Posts with the custom taxonomy term 1865-1880 (US Reconstruction)

A Temporary Family by Sherri Shackelford

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temporaryfamilyA Temporary Family

1869 – Nebraska

When Tilly Hargreaves and her three nieces are stranded at his small stagecoach station in an abandoned town and threatened by outlaws, Nolan West must protect them. And the only way he can do that is by pretending he’s married to Tilly. But can the former solider, whose only wish is for solitude, stop himself from growing attached to his temporary family? 

Tilly knows the charade is necessary to keep her and the girls safe, but now her heart is in danger. The longer she pretends the stoic station agent is her husband, the more genuine their union feels. Nolan believes he’s better off alone, but Tilly’s certain that if he’d only open his heart to his make-believe family, he’d want to claim them as his for real. 

Her Motherhood Wish by Keli Gwyn

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motherhoodwishHer Motherhood Wish

1875 – California

En route to the Double T Orphanage to work on its expansion, carpenter Chip Evans and Caroline Hunt discover two orphaned children—and become their caregivers. But Chip’s determined not to let himself get too attached to the children who just lost their widowed father…or to the lovely woman helping him care for them. Especially since Callie and the little ones just don’t fit into his detailed plans for the future. 

Callie can’t help but fall in love with the orphans, and despite her better judgment, she’s falling for Chip, too. Her dreams of being a wife and mother were not quite like this. But Callie believes a plan bigger than Chip’s brought them all together…and now she just has to help him see it, too.

My Heart Belongs in the Superstition Mountains by Susan Page Davis

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carmelasquandaryMy Heart Belongs in the Superstition Mountains: Carmela’s Quandary

1866 – Arizona

Since orphaned at age twelve, Carmela Wade has lived a lie orchestrated by her uncle, pretending to be a survivor of an Indian kidnapping and profiting from telling her made-up story on the speaker circuit. But as she matures into adulthood, Carmela hates the lies and longs to be free. On a stagecoach in Arizona Territory, Carmela and her uncle are fellow passengers with US Marshal Freeland McKay and his handcuffed prisoner.

The stage is attacked. Now a chance to make a new life may suddenly be within Carmela’s reach. . .if she can survive the harsh terrain and being handcuffed to an unconscious man.
 
Will Carmela’s wish come true, or will she forever be branded by her past?

Amelia and the Captain by Lori Copeland

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1860s – At Sea

The three wily and beautiful McDougal sisters can swindle a man in less time than it takes to lasso a calf. But their luck is running out, and they’re about to be hauled off to jail. When the wagon carrying them falls under attack, each sister is picked up by a different man.

Fortunately for Amelia, she finds herself hanging on for dear life to the dashing figure of Union Captain Morgan Kane. But when she confesses she’s running from the law, he drops her off in Galveston, only to come to her rescue later, in more ways than one.

No sooner does Amelia arrive at the Port of Galveston than she falls into the clutches of a shadowy villain intent on selling her to the highest-bidding privateer. Taken aboard a ship with ten other female captives destined for slavery, can Amelia count on the cunning Captain Kane to swoop in and save her…again? And if she somehow survives, what becomes of her heart?

Only God has the answers that Amelia seeks, but is her faith strong enough?

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An Uncommon Protector by Shelley Shepard Gray

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 1860s – Texas

Overwhelmed by the responsibilities of running a ranch on her own, Laurel Tracey decides to hire a convict—a man who’s just scary enough to take care of squatters and just desperate enough to agree to a one year post.

The years following the war have been hard on Laurel Tracey. Both her brother and her father died in battle, and her mother passed away shortly after receiving word of their demise. Laurel has been trying to run her two hundred acre ranch as best she can.

When she discovers that squatters have settled in her north pasture and have no intention of leaving, Laurel decides to use the last of her money to free a prisoner from the local jail. If she agrees to offer him room and board for one year, he will have to work for her to pay off his debt.

Former soldier Thomas Baker knows he’s in trouble when he finds himself jailed because he couldn’t pay a few fines. Laurel’s offer might be his only ticket out. Though she’s everything he ever dreamed of in a woman—sweet and tender-hearted, yet strong—he’s determined to remain detached, work hard on her behalf, and count the days until he’s free again.

But when cattle start dying and Laurel’s life is threatened, Thomas realizes more than just his freedom is on the line. Laurel needs someone to believe in her and protect her property. And it isn’t long before Laurel realizes that Thomas Baker is far more than just a former soldier. He’s a trustworthy hero, and he needs more than just his freedom—he needs her love and care too.

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A Note Yet Unsung by Tamera Alexander

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1871 – Tennessee

A master violinist trained in Vienna, Rebekah Carrington manages to wheedle her way into an audition with the new maestro at the Nashville Philharmonic. But women are “far too fragile and frail” for the rigors of an orchestra, and Rebekah’s hopes are swiftly dashed when the conductor–determined to leave his mark on the world of classical music–bows to public opinion. To make matters worse, Adelicia Cheatham, mistress of Belmont Mansion and Rebekah’s new employer, agrees with him.

Nationally acclaimed conductor Nathaniel Tate Whitcomb is Nashville’s youngest orchestra leader. And despite a reluctant muse and a strange buzzing and recurring pain in his head, he must finish composing his symphony before the grand opening of the city’s new symphony hall. Even more pressing, he must finish it for the one who first inspired his love of music–his dying father. As Tate’s ailment worsens, he knows Rebekah can help him finish his symphony. But how can he win back her trust when he’s robbed her of her dream?

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The American Heiress Brides Collection by Various Authors

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americanheiressbridescollectionThe American Heiress Brides Collection

Meet nine young women in America between 1866 and 1905 who have been blessed by fortunes made in gold, silver, industry, ranching, and banking. But when it comes to love, each woman struggles to find true love within a society where “first comes money, second comes marriage.” What kind of man can they trust with their greatest treasure—their hearts?

His Substitute Wife by Dorothy Clark

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1868 – Wyoming

Blake Latherop needs a wife in order to keep his business, and his betrothed has apparently eloped with another man. So when his fiancée’s sister, Audrey Prescott, steps off the train in Whisper Creek offering to be his bride, he’s in no position to refuse. But it’s hardly the marriage he had in mind. 

Audrey knows she shouldn’t have answered Blake’s letters in her sister’s name…but she couldn’t bring herself to tell him of his fiancée’s betrayal. Now the only way to fix things is through a temporary marriage. But as she comes to love her new life in the West, Audrey dreads the day Blake finds another solution to their situation. Because what started as a marriage of convenience has become so much more for her…

Riverbend Reunion by Henry McLaughlin

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1875 – Colorado

The past has a way of catching up with you…

Michael and Rachel have everything to look forward to and no reason to look back, or so they thought. In the midst of the newlyweds’ trials and triumphs in Riverbend, Michael receives a cryptic telegram from his sister Ellie, whom he hasn’t seen in ages.

Come home. We need you.

The mysterious summons reminds him of the last time Ellie needed him. When Michael stabbed their abusive father and ran as far and as fast as he could before turning his life around. The message brings him back to a past filled with abuse, violence and death by his own hand. A home he never wanted to see again.

Once home, Michael learns the darkest secrets of his past aren’t as deeply buried as he thought. Secrets he didn’t want revealed. Secrets he could no longer hide.

Can he find freedom through forgiveness, or will the choice to confront the past cost him and Rachel their future?

Seven Brides for Seven Texans Romance Collection by Various Authors

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sevenbridesforseventexansSeven Brides for Seven Texans Romance Collection

1874 – Texas

Meet the seven Hart brothers of the 7-Heart ranch in central Texas. Each man is content in his independent life, without the responsibilities of a wife and children—until their father decides 1874 will be the year his grown sons finally marry, or they will be cut from his will. How will each man who values his freedom respond to the ultimatum? Can love develop on a timeline, or will it be sacrificed for the sake of an inheritance?

For Love or Money by Susan Page Davis

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1874 – Texas

Burned out of their house, Jane and her family move into a cave, where she discovers some hidden money. Neighbor Crockett Hart comes to help them rebuild, and she asks for his help with the mystery of the money’s origins. When he learns where it probably came from, will it keep their two families apart? Crockett hopes not, because he’s falling for Jane.

A Convenient Christmas Wedding by Regina Scott

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convenientchristmasweddingA Convenient Christmas Wedding

1866 – Washington

Proposing a marriage of convenience to a rugged logger is the boldest move of Nora Underhill’s sheltered life. In return for Simon Wallin’s protection from her overbearing family, the unassuming seamstress offers prime frontier farmland. But their paper marriage changes when Nora’s greedy brother tries to draw her back into a life of drudgery. Her only option: move to Simon’s farm, and into the center of his loving, unruly family. 

Years of shouldering responsibility have left Simon cynical and reserved. But little by little, Nora’s warmth opens his shuttered heart to joy. With their marriage claim under threat, can this practical arrangement blossom over the holidays…and become a love for all seasons?

Mail Order Mommy by Christine Johnson

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1870 – Michigan

Nursing a broken heart, Amanda Porter had answered a frontier mail-order bride ad placed by Garrett Decker’s children—only to find the groom-to-be didn’t want a wife. The widowed bachelor she hoped to marry does need a housekeeper, though, and taking the job is Amanda’s only option. But his adorable children are determined she’ll be their mother by Christmas… 

His wife’s betrayal and tragic death demolished Garrett’s life. Now he can’t even look at another woman, let alone marry Amanda, who resembles his first love. Even if she does make his house feel like a home, filling it again with laughter and his children’s smiles. But with his daughter convinced Amanda is the perfect mother, will Garrett realize she’s also his perfect match?

Healing of the Heart by Loree Lough

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1879 – Maryland

Ruby McCoy is haunted by her father’s sins….

When Ruby McCoy arrives in Fairplay, her ornate carriage is followed by an entourage who heft steamer trunks, hatboxes, and traveling bags into the hotel…where she has booked the entire second floor. Upon her notorious gangster father’s death, the now-wealthy Ruby, hiding under her mother’s maiden name, set out to right her father’s wrongs. Ruby is determined to spend every penny of her inherited “blood money” on those who paid the price for her father’s crimes.

Sheriff Rex Truett doesn’t trust Ruby and doesn’t care who knows it. The keeper of Fairplay’s law and order makes it his business to find out why a stranger, especially a beautiful, spoiled, rich, female stranger, would set up businesses, donate to schools, hire workmen to rebuild houses, and provide access to the best medical care. But when a typhoid epidemic sweeps through the city, he is forced to reconsider.

Will Rex blame Ruby for her father’s sins? Or will he accept the possibility that she is trying to create and feel the peace her father stole?

Cowboy Creek Christmas by Cheryl St. John and Sherri Shackelford

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Cowboy Creek Christmas

Mistletoe Reunion by Cheryl St.John 

When Marlys Boyd moves West hoping to find acceptance for her doctoring skills, she’s surprised to find her former fiancé, Sam Mason, running the local newspaper. And with the ladies in town determined to make a match of the doctor and the single father, she’s not sure she can resist building the family they once dreamed of. 

Mistletoe Bride by Sherri Shackelford 

Pregnant by a man who betrayed her trust, a mail-order marriage is Beatrix Haas’s only hope. But when she arrives in Cowboy Creek and learns her intended groom has died, she needs a new daddy for the baby that’s coming right away. Blacksmith Colton Werner offers the mother and child the protection of his name, but can their marriage of convenience ever lead to true love?

The Negotiated Marriage by Christina Rich

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1867 – Kansas

When the railroad pushes to buy her land, orphaned Cameron Sims will do anything to keep the only home she and her sisters have ever known. Even if she must marry a stranger. But she’s determined her agreement with the mysterious, dashing man—who’s unlike anything the Kansas railroad town has ever seen—will remain simply business. 

Duncan Murray doesn’t want a wife. He wants Sims Creek, a sanctuary that can help him forget a troubled childhood. But his reluctant, and captivating, bride-to-be is key to making his dreams a reality. And despite their business arrangement, Camy and Duncan might be signing on the dotted line for true love…

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Refining Fire by Carol Cox

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1869 – Arizona

Orphaned, then traded to a saloonkeeper by her unscrupulous guardian, Jenny Davis has learned some hard lessons in life.

For one thing, she knows beyond a doubt that God doesn’t love her. How could He, when He has allowed such terrible hardships to befall her? Jenny decides any happiness she may find will have to come about through her own efforts and moves to Tucson in hopes of beginning a new life.

Andrew Garrett came to Arizona Territory to scout out mining opportunities for a group of Colorado investors. He intends to finish the job he was hired to do, then return home…until he takes one look at Jenny. But digging ore out of hard rock may be easier than breaking down the walls of distrust Jenny has erected around herself.

Will a false accusation and an encounter with the law bring Jenny to her wit’s end–forcing her finally to trust God and acknowledge the love she has for Andrew?

Such a Hope by Sondra Kraak

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1871 – Washington

Anna Warren grew up on the seat of a wagon, the daughter of Seattle’s busiest freighter. After her father’s death—a tragedy away from home—she returns to their cabin on the outskirts of Seattle, seeking the sense of belonging that eluded her childhood. But will her desire to pray for miraculous healing for the sick and wounded endear or alienate her to the community? Her most aggravating challenger is also her staunchest defender and has brown hair and eyes, stands six feet tall, and farms with unchecked tenacity. Tristan Porter. This farmer her father had befriended holds more secrets than Yesler’s Mill holds logs.

When ugly rumors arise about her spiritual gift and her property, Anna fears her quest to find belonging will be thwarted.

Tristan holds the truth to set her free, but revealing it will require him to face the disappointments of his past and surrender his plans for the future—a sacrifice he’s not sure he can make.

Land of Promise by Carol Cox

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1867 – Arizona

Elizabeth Simmons longs to escape the mold society has for her and realize her dreams of independence.

When offered a job caring for an injured family acquaintance, Elizabeth gladly leaves her pampered life in Philadelphia behind and sets off for the newly-formed Arizona Territory. However, she soon discovers the awful truth behind her new arrangement.

Michael O’Roarke stepped away from bright prospects back East in order to keep tabs on his unprincipled father in frontier Arizona. That burden, along with the demands of starting his own freighting business, claims all his attention…until he finds himself captivated by the feisty Elizabeth.

Will losing her heart to Michael undermine the independence Elizabeth has worked so hard to achieve? Or could this land of danger and hardship also prove to be her land of promise?

Mail Order Groom by Angel Moore

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1875 – Texas

Albert Franks is a lawyer who finds himself without a place to practice law when his godly ethics go against the wishes of his former boss. Cora Nelson has inherited Nelson Ranch with one condition. She writes to offer Bert a position on the ranch to preserve her ownership. He arrives to practice law only to discover that her offer was for marriage. The financial success of the ranch and the entire town of River Bend rely on his acceptance.
Albert and Cora soon discover that when they pray, sometimes God’s answers aren’t what they expect.

Labeling Lincoln by Stephenia H. Mcgee

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1865 – Washington DC

Can two weary hearts discover the hope of a new beginning?

In this final installment of The Liberator Series, the suspected conspirators are called to trial and Annabelle and Matthew must face accusations amid misrepresented loyalties.

Beloved, Cherished, Restored…

When Annabelle was unable to stop the nation’s first presidential assassination, her fears of failure were only magnified. Imprisoned and berated, Annabelle wants nothing more than to finally return to Rosswood Plantation. But when a surprise visitor comes to call, his clash with Matthew could destroy her hopes for the future.

Reconciled, Respected, Redeemed…

Forced to choose between his allegiances and the safety of the people he loves, Matthew finds himself swept into the most massive manhunt in history. Booth has disappeared, and everything Matthew holds dear rests on bringing the assassin into custody. He’d promised Annabelle his heart, but the demons haunting the shadows of his mind will no longer be held at bay.

In the end, will they discover the power of redemptive love, or will their hearts forever be lost among the casualties of war?

In the Land of White Nights by Bonnie Leon

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1869 – Alaska

Anna or rivers of gold–which will captivate his heart?

The lure of the nineteenth-century gold rush calls to Erik, a civil-war veteran. He and Anna, his Aleutian bride, set sail for a new life together in Sitka.

Anna stands strong against the adversities of the new land with its unfamiliar culture and fearsome challenges. She fights the prejudice of others, while growing her newfound faith in the white man’s God.

When forced to move farther north and begin again, Anna refuses to give up, allowing nothing to stand in the way of her family’s happiness. They discover joy as well as heartache in the Alaskan wilderness. But will Erik’s love of gold put all they’ve worked so hard for in jeopardy?

Make-Believe Beau by Keli Gwyn

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1874 – California

As a draftswoman in a man’s world, Jessica Sinclair causes a stir as her new male colleagues vie for her attention. And the company manager has an ultimatum: fake a courtship with her boss, Flynt Kavanaugh…or lose her job. But pretending to be smitten with the handsome engineer unleashes a real, complicated attraction—and could reveal the past she hoped to keep hidden. 

Jessica is certainly the best person for the job. But as their make-believe romance escalates, Flynt knows that’s not the only reason he wants her on his team. However, with his past shrouded by a shameful secret, Flynt has always focused his ambitions on building a career, not a family. Now he has designs on Jessica’s heart, but can they trust each other with the truth?

The Artisan’s Wife by Judith Miller

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1876 – West Virginia

Ainslee McKay’s world is shaken when she discovers her twin sister has not only eloped with a man she barely knows but now Ainslee must fulfill their obligation at a tile works in Weston, West Virginia. Ainslee must learn the ropes and, if she can keep the tile works profitable, her brother will help her sell the business.

When Levi Judson arrives and shows Ainslee his designs for new tiles, she’s impressed by his skill and passion for the business. But he’s hiding his true reason for coming to Weston. And Ainslee knows he’d be crushed to learn his plans for a long career at McKay Tile Works are in vain since she intends to sell. Can the growing feelings between them survive if the truth comes to light–or is a future together as untenable as the future of the tile works itself?

 

Wren by Julane Hiebert

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1878 – Kansas

Wren Wenghold is not one to waste time or seek advice. Fearful that her uncle will insist on finding her a mail-order husband, and even more afraid she will end up with the likes of the crude cowboy, Sam Mason, she decides to take matters into her own hands. Her advertisement for a husband receives only one reply, but–determined to arrive in Kansas with a man–she accepts it and hopes for the best. When the consequences of her impulsive behavior begin to overtake her, will she be able to undo the damage?

Journey to Riverbend by Henry McLaughlin

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1878 – Colorado

Sometimes the journey is only the beginning . . .

Michael Archer might not have been able to save Ben Carstairs, but he vowed to carry out Ben’s dying wish: to be reconciled with his father. What he doesn’t know is that Sam Carstairs—the most ruthless businessman on the frontier—has no use for his own son, much less a man of God seeking reconciliation.

Soon after arriving in the booming town of Riverbend, Michael meets the stunning Rachel Stone while waiting for Sam to return from a business trip. Beautiful yet guarded, Rachel is running from a past as dark as Michael’s, and the last thing she expects –or thinks she deserves—is a chance at love.

When word reaches town that Sam has been kidnapped on the stagecoach home, Michael joins the search posse. But the trail ahead is more dangerous than any had imagined, and making it back alive will require Michael to face his past and overcome his deepest fear.

The Loyal Heart by Shelley Shepard Gray

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1867 – Texas

Robert Truax, former Second Lieutenant and Confederate officer in the Civil War, made a promise to his comrade Phillip Markham. If anything happened to Phillip, Robert would look after his beloved wife, Miranda. She was his life, his world, his everything.

After the war, Robert is left to pick up the pieces and fulfill his pact. When he arrives at Miranda’s home in Galveston, Texas, things are worse than he imagined. Phillip’s name has been dragged through the mud, everyone in town believes him to be a traitor, and his widow is treated as an outcast. Even more disturbing is her emotional well-being. Miranda seems hopeless, lost, and so very alone. 

Robert had thought his duty would be simple. He would help Miranda as quickly as possible in order to honor a promise. But the moment Robert laid eyes on her, his plans changed. He’s mesmerized by her beauty and yearns to help her in any way he can.

He makes it his duty to protect Miranda, turn her reputation around, and to find some way to help her smile again. But it doesn’t prove to be an easy task—Robert knows something about Phillip that could shake Miranda to the core and alter her view of the man she thought she knew so well. 

Lawman in Disguise by Laurie Kingery

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1870 – Texas

When her son discovers an injured outlaw in their barn, the mysterious stranger instantly turns widow Daisy Henderson’s world upside down. But Daisy senses Thorn Dawson’s a good man…and there’s more to his story than he can tell her. So she can’t turn him away before he heals, even if she’s falling for him—something she swore she’d never do again after her husband died. 

An undercover lawman, Thorn never lets himself get too close to anyone. But that’s before he meets single mother Daisy and her spirited son. Now Thorn has to protect them from the Griggs gang—a gang that’s come to accept him as one of their own. And if he can’t keep up the charade, the woman of his dreams might just pay the price.

Counterfeit Courtship by Christina Miller

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1865 – Mississippi

Returning home, Confederate hero Colonel Graham Talbot faces his toughest battle yet—avoiding the marriage-minded young ladies in town vying for his attentions. With a stepmother and orphaned niece to support, the penniless soldier has no intention of marrying. Neither does the woman he once loved, his next-door neighbor Ellie Anderson. But Ellie has a proposal of her own: a pretend courtship to keep their unwanted admirers at bay. 

Ellie’s unpredictable childhood left her determined to safeguard her independence—and her plantation. Blaming herself for driving Graham away to war, she devises a plan to help them both. But when it goes awry, Ellie will face a choice: save her beloved property…or trust in a relationship that’s becoming undeniably real.

Leaving Independence by Leeanne W. Smith

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Post Civil War – Several US States/Wagon Train

Abigail Baldwyn might not be a widow after all…

Ever since she received word that her husband, Robert, was killed in the Civil War, Abigail has struggled to keep her Tennessee home and family together. Then a letter arrives claiming that Robert isn’t dead, yet he has no plans to return. Desperate for answers, Abigail travels to Independence, Missouri, where she joins a westbound wagon train to find him.

Leading a company along the Oregon Trail isn’t part of Hoke Mathews’s plans. But then the former cavalry scout gets a glimpse of Abigail—so elegant compared to the rest of their hardscrabble wagon community, yet spirited and resilient. Through every peril they encounter—snakebites, Indian raids, fevers, dangerous grudges—his bond with Abigail grows.

Abigail knew this journey would test her courage. Now it’s testing her marriage vows and her heart, daring her to claim a future on her own terms in a land rich with promise.

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Forever Safe by Jody Hedlund

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1876 – Massachusetts

Heiress to a vast fortune, Victoria Cole has everything she wants, including the perfect fiancé. Having left two other men at the altar, Victoria is sure that now she’s found her true love and will finally live happily ever after. As her wedding draws near, however, Victoria’s life is threatened. To keep her safe, Victoria’s father hires a bodyguard.

Tom Cushman’s number one priority is protecting his clients, which means no personal entanglements. But he’s never guarded someone as beautiful and winsome as Victoria. After a near-kidnapping, the wedding is cancelled, and Tom hides Victoria at Cape Cod’s Race Point Lighthouse until her attacker can be found. Appointed as assistant light keeper with Victoria posing as his wife, Tom believes the isolation of the lighthouse will keep her safe.

As Victoria struggles to live without familiar luxuries, her heart betrays her with growing feelings for her protector. Determined to help Tom stop fleeing from his haunted past, can the runaway bride learn to face her own fears? With the attacker closing in, will both of them ever be able to stop running and find the safety they long for?

Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Gray by Dorothy Love

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1820s-1870s – Virginia

A general’s wife and a slave girl forge a friendship that transcends race, culture, and the crucible of Civil War.

Mary Anna Custis Lee is a great-granddaughter of Martha Washington, wife of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, and heiress to Virginia’s storied Arlington house and General Washington’s personal belongings.

Born in bondage at Arlington, Selina Norris Gray learns to read and write in the schoolroom Mary and her mother keep for the slave children and eventually becomes Mary’s housekeeper and confidante. As Mary’s health declines, Selina becomes her personal maid, strengthening a bond that lasts until death parts them.

Forced to flee Arlington at the start of the Civil War, Mary entrusts the keys to her beloved home to no one but Selina. When Union troops begin looting the house, it is Selina who confronts their commander and saves many of its historic treasures.

In a story spanning crude slave quarters, sunny schoolrooms, stately wedding parlors, and cramped birthing rooms, novelist Dorothy Love amplifies the astonishing true-life account of an extraordinary alliance and casts fresh light on the tumultuous years leading up to and through the wrenching battle for a nation’s soul.

A classic American tale, Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Gray is the first novel to chronicle this beautiful fifty-year friendship forged at the crossroads of America’s journey from enslavement to emancipation.

Bride by Arrangement by Karen Kirst

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1868 – Kansas

Newly minted Cowboy Creek sheriff Noah Burgess doesn’t want a wife—despite his friends insisting that he needs one. So when they send for a big-city single mother to be his mail-order bride, he’s fit to be tied. Even if vivacious Grace Longstreet might just be the only person who can see past Noah’s scars…and help him heal. 

Grace needs a husband to keep her and her twin daughters out of her brother-in-law’s grasp. And she’ll do anything—including taking on her cousin’s identity—to find one. But as the attraction between Grace and the lawman sparks higher, she begins hoping for a real marriage. So she needs to tell the truth…or a mail-order match that’s meant to be could crumble.

Signed, Sealed, & Delighted by Crystal Barnes

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1877 – Texas

Her father’s dying wish changes everything…

After years of working in the Cater Springs’ clinic, Sarah Asher never planned on marriage. However, she neglected to mention that to her pa. Determined to fulfill his dying wish, despite her well-informed fears, Sarah marries Joseph Matthews but only after a few signed and sealed promises. One in particular—he can kiss any dreams of sharing a room with her goodbye.

Joe has never had any luck with women, and marriage doesn’t seem prone to change that. Sarah might be a handsome filly and his only ticket to inheriting the ranch promised him, but she’s pricklier than a barrel cactus and more temperamental than a Texas tornado. Keeping his distance from her should be easy. Only it isn’t. The beautiful woman attracts trouble and constantly requires saving, putting her well within arms’ reach.

Will signed promises seal their fate to a loveless marriage, or can Sarah move past her fears to find a love worth delighting in?

The Reluctant Bridegroom by Shannon Farrington

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reluctantbridegroomThe Reluctant Bridegroom

1865 – Maryland

Marriage for any reason but love was once unthinkable to Maryland councilman Henry Nash. But when an innocent encounter with a criminal puts Henry’s reputation in jeopardy, he’ll make any sacrifice to maintain custody of his orphaned nieces. And an alliance with a powerful politician’s daughter could secure the little girls’ futures. As long as gentle Rebekah Van der Geld never hears the rumors surrounding her new groom… 

Refusing her father’s choice of husband wasn’t an option for dutiful Rebekah. But Henry’s kindness is a happy revelation, and she’s quickly falling for his adorable nieces—so she allows herself to hope this unconventional arrangement could become much more. But can it survive a shattering revelation that puts their new family in danger?