P.J. MacLayne

ZOMBIES!

Welcome to another Monday edition of the Open Book Blog Hop. This week we’re talking about Zombies. They’re everywhere. On TV, in book and movies, and maybe even wandering your city streets in a Zombie Festival. Frankly, I’m over them.

The first zombie movie, The White Zombie, was made in 1032! It told the story of a young woman being turned into a zombie by a voodoo master.

Today’s modern zombies were developed in the 1960’s. And while I can the understand the concept of the undead controlled by drugs and puppet master, I can’t wrap my intellectual mind around the dead-but-not dead.

I mean, if zombies move so slow, why can’t humans just run away? And if they can’t think, how hard should it be to outwit them? And how do they exist without eating and drinking? After all, they do have human bodies, and in order to keep functions going—like walking around—muscles have to get energy somewhere!

And without blood, how does the body keep functioning? In the current popular show, you see zombies with no legs or no arms, still “not-alive.” My logical mind can’t comprehend how that can happen. After all, they would have bled out at some point and died-died.

And if they are mindless, why the heck don’t they attack each other? How can they possibly think well enough to recognize a fellow zombie from a human? Talk about an easy meat source and I’ve yet to hear of a zombie eating another zombie. Or would the universe as we know it implode upon itself if a zombie attacked another zombie?

So while I can see the fun in pretending to be a zombie or a zombie killer, I ‘m not a big fan of zombie movies or books. I’ve watched snippets of the current popular show, and found myself picking away at the plot and characters.

But love ’em or hate ’em, zombies are hot. Feel free to tell us what you think about zombies  in the comments.

To find out what P.J. Fiala thinks about zombies, visit her blog. HERE.  And don’t forget to check out her newest release, Danny’s War. It’s on my wish list, and is available on Amazon and at other ebook retailers.  Danny’s War

An artist, a veteran, and a motorcycle….nothing could be better.

Returning home from war a changed man is difficult for Danny Schaefer. Losing his leg and then his girlfriend made him feel like he’d never be whole again. Then he meets Tammy Davis, a vivacious beauty burdened with a secret betrayal that has left her shaken and wary. Tammy mends her wounds by painting; Danny is searching for his own way.

When they meet the sparks fly, but both desire to take it slow. Tammy’s job is uncertain, her new boss wants more than her superior work product and she finds herself torn between love and duty. As Danny discovers a way to heal, he finds himself in the fight of his life – a fight for Tammy’s heart.

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use ?#?OpenBook? when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
Wordpress Short Code:
[inlinkz_linkup id=586358 mode=1]
Code for Hosting:

Code for Link:

get the InLinkz code

InLinkz | view linkup

ZOMBIES!

Welcome to another Monday edition of the Open Book Blog Hop. This week we’re talking about Zombies. They’re everywhere. On TV, in book and movies, and maybe even wandering your city streets in a Zombie Festival. Frankly, I’m over them.

The first zombie movie, The White Zombie, was made in 1032! It told the story of a young woman being turned into a zombie by a voodoo master.

Today’s modern zombies were developed in the 1960’s. And while I can the understand the concept of the undead controlled by drugs and puppet master, I can’t wrap my intellectual mind around the dead-but-not dead.

I mean, if zombies move so slow, why can’t humans just run away? And if they can’t think, how hard should it be to outwit them? And how do they exist without eating and drinking? After all, they do have human bodies, and in order to keep functions going—like walking around—muscles have to get energy somewhere!

And without blood, how does the body keep functioning? In the current popular show, you see zombies with no legs or no arms, still “not-alive.” My logical mind can’t comprehend how that can happen. After all, they would have bled out at some point and died-died.

And if they are mindless, why the heck don’t they attack each other? How can they possibly think well enough to recognize a fellow zombie from a human? Talk about an easy meat source and I’ve yet to hear of a zombie eating another zombie. Or would the universe as we know it implode upon itself if a zombie attacked another zombie?

So while I can see the fun in pretending to be a zombie or a zombie killer, I ‘m not a big fan of zombie movies or books. I’ve watched snippets of the current popular show, and found myself picking away at the plot and characters.

But love ’em or hate ’em, zombies are hot. Feel free to tell us what you think about zombies  in the comments.

To find out what P.J. Fiala thinks about zombies, visit her blog. HERE.  And don’t forget to check out her newest release, Danny’s War. It’s on my wish list, and is available on Amazon and at other ebook retailers.  Danny’s War

An artist, a veteran, and a motorcycle….nothing could be better.

Returning home from war a changed man is difficult for Danny Schaefer. Losing his leg and then his girlfriend made him feel like he’d never be whole again. Then he meets Tammy Davis, a vivacious beauty burdened with a secret betrayal that has left her shaken and wary. Tammy mends her wounds by painting; Danny is searching for his own way.

When they meet the sparks fly, but both desire to take it slow. Tammy’s job is uncertain, her new boss wants more than her superior work product and she finds herself torn between love and duty. As Danny discovers a way to heal, he finds himself in the fight of his life – a fight for Tammy’s heart.

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use ?#?OpenBook? when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
WordPress Short Code:
[inlinkz_linkup id=586358 mode=1]
Code for Hosting:

Code for Link:

get the InLinkz code

InLinkz | view linkup

In case you hadn’t noticed, we’ve moved! Instead of doing our hop on Wednesdays, we’re posting on Mondays. So if you made it here, welcome, and I hope you’ll remember to come back next Monday as well!

This week we’re talking about reality TV. Love it or hate it, it’s everywhere, in some shape or form.

I’ll admit it, I didn’t understand why MTV stopped playing music and start airing The Real World. Frankly, I didn’t care about a bunch of twenty-somethings and their shenanigans. When I turned to MTV, I wanted music.And if I couldn’t get it there, I’d get it somewhere else.

According to Wikipedia, shows like “The American Sportsman”  and “Candid Camera” count as reality TV. And I suppose that by strict definition, they were, but that’s not what most people think of. Geesh, according to that definition, COPS is a reality TV show.

Like most people, we think of shows like “Survivor” and “Big Brother” and even “American Idol” as reality TV. Shows where people are pitted against each other in hopes of winning a big prize.  I watched Survivor in its early seasons. I watched American Idol too, although I never voted.

But it didn’t take me long to figure out how we, the audience, were being manipulated, along with the contestants. Who was the good guy and who was the villain could easily be pre-determined by the producers. All they had to do was be selective in what clips they aired. And once I figured that out, I lost interest. Once I knew that, I knew it wasn’t really real..

And if you’ve followed this blog for very long, you know I don’t watch TV anymore. I might stop and listen to a song or two on Idol if my DH is watching, but I can’t name any of the winners for the past few years. And I watch on occasional number on “Dancing with the Stars,” but I’ve never sat through a complete show. So whatever demographics those shows are aimed at, I’m not it. I have better things to do with my time.

What would it take to bring me back and become a fan of reality TV again? I have no idea. If i could come up with a concept that hadn’t already been overdone, I’d get rich selling it to a network.

Let us know your thought on Reality TV in the comments. And to find out what Lela Markham thinks. head on over to her blog.Lela Markham  Lela is the author of Life as We Knew It and other books. 

                                                                                    Chaos changes everything!

Shane Delaney, a burned-out mercenary with a troubled past, returns home to small-town Kansas to heal his scars and quiet his demons, not planning to stay long enough for the townsfolk to reject who he has become.
He never expected the town to need his deadlier skills.

When a terrorist attack on distant cities abruptly transforms life as they knew it, the people of Emmaus must forge their own disaster plan to survive.

What would you do if the world as you know it ended today?

The people of Emmaus will find out.

Jan. 4 – Jan. 10, 2016 Reality TV – Love it or hate it and why?
Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use ?#?OpenBook? when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
NEW: WordPress Short Code:
[inlinkz_linkup id=586352 mode=1]
Code for Hosting:

Code for Link:

get the InLinkz code

In case you hadn’t noticed, we’ve moved! Instead of doing our hop on Wednesdays, we’re posting on Mondays. So if you made it here, welcome, and I hope you’ll remember to come back next Monday as well!

This week we’re talking about reality TV. Love it or hate it, it’s everywhere, in some shape or form.

I’ll admit it, I didn’t understand why MTV stopped playing music and start airing The Real World. Frankly, I didn’t care about a bunch of twenty-somethings and their shenanigans. When I turned to MTV, I wanted music.And if I couldn’t get it there, I’d get it somewhere else.

According to Wikipedia, shows like “The American Sportsman”  and “Candid Camera” count as reality TV. And I suppose that by strict definition, they were, but that’s not what most people think of. Geesh, according to that definition, COPS is a reality TV show.

Like most people, we think of shows like “Survivor” and “Big Brother” and even “American Idol” as reality TV. Shows where people are pitted against each other in hopes of winning a big prize.  I watched Survivor in its early seasons. I watched American Idol too, although I never voted.

But it didn’t take me long to figure out how we, the audience, were being manipulated, along with the contestants. Who was the good guy and who was the villain could easily be pre-determined by the producers. All they had to do was be selective in what clips they aired. And once I figured that out, I lost interest. Once I knew that, I knew it wasn’t really real..

And if you’ve followed this blog for very long, you know I don’t watch TV anymore. I might stop and listen to a song or two on Idol if my DH is watching, but I can’t name any of the winners for the past few years. And I watch on occasional number on “Dancing with the Stars,” but I’ve never sat through a complete show. So whatever demographics those shows are aimed at, I’m not it. I have better things to do with my time.

What would it take to bring me back and become a fan of reality TV again? I have no idea. If i could come up with a concept that hadn’t already been overdone, I’d get rich selling it to a network.

Let us know your thought on Reality TV in the comments. And to find out what Lela Markham thinks. head on over to her blog.Lela Markham  Lela is the author of Life as We Knew It and other books. 

                                                                                    Chaos changes everything!

Shane Delaney, a burned-out mercenary with a troubled past, returns home to small-town Kansas to heal his scars and quiet his demons, not planning to stay long enough for the townsfolk to reject who he has become.
He never expected the town to need his deadlier skills.

When a terrorist attack on distant cities abruptly transforms life as they knew it, the people of Emmaus must forge their own disaster plan to survive.

What would you do if the world as you know it ended today?

The people of Emmaus will find out.

Jan. 4 – Jan. 10, 2016 Reality TV – Love it or hate it and why?
Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use ?#?OpenBook? when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
NEW: WordPress Short Code:
[inlinkz_linkup id=586352 mode=1]
Code for Hosting:

Code for Link:

get the InLinkz code

This week on the blog hop, we’re discussing  how we celebrate the arrival of the New Year.

It’s been a long time since I’ve gone out on New Year’s Eve. Frankly, I prefer to stay home and not risk my safety by sharing the roads with people who’ve had too much to drink. I’m happy enough sitting at home with my hubby and watching the ball drop on TV or looking out the windows of our house at the fireworks being set off in the neighborhood. I may or may not stay up until midnight local time, depending upon how I feel at the moment.

Of course, I enjoy New Year’s Day because I don’t have to work. Well, I don’t have to get in the car and go to work anyway! I normally spend the day starting the task of putting away the Christmas decorations and returning the house to some resemblance of normal.

There is one thing I do almost every year—make home made ham and bean soup. We usually have ham for Christmas, and it’s a great way to use the leftovers! It’s a recipe I got from my mother, who got it from her mother. I have no idea how far back it goes, but I’m going to share it with you.

You can use either boneless or bone-in ham for this, but I prefer using bone-in ham. I think it deepens the flavor.

You’ll need
     Leftover ham
     Navy beans
     Celery (about 3 stalks for a large pot of soup)
     Carrots (again, the amount you use depends upon how large of a pot of soup you are making. I use enough to give a good amount of “color” to the soup
     Bay leaves—3 or 4. depending upon their size

Cook the peas according to package directions. I use the quick start method, which involves bringing the beans to a full boil before turning down the heat. This allows you to decrease the over-all cooking time, as well as do away with pre-soaking the beans.

Allow the beans to cook for an hour at a medium heat. While they are cooking, remove your leftover ham from the bone and cut it into bite size hunks. I use a about two or three cups in a good-sized pot. If you have extra ham, freeze or refrigerate it. After the beans have cooked for an hour, add the cut-up ham and the ham bone to the pot. You should have enough water in the pot that the ham bone is mostly covered. If not, add more. You don’t want to cook the pot dry.

Cover the pot and lower the heat to medium low, Allow the mixture to continue cooking for at least an hour. Check your heat level and water level occasionally. You want to keep the soup cooking but not at a high boil, Add water as needed (but you shouldn’t need to if the lid fits well.)

About an hour before you plan to serve the soup, chop the celery and carrots and add to the soup. Also add your bay leaves.

You’ll notice I didn’t add any seasonings other than the bay leaves to the mixture. The ham has enough salt to season the soup, so you don’t need it. (And any other seasoning you used on the ham originally will add additional flavor to the soup.)

Total cook time- 4 hours.

Before serving, remove the ham bone and bay leaves. Serve with warm bread, and you have a feast!

I have made one change to the recipe. I can occasionally find “cranberry beans.” They have purple streaks, unlike the navy beans that are white. (No, not pinto beans.) I think they add a little extra “oomph” to the soup.

Tell us what you do for the holiday in the comments below, if you want to!

To find out what Lela Markham does for the holiday, head on over to her blog. HERE.  You can find her books on Amazon. Here’s the book  description for The Willow Branch.

A healer must mend a fractured kingdom and bring two enemy races together before a greater enemy destroys them both.

Fate took Prince Maryn by surprise, leaving Celdrya to tear itself apart. A century later an army amasses against the warring remains of the kingdom as prophesy sends a half-elven healer on a journey to find the nameless True King. Padraig lacks the power to put the True King on the throne, yet compelled by forces greater than himself, Padraig contends with dark mages, Celtic goddesses, human factions and the ancient animosities of two peoples while seeking a myth. With all that distraction, a man might meet the True King and not recognize him

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use ?#?OpenBook? when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
NEW: WordPress Short Code:
[inlinkz_linkup id=586351 mode=1]
Code for Hosting:

Code for Link:

get the InLinkz code

This week on the blog hop, we’re discussing  how we celebrate the arrival of the New Year.

It’s been a long time since I’ve gone out on New Year’s Eve. Frankly, I prefer to stay home and not risk my safety by sharing the roads with people who’ve had too much to drink. I’m happy enough sitting at home with my hubby and watching the ball drop on TV or looking out the windows of our house at the fireworks being set off in the neighborhood. I may or may not stay up until midnight local time, depending upon how I feel at the moment.

Of course, I enjoy New Year’s Day because I don’t have to work. Well, I don’t have to get in the car and go to work anyway! I normally spend the day starting the task of putting away the Christmas decorations and returning the house to some resemblance of normal.

There is one thing I do almost every year—make home made ham and bean soup. We usually have ham for Christmas, and it’s a great way to use the leftovers! It’s a recipe I got from my mother, who got it from her mother. I have no idea how far back it goes, but I’m going to share it with you.

You can use either boneless or bone-in ham for this, but I prefer using bone-in ham. I think it deepens the flavor.

You’ll need
     Leftover ham
     Navy beans
     Celery (about 3 stalks for a large pot of soup)
     Carrots (again, the amount you use depends upon how large of a pot of soup you are making. I use enough to give a good amount of “color” to the soup
     Bay leaves—3 or 4. depending upon their size

Cook the peas according to package directions. I use the quick start method, which involves bringing the beans to a full boil before turning down the heat. This allows you to decrease the over-all cooking time, as well as do away with pre-soaking the beans.

Allow the beans to cook for an hour at a medium heat. While they are cooking, remove your leftover ham from the bone and cut it into bite size hunks. I use a about two or three cups in a good-sized pot. If you have extra ham, freeze or refrigerate it. After the beans have cooked for an hour, add the cut-up ham and the ham bone to the pot. You should have enough water in the pot that the ham bone is mostly covered. If not, add more. You don’t want to cook the pot dry.

Cover the pot and lower the heat to medium low, Allow the mixture to continue cooking for at least an hour. Check your heat level and water level occasionally. You want to keep the soup cooking but not at a high boil, Add water as needed (but you shouldn’t need to if the lid fits well.)

About an hour before you plan to serve the soup, chop the celery and carrots and add to the soup. Also add your bay leaves.

You’ll notice I didn’t add any seasonings other than the bay leaves to the mixture. The ham has enough salt to season the soup, so you don’t need it. (And any other seasoning you used on the ham originally will add additional flavor to the soup.)

Total cook time- 4 hours.

Before serving, remove the ham bone and bay leaves. Serve with warm bread, and you have a feast!

I have made one change to the recipe. I can occasionally find “cranberry beans.” They have purple streaks, unlike the navy beans that are white. (No, not pinto beans.) I think they add a little extra “oomph” to the soup.

Tell us what you do for the holiday in the comments below, if you want to!

To find out what Lela Markham does for the holiday, head on over to her blog. HERE.  You can find her books on Amazon. Here’s the book  description for The Willow Branch.

A healer must mend a fractured kingdom and bring two enemy races together before a greater enemy destroys them both.

Fate took Prince Maryn by surprise, leaving Celdrya to tear itself apart. A century later an army amasses against the warring remains of the kingdom as prophesy sends a half-elven healer on a journey to find the nameless True King. Padraig lacks the power to put the True King on the throne, yet compelled by forces greater than himself, Padraig contends with dark mages, Celtic goddesses, human factions and the ancient animosities of two peoples while seeking a myth. With all that distraction, a man might meet the True King and not recognize him

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use ?#?OpenBook? when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
NEW: WordPress Short Code:
[inlinkz_linkup id=586351 mode=1]
Code for Hosting:

Code for Link:

get the InLinkz code

For those of you looking for my normal Wednesday blog hop entry, sorry, I gave myself the gift of the week off. Stay tuned, I’ll be back next week. In the meantime, may the holidays you celebrate be happy.

For those of you looking for my normal Wednesday blog hop entry, sorry, I gave myself the gift of the week off. Stay tuned, I’ll be back next week. In the meantime, may the holidays you celebrate be happy.

Welcome to another week of the Open Book Blog Hop. I hope you’re staying warm, or dry, or comfortable depending upon what part of the world you’re in. Here in the American West, it’s windy and snowing and I’m drinking a cup of hot chocolate as I type this. I’m not complaining—the snow helps me get in the Christmas mood.

When it comes to Christmas songs, I’m a total traditionalist. There’s something special about several hundred otherwise bad voices joining together in a large old church and singing the songs of the season. Even though I’m far away now, the music resounds in my heart.

Silent Night is probably the first Christmas song I remember singing. Sure, i couldn’t hit the high notes, but that didn’t matter. Neither could any of my sisters. As I got older, My voice got better, and the song was no longer a challenge. Now that I’ve gotten really old, my voice has lost it’s flexibility, and the song is again a challenge.

I was part of my high school chorus, and we always did special Christmas presentations. One of the hardest songs we sang was Oh, Holy Night. Our director had a hard time finding a male voice to handle the high notes. But here’s a version of the song that I think is the perfect rendition.

Another favorite of mine is Joy to the World. Such a simple sentiment, but so powerful. I know not everyone is happy at Christmastime, but I’d like everyone to find one little piece of joy on the heart. And the song just expresses joy in its melody, even without the words.

But I also like non-religious songs. Who can resist singing along with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer or Jingle Bells?

But I think one of my favorite songs is one that’s almost impossible to sing by yourself.  Carol of the Bells can’t be done right by a solo voice.

Tell us about your favorite Christmas song in the comments.  And to find out what songs Kelly Williams likes, visit her blog HERE. You can find her books on Amazon on her author page K. Williams

Blue Honor :Blue Honor tracks four tightly twining families during the American Civil War. Each member is asked to sacrifice more than their share to see friends and loved ones through the terrible times. The only certainty they have is that nothing will be the same.

Emily Conrad is the bookish daughter of a wealthy dairy family from Vermont. Her indulgent father has educated her and bred ideas that aren’t acceptable to her more urbane mother, who thinks Emily needs to settle down with her longtime friend and town philanderer Evan Howell. The outbreak of war frees Emily from these expectations for a time, but a stranger soon arrives after the guns begin to blaze, threatening her plans more than societal conventions ever could.

Devoted to the young woman who healed her wounds, Henrietta has become part of the Conrad family, hoping that she may one day see her husband and son again. As a runaway slave, she’s been lucky enough to find this slice of peace in Vermont, but the return of Evan Howell and the man he brings with him portends great change that might see her locked back in irons, if not executed for what she’s done.

Evan isn’t as bad as his reputation has made him out to be. He knows his chum Emily will make the best doctor Vermont has ever seen, and he knows he’s not the man to marry her. With a little manipulation, he convinces his commanding officer, Lieutenant Joseph Maynard, to take leave with him and see the beauty of the north. He just doesn’t let on it’s not hillsides and streams he’s setting the man up for.

Joseph has both power and privilege as the son of a Baltimore lawyer, but neither can guarantee him the things he wants in life. His commission in the army is likely to lead to death, a sacrifice he was willing to make to end slavery in the States—that was until he saw Emily Conrad. Torn between duty and desire, Joseph struggles to stay standing for that which he once held strong convictions. War weary, they all march on to duty…

And if you want to join our blog hop, here’s the link and the rules

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use ?#?OpenBook? when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
Wordpress Short Code:
[inlinkz_linkup id=586344 mode=1]
Code for Hosting:

Code for Link:

get the InLinkz code

Welcome to another week of the Open Book Blog Hop. I hope you’re staying warm, or dry, or comfortable depending upon what part of the world you’re in. Here in the American West, it’s windy and snowing and I’m drinking a cup of hot chocolate as I type this. I’m not complaining—the snow helps me get in the Christmas mood.

When it comes to Christmas songs, I’m a total traditionalist. There’s something special about several hundred otherwise bad voices joining together in a large old church and singing the songs of the season. Even though I’m far away now, the music resounds in my heart.

Silent Night is probably the first Christmas song I remember singing. Sure, i couldn’t hit the high notes, but that didn’t matter. Neither could any of my sisters. As I got older, My voice got better, and the song was no longer a challenge. Now that I’ve gotten really old, my voice has lost it’s flexibility, and the song is again a challenge.

I was part of my high school chorus, and we always did special Christmas presentations. One of the hardest songs we sang was Oh, Holy Night. Our director had a hard time finding a male voice to handle the high notes. But here’s a version of the song that I think is the perfect rendition.

Another favorite of mine is Joy to the World. Such a simple sentiment, but so powerful. I know not everyone is happy at Christmastime, but I’d like everyone to find one little piece of joy on the heart. And the song just expresses joy in its melody, even without the words.

But I also like non-religious songs. Who can resist singing along with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer or Jingle Bells?

But I think one of my favorite songs is one that’s almost impossible to sing by yourself.  Carol of the Bells can’t be done right by a solo voice.

Tell us about your favorite Christmas song in the comments.  And to find out what songs Kelly Williams likes, visit her blog HERE. You can find her books on Amazon on her author page K. Williams

Blue Honor :Blue Honor tracks four tightly twining families during the American Civil War. Each member is asked to sacrifice more than their share to see friends and loved ones through the terrible times. The only certainty they have is that nothing will be the same.

Emily Conrad is the bookish daughter of a wealthy dairy family from Vermont. Her indulgent father has educated her and bred ideas that aren’t acceptable to her more urbane mother, who thinks Emily needs to settle down with her longtime friend and town philanderer Evan Howell. The outbreak of war frees Emily from these expectations for a time, but a stranger soon arrives after the guns begin to blaze, threatening her plans more than societal conventions ever could.

Devoted to the young woman who healed her wounds, Henrietta has become part of the Conrad family, hoping that she may one day see her husband and son again. As a runaway slave, she’s been lucky enough to find this slice of peace in Vermont, but the return of Evan Howell and the man he brings with him portends great change that might see her locked back in irons, if not executed for what she’s done.

Evan isn’t as bad as his reputation has made him out to be. He knows his chum Emily will make the best doctor Vermont has ever seen, and he knows he’s not the man to marry her. With a little manipulation, he convinces his commanding officer, Lieutenant Joseph Maynard, to take leave with him and see the beauty of the north. He just doesn’t let on it’s not hillsides and streams he’s setting the man up for.

Joseph has both power and privilege as the son of a Baltimore lawyer, but neither can guarantee him the things he wants in life. His commission in the army is likely to lead to death, a sacrifice he was willing to make to end slavery in the States—that was until he saw Emily Conrad. Torn between duty and desire, Joseph struggles to stay standing for that which he once held strong convictions. War weary, they all march on to duty…

And if you want to join our blog hop, here’s the link and the rules

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use ?#?OpenBook? when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
WordPress Short Code:
[inlinkz_linkup id=586344 mode=1]
Code for Hosting:

Code for Link:

get the InLinkz code