I had the pleasure of meeting Elaine Cooper for the first time when she spoke at our church’s women’s retreat last spring. What a joy to hear her speak of her faith and all that God has brought her through! She was a blessing to me that day for sure. Then I found out she was an author of a historical christian book series.
I am not a big reader but my sister-in-law is, so I thought I would buy her the series for Christmas and buy the first book for me. As a mom, I always feel like I am needing to read the latest Christian “how to” books. Well…I get started reading those books and I never finish them. So I decided I needed to read something for fun. I hadn’t done that since my 5 year old was a baby! So I picked up The Road to Deer Run and I finished it in less than a week. Then, I knew I needed to finish the other two so I hoped my sister-in-law wouldn’t mind if I broke in the next two books that I was going to give her. I couldn’t put the books down and finished all three books in less than 3 weeks! They are AMAZING!
The History…
While the books that Elaine has written are fiction, there is a lot of actual history interwoven in the books along with her personal family history. The uncovering of bits and pieces of her family history led her to write a 3 book series: The Road to Deer Run, The Promise of Deer Run, and The Legacy of Deer Run. Here is Elaine in her own words describing how her book series brought her family history to life. [Of course, Elaine had to use her wonderful imagination to fill in the gaps and provide us with a few love stories in between.]
“I knew from childhood that one of my ancestors (Daniel Prince) had been a British soldier (the enemy) during the American Revolution. But instead of conquering the Patriot insurgents, his heart was conquered by a young colonial farm woman named Mary. He stayed and became an American. I based my first novel, The Road to Deer Run, on their story.”
The Story…
The 3 books follow the inspiring colonial family, the Thomsen’s, during the Revolutionary War. As I think back on what really stands out about the books, it has to be the close-knit Thomsen family. (The 1700 and 1800s are a far cry from 2013.) Some say it was a simpler time but boy it was a lot of hard manual labor without modern conveniences. The stories touch our heart and remind us not to take one day for granted! The families in the 3 books are far from perfect but you journey with them in their faith as they are refined by God.
I have to say that my favorite book was the last, The Legacy of Deer Run. Interwoven with a couple love stories are also stories of betrayal. There is even a plot of terrorism mixed into this last book. This book can be read alone but it is truly richer having read the first two books!
Curl Up…
This is the perfect time of year to curl up with a good book. I highly recommend Elaine Cooper’s historical christian fiction series. You won’t regret picking up these books, but you will have a hard time putting them down. Make sure you buy the set because you will be glad you did! You can purchase Elaine’s books through Amazon.
You can find Elaine on her website and her Facebook Page, and look for her next historical fiction book coming out this year titled Fields of the Fatherless! I can’t wait.
I wish I could enter! This book series has been on my wish list for a while! Maybe I’ll have to ask for an early birthday present. 🙂 Thanks, Elaine, for this generous giveaway!
Sounds great! I haven’t read a book for pleasure in over 11 years.
I know the feeling of not reading for pleasure. With kiddos it is hard! But worth it once in a while to enjoy reading!