Most Anticipated Book Releases Fall & Winter 2016: Historical Fiction

Yesterday, I gushed about how much I love fall and winter … and I gave you a list of my most anticipated contemporary fiction new releases for the rest of this year.  And of course I inadvertently omitted some. Because SO. MANY. BOOKS.  Also releasing soon in the contemporary category are Homestands by Sally Bradley (Salena House, Sept 5), Taken by Sally Bradley (Salena House, Sept 13), Feta and Freeways by Susan M. Baganz (Prism Book Group, Sept 16), Kissing Father Christmas by Robin Jones Gunn (FaithWords, Oct 3), A Baxter Family Christmas by Karen Kingsbury (Howard Books, Oct 25), One More Song to Sing by Lindsay Harrel (Ashberry Lane, Dec 1), and Of Stillness and Storm by Michele Phoenix (Thomas Nelson, Dec 6). I’ll add these to the “Most Anticipated” Amazon store so you can see all the pretty covers too 🙂

I’m going to bypass more gushing about the seasons today and just jump right into the list of upcoming historical fiction new releases because there are A LOT.

This Road We Traveled by Jane Kirkpatrick (Revell, Sept 6) – When Tabitha Brown’s son makes the fateful decision to leave Missouri and strike out for Oregon, she refuses to be left behind. Despite her son’s concerns, Tabitha hires her own wagon to join the party. Along with her reluctant daughter and her ever-hopeful granddaughter, the intrepid Tabitha has her misgivings. But family ties are stronger than fear.

The trials they face along the way will severely test Tabitha’s faith, courage, and ability to hope. With her family’s survival on the line, she must make the ultimate sacrifice, plunging deeper into the wilderness to seek aid. What she couldn’t know was how this frightening journey would impact how she understood her own life–and the greater part she had to play in history.

With her signature attention to detail and epic style, New York Times bestselling author Jane Kirkpatrick invites readers to travel the deadly and enticing Oregon Trail. Based on actual events, This Road We Traveled will inspire the pioneer in all of us.  Goodreads | Amazon

Love’s Faithful Promise by Susan Anne Mason (Bethany House, Sept 13) –  When her mother suffers a stroke, medical student Deirdre O’Leary makes the difficult choice to put her career on hold to care for her. Dr. Matthew Clayborne is renowned for his amazing results with patients, but when Deirdre approaches him about helping her mother, she finds him challenging and surly. Deirdre has had enough of complicated men in her life. After her fiancé left her, she vowed never to give a man that kind of power again.

Widower Dr. Matthew Clayborne is devoted to two things: his work with wounded soldiers and his four-year-old daughter, Phoebe. He won’t abandon either of these priorities to care for one older woman. However, when Phoebe suffers a health scare, they’re offered respite at the Irish Meadows farm, where his daughter’s weakened lungs can recover–but only if he cares for Mrs. O’Leary.

Matthew intends to hate Irish Meadows, yet he immediately feels at home, and soon both Mrs. O’Leary and Phoebe are showing improvement. But since he has no intention of leaving his life up north forever, and Deirdre has sworn off marriage in favor of her career, how will they deal with the undeniable attraction between them?  Goodreads | Amazon

Mountain Christmas Brides (Barbour Books, Sept 1) – From a Wyoming ranch in 1880, to a logging camp in Washington Territory in the late 1800s, to Denver, Colorado, in 1913, meet nine couples who find that Christmas is the perfect time for climbing to the heights of romance. Watch as their faith and courage propel them through challenges that come with mountain winters to cozy fireside celebrations that lead to lasting proclamations of love. Penned by an exclusive selection of Christian fiction authors—including Susan Page Davis, Vickie McDonough, and Carrie Turansky—this collection of nine romances is one to treasure.

Novellas include:

A Trusting Heart by Carrie Turansky, Home For the Holidays by Mildred Colvin, One Evergreen Night by Debby Lee, All Ye Faithful by Gina Welborn, A Carpenter Christmas by Mary Davis, Fires of Love by Tamela Hancock Murray, The Best Medicine by Lena Nelson Dooley, Almost Home by Susan Page Davis, Dressed in Scarlet by Darlene Franklin  Goodreads | Amazon

Newton and Polly by Jody Hedlund (Waterbrook, Sept 20) – Now remembered as the author of the world s most famous hymn, in the mid-eighteenth century as England and France stand on the brink of war, John Newton is a young sailor wandering aimlessly through life. His only duty is to report to his ship and avoid disgracing his father until the night he hears Polly Catlett s enchanting voice, caroling. He s immediately smitten and determined to win her affection.

An intense connection quickly forms between the two, but John s reckless spirit and disregard for the Christian life are concerns for the responsible, devout Polly. When an ill-fated stop at a tavern leaves John imprisoned and bound, Polly must choose to either stand by his side or walk out of his life forever. Will she forfeit her future for the man she loves?

Step back through the pages of history, to uncover the true love story behind a song that continues to stir the hearts and ignite the faith of millions around the globe.  Goodreads | Amazon

A Lady Unrivaled by Roseanna M. White (Bethany House, Sept 13) – Lady Ella Myerston can always find a reason to smile–even if it’s just in hope that tomorrow will be better than today. All her life everyone has tried to protect her from the realities of the world, but Ella knows very well the danger that has haunted her brother and their friend, and she won’t wait for it to strike again. She intends to take action . . . and if that happens to involve an adventurous trip to the Cotswolds, then so much the better.

Lord Cayton has already broken two hearts, including that of his first wife, who died before he could convince himself to love her. Now he’s determined to live a better life. But that proves complicated when old friends arrive on the scene and try to threaten him into a life of crime. He does his best to remove the intriguing Lady Ella from danger, but the stubborn girl won’t budge. How else can he redeem himself, though, but by saving her–and his daughter–from those dangerous people who seem ready to destroy them all?  Goodreads | Amazon

Texas Cinderella by Winnie Griggs (Love Inspired, Sept 1) – After a life of drudgery on her family’s farm, Cassie Lynn Vickers relishes her freedom working in town as a paid companion for feisty Mrs. Flanagan.

When her father suddenly demands she come home, she has no choice. Unless she can find a husband. If only she could convince handsome town newcomer Riley Walker to marry her…

Riley is on the run. He’s desperate to keep his niece and nephew safe from his crooked half brother. But a delay in Turnabout, Texas, shows him everything he didn’t know he was missing: home, family—and Cassie Lynn.

Can he find a way to become her Prince Charming…and build a real family with the children and Cassie Lynn? Goodreads | Amazon

A Mother in the Making by Gabrielle Meyer (Love Inspired, Sept 1) – Practical, steady, levelheaded: all qualities single father Dr. John Orton expects in both a governess and a wife. But his children’s temporary governess Miss Marjorie Maren seems set on finding him an impractical woman to love…despite his plans of marrying solely for convenience. Nothing could be more exasperating to the handsome widower—except his increasing interest in Marjorie.

Vivacious and fun-loving: that’s the kind of bride the reserved doctor needs. Before Marjorie leaves to pursue her acting dreams, she intends to match him with a suitable wife candidate. Yet growing affection for her four charges and their dashing father has awakened a new hope—that she might be his perfect bride. But can she convince her employer to take a chance on love and claim real happiness before it slips away?  Goodreads | Amazon

She Walks in Power by MaryLu Tyndall (Ransom Press, Sept 2) – Alexia D’Clere didn’t ask to be Protector of the Spear, but after her dying mother gave her the tiny metal object and made her promise to keep it safe, she had no choice. Orphaned at age eight, she began to take over the running of her parent’s castle with the help of a trusted steward. Yet, when a plot to murder her was revealed, a friar whisked her away to live hidden in the forest. There, she learned to shoot expertly with bow and arrow and hone her skills to see into the spirit realm.

Now, at eighteen, Alexia continues to keep the Spear protected, provide meat for the starving village, while secretly caring for her ill sister who still lives in the castle. With Alexia’s powers of spiritual discernment and her skill as an archer, she is no match for those who come for the spear. That is until she meets Ronar LePeine, one of the King’s elite guard.

Ronar desires nothing more than to do his duty to God and King and pay penance for past sins. Yet a forest sprite with red, flaming hair blocks his every move, all the while enchanting him like no other. Something evil lurks at Castle Luxley, and both Ronar and Alexia are soon thrust into the middle of a spiritual battle which will not only test their very beliefs, but put them both in mortal danger.  Goodreads | Amazon

The Cautious Maiden by Dawn Crandall (Whitaker House, Oct 4) – Violet Hawthorne is beyond mortified when her brother Ezra turns their deceased parents’ New England country inn into a brothel to accommodate the nearby lumberjacks; but when Violet’s own reputation is compromised, the inn becomes the least of her worries.

In an effort to salvage her good name, Violet is forced into an engagement with a taciturn acquaintance; Vance Everstone. As she prepares for a society wedding, Violet learns that her brother had staked her hand in marriage in a heated poker game with the unsavory Rowen Steele, and Ezra had lost.

Now Rowen is determined to cash in on his IOU. With danger stalking her and a new fiance who hides both his emotion and his past, Violet must decide who to trust and who to leave behind.  Goodreads | Amazon

Waves of Mercy by Lynn Austin (Bethany House, Oct 4) – Geesje de Jonge crossed the ocean at age seventeen with her parents and a small group of immigrants from the Netherlands to settle in the Michigan wilderness. Fifty years later, in 1897, she’s asked to write a memoir of her early experiences as the town celebrates its anniversary. Reluctant at first, she soon uncovers memories and emotions hidden all these years, including the story of her one true love.

At the nearby Hotel Ottawa Resort on the shore of Lake Michigan, twenty-three-year-old Anna Nicholson is trying to ease the pain of a broken engagement to a wealthy Chicago banker. But her time of introspection is disturbed after a violent storm aboard a steamship stirs up memories of a childhood nightmare. As more memories and dreams surface, Anna begins to question who she is and whether she wants to return to her wealthy life in Chicago. When she befriends a young seminary student who is working at the hotel for the summer, she finds herself asking him all the questions that have been troubling her.

Neither Geesje nor Anna, who are different in every possible way, can foresee the life-altering surprises awaiting them before the summer ends.  Goodreads | Amazon

The Captive Heart by Michelle Griep (Shiloh Run, Oct 1) – Proper English governess Eleanor Morgan flees to the colonies to escape the wrath of a an angry duke.

When the Charles Town family she’s to work for never arrives to collect her from the dock, she is forced to settle for the only reputable choice remaining to her—marriage to a man she’s never met.

Trapper and tracker Samuel Heath is a hardened survivor used to getting his own way by brain or by brawn, and he’s determined to find a mother for his young daughter.

But finding a wife proves to be impossible. No upstanding woman wants to marry a murderer.  Goodreads | Amazon

The Rails to Love Romance Collection (Barbour Books, Oct 1) – Journey the Transcontinental Railroad along with nine unlikely couples who encounter all the dangers and disappointments of traveling the rails in the late 1800s. From sight-seeing excursions to transports toward new lives, from orphan trains to circus trains, can romances develop into blazing love in a world of cold, hard steel?

Novellas include:

Outlaw on the Pueblo Excursion by Diana Brandmeyer, The Depot Bride by Amanda Cabot, Last Stop, Cordelia by Lisa Carter, Train to Eden by Ramona Cecil, Love on the Rails by Lynn Coleman, The Honeymoon Express by Susanne Dietze, Just for Lucy by Kim Vogel Sawyer, My Soul Waits by Connie Stevens, World’s Greatest Love by Liz Tolsma  Goodreads | Amazon

Child of the River by Irma Joubert (Thomas Nelson, Oct 18) – Persomi’s dreams are much bigger than the world of poverty and deprivation that surround her in the Bushveld of the 1940s and 1950s in South Africa.

Persomi is young, white and poor, born the middle child of illiterate sharecroppers on the prosperous Fourie farm. Persomi’s world is extraordinarily small. She has never been to the local village and spends her days absorbed in the rhythms of the natural world around her. Her older brother, Gerbrand, is her lifeline and her connection to the outside world. When he leaves the farm to seek work in Johannesburg, Persomi’s isolated world is blown wide open. But as her very small world falls apart, bigger dreams become open to her—dreams of an education, a profession, and of love. As Persomi navigates the changing world around her—the tragedies of WWII and the devastating racial strife of her homeland—she finally discovers who she truly is and where she belongs.  Goodreads | Amazon

Cowboy Christmas Homecoming Collection by Mary Connealy, Ruth Logan Herne, Julie Lessman, Anna Schmidt (Gilead, Oct 14) – They’ve weathered a lot worse than winter. For widow June Harper, another cold front is about to hit. Most call him Hugh. She’d call him Scrooge, except as the man ensures her needs are met, June can’t help but wonder how to meet the needs of his heart.

Netty Lewis can take care of herself, has for a while now. Some hired help over the holidays doesn’t change that. And even if Roy does take care of her, that doesn’t mean he cares for her or that he’ll stay past Christmas.

Pastor Colton McCabe is having the opposite problem. He’s not sure he’ll make it through the holidays with his new housekeeper. Grace can’t seem to do anything right but love. Perhaps being a homekeeper will earn her a permanent residence in his heart.

And no one longs for a home more than Connie Lancaster. She’s determined to return to St. Louis, and no cowboy can change her mind. But if Isaac can change her heart, maybe Connie will see the homecoming she’s been waiting for isn’t to a place but a person. Goodreads | Amazon

Shadow of the Storm by Connilyn Cossette (Bethany House, Oct 18) – Having escaped Egypt with the other Hebrews during the Exodus, Shira is now living in freedom at the foot of Mt. Sinai, upon which rests the fiery glowing Cloud containing the shekinah glory of God. When the people disobey Yahweh and build a golden idol, the ensuing chaos gives Shira an unexpected opportunity to learn the arts of midwifery. Although her mother wishes for her to continue in the family weaving trade, Shira’s gifts shine brightest when she assists with deliveries. In defiance of her mother, Shira pursues her heart’s calling to become an apprentice midwife.

When a delivery goes horribly wrong, Shira finds herself bound to a man who betrayed her, the caretaker of three young children, and the target of a vengeful woman whose husband was killed by Shira’s people, the Levites. As contention between the Hebrew tribes and the foreigners fans the flames of another dangerous rebellion, Shira will come face-to-face with the heartbreak of her past that she has kept hidden for so long. How can she let go of all that has defined her to accept the love she’s denied herself and embrace who she truly is?  Goodreads | Amazon

The Thorn Healer by Pepper D. Basham (Vinspire, November) – Jessica Ross returns from WWI to her small Appalachian community of Hot Springs, NC after she is wounded in an explosion and German gunfire. Her hopes of a quiet life, as far away from the trenches and the filthy Germans as possible, are demolished as soon as the train pulls up to the depot. The grounds of the beautiful Mountain Park Hotel are littered with barracks and internees, German internees, who have been living and working in her town for the past year. As she steps out of the train she sees a group of the men marching by. Her wounded leg trips her and she lands right in the arms of one of them. Sparks of attraction fly, but Jess’s bitterness stems deep. She will never trust another German.

Unfortunately for her, August Reinhold has found a place in her grandparents’ hearts. In her absence, his work on her grandfather’s farm and his diligent help in his clinic has made August a constant fixture in their lives.  Goodreads

Giver of Wonders by Roseanna M. White (WhiteFire, Nov 1) – Cyprus was little more than a child when a fall left her paralyzed…and when the boy known as the wonder-worker healed her. Ever since, she has wondered why the Lord spared her, what he has in store for her. But her pagan father thinks she was spared solely so she could be introduced to the wealthy wonder-worker, Nikolaos.

Nikolaos has never questioned that his call in life is to dedicate himself to the church and to God. Never, that is, until he and his cousin Petros meet the compelling Cyprus Visibullis. For years he struggles with the feelings she inspires…and with the sure knowledge that Petros loves her too.

Petros knows he will never be good enough for Cyprus’s father to consider him as a match for his favorite daughter not as long as Nikolaos is there. But when tragedy strikes the Visibullis family, he will do anything to save his beloved. Unfortunately, his beloved is determined to do anything to save her sisters ~ even at the cost of herself.

As the festival of lights bathes their Greek city in beauty, Cyprus, Petros, and Nikolaos celebrate the miracle of their Savior s birth together one last time. And in remembrance of their Lord’s greatest gift, one of them will make the ultimate sacrifice for the others…and a centuries-long tradition will be born.  Goodreads | Amazon

Left at the Altar by Margaret Brownley (Sourcebooks Casablanca, Nov 1) – In the wild and untamed West, time is set by the local jeweler…but Two-Time Texas has two: two feuding jewelers and two wildly conflicting time zones. Meg Lockwood’s marriage was supposed to unite the families and finally bring peace. But when she’s left at the altar by her no-good fiance, Meg’s dreams of dragging her quarrelsome neighbors into a ceasefire are dashed.

No wedding bells? No one-time town.

Hired to defend the groom against a breach of promise lawsuit, Grant Garrison quickly realizes that the only thing worse than small-town trouble is falling for the jilted bride. But there’s something about Meg’s sweet smile and determined grit that draws him in…even as the whole crazy town seems set on keeping them apart.

Who knew being Left at the Altar could be such sweet, clean, madcap fun?  Goodreads | Amazon

The Blue Ribbon Brides Collection (Barbour Books, Nov 1) – Meet nine men and women whose competitive goals take them to state and county fairs between 1889 and 1930. From baking pie to polishing pigs, from sculpting butter to stitching quilts, everyone has something to prove to themselves and their communities. But in going for the blue ribbon, will nine women miss the greatest prize of all—the devoted heart of a godly man?

Novellas include:

Requilted with Love by Carrie Fancett Pagels, Seven Medals and a Bride by Angela Breidenbach, A Taste of Honey by Darlene Franklin, Altered Hearts by Gina Welborn, Better with Butter by Jennifer AlLee, Driven to Distraction by Becca Whitham, First Comes Pie by Niki Turner, Front Page Love by Tiffany Amber Stockton, Competing Hearts by Cynthia Hickey Goodreads | Amazon

The Innkeeper of Ivy Hill by Julie Klassen (Bethany House, Dec 6) – On a rise overlooking the Wiltshire countryside stands the village of Ivy Hill. Its coaching inn, The Bell, is its lifeblood–along with the coach lines that stop there daily, bringing news, mail, travelers, and much-needed trade.

Jane Bell lives on the edge of the inn property. She had been a genteel lady until she married the charming innkeeper who promised she would never have to work in his family’s inn. But when he dies under mysterious circumstances, Jane finds herself The Bell’s owner, and worse, she has three months to pay a large loan or lose the place.

Feeling reluctant and ill-equipped, Jane is tempted to abandon her husband’s legacy and return to her former life of ease. However, she soon realizes there is more at stake than her comfort. But who can she trust to help her? Her resentful mother-in-law? Her husband’s brother, who wanted the inn for himself? Or the handsome newcomer with secret plans of his own . . . ?

With pressure mounting from the bank, Jane struggles to win over naysayers and turn the place around. Can Jane bring new life to the inn, and to her heart as well?  Goodreads | Amazon

For the Record by Regina Jennings (Bethany House, Dec 6) – Betsy Huckabee might be a small-town girl, but she has big-city dreams. Writing for her uncle’s newspaper will never lead to independence, and the bigger newspapers don’t seem interested in the Hart County news.

Trying a new approach, Betsy pens a romanticized serial for the ladies’ pages, and the new deputy provides the perfect inspiration for her submissions. She’d be horrified if he read her breathless descriptions of him, but these articles are for a newspaper far away. No one in Pine Gap will ever know.

Deputy Joel Puckett didn’t want to leave Texas, but this job in tiny Pine Gap is his only shot at keeping his badge. With masked marauders riding every night, his skills and patience are tested, but even more challenging is the sassy journalist lady chasing him.  Goodreads | Amazon

A Family Arrangement by Gabrielle Meyer (Love Inspired, Dec 1) – Abram Cooper has ten months to turn rough Minnesota country into a vibrant town, or his sister-in-law will take his three sons back to Iowa with his blessing.

Until then, Charlotte Lee has agreed to keep house and help raise his children as part of their bargain. But can the single father fulfill Charlotte’s requirements in time to make sure that she and his boys don’t leave—and take his heart with them?

Charlotte is convinced that the wilderness is no place to raise her nephews. But as she watches the community slowly develop, she sees that Abram just might be able to make it blossom.

With three little matchmakers bringing her and Abram together, Little Falls could become not just a flourishing town, but the perfect home for their patchwork family.  Goodreads | Amazon

Seven Brides for Seven Texans (Barbour Books, Dec 1) – Meet the seven Hart brothers of the 7-Heart ranch in central Texas.

Each man is content in his independent life, without the responsibilities of a wife and children—until their father decides 1874 will be the year his grown sons finally marry, or they will be cut from his will.

How will each man who values his freedom respond to the ultimatum? Can love develop on a timeline, or will it be sacrificed for the sake of an inheritance?

Novellas by:

Erica Vetsch, Amanda Barratt, Susan Page Davis, Keli Gwyn, Vickie McDonough, Gabrielle Meyer, and Lorna Seilstad  Goodreads | Amazon

Seriously, SO MANY GREAT BOOKS. NEVER ENOUGH TIME. lol. 

What about you? What historical new releases are you most looking forward to for the rest of this year?

Shop at my Amazon “Most Anticipated Fall/Winter 2016” store to see all these titles in one place!