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Ann Gabhart returns to the podcast this week. She’s always such a pleasure to have on the show, and we had a wonderful talk about her new book, In the Shadow of the River. We chatted about what life was like aboard a showboat, how you can combine faith, fun, and mystery, how much Ann loves her life on a Kentucky farm, and how publishing has changed since her first book released in 1978. Patrons get to hear about how this sweet Southern lady became a rabid fan of University of Kentucky basketball.
In the Shadow of the River by Ann Gabhart
If all the world’s a stage, Jacci will play her part.
She only hopes her story does not turn out to be a tragedy.
In 1881, Jacci Reed is only five years old when a man attempts to kidnap her from the steamboat her mother, Irena, works on. Badly wounded during the confrontation, Irena takes Jacci aboard the Kingston Floating Palace, a showboat tied up beside them. There, Jacci’s actor grandfather tends to her mother and Jacci gets a first taste of the life she will come to lead.
Fifteen years later, Jacci is an actress aboard the Kingston Floating Palace, and largely contented with her adopted family of actors, singers, and dancers. Especially Gabe, who has always supported her, and the gruff grandfather she has come to know and love. Jacci’s mother has been gone for years, but the memory of the altercation that ultimately took her life–and the cryptic things Jacci has overheard about her past–is always there, lurking in the back of her mind.
When someone on the showboat tries to kill Jacci, it’s clear her questions demand answers. But secrets have a way of staying in the shadows, and the answers she craves will not come easily. Gabe only hopes they come in time for him and Jacci to have a future together.
Get your copy of In the Shadow of the River.
Meet Ann Gabhart
I’m a country girl, born and raised on a farm in the Outer Bluegrass region of Kentucky. My family grew tobacco and corn. We had a few milk cows, some hogs and sheep, but mostly beef cattle. My roots go deep in the land, and I now live on a farm just a mile away from where I was born and raised.
I started writing when I was ten and have been writing ever since. My first novel, A Forbidden Yearning, a historical romance about the settling of Kentucky, was published by Warner Books in 1978. Since then I’ve published over thirty other novels for adults and young adults.
My husband and I were both very young when we married, but we defied the odds and are still married all these years later. That could be because we went to church together and were committed to the Christian life. We are blessed with three wonderful children who picked some great people to marry and now we have nine amazing grandchildren I spoil every chance I get.
I’ve been going to the same small country church since I was seventeen and I used my memories of how the church used to be in my Heart of Hollyhill books. My church was established in 1812 and it’s inspiring to think about all the people who have served the Lord there.
And I do love to write in my office with big windows all around. Writing is what I’ve always wanted to do. The desire of my heart is to tell stories to readers like you. Thank you for reading!
