Ed Gein and Romance? by Rhonda Lee Carver

Now that I have your attention...

No, Ed Gein isn't romantic in any stretch of the imagination. However, I just finished watching Monster: The Ed Gein Story. Great acting by Charlie Hunnam and what a great a$$. He must work out. A lot. 

I love a good villain. They can be so useful in romance novels--a balance between good and evil. Let's face it, sometimes romance novels can be a bit...how can I put this...sugary sweet. Heck, even chocolate cake needs ice cream to balance out the richness. Just like every love story needs a bit of conflict. Can't have the good without the bad. The rainbow without the storm. The yin without the yang. 

Okay...I'll stop. You get the point.

Over here in my neck of the woods, I'm in the editing stages of THE FRACTURED TEXAS RANGER (Book 2, Texas Heat: The Heart of a Texas Ranger). 

Here's an unedited teaser...ENJOY!

Pre-Order here

Yes, Leo enjoyed being spanked.

Margo had tried—she’d given it her best. She’d spanked his rock-hard, five-times-a-week gym &&& with fake enthusiasm just to please him. In the end, nothing pleased him. He was still a narcissist whom she’d detached herself from.

She reread the text message he’d sent her and shrugged. “It doesn’t say what he wants.” The scent of roasting coffee and cinnamon rolls finishing in the oven drifted between them. Every week, she and Mario would get together for Sinful Tuesday, when they would eat dessert for dinner.

“Isn’t the barely-out-of-diapers blonde occupying his attention any longer?” Mario draped his arm over the back of the worn velvet chair. He’d never been one to mince words and that was exactly what she needed in her life. Mario was outgoing and flamboyant, and she was a quiet introvert who enjoyed being home.

She’d suspected that Leo and his young assistant had been enjoying each other before Margo had called it quits. She took down two mugs and poured coffee into each of them. While she poured pumpkin spice creamer and stirred, she thought over all the reasons why Leo could want to see her.

Laying her spoon on the counter, she sighed. “I should just tell him no. We ended things on a sour note, and I’ve had closure. I don’t need to rehash all the old news.” She sipped her coffee.

Mario raised a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. “Exactly.”

And yet, in his text, he’d said that it was dire that she meet with him.

What could be so dire that he had to speak with her?

She didn’t owe him anything, especially any more of her valuable time.

“This is the first time he’s reached out in months.”

“He’s exhausting.” Mario flicked his wrist. “No more talk about Little Leo and tell me about your date last night.”

Margo didn’t like the nickname "Little Leo", but it did ring some truth.

Connect with

Rhonda Lee Carver

TikTok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@rhondaleecarver?lang=en

Facebook: www.facebook.com/rhondaleecarver.author/

Twitter:

www.twitter.com/RLCarver

Instagram: www.instagram.com/rhondaleecarver/

Pinterest:

www.pinterest.com/rhondaleecarverauthor/

Amazon:

www.amazon.com/Rhonda-Lee-Carver/e/B00CQLXKTO

BookBub: www.bookbub.com/profile/rhonda-lee-carver

Street

Team: www.facebook.com/groups/471259293018665/

Newsletter:

Subscribe here

 

 

Lord Dunraven - Who Was He?

Post (C) Doris McCraw

aka Angela Raines

Image (C) Doris McCraw

Would we have Rocky Mountain National Park without Lord Dunraven's actions?  It is a question I've been pondering as I research the background for my upcoming book, "Isabella, Rocky Mountain Bride."

Let's begin with who Lord Dunraven was. Windham Thomas Wyndham-Quin, 4th Earl of Durraven and Mout-Earl, was born on February 12, 1841at Adare Manor, County Limerick. His early years were spent at Duraven Castle in Glamorgan, Wales.

Image from Wikipedia

At twenty-six, he was a war correspondent for the Daily Telegraph, a London newspaper, and covered the Abyssinian War in Africa. Then, for another paper, he covered the Franco-Prussian War, the Third Carlist War in Turkey, and witnessed the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in 1871 at the end of the Franco-Prussian War, and the 1919 Treaty of Versailles ending WWI. 

He was also involved in British politics as a conservative.

In 1872, Dunraven visited the Estes Park area to hunt wild game. This was a year before Englishwoman Isabella Bird visited the area. In 1874, he decided to create a game preserve in the area for himself and his English friends. He used the Homestead Act to acquire control of 15,000 acres. Some say this is one of the biggest land steals in Colorado history. He sold his land in 1907. This area is part of the Rocky Mountain National Park. 

On a side note, this same Lord Dunraven commissioned artist Albert Bierstadt in 1876 to paint a canvas of Longs Peak and Estes Park. Bierstadt was paid $15.000 for the work. Image of Bierstadt painting

Would we have a Rocky Mountain National Park without this early land grab? The park was officially designated in 1815, so it was eight years later. 

For more on this interesting person: Wikipedia, National Parks website

Until Next Time,

Doris

Angela Raines - Amazon

Doris A. McCraw - Amazon

Book 6 - Circuit Judges: Death Comes To Town - Rhoda By Amanda A. Brooks

My Circuit Judges Website – circuitjudges.site123.me

My amazon Author’s Page – amazon.com/author/aab

I just started work on my new book, Book 6 – Circuit Judges: Death Comes To Town - Rhoda. 

The book’s title, DEATH COMES TO TOWN, is inspired by the song THE MAN COMES AROUND by Johnny Cash. Several of the book’s scenes will be inspired by some of the songs of Singer/Actress Linda Ronstadt - who inspired the name of my heroine Linda in BOOK 5 – CIRCUIT JUDGES: MAIL-ORDER BRIDE - LINDA. Scenes set in Tucson, Arizona and Sonora, Mexico will also be inspired by Linda Ronstadt - who is from Tucson, Arizona and has Roots in Sonora, Mexico.

Primary Heroine - When Assassin Rhoda Fenton comes to town, she does not count on falling in love with the man who is out to destroy her.

Secondary Heroine/Narrator - When Historian Kelly Carson fights tooth and nail to save the ghost town of Green Valley, Arizona from becoming condos and a shopping mall, she does not expect to fall in love with the circuit judge who is behind destroying Green Valley.

                                      

Rhoda Maria Fenton was born on April 18, 1852 in Yuma, Arizona. Since I like to model my characters after actors so that I know what they look like, my model inspiration for Rhoda is Maria Bello. I named Rhoda after the character Rhoda Penmark in the 1956 film THE BAD SEED. Her story is set in Yuma, Arizona, Green Valley, Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, and Sonora, Mexico, mainly in 1882.

Kelly Katherine Carson was born on November 17, 1989 in Prescott Valley, Arizona. My model inspiration for Kelly is Rachel McAdams. Her story is set in Green Valley, Arizona and Tucson, Arizona in 2019.                             

                        

Secondary Hero – Circuit Judge William Tyler. My model inspiration for William is Bradley Cooper.  

Primary Hero – Circuit Judge Lucas "Luke" Stiles. My model inspiration for Luke is - was - Luke Perry. The reason why I'm mentioning him second on this post is because he passed away on March 4, 2019. Not only was he the inspiration for my hero Reverend Lucas “Luke” Clayton in BOOK 12 – BRIDES OF DIABLO: RUNNING FROM LOVE – MYRA – which came out on March 3, 2019 – one day before Luke’s death – he was/is the inspiration for my entire CIRCUIT JUDGES Series – which I had begun creating while working on my BRIDES OF DIABLO Series. He had created the television movies GOODNIGHT FOR JUSTICE, GOODNGHT FOR JUSTICE: THE MEASURE OF A MAN, and GOODNIGHT FOR JUSTICE: QUEEN OF HEARTS, in which he played Circuit Judge John Goodnight. My CIRCUIT JUDGES Series is my tribute to him. RIP Luke Perry – October 11, 1966 – March 4, 2019. He would have been 59 years old on October 11th.

Linda Ronstadt's film documentary, LINDA RONSTADT: THE SOUND OF MY VOICE, and her two memoirs, SIMPLE DREAMS: A MUSICAL MEMOIR and FEELS LIKE HOME: A SONG FOR THE SONORAN BORDERLANDS, will be inspiring this new book and scenes set in Tuscon, Arizona and Sonora, Mexico.                               

My music inspirations for this new book are THE MAN COMES AROUND by Johnny Cash, DESPERADO by Linda Ronstadt, RIDERS ON THE STORM by The Doors. and DOOLIN-DALTON by Eagles.

The Rocky Mountain Locust ~ D. K. Deters

The 1870s were a brutal time for settlers. Rainfall was erratic, and an entire crop could wither in a single dry summer. Prairie fires could spread for miles, and high winds stripped topsoil from their farms. If that wasn’t enough, conflicts with native tribes, outlaws, and claim jumpers brought violence and tension. Diseases such as cholera, typhoid, smallpox, and diphtheria were prevalent and often fatal. Homesteaders lived in isolation, contributing to loneliness and mental strain.

However, it was the summer of 1874 that had farmers pulling up stakes and heading to other parts of the country. Over 12.5 trillion Rocky Mountain locusts swarmed the Great Plains, covering over 2,000,000 square miles. Areas included the Dakota Territory, Montana Territory, Wyoming Territory, Colorado Territory, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas, Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma), and Texas.

The insects stripped the land bare in hours, devouring everything green, including wheat, corn, oats, barley, and gardens. Settlers reported the locusts ate everything, including fence rails, harness leather, laundry on clotheslines, and wooden tool handles.

With the grass gone, livestock had no feed, so homesteaders sold off their cattle and horses. To avoid starvation, many settlers abandon their claims. Wagon after wagon of families moved eastward. Kansas alone lost approximately one-third of its population, although history shows this number was short-lived.

The Settlers’ West by Martin F. Schmitt and Dee Brown, “Homesteaders who refused to quit…were faced with a hard winter. Many had no money, no credit, no food; some had no fuel or clothing. For the first time in the nation’s history, the federal government offered relief to farmers. The Secretary of War issued a ‘grasshopper appropriation’ for the purchase of food and clothing to be ‘divided among the naked.’ Those funds didn’t last long.

When the locust returned in 1875, the numbers had declined, but it was estimated that one swarm was 1,800 miles long and 110 miles wide. It consumed everything for about 198,000 square miles.

From the Homestead National Historical Park, “In 1877 the Nebraska Legislature passed the Grasshopper Act, officially declaring the swarms of locusts a ‘public enemy’. The Act required all males between the ages of 16-60, when called upon, to perform two days of service fighting the swarms. If after two days their service was still needed, they could be forced to continue fighting swarms for up to ten days. If a person refused to perform the service when called upon, they were subject to a $10 penalty!”

The Settlers’ West explains, “Minnesota established a bounty of fifty cents a bushel on the destructive insects. Happy farmers fastened boxes on their reaper platforms and drove around their fields until the boxes were full. One farmer who had an abundance of the insects chased his neighbors with a pitchfork when he discovered them ‘poaching grasshoppers’ on his land.”

Other states also made bounty offers and settlers attempted to destroy the locust by several methods. Here’s a photo of a “hopper dozer” in action. It shows a horse-drawn device dragging a plate coated in coal tar across flat fields, used to trap locusts during the 1870s plagues.

Between 1873 and 1877, the locusts caused $200 million in crop damage. “In one year, … the weight of all the bugs in the swarms was estimated to be more than 27 million tons.”

By the 1880s, the farmers had recovered from the locust infestation. While the Rocky Mountain locust is extinct today, scientists suggest many factors may have contributed to its eradication. Some say habitat-altering plants, insect-eating birds, and farming itself destroyed the locust egg masses. The last sighting of a living specimen came in southern Canada in 1902.

 

Resources:

The Settlers’ West by Martin F. Schmitt and Dee Brown

The 1874 Rocky Mountain Locust Plague That Blotted Out the Sun by Lou Bodenhemier

1874: The Year of the Locust by Chuck Lyons

Grasshopper Plague of the Great Plains by Kathy Alexander

Homestead National Historical Park

Wikipedia

Belle Starr

Truth and Fiction

Once upon a time I was contracted by a New York publisher to write a romance novel with Belle Starr as the protagonist. They wanted it to be as close to fact as possible. I knew it would be a tall order, but it also would be my first hardback novel, so I agreed.

For those who aren't familiar with Belle, she was known as "The Outlaw Queen" and she was no beauty.  I imagine in her early years, she was pretty, but her life was rough and it showed on her face. I knew I would have to "pretty her up" to make her a romance heroine. Many of the men in her life were also not attractive, so I had my work cut out for me!

I started researching her and discovered that many sources I thought would deal in facts didn't. As I dived deeper and deeper, I found make discrepancies and outright lies. This was a good early lesson for me not to trust everything I read, even if it came from a supposedly reliable source. Of course, as a former journalist, I knew about shady sources and crafty canards. Still, I was surprised to see misinformation in encyclopedias and university press books.

Little by little, I pieced together what seemed to be truth concerning Belle and her lawless ways and determined where I would embellish it. Since there has always been rumors that Belle had an affair with Cole Younger (and might have even bore him a daughter), I went with that as the central love story in my romance. The men she married weren't romance material, no matter how much I tried to make them so. I finally gave up and romanticized Younger and the James brothers (as in Jesse James, the outlaw). 

What I gathered from my research was that Belle wasn't all that lawless. She ran around with bad men -- men who resented the outcome of the Civil War, as did she. Bitter and angry, they felt justified in sticking it to the Yankees by robbing their trains and banks and stealing their horses and cattle. Belle's primary activity was stealing horses and she went to prison for it. Researching those years made me see Belle in a new light -- that of a loving mother. She wrote to her children while in prison, but didn't want them to visit her because she was ashamed. When she was released from prison, she tried to stay on the straight and narrow, but she was blamed for many misdeeds. She had a reputation as an outlaw and she could never shake it. In fact, she was murdered and her murderer was never identified.

This book was the most difficult book I've ever written and I've never been pleased with it. After a couple of rewrites, I finally had something both my editor and I could live with, but I don't think either of us loved the novel. I know I didn't.

The moral of this story is that you can't make a silk purse out a sow's ear. Belle was a colorful character, but she wasn't a romance heroine. You need only look at her real photo and the cover of my novel and see what I mean. Still and all, I had a hardback novel with my name on it, so that was something. I also purchased the original oil painting of the cover and have it hanging in my house. Thanks, Belle.

 

The Bridge

 

Today is the official release day of my contemporary fiction book The Bridge.

Although the story is set in the city of Portland, Oregon, it has all the components of the small town romances I typically write. There's the sense of community and lending a hand. The feeling of hope and caring. Unlikely heroes. Tough, resilient women. Friendships. Kindness. Love. 

If the book wasn't contemporary and set in the old west, here's how I envision the five main characters:

Archer (a police sergeant) would be an old west sheriff. 

Rosalee (an expectant mama-to-be) would be the damsel in distress.

Nova (a nurse) would be the midwife everyone turns to and relies on. 

Carter (a tow truck driver) would be the gruff hermit who really wants to protect and help everyone. 

Ian (a college grad searching for a job) would be the young cowboy who shows up at the ranch, eager for work. 

I hope you'll check out the book!

One Bridge. Five Strangers. A Christmas Eve That Changes Everything.

 On a bridge suspended above the Willamette River, five lives collide for a journey through hope and hardship in a suspenseful, heartwarming tale of courage, connection, and the magic of second chances.

 Sergeant Archer Raines has worked every holiday all year for one reason: to finally spend Christmas with his wife. But when a desperate man threatens to jump from Portland’s St. Johns Bridge, Archer’s expert negotiation skills are required to defuse the situation.

 Rosalee, a high-powered accountant and mom-to-be, only meant to swing by home for a forgotten phone and client file. Then her car is caught in the chaos on the bridge, she unexpectedly goes into labor, and her carefully planned world begins to unravel amidst the unfolding drama.

 Exhausted nurse Nova just wants to make it home for Christmas after too many night shifts. When the pileup halts traffic and Rosalee’s baby is on the way, Nova puts her own plans on hold to help a stranger in need.

 Carter, the owner of a busy tow truck business, regrets taking the call to clear the multi-car collision off the bridge. He’d intended to spend the day tackling last-minute holiday errands. Instead, he’s praying the lunatic pointing a gun at him doesn’t pull the trigger.

 Fresh out of college and anxious to kick-start his career, Ian’s running late when his car won't start the morning of his big interview. His rideshare driver turns out to be a captivating girl with a penchant for aggressive driving that narrowly saves them from being part of the wreck on the bridge, sending Ian on an unexpected path of his own.

 The Bridge is the perfect uplifting holiday read and a story of how one frozen moment can thaw even the loneliest of hearts.

 Links:

Amazon
B&N 
Apple 
Kobo 
Universal Book Link 

Heartfelt love stories wrapped in laughter, warmth, and happily-ever-afters.

 USA Today bestselling author Shanna Hatfield grew up on a farm where hay fever and life lessons were always in season. Today, she blends her rural roots with a love for storytelling, crafting sweet, wholesome romances filled with hope, humor, quirky characters, and realistic heroes paired with strong, inspiring heroines.

When she’s not writing or baking new recipes, you’ll find her cherishing quiet moments at home in the Pacific Northwest with her husband—affectionately known as Captain Cavedweller.

Shanna loves to hear from readers. Follow her online at:

ShannaHatfield | Facebook | Newsletter | BookBub | Pinterest

The Woman's Journal

 

By Kristy McCaffrey

The Woman’s Journal was a weekly newspaper published every Saturday in Boston and Chicago beginning on January 8, 1870. It was centered on the interests of women, including educational, industrial, legal and political equality, with an emphasis on suffrage rights, aligning with the American Woman Suffrage Association.

Lucy Stone courtesy of
National Women's History Musem

The Journal was considered more moderate when compared to other women’s rights papers, with the founder, Lucy Stone, having split from Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Historian Barbara Berenson notes that the Journal “adopted a positive outlook; throughout the long suffrage struggle, it would stress progress and maintain that success was inevitable.” While maybe not as radical as other publications, its tone likely influenced the publication’s wide appeal.

When Lucy (and later her husband) passed away, their daughter Alice took over the paper. From 1910-1912, the National American Woman Suffrage Association temporarily funded the paper, and in 1912 The Woman’s Journal changed its name to The Woman’s Journal and Suffrage News.

The paper covered work in various states and countries. In 1915, their circulation reached 27,000 copies each week, and it was dispersed across the United States and to 39 countries.

Financial issues led to it being sold in 1917 and moving from Boston to New York City, where it was renamed The Woman Citizen. But there’s no doubt that The Journal was an integral part of the suffrage movement.

* * * * *

What if The Magnificent Seven were women?

In my latest release, seven women fight to save their town.

Twin Territories 

Dr. Anna Ryan has been spurned by the Dallas medical community for the simple reason of being a woman. Wanting more than a rural practice alongside her mother, also a doctor, Anna accepts an invitation from a mentor to join a private hospital for disabled children in Oklahoma City. But when she falls in with a band of women attempting to protect the rights of Chickasaw orphans, she’ll need more than her medical training to survive.

Malcolm Hardy has skirted the line between lawlessness and justice since escaping the mean streak of his father and his no-good half-siblings a decade ago. In Oklahoma Territory he created enough distance from his family name to find a quiet purpose to his days. But then Anna Ryan walks back into his life, and his hard-won peace is in jeopardy. 

The last time Malcolm saw Anna, she had been a determined girl he couldn’t help but admire. Now she was a compelling woman searching for answers that could lead straight to him. But one thing was clear—Anna’s life path was on a trajectory for the remarkable while Malcolm’s was not. Surrendering to temptation would only end in heartbreak.

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Amazon CA

Amazon AU

Apple Books

Nook

Kobo

Google Play

Paperback

Connect with Kristy

Website | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Newsletter

Wanted… Dead or Alive: Haunting Legends of the West

Are you brave enough to visit the Old West?

Ghosts of the past, long-lost lovers, and saloon patrons who never closed out their tab are said to linger in the Old West. From abandoned hotels to creaky barns, the frontier is full of eerie echoes. The West doesn’t just serve up history—it dishes out chills, thrills, and plenty of ghostly charm.

Here are some of my favorite haunted ghost towns (and the restless spirits you might bump into on your visit).

Calico, California 1881-1907

Once a booming silver mining town, Calico is now a preserved ghost town. Walter Knott (yes, of Knott’s Berry Farm fame) worked the silver mines before buying the town and restoring its frontier charm.

👻 Phantom footsteps echo through empty saloons. Whispers drift across dusty streets.

Visitors swear they’ve seen a ghostly dog—Dorsey, the town’s legendary mail carrier—still making his rounds with a phantom satchel.

Then there’s Lucy Lane, the “Queen of Calico.” Married to shopkeeper John Lane, Lucy spent most of her life in this town. Today, she’s often spotted in a black lace dress, strolling from her house to the general store or rocking gently in a chair she hasn’t left in over 100 years.

Calico didn’t just keep its buildings—it kept its ghosts.

Tombstone, Arizona 1879

Smaller than you’d expect, Tombstone is still one of the West’s most famous stops. Home of the O.K. Corral, it’s ground zero for haunted cowboy lore. 

Keep an eye out for:

Shadows slipping through saloon doors long after closing time.

Virgil Earp still haunting the Crystal Palace Saloon.

Big Nose Kate and a host of outlaw regulars at her saloon.

Marshal Fred White, gunned down in 1880, said to still wander near the Bird Cage Theatre.

Ben the Ghost, who keeps misbehaving spirits in line at Smokey’s Emporium (once the undertaker’s).

A nurse at the old hospital and a phantom figure at the high school.

If you’re brave enough to visit after dark, Tombstone lives up to its name.

Bodie, California 1877-1881

If you want to step back in time, Bodie is your stop. It’s a ghost town frozen in the , and it feels like its residents just… never left.

Eerie sightings include:

Killed in a tragic mining accident, a three-year-old giggles are still heard around her tiny grave.

A lady ghost in the Dechambeau House, forever peering from an upstairs window.

A kind-hearted prostitute who died caring for sick miners but was denied a burial in town lingers near the red-light district.

The spirits of vigilante justice: Bodie’s infamous “601” group carried out hanging. Their victims may still be seeking vengeance.

Bodie isn’t just a historic site—it’s a whole town of restless echoes.

Spooky Cowboy Legends of the West

The ghost towns are only half the story. The Wild West is one giant campfire tale waiting to spook you:

🌵 Phantom cattle drives. Cowboys who never made it home are still seen herding ghostly longhorns across the plains.

🌵Haunted stagecoaches. In Deadwood, South Dakota, a spectral stagecoach rattles through the streets at night, pulled by ghost horses and leaving a misty chill in its wake.

🌵 Outlaw hideouts. Sheriff Plummer of Bannack was hanged for his crime. hHe and his gang are still said to stalk their old mining camp.

🌵 The headless horse thief. In South Texas, a thief who was beheaded and strapped to a wild mustang, now rides headless across the desert forever.

These tales blur the line between folklore and history which makes them irresistible.

How to Experience the Haunted West

Guided ghost tours – Hear the legends from local historians (and maybe a ghost or two).

Evening visits – Sunset and moonlight bring the West’s eeriest vibes.

Dress the part – Cowboy boots + a wide-brim hat.

Halloween events – From haunted saloon tours to spooky stagecoach reenactments, fall is the best time to go ghost chasing.

Final Roundup

Between dusty saloons, moonlit legends, and spirits that refuse to rest, you’ll find history, chills, and maybe even a little romance.

Are you ready to go ghost town hopping?

Goldi's Grumpy Cowboy