A Tender Hope by Amanda Cabot: Book Tour and More!

A TENDER HOPE
The Cimarron Creek Trilogy, Book 3
by
Amanda Cabot

Genre: Historical Romance / Inspirational
Publisher: Revell
Date of Publication: March 5, 2019
Number of Pages: 352

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As far as Thea Michener is concerned, it’s time for a change. With her husband murdered and her much-anticipated baby stillborn, there is nothing left for her in Ladreville. Having accepted a position as Cimarron Creek’s midwife, she has no intention of remarrying and trying for another child. So when a handsome Texas Ranger appears on her doorstep with an abandoned baby, Thea isn’t sure her heart Can take it.

Ranger Jackson Guthrie isn’t concerned only with the baby’s welfare. He’s been looking for Thea, convinced that her late husband was part of the gang that killed his brother. But it soon becomes clear that the situation is far more complicated than he anticipated–and he’ll need Thea’s help if he’s ever to find the justice he seeks.

Amanda Cabot invites readers back to Cimarron Creek for a tender story of loss, betrayal, and love in the majestic Texas Hill Country.

CHAPTER ONE OF A TENDER HOPE
BY AMANDA CABOT

AUGUST 8, 1881
She was free.

While others might have trembled with fear over the thought of leaving family, friends, and all things familiar, the prospect filled Thea with relief. A new town, new possibilities, a new life beckoned her. A year ago she would not have dreamt of leaving, but that was a year ago. So much had changed in the past year, most of all Thea.

Thea Michener smiled as she checked the harness, then climbed into the buggy. Within minutes, she would be leaving the only home she could remember. As much as she loved Ladreville, whose half-t imbered buildings and Old World charm made visitors declare it to be one of the prettiest towns in the Hill Country, it was time for a change.

“But you haven’t changed, have you, Maggie?” Her smile widened into a grin as she looked at the bay mare that had carried her on countless journeys. The horse was the one part of her old life that she was taking with her, that and the tools of her trade. What she was leaving behind were the need for secrecy and the fear that someone would discover the truth she had tried so hard to hide.

Waving good- bye to the liveryman who’d cared for Maggie whenever Thea’s business brought her into town, she set off down the street. It was time to be gone. The sun was already high in the sky, although a layer of clouds promised some relief from the heat of a Texas summer. Not for the first time, Thea was grateful for her buggy. The padded seat that some in Ladreville had considered an extravagance would make the long journey more comfortable, while the top— another extravagance according to the town’s more frugal residents— would block most of the sun’s rays.

“You sure you won’t change your mind?” the mayor’s wife asked as Thea passed her home. She had hoped to escape last- minute farewells, but a number of the town’s matrons were outside their homes or strolling along the main street, apparently waiting to say good- bye to Thea or perhaps, like the mayor’s wife, hoping to persuade her to remain.

Thea shook her head. Though she would miss the friends she had made, not to mention her sister, brother- in- law, and their children, she wanted— no, she needed—a complete change. Cimarron Creek would provide that. Thea smiled as she waved at another woman, then smoothed a wrinkle from her skirt. Another change was coming. Tonight when she was miles away from those who would look askance at her action, she would remove her black garments for the last time. Just the thought brought a sense of peace, as if she’d shed a heavy burden. Thea knew she would never stop mourning her husband and son and the dreams that had died with them, but the outward trappings weighed her down, both literally and figuratively.

Not only did she hate black clothes, but the sight of them wasn’t good for her patients. Women who were enceinte, to use the French word that sounded so much more genteel than the English “pregnant” with its harsh consonants, needed no reminder that not all babies were born healthy and that not all fathers lived to hold their children in their arms. They didn’t need the reminder, and neither did she.

Thea closed her eyes briefly, trying to block the painful memories. She wouldn’t dwell on what had happened. Not today. Today was a day to celebrate the beginning of a new life, a day to put the past behind her.

Less than a minute later, she reined in Maggie in front of the parsonage.

“Bonjour, Aimee,” she said as a blonde woman, only a couple inches taller than Thea’s own five foot two, hurried from the building and stowed the modestly sized valise that contained all her earthly belongings in the back of the buggy.

Thea was surprised that Aimee, the woman who’d explained that her name was pronounced eh- MAY, not Amy, was alone. She had expected the couple who had been her hosts during her time in Ladreville to accompany her to the buggy. Evidently they’d said their farewells in private.

Aimee returned the greeting in the same language, then shook her head and said, “Good morning. We should speak English, though. I need to get in the habit.” Her hazel eyes held a note of apprehension, perhaps at the prospect of going to a town where English was the only language. Cimarron Creek did not share Ladreville’s history.

Though almost everyone in Ladreville spoke English now, the town had been founded by immigrants from Alsace, and when Thea and her sister had arrived almost a quarter of a century ago, most of the residents had spoken either French or German. As a result, Thea had grown up trilingual.

Click to keep reading the rest of chapter one of A Tender Hope

PRAISE FOR A TENDER HOPE:

“Such beautiful words flow from Amanda Cabot’s pen–words that lead characters from tattered situations to fresh beginnings and culminate in tender story endings that make a reader sigh in satisfaction. I’ve never been disappointed by a Cabot tale.” — Kim Vogel Sawyer, bestselling author of Bringing Maggie Home

CLICK TO ORDER A TENDER HOPE:

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Amanda Cabot is the bestselling author of the Cimarron Creek trilogy, as well as the Texas Crossroads series, the Texas Dreams series, the Westward Winds series, and Christmas Roses.

Her books have been finalists for the ACFW Carol Awards and the Booksellers’ Best. She lives in Wyoming.

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GIVEAWAY!

THREE WINNERS

1ST: Copy of A Tender Hope + Spa Basket
An assortment of Cru de Provence lavender vanilla scented spa products fills this lovely basket including lotions, soap, bath salts, waffle slippers and much more.)

2ND: Copy of A Tender Hope + $25 Barnes &Noble Gift Card

3RD: Copy of A Tender Hope + $10 Starbucks Gift Card

APRIL 5-15, 2018
(US ONLY)

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