Misty M. Beller is a USA Today bestselling author who writes romantic mountain stories set on the 1800s frontier and woven with the truth of God’s love. Her Southern roots run deep, and she lives in South Carolina with her husband and children.
In this interview, Misty talks with us about A Daughter’s Courage, the third book in her Brides of Laurent Series.
FF: Please provide a brief summary of your new novel A Daughter’s Courage.
I’d love to! Charlotte Durand lives in the secret village of Laurent that’s hidden in caves in the Canadian Rockies. She accidentally destroyed an heirloom her people treasure, so she sets out for the closest fort to find someone who can repair the damage. She finds an unlikely friend in trapper Damien Levette, until she discovers he’s taking her back to the village she just left.
As they battle both the elements and each other, they soon find they’re also fighting a growing admiration and attraction between them. Working together could be their only way to survive the peril of the mountains—or it could be the downfall of them both.
FF: Can you tell us a little more about what and who were the inspirations behind this book?
I always love stories where the characters are on a journey. Charlotte is the younger sister of the heroine in A Warrior’s Heart, and we’ve gotten to know her a little better with each book in the series. Her mother died when she was young, and she’s been the homemaker for their little family for over a decade now, never straying farther than the berry patches in the next valley over. So I knew it would take something big to get her away from Laurent. Something life changing.
Our hero is a trapper who left the larger group he’d been traveling with to strike out on his own. I knew it would take a considerable amount of tragedy to make a man seek such complete solitude. Well, Damien has his trusty mule Gulliver with him, so I guess he’s not completely alone, but he’s definitely hoping to stay far away from people. As I uncovered the pain that brought him to this point, my heart broke for him and all the loss he experienced.
I love the way Charlotte’s need and the fierce mountain snowstorm drew Damien from his grief and gave him new purpose. Watching him come back to life and grasp onto God’s love for him was so inspiring!
FF: A Daughter’s Courage is set in the Rocky Mountains of the 1800s Canadian frontier. What about this setting first captured your imagination?
I’ve always loved the Rockies, and I was blessed to take a road trip through the Canadian Rockies and on to Alaska when I was a teenager. That was the most beautiful country I’ve ever seen. The majesty of the mountains there is too beautiful for words to describe, but I love to try!
FF: In your opinion, what about Charlotte’s character do you think your readers will most resonate with?
Charlotte spent so much of her life behind the scenes in her family. She’s the doer, not the one out front leading. The journey she takes in this story to reach the fort is the first bold, independent step she’s taking. There’s definitely some worry and fear involved, though she feels comfortable with how she’s planned things. Until events don’t go at all the way she planned!
FF: Without giving away any spoilers, what makes Charlotte Durand and Damien Levette such a captivating duo?
I love the way Charlotte and Damien’s purposes are so opposite! Having been sheltered in the hidden village of Laurent her entire life, Charlotte is a bit naïve about who and what she’ll find in the fort where she’s headed. And she’s also never tried to travel through winter conditions like she faces on this journey. Yet she’s determined to fix the damage she accidentally inflicted on the keepsake her entire village treasures.
Damien is far more familiar with the rougher side of life, and he’s determined to help and protect Charlotte on this journey. Yet the farther they travel, the more he realizes he’s going to have to take drastic measures to keep her safe.
The two definitely keep things exciting on the journey!
FF: Charlotte and Damien find themselves caught in a dangerous blizzard. What types of things do you think we learn about ourselves and each other in survival situations?
Oh, I love this question! We definitely learn we can do more than we thought we were capable of. But we all have an end to our own strength—both physical and emotional—and those survival situations can bring us to the point where we have to accept help from others. Even more, though, God can use these times to draw us closer to Him. When we cling to Him, He’ll always uphold us. I’ve experienced it so many times!
FF: Did you explore anything new as a writer while working on A Daughter’s Courage? What continues to motivate your writing?
I have to admit this was one of the hardest books I’ve written, not because I didn’t love the story, but because I was in the last trimester of my pregnancy with our fifth kiddo, and I was pretty sick throughout the writing. I knew the story I wanted to tell, but I wasn’t sure I could pull it off while writing in bed and from the recliner. I’m still amazed at how God provided just enough strength to bring it all together, and I love how Damien and Charlotte’s story came out!
Regarding what continues to motivate my writing, I love the characters God plants in my spirit as they come to life. There’s something so fulfilling about doing my word count each day. I know this is His plan for me. Some days are really hard, but His inspiration keeps me going.
FF: What lessons do you hope readers will gain from reading A Daughter’s Courage?
This is a story of trusting God’s path for our lives even when it feels hard or we’re not sure God really has our best interest in mind. It’s a lesson I struggled to learn during the hard circumstances going on while I was writing this book. I hope readers can relate to Damien and Charlotte’s spiritual journeys as much as I could!
A Daughter’s Courage
Brides of Laurent Series #3
Misty M. Beller
Bethany House
Genres: Historical Romance
Release Date: November 1, 2022
ISBN-10: 076423806X
ISBN-13: 978-0764238062
Book Summary:
Her quest to repair what’s been broken leads to imminent danger—and soon it’s more than her own life on the line.
After accidentally destroying the intricately carved chalice her people have treasured for over a hundred years, Charlotte Durand sets out in search of a skilled artisan who can repair the damage. What she expected to be a two-day trek becomes much more daunting when a treacherous snowstorm sets in.
Searching for solitude and respite from his troubling past, the last thing Damien Levette needs in the middle of a mountain blizzard is to tend to another person, but he can’t leave behind the mysterious woman he finds half frozen at the edge of a mountain lake.
As they battle both the elements and their distrust of each other, Charlotte and Damien must work together to survive the peril of the mountains—or it could be the downfall of them both.
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