Mountain Hill Press – förlag

Too much work, too much pressure, and too much heartache can lead even a strong young woman like Mallory Wingate to the edge of a nervous breakdown. Now her doctor and employer have insisted she take a space to heal and rest, so like it or not, she's heading to her grandparents' resort in the Smoky Mountains. Hoping to sleep and rest on the flight home, Mallory is entertained instead by and unexpectedly charismatic stranger, making her forget many of her problems and even making her feel deliciously female again.

Lucas James, flying home from a pro golfing event, hadn't expected to enjoy and interlude of flirting with a pretty stranger on the plane. A stranger he never expected to see again but turns out to be the granddaughter of his boss at the Millhouse Resort. Worse, he quickly learns she's passed through a recent history of emotional problems that remind him all too painfully of his past wife. The last thing Lucas wants is to get involved with anyone like Cecily again. Surely it won't be too hard to keep his distance while Mallory is at the resort.

Standing in grief and shock at the grave of her young husband, Claire Avery wonders what she and her young daughters will do now. They live in the church parsonage they need to vacate. She hasn't worked since her marriage twelve years ago. Old issues and complications hinder relationships with her family. Struggling for answers, Claire accepts her brother-in-law's offer to stay at his beach house at Edisto to give her a season to heal and think. But even the peace and beauty of the coastal island bring new problems along with unexpected joys as Claire seeks to find her way.

Parker Avery always promised his brother Charles he would look after Claire if anything happened to him. Charles stood by him three years ago when his wife Ann died and Parker is determined now to be a help to Claire and the girls. As time passes, instead of feeling like a hero, he feels like a heel instead as he realizes he's developing feelings for his own brother's widow. To make things worse, he watches with pain and jealousy as Miles Lawrence waltzes into Claire's life. What can he expect though? It hardly seems right that Claire, even after a season of mourning, would ever fall in love with her own brother-in-law.

Return to Edisto Island in the rich, Lowcountry story of a young woman's difficult decision to run from threat and danger, changing the course of her well-ordered life and, in turn, the life of the young man who loved and lost her.  

It was a long trip back to Edisto Island, South Carolina, and the beach house that shaped so much of Mary Helen Avery’s early life. Now her mind flashed between anger and hurt over the difficult situation she’d left behind at the job she loved.  Was she doing the right thing to leave? Should she have stayed to fight? She hoped at the quiet, beloved island she knew so well, she’d find the answers she needed and peace from all this turmoil.

J.T.’s heart took a familiar lurch when he saw the car with New Jersey plates parked at the Avery’s beach house. Even after ten years, the memory of Mary Helen Avery still tormented him.  Finding her on the porch weeping lit old fires he thought long dead. Was he a fool to hope for something more between them with all their problems of the past? Probably so, but if she stayed long enough, he’d find one more chance to try.

The deep secrets - that restrict us and limit our lives - are at the heart of this first, engaging novel in the Smoky Mountain series.

Vivian Delaney - in The Foster Girls - arrives in the quiet Wears Valley, on the backside of the Smoky Mountains, carrying a heavy load of hidden problems - and eager to find a quiet place to escape the recent troubles of her past. However, secrets are hard to keep, and right away Vivian encounters unexpected challenges with her landlord, Scott Jamison. From Vivian''s first meeting with Scott - at the end of a rifle barrel - Scott seems purposed to push past all Vivian''s defenses and to find a way into her heart.

Just as Vivian begins to trust Scott - and is able to share her secrets with him and new friends in the valley - love for a little foster girl, Sarah Taylor, challenges Vivian and Scott''s new relationship. When Sarah is lost in the mountains, the suspense and conflict build - with the lives of several characters caught tantalizingly in the balance.

It is difficult to recover when hurt by those we love and trust - but in this second novel in the beloved Smoky Mountain Series, a young woman finds healing and new confidence while staying in a mountain cabin on the quiet side of the mountains.

New Yorker Jenna Howell has spent many pleasant hours listening to her older neighbor, Sam Oliver, spin stories about his beloved home place on Orchard Hollow Road in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains. Townsend is far removed from Jenna''s life in downtown Manhattan, but when several shocking events and marital betrayal come her way, Jenna decides to take Sam up on his offer to visit his cabin in the mountains.

At Sam''s place, Jenna meets many new friends, including her good-looking neighbor, artist Boyce Hart. A quick attraction sparks between Jenna and Boyce, proving to be both exciting and confusing. It''s not the right time for a new relationship for either Jenna or Boyce. However, as spring blooms in the Smokies, Jenna blooms. She gains a new appreciation for unselfish love and simple pleasures, develops confidence in herself and her talents, and gains new understandings about faith. An unexpected tragedy forces her to return to New York City. Here she must test her new found strengths, resolve the problems in her life, and decide on the direction for her future. Choosing the right course proves to be more difficult than expected-as two very different lives vie with opposite allures for Jenna''s heart.

PRAISE FOR LIN STEPP AND HER SMOKY MOUNTAIN NOVELS

"Lin Stepp creates a heart-warming tale of love and redemption, family and faith ... Readers will fall in love with not only her charming characters but the picturesque setting...The Smoky Mountain series is sure to garner fans across genre offering a plot filled with romance and suspense, set amidst the backdrop of the breathtaking Smoky Mountains."

 -Christy Tillery French, MIDWEST REVIEW

"Tell Me About Orchard Hollow, Lin Stepp''s newest book in the Smoky Mountain Series, is a sweet, heartwarming story that is difficult to put down once you start it. Even the secondary characters will steal your heart as you follow the heroine''s touching journey from heartbreak to healing. A wonderful, new Southern voice."

-JOAN MEDLICOTT, best-selling author of The Ladies of Covington series

"Stepp''s story packs intriguing surprises ... with lovingly crafted descriptions, strongly lined characters, and well-paced action."

-Schuyler Kaufman, CAROLINA MOUNTAIN LIFE magazine

A young woman with six foster children under twelve hopes for patience, peace, and a bigger house - but love? Not hardly. However, sometimes fate deals an unexpected hand.

When Alice Graham came back to look at the sale property at the base of the Smoky Mountains in Greenbrier, it was absolutely not because of that recurring dream of the cowboy. She''d seen him high on the ridge top back in the winter and felt a peculiar drawing and attraction flash between them - but she certainly never expected to see him again. When she did, a month after buying the rural property, that odd attraction surprisingly still sizzled in the air.

It seemed unlikely though that anything would come of any romantic feelings, because Alice had bought the property as a home for herself and the six Stuart siblings she''d agreed to foster. Six kids were enough to scare any man off right away - especially a confirmed bachelor like Harrison Ramsey with unsolved mysteries and unpleasant rumors floating around in his past. However, fate soon pushed Harrison into mixing with Alice''s and the children''s lives despite his best intentions. His nearby riding stable proved a natural draw for the kids, and he soon found his life more and more entwined with Alice, as well, and having no idea how to handle it.

PRAISE FOR LIN STEPP''S SMOKY MOUNTAIN NOVELS

"Stepp has a grasp of character and a love for the mountains of Tennessee."           

-      PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Book Reviews

"Lin Stepp has an amazing way of making the reader feel like they are sitting in a rocking chair, taking in the Great Smoky Mountains, whether they can physically see them or not. Descriptive writing, characters that embrace you and an amazing storyline make Stepp''s novels highly anticipated and thoroughly enjoyable".

            -  Jennifer Alexander - WKJB-FM Radio - Popular Midday Host B97 and

creator of the Book of the Month Club reaching over 100,000+ listeners

"I love the Smoky Mountains so it is such a treat for me to read your stories especially since you are so wonderfully talented in weaving them... Can''t wait to read the next one!" 

- Susan Reichert, Editor-in-Chief, SOUTHERN WRITERS MAGAZINE

"Lin Stepp is a gifted storyteller who skillfully captures the mystical and enduring history and beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains and the faith, loyalty, and resilience of the people who call them home. ...Stepp''s writing is smooth and easy, bringing the reader into the hearts of her characters.  I''ll be returning for more of Lin Stepp''s engaging and heartwarming stories."

-    PJ, ROMANCE DISH Reviews

Follow Delia through surprising twists of sorrow, suspense, and sweetness-amid the charm of Gatlinburg and the beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains in this warm, contemporary romance.

Delia Eleanor Walker''s life is perfectly planned-the wedding date set, the invitations mailed, and her family gathered at the North Carolina beach house ready to celebrate-when Delia receives Prentice''s unexpected fed-ex announcing he''s married someone else! What on earth will she do? She''s centered every aspect of her future around her upcoming marriage and knows her family will somehow blame the breakup on her. They always do. They''ll call it one more immature botch by the baby of the family.

In her lap, among the mail just received, Delia seizes on an answer-an invitation from Maureen Cross for a last visit to her Aunt Dee''s old cottage behind Gatlinburg. It''s cowardly to run, but Delia does, hoping to find in the mountains time to heal and space to chart a new direction for her life. Instead of peace and quiet, in Gatlinburg though, Delia finds a troubled cousin she''s never met hiding out in her aunt''s house and an old childhood heartthrob, Tanner Cross, back in town, reminding her of yet another time she made a fool of herself romantically. To top it off, a criminal is soon on the loose, along with an increasingly complicated array of new problems that Delia never, in a million years, expected to encounter.

Editorial Reviews:

"Delia''s Place, fourth in the Smoky Mountain series ... is a lovely story of romance that reminds us broken hearts can be healed. A charming story of friendship and love."

-     Lynne Hinton, bestselling author of Friendship Cake and Pie Town

"A delightful stirring story of Delia Eleanor Walker and her perfectly planned life. Ah but plans never work out like you think. The book is set in my beloved Smokey Mountains and I fell in love with the description and writing rhythm. Beautiful book. So enjoyed."

-     Ann Hite, award winning author of Ghost on Black Mountain

"Reading a Lin Stepp novel is like sitting on the front porch with a tall glass of sweet tea as the cool mountain breeze caresses your face and the scent of wood-smoke lingers in the air ... the sense of place is so strong in these novels that you can''t help but be transported directly into them."

-      Andrea Chapman, READING LARK REVIEWS

"In this gentle, inspirational romance, Lin Stepp reveals the healing touch and deep peace the beauty of the Smoky Mountains can bring to a hurt and troubled heart."           

-      Kat''s Corner BOOK REVIEW

"I love all your books but think DELIA''S PLACE is the best of the series. I loved the characters and the suspense. It should make for a great discussion at Book Club."

-      S.B, St Mark''s Book Club