Tuesday, December 8, 2015

New Release and Giveaway! The Bartered Bride (The Brides #3)


NEW RELEASE & GIVEAWAY!

THE BARTERED BRIDE (The Brides Series #3)

So excited to share the news that The Bartered Bride is now available on Kindle, iBooks, Nook, Kobo, Google Play Books, and Tolino (DE). Also available in print on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

The Bartered Bride (The Brides #3)
Kindle | iBooks | Nook | Kobo | Google | Tolino (DE)

COLORADO 1880

Jem Wheeler has always been a survivor. He just wants to make a fresh start in Colorado Springs after the loss of his wife. But then he happens upon a young mute woman being sold off to the highest bidder. He wasn't looking for a mail-order bride. He wasn't looking to rescue anyone either. But desperate circumstances can drive a good man to do things he hadn't planned on doing...

When Jem steps into Annie's life, she's not expecting anyone to save her. Mute from birth, she's just using all her wits to survive. All she's ever really wanted is a family of her own. For someone to see her. To look at her long enough to hear the things she can't say.

Can Annie finally break through the silence to win Jem's heart?

GIVEAWAY!


Enter to win your choice of a $25 Gift Card (choice of Amazon, Nook, iBooks, Kobo, or Google Play card) and The Brides Series ebook bundle, or a signed print edition, and more! Simply click on the graphic to learn more and enter for a chance to win!

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas!
Lena

Monday, November 16, 2015

UPDATE: The Bartered Bride (The Brides Series #3)

NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER!

So excited about the next book in my Brides series! When I first started writing Jem and Annie's story, I had no idea of the adventures this story would lead me into. I had no idea the book would be soooo long either! Turns out my Annie, a woman mute from birth, had quite a lot to say. And who was I to stop her?

I love, love, love this story and these two fascinating, flawed characters, who I came to care about so deeply. I also came to love little Mae, Gabe, Ray, Ben, and "Sugar" too.

I hope you enjoy this tale too and get swept up into Jem and Annie's world, just as I was.

The Bartered Bride (The Brides Series #2)
The Bartered Bride (The Brides Series #3)
(December 8, 2015)
Pre-Order Now! Amazon | Nook | iBooks | Kobo

What's a man to do when a "bartered bride" needs a rescue?

Jem Wheeler has always been a survivor. He just wants to make a fresh start in Colorado Springs after the loss of his wife. But then he happens upon a young mute woman being sold off to the highest bidder. He wasn't looking for a mail-order bride. He wasn't looking to rescue anyone either. But desperate circumstances can drive a good man to do things he hadn't planned on doing...

When Jem steps into Annie's life, she's not expecting anyone to save her. Mute from birth, she's just using all her wits to survive. All she's ever really wanted is a family of her own. For someone to see her. To look at her long enough to hear the things she can't say.

Could this bride be just what a grieving widower needs to make a happy home?

The Brides Series #3

Note: Each book in The Brides series can be read as a stand-alone novel, but reading in order will provide a more complete reading experience.

Amazon | Nook | iBooks | Kobo

Excerpt


Jem took the apple core from his daughter and passed her one of the remaining crackers with a piece of cheese on it. Mae munched that down and looked to him immediately for another, the last one.

He gave it to her, then showed her his empty hands.

She frowned. "More?"

"No more," Jem said, and showed her his empty hands again, making a bigger gesture out of it, as if the little girl was accusing him of hiding some.

If Annie weren't so intent on eating her share of cheese and crackers she might have smiled at the sight of them, one of the most dangerous men she'd ever seen sitting side by side with that tiny little girl. They made quite a mismatched pair.

Mae looked over at Annie, at the last cracker in her hand and the last bit of cheese.

Annie gulped down the mouthful she was chewing. She looked down at the last of her meal and back at the little girl. To her shame, she didn't want to give up her last cracker. She could barely remember the last meal she'd eaten.

"That's Annie's food," Jem admonished the little girl. "You've had yours."

Mae bit her lip. She glanced down at her lap, then back at Annie again.

I can share, Annie attempted to tell Mae with her eyes alone. She snapped her cracker in half--simply unable to bear parting with the whole thing--and passed it across to the little girl. Mae took it and popped the whole thing in her mouth, making Annie smile.

"Mae!" her father said.

She looked at him wide-eyed, her mouth full of cracker. "Whaf dafdda?" she said, muffled, spraying a few cracker crumbs onto his trousers.

He closed his eyes briefly and brushed them off. "You didn't have to give her any," he said to Annie, "but thanks."

Annie grunted, her way of saying she didn't mind that much. She looked down quickly and finished her last bit of food. The crackers had been crispy and the cheese silky and smooth. They'd tasted like heaven.

"You must be thirsty," he said. "Do you mind sharing?"

She shook her head and automatically lifted two fingers.

"Two's no?" he asked.

She nodded, pleased, and lifted one finger. She'd grown up sending signals through the floor of the Ruskins' house, one stomp for yes, two for no. It came natural as rain now.

"And one's yes," he said, catching on quick.

Annie drank deep when he passed her the flask of water, amazed he'd let her drink from it. She tried her best to pour it down her throat without touching her lips to the flask, so he wouldn't regret giving it to someone so dirty. She wished she could tell him thanks, but after Mae had her fill and he took his own swallow, he was back under his hat, likely going over the events of the day.

How he'd stuck himself with her.

How he probably regretted even stepping off the train at the last stop.

She couldn't say she blamed him.

She hadn't much wanted to marry a stranger herself.

* * *

Amazon | Nook | iBooks | Kobo


Monday, June 29, 2015

Checking in with a writing update

Back from wedding weekend! (Congrats to my niece Ashley and new nephew Bill! <3 Beautiful wedding! I cried; I laughed; I danced. Perfect. :) )

Mornings are my best time to write, so I've been back at writing this morning, listening to some inspirational theme music from Outlander (the beautiful soundtrack to the TV series)... And taking a quick break to check in here with an update.

Image Credit: Max Cornelius - Rocky Mountains | Wikimedia Commons

The two works-in-progress have been switching back and forth on me, demanding my attention. I don't ever plan to work on more than one thing at once (and rarely work on more than one thing within the same day), but overlapping projects continue to happen with astonishing regularity. Such is the path of the creative mind. At least mine!

So, in the works are: The Bartered Bride (aka BB, book 2 in my Brides series) and The Cross Creek Bride (aka CCB, a standalone novel in the Brides world). CCB was meant to be a short story for my mom's birthday. Only it keeps growing. And Mom's birthday flew by back in May. She says she's okay with that. Phew! Thank goodness. smile emoticon She's very accepting that it will be done when it's done. I appreciate that.

BB is currently at 55,662 words an CCB is at 54,869 words. (50,000 words is roughly 200 pages in paperback format.) So, as far as current word count goes, they're neck and neck. I anticipate BB will be a much longer book, however.

"When will they be done?"

For those waiting for The Bartered Bride, please know I'm waiting for it too! But it is coming along so nicely, I promise. I love this book! I just love Annie and Jem, and I hope you will loved them too.

For those young adult fans waiting for Haunting Melody (the sequel to Haunting Joy), please know that I haven't forgotten. Several deaths in the family made that particular book too difficult and painful to write, for a time. I hope to return to it as soon as I can, however. Meanwhile, all I can do is trust the process. Please bear with me on this journey? Writers are human beings, with feelings and life happenings. And...well, some stories are just touch on more sensitive ground than others, which can impact the ability to "go there" emotionally, and occupy the vulnerable place that's necessary to live in and breathe in for extended periods in order to write.

Wishing you all a happy and healthy summer!
Lena