Virtual Book Tour and Giveaway: Thumb Fire Desire by Carol Nickles

Welcome to my stop on the virtual book tour for Thumb Fire Desire by Carol Nickles. This book tour was organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. On my stop, I have an excerpt from the book as well as a lovely guest post about second chance romance tropes from the author. There's also the tour wide giveaway for a chance to win a $50 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card. Be sure to visit the other stops on the tour for more content. Enjoy!

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Title: Thumb Fire Desire

Author: Carol Nickles

Publisher: The Wild Rose Press

Publication Date: June 22nd 2022

Print Length: 385 pages

Genre: Historical Romance

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In the Spring of 1881, indigent seamstress Ginny Dahlke arrives in one of the earliest Polish American settlements-Parisville, Michigan.

 

Deemed charmless and awkward by her mean-spirited sister-in-law, Ginny disparages her chance of securing love. But sought-after widowed farmer Peter Nickles is enamored by Ginny's perseverance, her pioneer spirit and, her inclusive acceptance of the indigenous peoples of Michigan.

 

The seductiveness of a buxom heiress, a twisted story of an old-country betrothal, and the largest natural disaster in Michigan's history-The Great Thumb Fire of September 5, 1881, challenge their fledgling attraction and ultimate committal.

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EXCERPT:

The northbound Dove was a day late. Now Tom’s worry expanded beyond land and fixed on friends he knew who traveled the lake, no doubt in danger from the disorienting darkness created from the inferno on land. How would the Dove crew find the docks? Could the fires of hell fall upon an innocent ship and swallow it in flames just as it had to the boats docked onshore? What could he do to guide them in or know their fate? But Tom had little time to worry about his sailor friends. The land drifters, the bedraggled, and their dead kept appearing at his door. Each brought with them a different story of horror and grief.

Marie handed a toddler one of the ragdolls she had made to sell.

The child clutched the toy to her smoky clothing, sat on the floor at Marie’s feet, and rocked. Her mother offered Marie a wan smile and returned her attention to an infant suckling her breast.

“Taraski,” one of the survivors called after him. “Look outside at your new farm.”

In addition to the stranded, homeless, battered humans making their way to his store, a pathetic collection of chickens, pigs, sheep, horses, and cows, with hair, fur, and feathers singed away, hobbled to Tom’s property. Tom looked on in horror. Many of the animals walked on burned-away hooves or feet. Steeling himself once more that day, he returned to the back of his store for guns and a barrel of ammunition.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Carol Nickles is the sixth generation of a German textile aficionado family. In 1881, her great-great-great-grandfather founded Yale Woolen Mill—the longest-lasting of Michigan’s once twenty-nine woolen mills. Carol earned a Master’s degree in Historic Clothing & Textiles at Michigan State University. Her thesis is a narrative of the Yale Woolen Mill. She held faculty positions at both Utah and Michigan State universities. She lives in West Michigan and enjoys spinning a tale, weaving a story, and threading a luring hook.

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GUEST POST:

In each of my novels, second chance is front and center.

Romance novels are required to end on a happy note. Writing second chance is a grand opportunity to turn sorrow into joy. It is magic that doesn’t always mirror real life. But reading romance guarantees you’ll feel good by the time you finish reading the book. And boy, do I enjoy making folks feel joy.

In Thumb Fire Desire, the slowly introduced backstory of widowed farmer Peter Nickles initiates readers to the ever-present sorrow trailing him in the wake of his wife’s death.

Grief is involved in second chance. And it affords a rich trope. The character affected is bound to behave in an unusual pattern. He kicks the dog. He sucks down a liter of tequila. He goes without brushing his teeth for weeks on end. He donates large sums of money to gorilla research. He may experience a heightened sense of sight, touch, hearing, smell, and awareness.

In Thumb Fire Desire, Peter Nickles suffers perplexing dreams—a heightened paranormal awareness. Here is an excerpt:

She came to him. In sleepy wonder, he sensed his heart swelling. His chest expanded, busting loose suffocating shackles of heartache. She pranced barefoot, and Lord, she was naked. She glided on tiptoe, her satiny tresses swinging free, alternately baring her breasts and camouflaging them. She threw open the cellar door and disappeared.

Peter leaned over the stairway, starstruck and mute, his heart hammering.

Franny disappeared into the dark cave.

Crash-crash-crash.

Peter stretched his boot and fanned the toe along the floor, feeling his way down the stairs. A light, glittering and red-hot, impaled his eyes and suspended his steps.

Crash-crash-crash.

Glass shards bit his face and fell into his breast pocket.

“Tomatoes,” she screamed.

Crash.

“Beets,” she hollered. “I hate beets. Red, they stained my fingers red.”

Crash.

“Sauerkraut, yuck. Caraway seeds scattering everywhere. I hate sauerkraut, but Peter, Peter craves it, and so do maggots.”

Crash-crash-crash.

Peter awoke. Moonlight pricked his forehead. A ring of sweat wet the collar of his nightshirt, and below the garment’s pocket, his chest stung.

In second-chance trope, the grief-mired character experiences a myriad of reawakened feelings. Despair is dismissed. Hopeful dreams gain ground. Spring is fresher than it ever was. Food is tastier. Touch is relished. All of this revitalization offers building poetic sentences for the lyrical writer, which I strive to be.

Here is an excerpt.

He eased his hands into the everyday work, and he took to whistling a tune—the same ditty James McGrarry had sung—the same one that had set Marianna Gugsak’s feet dancing. Peter had other plans for the shingle earnings. First, he would cultivate more rye and alfalfa, and lately, he had considered raising sheep and even adding a crop of flax. The last two additions would please Ginny since both yielded fibers to develop into textiles.

What would five dollars allow me to buy Ginny? Fancy ribbons for her hair? A brush and comb set? A silver thimble? His breath calmed. His chest went light. Exhaling heavily, he lifted the floorboard in the barn, extracted the heavy tin, and popped the lid. He culled his fingers through the coins and listened in satisfaction to the clank, clank, clank, clank thuds. If he married again, it wouldn’t be out of greed. If he married again, it would be for love.

Second-chance implies characters more seasoned with relationships. Hence, they are more complicated and less predictable when it comes to love. Are they hardened against love? Are they content with their memories? Are they seeking a new lease on life? Can they love anew? Will they feel guilty about their last partner?

Complicated characters are more fun to write. They show up with their own backstories, unfolding drama, and the mystery of how things will all work out. Cheers to the Second-Chance Trope!

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GIVEAWAY:

Carol Nickles will be awarding a $50 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter. Good luck!

(All the Ups and Downs is not responsible for this giveaway, its entries, or the prize. Goddess Fish Promotions and the author assume all responsibility over this giveaway.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway