After months in a Confederate prison camp, Private Will Everett boards the Sultana eager to return home and leave behind the horrors of war. One day into the voyage, the overcrowded steamboat explodes, rendering Will injured and unable to recall his identity. With only a pocket watch and the name Will E. etched inside to guide him, Will begins a relentless quest to find his forgotten past. Scarred by her father’s untimely death, Lydia Gallagher struggles to trust God with unwanted changes in her family after the war. The arrival of an elusive, but handsome, stranger only adds to her angst. Until the intricacies of his true nature and the mysteries of his past come to light. As they work to thwart a ruthless man’s efforts to sabotage the farm, their admiration for each other deepens. But when Lydia becomes privy to information that could forever alter their lives, she must choose between losing the man she’s come to love or denying him the one thing he longs for most.
Welcome to Novel PASTimes! We’re pleased you stopped by today.
Thank you. It’s wonderful to be here.
Share a bit about yourself—your name, where you’re from, what occupies your time.
I’m Lydia Gallagher. I live on a farm four miles west of Elmira, New York. I’ll soon turn eighteen and have two older brothers, Drew and Luke, both of which recently returned from fighting in the War Between the States.
Oh, my. I’m so glad they survived to return home. Such a terrible war. Which side did they fight on?
They fought for the Union. Yes. Truly, the war was a terrible hardship on everyone. I was not yet eleven years old when the war began. Sadly, it stole much of my youth. I still remember waving goodbye to my father as he left to fight. It would be the last time I would ever see him.
I’m so sorry. How about your mother. Is she living?
Yes. She and I grew quite close after my father’s death and my brothers left to fight. We prayed day and night for my brothers’ safe return.
With only the two of you there, how did you manage the farm?
We had Luke’s help until he left for the war in 1863. Mama and I were able to maintain a sizeable garden and our neighbor, Hal Perkins, helped put in some of our crop, but much of the land remained fallow until Drew and Luke returned.
So, with the war over, have your brothers remained on the farm or married and followed other pursuits?
Surprisingly both brothers met and fell in love with Southern women during the war. Drew married Caroline and Luke eventually married Adelaide. While I dearly loved my new sisters-in-law, I disliked the unwanted changes that came about in our family after they wed. I had such great hopes of us all remaining together. But they and God had other plans.
Hmm. Sounds serious. So, were all the changes you experienced bad ones? Or did God have anything good in store?
Grin. Well, there was one positive change that came about. A stranger happened by our place and informed us Luke had hired him to help manage the farm. I was suspicious at first. He seemed quite vague about himself and wouldn’t give any straight answers. But once I learned the reason behind his ambiguity, I understood.
Ah, and was this stranger handsome?
I’ll admit he immediately caught my eye. He was ruddy and well-muscled with sandy hair and amazing hazel eyes. Up until now, no young man had sparked my interest. I’d had a few callers, but honestly, until I met Will, not a one of them struck my fancy. Will definitely changed that. But I had a hard time discerning if he felt the same about me.
So, have things turned out as you hoped for you and Will?
Smile. That’s something you and your fellow readers will have to learn when you read my story in Beyond Shattered Dreams.
Cynthia Roemer is an inspirational, award-winning author who enjoys planting seeds of hope into the hearts of readers. Raised in the cornfields of rural Illinois, she enjoys spinning tales set in the backdrop of the mid-1800’s prairie and Civil War era. Cynthia feels blessed the Lord has fulfilled her life-long dream of being a published novelist. It’s her prayer that her stories will encourage readers in their faith. She and her husband reside on the family farm. Visit Cynthia online at: www.cynthiaroemer.com
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