1890s – Colorado
Katherine and Wyatt have settled into a well-earned, comfortable life together. Until an unexpected attack threatens to bring an end to their happily-ever-after. And on the cusp of the town’s yuletide merriment.
As they come to grips with their new circumstances, they begin to realize the difficulty is far from over. And new challenges arise.
What will become of their family? Of their Christmas?
1881 – Oregon
She’s traveling west to help her mother begin a new life as a mail-order bride. What she doesn’t know is that she is about to become a mail-order bride, too.
Melissa Eversoll Burgess’s hope of a wonderful life with her first husband went up in smoke the day she married him. Not only was his abuse difficult to take, but she also learned that he was deeply involved in crime—on the very day he died. Now that they’re both widowed, Melissa and her mother are ready to start over in a place called Hope Hollow. When she is introduced to a handsome farmer and informed that she is to be his mail-order bride, she doesn’t know whether to hug him…or slap him.
Garret Pearce came to Oregon three years ago to claim land and nurse a broken heart. Though he’s smitten with Melissa from their very first meeting, he’s not about to fall into that trap again. That is, until it becomes obvious she needs his protection. Entering a marriage of convenience may not have been in his plans, but now that he’s got a wife—and a pretty one at that—he realizes that keeping his heart from being torn in two is going to be the challenge of his life. One that he just might lose.
Will Melissa and Garret get a second chance at love?
Welcome to Hope Hollow, Oregon, a place where hope abounds for the downtrodden and weary, and where peace and love abide amidst life’s trials.
1890s – Texas
Twenty-two-year-old Garnet Adams longs to marry and have a houseful of children. Forced to support her widowed mother, she embraces her role as a teacher, although the Carrie Town board of education’s rules for female teachers leave no opportunity for a social life. She contents herself playing the violin at church.
Tall, bearded, and rough around the edges, Deputy Noah Scott would rather hunt than socialize. Garnet thinks he’s a rude, insensitive drifter, and Noah’s sure the last person he’d want to court is a schoolmarm–especially with her unladylike sneeze. As the needs of her students bring them together, opposites seem to attract until a certain Christmas present derails their future.
1800s – Colorado
A battle is brewing in Defiance. The cost of victory may be a good man’s soul…
When a campaign of violence and murder turns from targeting his empire to his family, Charles McIntyre resurrects old demons to stop a dangerous enemy. But absolute power, it has been said, corrupts absolutely. Can he wrestle the forces of darkness for control of Defiance without giving into them?
Matthew Miller knows the line between love and hate is as thin as a razor’s edge. When he finally accepts Naomi’s heart will always belong to McIntyre, his own thirst for power turns to a dark quest for vengeance. Now, all he wants is to make her suffer.
Late 1800s/Time Travel – Tennessee
When a mysterious painting offers her a trip to the past, will Isla find new hope for her future?
On the brink of aging out the foster system, the last thing Isla Laird wants is to spend Christmas in an old-fashioned plantation. What’s the point of bonding with her foster mom when it’s too late to ever be adopted? But when a mysterious painting suddenly thrusts her into the nineteenth century, Isla is forced to face hurts and memories she’s long tried to bury. With time running out and her heart in tatters, can God use an impossible miracle to bring Isla hope for a new future?
1884 – Montana Territory
Josh Kinsley’s parents have not heard from him in two years. He’d headed west to escape a broken heart but is now a prisoner in a mine. He plots and plans his escape. But he must act before he is ready to flee his prison when a young woman is brought, kicking and screaming, into his captor’s cabin. Knowing what horror awaits her, he knows he must make an immediate escape and take her with him. He will help her because it’s the right thing, but he has no intention of falling in love again.
Katie Webster is alone in the world. At home, marriageable men are scarce. All she wants is her own home and family, so agrees to be a mail-order bride. Instead, she ends up being a pawn in a gambling game. The future looks very dire. Being grabbed by a man and hurried into the woods seems every bit as risky. She will never again trust a man but going with Josh seems preferable to what awaits her in the cabin.
As Josh and Katie are forced to survive winter in the wilderness, they must learn to trust each other. But will their adventures help them admit their growing feelings or will the danger keep them apart?
1888 – Montana
In the rough and rugged Montana Territory, the journey to true love is filled with unexpected twists—and sweet rewards—for daring frontier women who faithfully believe every heart has a home . . .
With the help of the Archer Matrimonial Company, Yancey Palmer has finally put Hale Adams, the man she’s loved for ten years—sometimes not wisely or well—behind her. Yancey is so sure of her love for the man the agency matched her with, she readily promises a friend that she’ll help Hale with his mayoral campaign without chasing him.
Hale has also engaged the services of the matrimonial agency. He’s so pleased with one lady, he requests that she join him in Helena to commence a sixty-day courtship. But instead, the Archer ladies arrive in town to reveal the true identities of both Hale’s and Yancey’s matches: each other. Can they look past their misunderstandings and hurt to see that they are still a perfect match?
1893 – Oklahoma Territory
Joline had lofty dreams of love and luxury, but after her husband leaves her and she makes a series of fateful decisions, Jo has fallen as far as any woman can. Bereft of all hope and with the threat of losing her son, Jo seeks refuge at her sister’s home. Jo has a long list of secrets to keep and has to look over her shoulder, as the man she’s running from may show up anywhere, anytime. Is it possible that God can redeem Jo, and give her hope for a happy future?
1896 – Illinois
She chose the wrong man once. Can she trust her instincts now?
Phoebe Crain, an accomplished pianist, lives in near poverty to protect her five-year-old daughter from scandal. When Phoebe receives a handcrafted cigar box by mistake, her desperation to give the child something special for Christmas drives her to suggest a trade with Spence Newland, a man she views as no more principled than her daughter’s late father. But the more time she spends with the department store heir, the more Phoebe struggles to keep up her guard against him.
Spence believes the cigar box will help him gain a reclusive investor’s financial support for his proposed five-and-ten-cent stores, demonstrating his ability to manage the family fortunes. Yet he hesitates to bargain with a widow who mistrusts him for no apparent reason…until he meets a charming little girl at the train station who awaits the arrival of a prince.
Will a betrayal in Phoebe’s past and Spence’s unraveling plans derail their hope for happiness and keep a child’s fairy tale from coming true?
1890 – Texas
Leila Abbott, despaired of ever finding a husband, has one goal in mind–to raise enough money for a library and a new addition for the clinic. Jake Halliday’s goal is to find a place he can call home after five years of drifting from town to town. Leila’s attraction to the tall, dark stranger grows as he blends in with the people of Paradise Valley and lends a hand with his wood-working skills to help organize the largest fund-raising event ever seen by the town. Leila’s enthusiasm and determination strike a chord in Jake as he searches for answers about faith and forgiveness. Their hopes and dreams for the future may well drive them apart, or bring about the love they both have sought.
1889 – Colorado
After their father is bushwhacked, David and Jenny Foster must ready themselves for their first winter in Colorado’s rugged San Juan Mountains. Eighteen-year-old Jenny is under no illusions—it’ll take a miracle to survive, much less thrive, in the unforgiving wilderness, particularly when twelve-year-old David fights her every attempt to prepare.
Unexpected help arrives when John Beck—once a close friend of their father’s—arrives at their cabin. The tough-as-nails bounty hunter reluctantly agrees to stay through the winter. He owes it to his murdered friend to help Foster’s children build a working ranch, even if it’s the last thing he wants to do.
Their uneasy alliance is fraught with hardships, danger, and back-breaking work that still doesn’t guarantee anyone will survive until spring. Especially with their father’s killer still on the loose.
1890s – Washington
When Jacinda Callahan lost her husband to an outlaw’s bullet years ago, she realized she simply couldn’t trust God to protect those she loves. So, though Marshal Zane Holloway has gently pushed his suit, she’s kept him at arm’s length. The last thing she needs is another man to worry about. But now the dratted marshal has been shot! He’s bleeding on her kitchen floor, and she realizes she might not have guarded her heart quite as well as she thought.
Zane has always sensed Jacinda’s underlying anxiety. That was the very reason he’d tried to hide this blasted bullet wound from her. But hang it if he isn’t all light-headed! And with a band of brigands on the loose! Right now, he doesn’t have the time or the strength to cosset her. She’s going to have to learn that the God who clothes the lilies, has a perfect plan for those in His care.
Jacinda is flooded with familiar fears as Zane rides off to confront the outlaws. Fears that turn to terror as day gives way to night and he still hasn’t returned. But this time she won’t stand by helplessly! Surely God’s perfect plan won’t be spoiled by a little help from her gun!
1887 – Mississippi
Made a safe-haven after the Civil War, Ironwood Plantation is a refuge of equality for former slaves. But twenty years and a new generation later, they have become an isolated community with little contact with the rest of the world.
Mercy Carpenter is everything the world thinks she shouldn’t be. Educated and adventurous, she longs to make a life for herself beyond the beautiful prison of Ironwood. When she secretly submits an article to the Boston Globe under a man’s name and receives an enthusiastic response and an offer for employment, she’s determined to take advantage of the opportunity. But she isn’t prepared for a startling world that won’t accept her color or her gender, and her ambitions soon land her in grave danger.
The privileged daughter of a plantation owner and an aspiring suffragette, Faith Harper is determined not to marry. Especially not her father’s opportunistic new business partner. She doesn’t want any man telling her what to do, least of all the annoyingly chivalrous Nolan Watson. But when Mercy goes missing, Faith will do anything to find her best friend, even if it means trusting a man she doesn’t understand. In a time where prejudices try to define them, Mercy and Faith must push the boundaries of their beliefs and trust in the God who holds the keys to freedom.
1884 – Montana
Dottie is an orphan who has never had what her heart deeply desires—a home where she belongs. Being the only survivor of a tragic accident lands her at the Kinsley home and she begins to think she might finally have that desire met. But her life is turned upside down when she ends up accompanying a young man and his little brother to care for a family who needs help. She begins to question if living with the Kinsleys is truly what she wants.
Hunter has known prejudice because of his part-native status. He’s hoping moving to the Canadian Territories will make it possible for him to protect his little brother, Rusty, from experiencing the same unkind treatment. But winter prevents further travel and he seeks shelter at the Kinsley home. The preacher says he can use a young man’s help. When Hunter encounters a family needing the help of a man and a woman, he seeks Dottie’s help.
Together they tend the Talbot family and find within the walls of that house something they both want—acceptance, and the feeling of home. But life can’t be lived in the shelter of Talbot home. Can Hunter and Dottie move past their hurt and caution into a bright, promising future?
1893 – Texas
Celebrate the joy and warmth of the holidays with two historical romance novellas from Karen Witemeyer, including a brand-new story that provides a glimpse into what the Archer clan has been up to.
“An Archer Family Christmas”
It’s Christmas Eve, 1893, and the entire family has gathered to celebrate the holiday. This day is always bittersweet for Jim and Cassie, who lost a child on Christmas Eve three years earlier. Cassie has devoted herself to being the favorite aunt of the Archer children, whisking her nieces away to a nearby schoolhouse to create decorations for the Christmas tree that the men and oldest boys are venturing out to chop down.
When an unexpected knock at the schoolhouse door reveals a desperate pregnant woman on the run from a dangerous outlaw, it’ll take a Christmas miracle–and the entire Archer clan–to make sure no danger befalls the child born on this beloved holiday.
“The Gift of the Heart”
A widow and her young daughter move to Hope Springs for a fresh start, but with no money to secure a home, Ruth must convince a wealthy resort owner to accept her heirloom brooch as collateral. Will the pin that brought love to three generations soften the heart of a wounded recluse and give Ruth a second chance at love as the holidays draw near?
1889 – Kansas
All Gabriel Coulter ever wanted was to live a comfortable life as a successful gambler, but a confrontation with a disgruntled cowboy who’d just lost his monthly pay to Gabe leads to a family man dying in his arms. Even though it was self-defense, the only way Gabe knows to get rid of his guilt is to return the money he won to the man’s wife.
Lara Talbot sees Gabe as a derelict like her husband and wants nothing to do with him–not even the much-needed money he’s offered her. But as she struggles to provide for her family and makes plans to claim property in the upcoming Oklahoma land rush in hopes of finally having a permanent home, she wonders if God might have sent the meddling man to help.
1882 – Iowa
A prodigal’s hope for a happy homecoming is derailed.
Clay left home after his brother’s death—a death for which he was responsible. After years away he’s finally returning, hoping for reconciliation with his father. But when the stagecoach he’s riding in wrecks and he is injured, he finds himself in a fight for survival.
Jolie is fleeing a nightmare situation. She desperately hopes becoming a mail-order bride doesn’t land her in a worse place. When the stage crashes and she spends the night alone with a wounded man, she wonders if her intended will still want her. If he doesn’t, what will she do? She has no money and nowhere to go.
1899 – New Hampshire
During the summer of 1899, Lydia Barlow, a young innkeeper, hopes to persuade her absentee co-owner to keep their failing hotel open and operating.
She’s had a romantic crush on him for years and always thought he’d someday become an active partner and work with her to make a success of their old-fashioned, family hotel. She and her mother have managed without Dane Paxton’s assistance or interference—but unfortunately, without his expertise.
But Dane hasn’t come to the Mountain View Inn to help them improve their management skills—or court Lydia. He tries to convince her to buy his share of the inn so he can invest in another hotel project in Florida. When he discovers the Mountain View Inn is going bankrupt, he insists they must cut their losses and sell. Lydia and her mother are devastated.
While Dane is searching for a buyer, he slowly realizes how much he cares for Lydia. She feels the same way.
But will their love be strong enough to overcome their clash of personal goals?
1887 – Dakotas
She’s a woman in a man’s profession.
Puma Ridge needs a doctor, but they never expected a woman to step off the stagecoach in response to their advertisement, and no one wants to be the first to use her services. Dr. Charlotte “Charley” Adams isn’t afraid of a little skepticism and disapproval, though. She overcame much bigger challenges while becoming a physician, and sooner or later, need will outweigh the townsfolk’s reluctance. So why does the disapproval of one grouchy, gray-eyed stagecoach driver thoroughly rattle her customary composure and resigned heart?
He hates the profession.
Experience is the best teacher, and Cooper Knight has enough of it to know that physicians are bad news. However, his protective instincts won’t let him ignore the pretty tenderfoot when she gets herself into trouble, and before long, he begins to see the woman behind the medical bag. But when an unexpected discovery fractures their developing relationship, will Cooper allow forgiveness to heal them both? Or will the tragic mistakes of the past destroy their future?
1886 – Texas
When Ivy Cooke discovers the extent of the debt on her father’s Texas ranch, she vows to do whatever it takes to save her late brother’s legacy for his son. But when new neighbor Dell Watson and his family claim they own the Cooke’s spring, the fight gets ever harder, especially in the midst of a deep drought.
To prove his worth to his father, Dell puts a plan into motion to woo Ivy and her spring. What he doesn’t count on his falling in love with her.
Will the spring bring them together or tear them apart forever?
1885 – Nevada
An Amish Mail Order Bride? That’s not what Clayton Tucker thought he was getting when he began to correspond with Emma Jane Miller.
Emma Jane shows up in Silver City, Nevada, a wild, mining town, to be Clayton Tucker’s mail-order bride. The only problem is, she left out one LITTLE detail about herself; she’s Amish!
Clay doesn’t take too kindly to being tricked and tries to send her on her way before the miners show up in town to give him his daily dose of ribbing. Being a pig farmer, Clay is the joke of the town, and the folks make it tough for him to make a living because of his trade. If he marries an Amish woman, things will only get worse for both of them and he realizes too late that he’s a coward and can’t marry her.
With no money to return home and Clay’s refusal to honor the marriage contract, Emma Jane must figure out how she will pay for a room in the boarding house in town until the stage comes back.
An early snowstorm threatens everyone’s plans; can Emma and Clay put aside their differences for Thanksgiving and for the sake of the town?
1881 – Nebraska
Hero Tom MacKinnon rides up driving a wagon with a second wagon trailing him. He and his sister want to be hired to build windmills. They’ll ask for very little money and, in exchange heroine, Lauren Drummond, newly widowed mother of four nearly grown sons, will help them learn to survive in the Sandhills of Nebraska. What to grow, what to hunt, how to build a sod house.
Tom’s windmills will save her ranch. Lauren needs three windmills on this drought year or her growing herd of cattle is going to die of thirst. She agrees to teach him the ways of the Sandhills, and to give him fifteen head of cattle.
She’s not ready to think of another man. But Tom changes her mind. His little sister and one of her sons find love together before Tom and Lauren do.
1885 – New York
To save her family from financial ruin, Miss Poppy Garrison accepts an unusual proposition to participate in the New York social season in exchange for her grandmother settling a family loan that has unexpectedly come due. Ill-equipped to handle the intricacies of mingling within the New York Four Hundred, Poppy becomes embroiled in one hilarious fiasco after another, doomed to suffer a grand societal failure instead of being deemed the diamond of the first water her grandmother longs for her to become.
Reginald Blackburn, second son of a duke, has been forced to travel to America to help his cousin, Charles Wynn, Earl of Lonsdale, find an American heiress to wed in order to shore up his family estate that is in desperate need of funds. Reginald himself has no interest in finding an heiress to marry, but when Poppy’s grandmother asks him to give etiquette lessons to Poppy, he swiftly discovers he may be in for much more than he bargained for.
1880 – Colorado
Mail-Order Misfire exposes the heart of a widowed lawman when he meets the bride his nine-year-old daughter wrote for without telling him.
Preacher Bern Stidham is a peacemaker—when he’s not carrying one on his hip. His little girl, Gracie, wants a helper for her preacher/sheriff papa and a mama for herself, so she writes their former pastor in Missouri asking for a mail-order bride.
Recently widowed dressmaker Etta Collier is a half-step ahead of the banker who carries a lustful eye for her as well as the note on her home. When her pastor receives a letter from little Gracie Stidham, he sees a solution for everyone’s problem and encourages Etta to answer Gracie’s request.
Running from one man’s lecherous pursuit into the home of another she knows nothing about, Etta Collier risks everything to ease a little girl’s loneliness and perhaps find a second chance at love.
1880s – Texas
Visit an Old West Texas town where a mysterious benefactor leaves gifts each Christmas, but also where four pairs of neighbors battle over hearsay, secrets, and mysteries.
THE MARSHAL NEXT DOOR by Vickie McDonough (1885)
The marshal’s deputy claims he’s seen the marshal’s young sisters snooping around businesses where there have been recent thefts. Marshal Yates can’t believe his sisters might be the thieves and seeks out a woman to mentor the impetuous teenagers. But when evidence is found against his sisters, will he have to arrest them at Christmastime?
THE SPINSTERS NEXT DOOR by Susan Page Davis (1886)
Rachel Tanner’s family harbors secrets that may lead her and her aunts to financial ruin. When Stephen Worth rents a house on the Tanner property, he gets to close to family business, insisting Rachel open a locked box her dead father guarded closely. Can the schoolmaster persuade Rachel to defy her aunts and open the box—or will she remain alone with a tangle of unanswered questions?
THE OUTLAW NEXT DOOR by Vickie McDonough (1887)
Dane McDermott, a reformed outlaw born into a gang of thieves, has buried his past deep. As respectable business owner Dane has finally met the woman of his dreams. But when his father shows up, will it ruin his chances for love with the preacher’s daughter?
THE GUNSLINGER NEXT DOOR by Susan Page Davis (1888)
Alice Singer’s new neighbor has her worried. He’s a retired gunslinger with delusions that he is Ben Franklin and needs a printing press to produce his almanac. Enlisting the postmaster’s help, Alice seeks to understand her odd neighbor, his many packages, and mysterious visitors. Is he really just a harmless old fellow?
(Repackaged novella once featured in the historical compilation, Heirloom Brides)
1893 – Virginia
After waiting four years for her best friend to return from sea, Wren Cromwell’s dream of building a life with Tate Kennedy has wilted during his unexpected absence. Then, just as suddenly as he departed the mountain of their childhood, he returns, bringing with him tales of Norway’s icy fjords and his time aboard ship on the North Sea. As spring unfurls around them, so unfolds a new hope in Wren’s heart, and a new chance at love on the horizon. But with Tate’s longing for exciting voyages still alive, will he vanish to the high seas again, or will this land he’s returned to, and Wren’s steadfast love, be enough to nurture his adventurous spirit?
1884 – Montana
Tilly Kinsley carries physical and emotional wounds home to Glory, Montana Territory, after being rejected by the family she hoped to become a part of. The town is familiar—and so is the gossip mill. Uncomfortable with the curious stares she constantly receives, she volunteers to care for two young girls on a ranch out of town. The ranch gives her a place to hide. But she can’t escape the notice of the girls’ stepfather.
Lance has had a difficult time since his wife died. Her daughters hate him, and he doesn’t know why. He wonders if he’s doing the right thing in keeping them. Out of sheer necessity, he accepts Tilly’s offer of help. He doesn’t want another wife… but he can’t ignore the woman with the haunted eyes.
Caring for the girls, dealing with a crazed bear, struggling to save an injured colt, and enduring the disapproval of Lance’s father forces them to work together. Can this unlikely pair find healing and hope together?
1893 – Washington
Unfulfilled dreams have left Grace Thomas vowing not to let her imagination roam wild again. Resigning herself to the goal of owning a dress shop, she accepts a position as a housekeeper at Monaghan Lumber Camp in order to earn funds. The plan is simple, easy, and safe. But Torin Monaghan is not. The reclusive brother who seems indifferent to her presence is ironically the one stirring up her imagination.
Torin Monaghan will not be deterred from his passion to preserve the beauty of nature. Even if it appears as if he’s going against his family. Even if the quirky and wistful seamstress invading his space is proving a distraction. To his frustration, Grace Thomas is not easily dismissed, and neither are the ways she’s opening his eyes to a different sort of beauty.
When past threats bring new trouble to Pine Creek, Torin and Grace must become vulnerable—to each other and their community—and through risk, discover that reality is more fulfilling than their dreams.
1886 – Texas
Rachel Jones’s family harbors secrets that may lead Rachel and her aunts to financial ruin. Can the schoolmaster persuade Rachel to defy her aunts and open a locked box–or will she remain alone with a tangle of unanswered questions?
1884 – Montana
Clara Redd has a secret. The little boy that everyone believes is her brother is really her son. She lives in fear that her son’s father will find her and claim Louie.
Alex Keystone has recently graduated from seminary and has come to Glory, Montana to help the overworked Preacher Kinsley. His family legacy is being a preacher. He doesn’t need any distractions as he prepares to live the life his father and grandfather have molded him for. But his heart is drawn to Clara as they spend time together. He senses her hurt and wishes he could help her.
But can Clara learn to trust him, trust God, trust love enough to be honest with him about her past and the danger that threatens? Or will learning the truth destroy all of them?
Lawmen and Ladies of the Old West Team Up to Track Down Outlaws
Mistaken Marshal by Crystal L. Barnes
Texas, 1875
First day on the job, Marshal Beau Bones accidentally interrupts a robbery and arrests an outlaw who is disguised as a man. Just as Jo Ross is hiding the God-fearing girl her parents raised, Beau is hiding that he can’t shoot and doesn’t deserve the town’s respect. Is there any way for Beau to free Jo without losing the faith the town has placed in him?
On Track for Love by Vickie McDonough
Missouri, 1875
A new job and a move to a new state put Railroad Agent Landry Lomax on track to meet Cara Dixon—a spirited woman holding a derringer on a train robber. This stubborn woman is not one he wants around his young sister, but then they end up in the same St. Louis boardinghouse. But could Cara’s gumption help him trap a gang of train robbers?
Love Conquers Oil by Annette O’Hare
Texas, 1901
When a murderous bank robber threatens Fern Fisher’s life, she accepts a mail-order bride inquiry and heads for Beaumont, Texas. Only problem is the proposed groom, Jesse Stewart didn’t send for her. His memaw did. Will drilling for oil together produce a “gusher” of love, or will their pasts trigger a “blowout” for their fledgling relationship?
Rocky Mountain Regrets by Kathleen Y’Barbo
Colorado, 1889
While posing as her niece’s mother, Eloise Broderick travels to Colorado to find her brother with the help of Zeke Potter, a man renowned for tracking skills. But when Zeke realizes the man Eloise seeks is the same man he blames for his family’s death, will he use Eloise to get vengeance?
1883 – Iowa
For three years, Penny Ercanbeck has been opening other people’s mail. Dead ends are a reality for clerks at the Dead Letter Office. Still she dreams of something more–a bit of intrigue, a taste of romance, or at least a touch less loneliness. When a letter from a brokenhearted man to his one true love falls into her hands, Penny seizes this chance to do something heroic. It becomes her mission to place this lost letter into the hands of its intended recipient.
Thomas left his former life with no intention of ending up in Azure Springs, Iowa. He certainly didn’t expect a happy ending after what he had done. All he wanted to do was run and never look back. In a moment of desperation, he began to write, never really expecting a reply.
When Penny’s undertaking leads her to the intriguing man who touched her soul with his words, everything grows more complicated. She wants to find the rightful owner of the letter and yet she finds herself caring–perhaps too much–for the one who wrote it.
Enjoy four historical romances that celebrate the arts of sewing and quilting. When four women put needle and thread to fabric, will their talents lead to love?
Bygones by Mary Davis
Texas, 1884
Drawn to the new orphan boy in town, Tilly Rockford soon became the unfortunate victim of a lot of Orion Dunbar’s mischievous deeds in school. Can Tilly figure out how to truly forgive the one who made her childhood unbearable? Now she doesn’t even know she holds his heart. Can this deviant orphan-train boy turned man make up for the misdeeds of his youth and win Tilly’s heart before another man steals her away?
The Bridal Shop by Grace Hitchcock
Charleston, South Carolina, June 1886
Alice Turner, the owner of one of Charleston’s finest bridal shops, is determined never to be dependent on a man for anything after the disgrace of her father’s prison time. When her best friend requests Alice to be her maid of honor, she reluctantly sets aside her feelings on marriage and dons a stylish bridesmaid’s gown, never intending to catch the eye of the handsome groomsman. Will he be able to convince her to open her heart again and finish the quilt once intended for her father?
Mending Sarah’s Heart by Suzanne Norquist
Rockledge, Colorado, 1884
Sarah doesn’t need anyone, especially her dead husband’s partner. With four brothers to mentor her boys and income as a seamstress, she seeks a quiet life. If only the Emporium of Fashion would stop stealing her customers and the local hoodlums would leave her sons alone. When she rejects her husband’s share of the mine, his partner Jack seeks to serve her through other means. But will his efforts only push her further away?
Binding Up Wounds by Liz Tolsma
Regent, Wisconsin, 1865
Melissa Bainbridge is a quirky designer of rag dolls who raises raccoons and never really fit into the small farming town. When Lance Witherspoon arrives in town to thank her for the Sanitary Commission quilt she made that saved his life, she is shocked to learn Lance is a Confederate. Can she and Lance confront the town’s prejudices – along with their own?
