historical fiction
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Blackberry Road by Jodi Lea Stewart
Biddy Woodson, one of twelve siblings in a sharecropper family living in 1934 Oklahoma, has learned how to sass and vinegar her way through life, even when it takes a bit of cussing to get through those hellish stacks of after-meal dishes.
Trouble blows in one afternoon when a beloved neighbor is murdered. A single piece of evidence sends the sheriff into the nearby woods to arrest Mr. Leroy. Biddy knows that the kindly gentleman wouldn’t hurt a fly, but she’s convinced the sheriff looks down on sharecroppers and poor folk. She sets her jaw to see justice done for Mr. Leroy, but she finds herself up against more than she ever imagined.
In that fateful summer of 1934, haunting and terrifying sounds coming from the woods lead Biddy into deeper mysteries, despair, and shocking truths. Help comes from an unlikely source, but can life ever be the same on BLACKBERRY ROAD?
Sedition Book I: Xian by Grea Alexander
Qing Dynasty, China.
Having done the unthinkable, Lady Choi Xian finds herself in an impossible situation.
Fleeing with her personal bodyguard, Commander Ishikawa Kenji, to The Forbidden City in China – where her lover and soon to be coronated Emperor holds sway, Xian believes she is safe.
However, with the Korean princess and future Empress determined to make her life a living hell, can Xian escape The Forbidden City before it’s too late?
Patrick’s Journey by Roy T Humphreys
Based on the true story of an Irish rebel around the turn of the 18th century Patrick’s Journey contains an uplifting message of redemption merged into its adventure / romance theme. Readers will follow Patrick as he is torn from his life’s love and homeland then transported to a penal colony on the other side of the world. Against the odds, Patrick emerges from despair to resurrect his life and love in a new land.
Patrick’s Journey could be described as simply an entertaining “romance / adventure” novel, but the story goes deeper than that. The “Journey” in the story is twofold; there is the physical journey from one mode of existence in Ireland to a completely different one in Australia and the emotional/spiritual journey that accompanies such drastic changes in Patrick’s world. Bennett’s County by Darrel Sparkman
Sheriff Billy Bennett takes his job seriously—and he’s darn good at it. No one breaks the law in his county. So when he gets a complaint of women dancing naked in the nearby forest, of course he has to investigate. Some say they’re witches, but Sheriff Bennett doesn’t hold with that—he doesn’t allow witches in his county.
But when a self-proclaimed warlock comes looking for them with plans to steal them away, Billy Bennett has him ushered out of Bennett’s County for good. There are no warlocks…only bad men. And Sheriff Billy Bennett will see the law is obeyed, no matter what—or who—tries to bend the rules.
Caught in the middle of an odd battle, the sheriff begins to wonder if he’s bitten off more than he can chew in order to keep law and order alive and well in BENNETT’S COUNTY… Is there any way this can end well?
Due Justice by J.L. Guin
A bank robbery results in a teller’s death in a small town near the Nebraska Territory, and Deputy U.S. Marshals James P. Stone and Jackson Millet are dispatched by Judge Castle to go after the robbers, career criminals Leonard Crepes and T.C. Wilde.
Stone and Millet find themselves in a deadly race against time as Wilde becomes even more daring, killing one man and wounding another a few days later, but the territory they must cover is vast, and Crepes and Wilde could be anywhere.
When Crepes and Wilde split up, Millet and Stone must decide which one of them to follow. But during their search, an unexpected turn of events puts Stone’s old nemesis, Laird, squarely back in their sights once more.
In a desperate, deadly showdown, will Stone be able to finally capture Laird and make him pay for the murder of his old friend and mentor, Eldon Greyson? After five long years, will Stone see that Laird gets DUE JUSTICE?
One Moonlit Tryst by Amanda Mariel
Lady Tabitha Pemberton wants nothing more than to enjoy her first season without becoming attached, but when Lady X writes of a forbidden tryst between Tabitha and Colin Brooks, the earl of Harcourt, everything changes. Now Tabitha must choose between her reputation and her desire to remain unattached.
The Forgotten Bride by Bethany Hauck
Jeremy Spencer is just nineteen-years-old, and planning a long-awaited trip to the continent. He’s blindsided when his father informs him that he arranged his marriage years ago, and the wedding will take place in a week. Maybe the news would have gone over better if his bride wasn’t a thirteen-year-old girl.
Anne Jones had a happy childhood until her Papa became ill. Afraid of leaving her alone he contacts his old friend, William Spencer, to see if the betrothal between their children is going to be honored. He needs to know that Anne will be cared for before he dies.
The two will wed and then separate immediately after. They’ll be apart for more than five years. Anne will finish her education, and when Jeremy doesn’t return, make plans to go on with her life. She hopes she never sets eyes on Jeremy Spencer again; she just needs him to sign the annulment papers.
Jeremy is angry when he leaves for his tour of the continent, and vows not to return until the marriage can be annulled. He spends the next five years doing what young men do, because he never expects his marriage to last.
Jeremy finally returns with the intent to end his marriage, but one look at Anne makes him change his mind. He’ll have to work hard to get her to forgive him. Anne is smart, strong-willed, and not afraid to stand up for herself. She refuses to listen to Jeremy’s excuses or apologies, until he turns her over his knee and spanks her, and she agrees to give the marriage a chance.
Can Anne forgive and the two find happiness together?
Christmas in the Duke’s Embrace by Amanda Mariel
Disgraced and betrayed by those she trusted most, Lady Marina Ellis finds herself near death and in desperate need of rescue.
Evan Lockhart, never expected to find a woman buried in a snowbank outside of his ducal manor, but now that he has he cannot turn her away.
As Christmas approaches the pair form a bond neither expected, but can they overcome the obstacles standing between them and embrace their chance at love?
Settling the Wind by Kari August
The harsh and rugged Colorado frontier of 1875 is not the type of place most would consider suitable for a recent widow to establish a home of her own. Yet that is exactly what Henrietta Schodde determines she will do as she impetuously buys a cabin in the newly forming settlement of Estes Park. Despite assurances from Henrietta that the locals appear amiable, her relatives are concerned and recruit the assistance of long-time family friend Collan Wallace, who unbeknownst to Henrietta, has also just begun homesteading in the area.
The last thing Collan desires is to watch over the woman who has been his nemesis since childhood. But the pair quickly realize that there is more than each other to fight about when they discover an unscrupulous Englishman, Lord Dunraven, is hungry for their land.
Endearing and engaging, Settling the Wind, is historical fiction based on actual events that reveals the courage of Colorado’s pioneers in the face of more struggles than they could have imagined. A Reluctant Trail Bride by Bethany Hauck
Lily Johnson said goodbye to her brothers and sister in Book 1 of the Johnson series ‘Married on the Oregon Trail’. She stayed behind in Paducah to marry Jeremiah Smith, and to get over losing the man she truly loved, Nick Garrett. She finds out that Jeremiah played a role in her parent’s deaths soon after. She blames herself and silently vows never to court a man again.
With the threat of war seeming more inevitable each day, John and Victoria Johnson decide to leave Paducah and travel with Lily to Oregon, where her brothers and sister went. It’ll be a fresh start for all of them, as they are joined by another of their grandsons, Mark Roberts.
Nick Garrett leaves Paducah heartbroken. He’s glad he was able to leave earlier than planned because watching Jeremiah with Lily is killing him. Nick knows if he doesn’t get away soon, he’ll end up doing something stupid. He travels to Independence, and although his wagon train isn’t leaving for a few weeks yet, he settles in and prepares himself for the journey, while trying to forget about Lily. He’s quite surprised when he sees John and Victoria pull their large Prairie Schooner into the wagon train camp, a few days before the train heads west to Oregon. He’s even more surprised to see Lily standing up behind them, and hanging onto the back of their seat.
Conditions on the trail are difficult, and many things go wrong, one of which leads to Lily and Nick having to marry. Although everyone else knows the two of them are made for each other, it may take a trip or two over Nick’s knee before Lily figures it out, as she struggles to forgive herself, and go on with her life.Although this is a stand-alone novel, many of the characters were introduced to the series in; ‘Married on the Oregon Trail The Johnsons Book 1’.
