The Victorian Era in America-1837-1901
By Celia Yeary
 |
| A RESTORED VICTORIAN HOME |
From New York to the West coast, a
woman of means threw her heart and soul into creating a home befitting her
status. This meant building a home that was as festooned as a Christmas
tree—inside and out.
 |
| A VICTORIAN PARLOR |
She stuffed every room with spindly, feminine furniture,
until it overflowed with excess. She decorated with abandon, creating grossly
decorated rooms, filled with every knickknack and gimcrack imaginable. A person
might feel stifled and claustrophobic in the room.
 |
| VICTORIAN LADIES |
The ladies, young and old, dressed
in the fashions of the day. The outfits were as ornate as the homes in which
they lived. Pronounced bustles, unnecessary and odd-looking, was part of every
well-to-do lady’s dress. One dress might contain as many as twenty yards of
silk and satin, and rows and rows of lace and fringe and ruffles decorated the
necklines, hems, and bustles.
In my first release, All My Hopes and Dreams, a Western Historical set in the Victorian era, 1880 Texas, Miss Cynthia Harrington lives in a big, white fancy house in Nacogdoches, Texas with her banker father.
As she says in the novel, “Nacogdoches is not exactly the social and fashion center of Texas.” However, she strives to be the best-dressed young lady of the small East Texas town. With her loveliness and poise, she manages to attract the attention of visiting horse-buyer, Ricardo Romero.
Of course, they marry, and she soon learns that the Romero ranch on the far Western edge of the Texas Frontier most certainly differs in all ways from her usual lifestyle—and that includes dress. By the third day, she finds herself wearing boots, split skirt, blouse, and gaucho hat.
Read about their adventures and how they fall in love...
ALL MY HOPES AND DREAMS
To escape an arranged marriage, beautiful,
proper Cynthia Harrington from East Texas impulsively marries Ricardo Romero, a
striking, sensual Spaniard who ranches on the far western edge of the Texas
frontier. Innocently, she steps into a hotbed of anger, rivalry, and strong
wills. As she struggles to gain a foothold in the hostile household and foreign
ranch community, she finds that her biggest challenge is to make her husband
love her.
“A ranch? I know nothing of ranching or the West. I would like to live in
a city. But you live…”
“Not far from San Antonio
Cynthia lowered her head and looked at her hands. “I don’t know. That
seems far out of my realm of expertise. I’m not certain I could do that.”
“Answer this, Cynthia. Would you rather live here until your father finds
another husband for you, or would you rather make your own decision? I’m giving
you a choice.”
At that moment, they heard heavy, hurried footsteps on the porch. Both
knew it was the master of the house. Just as he opened the door, stepped in,
and turned toward the parlor, Ricardo gathered Cynthia into his arms. He turned
her just so, placed his sculptured lips on her soft, feminine ones, and kissed
her with all the passion he could muster. For good measure, he moved one hand
to one breast. Instead of fighting, she responded as though she hadn’t heard
her father.
“Cynthia Louise Harrington! What the devil are you up to?”
Ricardo and Cynthia pulled back, but they did not jerk apart. Instead,
they gazed into each other’s eyes and parted slowly. Without caring if the man
was in the room or not, Ricardo placed his palm on her cheek, and kissed her on
the other, ever so sweetly and gently. Before he let her go, he whispered,
“Will you marry me?”
She nodded and whispered in return, “Yes, I will marry you.”
Now, $2.99,
reduced by The Wild Rose Press
because it is
now six years old.
Happy
Birthday, All My Hopes and Dreams!
Please visit
Amazon:
***OR***
Barnes and
Noble
