As a young girl, I don’t remember a picture of my prince charming. Probably because I didn’t feel anything like a princess. But when I began to write my romance novel, I recognized my hero clearly. He stood for right and would fight against wrong. He was brave and handsome, strong, and skilled. He had to be a soldier.
My dad served in the Navy in World War II, but he was an airplane mechanic and never saw combat. An uncle piloted to B-17 bomber that got shot down in Belgium. Fortunately, he was found by the Underground and smuggled to safety. None of these things seemed to affect me much growing up, but I love books and movies about the conflicts of war and about elite special operators like the Navy SEALS.
While working on the first drafts of my book, an autobiography by Luke Murphy, called Blasted by Adversity grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. Luke lost his leg to an IED bomb in Iraq. He became a public speaker, eventually married the woman we meet in his book, and has a successful business. Luke thrived despite the adversity that leveled his life with a positive attitude and willingness to help his fellow veterans. His book gave me a captivating and intimate glimpse inside the skin of someone whose life circumstances are foreign to mine. It became a treasure trove of background for my fictional soldier’s point of view.
Statistics tell us that most injuries to soldiers who served in Afghanistan were caused by improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Because medical teams at forward operating bases do such a phenomenal job, most of the wounded survive. Unfortunately, these men and women often need amputations. Many receive traumatic brain injuries. And just about everyone has post-traumatic stress.
On the stateside part of the battle, research led me to the rehab Center for the Intrepid in San Antonio, Texas where they treat amputees and burn victims. It’s inspiring to see the courage of the patients and families, and the amazing work done at this state-of-the-art facility located at Brook Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston.
Ultimately, I scrapped the earlier versions of my manuscript to begin the story much later in the timeline for both main characters. Though Gabe’s Army scenes were gone, my love for his backstory gave me confidence as a first-time novelist to create his character and motivation.
I didn’t write A Future and a Hope to focus on soldiers so much as loss and coming to faith. My soldier has met the Lord, but the woman he falls in love with does not. Her process of coming to believe through her own adversity is woven through the romance as she goes from despair to hope. With the help of friends, they discover a future together.
When Larkyn Wagner barely misses hitting a bicyclist with her car, visions of her husband’s death by hit and run overwhelm her. The victim, Gabriel DeSantis, a recently discharged Army veteran who lost his leg in Afghanistan is plenty ticked until he sees the remorse of his attacker. By the time the lovely widow departs, he’s almost sympathetic.
Neither expects to ever meet again, but another collision thrusts them together for keeps.
Gabe is focused on finding a career outside of the infantry and Larkyn still pines for the love of her life. How will they handle their unwanted attraction in circumstances they don’t control?
A Future and a Hope is available on Amazon.
Caroline Powers has always found it easier to process life through writing, a practice that stood her in good stead through years of personal emotional healing and ministry to others. When the nudge to put her wisdom and insight into a novel became undeniable, learning to create fiction began.
Her unpublished manuscript of A Future and a Hope received a silver award in the romance category in the 2022 Genesis Contest for unpublished authors before being chosen for publication.
Caroline is a native of Denver, Colorado, but moved many times in the course of her early life. Her home for the last forty-five years has been in the Piedmont Triad of North Carolina with her husband Dan. They visit family frequently in Albuquerque/Placitas, New Mexico, and Houston, Texas. She loves New Mexican sopapillas and chili rellenos, Texas brisket, and dark chocolate in any form. Caroline is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Word Weavers, International, and the Christian Author Network.
Get to know Caroline at carolinepowersauthor.com