E.E. Burke's Best of the West: A new series from USA Today Bestselling Author Caroline Fyffe

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USA Today bestselling author Caroline Fyffe’s sweeping saga about five sisters finding love and forging new lives on the Colorado frontier.

Raised by guardians in Philadelphia, the Brinkman sisters have suddenly been bequeathed more than the truth about their late, estranged father—they’ve also inherited the Five Sisters Ranch, the dynasty he’d built for them in Eden, Colorado. It’s theirs on one condition: to claim it, they must live on it for six months—a wilderness worlds away from the comforts of the city. For Belle Brinkman, her father’s last wish could fulfill a dream she never knew she had.

Though Blake Harding, their father’s protective friend and faithful foreman, has yet to come to terms with his own broken past, he finds his heart opening to the inspiring and determined Belle. But Eden soon proves to be a tough paradise for all of them when the sisters’ lives are threatened by someone hell-bent on driving them out of town. Now they must gather their courage if they’re going to secure their legacy and have a chance at claiming the new life and possibilities of love that the untamed territory offers.

Eden, Colorado, 1880

From atop a small rise, Blake Harding sat on his horse as he surveyed the north pasture of the Five Sisters Ranch. Large, puffy clouds hung motionless in the indigo sky. If not for the movement of the bald eagle that had appeared from the west, he’d think he was looking at a painting. A crisp breeze ruffled Banjo’s mane, and all seemed right with the world.

Everything here and now, anyway.

Blake sighed and relaxed his tense shoulders, letting a hard-earned peace push back the agitation that was never far from his mind. He missed John. For the last eighteen years, his boss had been so much more than his mentor—he’d taken the place of the parents he didn’t remember and the brother he’d lost in the Civil War. John Brinkman had been Blake’s whole family wrapped up in one honorable man.

From his position on the rise, he spotted Trevor Hill cutting through the herd. The cowboy’s lips moved slowly as he spoke to the cattle in an effort not to rile them as they grazed. At the base of the slope, he waved and then loped to the top of the knoll.

“Trevor, what brings you out this way?” Blake called once the ranch hand was within hearing distance. Trevor had worked for the Five Sisters for three years. “Thought you were in Eden today, picking up supplies.”

“Was, boss, but came back as soon as Henry gave me this.” He held out a folded note.

So it’s actually going to happen.

Still not used to the men calling him “boss,” Blake took the paper. Henry had sent a telegram two days ago. Upon hearing of their father’s death, John’s daughters had apparently responded right away. Imagine that. He opened the note and scanned the missive, anger twisting his gut. There was only one thing worse than having to contend with John dying—that would be confronting his five selfish, self-centered daughters. Blake stared at the words in front of his face. Well, miracles do happen. The Brinkman sisters would be arriving within the month, after all the years John’s pleas had fallen upon deaf ears. He fisted the note in his hand.

“Boss . . . ?” Trevor said, a bit cautiously. “They comin’ to Eden?”

“Yeah, they are. Too bad it took John dying to get the deed done.”

“Why now, do you think?” Trevor lifted his hat and scratched his head, then gazed lovingly up at the morning sun. “Seems a bit late.”

“Doesn’t take a genius to figure what they’re after.” He remembered two little girls, two toddlers, and one infant. The eldest, Mavis, had been almost five to his ten the last time he’d seen her.

“Money?”

       “What else?”

Here's a map of Eden, the setting for Caroline's new series:

Meet Caroline Fyffe

USA Today Bestselling Author Caroline Fyffe was born in Waco, Texas, the first of many towns she would call home during her father's career with the US Air Force. A horse aficionado from an early age, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in communications from California State University-Chico before launching what would become a twenty-year career as an equine photographer. She began writing fiction to pass the time during long days in the show arena, channeling her love of horses and the Old West into a series of Western historicals. Her debut novel, Where the Wind Blows, won the Romance Writers of America's prestigious Golden Heart Award as well as the Wisconsin RWA's Write Touch Readers' Award. She and her husband have two grown sons and live in the Pacific Northwest.

Visit Caroline at www.carolinefyffe.com
See her photographs at www.carolinefyffephoto.com
Facebook Fan Page http://tinyurl.com/ajaog39
Twitter @carolinefyffe
Write to her at caroline@carolinefyffe.com. She loves hearing from readers!

Q&A

E.E.: How did you come up with the idea for your book? 

Caroline: I was raised in a family of five sisters. For years I’ve entertained the notion of tackling the different personality traits and happenings that take place in an all-female household. Heart of Eden, is all that and more. The writing of this project was pure joy. Yes, the story is fiction, but my narrative had to come from somewhere…

E.E.: What could we find in your heroine’s purse?

Caroline: She’d carry a small book, something interesting to read if she were detained. You’d find a writing implement and several sheets of paper. You’d find money. And perhaps, depending on which heroine we’re talking about—a derringer. A girl can’t be too careful, especially back in the 1800s.

E.E.: What’s the first thing you do when you finish writing a book?

Caroline: I sit back and take a deep breath. Then, I smile. I thank God he’s given me what it takes to write a novel. THEN, I take about three days off to shop, invite a friend to lunch, read a book.

E.E.: Is writing or story-telling easier for you? 

Caroline: I consider them the same. Since I was a girl, I’d regale my sisters with stories when I’d see something strange or unusual. I’d say, look—I’ll bet…yada yada yada. Since I was the youngest, they’d laugh and encourage me. Tell me I had a good imagination. 

E.E.: Fairy Tale or Action Adventure?

Caroline: Action Adventure—with lots of twists and surprises. I love to laugh out loud, as well. All my favorites have a take-no-prisoners heroine whether that is in action or emotion. (That said, I have to admit I loved the 2015 remake of Cinderella.)

E.E.: Do you write while listening to music? If so what kind?

Caroline: I do! Music inspires me. If I’m writing a touching scene, and I’m getting emotional, I’ll stop and check to see what I’m listening to. Nine times out of ten it’s a sentimental piece or even a hymn. I only listen to instrumental. Mostly acoustic guitar.

E.E.: What sound or noise do you love?

Caroline: Rain falling on the roof, wind in the treetops, babies laughing.

E.E.: If you were given a chance to travel to the past where would you go and specifically why? Caroline: I’d buy a prairie schooner and travel the Oregon Trail (1846–1869). Now, I know, the journey was much more difficult than I can ever imagine, but something about what those brave men and women accomplished calls to me. I love to visit living history presentations of the 1800s. Perhaps someday, I’ll get a chance to participate in a wagon train.

Today, Caroline will give away two signed copies and two digital copies of her new release, Heart of Eden. 

Caroline has a question for readers: Have you ever seen or participated in a living history presentation? If yes, which one?


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