Thank you, Cynthia, for sharing your blog with me today!
While I conducted research for the books in the Banished Saga, I learned that the Christmas traditions celebrated in America today were firmly established by 1900. The Industrial Revolution and Civil War wrought enormous changes and provoked a desire for a family holiday harkening back to a simpler time.
The traditions of sending holiday cards, gifting wrapped presents, and decorating the house with holly and evergreen were common in 1900 America. Children eagerly awaited the arrival of Santa Claus and Christmas trees had become commonplace. The trees were trimmed with increasingly elaborate decorations, including lit candles.
As I celebrate my holiday traditions of trimming the tree, mailing Christmas cards, feeling joy at the cards I receive, and singing Christmas songs, I’ve come to realize how many of these traditions began in the Victorian Era. It’s part of the reason I love research: understanding when the traditions began and why. I hope you are enjoying your favorite holiday traditions!
Ramona Flightner
RECLAIMED LOVE
Committed…
To living a life she desires with the man she loves, Clarissa Sullivan continues to teach poor, immigrant children and to agitate for the vote for women as she awaits Gabriel’s return to Boston. Will her stepmother leave her in peace or is her life about to change again in unforeseen ways?
Convinced….
Clarissa is the woman he now wants to marry, Cameron Wright renews his pursuit of her. Charming, wealthy and well-bred, he is perceived as the ideal gentleman for a blacksmith’s daughter. With Gabriel far from Boston and his return uncertain, why should Clarissa continue to reject Cameron?
Devastated…
After his banishment from Boston, Gabriel McLeod forges a new life in a remarkable city. Will the memories of the love he shared with Clarissa sustain him?
Will Clarissa overcome deceit and treachery and reclaim her love?
An Excerpt from Reclaimed Love, Book Two in the Banished Saga
Gabriel lay on his cot rereading Clarissa’s recent letter.
December 17, 1900
My darling Gabriel,
Merry Christmas, dearest! I wish you were here to celebrate the holiday with me. We could go for long walks, warm up with hot chocolate and finish the perfect day of my imaginings with a kiss (or two!) under the mistletoe. Know that you are never far from my thoughts.
We have begun to decorate the house. There is beautiful holly this year, and I have placed it in lovely vases throughout the family parlor. I have also strung boughs of evergreen around the fireplace. The stockings have been hung, and we now await the arrival of St. Nicholas. The decorations are rather simple, but I enjoy them.
My baby sister, Melinda, will be one month old on Christmas day and gives us something more to celebrate. It is a marvel to watch her grow and change every day.
Thank you for your letters. I would be lost without them. Never fear that the sweet talkings of those present would ever cause me to forget you. I simply act as I know is expected of me, smile when I should, think my own thoughts and dream of you.
Enclosed you will find something that I labored to make for you. Hopefully you will find it useful during the next few months. My darling Gabriel, I wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May this be the last holiday that we spend apart.
Your Clarissa
If you enjoyed excerpt, below are the links for RECLAIMED LOVE, Book Two in the Banished Saga
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1ALEsaX
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1zBs92W
Barnes and Noble http://bit.ly/VHjqMu
i-Book: http://bit.ly/1FKBW6r
Kobo: http://bit.ly/1vHKA4m
Ramona Flightner is an avid reader, writer, and traveler. By day, she practices the healing arts as a nurse practitioner. Every other moment, she’s researching and writing her next novel. LOVE’S FIRST FLAMES, BANISHED LOVE and RECLAIMED LOVE are the first novels in her Banished Saga.
Ramona is from Missoula, Montana. She currently resides in Boston, Massachusetts. Her favorite pastimes are fly fishing the cool, clear streams of a Montana river, hiking in the mountains, and spending time with family and friends.
Connect with Ramona:
Her webpage: www.ramonaflightner.com
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Or on twitter: @ramonaflightner.
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