We are so pleased to have Allison Wells as our guest on the blog this week. Before we get to what inspired her to write The War Torn Heart, here’s a little bit about the book.

Abigail Walker, a young woman from rural South Carolina, is on the cusp of womanhood, aching to be able to run wild as the younger children do, yet yearning for things she has yet to understand. Awkward and unsure of herself, Abby is flustered when she meets Harvey Nicholas, the nephew of a family at her church and a cadet from Clemson College. As summer begins, Abby finds herself constantly in the company of Harvey and falling quickly in love with him. As rumors of war begin to reach the States, Abby begins to fear what may come for her older brother and Harvey. Once Pearl Harbor is bombed, the boys are eager to protect their home and the women they love. But will Abby and Harvey’s love be able to withstand distance, rumors, loss, and hurt? Or will the war be what tears apart Abby’s heart?
War-Torn Heart is a Kleenex-box book with a story of hope, of love, and of perseverance through World War II, which will make readers cry, scream, and long for more.

Sounds like a great read, Allison. What was your inspiration for the story?

War-Torn Heart was inspired by the rich history of Clemson University and the upcountry of South Carolina. The entire Clemson College class of 1943 joined the war effort after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, and the hero of the book, Harvey Nicholas, was a part of that class. Of course, he would naturally join up with them. Abby Walker, our heroine, is a local girl who lives in a town just a few miles from the college. While her town is never named in the book, it was based on the small town of Six Mile, South Carolina, where her father is a church deacon and her aunt falls in love with the preacher.

Upstate South Carolina is a beautiful setting for any book. The foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains cast a lovely backdrop for two young people to fall in love. The pair enjoy visiting the ruins of an old southern plantation, and they make promises to each other in a church that dates back over one hundred years.

The story stays wholly in South Carolina. While Harvey is in Europe for the war, the book is told solely from Abby’s point of view. While a majority of it is in the Upstate, a portion also takes place in Charleston, South Carolina, where Harvey is from.

War-Torn Heart takes place during World War Two, an era when life was simpler and men were eager to fight for freedom. It was an easy time period to write, with photos and video available to study. And the connection with Clemson University (then, College) made it a natural time frame for the book.

Allison Wells is a graduate of Clemson University and she has lived in the Upstate for twenty years. She is married and has four amazing children. Allison is a freelance writer for a number of Upstate publications, but is usually found taking her children from one activity to another. War-Torn Heart is her first book. Find her at:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/allisonwellswrites/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/orangealli/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/OrangeAlli
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBWoIfst5ktvpRmT2Annr4Q

Allison is giving away an ebook copy of War Torn Heart. Follow the link below to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/16acabf1138/?

Thanks for joining us, Allison!