About the Book

Book: Beryl’s Bounty Hunter

Author: Linda Shenton Matchett

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release date: August 15, 2023

Can a thief and a lawman find happiness?

Orphaned as a child, Beryl Atherton has lived on the streets of London for as long as she can remember. Reduced to stealing for survival, she is arrested. During her incarceration, one of her cellmates shows her a newspaper ad for an American mail-order bride agency. But all is not as it seems, and moments after landing in Boston, she must run for her life. Will things be no different for her in the New World?

Working as a bounty hunter since The War Between the States, Lucas Wolf just needs a few more cases before he can hang up his gun, purchase a ranch out West, and apply for a mail-order bride from the Westward Home & Hearts Mail-Order Bride Agency. While staking out the docks in Boston, he sees a woman fleeing from the man he’s been tailing. Saving her risks his job. Not saving her risks his heart.

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About the Author

Linda Shenton Matchett writes happily-ever-after historical Christian fiction about second chances and women who overcome life’s challenges to be better versions of themselves. A native of Baltimore, Maryland, she has lived in historic places all her life and currently resides in central New Hampshire where in her off hours, she serves as a volunteer docent and archivist for the Wright Museum of WWII.

More from Linda

Dear Reader:

I’ve been an Anglophile as long as I can remember, from reading the classics like Dickens and Austen to watching BBC television. In honor of Beryl’s English heritage, I hope you enjoy this scrumptious scone recipe:

2 C unbleached all-purpose flour

2 T sugar

4 t baking powder

½ t salt

3 T unsalted butter, cold

1 egg yolk beaten with 1 T milk (for glaze)

Strawberry jam (to serve)

Preheat your oven to 425F.

In a medium bowl, place the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and butter. Rub the mixture together with your fingers to break up the butter, until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

Add the milk slowly, mixing as you add, using enough of the milk to get your dough to come together with no lumps remaining. (Your dough should be quite sticky. If a good consistency is not achieved with the listed amount of milk, continue adding until your dough reaches a good consistency.)

Spoon the dough out until a well-floured surface. Generously dust the top of the dough and knead the dough 2-3 times to coat it with flour and smooth the surface. Press the dough into a round that is roughly 1 inch thick.

Using a well-floured cookie cutter, cut the dough into 2-inch circles. (Be sure to press the cookie cutter straight down and up. Twisting the cookie cutter will impact the amount of rise you get on your scones.)

Place the rounds onto a greased and floured baking sheet. Brush them gently with the egg yolk and milk mixture.

Bake the scones for 12-15 minutes, until golden and firm.

Remove the baked scones from the oven and let them cool for 30 minutes (if you can resist). If you like softer scones, cover them with a clean tea towel as they cool.

Interview with Linda

What is your real-life work schedule like when writing? I hold a full-time job, so I’m fairly regimented with my writing schedule. I’m typically at my desk by 5:30 AM and write for about an hour and a half before getting ready for work. On Tuesday nights, my husband is out so I use those couple of hours to either record and/or edit my YouTube video. Weekends are when I focus on social media such as writing articles either for my blog or visits to other blogs or FB posts for my groups or parties I’m participating in. I also usually writing my semi-monthly newsletter on the weekend. If I’m between books, I use my weekday morning time to outline the next story.

When did you write your first book and how old were you? I was seven or eight years old when I wrote my first story. My parents had given me a yellow pad that featured a bouquet of pencils on the front J and told me to fill it. I still have the pad, and the first story is “What Happened When the Caterpillar Gave a Puppet Show.” Prizing-winning stuff! Not, but you’ve got to start somewhere!

How do you create your main characters? Creating the characters is one of my favorite parts of writing. Before I decide on their names, I determine their vocation or avocation. Most of my WWII female protagonists have unusual occupations such as doctor, spy, mechanic, land army girl, etc. Once I decide what they’re going to do, I move on to “fleshing them out” with physical traits, age, birthdate, likes and dislikes, etc. Lastly, I name them and I use a variety of methods to do that. For my WWII characters I have about a half dozen high school and college year books. I will combine the first name of one student with the last name of another. Depending on ethnicity of the characters, I may use websites that list names and meanings. One of my books uses names of ancestors from my father’s side of the family.

Do you base your characters on real people? Sometimes, I very loosely base a character on a real person, but more often than not the real person is more of an inspiration. For example, the main character in A Doctor in the House is inspired by the first female doctor to be commissioned as an officer in the Army Medical Corps. I do enjoy bringing well-known historical figures into my books for cameo appearances.

Have you experienced writer’s block, and how do you handle it? Until my mom passed away in April 2022, I had never experienced writer’s block. After she died, I managed to finish the manuscript I was working on, but then my creativity dried up.  I was busy being executrix of her estate, but that wasn’t the main reason I couldn’t write fiction. She was my biggest cheerleader, and it was hard to write anything knowing she’d never read the story. Oddly (or perhaps not!) I was able to keep up with writing blog posts for my website and the group site I’m part of, so that at least had me putting words on paper. Then I attended an online writers’ conference, and one of the workshops was about writing after grief. The session was just what I needed to hear. I didn’t return to fiction immediately, but ideas began to percolate, and I knew it was only a matter of time before I’d write fiction again.

Blog Stops

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, June 21

Texas Book-aholic, June 22

Bizwings Book Blog, June 23

Locks, Hooks and Books, June 24

Stories By Gina, June 25 (Author Interview)

Madisyn Carlin, June 25

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, June 26

Paula’s Pad of Inspiration, June 27

The Lofty Pages, June 28

Connie’s History Classroom, June 29

Jodie Wolfe – Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, June 30 (Author Interview)

Devoted To Hope, June 30

For Him and My Family, July 1

Holly’s Book Corner, July 2

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, July 3

Tell Tale Book Reviews, July 4 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Linda is giving away the grand prize package of a $25 Visa Gift Card and signed copy of the book!!

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/2c06c/beryl-s-bounty-hunter-celebration-tour-giveaway