Writing from the upper Midwest, near the Red River Valley

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Stories of faith, family, and the northern prairie.

Historical fiction, from the prairie to the Blue Ridge
Portrait of Hannah Gornowicz

Welcome, fellow readers

I’m Hannah: a homeschooling mother in the upper Midwest, near the Red River Valley. When I’m not teaching or writing, you’ll find me quilting, knitting, or trying whatever hand craft has caught my eye, usually with a cup of coffee close by.

I’ve been writing since I was a girl, ever since “The Lord of the Rings” first pulled me in. Pour something warm and stay a while.

Hannah

A weathered prairie barn and silo at sunset

A Broken Promise

Book one of a prairie series · working title · work in progress

A past he swore to leave behind. A bride with nowhere left to turn.

Michael Mueller has an illegal past that he promised to leave behind, but there are constant threats trying to get him to snap: the sheriff constantly trying to rile him, and those who look down on him because he is an immigrant.

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Sara Williams is a secret mail-order bride escaping the abuse of her father. Abandoned at her destination, she must decide if she will return with the brother coming to claim her — or trust a man she just met.

Carrie Mueller is trying to keep her children and their family store running amongst small-town life. When a man shows up with ties to her youth, she must go against her wishes and ask the sheriff for help — a man who aggravates not only her, but also her brother-in-law.

When Sara is thrust into darkness, Michael must use his past to save her, risking his own life and throwing his heart into a dark abyss he may not survive. Will the past tear the family apart, or bring them together?

A steam train crossing a stone viaduct

A Place of Shadow

Book two of a prairie series · working title · work in progress

The past doesn’t give up easily — and some hearts may never recover.

Calum Malcolm has worked hard over the past few years to clean up the shame he brought upon his own family. His only goal is to not get stuck doing monotonous work on the family farm, and to do his best to ignore the town’s judgment of his hot-headed youth. He finds his harshest judge in the form of a small angel who arrives on the train.

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Penelope Snelling arrives in the growing prairie town ready to keep house for her cousin Aaron, while trying to mind and control her tyrannical young son. Lucky to escape from her past, she is grateful to be far away from the place she once lived. The day after arriving, she is shocked to find two people in town who know exactly what that past is — and who could ruin her hopes of finally finding a peaceful life.

Njord Hjalmerson, the town’s doctor, has been in love with Rebekah Malcolm since he first arrived, only to have her heart taken by another in town: Aaron Snelling, the kindhearted, optimistic foreman of the town’s lumberyard. Njord has graciously stepped aside, but his heart is tormented by the feelings he has kept quietly to himself for years.

When tragedy strikes and death destroys the happy plans everyone has made, each must make decisions that will affect their futures. Giving up the dreams they wanted, everyone must find… trust… forgiveness… and love. But it may all be too late — the past doesn’t give up easily, and some hearts may never recover.

Also in the works

  • A wheat field glowing at sunset Book Three The prairie series continues. The title is still being considered. More details coming soon. Coming later
  • Blue Ridge mountain ridges above a valley of fog An Appalachian novella The Blue Ridge Mountains First draft finished
  • Snow-covered pines at sunrise Two early-1900s stories One of them set in snowy country In the works

Some works may lean more toward Christian fiction; future books may not follow those lines so closely. But the guide of Biblical belief and morals will usually make an appearance in some form or another.