Shannon here: Jenny Carlisle shares insight into her characters in her Crossroad series. Comment or answer the question in this post to enter the drawing for a print copy of book 3, Love Never Fails, U.S. only. Deadline: Feb 17th, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s Jenny:
An interesting thing has happened now that my third full-length novel is being released. I fully expect to run into my characters on the streets of my hometown. The line between insanity and genius is constantly straddled by fiction authors.
While creating three brothers in my Crossroads series, I visualized the oldest brother, John K. as the star athlete, soldier and hometown hero. The middle brother O.D. was constantly struggling to find his own spot in the limelight, especially given the prowess of Cody, the youngest of the three who excelled in the dangerous sport of bull-riding.
In the first book, Hope Takes the Reins, Cody is something of a local celebrity, due to his devil-may-care attitude during the finale of each rodeo performance. His family worries, but knows that trying to slow him down is useless.
The Caldwell family owns the rodeo, and lives on the other side of the hill from the Billings’. The rodeo announcer, Smiley Caldwell is the father of two girls, Faith and Hope, and one boy, rodeo clown, Junior. Smiley’s business partner, his brother Dub, is the stock contractor that supplies animals for the rodeo. The only child of Dub and his wife Tina, Kayla Grace is more interested in the role of rodeo queen than competing in any particular event, though she is an excellent rider. Nothing makes her happier than riding in the opening ceremony, where the flags come in on horseback, and the crowd goes wild.
By the end of the second book, Faith Moves Mountains, I learned to love the youngest member of each of these families.
Cody’s bravery has sustained him through some really tough changes in his life. He inspires everyone, old and young, with his positive attitude. He and his grandfather develop a special bond as they deal with health issues.
Kayla is proving that she is more than the spoiled only child of prominent parents. Her main focus is leveling the playing field for people with disabilities. Her dream is to study architecture with the goal of designing facilities that are accommodating to all. To show support for Cody during his recovery from an injury, she organizes a group of his friends to visit and encourage him. There’s much more under that tiara than meets the eye.
Because nothing is ever easy in the life of fictional characters, both Kayla and Cody are dealing with the aftermath of tragedy as the third book, Love Never Fails, opens.
Cody continues to amaze his friends and family with his ability to adjust to every obstacle thrown his way. Kayla, on the other hand, is lost, like a balloon that was accidentally released on its way to a celebration.
Cody identifies with Kayla’s struggle between tremendous loneliness and feeling stifled by the attention of others. They both have support from multiple generations of their family, both long to prove they can live their own lives.
The two become close friends, building on the ability to talk to each other easily. Cody remembers an old high school crush, when Kayla had a different circle of friends. With his latest difficulties, he is unsure if anything beyond friendship can ever develop between them. The last thing he wants to be is a burden of any kind.
Kayla feels increasingly comfortable with Cody. She admires his strength, both physical and emotional. He becomes her rock when nothing in her life seems stable.
The two share a common faith in God. They both believe in the power of prayer and find a refuge from the storms of life in trusting the Creator. As they become closer, they realize that God’s plan does not include leaving either of them on their own forever.
Since it is typical for Christian Fiction to end with a “happily ever after”, this book will be no exception. I hope you will enjoy reading about these two young people, as much as I enjoyed imagining them. At the point when they are on the verge of unlimited opportunities, Cody and Kayla find that they want to proceed hand in hand. “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.” Proverbs 16:9.
About Jenny: Jenny has been writing stories since she learned to hold a pencil. She retired from a career in Human Resources for the State of Arkansas. She was a long-time columnist for Ouachita Life magazine, and two collections of her inspirational articles have been self-published. She is past president of American Christian Fiction Writers – Arkansas Chapter and past president of Saline County Preservation, Inc. Her first fiction project, “ Hope Takes the Reins” released from Scrivenings Press in March of 2022, and the second book in the Crossroads series,” Faith Moves Mountains” releases January 31.2023. She and her husband, James live in Benton, Arkansas where they worship with a service-oriented congregation of the Church of Christ. They are the parents of three married children and eight grandchildren. She enjoys substitute teaching in middle school, junior high, and high school classrooms. Learn more & connect:
Jenny’s Website Jenny’s Facebook Jenny’s Facebook Author Page
About the book – Love Never Fails:
Instead of relaxing during the summer after her first year of college, Kayla Caldwell is attending a memorial service after a plane crash changed her from only child to orphan. Will she ever feel safe, grounded again?
Cody Billings knows what it’s like to wake up in a totally foreign world. When his last bull ride left him partially paralyzed, nothing about his teenage life could be the same. Following months of physical therapy and modifications, the loss when he resigned himself to never walking again is still fresh in his mind.
With only the rodeo in common, Kayla and Cody had known each other only as neighbors until now. Grief and loss have matured them more quickly than their friends, but they face the same doubts as they reach the crossroads on the way to their unknown future. Kayla’s responsibilities as the young owner of a ranch are multiplying faster than the cattle. Cody is determined to prove to himself and his parents that he can be independent.
Can the two support and encourage each other even as their dreams are being modified daily?
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Love Never Fails Jenny’s Books
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As a young girl, the Palamino was my favorite, because of Roy Rogers’ Trigger.Later, Matt Dillon’s buckskin took my heart. Wondering now if it was the horse or the hero riding it that made the difference, LOL. Can’t wait to see what your readers think about this!
Mine’s always been the Palomino. No hero influence. I just think the pale coloring with even paler mane and tail are really pretty.
They are pretty amazing, I agree.
I want a Shire. They’re so big and those flowing manes and tails, as well as the feathers on their feet. Draft horses are the way to go and they’re the biggest.
I looked up the Shire. What a magnificent horse. The pictures I saw had white feet that reminded me if the “spats” my high school band wore for marching. Very impressive.
I’m looking forward to reading book 3 of your series. Loved books 1&2.
Thanks for commenting. I hope you love Cody and Kayla’ s story.
It sounds like a really interesting book. Thank you for sharing.
I hope you will love it, as well as the other two books in my series.
interesting post
don’t see question to answer
We asked about your favorite breed or color for a horse. Just for fun.
My answer may be a little different 😊 ~ a merry-go-round steed for me. The lights and the music and dreams of riding across the prairie.
Aww. I love that. I have definitely ridden more of those horses than the real ones. Magical times when our imaginations can run wild. Thanks for taking this question in a different direction.
I have a winner! Jennifer Reynolds won the drawing. I appreciate Jenny for being my guest and everyone else for stopping by.