Valerie Comer

Looking for Love in Christmassy Places…

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We’re pleased to welcome special guest author, Valerie Comer, back to the junction!

Howdy Ladies of the Cowgirl Persuasion!

My name’s Eli. Eli Thornton. I’m not much of a cowboy for all I grew up on the Flying Horseshoe Ranch during the years my dad was foreman. I liked horses fine, don’t get me wrong, but engines have always been my thing. Still are.

Watching the boss’s headstrong daughter from afar was also my thing back then. Not in a creepy way, of course. I was a few years older, same age as her brother, my best friend, but Meg Carmichael always fascinated me.

Wow, she was something, and she knew it. All rebellion and sass. She never noticed me. I might as well have been one more tree in the forest. Just as well, really, all things considered.

Then came the fateful night when my dad’s carelessness caused a horrendous accident that nearly took Meg’s father’s life and ultimately cost him the use of his legs. Dad couldn’t face it — he packed Mom and me up and we ran. He should’ve known the Carmichaels would forgive him, but he couldn’t live with his guilt.

But Dad’s gone now, and I’ve returned to the Flying Horseshoe to make amends on his behalf, if such a thing were even possible. They welcomed me with open arms like the Christ-followers they are and offered me a job as the ranch mechanic.

Pretty safe, all things considered. Last I knew, Meg lived far away. She’d been whooping it up until her social media went dark about a year ago. Yeah, I’d been keeping an eye. I couldn’t help myself.

But her parents could not only forgive my father and me, but their Prodigal Daughter. Meg had returned, baby in tow, and found forgiveness and love in Jesus and her family.

How could I stay away when the new, improved Meg finally saw me for myself?

 

Blue sky, red barn, snow on ground and a cowboy tipping his cowboy hat. Text "The Cowboy's Forever Crush by Valerie Comer"

In this story, you’ll find:

  • A high school crush
  • A prodigal daughter
  • His best friend’s sister
  • A single mom
  • Cinnamon shortbread cookies
  • Little Town of Bethlehem
  • Aurora Borealis
  • Redemption and second chances
  • A faith-filled romance

Want to read The Cowboy’s Forever Crush? This complete romance novella is free for subscribers to Valerie Comer’s newsletter — that’s me!

Red barn with blue sky and snowy ground. Kindle with cover of The Cowboy’s Forever Crush by Valerie Comer

Some folks subscribe to a newsletter, download their freebie, then unsubscribe immediately. There’s no law against that! But why not hang around for a month or two and see if my emails might be something you enjoy? Give me a chance to prove I can keep on entertaining you!

FREE!!! Get your copy of The Cowboy’s Forever Crush here! 

Tell me, what keeps you subscribed to an author’s emails? What makes you hit the unsubscribe button faster than you can blink? Let’s talk!

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Valerie shared her recipe for Cinnamon Shortbread! Yum!

About Valerie Comer ~

Author photo of Valerie Comer

Valerie Comer is a USA Today bestselling author and a two-time Word Award winner. She writes engaging characters, strong communities, and deep faith into her green clean romances.

Valerie’s life on a small farm in western Canada provides the seed for stories of contemporary Christian romance. Like many of her characters, Valerie grows much of her own food and is active in the local foods movement as well as her church. She only hopes her imaginary friends enjoy their happily-ever-afters as much as she does hers, shared with her husband, adult kids, and adorable grandkids.

Welcome Guest – Valerie Comer

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Ang-Val-tiara-square
Angie and Valerie

Helena, Montana, had more millionaires per capita in 1889 than anywhere else in the world.

When Angela Breidenbach and I came across that bit of information, we knew we’d found the setting for Snowflake Tiara, the beauty pageant duo we’d been itching to write.

Angie set her novella, The Debutante Queen, against that backdrop. Inn-owner Albert Shanahan is worried about the future of Helena as the gold frenzy dies down. He doesn’t want his city to become a ghost town like so many gold rush sites, and devises the Miss Snowflake Pageant to showcase the beauty of Helena and its debutantes. If only he can get Miss Calista Blythe to enter the pageant, other young women will flock to join, ensuring both a successful event and successful placement of Helena as a cultured city in the eyes of the world.

Helena Mansion
Helena Mansion

Miss Calista Blythe fears being in the spotlight, but the plight of the orphan children (Helena is reputed to be the last stop on the orphan train) spurs her to action. She’s particularly focused on six-year-old Lea, who’s indentured to a brothel when her mother died before working off her westward train fare. Perhaps, if she wins the pageant, she can purchase Lea’s freedom.

Angela tucked so many bits of real history into this story it makes my head spin. Although the pageant itself and the story’s main characters are completely fictional, many of the other characters are part of Helena’s history, as are many of the background events. Yet you never feel like you’re reading a documentary. Angie’s love of Montana shines through every page.

Interior of the Montana State Capitol
Interior of the Montana State Capitol

I’m so honored to be the second author in this duo, following up with a contemporary tale featuring Calista’s 3x great-granddaughter, Marisa Hiller. Like her ancestor, Marisa is passionate about helping underprivileged children, and this is her primary reason for competing in the revived Miss Snowflake Pageant in Helena.

Angela and I enjoyed a research trip to Helena about a year ago. We toured the State Capitol and the Cathedral of St Helena, both resplendent with gold, marble, stained glass, and other trappings of the city’s wealth. Both were completed not long after Angela’s story takes place. We explored the museum, took a tourist “train ride” through the city, and roved the walking mall (several city blocks closed to vehicular traffic) where Last Chance Gulch once lay.

The Parrot Confectionary
The Parrot Confectionary

We interviewed the owner of The Parrot Confectionery (est 1922), the setting for several scenes in my novella, More Than a Tiara, and bought some candy—strictly for research purposes, you understand. We viewed the site of the Broadwater Hotel and Natatorium (the only indoor swimming pool in the world in 1889), featured in Angie’s story, but now just a grassy field. And we drove up one block and down the next in the Mansion District, where many of the red-rock homes built in the late 1800s still stand in good repair.

Montana celebrates its 125th anniversary this fall, while Helena itself is now 150 years old. Join us in commemoration!

Snowflakes and Tiaras
Click on the cover to order.

Snowflake Tiara: What if you were caught doing something good, but the man you loved didn’t see it that way?

The Debutante Queen by Angela Breidenbach ~ 1889 (Helena, MT): Calista Blythe enters the first Miss Snowflake Pageant celebrating Montana statehood to expose the plight of street urchins. But if her hidden indentured orphan is discovered, Calista’s reputation and her budding romance with pageant organizer, Albert Shanahan, could both unravel. Will love or law prevail?

More Than a Tiara by Valerie Comer ~ 2014 (Helena, MT): Marisa Hiller’s interest in competing in Miss Snowflake Pageant for the city of Helena’s 150th anniversary is at zip zero zilch when she discovers the official photographer is Jase Mackie. Can Jase make amends for past mistakes and offer her, not only a tiara, but a partner in her crusade to help needy children and families?

Valerie and Angie will be giving away one Kindle copy of Snowflake Tiara to a lucky reader, so be sure to leave a comment to be entered in the  drawing!

Petticoats & Pistols