Cathy Gohlke's Blog, page 6
July 6, 2021
Story: Past and Future
Typing THE END of Night Bird Calling began a journey into the past for me. With those words I realized I’d not finished with the characters or their deeper stories.
What history brought them to this moment in time with the prejudices, personalities and concerns they carried? What was the antebellum racial and Civil War history of No Creek and its longtime citizens? What happened to the characters of Night Bird Calling after WWII? What happened to Reverend Willard, who enlisted in WWII as a chaplain? Did Marshall finish school—was he drafted? Did he ever become the doctor he dreamed of becoming? What about Celia—what was it like for her growing up as a teen in No Creek during WWII? Did Lilliana find a life with Reverend Willard?
So many questions. As I began researching—the Civil War and Reconstruction eras, and life in the post-WWII era—I knew there was far more to the story, a new story, a standalone story that I longed to tell.
That’s when I began writing A Hundred Crickets Singing with characters from No Creek, as well as new characters from the outside world. I learned we can’t truly understand the revelations of the present without delving into mysteries of the past. It was a realization that led me to write stories of characters from the Civil War and Reconstruction eras—ancestors of No Creek characters we’ve already come to love.
That story is in the process of editing and cover design now—my second time split novel. My first time split novel was Secrets She Kept—a story so real to me that it practically wrote itself. I hope readers will love this new book just as much. Set to release in April 2022, I can hardly wait to share it with you!
Until then, I hope you’ll sign up for my newsletter and receive my free short story gift, “Into the Starry Night”—a prequel to Night Bird Calling. I hope you’ll read Night Bird Calling and come to love Celia, Lilliana and so many others as I do.
Until next time, take care, enjoy these glorious days of summer, and may God bless you,
Cathy
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June 29, 2021
Poached Pears with Craisins
This attractive and delicious recipe came from a family member who received it from a B&B many years ago. It’s one of our family’s favorites in almost any season—perfect for a nice brunch.
Poached Pears with Craisins
Ingredients:
3 pears halved and cored (I prefer Bosc Pears for this)
2 Tablespoons orange marmalade
½ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup orange juice, separated
2 Tablespoons butter
¼ cup craisins
1 teaspoon corn starch
Few pieces of crystallized ginger
Sour cream
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Place pears fairly close together, cut side down in casserole dish.
Sprinkle craisins around and cut a few pieces of crystallized ginger and sprinkle over pears.
In a large glass microwavable measuring cup combine marmalade, sugar, salt, butter and ½ cup orange juice. Microwave on high for about 2 minutes until butter is melted.
Mix corn starch with ¼ cup orange juice and stir until dissolved. Add to hot mixture and microwave an additional 30 seconds. Stir well and pour over pears.
Bake for 30 minutes or until pears are tender.
Place pears round side down in individual serving dishes.
Spoon 1-2 Tablespoons sour cream into hole of each pear. Drizzle a little sauce over each pear and serve warm.
Makes 6 servings
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June 23, 2021
Band of Sisters Quote
“My peace, my companionship,” Olivia said softly, “come from my surety that the Lord loves me. Surety that because I’ve asked, believing He’s redeemed me, He’s also forgiven me and accepts me—now, as I am. He lives inside me, walks beside me, in th
e form of His Holy Spirit. He holds my heart, my life. He is my heart, my life.”—Cathy Gohlke, from Band of Sisters
June 15, 2021
History Comes Alive
If you have the opportunity to visit Ellis Island and the Tenement Museum in Lower Manhattan this summer it is well worth your time. Walking through the station where so many of our ancestors knew they’d either be accepted to begin a new life or rejected and sent back across the ocean sent chills up my spine.
Exploring those reproduced tenements during the tour in Lower Manhattan and hearing stories born of poverty brought the world in Band of Sisters alive for me. It helped me better appreciate what our immigrant ancestors endured in order to create lives in this new world.
Maureen O’Reilly and her younger sister flee Ireland in hopes of claiming the life promised their father over twenty years before.
But after surviving the rigors of Ellis Island, Maureen learns that their NYC benefactor, Colonel Wakefield, has died, and his family, refusing to own his Civil War debt, casts her out.
Alone, impoverished, and in danger of deportation, Maureen connives to obtain employment in a prominent department store. But she soon discovers that the elegant façade hides a secret that threatens every vulnerable woman in the city.
Despite her family’s disapproval, Olivia Wakefield determines to honor her father’s debt, but can’t find Maureen. Unexpected help comes from a local businessman, who Olivia sees as more than an ally, even as she fears the secrets he’s hiding.
As women begin disappearing from the store, Olivia rallies influential ladies in her circle to help Maureen take a stand against injustice and fight for the lives of their growing band of sisters. But can either woman open her heart to divine leading, or the love that might bring?
Band of Sisters is available online and can be ordered wherever books are sold.
Until next time, God’s blessings, and happy reading!
Cathy
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June 3, 2021
History Comes Alive at Ellis Island and Tenement Museum
If you have the opportunity to visit Ellis Island
and/or the Tenement Museum in Lower Manhattan this summer or just take a Virtual Tour, you’ll discover those visits are well worth your time. Walking through Ellis Island where so many of our ancestors knew they’d either be accepted and find the opportunity to begin a new life or rejected and sent back across the ocean sent chills up my spine.
Exploring the reproduced tenements during the tour in Lower Manhattan and hearing stories born of poverty created a journey into the past and opened wide the world of Band of Sisters for me. It helped me better appreciate the challenges and hardships our immigrant ancestors endured in order to create lives in this new world.
Band of Sisters
Maureen O’Reilly and her younger sister flee Ireland in hopes of claiming the life promised their father over twenty years before.
But after surviving the rigors of Ellis Island, Maureen learns that their NYC benefactor, Colonel Wakefield, has died, and his family, refusing to own his Civil War debt, casts her out.
Alone, impoverished, and in danger of deportation, Maureen connives to obtain employment in a prominent department store. But she soon discovers that the elegant façade hides a secret that threatens every vulnerable woman in the city.
Despite her family’s disapproval, Olivia Wakefield determines to honor her father’s debt, but can’t find Maureen. Unexpected help comes from a local businessman, who Olivia sees as more than an ally, even as she fears the secrets he’s hiding.
As women begin disappearing from the store, Olivia rallies influential ladies in her circle to help Maureen take a stand against injustice and fight for the lives of their growing band of sisters. But can either woman open her heart to divine leading, or the love that might bring?
Band of Sisters is available online and can be ordered wherever books are sold.
Until next time, God’s blessings, and happy reading!
Cathy
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Subscribe to Book Gems with Cathy Gohlke for video clips of books I love and love to share with readers.
The post History Comes Alive at Ellis Island and Tenement Museum first appeared on authorcathygohlke.com.May 25, 2021
Owen’s Favorite Orange and Currant Scones
“The moment Owen stepped into the boarding school kitchen, Annie pulled him to the table and sat him down across from her. Carefully she set a pot of steaming tea and her plate of warm orange and currant scones, with pots of marmalade and Devonshire cream between them.”—Promise Me ThisOwen’s Favorite Orange and Currant Scones
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour1⁄4 cup sugar (raw or white)3 tsp. baking powder1⁄2 tsp. salt1 stick (8 Tbsp.) cold butter, cut into pieces3⁄4 cup currants1egg1⁄2 cup heavy creamZest of two orangesRaw sugar for sprinkling on topDirections:
Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease bottom of 8 or 9 inch square or round baking pan or sheet.Mix flour, sugar baking powder and salt together with fork (or pulse in a food processor) to combine. Cut butter into mixture (or pulse in processor) until the mixture looks like pea- sized crumbs. In a large bowl combine this mixture with currants. Separately, whisk together egg, heavy cream and orange zest. Combine with the flour mixture. Stir until moist and large clumps of dough form.Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead only until the dough forms one ball. Roll (flouring as needed) into a 9 inch square or round (depending on desired shape of scones), about 3⁄4 inch thick.Either cut the dough into small rounds, using a cutter, or cut the rounded or squared dough into eighths for large scones (or sixteenths for small scones), and place on cookie sheet or in baking pan. If using a round cake pan, you can even leave the dough in one large piece and score the top into sections, breaking or cutting when ready to serve.Sprinkle each scone lightly with raw sugar. Bake about 25 minutes or until the scones are slightly golden.Remove from pan and cool on rack at least 10 minutes before serving.Serve with butter, or orange marmalade and Devonshire cream*Piping hot tea is the only other essential accompaniment ***Served warm, the melt in your mouth goodness of scones is part of British tea-time ritual.
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May 18, 2021
Titanic Never Grows Old
Exploring museums rich in Titanic history in South Hampton, England and in Halifax, Nova Scotia has given me an even greater appreciation of the tragedy and its aftermath than when I first conceived of this story. Well over one hundred years have passed since Titanic’s sinking, and yet we are still learning stories of survivors and stories of those who did not.
Promise Me ThisMichael Dunnagan was never supposed to sail on the Titanic, nor would he have survived if not for the courage of Owen Allen. Determined to carry out his promise to care for Owen’s relatives in America and his younger sister, Annie, in England, Michael works hard to strengthen the family’s New Jersey garden and landscaping business.
Annie Allen doesn’t care what Michael promised Owen. She only knows that her brother is gone—like their mother and father—and the grief is enough to swallow her whole. As Annie struggles to navigate life without Owen, Michael reaches out to her through letters. In time, as Annie begins to lay aside her anger that Michael lived when Owen did not, a tentative friendship takes root and blossoms into something neither expected. Just as Michael saves enough money to bring Annie to America, WWI erupts in Europe.
When Annie’s letters mysteriously stop, Michael risks everything to fulfill his promise—and find the woman he’s grown to love—before she’s lost forever.
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The post Titanic Never Grows Old first appeared on authorcathygohlke.com.May 6, 2021
Mothers–Our First Teachers
My mother, Bernice, is 93 years old, wheelchair bound and blind as the result of a stroke, is hearing impaired and lives in constant pain. Still, she is the most positive person I know—determined to remain cheerful, engage and ask others how they are doing, and practice gratitude for the smallest things. Her generous attitude, forged over decades, has been a powerful lifelong witness to me and to my siblings and our families. 
One of my favorite childhood memories is from the year and a half that we lived on a dairy farm in New York. I remember the day she tied the sash of my little-girl apron (red and yellow) as I “helped” her in the kitchen.
She told me the story of young George Washington chopping down a cherry tree, then truthfully confessing his wrongdoing to his father. She explained that it was the birthday of our first president so we were baking a cherry pie to celebrate. She taught me to roll out a little pie crust which we put in a patty pan and baked alongside her pie in the real oven. 
Since it was George Washington’s birthday I wanted to send him a card. Mom tried to explain why the former president wouldn’t get it but I could not understand that. After all, we’d just baked him a pie, it was his birthday, and I was four. We sent everybody birthday cards.
Patiently, Mom sorted through her box of greeting cards and helped me sign one to George Washington from my doll, Mary Jane, and me. That moment taught me to listen to and value the good intentions of children and to do what I can to help them achieve their goals–a valuable lesson for my own years of mothering, grandmothering and working with children in schools.
By Mom’s loving, faithful care in raising her four children as well as her care of eight family members and friends in their end-of-life years taught us to give of ourselves in real and personal ways—to do the practical, needful, caring things that Jesus showed us to do in this very real world.
Mom’s strong faith was evident through days of frustration, family heartache and when sick people were unable to appreciate her efforts. She trusted God and did not quit in the face of adversity. Her powerful witness did not go unnoticed. She has lived the Beatitudes and 1 Corinthians 13 before us, thereby creating a living legacy of caring children and grandchildren—a family circle of strength and love.
Mom taught us to be generous and openhanded, that nothing given is ever lost, that little things matter, and that constant, faithful, predictable expressions of love and generosity can boost spirits, be answers to prayers we don’t know have been prayed and prove God’s faithfulness in the lives of both givers and receivers.
Her belief that we would all do better down the road if given a little help now has inspired us to do the same. Mom taught us that charity begins at home but must not stay there. The gifts we receive are meant to be shared. This taught us to give joyfully and freely. We’ve learned firsthand that God opens His storehouse of blessings when we give faithfully and freely of our love, our time, our abilities and our resources.
Mom taught us to that one is never too young or too old to learn something new, that education within or without the home broadens horizons, keeps one interested, interesting and helps us all grow.
She learned early in life how to take personal inventory, determine what she needed to do or learn and find a way within her means to fill that need. Throughout the years she has taken many classes, joined organizations that helped the community, and faithfully attended and participated in church for as long as she could.
Our mother taught us about “the long haul” in relationships. We saw her work patiently for years, with little of the appreciation she deserved, in developing and mending broken relationships and dreams.
Now we see Mom reaping a bountiful harvest as each of her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren rise up and call her blessed!
I’m so thankful to still have my dear mother, so glad I can still chat with her on the phone each day, and tremendously thankful that COVID restrictions have lifted enough that I can visit with her in person once again. Each phone call, each visit is precious. I covet her prayers and I know she prays daily for each of us as we pray for her.
Our mothers are our first teachers and often those who leave the strongest impressions on our lives. Mother’s Day is too short a time to remember and celebrate our mothers, but it is a precious and worthy reminder to do so.
What are some of your favorite memories of time spent with or observing your mother? I’d love to hear your memories.
Until next time, happy reading and God’s great blessings for you,
Cathy
The post Mothers–Our First Teachers first appeared on authorcathygohlke.com.March 17, 2021
Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt Stop #11
Welcome to the Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt! If you’ve just discovered the hunt, be sure to start at Stop #1, and collect the clues through all the stops, in order, so you can enter to win one of our top 5 grand prizes!
Welcome! I’m Cathy Gohlke, and I write historical fiction–novels steeped with inspirational lessons, speaking of world and life events through the lens of history. I love to champion the battle against oppression, celebrating the freedom found only in Christ. You can learn more about me here on my site and on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Bookbub and Instagram
Night Bird Calling is my 2021 release.
Night Bird Calling is the story of Lilliana Swope, a young woman who flees an abusive marriage and seeks refuge with her grandaunt, Hyacinth Belvidere, at Garden’s Gate, their beautiful if weathered ancestral family home in the remote Appalachian foothill town of No Creek, North Carolina.
Hyacinth is delighted to take in her beloved niece, whom she’s not seen since Lilliana was five years old. Together, they seek to restore Garden’s Gate to its former glory, including its extensive and well-stocked library.
Precocious eleven-year-old Celia Percy, lover of amazing new words and stories, convinces the ladies to open their lending library to everyone in No Creek, regardless of the color of their skin. Many welcome this generous idea, but some locals, particularly those connected with the Klan, do not, and danger mounts for Lilliana and all those who stand with her.
Inspiration for Garden’s Gate’s lending library came from my own life experience—although my home in no way compared to Garden’s Gate!
Sometime after fleeing an abusive marriage as a young woman I bought an old trailer in a run down neighborhood—a far cry from Garden’s Gate—but the best I could afford at the time.
Children in that neighborhood ran as wild and untended as weeds in a garden run amuck. Often, as I cleaned the exterior and trimmed hedges or planted flowers in the small yard, children would stop by, curious about the newcomer. In talking with them I realized they received little attention at home, sometimes were in need of food, shoes and clothes, and had no access to the public library.
While I couldn’t supply all their needs, I could address some. I bought a used bookcase from a thrift shop, books at yard sales, and opened a lending library right there in my trailer.
Children came for hours sometimes to color pictures, read or be read to, enjoy glasses of milk and homemade bread with jam and just talk, asking questions about life, God, prison (where one of their fathers served time)—everything imaginable. They’d go home, books tucked under their arms, and invariably knock on my door for more within a day or two.
Parents often took advantage of their community’s new “free” babysitter, but those were precious and healing days for the children and for me. I befriended them but was more than rewarded as they befriended me.
Later I remarried and bore my own beloved children. When they were old enough I worked as a children’s librarian in a school. All those precious memories became the inspiration for Grand Aunt Hyacinth’s lending library in Night Bird Calling.
Here’s the Stop #11 Basics:
If you’re interested, you can order Night Bird Calling on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, CBD or at your local bookstore!
Clue to Write Down: hope
Link to Stop #12, the Next Stop on the Loop: Carla Laureano’s site!
But wait! There’s more! Before you go, I’m offering my Christy Award-winning novel, The Medallion, to two entrants (USA), randomly drawn. 
All you have to do is subscribe to my newsletter (middle of my Home Page) or leave a comment on this blog saying you’re already a subscriber. When you subscribe, you’ll receive a free copy of my short story, “Into the Starry Night,” a prequel to Night Bird Calling.
Feel free to follow me as an author on Bookbub! The benefit of following authors on Bookbub is that BB will let you know every time that author has a new release, has a book on sale, and/or reviews a book, which you might like too. It’s a pretty nifty, free service!
I will contact the winners of The Medallion by email.
Take care, happy reading, and God bless!
Cathy Gohlke
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February 8, 2021
Valentine Week Giveaway
February is here—the month we celebrate Black History Month, National Library Lover’s Month, Groundhog Day, Valentine’s Day, President’s Day, Fat Tuesday, Ash Wednesday—the first of 40 days of Lent. In one month we celebrate the serious, the humorous, the romantic, the patriotic and the spiritual!
To Celebrate READERS , five historical novelists have banded together to offer our latest releases to one happy winner of the drawing featured below.
To enter, click on the site and follow the instructions.
In Other News:
February marks another celebration for me. February 1st was the due date for my next manuscript—which I made one day early!
If you enjoyed the characters in Night Bird Calling you’ll be glad to know you’ll meet them again in A Hundred Crickets Singing—my working title. The title was inspired by a casual remark made by a reader in a letter—which goes to show how much I appreciate your letters and emails! Her words resonated with me and perfectly fit the book.
This new time split story (American Civil War and WWII) opens as a storm rips through Garden’s Gate’s attic, revealing a sealed room and a false-bottom trunk long forgotten. What Celia Percy finds inside sets her on a mission to solve a Civil War mystery and right a serious and longstanding wrong committed by a member of the Belvidere family.
A Hundred Crickets Singing is a stand alone book, but I loved revisiting No Creek and some of its characters who’ve become like family, as well as meeting new faces. I hope you’ll enjoy it. The story has gone for its first round of edits now and is scheduled to release in 2022. I’ll keep you posted!
I’ve so enjoyed feeding the birds in my back garden these snowy winter days—colorful flowers with wings! I’m also glad to stay inside where it’s warm. Hot coffee, tea and chocolate have become winter staples in my house, along with afghans, quilts and fires in the fireplace!
We’ve enjoyed some hearty stews, homebaked bread and recipes handed down through the generations. One of my family’s favorite winter recipes is my mother’s homemade tomato soup–Mmm mmm good! I found this recipe was adapted from her old copy of Joy of Cooking–only Mom’s was a much earlier edition!
Does warm soup sound good to you?
Try this recipe from Night Bird Calling: Celia’s Homemade Cream of Tomato Soup—SOOOO Good and a real taste of home!!
Take care, God bless and happy reading until next time,
Cathy
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