I’m delighted to be a guest on your blog today, Cynthia! Thank you for inviting me. It’s always a pleasure to chat with your fans!

If you are interested in reading powerful stories of hope and healing, you might like my Appalachian Foothills Series. Strong women facing difficult circumstances; the men who are challenged to grow as they walk beside them; and even a villain who discovers potential redemption that he doesn’t deserve but secretly yearns for.

My inspiration comes from the people around me, news articles, and snippets of life that spark my imagination.

Hijacked, book 1 in the series, sprouted from the seed of “what if” one morning as I readied my small airplane for a traffic reporting flight. (Yes, I’m a pilot!) Though Bowman Field is situated in a residential neighborhood of Louisville, Kentucky, it can be as deserted as any wilderness. What if someone commandeered a plane…? And what if the pilot, a young woman, held a secret that was slowly destroying her?

Unholy Bonds, book 2, is a closely related yet standalone sequel to Hijacked. It came to be as a result of my longtime fascination with the concept of Restorative Justice, first practiced on a large scale as part of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa when the country did away with apartheid. The concept is gaining ground in this country as an alternative and/or adjunct to criminal justice, and is especially effective with teens. This available also on Apple iTunes, Nook, and Kobo.

Opal’s Jubilee, book 3, was inspired by pardons granted by then-Governor Ernie Fletcher of Kentucky on his last day of office in 2007. The controversial move granted clemency, pardons, or early parole reviews to twenty-one women who had been convicted of murder or attempted murder after experiencing years of domestic abuse. Coincidentally, I viewed a quilt created during incarceration by some of those women, a raw and touching statement without words.

Christmas Hope, a novella and book 4, features a veteran who is coming to terms with life-changing wounds received in battle. An ad by the Wounded Warrior Project got my imagination going; throw in a heroine who has a bit of an unconventional approach to life, and the result is a poignant, uplifting holiday novella. This is available also on Apple iTunes, Nook, and Kobo.

The books are available through Amazon (and other venues as noted) in electronic or print versions.

A portion of the proceeds from my books are donated to a variety of charities:  Wounded Warrior Project, Missouri Puppies4Parole, and Women’s Prison Association.

What sorts of questions spark your imagination? News stories? Photos? A chance encounter, or an idea? I’d love to hear what you think!

Again, Cynthia, thank you for inviting me! It’s been a pleasure!

Hijacked

Pilot Lannis Parker’s carefully constructed, sterile life is upended when her small plane is hijacked before dawn on a wintry Louisville morning. Her captor does more than force her to fly him to the Appalachian wilderness, though. He resurrects memories she’s tried to bury, memories of a brutal attack she’d survived four years earlier, an attack she didn’t report and tries to pretend didn’t happen.

Wounded, and losing strength by the minute, Ben Martin knows he has no choice but to commandeer a plane before he’s set upon by a ruthless band of drug dealers intent on wiping him out, along with the information he’s acquired. He’s horrified to discover the pilot is a woman—but once his plan is launched, there’s no turning back.

During a week in the wilderness, Lannis learns her hijacker is fair and honorable, compassionate and insightful—strange attributes for a criminal. And when he discovers her secret, he vows to be the friend she desperately needs but refuses to accept.

Will she come to terms with her past?  And will he be part of her future?

Unholy Bonds

Pilot Lannis Parker has triumphed over her past—or so she thinks. She faces her rapist, then dredges up the courage to bring him to trial, and is relieved to see Robert Davis imprisoned.

But the closure she’d sought is elusive. Resurrected memories invade her life and threaten to splinter her relationship with those she loves most, including Ben, her new husband. Lannis discovers she’s as much a prisoner as Davis, shackled by fear and inextricably bound to him through his crime. Frustrated at her descent into the past, Ben tries to understand, but fails.

Cracks appear in their fledgling marriage, and Lannis becomes desperate to repair the underlying cause. She gradually realizes that healing will come only when she acknowledges Davis’s humanity—not a popular notion, but one she increasingly understands as essential. In a bold move, Lannis meets with Davis in prison—and challenges him to recognize her humanity.

Will Lannis’s gamble free her from that unholy bond and open a path to peace? Can she save her marriage? Or will she lose everything in the process?

 

Opal’s Jubilee (187)

Fresh out of prison after twelve years, Opal McBride must find a job in order to meet parole requirements. Failure means she’ll serve out the remainder of her sentence behind bars. The system has seen fit to drop her in Louisville, Kentucky, a far cry from her hometown of Jubilee in the Appalachian hollows. Scrambling to adapt, Opal finds more than a potential job in May Boone’s quilt shop; she finds acceptance and perhaps even friendship.

 

That is, until May’s son recognizes her. A detective, Josh Boone is not about to let a felon work for his soft-hearted mother. Though Opal’s crime was against a sheriff’s deputy, his innate sense of decency prods him to break ranks and defend her from the disdain of his fellow officers. Then he finds she may have light to shed on a cold case—and discovers there is more to Opal’s story than it seems.

Josh risks his professional reputation (and his heart) as he digs into Opal’s past. When secrets are exposed, will justice prevail? Will Opal and Josh find redemption—and maybe even love—where they least expect it?

Christmas Hope (175)

Sam Bledsoe prefers his reclusive existence. A one-man landscape business keeps a roof over his head and food on the table—and keeps his badly scarred face away from curious eyes. But when a woman faints on her way from neighbor Maggie Ross’s house, he doesn’t hesitate. He rushes to help while grappling with memories of the incident that burned him so badly.

The father of Becca Sweet’s unborn baby showed his true colors when he showed her the door. The apartment she has lined up isn’t available until the first of the year, and with Christmas and a storm on the way, living in her car is no longer an option. She appeals to her no-nonsense sister for help, but Maggie, unaware of Becca’s pregnancy, chooses that moment to dish out some tough love.

When Sam comes to Becca’s rescue, their battered hearts collide. In a moment of holiday magic, they discover that Christmas hope applies to all, even to them. And will hope lead to love, the most precious Christmas gift of all?

Author Bio

Award winning and Best Selling author Leslie Lynch gives voice to characters who struggle to find healing for their brokenness—and discover unconventional solutions to life’s unexpected twists.

Leslie lives near Louisville, Kentucky, with her husband and her adult children’s cats.  While not engaged in wrestling the beautiful and prolific greenery of their yard into submission, she flies light aircraft, loves the exuberant creativity and color of quilting and pottery…and, of course, writes.

You can find her at www.leslielynch.com, on Facebook at LeslieLynchWrites, on Pinterest at Leslie Lynch, and on Twitter @Leslie_Lynch_