by Crystal Caudill | Jun 10, 2025 | Character Interview
I always love a good character interview. Today I have the treat of introducing you to the heroine of my friend’s debut novel, A Steadfast Heart. Before we dive in though, let’s learn about the story.
A Steadfast Heart by Martha Hutchens
When his family legacy is on the line, rancher Drew McGraw becomes desperate for someone to tame and tutor his three children. Desperate enough to seek a mail-order bride. But when the wrong woman arrives on his doorstep, Drew balks.
Heiress Kaitlyn Montgomery runs straight from the scandal chasing her toward a fresh start on a secluded ranch. She strikes a bargain with Drew—a marriage convenient for both of them.
But the more Kaitlyn adapts to ranch life and forms a bond with Drew’s children and their enigmatic father, she realizes that this ranch is where she is meant to be. And then her past catches up with her…
This sweet historical romance is perfect for fans of the following tropes:
*ready-made family
*nanny/tutor
*single dad
*fish out of water
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Sunrise Publishing
Now for our interview with Kaitlyn.
CC: I’m so excited to get to introduce you to my readers, Kaitlyn. Would you mind telling them a little bit about yourself?
KM: My name is Kaitlyn Montgomery. Yes, that Kaitlyn. The one all the newspapers have as a topic of gossip. But I didn’t do any of things they say. My brother made them all up, so that no decent man would look at me, and I would marry his vile friend. But I’ll do anything to avoid that fate, even take a train west to marry a stranger.
CC: The manipulations of others on our lives is never a good and almost always a recipe for danger and adventure. I have a pretty good guess from what you said above, but what is it you want and what, or rather who, is standing in your way?
KM: My half-brother, Michael, is my greatest enemy. To the world, he shows the image of a caring brother, while at home, he manipulates people and situations to his own advantage. I want to get away from his control, because he only cares about finding a way to get my inheritance. Unfortunately, my father made my brother my guardian until I am twenty-five, and that is still two years away.
CC: Two years is a long time to try and evade your brother’s machinations. How has that affected your relationship with God?
KM: I don’t understand why God would put me in a family that considers me easily discarded. Does He think I have no value? That isn’t what the Bible says, but it sure has been my experience. At least so far.
CC: It’s so hard to see God and feel loved when all we feel is attacked by others and ignored by Him. I know you took things in your own hands and ran off only to end up in a marriage of convenience with Drew McGraw. What is it that confounds you the most about him?
KM: I just don’t understand it. Drew loves his family so much but doesn’t know how to tell them that.
CC: Oh that can be so hard, especially on his children. Speaking of children, who’s the hardest one for you to interact with?
KM: Jo, Drew’s middle daughter, is very difficult. She doesn’t want me here, and I don’t know why. All I know is that she does everything she can think of to make things difficult enough for me to leave. Still, she may be stubborn, but I am more so, and I’m going to prove it to her.
CC: Two stubborn mules butting heads? Oh that is sure to make for an interesting read even if it isn’t pleasant for you. Speaking of children, when you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
KM: I wanted to be a scientist because I wanted to learn how the world worked. I became a teacher because I needed a job that would allow me to support myself until I was old enough to access my inheritance.
CC: At least with teaching you can use your interest in science to spark the interest of others, even if it hurts to have that lost dream. Since you’re a teacher, I bet you like to read. On the off chance you actually get to sit down, what would you read?
KM: I love anything written by Mark Twain because I love his sense of humor. The world can be a dark place, but laughter brings light.
CC: I’m definitely a fan of his satire and humor. Sometimes the only way to face life is with humor. In fact, let’s end this interview with a fun questions. Which part of the rollercoaster would you ride in: the front, middle, or back? Why?
KM: Front, because I like to see where I am going.
CC: It’s definitely a relief to see what’s in front of us. Well, at least most of the time. Sometimes when I see those really big loopty-loops coming, my stomach roils even before we reach them.
Readers, I highly recommend picking up Martha’s book. You’ll be able to read my review of A Steadfast Heart at the end of this month’s reading challenge. I’m looking forward to reading Kaitlyn’s story this weekend. Happy reading, y’all!
About Martha Hutchens:
Martha Hutchens writes faith-filled Historical Romance with heart, hope, and a touch of small-town charm. A Golden Heart® Award winner and retired homeschool mom, she draws on her love of history and storytelling to craft rich, inspiring tales set on the American frontier and during World War II. She lives in the Ozarks with her husband and a bossy miniature poodle.
Connect with Martha: Website | Free Book with Newsletter Signup | BookBub
by Crystal Caudill | Jun 3, 2025 | Book Reviews, Reading Challenge
It’s another month of our challenge: Tackle Your TBR Pile. So go dig through that stack taller than you of books you’ve been meaning to read and start reading away. Since this year is based on your TBR pile, I will not have a recommendations page, but I’m leaving the link here so it’s easier for me to set up NEXT year’s blog posts.
Find recommendations at Reading Challenge Recommendations, Crystal Caudill’s Reading Friends Facebook group, Avid Readers of Christian Fiction, or Inspirational Historical Fiction Index.
Don’t forget to comment at the bottom of the post for your chance to win a book off my prize shelf. *The list of prizes from my shelf can be found here.*
Reading Challenge 2025: Tackle the TBR Pile
If you’re anything like me, you have a TBR pile that is bigger than you can hope to read in a lifetime. This is the year we’re going to try an tackle at least twelve of those books. Head to your shelves and find books that fit each month’s challenge.
This Month: May – Cover in your favorite color
Next Month: June – Recommended by friend/family
Masquerade at Middlecrest Abbey
by Abigail Wilson
Review by: Crystal Caudill
Oops! the month got away from me, and while I did read some books, none of them were really in a favorite color. So I went back and stole an old review. 🙂 But I LOVE the color of this dress on the cover, and I remember enjoying the book. I really need to catch up on Abigails backlist.
As many of you know, first-person perspectives are NOT my favorite. An author really has to engage me and make me forget I am in the first-person in order for me to really get through the story. That being said, I needed an audiobook to listen to on a road trip that would have a bit of mystery, danger, and romance. The blurb for this story intrigued me enough to make me willing to try and listen to a first-person point of view novel. (And I totally blame Erica Vetsch’s The Lost Lieutenant and The Gentleman Spy for sending me on a Regency binge.)
I was pleasantly surprised, enough so, that I am considering going back and listening to and/or reading the first two books in the series. Masquerade at Middlecrest Abbey is a standalone book, although it is connected to other stories. I am sure there are little antidotes I missed by reading out of order, but I still found the story engaging and believable. While not always able to suspend the thought of being in first-person, I loved the unusual marriage of convenience story. Elizabeth and Lord Torrington proved to be unique characters who drew me in. Lord Torrington especially was an unexpected kind of man. I struggled to make him out just as Elizabeth did, but found him a hero whose company I enjoyed.
If you like the first-person point of view, marriage-of-convenience stories, mysterious heroes, danger, and mystery, I highly recommend this Regency story.
Genre: Historical Romance, England, 1815
Plot Overview:
In this new Regency romance, a young unwed mother must protect her heart from the charms of her convenient new husband, Lord Torrington. She is not, however, prepared to protect her life.
When the widowed Lord Torrington agreed to spy for the crown, he never planned to impersonate a highwayman, let alone rob the wrong carriage. Stranded on the road with an unconscious young woman, he is forced to propose marriage to protect his identity and her reputation, as well as his dangerous mission.
Trapped not only by her duty to her country but also by her limited options as an unwed mother, Miss Elizabeth Cantrell and her infant son are whisked away to Middlecrest Abbey by none other than the elder brother of her son’s absent father. There she is met by Torrington’s beautiful grown daughters, a vicious murder, and an urgent hunt for the missing intelligence that could turn the war with France. Meanwhile, she must convince everyone that her marriage is a genuine love match if her new husband has any hope of uncovering the enemy.
Determined to keep her son’s true identity a secret, Elizabeth will need to remain one step ahead of her fragile heart, her uncertain future, and the relentless fiend bent on her new family’s ruin.
Giveaway
For your chance to win a print copy, comment with what book YOU read for this month. Use the Rafflecopter below for extra entries and to mark that you left a comment. Entries end on the 7th of each month at midnight EST, and the winner will be drawn sometime that week and notified by email. The winner will be announced on the Rafflecopter widget. *Giveaway Policies can be found here.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
What did you read for the challenge? What were your thoughts on it? Would you recommend it?
by Crystal Caudill | May 22, 2025 | Uncategorized
I always adore having Grace or one of her characters on my blog, and as I’ve been taking a break from blog posts for a little while, it’s nice to dip back into the blogging world with another interview with her. I’ve had the blessing of knowing Grace since pretty much the beginning of my writing journey and the even greater blessing of getting to know her better over the years. She writes wonderful stories, both Gilded Age and Regency. I had the pleasure of endorsing her latest book, To Kiss a Knight, which you can enter her endorser giveaway here until Monday night (5/26/2025). If you’ve not had the pleasure of meeting Grace before, allow me to formally introduce her:
Grace Hitchcock is the award-winning author of multiple his¬torical novels and novellas, including the American Royalty, Best Laid Plans, and Aprons & Veils series. She holds a Master’s in Creative Writing and a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in History. Grace lives South Louisiana with her husband, Dakota, sons, and daughter in a farmhouse that is always filled with the sounds of sweet little footsteps running at full speed. When not writing, chasing babies, or tending to her chickens, she’s baking something delightful and can usually be found with a book clutched in her fist.
You can connect with her through: Website | Newsletter | Facebook | Instagram | GoodReads | BookBub | Amazon
Now for the fun stuff! I have to admit I am partial to my Fast Five. 🙂 So settle in as I hit Grace with rapid-fire.
CC: Rain or snow?
GH: 1,000,000% Rain!
CC: Makeup or no makeup?
GH: Makeup, but just the five-minute and run kind 🙂
CC: Personal maid or personal chef?
GH: Personal maid! I love to cook, but cleaning is only bearable with audiobooks and podcasts, haha.
CC: Arrive early, just on time, or late?
GH: Early!
CC: Food fight or water balloon fight?
GH: Water balloon!
I admire your ability to do makeup in five minutes. I don’t usually wear it, so it feels like it takes me FOREVER to put it on right.
What kind of stories are your favorite to write?
GH: Swoony romances with lots of adventure! It’s my favorite kind to read, so I always try to write a book that I want as a reader 🙂
CC: And you do them so well!!
Do you read fiction while you are writing your own stories?
GH: I do! However, I usually read a genre that I’m not writing in (Christian romcoms, clean paranormal romances, etc.). It gives me inspiration and a break from thinking about my story!
CC: I’ve been doing that more recently too. It’s been great too, because I’m less likely to compare myself to my favorite historical romance authors. Nothing like impostor syndrome to slow the writing.
What is your favorite part about writing?
GH: The first draft is my favorite!! All the creativity is flowing, and it is so, so fun to see that word count go up! My least favorite is the content edit. (It is just painful and I’ve read the story a lot by this point, so I start to think that it might be boring.)
CC: Oh, girl, do I feel you. I always try to add things in during the developmental edit because I get bored, and then I have to take it out again. LOL
Do you have a general writing process you follow or does it change all the time?
GH: I usually write the first draft for 8-10 weeks and edit (drafts 2-6) for 12 weeks! I try not to write on the weekends, but occasionally when the deadline is getting too close, I have to! I do a lot of read throughs in my writing, but I like to layer the story in slowly!
CC: That is sort of similar to my method, although I’m MUCH slower than you. LOL
Now I’m excited to talk about To Kiss A Knight.
Purchase your copy at Amazon | Signed Copy
And if you’re not convinced enough, here’s MY endorsement for the book:
“An authoress fleeing an unwanted marriage, a chivalrous thief who is not as he first appears, and a marriage of convenience? Yes please. Grace Hitchcock has pulled off another rollicking Regency with romance, danger, humor, and unexpected plot twists that you don’t want to miss!”
CC: What will fans of To Kiss a Knight love about your story and characters?
GH: The readers have been saying that they love the chemistry between Vivienne and Bash! The To Kiss a Knight main characters are one of my favorite couples, so it’s great to hear that readers think so too!
CC: They were definitely a blast. 🙂
How did this story develop and change from spark to finished book?
GH: This story was inspired by two of my favorite old movies, Christmas in Connecticut and It Started with Eve! Vivienne and Bash’s relationship really came alive while writing and their chemistry was so natural and easy to capture!
CC: Hmm. I’ve never watched either movie! I guess I better go check those out!
What is a fun fact about this story that readers might not know?
GH: My husband and I went to Bath after writing this story, and we got to visit all the places Vivienne went in Bath and even had high tea in the Pump Room and saw the famous fountain, which you will read about in this story! I’ve been wanting to visit Bath for ages, and it was made extra special having Vivienne’s story completed. But, the shocking aspect of Bath was the surrounding hills! In all the movies I have ever watched set in Bath, there was never a panoramic shot of Bath being set in hills!!!
CC: Wow! I’m really jealous!!! One of these days. One of these days.
Who was your favorite character to write?
GH: I loved capturing the grandma! Her feisty attitude was inspired by my late grandma. While writing, all I had to do was think of my grandma, and Grandmother Larkby was living and breathing in my mind and even had me tearing up while writing some of her scenes.
CC: She really was on of my favorites!
Before we sign off, I always like to end with a fun question so . . .
What would you be if you had to wear one Halloween costume every day for the rest of your life?
GH: I supposed I’d be Laura Ingalls Wilder because we recently moved into a farmhouse where we are raising a flock of 25 chickens, two golden retrievers, and planting fruit trees all while homeschooling!
CC: That is so fitting!
Readers, I hope you’ll check out To Kiss a Knight and then leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, and/or BookBub. You wouldn’t believe how important that is to an author.
Reader, what books have you read with an authoress heroine? Or what about a funny Regency?
Giveaway
Here’s your chance to enter Grace’s Endorser giveaway. Visit her KingSumo Giveaway here for all the details.
Endorser GIVEAWAY! WIN Crystal Caudill’s Written in Secret, AND Betsy St. Amant’s No Place Like Home, AND Carrie Turansky’s A Token of Love And Rebekah Millet’s Kate Landry Has a Plan AND Misty M. Beller’s Saving the Mountain Man’s Legacy!!!!
by Crystal Caudill | May 1, 2025 | Book Reviews, Reading Challenge
It’s another month of our challenge: Tackle Your TBR Pile. So go dig through that stack taller than you of books you’ve been meaning to read and start reading away. Since this year is based on your TBR pile, I will not have a recommendations page, but I’m leaving the link here so it’s easier for me to set up NEXT year’s blog posts.
Find recommendations at Reading Challenge Recommendations, Crystal Caudill’s Reading Friends Facebook group, Avid Readers of Christian Fiction, or Inspirational Historical Fiction Index.
Don’t forget to comment at the bottom of the post for your chance to win a book off my prize shelf. *The list of prizes from my shelf can be found here.*
Reading Challenge 2025: Tackle the TBR Pile
If you’re anything like me, you have a TBR pile that is bigger than you can hope to read in a lifetime. This is the year we’re going to try an tackle at least twelve of those books. Head to your shelves and find books that fit each month’s challenge.
This Month: April – Start or Finish a series on your TBR
Next Month: May – Cover in your favorite color
Not Alone
by Liz Bradford
Review by: Crystal Caudill
I’ve long been friends with Liz, but not SO long that I was around for her first few books, and I’ve wanted to read her debut series for a long time. With me finishing deadlines and her picking up writing book six of the series, I knew it was time. While I can tell this is definitely her first published book, I truly enjoyed the story. I’ve always enjoyed stories with action, suspense, and depth, and Liz hits all of that. I especially appreciate how she hits hard topics in her stories. Rebecca Palmer is a single mom who is trying to catch a serial killer who is targeting women like her. While giving anything else away would be spoiling the story, I will say that I appreciate her tackling some of the natural relationship challenges of the story.
I’ve already binge-read books 2 and 3, and plan on starting book 4 this weekend. Each book gets better, both in storyline and writing skills.
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Plot Overview:
When single moms are turning up dead, Police Detective Rebecca Palmer will stop at nothing to bring the killer to justice.
Detective Rebecca Palmer is hunting a serial killer bent on inflicting a warped sense of Biblical judgment. But, with so few clues, she struggles to catch his trail. The killer’s obsession with murdering single moms grips Rebecca’s heart with profound intensity, since she herself is a single mom. Will she be able to stop him before he takes another mother away from her child?
Jared Johnson fought crime as a detective on the streets of Chicago but has decided to trade the inner city for the simpler life of the south. His brother said Hazel Hill, North Carolina is a great place to live, and Jared is willing to test his brother’s claims. But is the move just another stop as Jared runs from his past, or will Hazel Hill be the place his restless soul can finally settle down?
Purchase Links:
Amazon
Giveaway
For your chance to win a print copy, comment with what book YOU read for this month. Use the Rafflecopter below for extra entries and to mark that you left a comment. Entries end on the 7th of each month at midnight EST, and the winner will be drawn sometime that week and notified by email. The winner will be announced on the Rafflecopter widget. *Giveaway Policies can be found here.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
What did you read for the challenge? What were your thoughts on it? Would you recommend it?
by Crystal Caudill | Apr 9, 2025 | Book and Writing Events
Welcome to the Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt!
Welcome to the Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt! If you’ve just discovered the hunt, be sure to start at Stop #1, and collect the clues through all the stops, in order, so you can enter to win one of our top 5 grand prizes!
- Hunt through our loop using Chrome or Firefox as your browser (not Explorer).
- There is NO RUSH to complete the hunt—you have all weekend (until Sunday, 4/13 at midnight Mountain)! So take your time, reading the unique posts along the way; our hope is that you discover new authors/new books and learn new things about them.
- Submit your entry for the grand prizes by collecting the CLUE on each author’s scavenger hunt post and submitting your answer in the Rafflecopter form at the final stop, back on Lisa’s site. Many authors are offering additional prizes along the way!
Howdy! I’m so happy to meet you!
Whether you’re already a fan or I’m a new-to-you author, welcome! I’m Crystal Caudill, and I write “dangerously good historical romance.” What does that mean? It means I like to write thoroughly researched historical romance with strong threads of suspense and spiritual themes that (hopefully) feel natural and not preachy. You can find out more about me, my books, and my monthly reading challenge here on my website and on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, GoodReads, or BookBub. On March 11, my first book in a new series called The Art of Love and Danger released.
WRITTEN IN SECRET is about a 19th century (Gilded Age) female dime novelist who writes crime stories to correct the wrongs of a corrupt judicial system, only to have her stories brought to life by a vigilante who murders the pardoned criminals her stories were based on. Of course, there is a swoony hero (or so I’m told), humor, sweet romance, and a delightful dose of suspense.
Dime Novels, Corruption,
and a Search for Justice
Written in Secret was inspired by a handful of facts I discovered while researching dime novels and the history of the Cincinnati police. Check them out:
- Dime novels were highly controversial. Many believed the “cheap” literature would corrupt those who read it to commit crimes and become degraded in mind. There were widespread calls for the dime novels to be banned. Even the postmaster general advocated for them to be banned from the mail system.
- Women were relegated to only publicly writing romances. If a woman wanted to write a mystery or crime novel, they used a male pseudonym (most of the time).
- Despite opposition, dime novels were sold by the hundreds of thousands, and they shaped our modern concept of genre reading.
- Until 1886, except for very short periods of a police commission board attempt, the Cincinnati police were governed by the current mayor. That means officers could be hired or fired just based on their political leanings or how they served the mayor’s needs.
- Judges and juries were regularly bought off. Criminals with the right connections walked free or received lesser punishments. Even elections were rigged.
- People were growing tired of the corruption. In 1884, after the stress of two devastating floods, a riot broke out when a horrific crime went to trial, and one of the murderers received a light sentencing.
Everyone in the book wrestles with the injustice of the world around them and responds how they think best. Lydia is a mystery-dime novelist who rewrites the stories of criminals who got away with their crimes. Billy Poe is a vigilante who kills the criminals who inspired the dime novelist’s stories. Officer Hall is a police officer trying to stop the vigilante but wrestling with the dime novelist’s part in all this. The city wants justice, even if it takes rioting, while others do their best and trust God with what they don’t understand. It really was a fascinating exploration of finding justice in an unjust world.
Here’s Your Critical Stop #24 Basics:
If you’re interested, you can order Written in Secret on Amazon, Baker Book House, Barnes & Noble, Christianbook.com or at your local bookstore!
Clue to Write Down: read anywhere
Link to Stop #25, the Next Stop on the Loop: Hannah Currie‘s site!
But wait!!! Don’t go yet!!
I’m holding my own additional giveaway right here! Use the rafflecopter widget below for your chance to win . . .
Your choice of Counterfeit Truth, Counterfeit Love, Counterfeit Hope, Counterfeit Faith, We Three Kings, or Written in Secret . If the winner already has all the books, they can pick a book from my prize shelf of other authors’ books. 🙂
The winner of this giveaway will be selected on April 15th and notified by email afterward.
Fine Print: Physical items are available to U.S. residents 18 or older. Void where prohibited. E-books will be available for anywhere internationally that Amazon sells the ebooks. Full giveaway policies can be found here.
And if you are having trouble getting entered, just shoot me a note through my contact form, or comment below.
Best of luck, and happy hunting! – Crystal
A Steadfast Heart by Martha Hutchens
About Martha Hutchens:
