History – Janet Grunst

October 30, 2024October 14, 2024

Exploring Themes of Healing and Hope

By Susan G Mathis

Inflicting pain on beloved characters is always a delicate endeavor for writers, especially me. And writing Julia’s Joy was an interesting, and sometimes painful journey.

Julia’s sorrow is palpable; her parents’ untimely deaths left her with a void that was hard to fill. This loss manifests in various ways—through her reluctance to connect with others and her initial determination to leave Sister Island after claiming her inheritance. Her journey is not just about physical relocation but a deeper emotional struggle to reconcile her past with her present.

Julia’s confusion following her grandmother’s death adds another layer to her character. She arrives on Sister Island intending to lay claim to her inheritance but quickly finds herself grappling with questions of identity and belonging. The island represents both a sanctuary and a reminder of her losses, creating a tension that is difficult for her to navigate.

William Dodge, the Sister Island lighthouse keeper, becomes a pivotal figure in Julia’s healing process. His own past betrayal mirrors Julia’s struggles, allowing them to connect on a deeper level. As Julia begins to open up to him, the walls he has built around his heart also start to crumble. This vulnerability is both a relief and a source of pain as it forces both to confront their unresolved grief.

The journey toward healing is rarely linear, and Julia’s path is fraught with setbacks. As she starts to embrace the peaceful, faith-filled environment of Sister Island, she is faced with moments of profound joy and deep sorrow. This duality reflects the complexity of grief—how moments of happiness can coexist with lingering pain. Julia’s internal conflict amplifies the emotional stakes of the narrative and keeps readers invested in her journey.

I hope Julia’s Joy will take you on a journey of transformation and bless you.

About Julia’s Joy:

She came to claim her inheritance, but the mysterious scarred lighthouse keeper makes her question all her plans.

When Julia Collins reluctantly sets foot on Sister Island, compelled by her wealthy grandmother’s will, she is intent on claiming her inheritance and moving on. But when she experiences the peaceful, faith-filled island life, and connects with the handsome lightkeeper, William, Julia finds herself confronting her open wounds from her parents’ deaths.

William Dodge, lightkeeper of Sister Island, harbors a heart hardened by a past betrayal. Between that and his chronic pleurisy, he wants nothing to do with love. But when Julia arrives on the island bursting with vitality and unconventional notions, William’s world is turned upside down. As she chips away at the walls William has built for himself, he finds his reluctance waning.

But just as love begins to blossom between them, Julia is faced with a tempting proposal from a prominent Brockville family. Will she succumb to societal expectations or choose the richness of her island life and the love of the steadfast lightkeeper?

About Susan:

Susan G Mathis is an international award-winning, multi-published author of stories set in the beautiful Thousand Islands, her childhood stomping ground in upstate NY. Susan has been published more than thirty times in full-length novels, novellas, and non-fiction books. She has thirteen in her fiction line including, The Fabric of Hope: An Irish Family Legacy, Christmas Charity, Katelyn’s Choice, Devyn’s Dilemma, Sara’s Surprise, Reagan’s Reward, Colleen’s Confession, Peyton’s Promise, Rachel’s Reunion, Mary’s Moment, A Summer at Thousand Island House, Libby’s Lighthouse, and Julia’s Joy, the second in her three-book lighthouse series. Her book awards include three Illumination Book Awards, four American Fiction Awards, three Indie Excellence Book Awards, five Literary Titan Book Awards, two Golden Scroll Awards, and a Selah Award. Susan is also a published author of two premarital books, two children’s picture books, stories in a dozen compilations, and hundreds of published articles. Susan makes her home in Northern Virginia and enjoys traveling around the world but returns each summer to enjoy the Thousand Islands. Visit www.SusanGMathis.com/fiction for more.

Where can people find you online?

Susan’s website: https://www.susangmathis.com/fiction-books

Buy links: Amazon | Barnes&Nobles | Wild Heart Books

Julia’s Joy book trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq7XLUohjrA

September 16, 2024June 21, 2024

A Trail To Love by Susan Craft

Hi Susan, book three of your Great Wagon Road series, A Trail To Love, will be released this September. Please share a little about yourself and what sparked your writing journey.

I was married to my high school sweetheart until his death 48 years later. God blessed us with two wonderful children, a granddaughter, and a granddog, a doxi-poo with attitude. I retired after a 45-year career in writing, editing, and communicating in business settings.

I write Christian historical romance and inspirational historical romantic suspense. Can you believe I’m 75 years old and writing romance?

I authored the national award-winning trilogy Women of the American Revolution—The Chamomile, Laurel, and Cassia.

I collaborated with the International Long Riders’ Guild Academic Foundation to compile An Equestrian Writer’s Guide (www.lrgaf.org), including almost everything you’d ever want to know about horses.

I admit to being an unabated history nerd who would rather research than write. My adult children will happily relay the times when they were children and our family would visit sensory-rich places such as Cape Romain Wildlife Refuge, Bulls Bay, SC, for me to soak in the sights, sounds, and smells to include in my novels. I enjoy painting and sitting on my porch with my dog, Steeler, who dispassionately watches geese eat my daylilies, but barks at every bug that invades his space. I most recently took up the ukulele and am trying to play Izzy’s version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow.

My third-grade teacher, Mrs. King, engendered my thirst for writing when she read aloud to us the book she was writing about two Native American children. She made me aware that authors weren’t “people out there somewhere.” I could be one too. At eight, I wrote my first novel, The Mystery of the Whistling Cave. I bound it with heavy cardboard and sewed it together with dental floss.

What inspired you to write this particular series?

My husband Rick and I grew up watching the tv series Wagon Train. The stories of pioneers and settlers fascinated me and inspired a healthy respect for our sturdy forebears who risked everything to make a new life. When I shared with Rick my discovery of the Great Wagon Road that stretched, not out West, but down the US east coast from Philadelphia to Savannah, GA, he thought it would make a fantastic series. I couldn’t resist the spark that fired my imagination and curiosity about the mostly Scots-Irish immigrants who traveled that trail beginning in the early 1700’s.

Please tell us about Trail To Love.

A widowed father…a heartbroken nanny…and a wagon train journey that will change their lives forever.

Since the death of her fiancé, Anne Forbes has given up on the life she thought she’d have. After taking a role as nanny to her two young nephews, she’s grown close to her brother’s family—a replacement for the one she never had the chance to start. But when she accompanies them on the wagon trail to their new life in South Carolina, a handsome and gallant widowed father who’s also part of the group catches her eye and her heart, making her wonder if God might have plans of love for her after all. If only the beautiful woman the man escorts didn’t have her sights set on him.

Michael Harrigan never considered remarrying after the death of his wife. No woman could ever compare. But when he meets the gentlehearted Anne while escorting his sister-in-law on their journey to the Blue Ridge Mountains, he’s taken aback by Anne’s lovely voice and her compassion. As they face the trials and adventures of life on the trail, he finds himself open to the idea of marriage for the first time in many years.

But when disaster strikes the wagon train, Michael and Anne must work side-by-side to save lives. In the midst of their struggles, can they find a way to abandon their separate trails of grief and hardship for the trail to love?

Is there a message or a spiritual theme in your novel that you want readers to grasp?

I do have similar themes throughout my writing–faith under pressure and relinquishing willfulness and reliance upon self-sufficiently. Modern day Christians say, “Let go and let God.”

I visualize my body of work as a tapestry through which I’ve spun a golden thread of faith made from finely hatchelled flax silk. Although it may occasionally disappear from sight, it’s always there, a constant foundation, binding the piece together.

Can you tell us anything about your next book or a current work in process?

Honestly, after my husband passed, I thought I might never write again. God had other ideas. I submitted my novel that my husband inspired, Love’s Winding Road, to Wild Heart Books. They liked it and asked if I would write a 3-part series. I think my neighbors probably heard me swallowing as I considered the request. Writing two more novels in a year was an achievement that amazed me, because I am not a fast writer.

I do have another Great Wagon Road romance that keeps roiling around in my brain with characters that insist I write their story.

Why do you write the kind of books you do?

I’m a history nerd who enjoys researching and then subtly sharing historical tidbits in my writing so that my readers learn something without realizing it. I share faith elements the same way by showing that Christians endure tragedies and hardships, but rely on their faith to sort through and survive them. God lit a passion in me for writing at an early age, so anything I create, I do for His glory.

Where can readers find your books?

Amazon, Kindle, Barnes and Noble, Bookbub, Target, and Walmart, as well as some outlets/booksellers featured on Google

Social Media Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/susan.craft.108

X: @susanfcraft

Instagram: susanfcraftauthor

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/susanfc/ Pinterest

http://historicalfictionalightintime.blogspot.com (Historical Fiction a Light in Time)

http://colonialquills.blogspot.com (Colonial Quills)

http://stitchesthrutime.blogspot.com (Stitches Thru Time)

http://www.hhhistory.com (Heroes, Heroines and History)

https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/7357343-susan-craft (Goodreads)

Love’s Winding Road

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1942265891

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1942265894

Trail of Promises

ISBN-10: 1942265964

ISBN-13: 978-1942265962

July 16, 2024June 21, 2024

Susan Mathis, author of Libby’s Lighthouse

You have a new three-book series called Love in a Lighthouse. Tell us about that, please:

Join the Row-family women, Libby, Julia, and Emma, as they navigate the isolation, danger, and hope for lasting love at three different Thousand Island lighthouses in the St. Lawrence River.

Libby’s Lighthouse

Book One coming July 16, 2024

When a lighthouse keeper’s daughter finds a mysterious sailor with amnesia, the secrets she uncovers may change her life forever.

Elizabeth Montonna, daughter of the Tibbett’s Point Lighthouse keeper, thought she’d love the lighthouse life forever—until her mother, on her deathbed, reveals a long-buried secret. Now Elizabeth’s world has been turned upside down, making her question if she’ll ever truly belong and be loved. But when a dashing young sailor appears on her shore, wounded and disoriented, she finds purpose in helping him recover. Although the man knows nothing about his past or identity, his kindness and character steal a little more of her heart each day. If only she knew his full name.

When Owen awakes on the shore of Lake Ontario with no knowledge of who he is, or where he was headed when his ship wrecked, he has no choice but to accept the hospitality of the lighthouse keeper and his lovely daughter. But as Owen works to repay their kindness, and his relationship with Libby turns into something more, he knows their budding romance can go no further until he uncovers his past.

With each passing day, Owen inches closer to discovering the secrets of his identity, but will the revelations bring him closer to Libby or tear them apart forever?

Julia’s Joy

Book two coming October 29, 2024

She came to claim her inheritance, but the mysterious lighthouse keeper makes her question all her plans.

When Julia Collins reluctantly sets foot on Sister Island, compelled by her grandmother’s will, she is intent on claiming her inheritance and moving on. But when she experiences the peaceful, faith-filled island life and connects with the handsome lightkeeper, William, Julia finds herself confronting her open wounds from her parents’ deaths.

Emma’s Engagement

Book three coming January 21, 2025

Emma Row embarks on a journey that will test her resilience and love. She marries Michael Diepolder, the Rock Island Lightkeeper and widower, a man who seeks a companion for both himself and his eleven-year-old daughter, Ada. But as she steps into the role of lightkeeper’s wife with a heart full of hope, little does she know that the idyllic setting conceals challenges that will shake the foundation of her happiness. Isolation creeps in, compounded by Ada’s determination to keep her father all to herself. As a storm looms, Emma must grapple with the difficulties of being a stepmother and lightkeeper’s wife. Will she find her place, or will the tumultuous waves of doubt and isolation tear them apart?

For Michael, Emma is not just a wife but the hope for his future. But the lighthouse life and being a stepmother proves harder for Emma than he ever imagined, and Ada’s animosity only intensifies it. When the lighthouse inspector questions Emma’s place due to her Canadian heritage and Ada become deathly ill, the very foundation of their family is shaken. Can their family find solace and unity on this tiny island?

Amid the swirling tempest of challenges, Emma, Michael, and Ada must discover the strength within themselves and each other to weather the storm. Emma’s Engagement is a poignant tale of love, resilience, and the enduring bonds that can form in the most unexpected places. This fictional story is based on the actual lives of Michael and Emma Diepolder.

What inspired you to write Libby’s Lighthouse?

My grandmother, Libby, inspired this story. When she was a young woman, she and her family lived in Cape Vincent, near Tibbetts Point Lighthouse, whose stories I tell in my first two books, The Fabric of Hope and Christmas Charity. During my childhood, every summer we would visit the lighthouse, and after Grandma died, my mother continued the tradition. I did the same, and I still visit the lighthouse every summer. When I started writing about the Thousand Islands, I knew I had to tell its story.

What kind of research did you do for Libby’s Lighthouse?

Though I visited the lighthouse annually, I also researched online, in books, and with interviews. With all the details I collected, I wove a story that is visceral, interesting, and I think, memorable.

Does one of the main characters hold a special place in your heart?

I love Libby. Named after my beloved grandma who grew up in Cape Vincent, she’s a young woman who needs her broken heart healed but gives her all to help another. My characters become so real to me; they become friends. Smiles.

What were the key challenges you faced when writing this book?

Because I write about real places and people, I want to be as accurate as possible, so I have a Thousand Islands historian who read my story for accuracy. I also like to incorporate as many historic details to make sure my details were correct. Though it’s extra work, it always helps to check with the experts.

What message do you hope readers take away from Libby’s Lighthouse?

All twelve of my Thousand Islands’ stories have hope as the central theme. Hope for a better future. Hope for love. Hope for healing. Libby’s Lighthouse also focuses on adoption, amnesia, forgiving betrayals, healing broken hearts, and embracing God’s redemption.

About Susan:

Susan G Mathis is an international award-winning, multi-published author of stories set in the beautiful Thousand Islands, her childhood stomping ground in upstate NY. Susan has been published more than thirty times in full-length novels, novellas, and non-fiction books. She has twelve in her fiction line including, The Fabric of Hope: An Irish Family Legacy, Christmas Charity, Katelyn’s Choice, Devyn’s Dilemma, Sara’s Surprise, Reagan’s Reward, Colleen’s Confession, Peyton’s Promise, Rachel’s Reunion, Mary’s Moment, A Summer at Thousand Island House and Libby’s Lighthouse, the first in her three-book lighthouse series. Her book awards include three Illumination Book Awards, four American Fiction Awards, three Indie Excellence Book Awards, five Literary Titan Book Awards, a Golden Scroll Award, and a Selah Award. Susan is also a published author of two premarital books, two children’s picture books, stories in a dozen compilations, and hundreds of published articles. Susan makes her home in Northern Virginia and enjoys traveling around the world but returns each summer to enjoy the Thousand Islands. Visit www.SusanGMathis.com/fiction for more.

Where can people find you online?

Susan’s website: https://www.susangmathis.com/fiction-books

Buy links: Amazon | Barnes&Nobles | Wild Heart Books

Book trailer: Libby’s Lighthouse book trailer

June 20, 2023

Why I Wrote a Revolutionary War Series

I’m intrigued by the motivations, means, and results of people who emigrated to the American colonies. Many came to escape circumstances in their homeland, others sought adventure or the potential of a better life.

The ingenuity, courage, and inspiration of our founders in declaring independence and establishing our constitutional republic fascinate me.

A series allows for a more in-depth character examination and circumstances over an extended period.

While historical events are set at a specific point in time, there are often details about them that readers have little knowledge of and find interesting.

Fictional characters in historical novels often experience many of the same issues mankind has struggled with throughout time. While characters’ attitudes and how they navigate life decisions are often a view into the era and culture in which they live, people of any generation can relate to them.

A Heart Set Free

Desperate to escape further deception, disillusionment, and disgrace Heather Douglas flees Scotland in 1770 as an indentured servant. Her life detours when a widowed Virginia planter purchases the indenture and marries her. Through her journey of self-examination and maturing faith, Heather is finally free to experience the life she desires.

It is in the Virginia countryside that she begins her greatest journey, one of self-discovery and faith. She discovers that her emotional and spiritual scars bind her far more than her indenture. Will the liberty she seeks finally provide her with the freedom she longs for?

https://www.amazon.com/Heart-Set-Free-Janet-Grunst/dp/1946016012/ref

A Heart For Freedom

By the spring of 1775, antagonism between the colonists and the British has escalated to confrontation. Strife between factions loyal to the crown and those demanding independence is pitting friends, neighbors, and families against each other. Like many others, Heather and Matthew Stewart’s world has turned upside down, and for children, growing up always has its challenges, but war can accelerate and define it.

When Matthew disappears, unexplainable and odd events create doubts and suspicion, and loyalties are questioned. His absence tests the Stewart family in ways they could have never imagined. The characters face heartaches and grief, joys and hope, dangers and intrigue, love and faith.

https://www.amazon.com/Heart-Freedom…/dp/B07FB5J172/ref

Setting Two Hearts Free

Donald Duncan joined the Patriot cause for noble reasons. The war has changed him, and now the battle is internal.

Mary Stewart spends the war years with her family at Stewarts’ Green, helping them operate their ordinary, waiting for Donald’s safe return, … until that day the evil side of war touches her.

Two hearts were altered by a war that dragged on for six years. Two hearts left hurting and struggling to find the love and trust they once knew. Is there a path for them to rekindle what was lost and finally find peace? https://www.amazon.com/Setting-Hearts…/dp/B085DRXFZY/ref

March 20, 2023March 11, 2023

Mary’s Moment by Susan Mathis

Reading a Susan Mathis book is like vacationing in the Thousand Islands, an expanse of 1800 islands between New York and Canada. Her stories give us a fascinating glimpse into the gilded age and the history of the area. Mary’s Moment, Susan’s latest treat, takes place during the summer of 1912.

Thousand Island Park’s switchboard operator Mary Flynn is christened the community heroine for her quick action that saves dozens of homes from a terrible fire. Less than a month later, when another disastrous fire rages through the Park, Mary loses her memory as she risks her life in a neighbor’s burning cottage. Will she remember the truth of who she is or be deceived by a treacherous scoundrel?

Widowed fireman George Flannigan is enamored by the brave raven-haired lass and takes every opportunity to connect with Mary. But he has hidden griefs of his own that cause him great heartache. When George can’t stop the destructive Columbian Hotel fire from eradicating more than a hundred businesses and homes, he is distraught. Yet George’s greater concern is Mary. Will she remember their budding relationship or be forever lost to him?

Readers of Christian historical romance will enjoy this exciting tale set in 1912 Thousand Island Park, NY.

ABOUT SUSAN:

Susan G Mathis is an international award-winning, multi-published author of stories set in the beautiful Thousand Islands, her childhood stomping ground in upstate NY. Susan has been published more than twenty-five times in full-length novels, novellas, and non-fiction books. She has ten in her fiction line including, The Fabric of Hope, Christmas Charity, Katelyn’s Choice, Devyn’s Dilemma, Peyton’s Promise, Sara’s Surprise, Reagan’s Reward, Colleen’s Confession, Rachel’s Reunion, and Mary’s Moment. Her book awards include two Illumination Book Awards, three American Fiction Awards, two Indie Excellence Book Awards, and four Literary Titan Book Awards. Reagan’s Reward is a Selah Awards finalist. Susan is also a published author of two premarital books, two children’s picture books, stories in a dozen compilations, and hundreds of published articles. Susan makes her home in Colorado Springs and enjoys traveling around the world but returns each summer to enjoy the Thousand Islands. Visit www.SusanGMathis.com/fiction for more.

March 15, 2023March 15, 2023

Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day

St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated in Ireland but it’s more of a holy day honoring their patron saint.

St. Patrick was born around 385 A.D. in Roman Britain to aristocratic parents. At sixteen he was captured by Irish pirates who took him to Ireland and sold him into slavery. While there Patrick tended sheep, drew close to the Lord, and came to believe his captivity may have been part of God’s plan. He dreamt he was to free the Irish people from their druid beliefs and share the gospel of Christ with them. After six years, Patrick escaped and made his way back to Britain. God gave him another revelation; that he would one day return to Ireland as a missionary. After a brief time in England, he traveled to France where he entered the priesthood and remained for fifteen years. However, he never lost sight of his dream of returning to Ireland to spread “The Good News”. Around 431 A.D., Patrick was consecrated Bishop of the Irish and returned to the island of his captivity.

Patrick eventually convinced the Druids to abandon beliefs that kept them enslaved and convinced them to find freedom in Christ. He built up t

he church in Ireland, establishing monasteries, and organizing the land into dioceses. Patrick died March 17, 461 in Saul, County Down, Ireland where he is said to be buried.

Why is St Patrick’s Day such a big deal in our the United States with all the revelry and hundreds of parades?

Probably because almost 35 million Americans identify as having Irish heritage while the population of the entire island of Ireland is not even 8 million.

When did the Irish make their way to America?

There have been two major diasporas to American shores. The First Wave of Irish Immigration came between 1714 to 1750. Many Presbyterians who had emigrated to the northern part of Ireland from Scotland became known as Ulster-Scots or Scots-Irish. They moved on to America to escape religious discrimination, rising rents and seeking land to own. Many of these educated, skilled workers, and farmers settled in New England while others traveled to Pennsylvania, Virginia, and the Carolinas.

The Year Without Summer, a novella in The Highlanders: A Smitten Historical Romance Collection https://www.amazon.com/Highlanders-Smitten-Historical-Romance-Collection/dp/1645260631/ref tells the story of a Highlander leaving Scotland during the clearances who traveled to Ireland and was forced off that land to emigrate to the United States in 1816.

The other significant diaspora occurred in the 1840s when the Irish potato

famine devastated Ireland. Up to two million starving Irish sailed to North America during the Famine departing from mainly Belfast, Dublin, and Londonderry. They sailed to the US and Canada, many in what came to be known as coffin ships. They settled mainly in New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, but some headed

westward. U.S. immigration records indicate that by 1850, the Irish made up 43 percent of the foreign-born population.

I’ve written a story (yet to be published) that takes place in 1847 during the famine. It’s about a woman and her daughter forced to leave Ulster Ireland seeking restored lives in America.

Our St. Patrick’s Day traditions include shamrocks, a traditional Irish meal, and possibly watching Riverdance or a movie about St. Patrick. How do you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day?