The baby sister, Melody became my heroine, though the eldest Lucinda, a widow and single parent of the four-year-old deaf Harmony, proved herself strong and kept her little family afloat in the days following the Civil War. Poor neglected, and no-reason-to-be-important-or-loved, middle sister Servilia, kept a sharp tongue and wielded it on a regular basis. Sibling rivalry proved common in the manless household, no matter how hard Lucy tried.
Here's an excerpt from an early chapter.
“Uhhhn!” The baby stuck her hand out toward the bowl.
Her mother cocked her head, lifted one brow, and shot the little girl what Melody called 'the look.' A warning, but of love and disdain mixed with a tinge of mirth.
The four-year-old rocked her head side to side, lifted her chin a smidgen, and crossed her arms over her chest with a mischievous grin. Oh, how she loved that sparkle in Harmony's sky blue eyes.
The baby moved one hand enough to pat over her heart.
“That's better.” Her mother spooned on honey, stirred it in, then poured a little cream over the porridge. “And now you may have your breakfast.” Lucy slid the steaming bowl of oatmeal across the table then glanced toward Melody. “So, you really think sending her to that school might be worth the money?”
“Oh, yes. Absolutely. Of course I do.”
“Well, I don't see how in the world you could ever justify it.” The sourpuss at the far end of the table always had to put her two negative cents in.
And that's Servilia for you. But I so enjoyed her correspondence with Zeke's cousin in Pennsylvania, Rupert. What great fun it was!
"God uses all things together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purposes.
Orphaned by the Civil War, three sisters struggle to keep the family farm solvent. Eldest, Lucinda must mother her deaf daughter, Harmony and mediate between her dueling siblings, Servilia and Melody. The sisters’ fragile truce is shattered by the arrival of the handsome Ezekiel Sheffield, coming to establish a school for the deaf. Miracles, mayhem, and marriage ensue, but nothing ever comes easy."
I'm blessed that the Lord led me to be a part of this collection, with eight other sweet authors who wrote their historical romances with a locket from a Bavarian jeweler in St. Joseph, Missouri, Wilhelm and his wife Bridget. That's who connects our stories, and we all have an important piece of lace as well.
I pray you'll enjoy SILENT HARMONY and that you'll help it rise to #1 if only for today by getting yourself a copy and maybe one for a friend. That'd be excellent!
GIVEAWAY: Thank you and be blessed! I'll offer an ARC copy to a commenter here who tells me a story of YOUR siblings!
BIO: Caryl McAdoo prays her story brings God glory, and a quick scroll through her novels’ rankings by Christian readers attests to the Father’s faithfulness. She loves writing almost as much as singing the new songs He gives her—look her up on YouTube to hear a few. Her high school sweetheart husband won her heart fifty-one years ago, and now they share four children and seventeen grandsugars. Ron and Caryl live in the woods south of Clarksville, seat of Red River County in far Northeast Texas, waiting expectantly for God to open the next door.
LINKS: Please connect and follow or subscribe----or whatever is available to connect:
Author Pages:
BookGorilla - http://www.bookgorilla.com/author/B00E963CFG/caryl-mcadoo
Southern Writers Magazine -http://authors.southernwritersmagazine.com/caryl-mcadoo.html
Southern Writers Magazine -http://authors.southernwritersmagazine.com/caryl-mcadoo.html
Sweet Americana Sweethearts - bit.ly/2q0tcfFbit.ly
(All First Chapters offered here)
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_1hQx6UZbWi3OYwmKKxh6Q
(Hear Caryl sing her New Songs!)
Sweet Americana Sweethearts (Historical) -
http://www.SweetAmericanaSweethearts.blogspot.com
GoodReads: http://tinyurl.com/GoodReadsCaryl
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caryl-mcadoo-00562323
This sounds interesting. There were five of us. I was the oldest, than three brothers literally all a year apart, then four years after the youngest brother came another girl. We were all very close. Except my sister and I. That didn't happen until both of our kids were in school all day. Now we are best of friends. Growing up on a farm there was a lot of responsibility and we had to learn to work together for the good. And then mom instilled in all of us the word of Jesus. She made sure that we lived it so when we became adults we could own our relationship with Jesus. My three brothers fiercely protected my sister and I, so that no one bothered us or they dealt with all three of them. And no one wanted to do that. All five us where and still are introverts. Somehow mom knew how to deal and help and guide us so we never felt like we were inferior or out of place. Now, my sister and I live close enough to visit constantly. My older brother lives in a different state. My middle brother lives too far to visit often and my younger brother dyed from a heart attack.
ReplyDeletequilting dash lady at Comcast dot net
There were 6 of us in my family. My oldest sister Sherry had a variety of jobs, from managing fast food restaurants to the last job as a bank teller. She died January 2, 2002 of ovarian cancer, and we traveled to say goodbye to her on Christmas Eve. The 2nd sister is Jerri, who lives in Seattle, raising all 3 of her grandchildren. They have really blossomed since she has had them. I'm the 3rd child. Next is my brother Michael who served in the Marines in Cuba, where he fell of the guard tower. He is in poor health and now blind. Next is my sister Laurie, who still lives in my hometown in the house my parents had (not the same where we grew up). We try to help her with house repairs/upkeep. She took care of both of my parents while they were alive. And last is my baby sister Carole, whom I often claim as my twin. We are very close, could talk for hours (even on the phone), and she is my hero. She has a hubby who is still alive after surviving a brain tumor in 1987. Her faith & strength through this is inspiring. His brain is severely damaged, so her hands are full. His doctors introduce him as their longest living survivor & call in all the staff to see "this miracle". I learned many things from this interview & it makes me more excited to read it.
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by, Becky. I am so blessed that we got to meet at CRAVE HIM last year! It's such a joy to see your face in my mind's eye whenever I see you now online! My cousins were my "siblings" when I was a child growing up and we're still very close. They've driven up several times to see where I live and visit :) Glad you enjoyed the post here :) Love and hugs and blessings!
DeleteThanks for coming by Lori. I had one sister 8 years younger than me and a brother eleven yrs younger, so I was an only child for a long while. I'm sorry for the loss of your brother. My siblings have always been very close to each other and live close enough to visit often. I moved from there about ten years ago. We visit--stay in touch, but I wouldn't call us close. Neither have been to my house in 10 years since I moved and we're only about 3 hours apart. If I see them at all, I go there. I've been thinking about a reunion. Hey, blessings!
ReplyDelete