Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Mark David Pullen!

Talkshow Thursday: 

Welcome Mark David Pullen

I love meeting new-to-me authors, don't you? Grab a cup of your favorite beverage and take a few minutes getting to know Mark David Pullen!

1.What inspired you to write this story?

Believe it or not, I was inspired to write this story because I got bored reading my son to sleep. There are only so many board books you can read as an adult before they start to wear you out. I wanted to write something that would be equally engaging for the person reading the story and the person they were reading it to. And so, I gifted my son with this story.

2. How do you develop your characters? (e.g. decide on their vocation, names, etc.)?

Because I wrote it for my son, I thought it would be fun to make him and my two nephews the main characters. They were relatively easy to develop because I had a lot to work with and all the resources necessary to develop their traits and characteristics.

3.What sort of research did you do for your story, and was there an exceptionally interesting tidbit you knew you had to include?

I did a lot of research! Even though I write Sci-Fi/Fantasy and fast-paced Action/Adventure, I researched everything to make it as authentic as possible. I wanted to write about a giant prehistoric frog, and I had no idea they actually existed. They’re called Beelzebufo!

4. Describe your journey to becoming an author.

My journey to publication is a God story. All my life, I’ve been a daydreamer, and that has gotten me into trouble. I got bored reading my son to sleep and thought, “Why not write him a story?” So, I daydreamed one up. I am a trade worker, not even close to a writer at the time, but I sat down and wrote him the story anyway. It was an inspiring experience, and I felt the tug on my heart to finish it and write more.

I wrote the whole thing in about a month and fell in love with writing. It was a whopping 30 pages in a looseleaf binder. I didn’t even have a laptop at the time. I wrote it entirely on my iPhone with a Bluetooth keyboard.

I gave it to my son for Christmas, and the following spring, my wife sent me away via Zoom to the Colorado Christian Writers Conference for Father's Day. Remember, I’m not a writer, but this was a fantastic gift and experience. She even arranged three appointments for me: two with agents seeking work and one with an acquisitions editor for a company I’d never heard of.

Neither agent was interested in my work, and I missed my appointment with the editor, a man named

Terry. Too bad, but I’m not even a writer. I wrote one thing, one time, so what was I to expect? Certainly not for Terry to have an open time slot and ask to meet with me, which is what happened. So we meet. I should have mentioned Terry, and the agents only got the first page of my story to judge whether they were interested in it. Not the front and back, the front of the first page only. Terry loved it and asked for the rest. I could not believe it. He asked for the rest and said he would be in touch.

I sent him the rest of the story, the other 29 pages, and I waited. Terry reached out shortly after that, telling me it was too short and way below the industry standard for word count and content. But he encouraged me to keep working on it and stay in touch. Too bad, but it happens.

Life continues, and a few months later, my phone rings from an unknown number. I answer by mistake instead of hitting the ignore button. But I answer, and it’s Terry. He asks how the writing is going, and I tell him I’m working on it here and there. But I still have real-life obligations, and writing is a hobby, so I work on it when I have time. Terry then explains that his company publishes two books in my categories a year and that he had hoped one would be mine, but time was running out. So I got to work. I bought a laptop, got to work, and finished my story. A month later, during the week of Christmas, Terry called and told me my writing contract was in the mail.

5. If your book is part of a series: Did you set out to write a series? Why did you decide to write a series?

My book is part of a series. I did not intend it to be, but it is. Once I sat down to write, the ideas and stories kept coming. The second book in the series just hit shelves this September! (Freedom Through the Narrow Gate: The Oasis Chronicles)

6.Why do you write in this genre?

I write in this genre because it’s what interests me. That makes it easy.

7. What advice do you have for fledgling writers?

My advice to fledgling writers is to attend a writer's conference. This is not only for the networking opportunities but also for the coursework and materials that will help you grow in the craft and prepare you to be a small business owner because, as an author, your book is your business.

8. What is your favorite childhood book?

My favorite childhood book is “Mrs. Frisby And The Rats of Nimh.” I love any story with talking animals, especially mice and rats. A little fun tidbit for you is that the second book in my series focused only on talking mice and rats.

About the Oasis King

Dylan, Jack, and Tripp are looking for adventure, but when they find an entryway into a magical land, plagued by the malevolent Stranger, the cost of their new, exciting journey might prove to be too much.

While on vacation at their grandmother’s farm, cousins Dylan, Jack, and Tripp learn of a long kept family secret and the power of wishing on a star. The boys are swept away to the Valley of the Oasis—a strange, primal paradise, where monsters and danger lurk around every turn. They find refuge with a lone hunter and his dogs, who have lost track of time and appear trapped in this magical land.

But the hunter and his dogs cannot rest for long. He is pursued by the Stranger, a strange green-skinned being from another time and place who also seeks to escape the Valley of the Oasis. As they narrowly escape the Stranger’s attacks, the boys worry that they, too, are trapped with no way home. Will the hunter protect the boys and send them home in time, before the Stranger closes in once and for all? The Oasis King is the first in a series of an action-adventure tales for younger readers who seek new lands, heart-racing challenges, and unexpected twists.

Find more information about Mark David Pullen at:

Website: www.theoasisking.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/therealoasisking
Instagram: www.instagram.com/markdavidpullen

Traveling Tuesday: Milton Hershey's Factory

Traveling Tuesday: Milton Hershey’s Factory

Courtesy Hershey Community
Archives

Milton Hershey is credited as being the first to mass produce the chocolate bar and make it available to the general public at an affordable price. But before he could manufacture the bars, he had to develop the recipe. He’d already learned about adding milk to caramel, but he continued to hit roadblocks with his milk chocolate.

Not a fan of experts, M.S. (as he was called) was desperate, so he hired a chemist. At some point, the man burned a match of milk and sugar, leading to his dismissal. Rather than bring in another chemist, M.S. went to Lancaster caramel plant and called on employee John Schmalbach.

The first step for the men was to scrape the burned remains out of the copper vacuum kettle then clean

Pexels/
Amanda Hemphill

it until the vessel was pristine. Then skim milk and a large amount of sugar was poured into the kettle. Mr. Schmalbach turned on the heat, then gradually raised the temperature of the kettle, allowing the mixture to cook slowly. A few hours passed, and he let it cool. When the lid was opened, M.S. has a batch of “warm, smooth, sweetened condensed milk that accepted cocoa powder, cocoa butter, and other ingredients without getting lumpy.”(1)

After repeating the process multiple times, the men knew production was in the cards.

Ground was broken on March 2, 1903 for the factory, a facility specifically designed to produce a “limited number of products in the most efficient way possible.”(2) Construction was completed in December 1904, and by the following summer, milk chocolate was in production.

As an enthusiast of Frederick Winslow Taylor’s scientific management, M.S. arranged the one-story factory to match architecture with function. Boxcars loaded with cocoa beans, sugar, and other dry ingredients arrived at the east end of the plant, then make their way through the plant, meeting the fresh milk as it arrived at the creamery on the north side of the plant. After it was processed into skim, John Schmalbach’s process of slow evaporation creating the condensed milk. Drying, rolling, and four days of mixing in conching machine produced chocolate that could be molded, then wrapped and boxed.(2)

In the first full year of production, net sales were over $1 million. Not bad for a man with little formal schooling.

(1) Hershey by Michael D’Antonio, Simon & Schuster, 2006
(2) Images of America: Hershey Mary Davidoff Houts and Pamela Cassidy Whitenack, Arcadia Press, 2000

__________________________

Love and Chocolate

She just needs a job. He wants a career. Is there room in their hearts for love?

Ilsa Krause and her siblings are stunned to discover their father left massive debt behind upon his death. To help pay off their creditors and save the farm, she takes a job at Beck’s Chocolates, the company her father despised and refused to supply with milk. Then she discovers her boss is Ernst Webber, her high school love who unceremoniously dumped her via letter from college. Could life get any more difficult?

A freshly-minted university diploma in his hand, Ernst Webber lands his dream job at Beck’s Chocolates. His plans to work his way up the ladder don’t include romantic entanglements, then Ilsa Krause walks back into his life resurrecting feelings he thought long dead. However, her animosity makes it clear she has no interest in giving him a second chance. Can he get her to change her mind? Does he want to?

Purchase link: https://books2read.com/u/mdQerZ

Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Penny Frost McGinnis

Talkshow Thursday: 

Welcome Penny Frost McGinnis!

Grab your favorite beverage, pull up a chair, and get to know author Penny Frost McGinnis and her fabulous books! Spoiler alert: She was a librarian for twenty-four years! My kind of people!

What was your inspiration for the story?

For many years, my husband and I traveled to the Lake Erie islands, on the northern shores of Ohio. We’d visit Marblehead Lighthouse and often take the ferry to Kelleys Island. On the way home from one of our trips, I realized an island would be the perfect place to set a story with romance, a dash of mystery and the promise of hope. Abbott Island was born and it’s modeled after Kelleys Island. The nature trails and quaint town inspired the characters and the hurdles they overcome in life.

What sort of research did you do for your story, and was there an exceptionally interesting tidbit you knew you had to include?

For the series, I researched how people lived the island life, the pluses and minuses and how the economy stayed afloat. For Home at Last, book three in the series, I researched hidden treasure, farming, the Klondike Goldrush, and baseball. I discovered that many women went to the Klondike, some with spouses, some left their families behind, and some went alone. They were resourceful and opened restaurants and outposts to accommodate the gold rushers. I’m not sure I would have been so brave.

Tell us about your road to publication.

My road to publication has been long. I studied the craft, wrote as often as possible, and attended conferences for twenty-five years before I was published with a small press. I’d been interested in writing from a young age but hadn’t taken the steps to pursue the serious side of writing. After much work, my first novel, Home Where She Belongs was published in 2022, when I was sixty-four years old.

If your book is part of a series: Did you set out to write a series? Why did you decide to write a

series?

Abbott Island is a series of three novels. I chose to write a series to highlight three friends on the island whose lives intertwine. It was fun to see the characters develop and interact with each other. Sadie, Marigold, and Lucy support and encourage each other as they face obstacles and decisions. If you were to write a spin-off book about one of your secondary characters, which one would you choose and why?

I’ve actually written a novella focused on Levi and Charlotte, both secondary characters. The story is included in Christmas in Ohio or can be purchased as the standalone e-book, Home for Christmas. I enjoyed bringing their story to life and getting to flesh out their characters a bit more.

What is your process for writing? (do you outline, have a special place or time of day you write, etc.) What is your favorite part of the process?

I’m a pantser, meaning I write by the seat of my pants. I generally have an idea of where I want the story to go, but I enjoy letting the story develop. I love when the characters speak the story to me and guide the journey.

How does/did your job prepare you for being a novelist?

Pixabay/StockSnap

For twenty-four years, I worked in libraries. I spent half of those years as a children’s librarian and half as a copy cataloger. Being around books brings me joy. I grew to understand the publishing process and the creation of books from an interesting perspective. I had learned to make physical books, so I understood binding and as a cataloger learned about the ISBN, and Library of Congress description. The first time I saw my book on a library shelf and the catalog record my heart fluttered a little.

What is one thing you wish you could do?

I wish I could teleport. It would be great to be able to simply be where I wanted to be without driving or flying. It sure would make research trips fun. What is your advice to fledgling writers?

Never give up and seek guidance from God who created you and gave you the talent and desire to write. I had to surrender my will and seek God’s to continue my journey.

What writers or books have influenced you?

Deborah Raney is one of the kindest and most encouraging writers I’ve met. Simply seeing her journey as a writer has encouraged me to keep going. My critique partners, Kathleen Friesen and Kim Garee, have been great and are wonderful authors as well.

What was your favorite childhood book and why?

I loved Little Women and Marguerite Henry’s books. Dr. Seuss books were also a big part of my childhood. I still love rhymes and poetry.

What is your next project?

I’m currently switching gears a bit and working on a cozy mystery series. Cozies are one of my favorite genres, so I want to try my hand at one. It’s a bit of a learning curve, but I’m enjoying it.

Thank you for having me on your blog. I appreciate your support and encouragement.

About Penny: Penny Frost McGinnis, author of the Abbott Island series and picture book, Betsy and Bailey, has lived in the world of books most of her life. She retired from the library life, then launched her writing journey. She and her husband live in southwest Ohio with their golden retriever, Rosie. She enjoys her family, fiber arts, and baseball. Her life's goal is to encourage and uplift through her writing.

Website: https://www.pennyfrostmcginnis.com/

About Home at Last: Lucy Grayson grew up on Abbott Island. From the age of fifteen, she worked at the General Store. When she bought the business at age twenty-four, she had no idea how much time she would spend working. Now nearing thirty, she finds herself at a crossroads. Tired of the grind at work and convicted by God to make a change, she considers selling the store. If she sells, then what? She loves her family, but she's lonely. The island is small and few job or dating opportunities exist. She's had a lifelong dream tucked in her back pocket for years. Could now be the time?

Owen Miller moved to the island to live on his aunt and uncle's farm after his short-lived professional baseball career ended in injury. Bitter after his ex-girlfriend ditched him for someone with more money, he focuses on his future. He has been keeping a low profile while he works out a plan to help the farm thrive. Using his college degree, he creates a landscaping business and ideas for a Christmas tree farm. The last thing he's looking for is a relationship.

In the spring, mysterious holes pop up on the island and throw Lucy and Owen together, literally. Owen rescues her from a hole in her yard. As they consider why holes are being dug on the island and who is behind it, Owen's uncle shares a story about island people and Klondike gold. Whether the tale is true, Lucy and Owen want to discover who is behind the hole digging and why. In the meantime, will they discover more than the answer to the mystery? Will Owen's walls around his heart come down? Will Lucy have the insight she needs into her future?

Abbott Island book 3 takes the reader on an adventure and digs into the island's history, as Lucy and Owen discover their future.

Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/bOdP5A

Movie Monday: The African Queen

Movie Monday: African Queen

While growing up one of my favorite things to do was watch old (1930s and 1940s) movies with my dad. He was (and still is) a huge fan of Humphrey Bogart, so I’ve seen every film he ever made, one of which I watched countless times: The African Queen. Yet, despite my knowledge of the film, I didn’t remember it was set in 1914 or that it was based on the novel of the same name by C.S. Forester, a British author who wrote mostly adventure stories about naval warfare.

For those who haven’t seen it, the premise is that Samuel (Robert Morely) and Rose (Katharine Hepburn) Saylor are brother and sister English Methodist missionaries in German East Africa. Their mail and supplies are regularly delivered by the steamboat African Queen, captained by the Canadian Charlie Allnut (Humphrey Bogart). After war breaks out between Germany and Britain, the siblings decide to stay in Kungdu. Tragically, German troops burn the village and take the villagers away to be pressed into serve. Samuel protests the action and is struck by a soldier which ultimately kills him. Charlie and Rose escape in the African Queen. The rest of the movie is the thrills and chills of their journey to safety and love.

Hepburn does a great job of playing the strait-laced missionary against Bogart’s “gin-swilling” rogue, a

character for which he would win his only Academy Award. According to one source “although the screenplay was written with little humor in mind, the chemistry between Bogart and Hepburn was so apparent that director John Huston advised his stars to improvise witty banter.”

The movie was filmed in the Belgian Congo, Uganda, and Turkey during which the rough conditions were difficult for the actors and the crew, many becoming ill over the course of the shooting. The same sight claims “Bogart later boasted that he was one of the few to stay healthy through the shoot, attributing the accomplishment to his drinking of whiskey instead of the local water.”

Here are few fun facts:

• The African Queen was actually the L.S. Livingston, which had been a working diesel boat for 40 years. The steam engine was a prop, and the real diesel engine was hidden under stacked crates of gin and other cargo. It is now docked next to the Holiday Inn in Key Largo, FL, just off US Highway 1.
• Lauren Bacall famously ventured along for the filming in Africa to be with husband Humphrey Bogar. She played den mother during the trip, making camp and cooking. This also marked the beginning of her life-long friendship with Katharine Hepburn.
• The movie was shot mostly on location in Africa, but the water scenes were shot in England - fearing it would be too dangerous to film those on location.
• John Huston wanted to put real leeches on Humphrey Bogart, but he refused. They compromised by using rubber leeches - with real ones on set with a breeder just to make him queasy. A shot using real leeches was filmed using a double.
• It has widely been believed that London's population of feral Ring-Necked Parakeets originated from birds who escaped the filming of this movie.

Watch the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYBDRAp4Or8

____________________

Love and Chocolate

She just needs a job. He wants a career. Is there room in their hearts for love?

Ilsa Krause and her siblings are stunned to discover their father left massive debt behind upon his death. To help pay off their creditors and save the farm, she takes a job at Beck’s Chocolates, the company her father despised and refused to supply with milk. Then she discovers her boss is Ernst Webber, her high school love who unceremoniously dumped her via letter from college. Could life get any more difficult?

A freshly-minted university diploma in his hand, Ernst Webber lands his dream job at Beck’s Chocolates. His plans to work his way up the ladder don’t include romantic entanglements, then Ilsa Krause walks back into his life resurrecting feelings he thought long dead. However, her animosity makes it clear she has no interest in giving him a second chance. Can he get her to change her mind? Does he want to?

Purchase link: https://books2read.com/u/mdQerZ

Fiction Friday: New Releases in Christian Fiction

October 2024 New ReleasesMore in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website

General Contemporary:

I’ll Be Home by Darlene L. Turner, by Sara Davison, Helena Smrcek, Melanie Stevenson -- With chaos and confusion all around them, can they find their way home this Christmas? The people in these four stories are all searching for something—an escaped convict, a job promotion from a love interest, connection to a lost parent, answers across time. Christmas should be a time of wonder and celebration, but the obstacles each faces seem insurmountable. Perhaps they will find what they are seeking during this season of miracles and hope. Or maybe, with God’s help, they will discover that the longing of their hearts takes them to places—and people—they didn’t even know they’d been searching for. (General Contemporary, Independently Published)

Chokecherry Valley Collection by Jean Rezab -- One accident. Two devastated families. Paul Richmond's life changed in an instant when his wife and seven-year-old daughter die in a car accident. He struggles to move forward with this huge change. As his two-year sobriety anniversary approaches, he knows he's on the edge of a relapse. He takes a sabbatical from his work as a doctor and works on his in-law's farm to get perspective and try to come to terms with his new life. What if Paul could have the one thing he desires most? To see and speak to his daughter again. (General Contemporary, Independently Published)

Contemporary Romance:

A Match Made at Christmas by Amy R. Anguish, Sarah Anne Crouch, Lori DeJong, Heather Greer -- A mischievous little boy, an interfering friend, a committee of Christmas planners, and a quartet of teenage elves play matchmakers in this fun collection of Christmas romances. (Contemporary Romance, Scrivenings Press)

The Warrior’s B&B by Jennie Atkins -- Is it possible for a man to fall in love with two different women and never suspect they are the same person? (Contemporary Romance from Amazon)

The Dream of a Cowboy by Elsie Davis -- Cowboys who deserve a second chance at love and happiness and the women strong enough to show them the way...Texas style! (Contemporary Romance from Sweet Romance Publishing)

One Starry Christmas by Mary A. Felkins -- A pastor with a past faces his greatest challenge. Redemption. (Contemporary Romance from Gardenia Press)

Wild at Heart by Alyssa Schwarz -- She craves adventure. He's had enough adventure for a lifetime. But when these two friends find themselves searching the skies for an endangered hawk, they’ll find there’s more at stake than the future of Wild Rose Ridge. (Contemporary Romance, Independently Published)

Historical:
Brave by Mesu Andrews -- In the tumultuous world of ancient Israel, Ahinoam--a fierce and unconventional Kenite woman--flees her family farm with her dagger-wielding father to join the ragtag band of misfits led by the shepherd-turned-warrior David ben Jesse. As King Saul's treasonous accusations echo through the land, Ahinoam's conviction that David's anointing makes him Yahweh's chosen king propels her on a perilous journey to Moab, only to encounter hardship and betrayal. (Historical from Bethany House Publishing)

All We Thought We Knew by Michelle Shocklee -- In the midst of pain and loss two women must come face-to-face with their own assumptions about what they thought they knew about themselves and others. What they discover will lead to a far greater appreciation of their own legacies and the love of those dearest to them. (Historical from Tyndale House)

Historical Romance:
One Special Christmas by Amanda Cabot -- It will take a miracle to salvage her dreams, but Christmas is the season of miracles, isn’t it? (Historical Romance from ByDand Publishing)

A Christmas at Hotel del Coronado by Kathleen Denly -- Her entire life, Eleanore Wainright has been molded to fit the ideal society wife in the glittering world of New York’s elite. Her father’s aspirations for her are clear: marry a man of wealth and status and secure their family’s future. But when she arrives at the Hotel del Coronado with intentions to do just that, Eleanore’s carefully laid plans are thrown into disarray when she comes face to face with Thomas Harding, the man who shattered her heart and disappeared without a trace. (Historical Romance from Wild Heart Books)

Beyond Shattered Dreams by Cynthia Roemer -- After months in a Confederate prison camp, Private Will Everett boards the Sultana eager to return home and leave behind the horrors of war. One day into the voyage, the overcrowded steamboat explodes, rendering Will injured and unable to recall his identity. With only a pocket watch and the name Will E. etched inside to guide him, Will begins a relentless quest to find his forgotten past. (Historical Romance from Scrivenings Press)

Healing Hearts by Sherida Stewart -- Two wounded hearts. His shattered by grief, hers burdened by guilt. Will these two hurting hearts be healed by love and faith? A frontier “Beauty and the Beast” tale set in New Mexico Territory. (Historical Romance, Independently Published)

Middle-grade Chapter books:

The Beastie of Brambly Bald by Amanda Cleary Eastep -- Jack Finch’s plan to gobble up tons of turkey over Thanksgiving Break and work on the Tree Street Kids’ fort has been foiled. Instead, the Finches are traveling to the mountains of North Carolina to visit grandparents Jack barely knows. Thank goodness his best friends Ellison and Roger are coming with him to the cabin on Brambly Bald mountain. But something is lurking in the forest, and soon Jack uncovers a secret bigger than Bigfoot. When the kids come face to face with a real threat, will Jack find a way to protect his friends? Jack braves danger, finds new branches on his family tree, and discovers what it means to be rooted in God’s great family. (Middle-grade/Chapter Books from Moody Publishers)

Mystery/Suspense/Thriller:

Time to Pay by Susan Page Davis -- A near miss for Tony throws the squad into high gear. Captain Harvey Larson is summoned by the mayor to help solve a crime she doesn’t want publicized. Was the caller threatening her or her husband? Meanwhile, the detectives in the Priority Unit are chasing down other criminals. (Mystery [Police Procedural] from Tea Tin Press)

70 North by Kimberley Woodhouse -- In this thrilling finale, mysteries deepen, faith is tested, and the pulse of cyber threats intensifies against the striking backdrop of Deadhorse, Alaska. (Contemporary Suspense from Kregel Publications)

Romantic Suspense:
Terminal Danger by Jerusha Agen -- When a busload of schoolchildren disappears, Phoenix Gray knows the kidnapper is the unidentified serial killer she’s spent her life trying to catch. This time, she’ll find the killer and bring him to justice no matter what it takes. She and her Phoenix K-9 Security and Detection Agency join the search for the hostages, but they aren’t the only ones who want the criminal captured. (Romantic Suspense, Independently Published [ACFW QIP])

Finding Amanda by Robin Patchen -- A gripping tale of trauma, justice, and the extraordinary strength of a man who’ll do anything to protect the woman he loves. (Romantic Suspense, Independently Published [ACFW QIP])

Search and Detect by Terri Reed -- When her home is destroyed by a bomb, Zoe and her little girl need protection and FBI agent Chase Rawlston takes on the job while determining if the bombing is related to the serial killer he's tracking. (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired [Harlequin])

Assigned to Protect by Melanie D. Snitker -- Police Officer Jenny Durant and FBI Agent Blake Patterson are assigned to protect a witness who is testifying in a high-profile case. Before she can testify, a bomb goes off at the courthouse, throwing everything into chaos. With multiple casualties and another missing defendant, it's impossible to know for sure who the actual target was, and whether this attack is only the beginning… (Romantic Suspense, Independently Published)

Guarding Truth by Kelly Underwood -- The one thing that Former Army Ranger turned elite bodyguard Juliette Montgomery regrets is never telling fellow solider Caleb Styles her true feelings. But how could she? They were co-workers, and then the guy went and saved her life. And that turned out to be the one thing that cost them their relationship. So Juliette has moved on, trying to forget Caleb—and her feelings. Caleb hasn’t forgotten her either. But he has no idea she now lives in Savannah, Georgia…especially since his life is full as guardian of his niece, Ivy, after her parents were killed.… (Romantic Suspense from Sunrise Publishing)

Unexpected Witness by Penny Zeller -- Nurse Mila Casey did not expect to witness a murder in the clinic’s parking lot. Nor did she imagine seeking protection from the at-large killer would land her on a secluded ranch owned by handsome, but standoffish, Roarke Brenneman. Mila finds herself in the center of ever-growing danger as the police are unable to locate the suspect. When the protection of the ranch is compromised and Mila’s location is discovered, can she, with Roarke’s aid, stay one step ahead of a crazed murderer who intends to silence her… (Romantic Suspense from Maplebrook Publishing)

Speculative Fiction:

The Castle Rose by Tabitha Caplinger -- Bastian Roux lived and died a hundred years ago. Kind of. He certainly feels like nothing more than a ghost as he haunts the abandoned Castle Rose Theatre, his only solace found in the notes of his piano. That is until Odette arrives. (Speculative Urban Fantasy from Blue Ink Press)

Western:

Into the Sunset by Mary Connealy -- To finally escape the clutches of her controlling husband and the threat of being recommitted to an asylum, Ginny Rutledge enlists the help of her friends, Maeve O'Toole and Dakota Harlan. Fleeing their own tumultuous pasts, the group embarks on a journey to prove Ginny's sanity. However, as they confront the shadows they wish they could forget, danger looms from unexpected places. (Western from Bethany House)

  Plus check out these recent additions to Fiction Finder published within the past month:

Sundancer’s Joy by Elsie Davis -- Where hope and healing unite… (Contemporary Romance)

A Codebreaker’s Christmas Surprise by Anne Greene -- A secret kept by the US Government for 80 years finally revealed. (Historical Romance)

Fellowship of the Frazzled Moms by Stephanie Paige King -- One mom's simple act of crossing the cul-de-sac ignites a movement for an entire community of women. (General Contemporary)

In Pursuit of the Truth by Melanie D. Snitker -- When the situation escalates to danger, it’s up to Nate to keep them safe. (Romantic Suspense)

The Reluctant Pioneer by Julie McDonald Zander -- In 1847, with her husband and four young sons, a pregnant mother crosses the Oregon Trail, a two-thousand-mile journey to the Pacific Northwest. When tragedy strikes, she must find the strength to continue. (Western)

Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Iris Lim!

Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Iris Lim!

Thank you, Linda, for having me! I am very excited today to talk about my latest book, Befriending Burgess, and to share a snippet of it with everyone. The entire Beniton Hall series is actually broadly inspired by a family in our church, where a young woman from a family of all girls married a young man from a family of all boys (to the great delight of both sides of the clan). The first book of my series, One Night in Beniton Hall, portrayed the marriage between Heather Nottingham and Edgar Avington, which united the two families. Every book after that has since featured the love story of one of Heather’s sisters or one of Edgar’s brothers.

I’d really looked forward to writing Befriending Burgess from the start because I love Rose. She is sort of the quiet middle child in the Nottingham family, but she’s actually the most insightful of her sisters. What surprised me while I was writing the book was actually the hero, Frederick, the Duke of Burgess, and how endearing he was. As someone abruptly thrust into the spotlight, he is nothing like the usual swaggering, self-important dukes so common in Regency stories. Instead, he is bookish and shy and a little bit awkward but also incredibly sweet. My best friend, who beta reads for me, told me she loves him because, “What’s not to like about a shy and humble duke?”

Here is a preview of the prologue of Befriending Burgess, which starts off from Frederick’s perspective. The story starts off a little sad, but there is a sweet happily-ever-after by the end!

It was ironic, almost humorously and tragically so, that while the world made grave distinctions between a duke and a marquess, a marquess and an earl, an earl and a viscount, and a viscount and a baron—the younger sons born to such peers of the realm had rather similarly unglamorous fates. No matter the splendor of one's upbringing or the diverse trappings that might embellish one's father's name, the only true differences in the lives of younger sons hinged upon two things: the generosity of one's eldest brother and, in somewhat related territory, how keenly one might wish for the untimely demise of said brother.

For all of his two and thirty years on earth, Frederick Arthur Colin Roy Griffith St. John had never truly

Pixabay/Mabel Amber

entertained the thought of ever becoming the Duke of Burgess. His brother was five years his senior and blessed with both a healthy constitution and a hale and hearty young son. His father, while not quite the sportsman, had never shared most of the ailments common to those of his generation. One harsh bout of pneumonia, however, rendered more severe by an unforgiving winter, had ended his father's earthly sojourn with alarming efficacy—and, surprising everyone, taken the lives of his eldest son and only grandson along with it.

It was a twist of fate that inspired plenty of envy, both stated and implied, particularly from Frederick's more ambitious contemporaries. It was a rather public secret that fellow younger sons, and even the odd nephew or cousin, rather resented the fact that it was upon Frederick, and not them, that fortune had chosen to smile thus.

But Frederick himself did not care much for the turn of events at all. He loved his father, brother, and nephew, and had no desire whatsoever to witness their demise. He never expected to be a duke and most certainly never wanted to be one. Shy and scholarly at heart, he harbored little affection for prestige and heraldry.

PIxabay/Dan Johnston

He had been content—content with his books and his writings, content with the simple cottage his formal but charitable brother had allotted to him. The dukedom came with its honors. But it carried with it a frighteningly hefty number of duties as well.

No longer could Frederick live the quiet life of a dedicated scholar, a willing recluse in the English countryside surrounding himself with the beauty of knowledge and learning. Now he had Parliament. Now he had tenants. Now he had an estate, or three, to run.

And perhaps most frightening of all, now he needed to find himself a wife.

Thanks for having me! I hope you enjoy the book and come to appreciate Frederick and Rose as much as I have.

_____________________

About Befriending Burgess:

She feeds him information to keep the title hunters at bay. He starts with wanting her help and ends up wanting her heart.

A duke, even a reluctant one, is duty-bound to marry and to sire his own heir. When the savagery of the marriage mart overwhelms the quiet, scholarly Duke of Burgess, he turns to a friend to help him repel the worst of the bunch.

Newly emerged from mourning her father, the unassuming Rose Nottingham believes herself outside most eligible men's notice. Instead, she lends her knowledge of the ton to helping her beleaguered friend Frederick St. John, the Duke of Burgess. But watching him court other, more eligible ladies turns increasingly harder the deeper her own feelings grow.

It takes a rumor and a near compromise, but Frederick soon discovers that the best choice for his duchess is already by his side. A sweet, friends-to-lovers Regency romance.

Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4dRXQMx

Wayback Wednesday: Take a Journey to 1914

Wayback Wednesday: 

Take a Journey to 1914

Love and Chocolate is set in 1914, a time when the world was in a turmoil, but modern conveniences and inventions never imagined made people’s lives easier. In America, Henry Ford’s Model T vied for space with horses and carriages. The telephone had been invented, and nearly every business installed one. Radio technology was in its infancy, but there were broadcasts to listen to.

Eleven years had passed since the Wright brothers historic flight at Kitty Hawk, and aviation had come into its own. In January 1914, the first commercial flight took off from Petersburg, Florida and landed in Tampa twenty-three minutes later. Races and record-setting events abounded as men and women took to the air to test their mettle. Many of the larger nations had developed air power, and by the time World War I erupted in July, zeppelins and bi-planes were part of battle strategy.

Fashion changed dramatically, allowing women less restrictive clothing without corsets, and

Lily Absinthe

significantly less fabric with higher hemlines. The “empire waist” style returned, and fashions based on “Orientalism” emerged. The hobble skirt had come and gone, a skirt so narrow at the bottom, it made walking difficult. Even though the US didn’t enter the war until 1917, American women were affected by the changes in European fashion that included tunics and long uniform-like jackets.

Thanks to advances in chemistry, the use of gases gave rise to the first electric refrigerators - kicking “iceboxes” to the curb. Air conditioning units came next to those located in the South and Southwest regions of the U.S. Another gas that changed the face of America was neon when French inventor Georges Claude figured out how to store it in glass tubes to create lighting. Advertising would never be the same.

Suffragism continued to gain momentum, and in March the Senate put forth a constitutional amendment to grant women the right to vote, but the measure fell short of the required two-thirds by eleven votes. In October thousands of men and women marched on Cleveland in support of a bill to amend the Ohio constitution and give women the right to vote. The war, during which women served in place of men and proved they were just as capable, helped the suffragist cause with more and more individuals getting onboard.

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Love and Chocolate

She just needs a job. He wants a career. Is there room in their hearts for love?

Ilsa Krause and her siblings are stunned to discover their father left massive debt behind upon his death. To help pay off their creditors and save the farm, she takes a job at Beck’s Chocolates, the company her father despised and refused to supply with milk. Then she discovers her boss is Ernst Webber, her high school love who unceremoniously dumped her via letter from college. Could life get any more difficult?

A freshly-minted university diploma in his hand, Ernst Webber lands his dream job at Beck’s Chocolates. His plans to work his way up the ladder don’t include romantic entanglements, then Ilsa Krause walks back into his life resurrecting feelings he thought long dead. However, her animosity makes it clear she has no interest in giving him a second chance. Can he get her to change her mind? Does he want to?

Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/mdQerZ