Showing results by author "Lynnette Bonner" in All Categories

Eden Houston wants nothing more than to repair her broken relationship with her husband, Adam. But the death of their infant son has left them distant, walking together in body but worlds apart in spirit. As they follow the Oregon Trail with hope of starting fresh, even the vast plains feel too small to contain their grief and brokenness.

Schoolteacher Charlotte Brindle is relieved that her long journey from Boston to Wyldhaven is about to come to an end. And then the bullets start flying! As she sprawls on the floor of the coach and curls her arms around her head, she wonders whatever in the world possessed her to give up the civility of a Boston school for the promise of adventure on the wild frontier?!

Cora Harrison would like nothing more than to find a godly husband and enjoy the blessing of being a wife and mother. That's why she's happy when the new young doctor sets about to ask if he may escort her to dinner. However, the doctor is right in the middle of his request when who on earth should walk in but Kin Davis, Wyldhaven's rogue traveler.

Zoe Kastain wants to be happy, but just the sight of Washington Nolan standing beside Kin at his wedding has her choking the life from her gloves. The man who once dazzled her with promises of love and commitment now will hardly look at her. Even through the haze of red clouding her vision, she realizes it is probably better this way. Because after he'd returned, injured, she'd gone and laid her heart at his feet. He'd slammed his door in her face, and she never wanted to feel that incomprehensible rejection again. But as Kin and Cora exchange rings and kisses,

When Jacinda Callahan lost her husband to an outlaw’s bullet years ago, she realized she simply couldn’t trust God to protect those she loves. So, though Marshal Zane Holloway has gently pushed his suit, she’s kept him at arm’s length. The last thing she needs is another man to worry about. But now the dratted marshal has been shot! He’s bleeding on her kitchen floor, and she realizes she might not have guarded her heart quite as well as she thought.

Liora Fontaine wants nothing more than to help mistreated women escape from brothel owner, John Hunt. She understands the desperation and manipulation that force many women into his employ. But when she rescues a young girl, she is shocked by Hunt’s ruthless reprisal. Now as she cowers in her cabin, hiding from Hunt’s men, who are determined to kill her, she can’t help but think how much this day is a picture of her whole life. Ashes. Nothing but ashes. Deputy Joseph Rodante can’t believe Liora took on a mission so dangerous without asking for his help!

Boardinghouse owner Dixie Pottinger has done her best to avoid the attractive Dr. Griffin. But now that her mother-in-law is sick and he’s going to be coming around more to care for her, Dixie knows she must inform him about her past. She works up her courage and feels great relief when she finally tells Dr. Griffin that she’s a married woman...maybe...if her husband, Steven Pottinger, survived the bullet put into him before she fled. Little does Flynn know that Steven Pottinger is about to become his patient.

Heart pounding in shock, Sharyah Jordan gapes at the outlaw staring down the barrel of his gun at her. Cascade Bennett shattered her dreams only last summer, and now he plans to kidnap her and haul her into the wilderness with a bunch of outlaws...for her own protection? She'd rather be locked in her classroom for a whole week with Brandon McBride and his arsenal of tricks, and that was saying something. Cade Bennett's heart nearly drops to his toes when he sees Sharyah standing by the desk.

Victoria Snyder, adopted when she was only days old, pastes on a smile for her mama's wedding day, but inside she's all atremble. Lawman Rocky Jordan is back home. And this time he's got a bullet hole in his shoulder and enough audacity to come calling. Since tragedy seems to strike those she cares for with uncanny frequency, she wants nothing to do with a man who could be killed in the line of duty like her father.

Fleeing the cruelty of her abusive husband, Mercy embarks on a perilous journey with her four-year-old son, seeking refuge in the company of a grieving family. Grief that is only compounded when Mercy’s husband catches up to them. In the span of one moment, tranquility is crushed beneath the boot of brutality. Now, Mercy must navigate the treacherous terrain of her heart, torn between two men she’s bound to by debt and duty.

He's different from any man she's ever known. However, she's sworn never to risk her heart again. Brooke Baker, sold as a mail-order bride, looks to her future with dread but firm resolve. If she survived Uncle Jackson, she can survive anyone. When Sky Jordan hears that his nefarious cousin has sent for a mail-order bride, he knows he has to prevent the marriage. No woman deserves to be left to that fate. Still, he's as surprised as anyone to find himself standing next to her before the minister.

When Willow’s papa says they are bound for Oregon on the next wagon train. She can hardly fathom the ache of leaving everything familiar behind. Sure, there will be good things, too—like not saying goodbye to Gideon Riley, even though he’s still oblivious to her. She keeps her emotions in tight check until a fit of melancholy sends her fleeing. If only Papa had given her a choice!

Aurora McClure would like nothing more than to march into Parson Preston Clay’s church and give him a kiss that would knock him into the next county. But since she’s not that kind of woman, and he’s shown little inclination toward her, she’s decided to run instead. Parson Preston Clay sits at his desk and glares at newcomer Kane Carver, who’s just asked for permission to call on Aurora McClure. He’s been suffocating his feelings for Aurora for years. Yet...staring at Kane, he realizes if he doesn’t act, he might lose Aurora forever.

SilverEars only has bossy twin sisters, so he's thrilled that the new neighbors are coming to dinner and bringing their boy! But the house is a mess and everyone else is busy. He's supposed to clean. Mama tells him not to procrastinate, but when he takes out the compost bin and meets the new boy, Bounder, cleaning takes a backseat to baseball, snacks, and pirate ships. Then Granny Fluff reminds him there are only 15 minutes until everyone is to arrive! Hilarity ensues as SilverEars and Bounder rush around trying to get the house clean—with disastrous results.

RyAnne can hardly believe she's been rescued. And yet there is the Captain, kneeling before her and asking her to be his wife. But before returning to Zanzibar, they hope to find Khalifa's partners in illegal slave trading and bring them to justice. When RyAnne stumbles across a vital piece of evidence in Khalifa's missives from his wife, she breaks her promise - well, she didn't really promise - to stay in her room and rushes headlong into danger. Danger that this time might be too much to overcome.

Captured and bound for Bagamoyo only moments after the captain was shot, RyAnne is tempted to despair. The journey along the trail of chains would be difficult enough, but severe heat, fire, and a rogue lion threaten at every curve in the path. Only her need to keep watch over little Moyo keeps her from giving up all together. That and her determination to carry on Captain Dawson's mission to find out who the slave trader, Khalifa, is working for.

When the wife of a neighboring chief goes into labor, and the baby is breech, the village doctor orders the woman and child be left to die. To prevent a war, RyAnne must safely deliver the baby. Her success breaks some of the grip the medicine man holds over the people, and more and more attend Papa's chapel. But when RyAnne confides in a couple of the women that her grandmother was from their tribe, she has no way of knowing the far-reaching consequences of her revelation.

Resigned to the fact that Papa has made up his mind and will not return to Zanzibar, RyAnne determines to make the best of it. She won't leave her papa to die alone. But with the arduous journey they face, Papa might not even make it a few days down the trail, much less the weeks it will take to reach the village where he's determined to build his mission station. What will she do if he passes away before they arrive? Recently she's seen a softer side to Captain Dawson.

RyAnne Hunter is shocked, and rather put out, that Papa refuses to turn back to Zanzibar. All her carefully wrought plans have come to nothing! Now, with Papa's health much worse than she first feared, her only option is to accompany him into the heart of the Continent so he won't die alone. But Papa insists she abandon her skirts, and don men's trousers and boots! And to make matters worse, the irritating captain has decided she must learn to shoot a gun! In the face of all that, she's not giving up on her attempts to convince Papa to return to Zanzibar.

RyAnne Hunter is determined to stop her father from leaving for the continent of Africa, where he plans to start a mission station. And she only has until morning. Tonight at the Harcourts' Annual Ball will be her last chance to change his mind. She must succeed! Papa's health, and her future, depend on her success. But, as if her task isn't difficult enough, now the insufferable Captain Dawson has agreed to guide Papa's expedition!