Through The Storm — Brenda Taylor

Inspirational historical fiction

"As always, you make my every childhood Oregon Trail dream come true! Leann and Ralph's story is simply beautiful. The characters are amazing, each one with their own identity that is so recognizable. Well done!" ~ Jessie Clever, author of Inevitably a Duchess.

The Wade family saga continues in this work of historical fiction set in post-Civil War Missouri. Love reigns in the home of Leann and Ralph Wade, although tested many times during the course of their marriage. Sonny Wade, Ralph's brother, harbors a secret passion for Leann, and Joan Smith, a family friend, desires Ralph. Leann and Ralph struggle to overcome the storms of life through faith, courage, and commitment to each other.

Leann's faith is tested when her desire to have a large, fun-loving, congenial family like the one in which she grew up is threatened. After eleven years of marriage with one natural-born son, an adopted son, and a foster daughter, Leann does not give up her desire to have more children.

Ralph is proud of his ability to provide for his family on their large productive farm. He takes great pride in his crops and the abundance of their produce. Ralph is content with his lovely wife and three children, but he adores Leann, and she wants more children, so he wants more children. His heart's desires are to please his wife, raise his three children to be fine responsible adults, and work his land. Ralph's pride is wounded and his emotions in a turmoil when he contacts a disease from his school-age children that may render him unable to father more offspring. His very manhood is at risk.

Their marriage is threatened by the attraction Sonny, Ralph's older brother, feels toward Leann, and Joan Smith, a Cuba business woman, displays toward Ralph. Sonny secretly loves Leann. No other woman can take her place in his heart. He tries to keep his feelings at bay, but her memory is welded into the very fabric of his being. Sonny loved Leann before she and Ralph married, but he enlisted in the Confederate Army during the Civil War and lost his opportunity to court her. He never expresses his love openly; however, Leann and Ralph suspect his feelings.

Ralph befriended Joan Smith during an earlier encounter when she was under great distress. He finds her appealing, but his love for Leann prevails over the physical attraction he feels for Joan.

Will the marriage of Leann and Ralph survive Through The Storm?