About the Book

Book: Reclaiming the Spy

Author: Lorri Dudley

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: August 29, 2023

How can he protect her from himself when she keeps winding up in his arms?

She never gave up hope. After ten years of prayers for her husband, presumed dead in the Peninsula Wars, Abigail Emerson is shocked to discover him alive. Yet what should be the happily ever after of fairy tales becomes a nightmare when he coldly instructs her to forget she’d ever seen him. Abigail refuses to let her beloved slip through her fingers again, and she’s willing to battle for his love, despite the walls he’s created to barricade his heart.

Nicholas Emerson’s time as a spy for the War Office has left physical and mental battle wounds. He can never be the charming, carefree man he once was—the man his wife deserves—but when a threat to Abby’s life returns him to their small Midland village, keeping her safe proves more challenging than expected. If only Abby would forget him and remarry, then he wouldn’t have to face the torment of all the tender, buried feelings she evokes. The consequence of his life as a spy means he can never have her again…Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Lorri Dudley has been a finalist in numerous writing contests and has a master’s degree in Psychology. She lives in Ashland, Massachusetts with her husband and three teenage sons, where writing romance allows her an escape from her testosterone filled household. Find her online at www.lorridudley.com.

More from Lorri

When writing stories, I delve into research to provide the best experience for my readers, hoping to transport them to another time and setting, in this case, the lush green rolling hills of England’s Cotswolds at the end of the Napoleonic Wars. However, God had an alternative plan for me during my research and writing of Reclaiming the Spy. To prepare for the beginning scene with Mama Em, I read Glimpses of Heaven by Trudy Harris, RN. Trudy Harris was a hospice nurse and wrote about her clients in their final days. I’ve never sobbed through every book chapter quite like I had this one. At the same time, I was encouraged to hear how many of her patients heard glorious music, observed beautiful scenes, had visions of past friends or family members, witnessed angels, or even saw their Savior, Jesus Christ.

I didn’t realize that God was preparing me through my research for my dad to go into hospice care. In his final stages, my dad spoke of seeing his parents in vivid dreams, and thanks to reading about similar situations in Glimpses of Heaven, I know they were waiting to welcome him into heaven. I’m so grateful for how God readied my heart, and I was able to draw comfort in seeing how He blurs the lines of this realm and the next to make for an easier transition. God is good all the time, and I felt his presence beside me the entire way.

I’d initially titled my manuscript Love Never Fails because Abby and Nicholas struggle to learn the qualities of love from 1 Corinthians 13, “Love is patient, love is kind… love believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” Nicholas’s debilitating spells and nightmares after serving as a spy in the Napoleonic Wars cause him to fear Bedlam and that he may hurt Abby. Post-traumatic stress disorder wasn’t a mental health diagnosis of the early 1800s, but it did exist. Mental hospitals (or madhouses) were frightening places where inmates were often treated like zoo animals. Spectators would come for enjoyment to stare and laugh at the men and women housed there.

While my parents didn’t have a wartime story like Abby and Nicholas, they shared a love that endured through good and bad times and celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary this past year. The last few days my dad was alive, he sang Amazing Grace and to my mom a Doris Day song, I Love You a Bushel and a Peck. They shared a love that never failed, and that is the love I hoped to convey through Abby and Nicholas’s story.

Interview with Lorri

Share something your readers wouldn’t know about you.

Even though I love everything romance, my three boys have brought out a competitive side of me. On several occasions, I cheered so hardily at their sports games that I got dizzy and had to sit down before I almost passed out. They also push me to go to the gym most mornings to lift weights. I’m getting stronger, but I’ll never reach their level. They can squat double my body weight.

Can you share with us something about the book that isn’t in the blurb?

The hero of Reclaiming the Spy, Nicholas Emerson, suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD. This diagnosis didn’t exist in the 1800s, but some people who fought in the Napoleonic Wars exhibited symptoms. Mental hospitals like Bethlem Royal Hospital, better known as Bedlam, had harsh conditions and treatment for those housed there. Outside spectators were allowed to come and view the patients for a charitable donation and to stir the public’s compassion. But often, visitors went for the entertainment value of gawking at the inmates. Bedlam’s patients were taunted, poked with sticks, sexually harassed, and even physically assaulted. It’s easy to see why Nicholas Emerson attempted to hide his symptoms and feared being carted off and locked away in Bedlam.

Does one of the main characters hold a special place in your heart? If so, why?

Abby’s character developed while I was researching attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, ADHD, due to my youngest being diagnosed by his school. A lot of Abby’s fidgeting and speaking before thinking were things my son often did. We were fortunate to manage his tendencies toward hyperactivity by establishing routines, working out before going to school, and giving him tea with lunch because the small amount of caffeine helped him to focus. Abby helped me to process what my son was going through, and for that, she holds a special place in my heart.

What were the highlight or key challenges you faced when writing this book?

While researching a scene for Reclaiming the Spy, I read Glimpses of Heaven written by Trudy Harris, a hospice nurse, who wrote of the stories of her patients hearing beautiful music, dreaming of relatives, or even seeing visions of Jesus or loved ones. Little did I know that in writing and editing Reclaiming the Spy, my dad would be diagnosed with stage four cancer, end up in hospice care, and shortly after, pass away. God used my research to give me hope and comfort. Before he passed, my dad spoke of seeing his parents, and I knew they were in heaven waiting to welcome their son home. God is good all the time. He used this story to walk me through the valley of the shadow of death, and I will be forever grateful.

What is the key theme and/or message in the book?

Even when silent, God is working all things together for His good. Before Jesus’s birth, there was a period when the prophets stopped prophesying. In some Bibles, this stretch of time is represented by a blank page between the Old and New Testaments. It seemed God had fallen silent, but He hadn’t forgotten about His children. He was preparing for His son to come to earth and live among us.

For ten years, Abby’s prayers for her missing husband seemed to have bounced off the ceiling, but she discovers God had been working all along. He’d heard every word she’d prayed and was weaving a plan to reunite them as husband and wife with a firmer foundation. One built on a love that never fails. 

Where can readers find out more about you and your books?

LorriDudley.com

WildHeartBooks.org

Amazon

Bookbub

GoodReads

Any current or upcoming projects you’d like to tell us about?

The next book in the Agents of Espionage series, Redeeming the Rake, features Agent Jacob Warren, who first appeared in Revealing the Truth. Jacob’s reputation is black at best, but when rescued by a reverend’s daughter from a vengeful husband holding him a gunpoint, Jacob begins to see the error of his ways. His past missions and mistakes collide in the form of a highwayman stealing the noble class’s valuables, causing Jacob to struggle to rise above the seeder elements of society he’d been assigned to mingle. He vows to redeem himself in the eyes of the reverend’s daughter but doing so may cost him his mission and his life.  

Blog Stops

Alena Mentink, August 30

lalkesidelivingsite, August 30

Melissa’s Bookshelf, August 31

Connie’s History Classroom, August 31

Betti Mace, September 1

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, September 2

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, September 2

She Lives To Read, September 3

Texas Book-aholic, September 4

Sylvan Musings, September 4

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, September 5

Locks, Hooks and Books, September 6

The Book Club Network, September 7

Becca Hope: Book Obsessed, September 7

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 8

Books You Can Feel Good About, September 8

For Him and My Family, September 9

Lily’s Book Reviews, September 10

Christina’s Corner, September 10

Book Looks by Lisa, September 11

Cover Lover Book Review, September 11

Gina Holder, Author and Blogger, September 12 (Author Interview)

Pause for Tales, September 12

Holly’s Book Corner, September 13

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Lorri is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon Gift Card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/278c0/reclaiming-the-spy-celebration-tour-giveaway