St. Charles Full Cirle Blue

St. Charles: Full Circle

How does an Arizona author end up setting her newest works of Historical Fiction in Missouri? Saint Charles, Missouri, to be exact? Enter . . . a children’s book illustrator named Chris Sharp.

Tea Time Gregory Frank Harris cropped

Tea, Quilts, and Books in Saint Charles

Today, I’m flying into Missouri. Here I come Saint Charles! I’m excited to participate in several Author Events, May 14-18. I hope you’ll join me in St. Charles, the setting for The Quilted Heart, also the launch city for The Boone’s Lick Wagon Train Company in Prairie Song.

Sewing Circle by Howard Sanden Blog Banner

Book Club Fun to Celebrate The Quilted Heart

Do the members of your book club or reading group enjoy reading a series of novellas and spending time with an ensemble cast? If so, Elsa Brantenberg’s Quilting Circle in St. Charles, Missouri, might be a great fit. And I’m happy to say the 1860’s heartland setting lends itself well to having fun with historic Main Street and riverside flair. For some book club …

Quilt Square Author Events

Author Events in Saint Charles

  Are you in Missouri or know someone who lives there? I’m headed to Saint Charles, Missouri, next month for the Lewis & Clark Heritage Days and several Author Events, May 14-18. Join me at the setting for The Quilted Heart, also the launch city for The Boone’s Lick Wagon Train Company in Prairie Song. Here’s my current itinerary: Wednesday, …

Meet Caroline from The Quilted Heart Omnibus

Meet Caroline from The Quilted Heart Omnibus

Today, I’m featuring the two main characters in Ripples Along the Shore, the third and last novella in The Quilted Heart. After you’ve read The Quilted Heart, read Prairie Song to spend more time with Garrett and Caroline. MEET Garrett Cowlishaw Garrett Cowlishaw  is the a friend of Rutherford Wainwright and is in St. Charles to recruit a band of people to …

Mary Easton Sibley age 68

Women’s History Month: Mary Easton Sibley

March is National Women’s History Month. Today, I’m celebrating the legacy of women in American History with a look at educator, Mary Easton Sibley.

Hearts placesetting banner

Recipes Inspired by The Quilted Heart

The Sinclair Sisters of Cripple Creek novels and Prairie Song, Book 1 in the Hearts Seeking Home Series all feature fun foods and inspire recipes. The novellas, Dandelions on the Wind, Bending Toward the Sun, and Ripples Along the Shore are no different. Enjoy a meal with three recipes inspired by The Quilted Heart omnibus.

Meet Elsa Brantenberg from The Quilted Heart

Meet Elsa Brantenberg from The Quilted Heart

If you’re familiar with my Historical Fiction, you know that my stories tend to feature a “Titus 2:3” type mentor as a secondary character. In The Sinclair Sisters of Cripple Creek Series, it was Miss Hattie, the proprietor of a boarding house. In The Quilted Heart novellas,the key woman of influence is Mrs. Brantenberg. Meet Elsa Brantenberg, who owns the …

Barn graphic 2

A Civil War Bullet Hole at the Sandfort Farm

I’ll get to the bullet hole story, but first, a bit about how I found the farm for Dandelions on the Wind, the first novella in The Quilted Heart omnibus. What fun to return to the enchanting Historic Main Street District of Saint Charles, Missouri, in 2012 to conduct research for the three novellas in The Quilted Heart—Dandelions on the …

Meet Rutherford & Maren from The Quilted Heart

Meet Rutherford & Maren from The Quilted Heart

A broken soldier. A nearly-blind abandoned bride. Will love bind their hearts together, or will stubborn pride unravel the family they both love? Meet the main characters in Dandelions on the Wind, Novella #1 in The Quilted Heart omnibus! RUTHERFORD WAINWRIGHT 1. What is your job? Describe a little about what you do. I was a farmer then a soldier. …