Historical Introduction

May I introduce  the lovely young lady on this cover, Maria Onderdonk. She is waiting for her husband to be, Civil War surgeon, Henry Simms, to return from battle. Henry and Maria are the great, great grandparents of my Simms children.

Set in New York and Washington City, Four Summers Waiting  weaves a Civil War epic that emerges as a love story. Maria, daughter of a parominent Long Island widower, steps out of a dutiful-daughter role after a year of family mourning. Her best friend, Carolyn, involves her in an Abolitionist meeting where she meets medical student. Henry Simms. As the nation is swept closer to war, Henry courts Maria through letters. Strong parental sentiments and wartime incidents involving memorable characters weave conflict through the story as Maria struggles to balance her sentiments with her father's opposition to the war. When Henry is about to open a medical practice the War of The Rebellion begins.

I tell about the relationships of divided families in the "Author's Introductory Notes" at the beginning of Four Summers Waiting  introduced as the new, eBook third edition of my historical novel. Authentic diary excerpts and letters chronicle the struggles and hopes of Maria and Henry. I have tried to stay close to the real lives and the social milieu of the time, without losing the trauma of that tragic and terrible time in our nation's history.

The eBook is offered at Smashwords with a coupon code MJ28J until May 28, or you can find it at Amazon's Kindle store at a bargain price.

The story was my first writing success, published in first edition hard cover by Five Star/Gale, and second edtion in Large Print by Thorndike Press.