The Civil War is igniting, and the young wife is suddenly left to manage his rice plantation and "his" slaves. The War's growing turbulence brings danger close to home - - rapes, hangings, and harrowing escapes through the Underground Railroad. Sara's abolitionist mother pleads with her daughter to return to the safety of the North.But Sara will remain on the plantation, as she, herself, becomes a mother. The plantation welcomes a daughter. As Lilly Grace grows, so does a friendship with a young slave, Little Bubba. He introduces her to the lively Gullah culture, rich with chants, trickster lore, and spiritualism. His mother, a medicine woman and conjurer, chillingly foretells the hardships to come. As the war approaches, Lilly Grace and Little Bubba form a bond of blended insights well beyond their years. How they come to use this knowledge will affect many lives.This is a frenzied era as time honored traditions crumble. The women of the plantation push on and on to save their homes from perils in many forms. Their brave decisions and courageous actions change the course of history.It's time their voices are heard.

     From Chapter 1: “Pearl,” Momma tried to make her voice strong. “I aim to whip you for what you done.” Those words struck me hard. Why was she saying a thing like that to me? “I saved you from those dogs,” I said triumphantly as I looked down at Momma’s bleeding legs. Surely she knew what would have happened to her if it hadn’t been for me. “You disobeyed me. You know better than to disobey me.” Her words troubled me something awful, and I shivered with dread as tried to think of a way to make her appreciate what I’d done. I didn’t deserve a whipping for saving her life. From Chapter 23: I had what few things I owned in a feed sack when Frank came in the door. “Them’s my hogs,” I told him. “I’ll cross the hill twice a day to feed ‘em. Don’t you dare do anything with ‘em.” “What are you talkin’ about.” “Your precious ma said she’d get Ralph’s shotgun and kill me if I didn’t get out of her house.” “No way,” Frank said. “Ask her yourself,” I told him. I heard the sound of Effie moving her wheelchair over the floor. “Frank, honey. I said no sech a thing. You know what a liar she is.” I lifted my chin and glared at Frank. I needed to see whose side he was going to take.” “Calm down,” he told me. “I’ll put Ma in bed so we can talk.” Those weren’t the words I needed to hear. “Oh, Frankie,” Effie moaned. “What are we gonna do with her?” Frank didn’t answer as he took hold of the chair. I slung the sack over my shoulder and left the house. The least I could do was see if Lizzie would welcome me for a few days or not. From the Epilogue: I saw the tiredness come to Aunt Pearl’s face and didn’t ask her any more questions. I’d been told hundreds of stories by dozens of family members as well as non-family members. Aunt Pearl was right. My favorite words when I was growing up were, “Tell me a story.” Most everyone willingly obliged. Some people would be slow getting started, but once they got their story telling ability warmed up, they would hold me captive for hours. Pearl’s story has taken me many years to write. Pearl died less than a year after I’d gone to see her with my trusty tape recorder in hand. Much to my regret, she told me what was true. I’d waited a little too long to tape her stories, but I could still replay those stories in my head. Most of the stories I remember came from Lizzie. Once she started talking she continued talking even when there was no one left in the room to listen. I’ve done my best to connect some of the stories I’ve been told together in order to make this book possible. These stories hold a lot of truth, but I want the readers to realize that I’ve taken an author’s liberty in order to fit each story together into what I hope to be both entertaining and insightful. Therefore, I’ve written this book as fiction. There’s no way I could possibly know what people were thinking long before I was born. No way I can second-guess exactly what happened and why it happened, no way I can claim this book to be non-fiction although it is based on real happenings.

    A young man is given a new start in life as a result of an impulsive action, beginning a journey that will take him to the far reaches of the known world to watch - and sometimes to partake in - the rise and fall of mighty empires.

     After five years of hard work, Elliott Maitland has succeeded to make profitable the ranch he bought on a whim from a gambler who had no interest in working with cattle. A frosty winter day finds Elliott in town, hoping to conclude his business before the blizzard starts in earnest. Sam, the owner of the mercantile, asks him to give shelter to the new schoolteacher, who just arrived in town and has nowhere to stay. Celestine Tillman is in desperate need of a job and a place to live. Being hired as a teacher in Wyoming is a blessing. Discovering that no one is waiting for her at the train depot and no room is available in town so close to Christmas is distressing. Going home with this rancher could be dangerous, but what choice does she have? This adventure packed fictional story is set in Laramie, Wyoming at the end of the nineteen century and presents a true picture of the western town with all the good and the bad, the modern and the old west mixed together. An enduring town moving forward and changing with the times.

    Both of them were assigned to the 3rd Marine Division in Vietnam. Both of them humped with the grunts, ate the same chow, suffered the same hardships, and shared the same risks. Marowski led marines into harm’s way and King kept them alive when there was more harm than way. They were also friends and family. Terry King was married to Marowski’s kid sister. In July of 1967, Marowski was made commander of First Platoon, Delta Company, 1/9 at Con Thien, and Terry King became senior squid for Charlie Company, 1/9 at Dong Ha. Both King and Marowski were experienced combat veterans, confident in their own abilities, but confidence and skill weren’t always enough on the DMZ. The 1/9 was about to be tested in ways few Marine Battalions have ever been tested, in ways few marines or corpsmen were ever tested.

    Between taking care of the family farm and working at the diner to make ends meet, she has a lot on her plate. She has neither the time nor the interest to pursue a relationship. When a stranger shows up in town and happens to be around just at the moment she needs help the most, will she break her own rules and let him into her life?If only tragedy didn’t find a way to sneak into her life at every chance…After studying for six years in Chicago, Roger Lockett has returned to Texas to be a doctor. He and his father have never seen eye to eye about his future and what he should dedicate himself to. When his father makes him an offer that could put their differences to rest and bring him to a tiny town in need of a doctor, Roger jumps at the chance. What he never expected was to cross paths with the most beautiful and strong-willed woman he has ever met...Will he manage to break down the walls surrounding her wary heart though?As Roger and Eve grow closer together, disasters and difficulties seem to pile up for Eve and her family. With Christmas preparations in full swing, she struggles to hold everything together. Then an accident hits close to home and suddenly Eve isn’t sure there will be any Christmas this year… Will Roger and Eve brave these challenges together? Will they open their hearts to love and a Christmas miracle?"A Western Christmas Miracle" is a historical western romance novel of approximately 80,000 words. No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed happily ever after.

    As a milkman and a nanny, making ends meet is a constant juggling act – not helped by their mothers who are sworn enemies - but they are happy together and that’s all that matters. But when their flashy new neighbours convince Danny he is not giving Maxie the sort of life she deserves, he fears he’ll lose her if he doesn’t do something about it. Embarking on a series of disastrous money-making schemes, Danny finds himself getting into deeper and deeper trouble. But then Maxie begins to face a few troubles of her own...

    Times-News, January 4, 1918Seeing something of himself in a struggling teenage boy, an old man faces one final challenge--and an opportunity to bring closure to a secret past.Spanning nearly nine decades, from the mountains of western Virginia, to a riverside mill town, to a farm in the Piedmont, this is the story of lives marked by tragedy, resilience, and, ultimately, the discovery of purpose and belonging.Inspired by a true story.

    A ship he didn't want to join, on his way to a place he thought he'd never see...driven on by a vicious captain and sadistic first mate. By the time they reach the Pacific, Sam is no longer a boy but a young man hardened by ice, sea, and lash. A California that seemed a peaceful land becomes a caldron boiling over with danger and resentment. And Sam McCreed, now an expert with blade, musket, and reata, is a man on the prowl for vengeance...and he'll send any man who stands in his way straight to hell.

    

    The German army is rampant, and Lieutenant Scottsdale and the British Expeditionary Force are trapped. Yet amid the chaos, Scottsdale must rescue two French scientists trapped behind enemy lines. What they know will tilt the balance of war towards the Allies.The brilliant and mercurial Helene Dubois is in hiding with her frail uncle, as they flee the advancing German armies. They must be found, but pursuing them is Schiller, a ruthless SS Officer, who will stop at nothing to prevent their escape.As they are caught up in the bloody rearguard at Dunkirk, Scottsdale and Dubois will find love, tragedy, and triumph as they fight to escape Schiller, in a story perfect for fans of Ken Follett, Rory Clements and Robert Harris.

     The Secret Sense of Wildflower: Named a Best Book of 2012 by Kirkus Reviews. Over 250 reviews! Small southern towns have few secrets. But when a grieving daughter confronts the local bad boy, she exposes a dark history. Appalachia, 1941. Thirteen-year-old Louisa May "Wildflower" McAllister's heart still aches for her father. A year after her dad's tragic sawmill accident, she relies on her strength of spirit and her heightened intuition to deal with a critical mother and cope with the aftermath.But when she's targeted by the town's teenage bully, she may need more than her "secret sense" to survive.Despite these hardships, Wildflower has a resilience that is forged with humor, a love of the land, and an endless supply of questions to God. But after an affront to her father's memory, she lets her anger get the better of her and unwittingly triggers a series of traumatic events that will change her life forever.Will Wildflower fall to another tragedy or will her faith in her family and herself be enough to carry her through?With prose as lush and colorful as the American south, The Secret Sense of Wildflower is powerful and poignant, brimming with energy and angst, humor and hope. Lily’s Song: A mother’s secrets, a daughter’s dream, and a family’s loyalty are masterfully interwoven in this much anticipated sequel to Amazon #1 bestseller The Secret Sense of Wildflower. “Wildflower” McAllister’s daughter, Lily, now 14, struggles with her mother’s reluctance to tell her who her father is. When a stranger appears on the family doorstep, drunk and evoking ghosts from the past, it threatens to break the close-knit McAllister family apart.Meanwhile, Wildflower has a deep secret of her own. When Lily discovers it by accident, it changes everything she thought she knew about her mother. The events that follow silence the singing she dreamed of sharing with the world.With her signature metaphors, Gabriel weaves a compelling tale that captures the resilience and strength of both mother and daughter, as secrets revealed test their strong bond and ultimately change their lives forever.Set in 1956 southern Appalachia, Lily’s Song stands on its own, and readers who are new to Gabriel will be drawn into the world she so skillfully depicts. As a sequel, it will captivate fans of The Secret Sense of Wildflower (a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2012), who have eagerly awaited more. Daisy’s Fortune: She must return to the place that twice brought her shame. She’ll have one final chance to save someone else. Tennessee, 1982. Wildflower McAllister thought she’d put the past behind her. But when she learns her mother is dying, she digs deep and returns to the small mountain town that stole her innocence and cast her out. And she has no choice but to pull her thirteen-year-old granddaughter Daisy right back into the ghosts of her painful history.As her mother passes, Wildflower’s grief turns to despair when Daisy’s fortune is read, predicting a dark future and the return of sinister threats. With her granddaughter keeping a terrible secret, Wildflower’s distress forces her to call upon the community that rejected her to prevent another tragedy from playing out in front of her eyes.

    All that time she never forgot her first love. Now her husband is dead and she must mourn for a year. Sad and lonely she hopes to retire to the dower house, even though she is only 30. Maybe she will have some peace and yet the new duke will not hear of it. Why does he look at her so? Kent Sheridan, the Earl of Wimborne has golden hair and rich brown eyes and he has never married. Knowing that the woman of his dreams is now free is a delicious form of torture. How he wishes to ride over and see her, to sweep her off her feet but etiquette says he cannot. Claudette finds herself in an increasingly uncomfortable situation. One day danger finds her in her once peaceful home. Will she escape the wrong duke? Can Kent find the love he longs for? Find out in this sweet, and clean Regency romance by bestselling author Charlotte Darcy.

    

    On the frontier of the Roman Empire, a Dacian man named Verus is captured and enslaved during an imperial raid north of the Danube. He is sent to a rock quarry known as The Pit, as one among thousands of fresh slaves needed to mine marble for Emperor Vespasian’s new amphitheatre. Funded by spoils taken during the Siege of Jerusalem, the Emperor promises it will be the largest gladiatorial arena ever; his personal gift to the people of Rome. Requiring years of herculean labour and millions of cubic feet in stone, Vespasian’s son, Titus, worries whether his father will live to see its completion. After months of back-breaking suffering and toil, Verus is taken from The Pit to become a gladiator. Whether by chance or fate, he knows that only by making a pact with death will he have a chance at life. In a savage world of blood, sweat, sand, and steel, his very soul is forged, until he no longer remembers the man he once was. As the Flavian Amphitheatre nears completion, with the possibility of fighting before the Emperor himself, Verus swears to either win his cherished freedom, or ignominiously die by the blade.