From a Distance (Timber Ridge Reflections Book #1)

Tamera Alexander

Description

First in a romantic historical series from a bestselling author, set in the Colorado Territory during the 1870's.

Sujets

• Historical fiction

Informations

• Publié par: Baker Publishing Group
• Date de parution: 01 juin 2008
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781585588916
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

© 2008 by Tamera Alexander
Published by Bethany House Publishers 11400 Hampshire Avenue South Bloomington, Minnesota 55438 www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan. www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
Ebook edition created 2010
Ebook corrections 04.14.2016, 11.16.2016
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-58558-891-6
Scripture quotations identified KJV are from the King James Version of the Bible.
Scripture quotations identified NIV are from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ® . Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
Cover design by Studio Gearbox Cover photograph by Steve Gardner, PixelWorks Studios, Inc.
Praise and honors for Tamera’s first series, F OUNTAIN C REEK C HRONICLES
“Tamera Alexander’s characters are real, fallible, and a marvelous reflection of God’s truth and grace. Her stories unfold layer-by-layer, drawing you in deeper with every page.”
Armchair Interviews
“[A] tenderhearted story of redemption.… Rarely does a debut novel combine such a masterful blend of captivating story and technical excellence. Alexander has introduced a delightful cast of winsome characters, and there’s a promise of more stories yet to be told.”
Aspiring Retail
“This second book in the Fountain Creek Chronicles reveals the power of love and forgiveness. All of the characters in the story are interesting and complex, even if they play minor roles. A warm-hearted inspirational story.”
Historical Novels Review
“Alexander again delivers a most amazing story. The characters are more than words on a page; they become real people.”
Romantic Times
“This follow-up to Rekindled and Revealed is a rich historical romance by possibly the best new writer in this sub-genre.”
Library Journal (Starred Review)
Rekindled was named to Library Journal ’s Best Books of 2006 list, was a nominee for Romantic Times ’s Best Inspirational Novel of 2006, and was a finalist for the 2007 RITA Awards for Best First Book and Best Inspirational Romance.
Revealed won the 2007 Romance Writer’s of America RITA Award for Best Inspirational Romance.
To Kelsey, I’m so thankful God gave you to us. But even more, that you gave yourself to Him.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Endorsements
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Epigraph
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
Epilogue
A note from Tamera
Other Books by Tamera
Ad 1
Ad 2
Back Cover
A CKNOWLEDGMENTS
My thanks . . .
First and always, to Jesus—who gives me undeserved life, both here and in the hereafter.
To Joe, Kelsey, and Kurt—without you guys, none of this would be doable. Much less, worth doing.
To Natasha Kern, my agent—my gratitude and highest respect. God’s ways surely are higher than our own.
To Karen Schurrer, Charlene Patterson, Helen Motter, Sharon Asmus, and Ann Parrish, my editors at Bethany House—your insights are treasured and I look forward to writing many more books together. Special thanks to Karen, for donning your photographer’s hat and for capturing Kelsey’s curls for this cover. That was such a fun afternoon spent “dodging the sun.”
To Deborah Raney, my writing critique partner—I cannot imagine this journey without you, friend.
To Doug and June Gattis, my parents, and Fred Alexander, my father-in-law—I appreciate your reading through the manuscript before publication. Your comments, catches, and suggestions were so helpful, and your encouragement . . . so timely.
To my Uncle Ben and Aunt Lyda (Mullins)—thank you for the summers spent with you on your farm in Dellrose, Tennessee. Those were exciting times for a city girl from Atlanta, and are treasured memories to me now. Aunt Lyda, I know you’re looking forward to joining Uncle Ben “at Home,” but I’m so grateful you’re still with us here. I love and appreciate you.
To the CdA women—I look forward to our plotting, playing, and praying together every summer.
And to my readers—how could I have known that the sweetest thing about writing would be connecting and interacting with you? You’ve given me so much through your notes and e-mails. Connecting with you “through these characters” is a joy I’d not expected and that is so fulfilling!
Join me again in spring 2009 for Beyond This Moment, the next book in the Timber Ridge Reflections series.

Tamera Alexander is a bestselling novelist whose deeply drawn characters, thought-provoking plots, and poignant prose resonate with readers. Having lived in Colorado for seventeen years, she and her husband now make their home in Tennessee, where they enjoy life with their two college-age children and a silky terrier named Jack.
Tamera invites you to visit her Web site at www.tameraalexander.com or write her at the following postal address:
Tamera Alexander P.O. Box 362 Thompson’s Station, TN 37179
“All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance.”
H EBREWS 11:13A NIV
1 R OCKY M OUNTAINS, C OLORADO T ERRITORY A PRIL 15, 1875
E lizabeth Garrett Westbrook stepped closer to the cliff ’s edge, not the least intimidated by the chasm’s vast plunge. Every moment of her life had been preparing her for this. That knowledge was as certain within her as the thrumming inside her chest. At thirty-two, she still wasn’t the woman she wanted to be, which was partially why she’d traveled nineteen hundred miles west to Timber Ridge, Colorado Territory. To leave behind a life she’d settled for, in exchange for the pursuit of a dream, for however long she had left.
A chill fingered its way past her woolen coat, into her shirtwaist, and through the cotton chemise that lay beneath. She pulled the coat closer about her chest and viewed the seamless river and valley carved far below, the mountains heaved up and ragged, draped in brilliant dawn to the limits of sight. She peered down to where the earth ended abruptly at the tips of her boots and the canyon plunged to breathtaking depths.
The Chronicle offices in Washington, D.C., were housed in a four-story building, and she estimated that at least ten of those buildings could be stacked one atop the other and still not reach the height of the cliff where she stood. She’d never before experienced such a sense of possibility. Standing here, she felt so small in comparison to all of this, yet in awe that the same Creator who had orchestrated such grandeur was also orchestrating the dissonant fragments of her life.
The competition had been rigorous, but she’d made it—one of three final candidates being considered for the position of staff photographer and journalist at the Washington Daily Chronicle. The other two candidates were men—men she’d met, liked and respected, and who knew how to frame the world through a lens as well as they did with words—which meant she would have to work extra hard to prove herself.
A breeze stirred, and she brushed back a curl. She inhaled the crisp, cold air, held it captive in her lungs, and then gave it gradual release, as the doctors had instructed. Hailed for its purity and ability to heal, the mountain air was even thinner than she had expected, and more invigorating.
Refocusing on her task, she strapped on her shoulder pack and checked the knotted rope encircling her waist for a second time, then untied her boots and placed one stockinged foot onto the felled tree.
She tested her weight on the natural bridge and judged it would more than hold her. Even though the tree looked solid, she’d learned the hard way that things were not always as they appeared. She trailed her gaze along the length of the gnarled trunk to where it met with the opposite ledge some twenty feet away. Heights had never bothered her, but once she started across, she purposed to never look down. Better to keep your focus on the goal rather than on the obstacles.
She adjusted the weight of her pack, concentrating, focusing, and took that crucial first step.
“Don’t you go fallin’ there, Miz Westbrook!”
Startled by the interruption, Elizabeth stepped back to safety and turned to look behind her. Josiah stood on the winding mountain trail, gripping the other end of the rope that was secured to a tree behind him.
Uncertainty layered his mahogany features. “I’s just offerin’ one last warnin’, ma’am. ’Fore you set out.”
Heart in her throat, she tried to sound kind. “I assure you, I’m fine, Josiah. I’ve done this countless times.” Though, granted, never over so great a height. But be it eight feet or eight hundred, the ability to traverse a chasm successfully lay in focus and balance. At least that’s what she kept telling herself. “But it would help me if you would stop your screaming.”
His soft laughter was as deep as the canyon and gentle as the breeze. “I ain’t screamin’, ma’am. Womenfolk, now, they scream. Us men, we yells.”
She threw him a reproving look. “Then, please . . . stop your man-like yelling.”
He tugged at the rim of his worn slouch hat. “I won’t be havin’ to yell if you’d start actin’ like a normal-headed woman. Instead of some . . . hoople-head traipsin’ herself across a log for some picture of a bird’s nest.”
The felled tree was large, nearly fifty inches in circumference, hardly the log Josiah referred to, and crossing it to the opposite ledge would provide a be