I’ve collected all my published New Zealand stories in Hearts in the Land of Ferns: Love Tales from New Zealand.The collection will come out in April, and will include two historical romance novellas and three contemporary romantic suspense novellas.HistoricalsAll that Glisters Rose is an unhappy servant to her fanatical uncle in 1960s gold-rush Dunedin. A young merchant from Canada may be her … young merchant from Canada may be her chance for happiness — if she is brave enough.
Forged in Fire Forged in the fire of the 1884 Tarawera eruption, their love will create them anew.
Contemporaries
A Family Christmas She’s hiding out. He’s coming home. And there’ll be storms for Christmas.
Beached Bruised refugees from the New York fast lane, Nikki and Zee imagine a new life together. Until Zee’s past arrives on their doorstep and washes away their coastal paradise.
Abbie’s Wish Abbie’s Christmas wish draws three men to her mother. One of them is a monster.
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A wonderful collection of stories by master storyteller Jude Knight! Her characters and vivid descriptions of the surroundings come alive as the pages are turned. I always know I will transcend into another place and time and these are all set in New Zealand!
All That Glistens
Rose was living with her excessively fanatical uncle and aunt after the death of her father. Treated as a servant, she was not allowed to do anything that would be constued the work of the devil. Her life opened up when Thomas, he aunts nephew visited from Canada. He was opening a business to bring supplies to the gold miners in several different places. There first meeting when she was walking home from town was fortuitous and set the stage for what was to come. He uncle wanted to marry her off to a man not to be born but could Thomas save her? This story grabbed hold of my heart and I fell in love with Rose and Thomas.
Forged in Fire
As storyteller Jude Knight always delivers, this is more of a unique setting than usual. But so very interesting! New Zealand 1886 Lottie finds herself as companion to her cousin Mytle who has taken her in when she had nowhere else to go. Constantly being berated by Mytle. Lottie finds solace in talking to their tour guide Tad Berry. When a volcano erupts and leaves Tad and Lottie trapped, two hurt souls begin to heal each other even in the furnace that may take their lives. Loved this story
A Family Christmas
An adventure that starts out with a fast paced tale of two people who meet in stressful circumstances. Trevor is an undercover agent trying to bring down a criminal by infilltrating his organization. He finds Kirilee, the guy’s sister has begun to find out the crimes he is commiting and it trying to gather information. She and Trevor work together until she is in danger and Trevor marries her to keep her safe and sends her her off to be with his family in New Zealand. It has been many months since they have heard from him but a Christmas miracle is about to happen if all falls into place. One of my favorite stories!!
Abbie’s Wish
Claudia and her daughter Abbie have tried to find a safe place and get away from all the men that have been in her life. She is devoted to Abbie who is doing a lot of physical therapy after a brain injury. (I loved they mentioned hippotherpy because I do that too). But when an innocent picture of them for Abbie’s Christmas wish shows up, the three men she is trying to stay clear of begin to show up and her life seems to be threatened by one or all? A suspense story that will keep you guessing and hoping for a happy ending!
Beached
Nickki Watson goes back to her childhood home in Valentine Bay, New Zealand after living in New York where she was an attorney. Life had not turned out like she had thought there. There were sweet memories of her Gran and Poppa in Valentine Bay and she could try to forget the last months of their lives as she had nursed them. Remember the wonderful times by having work done on their beach house she had grown up in. Her best friend Becky was there to welcome her and she met their tenant Zee who was also a coworker of Becky’s husband Dave. A great story that had some surprises but a lovely road to romance that built to a ending to remember.