RACHEL'S GARDEN releases!

I'm so happy to announce that RACHEL'S GARDEN, the second book in the Pleasant Valley Amish series from Berkley Books, will be in stores on March 3. This second book in the series takes place about a year after the events of LEAH'S CHOICE, and if you read that one, you'll have a chance to re-visit the people and places of that story. However, RACHEL'S GARDEN does stand alone as a story.

Here's a bit about the new book:

It has been almost a year since the Amish community of Pleasant Valley lost Ezra Brand to a tragic accident. Since then his wife, Rachel, has struggled to raise their three children and run their dairy farm.

Rachel's friends and family have come forward to help--Rachel's friend Leah, who is now married and expecting a child; Ezra's brothers, who work on the farm; and Rachel's parents, who are no strangers to grief after their only son, Johnny, left the Amish community. But their constant advice, hoever well-intentioned, puts undue pressure on Rachel. And when Gideon Zook--Ezra's best friend, who survived the accident--asks her permission to build the greenhouse that Ezra had always promised her, she finds his presence too painful a reminder of the past.

As spring turns to summer, and Rachel puts her heart into growing the flowers and plants that have always brought her joy, can she discover the courage to make her own choices...and embrace new beginnings?

May I ask a favor of you? If you read the book, please let me know what you think of it. And if you enjoy RACHEL'S GARDEN, you could help me by placing a favorable comment or rating about it on www.amazon.com and/or www.christianbook.com. Those reviews do make an impression on others!

Best,
Marta

Following A Dream

People are always asking small children, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" How did you answer that question? Usually I said I wanted to be a mommy or a nurse or a teacher. But what I really wanted to be was a writer.


It all started when I was eight. My mother took me to the library, and I picked out a new book, The Secret of the Old Clock. The adventures of Nancy Drew captivated me. Most little girls, when they reach the end of the book, want to be Nancy Drew. Not me. I wanted to be the person who wrote that terrific story.


So why couldn't I say that when people asked me what I wanted to be? I guess because I didn't know any writers. I'm not sure I even realized that writing books could be a career. Or maybe it was because I feared that was a dream that would never come true.


Amanda Bodine, in my book, HEART OF THE MATTER, out this month from Love Inspired, has reached the age of thirty--one of those milestone birthdays when people take stock of how they're progressing toward their dream. She's still single, without a serious boyfriend in sight. She's working as a reporter, but the serious stories she longs to write elude her. Worse, her new boss, Editor Ross Lockhart, seems convinced that she's a frivolous Southern belle who can't cover anything more important than a local dog show. She longs to prove herself, but when Ross finally seems ready to give her a chance, she learns it's only because he wants to get close to her family to write an expose on their family secret. It's time for Ross Lockhart to learn that the most important thing--the heart of the matter--is love and family. Without that, all the success in the world isn't important.


Like me, Amanda has a dream, but that dream is one she may have to sacrifice in order to save her family. I hope you'll like this second installment in The Bodine Family series, and be on the watch for Adam's story, A GUARDIAN'S HONOR, coming in July.

And I also hope that whatever your dream may be, you'll find the courage to pursue it with all your heart.

Blessings,
Marta