FAMILY SAGAS...

I grew up reading family sagas growing up. My favorites included The Kent Family Chronicles by John Jake, The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough, The Mallens by Catherine Cookson, East of Eden by John Steinbeck…

Sagas draw us into the life and struggles of a family. We connect to their relationships with family and loves and the era the story is set. It is a glimpse…an insight into the dynamics of a family structure.

What I enjoy about writing a family saga is there is no formula that you’re supposed to follow. It’s a life story. As we all know there are no formula’s in life. A sweeping story to become immersed within—one that would stay with you long after you have finished the book. Winds of Betrayal is such a series set in the turmoil of the American Revolution.

Patriot Secrets is set at the beginning of the conflict. Caught up in the fervor for liberty, the Corbetts soon learn there is a price to pay for their dream.

PATRIOT SECRETS

In the midst of the struggle for America's bid for independence, Hannah Corbett makes a fateful decision, descending into a world of deceit. Spurred by revenge, she heads to New York, setting in motion a dangerous game for which there is no return. Searching desperately for the man who betrayed her family, she faces the cold and brutal reality of the life of a spy. Caught in a web of lies, living with betrayal, she is trapped. She has nowhere to turn except to a man it would be treasonous to love, setting duty and desire at war. Her heart is ripped apart when she must choose between the man who risks his career and life to protect her and the only thing that has remained constant in her life...her belief in her cause.

One of the problems I had after Patriot Secrets was released—nobody…I mean nobody…seemed to understand that Patriot Secrets was a series. I think they thought they assumed it was a straight historical romance. I’ve always contended that Patriot Secrets is historical fiction. Oh, not that it doesn’t have romance…but the story itself doesn’t lend it to be a romance book. The story is bigger than just one hero and heroine.

Patriot Secrets was the first part of a book that I had called Before the Sun Sets. I split it in two. The second part Winds of Betrayal is already written. It just needs revisions, but when I picked the second part up to begin revisions, I came to the second chapter and set it down again. Something was missing. I needed a bridge book. So Ruse of Love, the second book in the Winds of Betrayal, came to life.

RUSE OF LOVE

The tides of war have shifted. When all eyes turn south, Doctor Jonathan Corbett finds himself once more thrust into the war’s turmoil. On assignment from General Washington, the dashing doctor discovers his mission has taken him straight into a conflict where the British are not the only ones to be feared.

Rebekah Morse has no time to contemplate the exploding war around her. Caught up as a pawn in a deadly conspiracy, she finds her only hope lies with her old friend, but things have changed since they last saw each other.

Yet destiny has not intervened in their lives without cause. Rebekah’s strength, courage, and breathtaking sensuality sets within Jonathan a desire he swore never to feel again. When Rebekah’s life is threatened, Jonathan is determined to save the stubborn woman whether she wants to be saved or not. Now Jonathan and Rebekah must face the perilous threat together—only to discover a passion they never imagined...

The third and final chapter…the explosive end to this saga…is set to be released in 2013—Winds of Betrayal.
Ruse of Love can be read as a stand alone. You don’t have to read Patriot Secrets to enjoy Ruse of Love.

Enjoy the whole series. Start at the beginning. I also have another book coming out, Another Night Falls with Whiskey Creek Press (Part III of the Tides of Charleston series) in October, which correlates to the Winds of Betrayal series. Another Night Falls is set in the same Charles Town (Charleston, South Carolina) as Ruse of Love. It also has a few cross-over characters.

Have a good one! Keep reading!