A change of heart needs a reason

A backstory can serve different purposes. It can establish a secret relationship, a reason the character acts a particular way, give information about what has happened before the beginning of the story, explain why a minor character is in an unusual situation or explain a villain’s reason for turning good. For those who have read the story, this will help explain the motive in more detail and for those who haven’t read the story, it may cause you to pick up the book.

“Impending Love and Madness” is a historical romance novel available at http://goo.gl/B7lKMs  and other distributors in print and ebook format. Follow me on Amazon and social media.

The Civil War is over when Zach Ravenswood returns home and discovers his uncle, Seymour Woods, has plans to steal his inheritance and isn’t above nearly killing him. He’s hired Vance Edwards to sell all the horses on the farm so he can pocket the profits.

Vance is a man introduced in the first and second books in the series. He has caused trouble for the Beecher family several times, so it is no surprise he is behind the plot to steal from Zach.

In this story Vance returns from serving in the Confederacy to his home in Vandalia, West Virginia and finds two graves and his home in ruins. He takes the job for Seymour with plans to cheat him out of the money to restore his farm. This story has one cheat stealing from another cheat. The night before the horse auction, Vance kidnaps Cassandra Beecher, our heroine, to force the hero, Zachary Ravenswood, to go through with the sale and turn over the money to Seymour so Vance can steal it from him.

Cass realizes who Vance really is and tells him a secret that shocks him. Will it change his heart? The reader doesn’t know until the end.

Blurb: Cass Beecher hopes Sergeant Zach Ravenswood will fall in love with her on an outing to Ford’s Theater, only to have their world turned upside down with President Lincoln’s assassination. Her romantic plans continue to be thwarted by family, friends, and a mysterious stranger. Can she save the man she loves from the enemies that plot to ruin him?

Zach thought with the war over, he could turn his attention to wooing the lovely Cassandra, but a fortune teller’s dire predictions begin to come true when a fire disfigures him, a nun poisons him, his uncle steals his inheritance, and he’s shot. Is he going mad or is everything not as it appears?

#AbrahamLincoln #CivilWar #Historical #Romance #witch #poison #wrpbks

Minor characters can have backstories

A backstory can serve different purposes. It can establish a secret relationship, a reason the character acts a particular way, give information about what has happened before the beginning of the story, or explain why a minor character is in an unusual situation. For those who have read the story, this will help explain the motive in more detail and for those who haven’t read the story, it may cause you to pick up the book.

“Impending Love and Capture” is a historical romance novel available at http://goo.gl/B7lKMs  and other distributors in print and ebook format. Follow me on Amazon.

This story begins on July 2, 1863 as Jessica Beecher arrives in Gettysburg with supplies and to tell her beau, Edward Herbruck, she can’t marry him. She meets Morgan Mackinnon, a major in the Confederacy, who kidnaps her because his younger half-sister, Tootie, has been shot in the cemetery. What is Tootie doing there? Later in the story she confides the events to Jess.

Morgan’s father owned a store in Richmond, Virginia. Blake Ellsworth’s father owned a hotel nearby. These two men are fighting on opposite sides of the Civil War but were best friends growing up. While at West Point Morgan’s father was robbed and shot in his store. When he joins the Confederate Army, Morgan arranges for the profits of the store to go to his stepmother, Faye, and Tootie, but when Faye marries, her new husband, Lyle, takes over the store while Morgan is away fighting. He rapes Tootie who tells her mother. Faye doesn’t believe her, and she heads for Morgan’s camp. She disguises herself as a boy and becomes his aide while he tries to find someone to take care of her.

Normally, the heroine is never raped, but Tootie is a minor character, and her rape vilifies not only her stepfather but mother who doesn’t believe her. They will get their punishment later. If a story contains a traumatic event like a rape or murder, justify it by having a strong impact from the event. Tootie doesn’t believe any man will marry her because of the rape, but when she tells the man who proposes what happens, he supports her, putting the blame where it belongs.

Even though Tootie started out as a small supporting character, she grows and reappears in later books. When a character takes on a life of her own, don’t hide her away. Use her. A backstory gives events in the book more emphasis. When Blake is reunited with Morgan, their childhood friendship makes the meeting more powerful as both are grateful to have survived the war.

Blurb: When Jessica Beecher stops to help a wounded soldier on the Gettysburg battlefield, Confederate Major Morgan Mackinnon enlists her skills to nurse his sister. Unable to escape, she waits for Union forces to attack the retreating Confederate Army. But the delay forces Jess to look beyond the gray uniform to the man who has captured her heart.

Morgan can’t let Jess leave when she overhears Lee’s army is retreating during the night. She’s a dangerous woman and not because of the knife she pressed against his throat or the revolver hidden beneath her skirt. The battlefield angel has a face no man can forget, especially when facing death. #ReadRomace #romancenovels #CivilWar #Gettysburg #Lee #Grant #wrpbks

The heroine doesn’t need to wait for love

A heroine doesn’t need to be sitting around waiting for her prince. A backstory can serve different purposes. It can establish a secret relationship, a reason the character acts a particular way, or it can summarize action that has occurred before the story begins. For a romance, the story usually begins when the hero and heroine meet, but what were they doing before that moment? In “Impending Love and Lies,” both the hero and heroine have backstories which are revealed later in the story. Instead of a flashback like the one in “Casablanca” the characters either show or tell portions of their stories.

Historical romance novel “Impending Love and Lies” is available at http://goo.gl/B7lKMs and other distributors in print and ebook format.

Colleen’s backstory is typical for a young woman. She has been courted for several months and expects a proposal of marriage any day from Simon Blackwater. Instead, she reads that he is engaged to a socialite, Margaret Radcliffe, he met on a trip to New York. Anyone who has read “Gone With The Wind” will recognize this situation. Scarlett expected Ashley Wilkes to propose to her but learns he is announcing his engagement to Melanie Wilkes. Like Scarlett, Colleen confronts Simon in the parlor of her grandmother’s inn. He admits the engagement and asks her to be his mistress. She throws him out. Like Rhett, our hero, Blake Ellsworth, is resting in a sofa and overhears the entire exchange.

Blake owns several hotels which he has inherited from his father. He sold the one in Tennessee under suspicious circumstances since the Confederate Army was leaving and gold went missing. He was being set up by Clyde and Buck Cassell who hope to steal the gold from him once he passes Union lines. He avoids them by boarding the canal boat owned by Colleen’s grandfather. Blake is shot by the Cassell brothers and Colleen keeps him alive until her father, Dr. Sterling Beecher, can remove the bullet. Blake wants to join the Union Army but now must wait until his collarbone is healed. While Colleen nurses her broken heart, he travels to New York to confront his stepmother, Nancy, and stepsister, Valerie Ferguson, about their spending habits. Valerie is best friends with Margaret Radcliffe and the reader should know they will cause trouble for Colleen, who travels with her sister, Jessica, to Washington to help their sister, Jem, who is expecting a baby. Blake’s personal life and goal to have his stepfamily taken care of so he can join the army makes him avoid Colleen as far as matrimony. He does not want to marry her and leave her a widow, which keeps them apart even as they fall in love. In a love story, you need a reason to keep the couple apart until the end. A backstory helps with that delay.

Blurb: The scruffy-looking passenger turns out to be more trouble than Colleen “Cole” Beecher bargained for, especially since Blake becomes her patient. After a suitor spurs her to marry a rich socialite, she travels to Washington City and throws herself into work to help the Union cause. When Blake offers her a job at his hotel, she takes it for the money, but her heart desires more.

When hotel owner Blake Ellsworth boards a canal boat to escape the Cassell brothers, he meets a headstrong beauty who saves his life when he is shot. Despite his attraction to her, Blake is determined to join the Union army once his shoulder heals. Fearing he may make Cole a widow, Blake won’t propose marriage, but eight weeks is a long time to spend with a woman who stirs more than his imagination.

#CivilWar #historic #romance #Antietam #canal #wrpbks

Give the hero a secret in his backstory

A backstory can serve different purposes. One would be to establish a secret relationship such as in my first novel but in “Impending Love and Death” I needed to explain the strange behavior of the hero, Logan Pierce. I don’t reveal the reason until much later in the story but for those who have read the story, this will help explain the motive in more detail and for those who haven’t read the story, it may cause you to pick up the book.

Historical romance novel “Impending Love and Death” is available at http://goo.gl/B7lKMs and other distributors in print and ebook format.

Logan is from a political family that has worked for senator and governor, Salmon Chase. Logan begins working for him when he serves as governor of Ohio and then travels to Washington when he is elected as a senator. Abraham Lincoln chooses Chase to serve in his cabinet as Secretary of the Treasury. Logan is sent to visit a list of men to gain support for making western Virginia into a new state, and visits Tyler Montgomery, who is from western Virginia and is now practicing law in Ohio. He meets the heroine, Jennifer “Jem” Collins, a newlywed and younger sister to Cory Beecher who married Tyler in the first book. Logan refuses to help her travel to Washington and search for news of her missing husband, Ben, after the battle of Bull Run in 1861, but it’s not for the reason he gives.

In the backstory, Logan’s older brother, Derek, was secretary to Salmon Chase when he served as a senator before he was elected governor. As was the custom, secretaries and clerks would escort the wives of politicians to social events they could not attend. Derek began escorting Hannah Smith, the young wife of Lewis Smith, who had several mistresses and did not love his wife. Derek and Hannah fell in love and began a secret affair. When Hannah became pregnant, they planned to run off, but Lewis goes to the home and discovers them in bed. He shoots Logan who throws himself in front of Hannah to protect her. Although it was cold-blooded murder, Lewis was able to avoid serving any time because he claims he was protecting the sanctity of his home. Even Logan does not know that Smith intended to kill Hannah and their unborn child as well as Derek until she tells him.

When Logan follows Chase to Washington, he hears the gossip once more and knows that any woman he associates with will be part of a scandal. This is the real reason he does not agree initially to help Jem. In addition, Hannah is ill and dying and asks Logan to take care of his niece, Deidre, 6. This adds another layer to a hero’s character. Gone are the days when the hero was strong and silent. He needs to have a strong backstory.

“Impending Love and Death takes place in 1861 with Jem going by train from Ohio to Washington City and then searching the prison in Richmond for answers. Logan must confront his family shame and risk his life to find happiness.

Blurb: Politician Logan Pierce visits Darrow Falls, Ohio, to enlist support for the Union cause. There, he meets the beautiful and strong-willed Jem Collins and insists she remain at home for news of her husband, Ben, after the Battle of Bull Run, but she ignores his advice. Jem knows something is wrong when Ben doesn’t send word he has survived the first major battle of the Civil War.

Jem travels to Washington City with Logan to search for news of Ben and uses her nursing skills to care for the wounded. When Logan kisses her, she resolves to remain faithful to her vows of marriage, but can she? Hearing news Ben may be a prisoner, she leaves the federal capital for Richmond but doesn’t return. Can Logan wait, fearing for her fate, or does he risk capture and hanging as a spy by following into enemy territory? #CivilWar #BullRun #romance #mystery #Richmond #wrpbks

Witnessing Abraham Lincoln’s assassination

When I studied history in high school and college, the emphasis was on what happened more than why it happened. In my historical romance novels, I try to look at history from the characters’ perspectives and show the impact on them.

“Impending Love and Madness” is a historical romance novel available at http://goo.gl/B7lKMs and other distributors in print and ebook format.

Time travel introduces readers to special events in the past. What if I was there? What would I have done? In “Impending Love and Madness” Cass Beecher and Zach Ravenswood attend a play at Ford’s Theater and are witnesses to Lincoln’s assassination. I tried to place myself in their shoes and relate the events the way they would have experienced then. That means they did not know the details behind the scenes like the full extent of Booth’s plans.

Some time travel stories have a modern character going into the past but there are rules that they must follow. One is that they can not change events and alter history. If they disturb the timeline, they must try to correct it. I haven’t written a true time travel story, but I think one is in my future.  

When writing historical stories, remember those who lived the experiences did not have all the information and could come to the wrong conclusions or mix up facts with rumors. I had to transition from the assassination to the end of the war and the problems facing Zach at home. One of the ways was through a fortune teller. The occult was popular because many people wanted to know what had happened to a loved one during the war. Although there were many cons, my fortune teller warns Zach and the others of trouble, which comes true.

In this book a former bad guy finds redemption by helping the hero and heroine battle a man trying to ruin Zach financially. A secret is revealed, which is always fun, and former enemies become friends.   

Blurb: Cass Beecher hopes Sergeant Zach Ravenswood will fall in love with her on an outing to Ford’s Theater, only to have their world turned upside down with President Lincoln’s assassination. Her romantic plans continue to be thwarted by family, friends, and a mysterious stranger. Can she save the man she loves from the enemies that plot to ruin him?

Zach thought with the war over, he could turn his attention to wooing the lovely Cassandra, but a fortune teller’s dire predictions begin to come true when a fire disfigures him, a nun poisons him, his uncle steals his inheritance, and he’s shot. Is he going mad or is everything not as it appears?

#AbrahamLincoln #CivilWar #Historical #Romance #supernatural #fortuneteller #wrpbks

What happened at Gettysburg?

When I studied history in high school and college, the emphasis was on what happened more than why it happened. In my historical romance novels, I try to look at history from the characters’ perspectives and show the impact on them.

As a child, our family visited the battlefield of Gettysburg. I didn’t understand most of what happened but remembered the wide field between the Confederate and Union lines where Pickett and others made their charge.

Story ideas can begin with questions, and I always wondered what happened after the battle. What did the soldiers do after the battle?

What would have happened if the Union had attacked the Confederate lines July 4? And who would have won if the Union confronted the Confederate forces at the Potomac River instead of waiting one more day and allowing them to escape? Outcomes in history can pivot on a single decision.

Questions lead to answers, and I provide what I found in “Impending Love and Capture” when Jess goes to Gettysburg with supplies July 2, 1863 and is captured by Confederate Major Morgan Mackinnon. His sister is shot, and he needs Jess to take care of her as he joins the long wagon train of wounded heading to the Virginia border.

I followed Morgan through the rest of the war, and his regiment surrenders at Appomattox where they receive a pardon. I am amazed at how minor details impact a story. Because Morgan received a pardon, he could return to Washington City and Jess, which provided the happy ending a romance requires.

The story deals with family on both sides and has several subplots. In this series, I take characters from earlier books and introduce them in a later story. Sid was wounded at Antietam and helps run the hotel where Morgan is disguised as a Union sergeant in order to recover from his severe wounds. It increases the tension because Sid would not hesitate to have Morgan arrested as a spy.  

“Impending Love and Capture” is a historical romance novel available at http://goo.gl/B7lKMs and other distributors in print and ebook format.

When Jessica Beecher stops to help a wounded soldier on the Gettysburg battlefield, Confederate Major Morgan Mackinnon enlists her skills to nurse his sister. Unable to escape, she waits for Union forces to attack the retreating Confederate Army. But the delay forces Jess to look beyond the gray uniform to the man who has captured her heart.

Morgan can’t let Jess leave when she overhears Lee’s army is retreating during the night. She’s a dangerous woman and not because of the knife she pressed against his throat or the revolver hidden beneath her skirt. The battlefield angel has a face no man can forget, especially when facing death.

#ReadRomace #romancenovels #CivilWar #AppomattoxCourthouse #Lee #Grant

Life on a canal boat

When I studied history in high school and college, the emphasis was on what happened more than why it happened. In my historical romance novels, I try to look at history from the characters’ perspectives and show the impact on them.

Living near the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, I walked the miles of towpaths along the old canal where boats moved freight and passengers between Cleveland and Akron. I wanted to learn more and included the information in my novel “Impending Love and Lies.”

Research can be an adventure. I found an old compilation of information about the canal at the Akron Public Library in their historical department, and it provided information on the locks, businesses, and history of building the locks. I also asked questions of park rangers and could see a working lock at the Canal Exploration Center in Valley View, Ohio. A writer needs to feel comfortable about the topic they write about so keep researching until all your resources have been exhausted.

My brother built a model of a canal boat for me which helps visualize the action when Blake is shot while a passenger on the “Irish Rose.” I also used the canal and the family canal boat in “Impending Love and War.” Why waste all that research? I’m working on a mystery where a body is found in the canal called “Tangling a Web of Deceit.”

“Impending Love and Lies” takes place in 1862 with Colleen Beecher traveling on the canals of Ohio, heading to Washington City, and providing medical care at the battlefield of Antietam. Clara Barton received permission to go to the battlefield, and I have my characters join her group of wagons. I couldn’t find if any female nurses went so I had my characters disguise themselves as male nurses to avoid any error. Sometimes you have to take your best option to keep the history as accurate as possible.

I visited the battlefield of Antietam several times. On the first visit corn was standing tall in the field where the Ohio 7^th infantry fought by marching through the stalks. Many of them died in the cornfields, which was the bloodiest day of the war. One of my characters is among the casualties, and his death impacts the others in the story. If someone dies, make it count.

“Impending Love and Lies” is a historical romance novel available at http://goo.gl/B7lKMs and other distributors in print and ebook format.

The scruffy-looking passenger turns out to be more trouble than Colleen “Cole” Beecher bargained for, especially since Blake becomes her patient. After a suitor spurs her to marry a rich socialite, she travels to Washington City and throws herself into work to help the Union cause. When Blake offers her a job at his hotel, she takes it for the money, but her heart desires more.

When hotel owner Blake Ellsworth boards a canal boat to escape the Cassell brothers, he meets a headstrong beauty who saves his life when he is shot. Despite his attraction to her, Blake is determined to join the Union army once his shoulder heals. Fearing he may make Cole a widow, Blake won’t propose marriage, but eight weeks is a long time to spend with a woman who stirs more than his imagination.

#CivilWar #historic #romance #Antietam

Why did the Union lose at Bull Run?

When I studied history in high school and college, the emphasis was on what happened more than why it happened. In my historical romance novels, I try to look at history from the characters’ perspectives and show the impact on them.

Bull Run, the first major battle of the Civil War, was expected to be an easy win for the North but turned into a disaster when soldiers ran off the battlefield and kept running until they reached Washington, D.C.

What happened? In my historical romance novel, “Impending Love and Death” the hero, Logan Pierce, searches for answers for the failure. The heroine, Jem Beecher Collins, is seeking news about her missing husband. Their paths collide when she nearly runs him over with her buggy.

Both interview soldiers who were at the battle and are licking their wounds from an unexpected defeat before returning home. Superiors blamed the three-month enlistment and lack of training on the failure, and President Abraham Lincoln asks for three-year enlistments.

But the Confederate soldiers also had only three months to train. What was the real reason for the loss? Logan and Jem uncover several explanations: There was confusion because each regiment had its own uniform with some Union soldiers wearing gray and some Southern soldiers wearing blue. Other reasons include men who bought their commissions and knew nothing about commanding men in a battle; soldiers who began fighting at dawn were still on the battlefield in the evening; and ammunition wagons were removed from the battlefield leaving soldiers with empty guns.

I don’t expect readers to agree with everything the characters discover, but I hope it creates a dialogue that can be shared with other readers and those interested in Civil War battles. The Union would go on to using trenches and remaining behind barriers instead of marching through cornfields but not before many men died in open fields.

“Impending Love and Death takes place in 1861 with Jem going by train from Ohio to Washington City and then searching the prison in Richmond for answers. Logan must confront his family shame and risk his life to find happiness. The historic romance novel is available at http://goo.gl/B7lKMs and other distributors in print and ebook format.

Politician Logan Pierce visits Darrow Falls, Ohio, to enlist support for the Union cause. There, he meets the beautiful and strong-willed Jem Collins and insists she remain at home for news of her husband, Ben, after the Battle of Bull Run, but she ignores his advice. Jem knows something is wrong when Ben doesn’t send word he has survived the first major battle of the Civil War.

Jem travels to Washington City with Logan to search for news of Ben and uses her nursing skills to care for the wounded. When Logan kisses her, she resolves to remain faithful to her vows of marriage, but can she? Hearing news Ben may be a prisoner, she leaves the federal capital for Richmond but doesn’t return. Can Logan wait, fearing for her fate, or does he risk capture and hanging as a spy by following into enemy territory?

#romance #CivilWar #historical #BullRun

Writing a series

The story I was reading turned out to be really bad, so I’m writing about my own experiences instead. The bad book was first in a series and had too many characters introduced in the first chapter with many of them having names that started with the same letter, so they blended into an unidentifiable mass. It also dumped a whole lot of regency rules and manners on the reader before any plot developed. I didn’t make it past a third of the story, and I rarely do that.

That brings me to my own writing, and what I’ve learned from writing a series. My first published novel was part of a six-book series. I wrote the first novel with only the other characters’ names and basic plot in mind, so it was a miracle the series fit together as well as it did. For those writing a series, at least have an outline for the other stories. That doesn’t mean you’ll follow it. My characters tend to write the story, and I’m amazed how talented they are.

Do not introduce all the characters in the series together at the beginning of a story and if you must introduce them, keep it brief. Focus on the main character for that book. In “Impending Love and War” I had Courtney Beecher staying with a widow, so she was not living with her five younger sisters. This made her the main focus and allowed the reader to get to know her apart from her family.

Try not to introduce your main characters at a ball or social event where others will have to be introduced unless you have them alone either dancing, as dinner partners, or caught in an awkward situation. Focus on the hero and heroine before introducing anyone else. The alternative is to introduce the problem and then introduce the hero.

Introduce the problem early on. In “Impending Love and Death” Jem is worried about her husband who hasn’t written after the First Battle of Bull Run. The book is about her quest to find answers to what happened to him, and she relies on the hero, Logan Pierce, to help her, although he initially refuses. Logan is visiting the small town where the Beecher sisters live, but he and Jem soon travel to Washington to uncover news about her missing husband. This allows time alone for them and their relationship to develop.

Characters from one book should appear in another but not in a bunch and only if there is a purpose to the appearance. All of the sisters make a brief appearance together in the first book when Courtney visits home and their personalities are briefly exposed. In later books, usually one or two sisters makes an appearance and plays a role in the story. Those who are reading the series, will recognize the established characters, and you can add inside jokes or comments for their benefit.

The villains in my story make appearances in nearly all of the stories and cause trouble in each of them. I enjoy writing the villain and without one, your story will lack tension and problems outside the romantic arc. And it should be something more dangerous than another man trying to steal the heroine away. Plots can be simple but add a twist or new concept to it for the reader. Avoid boring.

Focus your story on the plot and characters’ interactions. Having a character think about the past or flashbacks slows a story down. Keep necessary past information short and infrequent. This is true for historical information. I had to weigh what information about the Civil War I wanted to include. Each book in my series focused on a single battle or short period in the war. If the information doesn’t advance the story, leave it out. They can always look it up in a history book.

It’s always good to have a love triangle. In “Impending Love and Lies” Colleen Beecher is jilted early on, and Blake Ellsworth is more interested in joining the army than romancing her. And in “Impending Love and Madness” both Zach and Harry, army buddies, compete for the attention of Cassandra Beecher. Which one will she choose?

I like to have a deeper meaning in my historical stories. Anyone can read about history, but what is the impact? What have we learned? In “Impending Love and Capture” Jessica Beecher travels to Gettysburg to break off her relationship with Ed and witnesses the battle. She asks. “What is the purpose of the battle? No one will claim the land. Once the smoke is cleared, the leaders will still have to negotiate the peace.” She isn’t against war. She’s an abolitionist, but what purpose does it serve but to kill more men than the enemy. How will that free the slaves? But don’t go too deep. It’s a romance not a commentary on social reform.

The series should be tied up with the last book. “In Impending Love and Promise,” the last bad guy is dealt with and put to rest. The family is reunited, and old friends make an appearance. It should satisfy the reader who has read the previous books and make the reader who started with the last want to read the others.

More book reviews can be found at authorfreeman.wordpress.com

#writing #historical #romance

Sea of Temptation

Sea of Temptation by Christine Dorsey 1993 Zebra Books

This historical romance is set in 1862 and the wealthy socialite Felicity Wentworth proposes marriage to abolitionist preacher Jebediah Webster who reprimands her for not taking his sermons and slavery seriously.  To prove her sincerity, she promises runaway Esther to bring her children back from Magnolia Plantation.

In Charleston blockade runner Devon Blackstone sees the red-headed Felicity in widow’s garb harassed by sailors and comes to her rescue only to be beaten while she continues on without realizing his sacrifice. With her cousin gone, she accepts the elderly Evaline Blackstone’s offer to stay at her home and attend a dance where she runs into Devon. Their attraction is mutual, but he knows she is lying about rescuing children and is likely a spy. He follows her to the plantation, which is occupied by Federal soldiers. They stay at his neighboring home, Royal Oak, which is in disrepair.

Federal soldiers come to Royal Oak and take her hidden gold coins to buy the children, who have been hiding at Royal Oak. Devon frees his slaves, and she confesses she is betrothed. Devon was engaged once but she married a rich man, and he still carries the scars. The sergeant returns at night and attempts to rape her. Devon arrives but it is Felicity who shoots the sergeant. They take the children by boat and escape.

Felicity’s lies catch up to her, but Devon tells her he loves her even though he doesn’t know what to do about it in the middle of the war. Felicity thinks Jebediah is still the man for her even though she can barely recall his face, and the passion between her and Devon repeats itself several times.

This has all the elements of “Gone With The Wind” with a daring blockade runner, a plantation in ruins, the war, and another man in the picture. Dorsey’s writing is fast paced and there is plenty of action to move the story along quickly. I did want a deeper dive into their past problems. Felicity never examines her father’s coldness or her need to impress him and Jebediah until the very end and then it is in action and not so much a reflection.

Writers need to balance action along with reflection. What did the character learn from the previous pages of conflict or challenge? How does that reflection influence their next decision and push the story forward? Don’t leave everything to the end for a single epiphany, but allow the characters to make mistakes and grow throughout the story with the life changing decision at the end.

More book reviews at http://www.authorfreeman.wordpress.com