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The More the Merrier by Linda Byler

1931 – Ohio

It’s 1931, and times are tough for the Miller family, who are raising eight children in the midst of the Great Depression. When Eli Miller passes away unexpectedly, and then a fire destroys their barn, Annie has no idea how she’ll make ends meet. The Amish community rallies around her and the children, as is their custom, but as days turn into weeks and then into months, Annie’s friends and neighbors return to their own routines and seem to expect Annie to do the same. Annie knows she needs to stay strong for the children and figure out a way to keep everyone warm and clothed and fed, but she is heartbroken and exhausted. She reminds herself that God will provide, but every day feels like an uphill battle.

When Annie receives a letter from a widower with six children of his own, she tries to put it out of her mind. Her critical mother reminds her that it’s too soon to start a new friendship with a man, and warns her that blending a family will be complicated. In the weeks and months to follow, Annie must learn to make her own decisions—and accept the consequences, good and bad—face her past, and embark on a new journey that will transform her and her large, complicated family. When life seems especially complicated one summer, she finds herself saying that by Christmas everything will start to come together, but she has no idea the challenges—and ultimately blessings—headed her way.

Author Interview and Giveaway – A Pursuit of Home – Kristi Ann Hunter

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You’ve been waiting for Jess and Derek’s story, and here it is! Full of secrets and intrigue, it’s sure to delight lovers of history and Kristi Ann Hunter’s signature wit. Welcome, Kristi, to the Index!

England , Estates/Manors, Fictitious Kingdom/Country, Traveling , 1800s , 1810-1820 (England Regency), Regency , Food Preparers, Historian , Amateur Detective, Orphan/Loner , Enemies/Rivals to Lovers, Mystery, Save the Inheritance, Suspense , Secrets , Hunter-Kristi Ann

A Pursuit of Home

In early 1800s England, Jess Beauchene has spent most of her life in hiding and always on the move in an effort to leave her past far behind her. But when she learns the family she thought had died just might be alive and in danger, she knows her secrets can only stay buried for so long.

Derek Thornbury loves the past, which has led him to become an expert in history and artifacts. He knows Jess has never liked him, but when she requests his help deciphering the clues laid out in an old family diary, he can’t resist the urge to solve the puzzle.

As Jess and Derek race to find the hidden artifact before her family’s enemies, they learn as much about each other as they do about the past. But can their search to uncover the truth and set history right lead to a future together?

Kristi’s Website

Other books in this series:

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Questions about Kristi’s Story

What was the hardest part of your book to write?

There is a great deal of art in this book. I have never been particularly enamored with paintings and sculptures, but now I suddenly had a character that lived and breathed visual art and a story that revolved around such items. Researching art history and learning how to find the grandeur in something I had never fully appreciated before was an interesting and growing experience, but it was also difficult.

Were there any historical facts that you discovered in your research that made you change something in your story?

When this story was nothing but a vague ember – really no more than the notion that a side character from a previous novel really deserved a story of her own – I stumbled across a fascinating fact that led me down the research rabbit hole and really inspired the entire backstory for my heroine. The Holy Roman Empire didn’t entirely dissolve until 1806. 1806! That is a very long time after I’d been taught that the Roman Empire had “fallen”. Following the path of that long lasting empire revealed other interesting bits of European history that I pulled together into a fictional country that birthed my plucky heroine and the issue that forces her to get the help of the hero.

What do you hope readers learn from this story?

If readers walk away from this book with the knowledge that their past does not define their future, I will be happy. Both of these characters are living confined by past events, though in different ways. In order for them to find a way to move forward together they have to break free of the idea that those pasts have made their futures unchangeable. The path before us is determined one step at a time and we get to choose that next step.

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Questions about Kristi’s Reading

What Christian Historical Novel taught you something about the craft of writing because it was so well done? Tell us a bit about what it taught you.

When I was beginning this writing journey and still trying to determine what type of author I wanted to be, another writer recommended I read Karen Witemeyer’s To Win Her Heart. What struck me so much about this recommendation is that the reader wasn’t a Christian, didn’t attend church, had no religious affiliations at all, but she’d read this book three times. When I read it, I was struck by how well the story of faith was woven into the story of two relatable, wonderful characters. At that moment, I knew what I wanted my writing to be.

If your job was to sell one author’s historical fiction (besides your own) which author’s wares would you want to peddle? And which is your favorite by that author?

Regina Jennings! I simply love everything she writes. There’s always this wonderful blend of fun and seriousness against the backdrop of interesting history. Picking a favorite is so hard! I have recommended her Sixty Acres and a Bride a lot because I love retellings of Ruth, but I think my favorite of hers is A Most Inconvenient Marriage because it is such a great example of the blendings she’s capable of writing. Of course, then there’s the camels in her Fort Reno novella, Bound and Determined, so… yeah. Picking a favorite is difficult.

Kristy is giving away either a paperback (USA Only) or an ebook (Internationals Entry welcome). Enter the Rafflecopter below!

**If you don’t want to enter Rafflecopter, tell me in a comment below: “I’m not entering the rafflecopter, but please throw me in the hat” so I can manually put you in there for a chance.**