As Charlotte does her virtual book tour, she will be awarding a
$20 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly
drawn winner. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free
to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!
A little
bit about The Christmas Cradle:
For
the peaceful town of Willow Ridge, November presents an early holiday surprise.
Stranded in the snow, 18-year-old Lena Esh and her boyfriend Josiah Witmer need
more than a place to stay for the night. Lena defied her strict family and
their judgmental beliefs to run away with Josiah and have his baby. But she’s
starting to wonder if he can prove as responsible as he is passionate. And she
isn’t sure how—or if—they can ever find a place to truly call home.
Expecting their own
miracle baby, Miriam and Ben Hooley rally the town to help the young couple,
and Lena draws strength from their unexpected support. Though trouble may come
calling, in this season of joyous rebirth, a little child will lead them. And
two couples will see their dreams of forever family come true…
Excerpt
from The Christmas Cradle:
Very early Saturday morning Ben entered the Sweet Seasons kitchen
and went immediately to the oven, where Miriam was pulling out a large pan of
cinnamon rolls. “Are ya supposed to be liftin’ this much weight?” he asked as
he took the pan from her. “Yesterday Andy reminded me—again—that ya need to
find help if you’re gonna keep workin’. And it would be better if ya weren’t
workin’,” he added emphatically.
As he set the hot pan on a cooling rack, Miriam sighed. “I’m not
helpless, Ben,” she insisted. “What would I do with myself if I weren’t in this
kitchen? It’s another month and a half until the baby comes—and it’s not like I
haven’t given birth before.”
Although Old Order wives weren’t to work outside the home,
Miriam’s dedication to her café was one of the reasons he loved her, so Ben
spoke more gently. “I’m lookin’ after ya, followin’ Andy’s orders,” he replied.
He kissed her, caressing the bulge of her sweet belly where their baby was
kicking. “Plant your backside on that stool. What else can I do for ya?”
“For starters, you can tell me what you’re doin’ here so early of
a Saturday morning, Mr. Hooley,” she teased. She perched on the tall stool
beside the counter to mix the powdered sugar in her big glass measuring cup
with milk. As she drizzled the white frosting over the hot rolls, Ben’s stomach
rumbled so loudly they both laughed.
“I came to see if my woman would feed me something before I shoe
Josiah’s mare,” Ben said, following every hypnotic swirl of the frosting as it
soaked into the warm rolls.
“Puh. You didn’t sleep any better than I did last night, for
thinkin’ about those kids.”
Ben smiled. His wife of ten months had figured him out long ago,
so it was useless to refute her. “It’s that supper club that’s got me
wonderin’,” he muttered. “Considerin’ how Higher Ground’s not nearly as big as
Willow Ridge—and it has a diner already—how do ya suppose a second
restaurant’ll survive?”
“And what on earth is a supper club?” Miriam eased one of the
fresh rolls from the corner of the pan. “It sounds like a place that might have
members, so only certain folks would be goin’ there to eat. But what do I
know?”
When she’d laid the fresh cinnamon roll on a piece of paper towel
and placed it in front of him, Ben kissed her loudly on the cheek. “Well,
girlie, ya know how to make the best food a fella ever sank his teeth into, and
ya make my heart dance. What else matters, really?”
Drawing
upon her experiences in Jamesport, the largest Old Order Amish community in
Missouri, longtime Missourian Charlotte Hubbard writes of simpler times and a
faith-based lifestyle in her Seasons of the Heart series. Like her heroine,
Miriam Lantz Hooley, Charlotte considers it her personal mission to feed
people. Faith and family, farming and food preservation are hallmarks of her
lifestyle. She’s a deacon, a dedicated church musician and choir member, and
when she’s not writing, she loves to try new recipes, crochet, and sew.
Charlotte now lives in Minnesota with her husband and their border collie.
Links:
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13 comments:
Thanks for hosting!
I am reading this book now! I started reading it last night
Thanks for featuring my book on your blog today, Lisa!
Library just put out Harvest of Blessing yesterday check out and in the to read pile. Looking forward to when this book comes out.
This sounds like a great story to read with the holidays approaching us. I need Dr liked reading and have always had an interest in the amish way of life. One day I decided died to read an amish book and have been hooked on them ever since. 😃
Thanks so much for stopping by, Kim and Rhonda! I appreciate your tastes in reading--and your stopping by here today!
What a sweet excerpt. this sounds like a really good story.
Sounds like a wonderful read.
I enjoyed the excerpt, sounds like a really good book, thanks for sharing!
Great cover and excerpt.
Tempestt, Eva, Rita and MomJane!Thanks so much for spending some time with my story today!
Really great post, thanks for sharing the excerpt.
Another wonderful excerpt! I cannot wait to read more. Thank you!
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