Author’s Notes

 

A Long Winter Kiss

 

Having lived in Michigan for a year and a half, I have an affinity for the beautiful countryside there. And I felt this location would be the perfect setting for a Christmas Eve sleigh ride.

Rex would have served in the 4th Michigan Volunteer Infantry Regiment, which went into service in June 1861 and ended service in June 1864. They fought in the Battle of Fredericksburg in December 1862. After writing a series of books set during the First World War, I gained more insight and compassion into the way war affects the soldiers who serve. I wanted to explore that element of war in this novella. I also hoped to show the Christmas miracle that occurs in Samantha’s and Rex’s hearts.

 

 

An Unlikely Spring Courtship

 

Idaho City, Idaho, established in 1862 under the name Bannock City, was once the largest city between St. Louis and San Francisco. With the discovery of gold in the area in 1862, miners flooded the Boise Basin in hopes of getting rich. In May 1865, a fire destroyed most of Idaho City. Just two years and one day later, in May 1867, another fire occurred. Thankfully this one didn’t do as much damage as the first. The post office did burn down during the 1867 fire, but Lydia and Calvin are my fictional postmaster/mistress. There was a mercantile in Idaho City at that time as well, which was damaged in the fire of 1867, but for the purposes of the story, I kept both Tempest’s mercantile and Bram’s intact.

 

 

A Summer for Love

 

Once envisioned to be the “Atlantic City of the West,” Bayocean, Oregon, was a popular seaside resort town from its grand opening in 1912 to about 1928. The sea eventually eroded away the beach and buildings until Bayocean ceased to exist.

The natatorium opened in 1914 and featured grandstands, a heated saltwater swimming pool, artificial surf, and a movie theater. The dance pavilion and the bungalows where Loralee lived were all actual buildings. The Hotel Bayocean (Annex) was also a real building and featured the automatic fire sprinklers mentioned.

I love writing stories set in the World War I era and the early 1920s, and I wanted to pair both time periods in this novella of social clashes and second chances for love, even many years later.

 

 

Romance in Autumn

 

During the Gilded Age, America’s wealthy elite traveled to Newport, Rhode Island, where they stayed for the summer. There they built lavish mansions, like Baywood House in this novella, and attended or hosted one social event after another.

I wanted to capture some of the opulence of those Newport summers during the era of the American heiress, but also set this story during a season of the year that isn’t always associated with this place and time period. So I chose autumn in Newport with its iconic New England foliage.