Ann Gabhart, December Releases, and Free Books!

Heavy with child and with nowhere else to turn, Heather Worth seeks shelter at the Harmony Hill Shaker village where she is surprised to find gifts of healing and hope among these unusual people.

Before we visit today's author, I want to announce that the winner of the signed copy of The Case of the Exploding Speakeasy, by David Fessenden, is:

pmk56@ . . .

Congratulations! I'll email you today to get your mailing addresses, and we'll get your books to you right away. I encourage readers to keep commenting and/or subscribe at right (above my list of books) in order to participate in future book give-aways! Subscribers are entered a second time when they comment.

Remember to enter your email address when you comment, as described in today's drawing information, below. If you win the drawing but haven't left your email address, I can't contact you!

Now let's visit with novelist Ann Gabhart, author of Christmas at Harmony Hill (Revell Books, September 2013).

Ann Gabhart, the author of several bestselling novels, has been called a storyteller, not a bad thing for somebody who never wanted to do anything but write down stories. She’s published over twenty-five books for adults and young adults with more stories on the way.

Scent of Lilacs, the first of her Heart of Hollyhill books, made Booklist’s Top Ten Books in Christian Fiction. The Outsider, the novel that began her Shaker series, was a finalist for Christian Fiction Book of 2009.

Ann writes historical fiction and Small Town, America stories about families. She keeps her keyboard warm out on a farm in Kentucky where she lives with her husband. They have three children, three in-law children, and nine grandchildren.

Please tell us three random things we might not know about you.

--When I was around eight, I begged and begged until my father let me have my first dog, and since then, I haven’t been without at least one dog in my life. My current dog buddy is Oscar who shows up frequently on my Facebook author page.

--I’m a country girl who grew up on a farm. Now I live just over the hill from there on another farm.

--My first computer/word processor was a very used, ancient office model that was shipped to my house in a plain cardboard box without any instructions. I knew how to turn it on and that was it. The book, DOS for Dummies, saved my sanity as I came into the computer age. Before that I wrote all my books on a typewriter.

Please tell us a bit more about the plot of Christmas at Harmony Hill.

Christmas at Harmony Hill is set in 1864 with the country still being torn apart by the Civil War. Heather Worth has been following her husband’s army unit as a washerwoman, but now she is expecting her first child.

When the Army orders Gideon’s unit to Tennessee to fight one of the last battles of the war, Heather goes home to have her baby, only to find sorrow and rejection. With nowhere else to turn, she seeks shelter in the Shaker village of Harmony Hill where her great aunt Sophrena lives. There, after many peaceful years, Sophrena is beginning to doubt her Shaker path. The two women are in need of love and forgiveness, both given and received.

Meanwhile, Gideon is facing his own challenges on the battlefield. Can the miracle of new life at Christmas fill all their hearts with unexpected joy?

Why will readers care about Heather?

Readers will sympathize with Heather who faces many challenges when her husband marches off to fight one of the last battles of the Civil War. Heather is weary of war and in need of love and rest. She’s vulnerable and strong at the same time and a character readers will welcome into their hearts as she awaits the birth of her first child while pondering how Mary must have felt long ago waiting for the birth of Jesus.

If you were the casting director for the film version of your novel, who would play your lead roles?

I don’t watch much television or see very many movies, so I come up blank on these types of questions. However with the magic of internet, I have found an answer by googling red-haired actors and dark haired actresses. One of the photos I saw of British actor, Eddie Redmayne, was a perfect Gideon.



I wasn’t as sure about Heather, but Evangeline Lilly looks almost right for the role.




What is a gift you wish you could give for Christmas this year, and to whom would you give it?

This is not a gift that anyone can give, but since I’m only wishing, the gift I would more than anything like to give would be the memory of all her years back to my mother who suffers from dementia, the saddest disease. If the gift of memory couldn’t be given, I would wish her a gift of peace so that she wouldn’t feel so lost and confused.

Oh, that's heartbreaking, Ann. I'll keep her in my prayers.

What is the last novel you read that you would recommend?

The last novel I read was Tattler's Branch by Jan Watson. Jan sets her novels in the Appalachian Mountains and she always creates interesting characters. Lillie, her main character in this novel, is a doctor in a mining town at a time in history when women doctors weren’t common. I can recommend the story for its believable characters, interesting history and beautiful prose.

What are you working on now?

I recently completed edits on my third Rosey Corner book. Love Comes Home (July 2014) follows up Small Town Girl and Angel Sister as the soldiers come home after World War II. Life continues on for my characters in these stand-alone stories set several years apart. Now I’m beginning work on a new story set in my Shaker village of Harmony Hill, with a working title of The Innocent.

Where else can readers find you online?

You can find out more about me or my books by visiting www.annhgabhart.com. I also post twice a week on One Writer’s Journal, www.annhgabhart.blogspot.com, and that’s truly a journal format with the post being whatever is on my mind whether about books, writing, or things down here on the farm. I also let Jocie, my young character in my Heart of Hollyhill series set in the 1960’s, post once a week at www.hollyhillbookofthestrange.blogspot.com. You can join in the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

The book can be purchased in fine book stores and online via the following buttons:






CBD.com

Finally, what question would you like to ask my readers?

One of the questions I answered here was what gift I wish I could give. So I’m changing that question a bit to ask you what’s the best Christmas gift you ever received?

Thanks, Ann, for visiting with us and telling us about your novel. Readers, Ann has offered to give a signed copy of her book to the winner of our drawing on Monday, December 9. To enter, leave a comment below in answer to Ann's question, above. "Please enter me" won't get you entered. Leave your email address, in case you win, like so: trish[at]trishperry[dot]com.

Be sure to check out my post about Love Finds You on Christmas Morning and my interview with Sydney Avey , below. Leave an appropriate comment at the bottom of each post to enter the drawing for a signed copy of the book.

Also, I'd love it if you'd connect with me on Facebook. Just click on my name at the right of today's post.

Annoying legal disclaimer: drawings void where prohibited; open only to U.S. residents; the odds of winning depend upon the number of participants. See full disclaimer HERE.

As you scroll to the bottom of the post to answer Ann's question, take a look at some of the fantastic new inspirational fiction releasing in December.

A Wedding Date in Hot Springs, Arkansas by Annalisa Daughety -- Violet and Jackson both need dates to special events, so they hire a matchmaker to find somebody. Horrified when they meet---they already know and dislike each other from college---but with no other recourse, they agree to "pretend." After a planned kiss with unexpected chemistry, will this sham arrangement turn into love?. (Contemporary Romance from Barbour Publishing).

The Fairest Beauty by Melanie Dickerson -- In this retelling of the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs fairy tale, Sophie has little choice but to trust her betrothed's brother, Gabe, to help her escape the evil Duchess Ermengard. (Historical from Zondervan).

A Christmas Homecoming by MaryAnn Diorio -- When Sonia Pettit's teenage daughter suddenly disappears for seven long years, Sonia faces losing her mind, her husband, and her son as she struggles to forgive her wayward daughter and trust God for her return. (Contemporary from Harbourlight Books (Pelican).

A Promise to Protect by Liz Johnson -- Navy SEAL Matt Waterstone knows about keeping people safe. When his best friend's sister is attacked, Matt promises no harm will come to Ashley Sawyer-not on his watch. But Matt's not the only protective one. Ashley will do anything to safeguard the residents of the battered women's shelter she runs. She's sure she can handle the threats she gets in return. What she can't handle is the way Matt scales the walls around her heart. Yet when she falls prey to a crime web far more sinister than she'd realized, trusting Matt could be the only way to survive... (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired Suspense).

Sagebrush Knights by Erica Vetsch -- Evelyn, Jane, Gwendolyn, and Emeline Gerhard arrive in Wyoming Territory in search of husbands. But when the men awaiting them are not the knights-in-shining-armor they hoped for, it will take a hearty dose of faith to see them through. Will love prevail or bring a not so happy ending? (Romantic Suspense from Barbour Publishing).

Counterfeit Cowboy by Lacy Williams -- A con man with a conscience meets and falls in love with a girl way out of his league. (Historical Romance from Love Inspired).

Happy reading!