This is a novella of only 21,000 words. I plan to write two more this year, and I'm still working on The Unbinding and Moon's Silence.
Robbie & Taron is a clean western romance with a bit of cozy mystery.
Here's a sample:
Chapter One
The
cold wind stung Roberta’s cheeks, and she readjusted her scarf, pulling it to
the tip of her nose with numb fingers. Papa slumped forward, his forearms lying
on his knees, the reins loose in his hands. The horses arched their necks,
nostrils down, snorting as they struggled against the wind.
The
darkened sky threatened to drop its content of snow at any moment. She crossed her
arms, not only to hold in a bit more warmth but also in a fit of sulkiness. Her
father alone was responsible for this. Although they had been repeatedly warned
not to travel without companions and not to venture out at this time of year,
he insisted. It was late October, and a snowstorm could appear out of nowhere. There
had been no snow yet but the cold was numbing.
Papa
hadn’t spoken in over an hour, unusual for him. Normally, his spine was as
rigid as an iron rod as he barked out questions and commands. Mama, lying in
the bed of the covered wagon, also had been strangely quiet—not that she wasn’t
normally quiet, timid some would say.
Her
father coughed hoarsely, and she ventured a closer sideways glance. Bright
blotches of red stung his cheeks, and his normally bright blue eyes were
clouded.
Papa
was sixty-eight, had been forty-eight when she was born, yet was still a
strong, vibrant man—at least physically. She wondered, not for the first time,
if senility was creeping in. Mama was twenty years his junior but never
questioned his judgment, was kept completely under his thumb, as had been
Roberta. He’d become more irritable as of late, and his judgment unreliable.
She
was their only child, and Papa, of course, had wanted a boy, a son he would
have named Robert Sinclair Rutherford, Junior—someone who would inherit his
medical practice. After adjusting to the realization a girl would be the only
child he’d ever have, he set to work on a plan. Roberta would become a doctor
even if she was born the weaker sex, although Papa never said it or indicated
he thought she was weaker in any way. He put his plan into action, teaching her
all he knew and keeping a strict watch on all her activities. The focus on
medicine was single, and any and all distractions immediately swatted away like
an annoying housefly. Many men had tried to dissuade him, and her, especially
when she entered medical school. She was sure she gained entrance because of
her father’s brilliant reputation although her own intelligence and work ethic
gained her respect among the other students and even the professors.
Only two more weeks! Hope you check it out!
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