning which means "home of the yellow-breasted woodpecker". From their village there, and from other villages on the mainland, the people were able to fish all year round, hunt game and collect wild rice in the fall, gather furs in winter, collect maple syrup in the spring, and gather wild edible food all summer long.

Apostle Island Sea Caves, Image by David Hamilton from Pixabay

Europeans also found safety and refuge from Lake Superior's wild waters, as well as gathering resources among the islands. One of Wisconsin's oldest settlements is there on Madeline Island, established by Jesuit priests Claude Allouez and Jacques Marquette in the 1660s. It soon became home to a French trading post, and later when American's won the war against France, was turned over from the North West Company to American Fur Company jurisdiction. 

Historical marker located on Hwy 13 between Washburn and Bayfield WI, looking from the mainland shore toward the island.

Madeline Island, Big Bay State Part;
View from my hero's campsite in Song for the Hunter

Stories of exploration, intrigue, heroism, and intrigue abound about the region both on the water and on shore. Between the French explorers, the fur traders, the voyageurs, and the missionaries, it is a region ripe with history as well as natural beauty. And all this before we even get to the era of the Great Lakes fishing and shipping fleets! (I'll share some of these stories in future posts of Lake Superior Pearls and Perils).

I hope this wets your appetite for a look into the area or maybe a planned vacation to the islands sometime! At the very least, I hope you'll investigate my upcoming book Song for the Hunter. There is also a 2018 novel set one year prior titled Mist O'er the Voyageur.

If you have or plan to read either book, I'd be happy to send you a novelette (pdf or mobi) set between the two stories--a sort of extended epilogue to Mist and a prequel to Song called The Long-Awaited Spring. Just drop me a note with your request and an email address!

Until the next historic tale of Pearls & Perils on the lake,

Naomi

Song for the Hunter, coming January 4, 2022, pre-order available:

Wed to a trading company partner to escape life in Montreal under her harsh father's thumb, Camilla Bonnet finds herself tragically widowed and pregnant in the Upper Country frontier. When her brother fails to return for her from Fort William, she is cast on the mercy of the trading post owner's family. She also draws comfort from Bemidii Marchal, a Métis hunter who soothes away her misgivings as he finds his own refuge on Lake Superior's Madeline Island.

Bemidii’s thoughts of courting a maiden are cut short when he raises his knife against a company man at Fort William’s Great Rendezvous. No one will believe he killed to protect his sister—least of all the beautiful Frenchwoman on Madeline Island who stirs his affections—not when she learns that her brother is dead and Bemidii stands accused of his murder. As the sharp blade of truth divides them, will Bemidii survive the justice of powerful men who are a law unto themselves?

Pre-order Song for the Hunter

JOIN ME at a Christmas Extravaganza Facebook Party next week to try and win a copy of the book, not to mention a spree of other prizes!

HHH Book Day

You may not know this, but nearly all of our bloggers are published authors. Once a month we give them a chance to showcase their work. We hope you find something that intrigues you. Feel free to leave a comment if you have a question about any of our books or would like to ask a writer a question.

Vickie McDonough, Moderator

by Vickie McDonough

Dusty Starr is unstoppable in the rodeo arena, but when it comes to love? He was bucked off long ago. Now he has a second chance at love, but will he have what it takes to win?

by Debbie Lynne Costello

After the death of her cruel father, Brithwin is determined never again to live under the harsh rule of any man. Independent and resourceful, she longs to be left alone to manage her father’s estate. But she soon discovers a woman has few choices when the king decrees she is to marry Royce, the Lord of Rosencraig. As if the unwelcome marriage isn’t enough, her new husband accuses her of murdering his family, and she is faced with a challenge of either proving her innocence or facing possible execution.

Royce Warwick returns home after setting down a rebellion to find his family brutally murdered. When all fingers point to his betrothed and attempts are made on his life, Royce must wade through murky waters to uncover the truth. Yet Brithwin’s wise and kind nature begin to break down the walls of his heart, and he soon finds himself in a race to discover who is behind the evil plot before Brithwin is the next victim.

by Susan Page Davis

Iris Perkins is told she will be married soon to a man she despises. A chance visit by two brothers and a beautiful woman from the other side of Echo Canyon gives her hope. For Edward Sherman, venturing into Utah with his brother to buy horses is risky. He only wants to find the livestock they need and get back to Fort Bridger, until he meets a frightened young woman in need. He’ll do anything he can to save Iris, even race against the man determined to marry her.

by Amber Schamel

After generations of waiting, the Messiah has come at last. And not a day too soon. Malon believes his life calling is to become a disciple of the Messiah and help free Israel from bondage.  When at last his family consents to let him go, Malon arrives in Jerusalem only to discover that he is too late. The man he thought to be the Messiah has been crucified, and Barabbas—his greatest enemy—has been set free.

Appalled by the cowardice of Jesus' disciples, Malon returns home seething with frustration and despair. Everything he believed he was destined to become died with Jesus. Was he wrong about his destiny? 

by Jennifer Uhlarik, Anita Mae Draper, and others

Declaring one’s love can be hard—even risky—especially when faced with some of life’s greatest challenges. Separated by class, time, distance, and more, some loves must remain secret until the time is right. Instead, notes of affection, acts of kindness, gifts of admiration, and lots of prayer are circulated. From New England mansions to homestead hovels, love is quietly being nourished and waiting for the right time to be revealed. But when love can finally be boldly expressed, will it be received by love in return?

by Margaret Brownley

Welcome to Two-Time Texas: Where tempers burn hot,

love runs deep and a single marriage can unite a feuding town…

or tear it apart for good.

Books Make Great Gifts--Shop Early!

We have some exciting new releases this month and some older favorites. (The women who blog here are certainly prolific writers!)

If you can't find a good book to give as a gift, maybe it's because you'd rather get it for yourself. Add it to your wish list for someone to buy for you and then send them here. 

(With all the choices this month, the gift's in the bag!)   

(Yee-hah!)

SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN TEXANS, Romance Collection 

by Vickie McDonough, Susan Page Davis, Erica Vetsch, 
and More

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE




SHATTERED MEMORIES
by Debbie Lynne Costello

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

THE COWBOY'S BRIDE COLLECTION

By Nancy Farrier, Susan Page Davis, Miralee Ferrell,

Vickie McDonough, and More

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

MOUNTAIN CHRISTMAS BRIDES

by Susan Page Davis and Others

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

A HOUSE LOVE BUILT

by Martha Rogers

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

(Holly Jolly!)

A PLAIN AND SWEET CHRISTMAS

by Ramona K. Cecil and More 

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

HIS PRAIRIE SWEETHEART

by Erica Vetsch

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE  

REBEL LIGHT

by Marilyn Turk

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

BEFORE THE SEASON ENDS

by Linore Rose Burkard

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

  RUMORS AND PROMISES

 by Kathleen Rouser

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

DAWN OF LIBERTY

by Amber Schamel

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE  

SOFI'S BRIDGE

by Christine Lindsay

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

MESSENGER BY MOONLIGHT

by Stephanie Grace Whitson

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

VALLEY OF THE SHADOW

by J.M. Hochstetler

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

THE CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH Romance Collection

by Linda Farmer Harris and More

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

SUMMER'S SURPRISE

by Martha Lou Rogers

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE 

HIS STEADFAST LOVE

by Golden Keyes Parsons

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

RESURRECTION OF HOPE

by Tamera Lynn Kraft

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

                                         THE LEGACY LETTERS

                                by Alanna Radle Rodriguez and More

                                         CLICK TO PURCHASE

                                           LEFT AT THE ALTAR

                                         by Margaret Brownley 

                                                            CLICK TO PURCHASE

Now don't say we never gave you any nifty gift-giving ideas! Will you give books as gifts this Christmas? Why or why not?

Summer Reading Checklist--Don't Miss These!

 

 

Once again we've got a handy-dandy checklist of sizzling reads to keep you mersmerized this summer. Whether your days are lazy and hazy or frantic and full, you'll  appreciate winding down to escape into a good book--and we've got one to fit your every reading mood, from sweet and romantic to mysterious or downright suspenseful. Pick a few books--and be ready for summer! 

                                                      

Happy reading!

We proudly recommend the following.

Why? Because they're ours--they come right from our hearts--the authors who write the posts for this blog each day.

Click on the Book Covers to Get Your Copy!

The Charleston earthquake has left destruction like nothing Doctor Andrew Warwick has ever seen. On a desperate mission to find the lady who owns his heart, he frantically searches through the rubble, where he finds her injured and lifeless. After she regains consciousness, the doctor’s hopes are quickly dashed as he realizes she doesn’t remember him. Things only get worse when he discovers she believes she’s still engaged to the abusive scoundrel, Lloyd Pratt. Now Drew is on a race with the wedding clock to either help her remember or win her heart again before she marries the wrong man.

Waking in a makeshift hospital, Olivia Macqueen finds herself recovering from a head injury. With amnesia stealing a year of her memories, she has trouble discerning between lies and truth. When her memories start returning in bits and pieces, she must keep up the charade of amnesia until she can find out the truth behind the embezzlement of her family’s business while evading the danger lurking around her.

New from Vickie McDonough!

Dusty Starr is unstoppable in the rodeo arena, but when it comes to love? He was bucked off long ago. Now he has a second chance at love, but will he have what it takes to win? 

In 1942, Lexie Smithfield becomes heir to her family's vacation home on Jekyll Island, and a mysterious telegram beckons her return. Ten years before, tragedies convinced her mother the island was cursed, and the home in the exclusive Millionaire's Club was abandoned.  Russell Thompson knows what really happened, but swore never to tell. Will Lexie discover the real danger before it's too late? 

Three riveting short stories follow Samuel Adams as he struggles through the events surrounding the Declaration of Independence and evokes the Dawn of Liberty.

Liberty comes with a price. Can a fledgling nation bear the cost?

British forces advance upon a struggling colonial army. The time of decision has come. Declare independence, or give up the fight. The weight of a nation rests on Samuel Adams' shoulders as he joins the delegates of the Second Continental Congress. Can he raise the cause of Liberty above the fear of the King's wrath in the hearts of his countrymen?

Seattle debutante Sofi Andersson will do everything in her power to protect her sister who is suffering from shock over their father's death. Charles, the family busy-body, threatens to lock Trina in a sanatorium--a whitewashed term for an insane asylum--so Sofi will rescue her little sister, even if it means running away to the Cascade Mountains with only the new gardener Neil Macpherson to protect them. But in a cabin high in the Cascades, Sofi begins to recognize that the handsome immigrant from Ireland harbors secrets of his own. Can she trust this man whose gentle manner brings such peace to her traumatized sister and such tumult to her own emotions? And can Neil, the gardener, continue to hide from Sofi that he is really Dr. Neil Galloway, a man wanted for murder by the British police? Only an act of faith and love will bridge the distance that separates lies from truth and safety.  

Orphaned Annie Paxton and her brothers have lost the only home they've ever known and are determined to make a better future in St. Joseph, Missouri. Annie dreams of a pretty house with window boxes, having friends, and attending church every week. But then her brothers land jobs as Pony Express riders, and Annie puts her dreams on hold to work as a cook at Clearwater Ranch on the Pony Express route.  Annie struggles to adapt to her new job, and the gruff station owner doesn't seem inclined to make her life any easier. A friendship has just begun to blossom and builds between them when Annie attracts the attention of a refined, dashing lieutenant from nearby Fort Kearney. Annie must learn how to trust her instincts and follow her heart--even if she's conflicted about which way it's leading her. 

From heart-pounding battles on the high seas to the rigors of Valley Forge and the Shawnee’s savagely fought wars, Valley of the Shadow continues the thrilling saga of America’s founding.

New from Susan Page Davis! 1918, Rural Maine. Judith Chadbourne gave up her teaching job after her mother’s death to help her father with her five siblings. But when her brother Joel is drafted, the household chores and farm work may overwhelm her. Their neighbor, Ben Thayer, seems rich and mysterious, but his heart aches from his own loss. Judith accidentally breaks the antique ornament her mother loved. The splintering star echoes her family’s shattering. Joel falls ill at the army camp, and Ben’s concern may bring the beginnings of trust. Can love take Judith beyond the frozen Maine winter?

Beautiful historical romance novellas written just for you by some of today's best-selling and award-winning Christian authors! Sit back and relax while these four talented women whisk you back to simpler times in America's past... but with that simplicity came hard work and change, so curl up in your favorite spot and see what Mary, Ruthy, Pam and Cara have brought your way as you "Spring Into Love" with this new delightful Christian romance collection!

Meet 12 adventurous Victorian era women—a beekeeper who is afraid of bees, a music teacher whose dog has dug up a treasure, a baker who enters a faux courtship, and six more—along with the men they encounter while making summertime memories. Will these loves sown during summer be strengthened by faith and able to endure a lifetime?

Risking all their hopes and dreams on promises of fertile land in the Northwest, thousands set off on the Oregon Trail between 1843 and the 1890s. Despite the majestic landscape and daily opportunities for fireside chats, the trail was hardly the place these migrants expected to find romance. In these nine novellas, travelers on the wagon trains experience all the challenges and dangers of the trail. Some will lose much, settle down along the trail, and even turn back home, while others endure to the end. Readers will enjoy traveling along with the romantic adventures in which faith is honed.

New from Martha Lou Rogers! Summer Patterson, a photo-journalist for a popular magazine, is on a mission to capture the charm and nostalgia of the old Route 66 through the West Texas Panhandle in story and picture, but when her car breaks down in a "middle of nowhere" town, her mission takes a turn she never expected. Cody Harper is a retired rodeo champ filling in as a mechanic until he can get his own ranch. Repairing Summer's foreign car will take days, so he arranges for her to stay with his grandmother Ellis. Meeting the people of McLean, Texas and riding with Cody to discover the beauty of a part of Texas she'd never seen leads her in a direction she had no plans to take. She returns to her busy life in the city of Dallas, but her heart is back in West Texas where she lost it along Route 66.  Getting it back will be no easy task, especially if Cody has his way.

It's the spring of 1861 on the Gulf Coast of Texas. Amanda never thought she would marry because of a promise she made to her dying mother, but her attraction to Captain Kent Littlefield is undeniable.
When Texas secedes from the Union, her brother Daniel aligns with the Confederate States, while Kent remains with the Union troops.
Her heart is torn between the two men she is closest to and the two sides of the conflict. Amanda prays to God for direction and support, but hears only silence. Where is God in the atrocities of war―and whose side is He on?

Discover four heroines in historical Austin, TX, as they find love--Jane Austen style. Volume 1 includes:

If I Loved You Less by Gina Welborn, based on Emma
A prideful matchmaker examines her own heart when her protégé falls for the wrong suitor.

Refinements by Anita Mae Draper, based on Sense and Sensibility
A misguided academy graduate spends the summer falling in love . . . twice.

One Word from You by Susanne Dietze, based on Pride and Prejudice
A down-on-her-luck journalist finds the story of her dreams, but her prejudice may cost her true love . . . and her career. Alarmingly Charming by Debra E. Marvin, based on Northanger Abbey
A timid gothic dime-novel enthusiast tries to solve the mystery of a haunted cemetery and, even more shocking, why two equally charming suitors compete for her attentions.

  

In this action-packed sequel to PULSE, author L.R.Burkard takes readers on a heart-pounding journey into a landscape where teens shoulder rifles instead of school books, and where survival might mean becoming your own worst enemy.

Now that an EMP has sent the United States into a Dark Age, Andrea, Lexie and Sarah have more to worry about than the mere loss of technology. Threats of marauders and rumors of foreign soldiers mean no one can let down their guard. The appearance of FEMA camps might be reassuring--except military outfits seem determined to force people into them...With evil threatening on every side, can the U.S. recover before everyone--and everything--is destroyed?  

Do you make time for fun summer reading? Where's your favorite place to read--beach, bed, lazy chair? Where do other readers enjoy reading most? Leave a comment and let's compare notes!