Love's Blessing by Linda Hubalek

Working the Past into the Present

In Love's Blessing, my new contemporary story in the First Street Church Kindle World, newly widowed Jenna McDowell, and medically discharged soldier Riel (Gabriel) Shepard, meet at his grandfather's Cooper Ranch near Sweet Grove,Texas.

They both came to the ranch to heal from their individual heartbreaks. Jenna’s husband committed suicide and left her destitute. Riel lost his foot in a military accident and suffers from PTSD. 

Time and help from their family and pastor finds them healing and falling in love, but are they ready to marry?

Starts the new Clear Creek Legacy Series

How did I tie the past into the present? Riel's ancestors, Reuben Shepard, was featured in Darcie Desires a Drover in the Brides with Grit series, and Gabriel Shepard, in Gabe's Pledge in the Grooms with Honor series.

Riel is given a box of leather tools once used by his ancestors, because he is named after his great-great grandfather. Holding the tools makes Riel realize he's been handed a new profession, a saddle maker, as his ancestors were before him in Clear Creek, Kansas.

My new contemporary stories in the Clear Creek Legacy series will connect descendants, with their ancestors, as they struggle with a life-changing crisis.

Has anything handed down from your ancestors, pointed you to a new career? 

In my case, old family photos, family history, and quilts started me writing down the stories of my ancestors, and led me to writing and publishing over thirty books.

Many thanks from the Kansas prairie!

Linda Hubalek

Gabe's Pledge. New Grooms with Honor release by Linda Hubalek

For researching Gabe's Pledge, book three in the Grooms with Honor series, I googled 1800s saddles, saddlemakers, tools, etc., since the main character is a saddle maker.

I could probably spend as much time reading facts and looking at images as I do writing the book.

"When men lived in their saddles, the saddles had to be sturdy, comfortable, durable, functional and versatile.  The long cattle drives of the 1860's through the 80's pushed saddle development to its limits.  The stock saddle had to be adapted to survive over six months of constant use under the harshest conditions and weather extremes without major failure.  The saddle had to be built so minor repairs and replacement of worn parts could be done on the trail.  You had to be able to fix it with a pocket knife and a rock.  These requirements are what developed the stock saddle of the Old West."
Will Ghormley - Maker of Old West Cowboy Leather

Here's some interesting facts (at least to me).

*1885 Steel horns appear. Wood horns would often break from the strain of tying off cattle. Steel replacements started to be used for repairs and then became the norm in new saddle construction.

*1880's Loop seats appear. Square cut outs of the seat reveal tops of the stirrup leathers where they hang over the tree. Allowed for easy cleaning, oiling, and replacement. Popular through 1920.

*1880's Padded seats appear (although not on the rig of any self-respecting working cowboy)

*1890's Saddle swells appear. Originally created by adding a type of bucking rolls around the fork. Later evolved into swells that were incorporated into the fork. Purpose is to prevent the rider's pelvis from slamming against the fork on a bucking horse.

(Click here to read more facts.)

Without a saddle, a cowboy didn't have work, so the saddle maker was a needed profession of the old west.

Here's the description and order link for Gabe's Pledge.  

A sweet historical romance set in 1887.

Gabriel Shepard has secretly loved Iva Mae Paulson for years, but has been too shy to court her. But when Iva Mae announces at a New Year's Eve party that her 1887 resolution is to find a groom, Gabe must decide if he's ready to lose her to another man, or step out of his saddle shop to pursue her.

Iva Mae Paulson loves teaching children but after six years, she wants her own family instead. Since her choice of husband won't take the first step, she'll set her own destiny by signing up to become a mail-order bride.

Help and hindrance by family and friends makes this a comical trip down the church aisle for this couple.

The Grooms with Honor series showcases the six sons of Pastor and Kaitlyn Reagan. The family was first featured in the 1873 year-based Brides with Grit series. Besides the Reagan brothers, the series features other men in their community.

"Will you love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health; and forsaking all others, be faithful unto her as long as you both shall live?"

The young men have heard Pastor Reagan say these words to many couples over the years, and they vow to treat all women this way as they walk through life.

Many thanks from the Kansas prairie...
Linda Hubalek

Frontier Photographer, Solomon Butcher by Linda Hubalek

The second book in my Grooms with Honor series, Fergus' Honor, debuted recently. I sketched the main character, Fergus Reagan, after reading about Solomon D. Butcher, a well-known photographer who took photographs of Nebraska homesteaders in the 1880s.

Here's Mr. Butcher's biography and samples of his work from the Nebraska State Historical Society.

"Nebraska photographer Solomon D. Butcher produced, over the course of nearly forty years, a record of the settlement of the Great Plains that is both unique and remarkable. Born in 1856 in what was to become the state of West Virginia after the Civil War, Butcher came with his family to the plains of Nebraska in 1880.

This restless young man soon found that he was not up to the rigors of a homesteader's life. He had tasted just enough of it, however, to develop a profound admiration for those with the grit to survive and prosper on the Nebraska prairies. In 1886 Butcher was struck with an idea that was inspired.

Realizing that the period of settlement would soon be over, he set out to create a photographic history of pioneer life. Between 1886 and 1912 Butcher generated a collection of more than 3,000 photographs.

Though he died in 1927 believing himself a total failure, Solomon D. Butcher's work has survived to become the most important chronicle of the saga of homesteading in America."

"One of the more famous Butcher photographs: The Chrisman sisters, 1886. Lizzie Chrisman filed the first of the sisters' homestead claims in 1887. Lutie Chrisman filed the following year. The other two sisters, Jennie Ruth and Hattie, had to wait until they came of age to file. They both filed in 1892."

"The Shores family, near Westerville, Custer County, Nebraska, 1887. Jerry Shores was one of a number of former slaves to settle in Custer County. He took a claim adjacent to that of his brothers, Moses Speese and Henry Webb (each had taken the name of his former owner)."

"The David Hilton family near Sargent, Nebraska. Mrs. Hilton and her eldest daughter were adamant that they not be photographed in front of their sod house, because they wished to send copies of the picture to friends and relatives elsewhere and thought it embarrassing to be seen living in a house of dirt. But they did want to be seen with their new pump organ, so they made Mr. Hilton and the photographer drag the organ out of the house for the photographs, then drag it back in again. "

Butcher's photographs portray frontier life, which future generations would have been hard to imagine. I'm glad they were preserved for us to show what the homesteaders life was like starting over on the Kansas prairie.

Here's the description and order link for Fergus' Honor.  

A sweet historical romance set in 1886.

He's at the right place at the right time to save a woman from falling to her death...but she hadn't planned to survive. Can he convince her life is worth living, with him?

Fergus Reagan's fascination with photography led him to a career of recording people's lives. While in Nebraska photographing homesteaders in front of their humble sod houses, he's at the right place at the right time to save a young woman.

Iris Kerns' suicide attempt was supposed to end her engagement to an abusive man, but her rescuer shows her life is worth living when Fergus takes her home to Clear Creek, Kansas, to help with his new photography studio.

But, the past catches up with Iris, drawing danger to her, Fergus, and his family.

The Grooms with Honor series showcases the six sons of Pastor and Kaitlyn Reagan. The family was first featured in the 1873 year-based Brides with Grit series. Besides the Reagan brothers, the series features other men in their community.

"Will you love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health; and forsaking all others, be faithful unto her as long as you both shall live?"

The young men have heard Pastor Reagan say these words to many couples over the years, and they vow to treat all women this way as they walk through life.


Many thanks from the Kansas prairie...
Linda Hubalek

Grooms with Honor Series by Linda Hubalek

Grooms with Honor...
What does the phrase make you think of?
Strong men, honorable men, decent characters, always putting their brides first...

Little did I know when I added six sons to the preacher's family in the Brides with Grit series that they'd have their own book series someday.  But it seemed natural to continue life stories on the Kansas prairie with these six brothers, in the prime of their lives, ready to find a help mate.

In each story the woman faces a serious threat, and the man comes to her rescue. Back in the 1800s you had to rely on the help of others rather than the state's or government's help, so I'm sure situations like these women found themselves in were very threatening and real. Hopefully there were men, and communities, to help them out.

Here's the description for Angus' Trust

A sweet historical romance set in 1886.

Angus Reagan grew up fascinated with trains and has done everything from stoking engines to applying the car brakes. Now, after being a train detective for years, he's thinking about heading home to Clear Creek, Kansas. He misses his family and community.

Daisy Clancy spent her childhood in the family-run café in Clear Creek, Kansas, but she left home to work in a big city when she came of age. Still single and finally lonely for family, Daisy decides to return home and open her own business.

Fate puts the two childhood friends on the same train and sparks of memories cause each to think of their future, maybe even together. But a train robbery sets them on another journey they hadn’t planned on.

This book series, Grooms with Honor, showcases the six sons of Pastor and Kaitlyn Reagan, first featured in the 1873 year-based Brides with Grit series.

"Will you love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health; and forsaking all others, be faithful unto her as long as you both shall live?"

The young men have heard Pastor Reagan say these words to many couples over the years, and they vow to treat all women this way as they walk through life.

Besides the Reagan brothers, the series will feature other men in their community.

(Note: Two Montana Sky Kindle World stories, Nolan's Vow on sale at 99 cents until May 31, and Elof's Mission, enter the Grooms with Honor series setting right before Angus' Trust.)

Thanks for stopping by the Sweethearts of the West Blog. Hopefully I've given you another reason to appreciate the old west...because of their grooms with honor...

Linda Hubalek

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Married for eight Days by Linda K. Hubalek

I have a new book debut today. Elof’s Mission is a sweet historical romance set in 1886 in Debra Holland’s Montana Sky Series Kindle World.

Here's the description so you get the jest of the story.

Elof Lundahl, a former Fort Ellis soldier and friend of Nolan and Holly Clancy, delivers a grave marker to the Morgan's Crossing, Montana Territory cemetery for Holly’s father’s grave. After this task, he plans to travel to Kansas to start a new life near his friends.

Linnea Meyer, a Swedish mail-order bride, is at the same cemetery burying her husband—of eight days. Now homeless, Linnea and Jamie, her six-year-old stepson, accept Elof’s offer to travel with him to Kansas.

Elof falls in love with the widow and child, but he needs a job and home before he can offer them anything. Then Jamie’s grandparents arrive unannounced, changing all three of their lives.

Wait...What? Back up!
Immigrant mail-order bride.
Widowed after eight days of marriage.
Six-year-old stepson.
Homeless.
Traveling to another state with a stranger.

Besides having a creative imagination, I had to do a little research to see if this story line was possible, and plausible.

Even through Morgan's Crossing is a fictional town, I looked for forts in the Territory in the 1880s. Fort Ellis would have been in the right part of the state and time frame. Reading information about the fort and it's troops, I noticed that each troop had a farrier/veterinarian to take care of the horses. That became the hero's job at the fort, and his career choice after leaving the army. Elof is moving to Kansas so it was easy to continue using the Ellsworth County setting and history first mentioned in my Brides with Grit series.

Of course the heroine had to be in a stressful situation for the hero to help her. And you can imagine the stress of marrying a stranger, becoming an instant mother, and then widowed and homeless in a very short time frame? Add Linnea being an immigrant who's first language isn't English.

Unfortunately, situations like Linnea's did happen back in the 1800s, and there was no government assistance, GoFundMe websites, or cell phones to call for help. The woman would have to make do by herself or rely on kind strangers to help.

Possible and plausible?
Yes, Linnea could overcome her problems and heartache with the help of a good man and a welcoming community. And of course she falls in love with a Groom of Honor.


Thanks for visiting Sweethearts of the West today!

Linda Hubalek

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Researching Nolan's Vow by Linda Hubalek

I released my latest book, Nolan's Vow, a historical romance set in 1885, in Debra Holland’s Montana Sky Kindle World in December.

Here's the description

Nolan Clancy finished his military career in Fort Ellis, Montana Territory and is traveling home to run his grandparent’s café in Kansas. His train is delayed in Sweetwater Springs, MT because of a snow storm, and he helps a woman feed the waylaid passengers in the café in town.

Holly Brandt grew up on military forts where her father was an interpreter between the soldiers and the Indians. Her mother, a full-blooded Cheyenne, and Holly’s two sisters died in Kansas before she and her father moved to the Montana Territory. Her father’s death leaves Holly orphaned and homeless until she finds work in a café.

When the café owner decides to sell her business and move away, Nolan invites Holly to travel to Kansas with him.

People don’t always treat Holly with respect because of her mother’s Cheyenne heritage, but Nolan sees her as a kind woman always wanting to help others. His pastor has always told him to respect and honor women as it says in the wedding vows, and Nolan realizes he wants to say the real wedding vows to Holly.

But will their differences, along with the townspeople’s interference, let them have their happily ever after?

Researching the book

Being set in someone else's story line took a lot of research for the setting, and the characters who Debra Holland and other authors had already introduced.

What businesses were in Sweetwater Springs, and who ran them? Age, married, any children?

Was there a church, sheriff, undertaker, a railroad...a stage coach which went through town, and on which day? (The list went on and on with every scene.)

I had the couple travel from MT to KS. How long did it take on a train and on which railroad lines?

Then I researched forts both in the Montana Territory and Kansas because I wanted to work in military history. I tend to work fact into my fiction stories, so it takes more work, but I think my readers enjoy it, and have come to expect it.

I started Nolan's Vow in the Montana Sky Kindle World, but the story went on to
 introduce the Grooms with Honor series, the next series after my Brides with Grit series.

What it worth it, working in someone else's "world"?

At first it was hard to think outside my own characters "normal world" but I'm glad I did it. It's always good to learn something new, whether its about life in the 1880s, or working on a new computer program. It's the challenge that keeps us researching and writing.

Thanks for visiting Sweethearts of the West today!

Linda Hubalek

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