Counting down to Valentine's Day with 3 Free eBooks

By Jacqui Nelson

Valentine's Day is only one day but writing a series can take years in an author's life—and in their characters' lives as well. 

Book 1 in my Lonesome Hearts series was the first book I wrote. It took years to write and revise and polish. The other four books in the series each took less than six months to write. 

Crossing the Oregon Trail (the setting for book 1 in my Lonesome Hearts series) could take four to five months. 

If one was lucky enough to survive that journey, then one's life might change in a single day on horseback (the premise for book 2 in my Lonesome Hearts series). 

If one was lucky enough to (at the end of that ride) find a forever family and (over the years following) grow strong and brave, then one might save the life of their soulmate during two very challenging days on a remote mountain (the premise for book 3 in my Lonesome Hearts series). 

Counting Down to Valentine's Day—with 3 Free eBooks

To celebrate the countdown to Valentine's Day, I've made books 1 to 3 in my Lonesome Hearts FREE on Amazon Kindle from Feb 11 to 15. The other book in this series, Rescuing Raven, is always free for my newsletter subscribers. 

BETWEEN HEAVEN & HELL (Book 1 chronologically)

Oregon Trail – 1850

The scout & the ex-Ranger wagon boss

On a trail full of danger, will he guide her to heaven or hell?

** Steam Level: Spicy **

Free Feb 11 - 15 on Amazon Kindle US | UK | Canada | Australia 

Free every day with a Kindle Unlimited subscription.

FOLLOWING FAITH (Book 2 chronologically)

Oregon Territory – 1852

The schoolmistress & the Osage warrior

Can a single day together on horseback change your life forever?

** Steam Level: Sweet **

Free Feb 11 - 15 on Amazon Kindle US | UK | Canada | Australia 

Free every day with a Kindle Unlimited subscription. 

CHOOSING BRAVERY (Book 3 chronologically)

The Cascade Mountains, Oregon – 1868

The wilderness guide & the fugitive tracker

When legends collide, will the sparks ignite their love or drive them apart?

** Steam Level: Sweet **

Free Feb 11 - 15 on Amazon Kindle US | UK | Canada | Australia 

Free every day with a Kindle Unlimited subscription. 

RESCUING RAVEN (book 4 chronologically, but also a series prequel in concept)

Deadwood, Dakota Territory – 1876

The Lakota savior & the shotgun messenger

In a gold rush storm, can an unlikely pair rescue each other?

** Steam Level: Sweet **

Free every day for my newsletter subscribers or for $0.99 on Amazon. 

~ * ~

Wishing you all a happy countdown to Valentine's Day ❤️ 

Download my FREE STORY Rescuing Raven

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My Story Inspiration for Robyn a Christmas Bride

   
By Jacqui Nelson

The spirit of gift-giving is an inspiration and as an author, I love pondering what inspires people and what might inspire my characters. 

When writing my second Christmas story, I asked myself...how can a gift be so special that it inspires the transformation of a relationship and launches a grand love affair? Words like priceless and selfless sprang to mind and became part of not only my story, Robyn: A Christmas Bride, but its Story Inspiration page (a page I've included in the back of all of my books). Here's that page...

ROBYN: A CHRISTMAS BRIDE

Story Inspiration page ~ from the back of the book

When I started pondering a plot for my Christmas story, my first question was, what should the theme be? Is there a classic Christmas tale with an uplifting theme that many people might recognize or at least relate to? The Gift of the Magi became my first inspiration when writing Robyn: A Christmas Bride. 



The Gift of the Magi (written by O. Henry and published in 1905) features the themes of selfless gift-giving and how the gift of love is priceless. In that story, a husband and wife each sell their most valuable possession, but they are items that can be grown again (hair) or can be bought back again (a watch). I wondered what if the thing you valued most was sustaining a way of life that you’d struggled a long time to create and that now defined your entire self-worth? Could you give that up if it meant ensuring the happiness of a loved one? That might be the ultimate selfless gift to give.



My next thought was having a heroine who was a trouser-wearing tomboy who loved driving wagons in 1877, a time when society wasn’t very accommodating about women’s appearances and occupations that strayed from the norm. So…what if my heroine decided she needed to do something drastic to win the heart of the man she loved? Changing yourself to please another person (even if they haven’t asked you to) might be considered another selfless gift. So…what is a classic transformation story? My Fair Lady and its heroine Eliza Doolittle were my next inspiration. 



My Fair Lady (released in 1964 as a movie starring Audrey Hepburn) focuses on speech lessons, but Eliza’s transform also includes her appearance—her clothing, hair, the way she carries herself, and more. It’s a life-changing transformation that is difficult for Eliza and takes hard work and sacrifice—for her own good (a chance at better job prospects) but also, as time goes on, to please her instructors. 



So…selfless giving and self-sacrifice. Ready. Set. Go. Write a Christmas story. 

I hope you enjoyed Robyn: A Christmas Bride as much as I enjoyed not only writing the story but also giving Robyn Llewellyn and Max Peregrine their hard-won and well-deserved Christmas gifts.

ROBYN: A CHRISTMAS BRIDE

Noelle, Colorado –  Christmas 1877

Who’s the perfect match for a flame-haired Welsh tomboy who loves driving wagons?

 by three free-spirited older brothers, Robyn Llewellyn has learned to fight for what she wants—and now she wants to transform her boss and best friend, Max Peregrine, into a lifelong partner. Determined to become the image of what a marriage-minded man wants, Robyn trades her trousers for a dress and heads to Max’s hometown of Noelle, Colorado. But changing who she is with the help of the now happily married Brides of Noelle puts her friendship with Max at risk.



Who’s the perfect match for a work-addicted Denver business owner who loves his independence?



Defying his brother and grandpa’s wishes for him to stay with them in Noelle, Max Peregrine has created his dream job—leading a highly successful branch of Peregrines’ Post and Freight while working beside Robyn, the only person who makes him smile every day. But when she leaves without a word, Max follows her to Noelle where the choices they both must face could make it impossible for them to stay together beyond Christmas Day.



Inspired by My Fair Lady, The Gift of the Magi, and the spirit of gift-giving, Robyn: A Christmas Bride is a classic Western historical love story set in a small town high in the mountains during Christmas 1877.

Click here to read an excerpt on my website.

MY NOELLE, COLORADO, 

CHRISTMAS STORIES 

The Calling Birds - Christmas 1876

Robyn: A Christmas Bride - Christmas 1877

Click here to see a summary of all of my books on one page.

Hope you enjoyed my writing inspiration and that your December is merry and bright—and filled with all of your favorite gifts be they store-bought or homemade or (one of my favorites) the gift of time spent together ❤️🎄⛄🎁🥂🎉

~ * ~

Download my FREE STORY Rescuing Raven

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My Story Inspiration for The Calling Birds

  
By Jacqui Nelson

What inspires a story? 

Christmas! And since Christmas is next month, it feels like it's the perfect time to share the Story Inspiration page (a page I included in the back of the book) for the first Christmas story that I wrote...

THE CALLING BIRDS 

Story Inspiration page ~ from the back of the book

When asked, which day of Christmas would you like to write? I immediately chose The Fourth Day because with the title The Calling Birds, I could use the name Jack Peregrine. His name was inspired by Inspector Jack Robinson from the Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries novels & TV series and the Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children novel & movie. Jack and then Birdie’s names came to me lightning quick, and might not have worked as well in more specifically titled 12 days stories such as the Hens, Doves, Geese, or Swans. 

So, I chose the more generic title and then, as seems to be my nature, I became really specific. Peregrines’ Post and Freight had to be the plural because it’s a family-run business. The word “post” had to come before “freight” because when shortened to Peregrines’ Post, it stood for not only a postal office but a post on which a bird might rest AND a place to make a final stand - while trying to keep a business alive and a family together. 

Next, I decided I needed four birds to form my family because it’s The Fourth Day, after all. Jack’s brother, Max, and Grandpa Gus came to life. Now I cannot imagine The Calling Birds without Gus. 

Jack and Gus’ banter was inspired by my relationship with my mom. She was great fun but also incredibly stubborn (to the point where I’d worry for her safety). It became our running joke where I’d call her determined, but I meant stubborn - and she knew it. She was never absentminded, though. That feature is mine but, like Gus, I’d rather find ways to get around my shortcomings instead of dwelling on them.

THE CALLING BIRDS

Noelle, Colorado –  Christmas 1876

Many years have passed since Bernadette Bellamy fled the Cariboo Gold Rush and her reputation as the sister of a French-Canadian gang of thieves. Armed with only an honest talent for sewing and a willingness to lead a solitary life on the run, she stays one step ahead of everyone seeking her brothers’ last—and now lost—heist. Until a craving to settle down makes her reinvent herself as Birdie Bell, a dress shop owner. The arrival of an old foe combined with her desire to hold onto her treasure trove of fabrics has Birdie joining a wagonload of brides bound for a remote town.

After losing his leg and his wife, Jack Peregrine buries his pain under a mountain-high pile of work. He only agrees to sign up for a mail-order bride to save the town of Noelle, keep his freighting business, and care for his absentminded grandfather. But Jack’s request for a sturdy bride who won’t crumble under his burdens brings him a woman as tiny as she is troubled. Can two mismatched people band together to become the perfect match?

Click here to read an excerpt on my website.

MY NOELLE, COLORADO, 

CHRISTMAS STORIES 

The Calling Birds - Christmas 1876

Robyn: A Christmas Bride - Christmas 1877

*  Next month I'll share my inspiration for Robyn *

Click here to see a summary of all of my books on one page.

Hope you enjoyed my writing inspiration and that your Friday and your November are...beginning to look a bit like Christmas but only in the best ways. 🎄❤️ I'm hoping I won't see any snow until Christmas Eve ❄️⛄

~ * ~

Download my FREE STORY Rescuing Raven

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My Story Inspiration for A Bride for Brynmor

 
By Jacqui Nelson

What inspires a story? Languages, my sad inability to speak more than one, my joy of imagining my characters can do so much more than I can, and my discovery of the Cree syllabic. 

Below is the Story Inspiration page (a page I've included in the back of all of my books) for A Bride for Brynmor—the first book in my Songbird Junction series about three Welsh brothers and three Irish-Cree Métis sisters (who use the Cree syllabic to secretly coordinate their escape from their cruel and controlling troupe manager)...

A BRIDE FOR BRYNMOR 

Story Inspiration page ~ from the back of the book

I have great difficulties speaking different languages, but I’ve discovered I love the story challenges/complications of including them in my books. I also love the opportunity to link language to a character’s past. 

- For my Quebec-born heroine (Birdie Bell aka Bernadette Bellamy), I added French in The Calling Birds. 


- For my American-born heroine (Robyn Llewellyn whose ancestors came from Monmouth, Wales), I added Welsh in Robyn: A Christmas Bride.


- For my Canadian-born Irish-Cree Métis heroines (Lark, Oriole, and Wren who came from the Qu’Appelle Valley in present-day Saskatchewan), I added Cree syllabics in A Bride for Brynmor.


The Métis are specific cultural communities who trace their descent from First Nations (Native American) women and European (first French, then later Scottish, English, and Irish) men who came together with the fur trade in Canada and the United States. 

Their unions were often called marriage à la façon du pays which meant “according to the custom of the country.” Written with a lowercase m, métis is the French word for “mixed.”

The Qu’Appelle Valley got its name from a Cree legend about a spirit that traveled up and down the river. The Cree told the fur traders they often heard a voice calling, “Kâ-têpwêt?” When the Cree responded to the call, it would echo back. 

In French, “Kâ-têpwêt?” means “Qui appelle?” And in English, that’s “Who is calling?” Which is the perfect echo/call back to my story The Calling Birds. 


Cree syllabics are a script used to write the Cree language. They were first recorded in the 1800s and include nine glyph shapes. Today in Canada, it’s estimated that over 70,000 Algonquian-speaking people use the script.

To read more about Cree syllabics and how they inspired my story, visit my website at www.JacquiNelson.com/the-cree-syllabic.

A BRIDE FOR BRYNMOR

Songbird Junction Series, Book 1

Denver, Colorado
 – January 1878

Can a sister who’s lived only for others find freedom with one man?

Family has always come first—for both of them. He’s never forgiven himself for letting her go. She’s never forgiven herself for almost getting him killed.

When Lark and her songbird sisters are separated fleeing their cruel and controlling troupe manager, only Brynmor Llewellyn can help Lark save her sisters and escape to the far west. But Lark wants more. And so does Brynmor. When they’re stranded in a spot as difficult to guard as it is to leave—a rustic cabin at a train junction between Denver and the mountain town of Noelle, Colorado—they find themselves fighting not only for survival but for redemption, forgiveness, and a second chance for their love.

Will the frontier train stop of Songbird Junction be Lark and Brynmor’s salvation? Or their downfall when her manager—a con artist who calls himself her uncle but cherishes only his own fame and fortune—demands a debt no one can pay?

Click here to read an excerpt on my website.

THE SONGBIRD JUNCTION SERIES 

A Bride for Brynmor, book 1

A Bride for Heddwyn, book 2

A Bride for Griffin, book 3 (coming soon)

Welcome to Songbird Junction, where Welsh meets West in Colorado 1878. The journey to find a forever home and more starts here… 



Brynmor, Heddwyn, and Griffin Llewellyn are three Welsh brothers bound by blood and a passion for hauling freight—in Denver, where hard work pays. 

Lark, Oriole, and Wren are three Irish-Cree Métis sisters-of-the-heart bound by choice and a talent for singing—in any place that pays. 



Click here to see a summary of all of my books on one page.

Hope you enjoyed my writing inspiration and that your Friday and October are...full of fabulous autumn color and fun 🌈❤️

~ * ~

Download my FREE STORY Rescuing Raven

Join me on 

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Pinterest, my Website,
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My Story Inspiration for Between Home & Heartbreak

 
By Jacqui Nelson

What inspires a story? How about...sharpshooter Annie Oakley, Buffalo Bill's Wild West show, Edgar Allan Poe’s poem Eldorado, and picking the name Eldorado Jane (for a Wild West superstar trick rider heroine)?

Last month I shared my Story Inspiration page (a page I've included in the back of all of my books) for book 1 in my Gambling Hearts series, Between Love & Lies. 

Today I thought I'd share the inspiration for book 2, Between Home & Heartbreak...

BETWEEN HOME & HEARTBREAK 

Story Inspiration page ~ from the back of the book

I love spending time pondering names. In Between Home & Heartbreak, the spark for the stage name Eldorado Jane came from the desire to have a two-part name like Indiana Jones. One part fancy or unusual, the other common or plain. Jane was a quick choice for a common but still beautiful woman’s name.
The name Eldora was an easy pick for a short version of Eldorado. The “Dora” part of Eldora led to Dorothy and the last name Dority as well. Dority was also a pick from the TV series Deadwood (a violent but also incredibly fascinating series) in which two of my favorite characters were Al Swearengen and his right-hand man, Dan Dority.

Bringing Eldora and Lewis’ different personalities together was great fun—as was researching traveling vaudeville performers. America’s most iconic Wild West show, Buffalo Bill's Wild West, started in 1883 but it wasn’t until 1885 that it featured its two equally large but also opposite personalities: the flamboyant embellisher, impresario Buffalo Bill (William Frederick Cody), and the understated but brilliant sharpshooter, Annie Oakley (Phoebe Ann Mosey). He called her Little Missie. She called him The Colonel. 

Edgar Allan Poe’s poem Eldorado (found in this book’s preface) provided inspiration before and during writing. After I thought of Eldora casting a soothing shadow over Lewis (when they first met), I remembered Poe’s poem. It seemed only fitting that Lewis would soon see Eldora as not only his Angel Eyes but his faithful shadow.

BETWEEN HOME & HEARTBREAK

Gambling Hearts Series, Book 2

Texas Hill Country – 1879

Plain Jane Dority vanished while riding in a storm beside her childhood best friend. Eighteen years later, Wild West trick-riding superstar Eldorado Jane returns to claim her birthright: the Dority homestead now owned by the steadfast Texan who never forgot Jane or forgave himself for her disappearance.

Lewis Adams would give anything to see his friend come home, but he’s certain Eldorado Jane isn’t his Jane. So why does this mesmerizing woman—with the talent and fame to have anything she desires—want the remote patch of land that he loves? There’s only one way to find out: accept a wager with a deceiver who holds the power to bring back his friend or break his heart. The outcome rests in her hands. Or does it?

Friendship. Betrayal. Blackmail. Eldorado Jane holds every card…except the one that matters most.

Click here to read an excerpt on my website.

THE GAMBLING HEARTS SERIES 

Between Love & Lies, book 1

Between Home & Heartbreak, book 2

Click here to see a summary of all of my books on one page.

Hope you enjoyed my writing inspiration and that your Friday and your September are...filled with fabulous autumn color and fun 🍁🍂❤️

~ * ~

Download my FREE STORY Rescuing Raven

Join me on 

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Pinterest, my Website,
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My Story Inspiration for Between Love & Lies

  
By Jacqui Nelson

What inspires a story? For me, it's often reading about history and then saying, "What if...?" 

That's what happened when I read about Dodge City, the Queen of Cattle Towns, and the damage something as tiny as a tick could do—and might do in my story. 

Below is the Story Inspiration page (a page I've included in the back of all of my books) for Between Love and Lies (book 1 in my Gambling Hearts series)...

BETWEEN LOVE & LIES 

Story Inspiration page ~ from the back of the book

The spark for Between Love & Lies came from the letter below and my collection of Time-Life Old West books containing these lines: “The longhorns were carriers of a microscopic tick. The Texas animals were immune to the parasite, but the same tick produced deadly splenic fever in local cattle.”

I imagined a small farm, held together only by the grit and hard work of its owner, might not survive such an event. I wondered what might happen next, both on that unlucky farm and in the nearest town: Dodge City, the Queen of Cattle Towns—where life would be challenging for a woman who luck had deserted.



January 1, 1878 - Letter in the Washington, D. C. Evening Star



“Dodge City is a wicked little town. Here those nomads in regions remote from the restraints of moral, civil, social, and law enforcing life, the Texas cattle drovers, from the very tendencies of their situation the embodiment of waywardness and wantonness, end the journey with their herds, and here they loiter and dissipate, sometimes for months, and share the boughten dalliances of fallen women.”

BETWEEN LOVE & LIES

Gambling Hearts Series, Book 1

Dodge City, Kansas – 1877

Sadie Sullivan lost everything when a herd of longhorn cattle bound for Dodge City destroyed her farm. Now she works in Dodge—one of the most wicked and lawless towns in the West—at the Northern Star Saloon. But her survival in this new world of sin and violence depends on maintaining a lie so deadly it could end her life before the town of Dodge can.

The one man capable of unraveling Sadie’s secrets is Noah Ballantyne, the Texan rancher whose herd destroyed her home. Back in town and taking up the role of deputy alongside legendary lawman Bat Masterson, Noah vows he won’t leave until he’s made things right. But with the saloon’s madam unwilling to release Sadie and a rich cattle baron wanting her as well, the odds aren’t in favor of finding love…or leaving town alive.

In a town ruled by sin, will he earn her love or her lies?

Click here to read an excerpt on my website.

THE GAMBLING HEARTS SERIES 

Between Love & Lies, book 1

Between Home & Heartbreak, book 2

Click here to see a summary of all of my books on one page.

Hope you enjoyed my writing inspiration and that your Friday and your August are...filled with many relaxing moments enjoying the summer—and lots of good books too! ❤️📚

~ * ~

Download my FREE STORY Rescuing Raven

Join me on 

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Follow me on 

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My Story Inspiration for Adella's Enemy

  

By Jacqui Nelson

What inspires a story and an author to finally publish that story? How many stories does an author write before joining the publishing world...just that one or many more? 

Last month, I shared my Story Inspiration page (the page I've included in the back of all of my books) for Rescuing Raven, the free read for my newsletter subscribers. 

Now I'm excited to share the Story Inspiration page for the first book I published! 

Adella's Enemy wasn't the 1st book I wrote (it was the 4th), but it was the one that launched me into the self-publishing world -- with the help of two writing friends who invited me to join their group project. 

ADELLA'S ENEMY 

Story Inspiration page ~ from the back of the book

Have you watched the TV series Hell on Wheels? Would you like to write a railroad romance with a race for riches? Those were the questions asked by Elisabeth Burke and Jennifer Jakes. Without them, Adella’s Enemy would never have been written.

Post-Civil War America was a time of great tension and transition but also incredible opportunities for prosperity—if you played your cards right. Instead of weeks or months to cross America, when its transcontinental railroad was completed in May 1869, the journey was reduced to less than a week. The railroad builders’ and camp followers’ journeys (and fates and fortunes) made Hell on Wheels.

Time is money for travelers and builders—from the worker laying track to the smooth-talking promoter overseeing construction and the proposed route. The proximity of a railroad could make or break a town’s future and a speculator’s fortune. The entire endeavor often became a cutthroat race for riches. 

In Adella and Cormac’s story, I like to think their race for revenge, forgiveness and, above all, love provided the greatest riches of all.

ADELLA'S ENEMY

The Katy Railroad, Kansas
 – 1870

The War Between the States ended five years ago, but she still pursues her enemy…

Rebel spy turned government rabble-rouser Adella Willows receives her mission straight from a Washington senator—play havoc with the Katy Railroad and derail its bid to win the race. The senator craves wealth. Adella craves revenge against the man responsible for her brother’s death. But her plans crumble into chaos when she enters a battle of wits with the railroad’s foreman.

An ocean separates him from his failures in Ireland, but he’s still haunted by those who died…

Seasoned railroad foreman Cormac McGrady’s sole desire is keeping his workmen safe and employed, which means keeping the Katy ahead of its rivals. But the beautiful spy bedeviling his railroad needs protecting as well. Cormac must choose between winning the race and winning Adella’s heart, while Adella must choose whether she lives for revenge or dies for love.

Click here to read an excerpt on my website.

What readers are saying about Adella...

What readers are saying about Cormac...

Hope you enjoyed my writing inspiration and that your Friday and your July are...filled with your favorite things ❤️

~ * ~

Download my FREE STORY Rescuing Raven

Join me on 

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Pinterest, my Website,
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Follow me on 

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My Story Inspiration for Rescuing Raven

 

By Jacqui Nelson

What inspires a short story? And can an author (who loves history) fit another iconic history-infused setting (Deadwood, South Dakota, during the gold rush) into a 6,000-word story that's also filled with romance and adventure? It was a challenge, believe me, but it was the best kind of challenge!

During my March, April, and May monthly blogs with Cowboys Kisses, I shared my Story Inspiration pages (the page I've included in the back of all of my books) for Between Heaven & Hell, Following Faith, and Choosing Bravery. 

Now it's time to share the Story Inspiration page for the story that chronologically follows those three, but this story was designed to be enjoyed at any time (including before reading the others)...

RESCUING RAVEN 

Story Inspiration page ~ from the back of the book

Being an avid fan of the Dances with Wolves movie (starring Kevin Costner and Graham Greene) and the Deadwood TV series (starring Ian McShane and Timothy Olyphant), I’d always wanted to write a story set in South Dakota or the town of Deadwood. After registering for the 2018 Wild Deadwood Reads (WDR) author-reader event, an intriguing opportunity arose—join 16 authors (who would also be attending the event) in writing a new story for a limited-edition anthology called Wild Deadwood Tales. The anthology would be available for 2018 only, it would be showcased at WDR and Deadwood’s annual Professional Bull Riders (PBR) event, and all proceeds would go to the Western Sports Foundation (WSF).


The WSF and the PBR connections had many of the anthology authors choosing to write stories about modern-day bull riders, but I’m a historical fiction author—who now had her chance to write about Deadwood in 1876! 


Why 1876? That’s the year the town of Deadwood was born. Prior to 1876, the site was a gulch with dead trees. Then gold was found in the Black Hills and white settlers flooded in—illegally taking permanent residence on the Lakota’s sacred land that had been forbidden to whites by the U.S. government’s 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty. 


1876 is also the year of the Battle of the Little Big Horn—which was followed by General Crook’s march (from Montana Territory into the Dakota Territory) in pursuit of the Lakota Sioux. But General Crook only took enough rations for a few days—which resulted in the Horsemeat March (also known as the Starvation March) when his men had to eat their horses to survive. Near Deadwood, General Crook and his men fought the Battle of Slim Buttes and stole not only the Lakota’s winter food preserves but their horses (to replace the ones they’d eaten). 


Al Swearengen arrived in Deadwood early in 1876 and opened the Cricket Saloon, a barebones establishment that he built before his fancier and much more well-known Gem Theater. Not long after his arrival, his relationship with his first wife, Nettie, became extra complicated when a very attractive saloon girl named Kitty Austen came to town and became Al’s employee and more. 


All of this history created many complications for Raven (a Lakota woman born in the Black Hills) and Charlie Jennings (a white man from Oregon) who were perfect for each other even if their two worlds were not.

RESCUING RAVEN

Deadwood, Dakota Territory – 1876

Raven wants to save one person. Charlie wants to save the world. Their warring nations thrust them together but duty pulled them apart—until their paths crossed again in Deadwood for a fight for love.

In a gold rush storm, can an unlikely pair rescue each other?

Rescuing Raven features a grown-up Charlie Jennings who was a young boy in my Oregon Trail story, Between Heaven & Hell (set in 1850). You’ll also get to meet real-life (and really complicated) Al Swearengen—one of the first men to set up a business in Deadwood. Al’s most well-known saloon was The Gem Theater, but his first Deadwood saloon (the one shown in my story) was The Cricket. 

Click here to read an excerpt on my website.

THE LONESOME HEARTS SERIES 

Resuing Raven is part of my Lonesome Hearts series, which follows the frontiersmen and women who meet on the Oregon Trail and afterward. Each story includes one or more of the characters from the other books but is also a standalone read.

Click here to see a summary of all of my books on one page.

Hope you enjoyed my writing inspiration and that your Friday and your weekend are filled with sunny summer inspiration ☀️❤️

~ * ~

Download my FREE STORY Rescuing Raven

Join me on 

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,
Pinterest, my Website,
my Cowboy Kisses page 

Follow me on 

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Read my Wild Women of the West blog posts 

My Story Inspiration for Choosing Bravery

By Jacqui Nelson

What inspires a Western Historical Romance Adventure story? History and love combined with adventure is my favorite mix, but I also adore iconic or intriguing settings. And the story I'm sharing with you today takes place on—and inside—a mountain.

Last month I shared my Story Inspiration pages (the page I've included in the back of all of my books) for Between Heaven & Hell and Following Faith. Today I'm sharing the Story Inspiration page for the story that follows chronologically...

CHOOSING BRAVERY 

Story Inspiration page ~ from the back of the book

While writing Following Faith and watching six-year-old Élodie Rousseau become such a fundamental part (even while mostly off-screen), I knew my next story had to be her grown-up adventure. I also knew she needed a larger-than-life man to match her big personality. 

A decade or more before, I’d met someone with the surname Bravery and tucked it away for future use. The right story hero never appeared to claim the name. After writing Following Faith and watching The Revenant, I knew Élodie’s match would be a legendary almost mythical mountain man. A man who’d been brought low by a bear, but could be lifted high by Élodie and her mountain home. A man named Bravery. 

When my research led me to Oregon’s Cascade Volcanic Arc, Newberry Volcano, and lava tubes, I knew the majority of their story would be underground—a challenging place to describe. When travel isn’t an option, a writer relies on pictures. I created a Pinterest board to help me visualize the story. For links to Choosing Bravery’s picture board and boards created for my other stories, visit my website JacquiNelson.com.

CHOOSING BRAVERY

The Cascade Mountains, Oregon – 1868

When legends collide, will the sparks ignite their love or drive them apart?

After her parents vanished in the wilderness, Élodie Rousseau found a home with an Osage warrior and a logging camp schoolmistress who joined forces to return Élodie’s beloved spirit horse. With them as her teachers, she became the legendary mountain guide, Yellow Feather. She knows everything about surviving and thriving in the wild, but something is missing.

Legendary Far North fugitive tracker, Lachlan Bravery, is tortured by his failure to find the one person who mattered most—the mentor who taught him everything he once held sacred. Driven to repay a dead man, his hunt for a notorious band of outlaws brings him to Élodie’s mountain where they must join forces on a final quest deep inside a cave with the power to destroy not only their unexpected love but their lives.

Brave the wild. Bury the past. Choose your destiny.

Click here to read an excerpt on my website.

THE LONESOME HEARTS SERIES 

Choosing Bravery is book 3 in my Lonesome Hearts series, which follows the frontiersmen and women who meet on the Oregon Trail and afterward. Each story includes one or more of the characters from the other books but is also a standalone read.

Click here to see a summary of all of my books on one page.

Hope you enjoyed my writing inspiration and that you have a fun Friday full of...flowers! ❤️💐

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