What Other Authors Are Saying About ALL HER DREAMS OF LOVE

 

Knowing that Mary Lou's latest book, "All Her Dreams of Love" was based on fact made it that much more intriguing and interesting. It was a page turner that I couldn't put down. I had to keep reading, I had to know what happened to Amos.

The setting of the book is in the area where I live. Cohay Creek, where panthers can be heard screaming in the early spring and fall, is just down the road. I could imagine the heavy rains and the Creek getting out of its banks and flooding the cabin of B. K. and Bertie.

The KKK, which still exists in the south, the way neighbors help each other when needed, jealousy, love, and mystery it's all there in this engaging novel.

This is a must read!

Sarah Walker Gorrell, Author and Columnist

~~~

I loved this book!

I've thoroughly enjoyed everything I've read by Mary Lou Cheatham, but this story really grabbed me. She writes Nancy as a strong, caring woman with a heart full of Christian charity.

I admired how Nancy kept strong for her little boy when she must have been falling apart inside and didn't know if her husband was dead or alive. I admired how good she was to her friends and neighbors, always willing to help them in any way she could.

Along comes Jeb. A man who is her equal in every way and who teaches her to love again.

This is a wonderful second-love story with some great side characters.

I highly recommend All Her Dreams of Love - it's a good one to snuggle up and read with a nice cup of tea.

I absolutely recommend this book.

Regina Rodgers, Author of The Winding Roads to Love Series

~~~

Mary Lou Cheatham writes wonderful stories with rich characters, interesting settings, and true-to-life plot lines. Be sure to read All Her Dreams of Love and get caught up in Nancy O'Reilly's world. 

Jackie Zack, Author of An Irish Heart 

~~~

Another heartwarming historical romance by Mary Lou Cheatham. Jeb and Nancy meet amid tragic happenings in their lives. Both fight the growing attraction between them due to society’s expectations during their day. A well-told story. 

Jonni Rich Author of The Chartres House Murder

All Her Dreams of Love, Mary Lou Cheatham’s Newest Historical Romance, Now Available

 

 

Nancy O’Reilly’s husband has disappeared in the sparsely settled wilderness of post-Civil-War Mississippi, and she goes searching for him.

Virgin woods offer cover for bands of outlaws. Underdeveloped roads provide limited transportation for the settlers. Most farmhouses stand miles apart. All Her Dreams of Love weaves tension into an inspirational romance set in a harrowing struggle to survive.

When Nancy lies in bed at night, the cries of bobcats, panthers, and owls in the nearby Cohay Swamp remind her how lonely her life has become. She doesn’t know how she can manage their remote farm while she takes care of her little son. Because she has a baby on the way, she experiences tender feelings, and she needs the gentle touch that her husband has provided.

Without the man she loves, Nancy doesn’t know how she can carry on. Where will she find the strength?

“In the light of the morning, her hand reached to the pillow on the other side of the bed. Empty. The hope that Amos could have slipped into the house during the night was also empty.”

If you liked The Dream Bucket, don’t miss this absorbing tale of the power of love.

Join Nancy on her journey to resilience. Buy your copy now of All Her Dreams of Love. Available at Amazon.

Malta Farms--When was the last time you visited a halfway house?

 Let me tell you what I did last night. I visited Malta Farms. The church I attend, Ransom Canyon Fellowship Church helps sponsor Malta. Every few weeks members of our church go out to Malta to play games, visit, and eat pizza. Last night was the first time I’d gone.

My reasons not to go. I was not sure where it was located. (It is on the north edge of Slaton just west of 13908 Highway 400.) I didn’t know how to play Spoons. (The rules of the game are simple.) I didn’t want to go by myself. (Some people gave me a ride.) I was afraid of socializing with recovering drug addicts. (All the men were sober, polite, and welcoming.)

Why should I be afraid? Back in the 1970s when I taught at Greenville High School in Mississippi, many of my students took LSD trips and smoked pot. The younger siblings of returning soldiers from Viet Nam experimented with drugs. I was fearless back then.

In the 1980s while I attended nursing school at Louisiana Tech, I spent time at Louisiana State Mental Hospital with recovering drug addicts and alcoholics. Last night at Malta, as soon as I saw these men—mostly young—struggling to regain their lives, compassion overcame the fear. Love drives out fear.

What is Malta Farms? Quoted from the Malta Farms Facebook page: 

Malta Farms is a faith-based, sober living facility that aids men with their transition back into the community. These men come from addictive lifestyles, brokenness, and neglect. Malta Farms offers men a safe place to experience the transforming power of the Lord. Our ministry is partially funded by a resident work-program, within the ministry (we are a 501(c)(3) program). With your prayers, partnership(s) and generous donations (God's provisions); our hope to see our men fully restored to their Maker and families will be realized. This process begins when a man encounters the Living God.

 

Why was Malta established, and what do the residents do to overcome their problems? How do they start their lives over? To read the answers to these questions, go to Half Way House | Malta Farms

What is going on with Malta now? The men spend their mornings in class, where they study a Bible-based program of regaining their lives. In the afternoon, they work. They seem to spend their time farming produce, which they eat and sell to stores and to individuals. An interesting person I conversed with was the cook. This weekend one of the men will graduate.

 

How can we help? The men have an annual stock-the-pantry drive. Here’s a page on Amazon, where concerned friends can go and with a few clicks send them some items they need. Amazon.com

 

We had a wonderful time. When have I laughed so much? Playing Spoons was a blast. My friends from church didn’t want to leave, and the men who are living at Malta kept talking to us. At the back door, an engaging polite exchange of conversation went on and on.

 

Thank you. Tyler, our pastor, said, “You have no idea what it means to these guys to get to feel normal and sit around a table with family.”

All Her Dreams of Love is now available. 

An alligator knocked on her door.

 

Jessica's front yard was covered in water from the flood.

An alligator came for a visit.

As Doves Fly in the Wind

Other Plans

Dale opened his sermon with these words.

As Doves Fly in the Wind

 

Author's new book receives a warm literary welcome.

Readers' Favorite announces the review of the Christian - Romance - Contemporary book "As Doves Fly in the Wind" by Mary Lou Cheatham, currently available at Amazon.com

 Readers' Favorite is one of the largest book review and award contest sites on the Internet. They have earned the respect of renowned publishers like Random House, Simon & Schuster, and Harper Collins, and have received the "Best Websites for Authors" and "Honoring Excellence" awards from the Association of Independent Authors. They are also fully accredited by the BBB (A+ rating), which is a rarity among Book Review and Book Award Contest companies.

 As Doves Fly in the Wind is a work of fiction in the romance, interpersonal drama, and Christian fiction subgenres. It is suitable for the general adult reading audience and was penned by author Mary Lou Cheatham. The plot follows our protagonist, Jessica Boudreaux Hays, a talented music professor who has moved to Rousseauville to open a bed and breakfast in her grandparents' house. Despite her cooking skills, musical talents, and hospitable nature making her an attractive prospect to those around her, Jessica faces challenges. Her sister, Emmie, needs constant care after their parents' fatal car accident. Meanwhile Dale Bonnier, a widowed pastor, ministers to two rural Louisiana churches. Despite his inspiring sermons and kindness, Dale carries the weight of a troubled past involving drug addiction that destroyed his family decades ago.

Author Mary Lou Cheatham has crafted a compelling drama that delivers an emotional and complex journey through the interlocking lives of Jessica and Dale. The book explores themes of forgiveness, self-acceptance, and the potential for redemption whilst connecting these to the Christian faith, but never in a way that would alienate readers from outside of these beliefs. The characters' struggles and growth are portrayed with depth and empathy thanks to the close attention paid to the narrative style and dialogue, making the story relatable and touching. Less of a Hollywood feel and more of a heartwarming, genuine real-life drama. Cheatham's storytelling weaves together various elements of human emotion and spirituality, creating a narrative that resonates long after the final page. Overall, readers seeking a heartwarming story with plenty of ups and downs will certainly enjoy As Doves Fly in the Wind.

                                          K. C. Finn, Readers' Favorite

Letter from Belleau Wood -- “A touching tale of young love during wartime.” – Kirkus Reviews

“Letter from Belleau Wood” by Mary Lou Cheatham is now available as a hardcover, in addition to paperback, Kindle, and Audible.

In 1917, Europe, drowning in the disaster of World War I, welcomes the United States doughboys to join the fight. Soon, the great influenza pandemic spreads over the battlefields and back home in the States.

Trudy Cameron says goodbye to the three men she loves—her brother, her childhood sweetheart, and her husband. On the home front, she must carry on. Then one day a blood-stained crumpled letter changes everything.

“A group of young people grow up in the shadow of World War I.” – Kirkus Reviews

10 Most Popular Audible Books by Mary Lou Cheatham

 

Here are Mary Lou Cheatham’s 10 top-selling Audible books:

Ten. House of Seven. A humorous look at the way Southerners related to one another in the early twentieth century.

 

Nine. Beach Story. A private-eye mystery involving a young woman with Asperger’s.

 

Eight. Letter from Belleau Wood. Poignant romance in the middle of World War I and the great influenza pandemic.

 

Seven. Travelers in Painted Wagons: On Cohay Creek. An encounter between a clan of Travelers (Gypsies) and a farm boy. Co-authored by Sarah Walker Gorrell.

 

Six. Manuela Blayne. Coming of age for an abused African American girl.

 

Five. Secret Promise. A Cinderella-style romance in the early 1900s, the first of the Covington Chronicles.

 

Four. Abi of Cyrene. An imaginative story about an unnamed woman, mentioned as a second mother to Paul, the apostle.

 

Three. The Courtship of Miss Loretta Larson. An intriguing love story with a backdrop of the prejudices of the early 1900s.

 

Two. The Dream Bucket. A well-loved novel about rural Southern life over one hundred years ago. A dream bucket reveals the principles of wise investment.

 

One. I'm Choking . . . But Life Moves on Along the Path of Grief.  A journey through the sad place of loss and to the victory on the other side.

As Doves Fly in the Wind

“As Doves Fly in The Wind by Mary Lou Cheatham is not your typical Christian romance. The characters are flawed and gritty, and you may wonder just how a happily-ever-after is going to happen. But forgiveness (from God and man and self) is a big theme in the book — something we all need. And if you are a fan of Southern settings, this

novel has the Louisiana flavor down.”

The above quotation is from a well-written Christian blog, Beckie by the Book. I’m grateful to Beckie for writing it.

Three or four times a week, a telemarketer or publicist calls or emails me to say how much As Doves Fly in the Wind has inspired them. It seems to me that most of them found the book inspired them to ask me for money to publicize it. I confess I haven’t always been as polite to them as I should.

A few days ago, a publicist called me and said something different about the book. He told me he had read it and given it to his wife to read. He said the book had changed his life! That afternoon we talked almost three hours about As Doves Fly in the Wind. He showed me ways he can promote the book so others will read it and be inspired. It was evident he was crying, and he said he was.

Although publicists select it from my full palette of novels, the book isn’t selling. I don’t know why this novel with its lovely cover and artistic interior has gone unnoticed. It’s so unnoticed that the Kindle and paperback forms do not have an Amazon ranking. The Audible version does, however, attract a few listeners. Jodi Hockinson, whose voice is like music and who can turn on a Southern accent when she wishes, recorded it beautifully.

Obviously, I paid attention to this one random phone call, one labeled by my cellphone as telemarketer. I’ve decided to take his advice. Despite all the other books I’ve written and read lately, I can still remember vividly every scene in As Doves Fly in the Wind.  It is full of inspiration—I broke the writers’ rule not to preach by including an entire testimonial sermon.

The humor that found its way onto the pages still brings a smile to my face. I laugh about the way the well-meaning neighbors of Rousseauville, Louisiana, bring produce from their garden every morning to Jessica. They sneak over before sunrise and place the bags by her door. They dare not enter Jessica’s bed and breakfast because they think the house is haunted. Those bags of groceries take on a life of their own and become a character within the book. Then there’s the alligator who knocks on Jessica’s front door.

Why has the book not sold? The marketers have pointed out one reason: the price of the paperback book. It’s twenty dollars. The current publisher refuses to change the price although the book doesn’t sell. If it starts selling soon, I’ll have it republished and lower that price. It’s a bit of a catch 22 for me at this point.

And As Doves Fly in the Wind is a little light of mine hiding under a bushel basket. Those who have read it tell me it deserves to shine from a high hill.

Free Read for the Beach

 July 13-17, download Beach Story on your Kindle device or cell phone. Read for free. 

After you read it, share your opinions about the book on Amazon.

The North Carolina Foothills:

Twenty-seven-year-old Dove Abernathy, a beautiful woman
with Asperger’s, has established herself as an artist. She
depends on Bess, her mother, for emotional support. After Bess
receives a severe head injury while in the prayer garden, their
lives are forever changed.

A North Carolina Barrier Island:

Dove’s father, Harold, is generous with his wealth but stingy
with affection for Bess and Dove. He sends them to live in
two condominiums by the beach. Someone wants to destroy
both women. Harold hires Vic Brunson, a private investigator,
to find the evil force seeking to kill the mother and daughter.
Harold demands that Vic serve as a bodyguard for Dove. Once
the criminal is discovered, Vic must determine her motive and
prevent her escape. All the while, can he keep Dove safe?

Beach Story