In a nation ravaged by war, lives
change for all time...
An antebellum mansion is transformed
into a Confederate hospital when the Union Army invades Tennessee. Clarissa
Wakefield remains in her home against propriety to help nurse the wounded.
Philip Burke, a prisoner of war, barters his medical skill to avoid prison and
is placed in charge.
As opposing armies fight for
possession of Chattanooga, Philip and Clarissa wage their own personal battles.
Each is committed to another, though kept apart by the endless fighting. Amid
the blood and suffering, mutual attraction grows despite their best intentions.
Caught in the passions of love and
war, will they be faithful to their vows or listen to their hearts?
EXCERPT:
Unable to sleep but not
wishing to wake Polly, Clarissa finally pulled on a dressing gown and crept
down the stairs to the kitchen to get a glass of milk. The house was colder now
with the fireplace embers banked, and she shivered as she debated ringing for
one of the downstairs servants.
Nearing the library, Clarissa
heard voices and assumed Malcolm and his brother were in there. Curious to know
why they were still up at this late hour, she determinedly opened the door. For
a moment the two people on the sofa were unaware of her presence, grappling and
groaning crude obscenities, their half-naked bodies entangled. Then her shocked
gasp penetrated their absorption and Malcolm shoved the woman away and stood,
swaying slightly as he pulled his trousers together as best he could,
considering his turgid condition. Even in the shadows, she recognized Lydia's
maid.
"What the hell are you
doing here?" he snarled.
Her anger rising, Clarissa
shot back, "I might ask you the same thing!"
He wiped his mouth with the
back of one hand before he said with calculated coldness, "What I do is
none of your damned business."
"I am your wife,"
she reminded him evenly.
Linda, I loved this wonderful story of yours! Not only is the war raging around them, but this family has some very serious issues going on within their own relationships, as well! You did a great job with this! So glad to have you with us at PRP!
ReplyDeleteCheryl, your was the first post I answered when I finally arrived on the page in late afternoon. I think gremlins ate it! So I will say again thank you for your kind comments. As an author yourself, you know how gratifying it is to have someone pay compliments to your work. And I'm very happy to be a Prairie Rose author. You and Livia are a pleasure to work with.
DeleteCongrats on your release, Linda.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Bill. And I assure you this book is for men as well as women to enjoy. There are segments from many of the famous Civil War battles, which are historically correct to satisfy even the C.W. buffs. I hope you will have an opportunity to read it for yourself.
DeleteOoh! Catching her husband like that? Quite the hook.
ReplyDeleteYes, C. A. Clarissa was truly married to a cruel "Southern gentleman." It was no wonder she fell in love with Philip Burke, a true gentle man from the North. Thanks for your comment. Good luck on winning a copy of the book.
DeleteCnngratulations. The excerpt was intriguing and sounded so true to life. Must find more time to read. Doris
ReplyDeleteThank you, Doris. And I appreciate your comments. I know what you mean about finding time for reading all the books you want to read. I hope you can wedge This Time Forever in someplace soon.
DeleteLove Civil War stories and this sounds like a good one. Looking forward to reading it and congratulations on the publication.
ReplyDeleteAgnes, my answer to you last night was lost in cyberspace. So let me say again that I share your love of Civil War stories so when I became an author, it was imperative that I write my own C.W. story! I was, of course, inspired by Gone With The Wind and the TV production North and South and have been flattered to have it compared with the latter. And to have a film and DVD adapted from it was a dream come true. I hope you enjoy the book and if you want to follow up with the DVD it is called Clarissa's War. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteHello to all, and thank you to those who have left comments so far. I will reply to each of you. I'm sorry to be late to my own release day but...our refrigerator died last evening which required a frantic trip to the nearest appliance store, then a quick selection, and down-on-our-knees pleading for delivery ASAP. I'll spare you the details of finding a temporary home for the frozen food, using ice bags in cooler chests for other stuff. But now in late afternoon, the Lowe's delivery men are installing our new fridge so I have few minutes before reloading and reclaiming outsourced foodstuff. Thanks for listening to my tale of woe. I am excited about having THIS TIME FOREVER once again available for those readers who love the Civil War Era as much as I do. And in honor of its release for the third time (there is a story here) By Prairie Rose Press, I will be giving three digital books to three people who have left comments here. The random drawing of names will be in one week on May 31st. Good luck on being a winner!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your new release. I'm a big CW romance fan, so look forward to reading this.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Robyn. I have discovered there are as many or more fans of Civil War stories as there have always been of Regencies. I've met several of the C.W. Re-enactors, and learned they are active throughout the year and have many interesting events all over the US. In fact, the first showing of the film adapted from my book, was held at a re-enactment weekend where I had also had signings of This Time Forever. Thanks for stopping by and happy reading!
ReplyDeleteLinda, how wonderful to read that your book was adapted into a film. That is every author's dream. The Civil War, or any war, creates a setting for fabulous drama and it looks like your hero/heroine have love and war to contend with. I loved your excerpt...great hook. I love doing that, too, to make a reader keep turning the pages. I hope I'm a lucky winner of your book. You were blessed with a beautiful cover. Livia sure does great work. Congratulations, Linda!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind comments, Elizabeth. I agree that war as a background for any book adds many opportunities for more depth of emotions and the Civil War in particular seems to offer this. Thank you for your compliment of the cover. I agree with you that Livia creates beautiful covers and has done several for me since I became a Prairie Rose author. But I know Livia would not wish to take credit for another cover artist's work so I will tell you that this cover was created by Laura Shinn at Publishing by Rebecca J. Vickery. It was "carried over" (when illness forced closure) for this new release due to the connection of book and film and need for recognition continuity. And yes, I've been blessed with great covers and wonderful cover artists to work with at several digital publishers in the past ten years.
DeleteLinda, thank you kindly for the cover's recognition. I'm so very proud of that cover's design and grateful for Livia in allowing you to use it with your new publisher. *g* And a big Thank You also to Elizabeth Clements. I'm so glad you like the cover.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, Laura, and for your comments. You have every reason to be proud of the lovely cover for This Time Forever and I, too, am happy to be able to continue using it here at PRP.
DeleteLinda,
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful for you to have such success with this book. Congratulations. *hugs*
Thank you, Kaye.I feel so "validated" to have had this book reach so many readers thus far and I'm grateful to Prairie Rose Publications for giving it a chance to continue its journey. Thanks to Cheryl, Livia, and you for your contribution to making it happen. And the film and now the DVD being available means reaching even more readers. Hugs right back to you.
DeleteLinda, so sorry I am so late in responding, but have to say how wonderful this story sounds. I'm hooked on that excerpt and have this on my TBR list. Going now to order. Wishing you much success with this one. Sounds dynamic between the war and the family upheavel. Love civil War stories and doctor/medical stories too so this one will be a winner for me. tories .
ReplyDeleteYou are not late at all, Beverly. I'm so glad the excerpt Cheryl chose hooked you. Yes, it does sound as if I've met your criteria for Civil War stories on this one. I hope you enjoy it and I'd love to have your comments if you have a minute to share. You know how we authors are...we are always eager to hear how people feel about our "babies." Thanks so much for your comments.
ReplyDeleteWill do and most likely will do a review. Wishing you much success.
DeleteCONGRATULATIONS, WINNERS! In a random drawing, the following names are the lucky winners of an ebook copy of THIS TIME FOREVER. Agnes Alexander; Elizabeth Clements; and Robyn Echols. Please contact me at LSwiftR@aol.com to receive your book. Thank you to all who left comments on the blog. I wish all who posted could have won. Maybe next time.
ReplyDelete