DOWN IN THE VALLEY – Jane Shoup
Green valley Series , Book 1
Zebra
ISBN: 978-1-4201-3709-5
September 2015
Historical Romance

Richmond, Virginia and Green Valley, West Virginia - 1881

It is said of some that if it weren't for bad luck, they would have no luck at all. That comes pretty close to the life of Miss Emeline Wright. She lost her parents at an early age, but she had some luck when a cousin of her father's got her and brought her to his home in Green Valley. Her “Uncle” Ben was loving and kind, but not so his mean wife and children—especially his son Jimmy, who made her life miserable and turned the town against her. When old enough, she went to college where she was fine for a while. Then she met a man who wooed her tenderly and lured her to Richmond for a visit. Once there, she became his prisoner and sex slave.

Did I say she had the luck to be beautiful and elegant? Those are the traits Sonny Wilson wanted in a wife…once he'd broken her will and trained her in obedience. Em was not so easily broken. On the day President Garfield was shot, she managed to escape in the confusion and make her way home to Green Valley.

Lucky again? Lucky to find her mean relatives gone, but not so lucky to find Ben ill andbarely able to care for the farm.

The above is only the beginning of the struggles Em must face as she builds herself a life. There will be ups and downs, new friends and old enemies. I don't want to discourage you from reading this novel, but I also don't want to give spoilers. Suffice it to say that love comes her way from a seemingly unlikely source.

DOWN IN THE VALLEY is gripping and interesting, at times disturbing, but it's also uplifting. Many characters are likable (and have tales of their own), and many detestable. In the end, tenderness wins out.

Enjoy DOWN IN THE VALLEY; get to know the time and place, then watch for SPIRIT OF THE VALLEY coming in November.

Jane Bowers