WEDNESDAY WESTERN ROUNDUP!! LORRIE FARRELLY AND BOOK GIVEAWAY!!

Jumpin’  Je-hos-ha-phat !! The boys done it again, wranglin’ Ms. Lorrie Farrelly and two of her heroes, Michael Cantrell and Robert Devlin, ‘round the campfire!! Lorrie sure does know how to serve up heroes Western style, and these men fit the bill like Wranglers fit cowboys!!  And they’re from the Wind River Basin area in Wyomin’!!  Hooo-Rah!! Did the temperature just spike or was that my blood pressure?

Hold on to yer hats folks that’s not all! Lorrie is givin’ away a signed copy of either “Terms” book, winner’s choice, to one lucky commenter today!  You heard right all it takes is a comment and Cookie will toss yer name in the hat! Just like that, easier than butterin’ bread!

But Cookie, true to form, has his little side note:  Due to the high cost of sendin’ Pony Express riders on cruise liners, the drawin’ is open for U.S. and Canadian residents only. We’re sorry folks, but don’t let it stop ya from commentin’! We want to hear from everyone!

And don’t forget to read Lorrie Farrelly’s post at the end about her inspiration for pennin’ these not-to-be-missed stories!

So come on now and grab a mug of hot thick-as-mud, black-as-tar coffee from Cookie, pull up a seat and let me introduce y’all to the Cantrells and Devlins…

The War Between the States not only destroyed all Michael Cantrell loved, it left the young, former Confederate cavalry officer without faith or hope, a solitary, haunted man trying to escape his demons in the vast western frontier. Then, one spring day along the Wind River, he finds himself suddenly in the thick of another life-and-death struggle — Annie Devlin’s war.

Desperate to hang on to her ranch and her life, waylaid by gunmen hired by a powerful rancher who covets her land, Annie and her young brother, Robbie, fight a furious, rapidly losing battle for their lives.

When all seems lost, into the fray steps a cold-eyed, steel-nerved stranger — Michael Cantrell — who saves Annie and Robbie, but is himself grievously wounded.

With Annie’s care, Michael recovers not only his strength but a portion of his embittered soul as well. Fighting his powerful feelings for her, convinced he has nothing to give, Michael determines to stay with the Devlins only long enough to ensure their safety against the treachery that would destroy them.

Reluctantly, Michael, who for years has known only loss, allies himself with a stubborn, courageous young woman who will take his heart by storm and test the limit of his honor, his mettle — and his passion.

KIRSTEN’S THOUGHTS:  Both in reading and writing I tend to be character oriented, and when an author can take compelling characters and weave them into an exceptional story that keeps me turning pages when I should be sleeping you’ve got a first-rate read!  Michael and Annie are both fighters willing to go the distance even when the battle seems hopeless, but both put their whole hearts behind the war for Annie’s ranch and for the love they find in each other, and the forces against them better watch out!

Michael is a natural warrior and a Southern gentleman both characteristics lead him to get involved with Annie’s struggles. He’s a man who needs a purpose and a cause to fight for, and he finds both of these in helping Annie save her ranch. But he also needs to heal, heart, body, mind and soul, and he finds that in Annie’s heart and arms. The War Between the States hardened him and aged him beyond his years, but with Annie and Robbie he softens and finds the spark of youth.

Annie is a fighter and a Western woman born to share the load and hold on tight. She’s lost much, just like Michael, but she refuses to give up on her ranch or on life, her life and Michael’s.  I loved watching as this strong woman learned to release some of the burden and lean on Michael’s resourcefulness and muscle while combining their strengths to defeat their foe.

The secondary characters round out the story adding humor, tenderness and show us and Annie and Michael why they deserve love and each other.

TERMS OF SURRENDER is clearly a story of Lorrie’s heart, as there is a lot of heart in every page as Michael and Annie find out just how much they’re willing to surrender to hold onto each other. This is an endearing story has enough action, passion, humor and lovable characters to keep you enthralled to the end, then closing the book and looking around wondering where everyone you just met went, and why you aren’t still in the Wind River region of Wyoming.

 

Wyoming Territory, 1885. On a train in the middle of nowhere, a young woman suddenly collapses. Fellow passenger Dr. Robert Devlin, a widower traveling with his five-year-old daughter, responds immediately to the medical emergency. What he finds when he examines his new patient both shocks and outrages him, and soon he is tangled up in her no-way-out, life-or-death plight.

Teresa Rutledge has taken her toddler son and run for their lives. Fleeing her wealthy, cruelly abusive husband, knowing there is nowhere they will be safe for long, she is at the end of her strength and at the end of her rope.

Determined to protect Tess and her child, Rob takes them home to his sister, Annie, and her husband, former cavalry Captain Michael Cantrell. As Tess regains her health, she and Rob fall passionately in love. But she is trapped in a brutal marriage, and on a desperate flight from a powerful, violent man determined never to let her go.

KIRSTEN’S THOUGHTS: It is always a treat to read the next book in a series and get the chance to visit old friends. I loved Robbie in TERMS OF SURRENDER as a rambunctious ten-year-old waiting for the former Reb to die, so he could have his horse 🙂  But Robbie grew into Dr. Rob Devlin and a strong, amazing hero (almost as wonderful as Michael).

First, I LOVED the family dynamic in this story. The large, loud family that supports Rob and Tess and backs each play they make. The teasing between family members and then arguments, but all weaved with love, it makes you want to pull up a chair and join the Cantrells and Devlins for Sunday dinner.   And all the children were so fun to watch, and drawn so perfectly. It’s difficult to write realistic children, and Lorrie’s are magical, each one with very distinct personalities and not cookie cutter caricatures. It was fun to see Annie and Michael again and to meet their family.

Though Tess has suffered years of abuse, her husband has not completely broken her spirit, and watching her find her strength and smile again under the attentions of Rob and his family was heartening and heartbreaking as she realized past choices might keep her from the promise of real love and family. Tess is such a charming heroine. She’s not a woe-as-me heroine who constantly complains about her situation. She recognizes her mistakes and is willing to accept the consequences as long as her son is happy and safe.  In her desire for happiness and love, she’s also willing to take advantage of the moment she’s given with the Cantrells and Devlins and pitches in becoming a part of the family. But I applauded Tess’ determination to fight for her chance at a new life despite the odds.

Rob is just the man to heal Tess in every way, and recognizes in Tess the woman who could heal his own pain.  Rob is such a compassionate man, and it’s as easy for the reader to fall in love with Rob as it was for Tess to fall for him.  And even though he’s suffered loss, he still believes things can be mended, from broken bones to getting Tess a divorce from her abusive husband leaving her free to build a life with him.  He tenaciously holds on to those he loves offering unwavering loyalty and support.  And he knows how to use his brain, as well as brawn to win the day.

Like Michael and Annie, Tess and Rob work together to battle against the enemy. Lorrie does a superb job of making it clear neither Rob nor Tess take her married status lightly just because her husband is a monster.

The lighthearted moments in TERMS OF ENGAGEMENT are all the sweeter for the sour Tess and Rob have to go through.  And you will fall in love with them and Gracie Rose and Scottie (their little ones). Heck, you’ll fall in love with the whole clan!

Lorrie draws the reader into her world through realistic dialogue and people so true to life you have to remind yourself it’s fiction.

THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THE “TERMS” BOOKS BY LORRIE FARRELLY

“Terms of Surrender” came straight from my heart. When my folks passed away, I found they’d kept copies of the parole papers and oath of allegiance my great-grandfather, a Confederate soldier, had had to sign in order to be allowed to go home – to whatever home he had left – after the war. My dad was born in Georgia in 1909, and folks were not much different then than they’d been in 1865. He was a U.S. Navy officer and an Annapolis graduate, but he was also a boy who’d been raised as though the Yankees had ravaged his homeland the week before, not in the previous century. I started to imagine how terrible it must have been to choose between country and home, family and friends, duty, honor, and love. Defeat, bitterness, and loss of home and family would be overwhelming; love and hope surely would seem gone forever. How would a man who no longer believed in either ever come to find them again? That was my inspiration for “Terms of Surrender.”

The sequel, “Terms of Engagement,” came about because I just had to find out what had happened to Michael, Annie, and Robbie, and what their family had become. It took me a little while to wrap my head around an adult Robbie, but once I did, I knew right away he’d be a doctor. Then the story was, suddenly, just there. I also love writing about kids – all of my books have at least one important character who is a child or teen – so I had a lot of fun with Gracie Rose and Michael and Annie’s children. Kinley is a whole book in herself. I’m thinking about it! The other feature I love putting in my books is a touch of the paranormal. The first story I ever wrote (which is still in the “drawer” of my computer files) was a ghost story. When I first started writing, editors told me no one liked paranormal stories. Obviously, they hadn’t met “Edward” and “Bella.” (Oh, it’s good to have the last laugh. Evil probably, but good!)

Katy bar the door!!  I know y’all are chompin’ at the bit to get Lorrie’s books, and well ya should.  But don’t run off right yet!  First, leave a comment to see if you can win a signed copy!

How about you, do y’all like a bit of the paranormal in your stories?  And how about children, do ya like when a whippersnapper is included to keep the grown-ups on their toes?

Grab another cup o’ Joe, it’s only been sittin’ a few hours, and chat a bit!