The prairie my great-great-great grandfather crossed with his new bride and her entourage of immediate family most likely seemed an unending landscape of dust, dirt, and scorching sun. He had ridden across this unforgiving territory once on horseback. Now he led his unsuspecting in-laws. While the account of the Hills wagon train of 1851 is […]
Faith Matters
Packing for the Journey
Deciding what to bring across the prairie often meant heart-wrenching sacrifices. All too often an item viewed as essential at the beginning of the journey in St. Joseph, Missouri became the first thing discarded when the oxen became too weary to go on, or the wagon carrying the cargo wore out. My great-great-grandmother had to […]
Follow the Westward Journey
The second book of the Call of the Frontier series will be available July 1, 2021. It follows the story of my great–great grandfather, Cornelius Joel Hills, as he captained the Hills wagon train of 1851. He had crossed the prairies once on horseback and traveled to the Willamette Valley in Oregon to lay claim […]
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Flowers Understand
The clematis bloomed this week. We’d anticipated its coming as we watched the buds swell round and full, like a bowl full of yeast dough that is about to rise over the top. Our spring has been warmer and drier than usual, so the conditions were perfect for the clematis to thrive. In recent years […]
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When Scammers Call
The incident began innocently enough. We’d had problems with our cable service in recent weeks. Two visits by repairmen had not solved the issue. I’d registered a complaint with the company and expected a response. When I answered the phone a man claiming to be a representative for the cable company told me how sorry […]
The Book is Here!
My newest release, The Descendant’s Daughter, released this week. I’m excited to share the story. Halle Jayne Murphy, the main protagonist, is a newly-turned-thirty young woman who thinks her life is ideal and can’t imagine change. She loves her career. She shares an apartment with her best friend. She’s happy. She has lived an idyllic […]
A New Book with an Old Story
The release of my newest novel, The Descendant’s Daughter, is now waiting on the horizon. While a contemporary story line carries the book, I get excited thinking about the historical theme that originated from my own personal family history. I consider the opportunity to share a fictional re-creation of my great-great-grandfather’s tale a privilege. I […]
A New Book is Coming
This week I signed a contract for a new time slip series with Forget Me Not Romances, a division of Winged Publications, based in Arizona. The first book in the series, The Descendant’s Daughter, is already in production and scheduled to release soon. This is a fictional story with two timelines, one contemporary tale that […]
When Heaven Gained A Hero
I’ve written about my neighbor before. He’s the man who lived across the street. The man who raised a garden big enough to feed a city block. The man who fought in WWII and received several medals and a commendation from President Roosevelt. That last part I didn’t know until his ninetieth birthday party. I […]