Shannon here: Kelly Irvin shares her inspiration for her Women’s Fiction title, The Year of Goodbyes and Hellos, plus a romantic excerpt. I don’t know about you, but that title grabbed me and so did the excerpt. Comment or answer the question in this post to enter the drawing for a print copy, U.S. only. Deadline: Dec 16th, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s Kelly:
Romance and Marriage
Editors in the publishing industry live by the rule for fiction purposes that “romance in marriage is dead.” In other words, romance stories must involve two people who aren’t already in love and who give the readers the happily-ever-after they seek after a series of obstacles that seem insurmountable. In most cases I agree, but not always. On-going relationships and marriages have hills and valleys. Married couples walk through romance deserts. Then there will be a simple glance that ignites a spark and it’s a romantic moment that knocks your Nikes off. Or a spouse does something that reminds you of all the reasons you married him.
Or sometimes it takes a season that reminds of the famous line “you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone.” Take Kristen and Daniel Tremaine in The Year of Goodbyes and Hellos. Kristen is a workaholic oncologist who has let her husband and her daughters take a backseat to her all-consuming, high-pressure medical practice. Then her sister Sherri is diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Kristen tries to juggle her patients and walking through this season with her sister. Daniel loves his wife. He loves his sister-in-law. But he misses his wife. Their daughters are off at college now and the house is empty. He’s terribly lonely, but feels guilty and selfish for asking for more from a wife who spends her days trying to save patients with cancer. He’s not asking for much—just eating dinner together, church together, and the long-planned but never taken honeymoon to Paris.
Suffice it to say Kristen’s promises to “do better” fall by the wayside. What ensues is a lesson in the importance of recognizing how precious true love is. Sherri has her own fences to mend, and she too learns love lessons. There’s plenty of love to go around and a ticking clock that reminds them that time may be running out propels them to prioritize loving each other while they can.
Here’s an excerpt. Setting the stage, we’re in Daniel’s point of view. He and Kristen are sitting outside on the patio on Christmas Eve while Sherri is inside spending time with her children who’ve come to visit for the holiday.
Excerpt from The Year of Goodbyes and Hellos by Kelly Irvin:
“Sherri’s a smart woman. She knows what to expect.” How I wished she didn’t. “Ultimately it’s her quality of life that counts. She’ll have to decide when to stop. And you’ll be there to hold her up when that time comes. So will Chance. So will her kids. You won’t go through it alone.”
“I know,” she whispered. “I know and I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be dumping all this on you on Christmas Eve of all times.”
“No, don’t apologize. This is the first time in twenty-five years you’ve talked to me about those days before your mother’s death and how you felt. That’s huge. Thank you for sharing it with me.”
“I know I have a lot of work to do before we can be together.” Her chin quivered. “Just please promise me you won’t totally walk away. Don’t leave me for someone else, please.”
“I won’t.” No need to tell her about my discovery. I couldn’t leave her for someone else. My head might want to run as far and as fast as possible from Kristen, but my heart had dug in its heels and refused to budge. “I promise.”
“I’m holding you to that promise.” She pulled away and stood. “Thanks for being such a good listener. Now you should go home.” Her cheeks reddened. “I mean to your parents’ home. Your nieces and nephews will be up at the crack of dawn.”
“I wish . . .” I don’t know what I wished. We’d never spent Christmas Day apart in all the years of our marriage. That the girls had chosen to spend it with me and my family—by all rights, Kristen’s family too—gave me no joy. My throat hurt. My chest ached. “I’m sorry . . .”
“I’ll be fine. I’ll have a full house.”
Full of Sherri and Chance’s family. But still family.
“I forgot. I have your Christmas present under the tree.”
“You’ll never find it under the massive stacks of kid gifts.” I tugged her gift from my jacket pocket. I held it out. “Wait until tomorrow to open it.”
“Why?”
“Because I couldn’t take it tonight. Okay?”
It was God’s honest truth. This schism, this great divide was as much my fault as hers. I loved holidays. I loved family. I loved Kristen. But to give in now would be to go back to where we were three and a half months ago. To undo the statement I’d made. I couldn’t do that.
She studied the slim box wrapped in silver Christmas wrapping paper I’d picked out from my mom’s stash. I’d added a glittery white bow almost as big as the box. “Okay. I’ll wait. Until you’re gone.”
I laughed. So did she. Kristen was worse than the kids when it came to waiting to open gifts. She demanded hints. She hunted through closets, peeked under beds, and eavesdropped on conversations, trying to find her presents. I had become quite adept at outwitting her. Mostly by leaving the gifts at Mom’s or one of my brothers’ houses. “Do you want me to turn off the fire before I go?”
“No, thanks. I think I’ll stay out here awhile longer.” She laid the box on the chair and tucked her hands under her armpits to warm them. “I don’t want Sherri to see that I’ve been crying.”
“She’s probably in bed, but okay. I understand that.”
I stared at her boots. Her hand touched mine. “It’s Christmas, Danny.”
Kristen was the only one who ever called me that. No way I could resist. “You’re right.”
She stepped into my arms. I kissed her softly, like I’d never kissed her before. Like the arguments and anger and hurt had been erased for this one single kiss. We were just a man and a woman finding solace in a storm not of our making. She drew away. Her eyes were huge and wet with tears. “Tell everyone I said Merry Christmas. I’ll text the girls in the morning.”
Every muscle in my body thrummed with the need to stay, to walk with my wife up the stairs and into our bedroom. To lay down together in our bed. To wake up tomorrow to a new day together. “Will do.” My voice was raw, hoarse. “Merry Christmas.”
She stared up at me. She took my hand. “Stay.”
“I can’t.”
“You won’t, you mean.”
“Just like you won’t step back from your job. You said yourself you haven’t figured out how to balance your career and your family. I can’t play second chair in the orchestra anymore.”
“You said you were glad I told you about my mother and how it affected me. Yet you don’t seem to understand how it connects to who I am now. I’m doing this for her. For Brielle. For Maddie. For Sherri. For Gracie. For Ainsley. For their daughters and granddaughters. They’re all at greater risk because they have a history of cancer in their family. Breast cancer and now ovarian cancer.” She’d found her voice, her steady voice, her doctor voice, the one that knew she was right. Always right. “It’s not fair to make this your hill to die on. Not right now. Not when I’m trying to save Sherri.”
She’d brought out the big guns. The ones that always made me stand down in abject surrender. The ones that made me feel like a selfish jerk. Not this time. “This battle doesn’t rest on your shoulders and your shoulders alone. Scientists and doctors and researchers have been trying for decades to find a cure, to even find treatments that don’t poison their patients. You won’t find the answers on your own. You’re good, but you’re not that good. Nothing you do will bring your mother back. You cannot save Sherri. The tools you need don’t exist.”
I had to stop. I had to breathe. I sucked in air and exhaled. Kristen simply stood there, shoulders back, eyes shining, not bothering to contradict or intervene. “When will the time be right to step back and let someone else carry the load while you use your precious time for the people who love you right now, right here?”
“You’re right. I know you’re right.” She hunched her shoulders. Want and need warred with habits almost impossible to break in her face. “I want to do better. I will try to do better. I promise. But you have to tell me what it is you want from me. To give up my job? Are you asking me to stop being me?”
“No, no, of course not.”
“Then what specifically do you want? Tell me because I honestly don’t know how to fix this.”
She was right. I’d spent years bottling up my unhappiness. Did I expect her to figure it out by osmosis? Through telepathy? Just by being my wife for twenty-five years? I sat and drew her down next to me. “I want to eat dinner together three or four times a week. I want to have a date night once a week. I want you to go to church with me and out to eat with my family afterward—I know that last one is a big ask, but you might find something there you’ve been missing all this time. I want a real, true vacation every year. I want to talk about something besides work and household stuff . . . .” I ran out of breath.
She didn’t answer. We sat there, side by side, but a million miles apart. Finally, I stood. “Or we can go on like we are now for a little longer and I’ll figure out what’s next for me.”
Question for Readers: What’s your idea of a romantic gesture from your significant other? (for bonus point, do you both have the same or similar ideas?) Or if you’re single, what’s your idea of a romantic gesture?
About Kelly: Best-selling author Kelly Irvin has published more than 30 novels, including 25 Amish
romances and eight romantic suspense novels. Her first women’s fiction novel, The Year of Goodbyes and Hellos, debuted in December. Aimie K Runyan, best-selling author of A Bakery in Paris, said of this story, “A heartbreaking, truth-telling look at the ravages of cancer on the body and soul. Kelly Irvin’s tale will resonate with anyone who has been affected by this terrible disease.”
The first book in the Amish Blessings series, Love’s Dwelling, took second place in the Selah Awards long romance category. Irvin’s also the winner of a Reader’s Choice Award for her novel Upon a Spring Breeze and a two-time finalist in the ACFW Carol Award Contest in the contemporary romance category. Her romantic suspense story, Trust Me, was a finalist in the Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Contest.
A former newspaper reporter, Kelly worked in public relations for more than 20 years. She has been living with stage 4 ovarian cancer since 2016. She now writes fiction full time. She lives in Texas with her husband Tim. They are the parents of two kids, four grandkids, and two ornery cats. Learn more & connect:
Kelly’s Website Kelly’s Facebook Kelly’s Instagram
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About the book – The Year of Goodbyes and Hellos:
What does it mean to make the most of life
when you’re not sure how much time you have left?
Dr. Kristen Tremaine prides herself on being one of the best oncologists in the business. She knows her husband and children have had to make sacrifices for her career, but she comforts herself with the knowledge that saving lives is her calling. That calling becomes all the more urgent when her sister, Sherri, is diagnosed with late-stage ovarian cancer.
Determined to save Sherri’s life, Kristen drops everything to guide her sister on the harrowing cancer treatment journey. When she’s unable to balance the strain of caring for her patients, being a wife and mother, and her frantic efforts to save her sister, Kristen’s carefully balanced life crumbles, starting with her marriage. Desperate to regain her footing, she vows to rebuild her broken relationships . . . as soon she’s sure Sherri will beat the odds stacked against her.
Unlike her sister, Sherri Reynolds has worked to cultivate balance in her life. Her children, her job as a teacher, and her strong faith keep her grounded—until her diagnosis sends her spiraling into the scary world of what-ifs and unknown outcomes. Sherri faces the agonizing realization that family history may be about to repeat itself. With the clock ticking, she’s determined to use whatever time she has left to heal old wounds and restore relationships.
Together, the sisters are forced to reexamine their priorities, address the still tender wounds of their childhood, and delve more deeply to discover what it means to live each day to its fullest.
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Come back Dec 8th for Ellen E. Withers!
What a fantastic book. Romantic gestures? For me it’s when he does something totally unexpected, like bringing flowers home with the groceries. He doesn’t like surprises as much. So I think he Ives it when we dress up for a really nice night on the town, putting everything aside except each other.
My husband does that too. I love it when he brings home flowers for no reason!
I’m single, but my idea of a romantic gesture would also be flowers.
Flowers are good! Especially for no particular reason!
I love when my husband does something totally unexpected. A while back, I took my engagement, wedding, and anniversary rings and had the jeweler bond them all together, so they wouldn’t slide and flip around individually.
Grant picked them up for me, so I didn’t try them on until he got home. Somehow, they made them smaller. I kept meaning to take them back and just didn’t get around to it. So I just didn’t wear them for a while.
For my birthday this year, Grant got them resized, without me ever knowing they were missing. I was so surprised and happy, I cried.
Awww, that’s so sweet. He’s a keeper!
We are reading the Nightlight Devotions every night and covering the topic of romance now 🙂 So, we’ve had some great conversations lately 🙂 We’ve been married for 20 year and romance definitely evolved since then. Speaking about romantic gesture – he knows how I love a foot massage and tries to please me very often 🙂 even after a full day of work. My love language is touch. His, on the other hand, is words of affirmation. I’m working in that area!
make dinner
I love when he does the unexpected. It could be bringing flowers home or cooking dinner because I don’t feel well. It is just that kind of thoughtful gesture that makes me feel loved and appreciated.
I have a winner! Lexi Henegar won the drawing. I appreciate Kelly for being my guest and everyone else for stopping by.