A MOST INCONVENIENT MARRIAGE - Regina Jennings - One Free Book

Bio: Regina Jennings is homeschooling mother of four from Oklahoma. She enjoys watching musicals with her kids, traveling with her husband, and reading by herself. When not plotting historical fiction, she plots how she could move Highclere Castle, stone by stone, into her pasture and how she could afford the staff to manage it.

Regina is the author of five historical romances. Her latest release is A Most Inconvenient Marriage. She loves to hear from readers at her website - www.reginajennings.com and on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest.

Dear Readers, I have loved every one of Regina’s novels. This latest one is my favorite of the new novels connected to the Civil War. She always gives us a fresh and different look at the historical time periods she covers with her novels. Since I grew up in the Arkansas Ozark Mountains, I know a lot about the whole range, which reaches into Missouri, where her book is set. She remained true to the setting and the people who lived there.

And her characters were well-developed. I couldn’t help but care about what was going to happen to them. I don’t want to give away too much of the story, but I know you will be sorry if you miss reading this book.

Welcome back, Regina. What are some of the spiritual themes you like to write about?

One of my favorite themes is reconciliation. The Bible says we have been given the ministry of reconciliation, of bringing people to the Lord, so that their sins may be forgiven and their relationship with their Creator repaired. That’s what I like to see happen in my stories. Characters must deal with the conflicts that separate them from God and from those who would love them. Ending strife, clearing misunderstandings, and striving to do better, those are elements that are found in all my stories.

What other books of yours are coming out soon?

A Most Inconvenient Marriage is the first of a series set in the Missouri Ozarks. The second book will be titled At Love’s Bidding. Miranda Wimplegate’s family owns an auction house in Boston, but their future is threatened when her grandfather accidentally allows a priceless heirloom to slip through their hands. In order to keep the powerful family happy, Miranda and Grandfather trace the art to a small town in the Ozark Mountains, but he makes yet another mistake by purchasing a livestock auction instead of an antique auction house and firing everyone except the manager.

Wyatt Ballentine didn’t expect the auction house he manages to be sold out from under him, but he surely didn’t reckon on the new owners being a naïve young woman and her batty grandpa. Now they’ve barged into his life and disrupted his business. He’d have pity on the girl, if he didn’t suspect that she was trying to steal his legacy.

I can’t wait to read that book, Regina. We must schedule it on my blog for my readers. If you could spend an evening with one contemporary person (not a family member of yours), who would it be and why?

Can the answer to this one be Jesus? No? Okay, then I’d have to say Ree Drummond, a/k/a The Pioneer Woman. Ree and I have a lot in common—we’re both authors, Oklahomans, and homeschooling mothers of four kids. The glaring differences are that she’s an amazing cook, has a perfectly decorated house (or two, or three), and an amazing sense of style. Despite all those faults, she’s hilarious and seems like a great lady to hang out with. Plus, I’m just down the turnpike, so come on over, Ree!

I’ve watched her a few times. I didn’t know she lived in Oklahoma. You know she started as a blogger before she got her cooking show. What historical person would you like to meet (besides Jesus) and why?

George Washington. I’d love to hear what his hopes were for our country and what he thinks of the various branches of the government and the roles they play now. Plus I hear he was a superb dancer.

Tell us about the featured book.

A Most Inconvenient Marriage is about a nurse named Abigail Stuart who feels like her only friend in the world is the sweet but gravely wounded patient Jeremiah Calhoun. Fearing he won't survive, the Confederate soldier's last wish is that Abigail look after his sickly sister at home. Marry him, return to his horse farm, and it'll be hers.

Abigail takes him up on his offer and moves to Missouri after his death, but just as the family learns to accept her, the real Jeremiah Calhoun appears—puzzled to find a confounding woman posing as his wife. Jeremiah is determined to have his life back to how it was before the war, but his own wounds limit what he can do on his own. Still not fully convinced Abigail isn't duping him, he's left with no choice but to let the woman stay and help—providing that she give up her claim that she’s his wife and doesn’t ruin his chances with his childhood sweetheart.

“Inconvenient” barely scratches the surface of what the two of them feel about each other, but maybe they’ll find some common ground.

Please give us the first page of the book for my readers.

February 1865           

Gratiot Street Prison - St. Louis, Missouri

“First you're going to write my good-bye letter to my sweetheart and then you're going to marry me.” The prisoner's smile belied the beads of sweat condensing on his forehead.

Abigail Stuart wrung tepid water out of the rag and mopped his brow. “I will not write your Lady Juliet to tell her that I've replaced her. Your fever must be causing you to hallucinate. Romeo was no fickle lover.”

A fly landed on his chin. The prisoner lifted what was left of his arm, forgetting he couldn't reach his mouth with the putrid stump. Abigail shooed the pest away and wished for a blanket to alleviate his chills. Two years of caring for the dying Confederate prisoners had numbed her to the sight of mangled flesh, but she'd never stopped mourning the senseless pain these young men suffered.

“You won't be happy, Miss Abby, not without a stable full of horses,” he said. “And I can give you that. You've got to be sick and tired of this prison.”

“My horses are gone. Nursing is all I have left.”

The man wet his lips. “Marry me and you won't have to stay here another day. The farm, the stock, the nicest horseflesh in the hills——they'll all be yours. If the last thing I can do with this life...”

Dr. Jonson caught Abigail's eye. She'd already tarried too long with her favorite patient, but she wasn't sorry. He'd been kind to her, no matter what color his uniform had been before they'd cut him out of it. She sloshed the rag in the basin. The gangrene had poisoned his blood. She didn't have much time—and neither did he.

“What about your lady? Why not will the farm to her?”

“My sweetheart?” His eyes grew soft beneath the pain. He closed them and inhaled like he was filling his lungs with the smell of fresh hay instead of the stench of the medical ward. With his good hand he tapped the thin mat beneath him. “My fiancée can take care of herself. This war won't slow her down. It's my...my sister that I worry about. Rachel isn't strong—hasn't been since she took the fever. You're a nurse and you could help her ma with the farm. It's the perfect solution.”

A faint hope stirred in her chest. Could this be the answer she’d been praying for? “But what if I don't like the Ozarks? What if your family doesn't welcome a Yankee invading their home?”

“Then walk away. What have you lost?”

She took his hand, surprised again by the dry heat in the freezing room. “You don't even know your real name, Romeo. Or has that memory finally been restored, too?”

He wiggled his feet against the end of the cot and shuddered as another chill ravaged his body. Quickly he mastered the pain and the smile returned.

“My name is Jeremiah Calhoun. Captain Jeremiah Calhoun.”

That should whet their desire to read the book. How can readers find you on the Internet?

website: www.reginajennings.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ReginaLJennings

Twitter: twitter.com/#!/ReginaJennings

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/reginaljennings/

Thank you, Regina, for sharing this new book with me and my readers.

Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.
A Most Inconvenient Marriage - Christianbook.com
A Most Inconvenient Marriage - Amazon
A Most Inconvenient Marriage (Ozark Mountain Romance Book #1) - Kindle

Christian Book Store

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