Today, I’m featuring Ann Shorey’s newest release, Love’s Sweet Beginning.
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What will it take for a once-privileged young woman to make her way in the world?
It isn’t Cassie Haddon’s fault that she has reached the age of twenty-five without possessing any useful skills. Until the War Between the States, she always had servants. Since then, she and her mother have been forced to rely on family to care for them. But now the well of human kindness has run dry—and Cassie must find work to support them.
Unfortunately, leaving the past behind is easier said than done, and Cassie must summon all of her courage and wits to convince local restaurateur and grocer Jacob West that she’s exactly what he needs.
With her signature sweet romance, Ann Shorey weaves a tale of two people from different backgrounds finding common ground and the hopes of a bright future together.
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Questions about Ann’s Book
Why did you choose the year your book is set?
I went to my great-grandparents’ history. They settled in Missouri shortly after the end of the War Between the States, and I wondered what conditions would have been like in that state at that time. Even though Missouri was officially a Union state, feelings there were sharply divided between Union and Confederate sympathizers.
Were there any historical facts that you discovered in your research that made you change something in your story?
I learned a great deal about the methods used for building the transcontinental railroad in the immediate post-Civil War years. I needed to change where and when the railroad went, in relation to my story, although I’ve used fictional names for the towns.
What research did you have to look up to make your character’s professional decisions authentic?
I had to research wages for women in the late 1860’s. It took a lot of hunting to figure out how much Cassie might earn if she found a job.
What research book or website used to write this book was your favorite to peruse?
I used many books and websites. With historical fiction, everything from clothing to clocks needs to be researched to be sure I get it right! My favorite book was Nothing Like it in the World, subtitled “The Men Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad 1863 – 1869,” by Stephen E. Ambrose. Fascinating reading!
Where is your home on the web?
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Questions about Ann’s Reading
If your job was to sell one author’s historical fiction (besides your own) which author’s wares would you want to peddle?
I’d choose Lori Benton’s books. Burning Sky was her debut novel, and it knocked my socks off! Waterbrook/Multnomah is releasing her next novel, The Pursuit of Tamsen Littlejohn, in April of this year. It promises to be every bit as good as Burning Sky.
What Christian Historical Novel in your To Be Read pile is begging you to make time to plop down with it right now?
I’m eager to pick up Laura Frantz’s first book in her Ballantyne Legacy series, Love’s Reckoning. The second book in the series has already released, so I’m running behind in my reading. Laura is a friend and a skilled writer of historical fiction.
If you were stranded on a deserted island and could only take one Christian Historical Novel, which would you pick?
This is a difficult question, since there are a goodly number of Christian historical novels I’ve enjoyed. Having said that, though, I’d take Lori Benton’s Burning Sky with me. Burning Sky is the best historical novel I’ve read in many, many months! Well worth re-reading just to savor the characterizations and the many turns the plot takes.
****Ann is giving away a copy of Love’s Sweet Beginning to one visitor – Enter the Rafflecopter this week for a chance at her new book! And check below for other places to win her book and other prizes!****
And you could also throw your name in the hat for a copy over at GoodReads if you have an account there.
And, Ann is having a BIG sweepstakes giveaway with lots of prizes STARTING TOMORROW, enter here.
