Maps!

 

One of the fun things about doing this series, in addition to the covers, has been the maps that are included. I’ve loved maps since my class began to study them in elementary school social studies, so it’s been a delight to work on these.

Obviously a professionally published historical series needs maps, and I’ve included at least one in every volume. My illustrator, Jim Brown of Jim Brown Illustrations, is wonderful to work with and does a smashing job creating the maps I need. Here’s the latest one: the Siege of York, which began on September 29, 1781 and ended on October 19, finally forcing the British to begin negotiations to end the war. By the way, the town was named York until some years after the war’s end, and that’s its name in Forge of Freedom.

The map shows the final positions and fortifications of the combined American-French Army and the British at York and across the York River on Gloucester Point, where Lt. Col. Banastre Tarleton commanded a small fort and entrenchments. Several of the British ships that were blocked in the river while guarding the communication lines between York and Gloucester Point are also shown. French bombardment sent the HMS Charon up in flames along with several other ships in her immediate vicinity. On the inset, HMS Guadeloupe had to be scuttled by the British to prevent her capture. To the right of York, Redoubts 9 and 10 were the object of the American and French final assault on October 14 that allowed the allied army to extend their lines so close to the British lines that they had no choice but to surrender. Forge of Freedom includes that assault in the depiction of the battle. 

 So what do you think? It’s it pretty? I'm a happy girl!

Update on Forge of Freedom

Yesterday I finished the full edit of Forge of Freedom! And now that I have the final page count—523 pages! Yikes!—my designer can finalize the cover’s spine width. As Marisa said, “That’s a big book.” Yes, it is. And I don’t expect to ever do that again! 

Even the back cover is going to be gorgeous, as you can see in the preliminary at the left. The text isn’t correct at this point and will be changed, so ignore that. The image of Muchalls castle in Scotland appeared in previous posts and is in the sidebar at right. It’s the perfect stand-in for the manor house at Jonathan Carleton’s Virginia estate, Thornlea, and Marisa did a fantastic job of enhancing the image so it’s exactly as I envision it!

Forge is long, indeed, but the page count does include the frontmatter and the historical notes, appendix, and glossary at the end. The story itself is just slightly over 500 pages. I knew from the beginning this was going to be a hefty tome since there was a lot of ground to cover, and I really did not want to end up adding an eighth volume. I’m sure readers will be grateful for that!

Because my purpose is to accurately portray God’s working in history through exciting stories, I wanted to at least touch on the main historical events, delving more deeply into the most critical ones. And, of course, there are Jonathan’s and Elizabeth’s personal stories, their life together, and their families that needed to be covered, as well as those of the major secondary characters. Not to mention loose ends to tie up from the previous books. I think I hit the most important ones.

I pray that this final volume will carry readers along, offer insights into the characters that speak to their own lives, and entertain, inspire, and deeply touch the heart. I found encouragement and blessing in the writing of it, and so I commend this story, this series, to you, dear readers. I am beyond grateful for everyone who has written reviews and for those who have encouraged and cheered me on when the work seemed too heavy to carry.

And now proofreading is next. My mapmaker is working on the Battle of York (called Yorktown today). At right is the map mine is based on. I also have several endorsements already, with several more coming. As soon as I have these last bits in hand, I’ll finalize the text for upload to my printer and online sites for the print edition. Christianbook has Forge up for preorder and should be able to send orders out slightly before the official release on October 1. And, of course, it will be available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble too.

The ebook edition still needs to be created and uploaded as well. It will most likely release about the same day as the print edition. And then there's promo, of course. Lots of promo—my least favorite task. Ugh. I sure do appreciate the power of word of mouth, and I would appreciate it immensely if you would let your contacts who love historical/romance fiction know about the series. And please do post reviews on Amazon and elsewhere! They help so much.

It’s going to be hard to say farewell to the characters I’ve come to know so well through the years I’ve spent researching and writing this series—from 1984 to the present. How I have come to love them! They’ve become so real to me and dear friends, and I hope to you too. I’m already mourning their loss, but it is time for me to move on to new projects, and I’m beginning to think about what comes next.

Here’s the back cover blurb for Forge.

In the final volume of The American Patriot Series, the Americans’ war for independence concludes in triumph—and the renewed fight of the Shawnee for survival in their ancestral lands. From John Paul Jones’s epic battle with HMS Serapis, to the conflagration on the western frontier; a traitor’s bitter betrayal; and the decisive confrontation at Cowpens, events out of Jonathan and Elizabeth Carleton’s control spiral toward a fateful climax at Yorktown. Yet amid war’s harsh trials they discover that, even more than the grand ideal of liberty and the deep intimacy of earthly love, the cry of their hearts is for the true peace and lasting freedom that are found in God alone.

 

Cover Reveal!

Today is cover reveal day for Book 7 of the American Patriot Series, and voilà, here it is! I’ve been waiting to reach this stage of production for a long time, and I know many of my readers have been too! We’re making progress: Forge of Freedom is set to release in October 2022. 

I chose this image of General George Washington surrendering his commission as commander in chief of the Continental Army to Congress because it exemplifies the hallowed tradition of our republic that the civil authority of our government is in control of the military establishment instead of the other way around, unhappy examples of which are evident in a number of countries around the globe. Bless our Founders for their wisdom! This scene will appear toward the end of Forge of Freedom.

I gave fuller details on this painting by John Trumbull in a previous post, and you’ll find it here.  The original painting hangs in the United States Capitol rotunda in Washington D.C.

Please leave a comment. I’d love to have your feedback on the cover!

Cover Reveal for Lori Benton's Shiloh, Book 2 of the Kindred Series!

At last!! It’s finally time to reveal the cover of Shiloh, the second installment in award-winning author Lori Benton’s Kindred duology. And here it is! Don’t you just love this cover? It’s every bit lovely as Mountain Laurel’s! 

And speaking of book 1, if you’ve read Mountain Laurel, I know you’re looking forward to book 2 as much as I am! Shiloh releases on October 5 this fall and will be available for preorder on March 1.

Shiloh is a rich historical novel of faith, hope, and second chances. Below is a preview of the story. 

DECEMBER 1795 

A year has passed since Ian Cameron reluctantly sent his uncle’s former slave, Seona, and their son, Gabriel, north to his kin in Boston. Determined to fully release them, Ian strives to make a life at Mountain Laurel, his inherited plantation, along with Judith, the wife he’s vowed to love and cherish. But when tragedy leaves him alone with his daughter, Mandy, and his three remaining slaves, he decides to return north. An act of kindness on the journey provides Ian the chance to obtain land near the frontier settlement of Shiloh, New York. Perhaps even the hope for a new life with those he still holds dear.

In Boston, Seona has taken her first tentative steps as a freewoman, while trying to banish Ian from her heart. The Cameron family thinks she and Gabriel should remain under their protection. Seona’s mother, Lily, thinks it’s time they strike out on their own. Then Ian arrives, offering a second chance Seona hadn’t dared imagine. But the wide-open frontier of Shiloh feels as boundless and terrifying as her newfound freedom—a place of new friends and new enemies, where deep bonds are renewed but old hurts stand ready to rear their heads. It will take every ounce of faith and courage Ian and Seona can muster to fight for their family and their future . . . together. 

~~~

If you haven’t yet read Mountain Laurel (Kindred #1), you don’t want to miss it! Be sure to grab a copy before Shiloh releases so you can catch up with the action. 

NORTH CAROLINA, 1793

Ian Cameron, a Boston cabinetmaker turned frontier trapper, has come to Mountain Laurel hoping to remake himself yet again—into his planter uncle’s heir. No matter how uneasily the role of slave owner rests upon his shoulders. Then he meets Seona—beautiful, artistic, and enslaved to his kin.

Seona has a secret: she’s been drawing for years, ever since that day she picked up a broken slate to sketch a portrait. When Ian catches her at it, he offers her opportunity to let her talent flourish, still secretly, in his cabinetmaking shop. Taking a frightening leap of faith, Seona puts her trust in Ian. A trust that leads to a deeper, more complicated bond.

As fascination with Seona turns to love, Ian can no longer be the man others have wished him to be. Though his own heart might prove just as untrustworthy a guide, he cannot simply walk away from those his kin enslaves. With more lives than his and Seona’s in the balance, the path Ian chooses now will set the course for generations of Camerons to come.

~~~

Shiloh also revisits several key characters from Lori’s debut novel, Burning Sky, and you’ll want to make their acquaintance too if you haven’t already. The good news is that there’s also plenty of time to meet the frontier denizens of Shiloh, New York, in the pages of Burning Sky before Shiloh’s October release.

Abducted by Mohawk Indians at fourteen and renamed Burning Sky, Willa Obenchain is driven to return to her family’s New York frontier homestead after many years building a life with the People. At the boundary of her father’s property, Willa discovers a wounded Scotsman lying in her path. Feeling obliged to nurse his injuries, the two quickly find much has changed during her twelve-year absence: her childhood home is in disrepair, her missing parents are rumored to be Tories, and the young Richard Waring she once admired is now grown into a man twisted by the horrors of war and claiming ownership of the Obenchain land.

 

When her Mohawk brother arrives and questions her place in the white world, the cultural divide blurs Willa’s vision. Can she follow Tames-His-Horse back to the People now that she is no longer Burning Sky? And what about Neil MacGregor, the kind and loyal botanist who does not fit into in her plan for a solitary life, yet is now helping her revive her farm? In the aftermath of the Revolutionary War, strong feelings against “savages” abound in the nearby village of Shiloh, leaving Willa’s safety unsure.

 

As tensions rise, challenging her shielded heart, the woman called Burning Sky must find a new courage--the courage to again risk embracing the blessings the Almighty wants to bestow. Is she brave enough to love again?

Be sure to check out all three of these powerful, heart-capturing stories!

Blog Header

As you can see, the blog has a new look! The header image is John Trumbull’s American General George Washington resigning his commission as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army to the Congress of the Confederation at Annapolis, Maryland, on December 23, 1783.

Trumbull depicts Washington’s resignation as the commander in chief of the army on December 23, 1783, to the United States Congress, then meeting at the Maryland State House in Annapolis. At this time our government was a confederation, rather than a republic, as it became in 1788. That Washington resigned his commission was highly significant to our nation’s history in that it established civilian, rather than military rule and consequently a dictatorship. I’m sure we’re all extremely grateful for our Founders’ wisdom!

In Trumbull’s painting, Washington stands with two of his aides as he addresses the president of the Congress, Thomas Mifflin, and others, such as Elbridge Gerry, Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and James Madison. Martha Washington and her three grandchildren are shown watching from the gallery, but they were not, in fact, present for this momentous event.

The following year, Washington was elected the first president of the new republic.

The painting was commissioned in 1817 and placed in the United States Capitol rotunda in Washington D.C. in 1824, where it is still located today. Its imposing dimensions are 144.00 in × 216.00 in. 

Have you had the privilege of seeing this painting in person? I haven't, but I’d certainly love to!