July 2021

Sebastian Hatchett joined the Navy merely for a paycheck, but when war breaks out, he finds himself stuck in Annapolis, Maryland, training steward’s mates for naval duty. When one of his trainees invites him to Chicago, he reluctantly goes, expecting little. But to his everlasting surprise, his trainee has the most interesting sister…

Calista Brantley was an ace journalist just a few short months ago, but the inspiration is gone, and the stories have all dried up—until she gets a visit from a woman with information that might rock her community. In the midst of deciding just what she wants to do with this knowledge, she meets her brother’s friend, Sebastian Hatchett…

Embarking on a one-week flirtation, neither of them expects anything from the other. But when their time is up, deciding whether or not they will form a lasting connection becomes the least of their worries as Sebastian is finally sent to war—and also finds himself being blackmailed for events that he had long since thought were forgotten; while Calista is thrust into solving a murder that carries grave implications.

When the storms of life rage their way, Sebastian and Calista, two people from very different walks of life, must decide whether they will navigate the seas together.

***

When I first began to outline this series, this was the book that I was most concerned about (that has since changed, in case you’re wondering!). To the point where I was going to switch the order in which each person’s story was told and move this one to the backburner. But I prayed about it, and I felt like the Lord was telling me to stick with my first mind. So I did even though I wasn’t sure if I would be able to make Sebastian and Calista’s story interesting. Unlike Henry, Bev, and Monroe, Sebastian and Calista play a slightly bigger role in The Rolling Thunder and I sort of knew their story before I started this series. I just didn’t know how to make their romance capture readers’ attention.

But this book has truly been a blessing in more ways than I can count. For those who have read my blog before, you know that All the Day Long was a tough write for me. I finished up that book unsure of what my future looked like as a writer. And it was with great reluctance that I sat down to write this one. But the story, to my surprise, flowed. And it reminded me exactly why I loved writing.

I love this book. I love these characters. It’s within to me to put out a disclaimer–I don’t know if that’s because of my personality or because that’s the lawyer in me–but I’m not going to do that. I’ll let you read the story for yourself and make your own decisions! 🙂

Thus, the book is written, I’ve gotten in back from the beta readers and it will be on your devices shortly! Probably around the time when you can expect fireworks…