Another novel is on shelves!

This year is such a historic milestone. 1776-2026.

I’m so grateful to be American born that I wrote a book about it!

A tale of courtship & marriage, duty versus desire, faith & forgiveness.

In the spirit of 1776, happy reading!

The post The Belle of Chatham on shelves! appeared first on Laura Frantz.

Thank you to PW for your review of

The Belle of Chatham! 

The post Publishers Weekly appeared first on Laura Frantz.

If I ever wanted to be a heroine in a book this would be the one. The romantic 18th-century cover echoes the story beautifully right down to her silk gown. Though Bleu Galant’s happily ever after is 220+ pages, I found myself wanting to make it a full length novel. It’s one of my favorites of the 18 I’ve written. The epilogue after his grand gesture is one I return to again & again. Here’s hoping he wins your heart & not just our heroine’s.

Happy reading!

The post Bleu appeared first on Laura Frantz.

Ever so often you meet a secondary character in a novel that steals your heart & you need to write a novella to give him his own happy ending. I have a special love for Bleu Galant from The Seamstress of Acadie & this new title reflects the gist of his 220 plus page story. I always wondered who would steal Bleu’s heart. Here’s hoping A Fierce Devotion wins yours!

Available on Amazon

The post Bleu appeared first on Laura Frantz.

Expecting galleys for the Revolutionary War novel out 1/26

Just saw Revell’s cover comps for that novel & ohmyword

Working on a novel set in London now, half finished first draft

Working on my summer newsletter. Expect 2 giveaways & much more…!

The post Spring update! appeared first on Laura Frantz.

A look back with Lael! Here are some fun facts about my debut novel –

 I absolutely love the title.

Not a fan of the cover.

This story is my longest & violates romance norms. The hero doesn’t appear till 2/3 into the book or so. Actually, there are 2 heroes. Don’t do that 

This novel has the most of me in it, followed by A Moonbow Night, another frontier KY tale.

TFD took 10 years to write, mostly because I was raising my boys & wanted to get the wildcrafting research right. The Foxfire books were a game changer.

This book was born out of my homesickness for KY & my dream as a child to have been Daniel Boone’s daughter:)

*Thank you 2friendstalkbooks
Do you follow them? Love their heart for edifying fiction!

The post A look back with Lael appeared first on Laura Frantz.

You probably already know if you’ve followed me is that cover reveal time is my favorite part of publishing. But what’s a cover without a hint of the story within?!

Sylvie Galant and her Acadian family are caught between the warring French and the English on Nova Scotia’s rugged, contested shores. When she encounters renowned enemy and Army Ranger, William Blackburn, Sylvie faces losing all she’s ever known as the British expel the Acadians from their homeland. Bereft of family and friends, she encounters William once again in colonial America and they must work through the complex tangle of their shared, shattered past to navigate the present and forge an enduring future.

Preorders have begun!

If you preorder from Baker Book House, you’ll receive the book for 40% off, FREE shipping, & a custom bookmark plus signed bookplate & a wee surprise!

Other preorder links are:

Amazon

Barnes&Noble 

Thank you!

The post Cover reveal for novel #15! appeared first on Laura Frantz.

One of my favorite things about the 18th-century is the fashion. This silk cape is a beautiful, even whimsical example of why it’s a favorite for me. At first glance it may seem just another pretty, genteel garment but…

Per The Met, “The extraordinary embroidery of this cape shows the delight of the British in the age-old tradition of representing nature in embroidery. The whimsy and pleasure expressed in the embroidery is evident.” I especially love the beribboned straw hat!

In this third Scottish novel I’m writing I have toddler twins. My heroine meets them & is wearing this cape. Her heart for children leads her to choose something she knows will appeal to them. The nursery scene is one of the favorites that I’ve ever written. Children add so much to a story.

For those patiently waiting, this third Scottish novel will release January 2025. There’s another novel coming out before then in January 2024. I promise I’m writing as fast as I can. It’s research that takes time. And I try to get it right. I love the working title of this novel though I’m not going to share it since it gives too much away. I’ve just reached the midpoint in writing so the novel is half finished. And wheest, I do love it!

Here’s hoping you love it, too!

The post 18th~century fashion or … those gorgeous Georgians! appeared first on Laura Frantz.

Writing a book always puts me back in the classroom even if I think I have a good understanding of something. In my frontier novels, my heroines are so busy trying to stay alive they don’t have time for a trade or occupation though they are usually expert survivalists. So while writing A Heart Adrift set in both York and Williamsburg, Virginia, I decided Esmée Shaw should be a working woman. Women were coming into their own then and surprisingly there were even female blacksmiths and such.

While researching this particular novel I soon regretted I hadn’t become a chocolate historian! There are such folks and they’re fascinating to listen to like this podcast:

Chocolate Historian Alex Hutchinson

As you can see in this photo, my own chocolate history began young. Oddly enough, my mom didn’t like chocolate though she didn’t deny me a chocolate bunny or two:) When I went on my first trip to Europe as a teenager, I fell hard for Toblerone and Lindt then later during college in England I was smitten by Cadbury. I confess that I’m not a fan of most American chocolate as it tastes like wax in my humble opinion. American Heritage Chocolate is better and is tied to our colonial American history. I may not have been a chocolate fan in the 18th-century had I frequented Shaw’s Chocolate Shoppe as they dealt in bitter, dark cocoa though you’ll find our heroine is quite inventive & forward thinking in the novel. Alas, milk chocolate, my favorite, was not a thing till much later!

Here’s to chocolate in all its centuries and varieties!
Time for a cup of cocoa!

The post Colonial American Chocolate appeared first on Laura Frantz.

So happy to reveal the cover for my 13th historical novel releasing January 4th, 2020, compliments of my publisher, Revell. Thanks also for the novel excerpt & video! E-reader, Audio, & Large Print versions coming soon…

It is 1755, and the threat of war with France looms over colonial York, Virginia. Chocolatier Esmée Shaw is fighting her own battle of the heart. Having reached her twenty-eighth birthday, she is reconciled to life alone after a decade-old failed love affair from which she’s never quite recovered. But she longs to find something worthwhile to do with her life.

Captain Henri Lennox has returned to port after a lengthy absence, intent on completing the lighthouse in the dangerous Chesapeake Bay, a dream he once shared with Esmée. But when the colonial government asks him to lead a secret naval expedition against the French, his future is plunged into uncertainty.

Will a war and a cache of regrets keep them apart, or can their shared vision and dedication to the colonial cause heal the wounds of the past? Bestselling and award-winning author Laura Frantz whisks you away to a time fraught with peril–on the sea and in the heart–in this redemptive, romantic story.

AMAZON

BAKERBOOKHOUSE

BARNES&NOBLE

The post Cover Reveal! appeared first on Laura Frantz.