The Schoolmarm’s Convenient Marriage by Regina Scott

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1876 – Washington

How far would you go to find your true love?

Once the darling of her Boston-area community, Alice Dennison has traveled across the entire country to start life over as a schoolteacher in the tiny settlement of Wallin Landing, north of frontier Seattle. No one there knows the humiliation and hurt hidden in her heart. Perhaps she can finally be herself. Then a storm forces her to seek shelter with a handsome logger for the night, and suddenly she’s facing marriage or scandal! Again!

One look, and shy Jesse Willets knew the pretty, proper schoolmarm wasn’t the woman for him. He saw the love between his mother and father, a love built on common values, shared experiences. He has nothing in common with Alice, except maybe a desire to make the world a little better.

The community comes together to help this unlikely couple find their way in a marriage of convenience, and Jesse and Alice begin to discover that they have more in common than they thought. When Alice’s past intrudes, revealing secrets, they must work together for their chance at happiness. In doing so, they may discover that true love is so distant after all.

Abounding Hope by Cindy Kay Stewart

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1939 – Poland

Poland’s looming defeat forces an American teacher to escape with children wanted by the Nazis.

The Nazis are threatening Poland, but American teacher Irena Simmons refuses to flee to safety. She’s dedicated her life to serving in her church and school, and she’s watching over the little German boys she whisked to safety the year before. When her former classmate, Jonathan, surprises her in Lvov and insists she leave with him before the war starts, Irena balks. Nothing will interfere with her work—especially a man making demands.

American shipping magnate Jonathan Huntwell had a crush on Irena in school. When their former classmates select him to travel to Poland and escort her out before it’s too late, he doesn’t expect the inner turmoil she ignites in him. Although honor-bound to aid any friend in trouble, Jonathan acknowledges that Irena is more than an obligation to him. However, he must keep his feelings hidden, or he’ll jeopardize their friendship.

Irena soon discovers that the Gestapo agent she successfully evaded in Germany has found her in Poland, and he’s after her young charges. When the Germans invade, Jonathan is in Denmark on business, too far away to help. As the rising danger threatens everything Irena holds dear, she must find a way to protect those she loves.

Their Inconvenient Marriage by Elizabeth Rowan

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1851 – California

Can an unsuitable pair…make the perfect match?

Heading west to California is schoolteacher Lorna Alderly’s best chance to find a job—and the independence she craves. But the rough mining camp of Woods River isn’t as welcoming as she expects, especially surly widower Jesse Kittredge. Struggling to raise two children, the illiterate miner gives Lorna six months before she quits. Yet he’s soon swayed by her dedication and charm. When a scandal threatens Lorna’s reputation, Jesse offers marriage—in name only. But could this arrangement lead to a love neither expects?

Wherever the Road Will Lead by Kari Trumbo

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1900s – South Dakota

When she accidentally takes sides in a family feud that consumes a whole town, the consequences could cost Tamar her life.

A failed mail order bride, her empty purse leaves her out of choices. She’s forced to move to the Johlman ranch as a piano teacher to the owner’s two daughters. Despite her wealthy upbringing, the rural ranch with its two servants feels much more welcoming than her own home. Leo, the rancher’s son, makes her heart dance faster than a waltz.

Leo can’t believe the answer to his prayers just arrived on the train.

He needs to prove to his pa that he’s serious about ranching, which means being serious about life. A wife would prove to the world he’s ready to be a man. Trouble is, Pa just decided he wasn’t worth waiting on and disinherited him.

 
Now, Tamar feels a connection to Leo she’s never had before, but his father would never allow the union. Leo’s love for Tamar is growing but he’s got nothing left to offer her, except his heart.

After the Shadows by Amanda Cabot

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1882 – Texas

A brighter future awaits–if she can escape the shadows of the past

Emily Leland sheds no tears when her abusive husband is killed in a bar fight, but what awaits her back home in Sweetwater Crossing is far from the welcome and comfort she expected. First she discovers her father has died under mysterious circumstances. Then the house where the new schoolteacher and his son are supposed to board burns, leaving them homeless. When Emily proposes turning the family home into a boardinghouse, her sister is so incensed that she leaves town.

Alone and broke, her family name sullied by controversy, Emily is determined to solve the mystery of her father’s death–and to aid Craig Ferguson, despite her fears of men. The widowed schoolmaster proves to be a devoted father, an innovative teacher, and an unexpected ally. Together they must work to unmask a killer and escape the shadows of their own pasts in order to forge a brighter future.

A Not So Persistent Suitor by Sandra Merville Hart

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1883 – Ohio

He’s fighting for his career…She’s bent on achieving her own goals…Will their love survive a second chance at happily ever after?

Cora Welch dreams of a future teaching kindergarten, which is in its infancy, and marriage to Ben Findlay, her beau and her twin brother’s best friend. But she returns to college from summer break to learn of Ben’s unwise choices in pursuit of his career—choices that destroy her trust in the man she thought she knew and loved.

Ben is working hard toward his dream to become the best reporter in the city. He’s no stranger to fighting for a goal against all odds, ever since he was orphaned at age thirteen. Even though Cora has captured his heart, he makes the mistake of escorting the boss’s daughter to a fancy banquet to further his career—with far-reaching repercussions. Now he’s hurt Cora and botched his career goals.

Winning Cora’s trust again proves harder than Ben expects, especially as they both face struggles of their own. When events spiral out of their control, catapulting them into hardship and even danger, only God can restore their dreams—though the outcome may look far different than either of them planned.

Love’s New Beginnings by Penny Zeller

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1869 – Wyoming

Where it all began…

Lydie Beauchamp recently moved with her aunts—sisters Myrtle and Fern—to the untamed Wyoming Territory. When a teaching position in nearby Willow Falls captures her attention, can she leave her aunts, one of whom just suffered a broken heart, and embark on this new adventure? Will she find the courage to persevere in the midst of challenges, one being a handsome challenge named Solomon Eliason?

Reverend Solomon Eliason has the goal of making a difference. Hired as the pastor of Willow Falls, he must convince the congregation that he is able to undertake the role of a reverend. When he’s nominated to be the adult in charge of the annual prank tradition at the school, he embraces the idea, thinking the new teacher will be a crotchety, elderly woman like his former teacher. What he doesn’t realize until it’s too late is that the teacher is far from crotchety and elderly.

When Lydie’s and Solomon’s paths cross in an unexpected way during the prank tradition at the Willow Falls school, can Solomon redeem himself in the eyes of the lovely new teacher?

A Not So Convenient Marriage by Sandra Merville Hart

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1877 – Ohio

A spinster teacher…a grieving widower…a marriage of convenience and a second chance with the man she’s always loved.
 
When Samuel Walker proposes a marriage of convenience to Rose Hatfield so soon after the death of his wife, she knows he doesn’t love her. She’s loved him since their school days. Those long-suppressed feelings spring to life as she marries him. She must sell her childhood home, quit her teaching job, and move to a new city.

Marrying Rose is harder than Samuel expected, especially with the shadow of his deceased wife everywhere in his life. And he has two young children to consider. Peter and Emma need a mother’s love, but they also need to hold close the memories of their real mother as they grieve her loss.

Life as Samuel’s wife is nothing like Rose hoped, and even the townspeople, who loved his first wife, make Rose feel like an outsider. The work of the farm draws the two of them closer, giving hope that they might one day become a happy family. Until the dream shatters, and the life Rose craves tumbles down around them. Only God can put these pieces back together, but the outcome may not look anything like she planned.

Jeanette’s Gift by Blossom Turner

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1881 – Virginia

This life wasn’t the one she dreamed of, but happily ever afters don’t always come when and how we expect.

At twenty-nine, Jeanette Williams has watched each one of her four sisters marry and start families of their own. It’s hard not to believe God has forgotten the desires of her heart, especially when most people refer to her as Spinster Williams. Without the beautiful children she teaches, life would be unbearably lonely.

When the handsome widower, Theo Wallace, and his six children move into the Shenandoah Valley, every available woman is atwitter—except for Jeanette. She has no such aspirations that someone as plain as her could draw even a smattering of interest.

As life throws this unlikely couple together, Jeanette can’t help but fall in love with Theo’s children and their soul-wrenching plight. Before she knows it, her heart is far more invested than she could’ve ever imagined. And not just with the children, but with their handsome father as well. Is she headed for another heartbreak, or is it possible God had a beautiful plan in the works all along?

Forgotten Memories by Penny Zeller

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1884 – Wyoming

Some memories are best forgotten…

The Wyoming Territory is rife with lawlessness and disorder, something Annie Ledbetter and her parents discover when their wagon train is robbed. Seven years later, Annie settles into her lifelong dream as a teacher in the small town of Willow Falls. When she meets handsome rancher Caleb Eliason through a humorous misunderstanding, she is quickly drawn to his kind heart and charming smile.

Former outlaw Caleb Eliason embraces his chance at a fresh start. Gone are the days of robbing stagecoaches and wagon trains. When he falls in love with the new Willow Falls teacher, he doesn’t realize they’ve met before—under much different circumstances. When his past comes to light, will it put the growing love between them at risk?

Can forgiveness and redemption heal two broken hearts or will the past keep them from sharing a future?

Escape from Amsterdam by Lauralee Bliss

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1939 – Holland

A University Student Smuggles Children Out of Amsterdam

Helen Smit believed she was called by God to become a teacher. Little does she know that her care for kids will take a drastic turn for survival when the Germans occupy Amsterdam and Jewish children and parents begin to be deported. Now all she can think of is helping all the kids escape before it’s too late.

Erik Misman’s newfound love for Helen is tested when he joins a plot to help move Jewish children to a safe place in the countryside. If danger can foster a closer bond with Helen and save the lives of the little ones, he will do it all. But a German patrol that stumbles upon the farm where they are hiding with three children and a soldier who takes an unexpected interest in Helen, could well destroy their plans for safety and love.

Silver Mountain by Lisa Prysock

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1880s – Montana

Miss Jillian Hayes of Honey River Canyon in Montana Territory has worked hard to prepare for her dream of becoming a teacher in the Wild West. However, she is stunned when her new teaching position and harsh winter weather conspire to trap her on Silver Mountain, forcing her into a loveless marriage with a handsome British stranger.

The handsome British stranger, Trenton Sterling, the Duke of Weatherly, recently arrived at Silver Mountain on a mission to retrieve a blue sapphire his reclusive uncle offered to sell to his dear friend, the Prince of Wales. Bertie desires the sapphire as a gift for his wife, the Princess of Wales. Trenton never imagined his uncle would die without a chance to tell him where he hid the blue sapphire. Nor did he imagine he’d find himself obligated to marry a schoolmarm shortly after becoming the ward of his recently orphaned niece.

When he becomes embroiled in a deadly game of revenge in the Wild West, Trenton Sterling will need to unleash the war inside him, trading it for an external one, becoming a force to reckon with in a manhunt to capture and slay the vile and wicked outlaws who attempt to overrun Honey River Canyon, bringing harm to anyone in their path.

Coming Home to Truth by Michelle De Bruin

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1917 – Iowa

In a search for her future, Lacy Jones travels with a friend to a new town where a single dad shows her how to find meaning and lasting success.

Lacy Jones, a graduate of her small high school, knows her whole world is about to change. She dreams of freedom from the struggles with her health, and of the independence that comes with a steady job. When her friend invites her to share the journey to visit the teacher from their country school days, Lacy finally gets the chance to chase her dreams. But when the girls get separated along the way, Lacy is left to make the trip alone. Arriving in a strange town, Lacy is reunited with old friends who introduce her to a new life, new relationships, and a new way of seeing herself.

Conrad Van Drunen has spent the last four years developing his furniture business and raising his two children. He knows they need a mother, but he isn’t ready to talk of remarriage. When Lacy Jones falls across his path, Conrad is forced to make some changes. His brother and sister-in-law offer their assistance from babysitting and financial counsel to matchmaking, but Conrad has other plans. Losing hope of finding what he lost with his first wife, Conrad discovers the mother he’s been seeking for his children in the most unexpected place.

Journey with Lacy and Conrad through trials and joys where deception and the truth can sometimes look an awfully lot alike.

Legacy of Love by Renae Brumbaugh Green

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1896 – Texas

She’s struggled her entire life to overcome her parentage.

Skye Stratton is nearly perfect. Or at least, she tries to be. She carries the Stratton name, but everyone knows her true half-breed heritage. When she completes her education and is hired as a teacher at the local school, she hopes to finally find acceptance in the town. But when most of her class elects to stay home rather than be taught by an Indian, she knows things will never change.

Alan McNaughten went to Washington, D.C. to make a difference. Instead, he finds himself entrenched in political lies, manipulation, and deceit. When he finds a way to return home to Texas as an Indian Agent, he leaps at the chance. Even if he must hurt an innocent woman to secure his position.

But when the lovely Miss Stratton agrees to teach for the Alabama-Coushatta Reservation, Alan knows he’s gone too far. He’ll do anything to protect her from further heartache and harm. But what will happen when she learns the truth about her position…and the truth about him?

A Time to Bloom by Lauraine Snelling

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1866 – Nebraska

Will their dreams fall apart when confronted with all that is stacked against them?

Delphinium Nielsen and her sisters have accomplished much in the past year, traveling west and settling in Nebraska. They are on their way to building a garden in dedication to their mother and working against the forces of nature to make their farm thrive. However, none of that can mask their concern that they are quickly running out of money. Del’s work teaching in their booming town offers hope, not only to support her sisters financially, but also to better her students’ lives. Not all of the town sees it that way, though, with the rebuilding of the schoolhouse continually neglected and her brightest student’s father demanding he work the farm instead of attend class.

When their brother Anders arrives with his war-wounded and heartbroken friend RJ, Anders sees the strength of the sisters’ idea to start a boardinghouse and decides to invest in it. Del finds RJ barely polite and wants nothing to do with him. But despite Del and her sisters’ best-laid plans, the future–and RJ–might surprise them all.

Season of My Enemy by Naomi Musch

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1944 – Wisconsin

Only last year, Fannie O’Brien was considered a beauty with a brain, and her future shone bright, despite the war pounding Europe. With her father’s sudden death and her brothers overseas, Fannie must now do the work of three men on their 200-acre farm—until eight German prisoners arrive and, just as Fannie feared, trouble comes too. Someone seems intent on causing “accidents,” and Fannie is certain the culprit is one of the two handsome older Germans—or possibly both. Can she manage the farm, keep the prisoners in line, and hold her family together through these turbulent times?

Love Unforeseen by Penny Zeller

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1890s – Montana

Will a best friend’s matchmaking scheme be successful?

Tillie Waller finds her life’s purpose in molding young minds as a teacher in Ellis Creek in the late-1890s. While she claims contentment, there is a part of her that longs to marry and be a mother, like her sister, Meredith, and best friend, Lula. But no matter. With her students and books, how could she ever be lonesome?

Willard “Will” Fairbanks has longed to return to Ellis Creek since the day he left the town with his family twelve years ago. When a job offer at Ellis Creek Mill beckons his return, Will eagerly embraces the opportunity. An added bonus? He hopes to reconnect with Tillie Waller, the girl he has always loved—the girl who never felt the same about him.

When Tillie encourages her pupils to write to pen pals in another town, she can’t possibly foresee how such an assignment will impact her own future. Her best friend, Lula, concocts a plan, unbeknownst to Tillie, for Will to become Tillie’s pen pal under a false name. Tillie forms a connection with her pen pal and even dares herself to fall in love.

When she falls in love with both Will and her pen pal, which one will she choose?

Will love unforeseen become a reality for Tillie and Willard?

Harmony on the Horizon by Kathleen Denly

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1865 – California

Her calling to change the world may be his downfall.

On the heels of the Great Rebellion, Margaret Foster, an abolitionist northerner, takes a teaching position in 1865 San Diego—a town dominated by Southern sympathizers. At thirty-seven years of age, Margaret has accepted spinsterhood and embraced her role as teacher. So, when Everett Thompson, the handsomest member of the School Board, reveals his interest in her, it’s a dream come true. Until her passionate ideals drive a wedge between them.

After two decades of hard work, Everett Thompson is on the verge of having everything he’s dreamed of. Even the beautiful new teacher has agreed to his courtship. Then two investments go south and a blackmailer threatens everything Everett has and dreams of.

As Everett scrambles to shore up the crumbling pieces of his life, Margaret unwittingly sets off a scandal that divides the small community and threatens her position as teacher. With the blackmailer still whispering threats, Everett must decide if he’s willing to risk everything for the woman still keeping him at arm’s length.

The Washerwomen’s War by Piper Huguley

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1881- Georgia

Mamie Harper, a new teacher at Atlanta Female Baptist Seminary, hears of mistreatment from her washerwomen students and tells them to strike. She re-encounters summer pastor Gabriel Harmon, who has other ideas to help the washerwomen. Will these combatants be able to win in the war of love?

Austin by Linda Ford

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1887 – Canada

Austin Wagoner is a gunman on the right side of the law. As a deputy, he tracked down some bank robbers and in the following shoot out, his bullet killed Colin Martyn, the brother of Mae Martyn, the girl Austin was in love with. Knowing she would never be able to forgive him, he rides out of her life.

Five years later, Mae and her niece and nephew are headed to the new teaching position at the Circle A Ranch. Mae has had custody of the children since her brother’s death. His widow gave up on life and died shortly afterwards. Mae has had a number of teaching jobs but they never lasted. Too many parents and board members felt she couldn’t be impartial with children of her own in the classroom. She hopes all this will change at the Circle A. She didn’t know it was Austin who shot her brother and has nursed a broken heart at the way he rode out of her life.

Austin is headed back to his mountain cabin when he discovers a stagecoach being robbed and, to his shock, learns Mae and the children are on it. He is shot by one of the robbers and stays at the Circle A Ranch to recover. His attraction to Mae has never wavered but he doesn’t expect her to forgive him for killing her brother.

When Mae learns the truth about her brother’s death, everything she felt about Austin is challenged. Can she love the man who shot her guardian? Can Austin forgive himself?

Protecting Annie by Jodie Wolfe

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1876 – Kansas

After twenty years living along the trail as a deputy U.S. Marshal, Joshua Walker takes a job as sheriff in Burrton Springs, Kansas so he can be closer to his sister. Only problem is, she no longer requires his protecting.

After the death of her father, Annie McPherson needs a change. She accepts a position as schoolmarm hoping her past won’t catch up with her. Life is good, except for the pesky lawman who creates confrontations at every turn and continually questions her ability to adjust to life in the west.

When the irritating schoolteacher’s past and present collide, dragging Josh into the turmoil, he has to decide who he’s willing to defend.

All That is Secret by Patricia Raybon

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1923 – Colorado

From award-winning author Patricia Raybon comes a compelling new historical mystery series, a riveting puzzle about a young Black theologian–and Sherlock fan–trying to solve her father’s cold-case murder in a city ruled by the KKK.
It’s the winter of 1923 and Professor Annalee Spain―a clever but overworked theologian at a small Chicago Bible college–receives a cryptic telegram calling her home to Denver to solve the murder of her beloved but estranged father.
For a young Black woman, searching for answers in a city ruled by the KKK could mean real danger. Still, with her literary hero Sherlock Holmes as inspiration, Annalee launches her hunt for clues, attracting two surprising allies: Eddie, a relentless young orphan boy searching for his missing father, and Jack, a handsome young pastor who loves nightclub dancing and fast cars–awakening Annalee’s heart to the surprising highs and lows of romance and love.
With their help, Annalee follows clues that land her among Denver’s powerful elite. But when her sleuthing unravels sinister motives and long-buried lies, will clever Annalee become a victim, too? 
 

Under the Bayou Moon by Valerie Fraser Luesse

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1949 – Louisiana

Restless with the familiarity of her Alabama home, Ellie Fields accepts a teaching job in a tiny Louisiana town deep in bayou country. Though rightfully suspicious of outsiders, who have threatened both their language and their culture, most of the people in tiny Bernadette, Louisiana, come to appreciate the young and idealistic schoolteacher as a boon to the town. She’s soon teaching just about everyone–and coming up against opposition from both the school board and a politician with ulterior motives.

Acclimating to a whole new world, Ellie meets a lonely but intriguing Cajun fisherman named Raphe who introduces her to the legendary white alligator that haunts these waters. Raphe and Ellie have barely found their way to each other when a huge bounty is offered for the elusive gator, bringing about a shocking turn of events that will test their love and their will to right a terrible wrong.

A master of the Southern novel, Valerie Fraser Luesse invites you to enter the sultry swamps of Louisiana in a story that illuminates the struggle for the heart and soul of the bayou.

More Than Honor by Carol Ashby

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126 – Roman Empire

Duty and honor had anchored his life, but only truth could set him free.

Devotion to duty and dogged determination make Tribune Titianus the most feared investigator of the Urban Cohort. Honor drives him to hunt down anyone who breaks Roman law, but it becomes personal when Lenaeus, his old tutor, is murdered in his own classroom. Why kill a respected teacher of the noble sons of Rome, a man who has nothing worth stealing and no known enemies? Had he learned something too dangerous to let him live?

Pompeia was only a girl when Titianus studied with Father before her family became Christians. She and her brother Kaeso can’t move their school from the house where their father was killed. But what if the one who killed Father comes to kill again? Kaeso’s friend Septimus insists they spend nights at his father’s well-guarded home. But danger lurks there as well. As Titianus hunts for the murderer, will he discover their secret faith and arrest them as enemies of the Empire?

When Titianus gets too close to finding the killer, the hunter becomes the hunted. While he recovers at his cousin Septimus’s house, Pompeia becomes the first woman to touch his heart. But a tribune’s loyalty is sworn to Rome, no matter how he feels. When her faith is revealed, will truth and love mean more to him than honor? Does honor require more than devotion to Rome?

The Good German Girl by Erica Marie Hogan

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1944 – France/Germany

June 6, 1944. Omaha Beach.

When battle-hardened Private Bernie Russell witnesses a fellow soldier shoot a young German boy with his hands up, he’s shaken to his very core. Then, as that same boy is dying, he presses a packet of photographs and letters into Bernie’s hand and utters three words in English.

“It must end.”

After having the letters translated, he discovers they were written by the soldier’s twin sister, and the photographs within the packet reveal evidence of Hitler’s plan to wipe out the Jews.

Berlin, Germany.

Margot Raskopf is a young art teacher, forced to conform to the education Hitler has designed. Then, when one of her sources with the underground resistance receives a letter for her from an American soldier, she’s shocked and filled with renewed hope. But Margot has been harboring a secret. In her house, she hides a young Jewish woman she’s known since childhood, risking being discovered by the gestapo with each passing day.

As they begin a dangerous correspondence, both Margot and Bernie embark on treacherous journeys. One taking Bernie across Europe and right into Germany. Another taking Margot through the gates of Auschwitz … and under the scrutiny of Josef Mengele.

An Inconvenient Acquaintance by Sara Turnquist

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1870s – Arizona

Ada Clara Miller is the new schoolteacher in Tombstone. Her desire for independence stems from her brother’s tales of the west. But she never expected to find herself torn between two men—one who promises safety and security, the other’s future is uncertain and offers excitement.

Though Francis “Slim” Dagley is determined that he will not become involved with a woman of privilege, Ada’s fiery personality intrigues him. And draws him. Soon he is vying for her heart with a man he’d rather not trifle with.

Making matters worse, a violent gang skirts the law and makes life difficult for well-meaning ranchers. And their interactions with the Earps create ripples through Tombstone.

Will Slim and Ada find what they seek in each other? Or will they become caught up in a piece of history—the shootout at the O.K. Corral?

Broken Limbs, Mended Hearts by Regina Jennings

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1868 – Texas

When a young man from her past returns and upends their small town with his new invention, schoolteacher Bella Eden is reminded of the heartbreak she suffered years ago under the old oak tree. After her job is put on the line, can she trust the man who disrupted her life to help her fight for a brighter future?

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Braced for Love by Mary Connealy

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1870 – Wyoming

Left with little back in Missouri, Kevin Hunt takes his younger siblings on a journey to Wyoming when he receives news that he’s inheriting part of a ranch. The catch is that the ranch is also being given to a half brother he never knew existed. Turns out, Kevin’s supposedly dead father led a secret and scandalous life.

But danger seems to track Kevin along the way, and he wonders if his half brother, Wyatt, is behind the attacks. Finally arriving at the ranch, everyone is at each other’s throats and the only one willing to stand in between is Winona Hawkins, a nearby schoolmarm.

Despite being a long-time friend to Wyatt, Winona can’t help but be drawn to the earnest, kind Kevin–and that puts her in the cross hairs of somebody’s dangerous plot. Will they all be able to put aside their differences long enough to keep anyone from getting truly hurt?

Winning the Schoolmarm by Lacy Williams

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1906 – Wyoming

Swirling rumors forced Cecilia White out of the teaching job she loved. She vowed not to get involved with a man again—no matter what. But when the term begins at a new schoolhouse in a new town, disaster strikes. No matter what she does, she can’t seem to escape the handsome, single chairman of the school board.

John Morgan has a secret. He’s not who he says he is. He’ll do anything to protect and provide for his young sister—including cozying up to the prickly schoolmarm.

Sparks fly and Cecilia must deny her heart if she hopes to keep her job. But what’s more important? Duty or love?

A Dance in Donegal by Jennifer Deibel

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1920 – Ireland

All of her life, Irish-American Moira Doherty has relished her mother’s descriptions of Ireland. When her mother dies unexpectedly in the summer of 1920, Moira decides to fulfill her mother’s wish that she become the teacher in Ballymann, her home village in Donegal, Ireland.

After an arduous voyage, Moira arrives to a new home and a new job in an ancient country. Though a few locals offer a warm welcome, others are distanced by superstition and suspicion. Rumors about Moira’s mother are unspoken in her presence but threaten to derail everything she’s journeyed to Ballymann to do. Moira must rely on the kindness of a handful of friends–and the strength of Sean, an unsettlingly handsome thatcher who keeps popping up unannounced–as she seeks to navigate a life she’d never dreamed of . . . but perhaps was meant to live.

Legacy of Honor by Renee Brumbaugh Green

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1882 – Texas

He’s been raised to carry on the legacy.

After her mother’s untimely death, Emma Monroe’s dreams to become a teacher are dashed. She takes a job as maid and cook at the local Stratton Ranch, where she endures humiliation and hardship in order to provide for her ailing father and younger brother. Only Riley Stratton, her childhood friend and heir to the Stratton fortune, sees her heart. When she’s asked to care for Skye, the young half-Indian girl most family members refuse to claim, Emma finally finds the purpose she craves.

Riley Stratton has it all, or so it seems. Growing up as the youngest son of the rich and powerful John Stratton, Riley stands to inherit a legacy of greatness in the Stratton Ranch. On the surface, his family looks like they have it all, but manipulation, deceit, and an ever-present quest for power leave him desperate for change. Yet his father has made it clear: do things the Stratton way, or face alienation and disinheritance.

As Riley and Emma choose between honor, dreams, and expectations—not to mention the love they can no longer deny—their first steps prove how quickly the situation can spin into danger. When their best efforts threaten the lives and hopes of those closest to them, it becomes clear the decisions they make will change the course of their lives forever. 

Patriot’s Courage by Penelope Marzec

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1794 – Ohio Territory

In retaliation for his brother’s death, Ryan McGowan vows to kill every Indian in Ohio territory. When his captain assigns him to teach English to a woman found sobbing over a dead warrior, he resents the task. But the woman melts away his vengeance. He begins to understand the way to peace is through forgiveness. Then he learns the woman carries the child of her Indian husband in her womb.

Màxkchulëns, a white woman adopted by the Lenape at the age of four, is confined at the fort and longs to return to her people. Though Ryan leads her to recall part of the faith her biological parents held dear, she struggles to understand it and the power of grace.

Can she rely on that grace in desperate times? And will faith protect her unborn child as well?

Something Worth Doing by Jane Kirkpatrick

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1853 – Oregon

In 1853, Abigail Scott was a 19-year-old school teacher in Oregon Territory when she married Ben Duniway. Marriage meant giving up on teaching, but Abigail always believed she was meant to be more than a good wife and mother. When financial mistakes and an injury force Ben to stop working, Abigail becomes the primary breadwinner for her growing family. What she sees as a working woman appalls her, and she devotes her life to fighting for the rights of women, including their right to vote.

Following Abigail as she bears six children, runs a millinery and a private school, helps on the farm, writes novels, gives speeches, and eventually runs a newspaper supporting women’s suffrage, Something Worth Doing explores issues that will resonate strongly with modern women: the pull between career and family, finding one’s place in the public sphere, and dealing with frustrations and prejudices women encounter when they compete in male-dominated spaces. Based on a true story of a pioneer for women’s rights from award-winning author Jane Kirkpatrick will inspire you to believe that some things are worth doing–even when the cost is great.

Among the Pages by Sara R. Turnquist

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1915 – New York

A woman’s choice…is in question.

Brianne is a somewhat naïve college freshman. She becomes disillusioned as her professors and peers challenge many of her long-held beliefs. When she finds a diary that belonged to a distant relative, she hopes it will offer much needed distraction. And she is soon drawn into the story of a passionate woman who seems to whisper from the past.

In 1915’s New York, idealist and primary teacher Margaret struggles with the problems women face at home and in society. She is first timid about speaking her mind, but in time cannot keep her impassioned spirit hidden—not even from the gentleman who teaches in the classroom next door. His concern for her stretches the limits of their friendship, pressing into something more. Caught up in the Women’s Suffrage Movement, she faces down authority figures and others who question her beliefs.

And so, Brianne is whisked along on this journey as Margaret joins the fight for women’s rights, all the while trying to work through her own questions and experiences with modern feminism.

Before long, things spin out of control and she wonders where her newfound relationship fits into everything? Are there any clear answers? Will she land on her feet? Or be forever lost to herself?

A Life Once Dreamed by Rachel Fordham

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1880 – Dakota Territory

Six years ago, a shocking secret sent Agnes Pratt running in search of a new start. She found it in Penance, a rugged town of miners and lumberjacks in the Dakota Territory, where she became Miss Aggie, respected schoolteacher and confirmed old maid. But the past has a way of catching up with people.

When childhood friend and former sweetheart James Harris accepts a position as the town doctor, Aggie’s pleasantly predictable days suddenly become anything but. James wants to know why Agnes left behind the life they had dreamed of creating for themselves–but he is the one person who can never know.

In the shadows of the Black Hills, can a healing light be shed on the past? Or will the secret Agnes can’t seem to outrun destroy her chance at happiness?

Fan-favorite Rachel Fordham brings to life the dusty streets of an 1880s frontier town in this story that affirms where you come from matters far less than where you’re going.