History Mystery Series by Deborah Heal

An old house + A new computer program = The travel opportunity of a lifetime…to another century.Abby Thomas is spending the summer in a run-down old house with a bratty pre-teen named Merrideth she is supposed to tutor. Not a dream job. But it does come with perks. There’s John Roberts, a devastatingly attractive neighbor who is almost too wonderful to be real.And there’s the new computer program Beautiful Houses—also too amazing to be real... moreAn old house + A new computer program = The travel opportunity of a lifetime…to another century.Abby Thomas is spending the summer in a run-down old house with a bratty pre-teen named Merrideth she is supposed to tutor. Not a dream job. But it does come with perks. There’s John Roberts, a devastatingly attractive neighbor who is almost too wonderful to be real.And there’s the new computer program Beautiful Houses—also too amazing to be real. No one knows how it works, but with it she can rewind and fast-forward the lives of all the people who ever lived in the house, including Charlotte Miles.In 1858, the house is a train stop on the Alton & Chicago Line. And Charlotte is stuck there serving meals to the passengers, wondering if she’ll ever get to have any fun. And then she meets two travelers who change her life forever. There’s James McGuire with whom she falls in love. And there’s his boss, a young Springfield lawyer named Abraham Lincoln. His debate with political opponent Stephen Douglas catapults him onto the national stage. And it inspires Charlotte to take up the cause of abolition.The HouseA stop on the Alton & Chicago Line. A stop on the Underground Railroad. Watching the house’s history unfold, Abby and Merrideth gain a new perspective on their own lives as time and again they see God’s loving hand in the lives of its inhabitants. less

Unclaimed Legacybook 2An old house + A new computer program = The travel opportunity of a lifetime…to another century.The PeopleAbby Thomas’ 11-year-old student Merri is finally warming up to her. Her friendship with John Roberts is also heating up. He’s definitely marriage material. Except for the fact that when she tells him about Beautiful Houses he thinks she’s crazy... moreUnclaimed Legacybook 2An old house + A new computer program = The travel opportunity of a lifetime…to another century.The PeopleAbby Thomas’ 11-year-old student Merri is finally warming up to her. Her friendship with John Roberts is also heating up. He’s definitely marriage material. Except for the fact that when she tells him about Beautiful Houses he thinks she’s crazy. Because a computer program that allows you to rewind and fast forward the lives of people from long ago is surely pure fantasy. Then John sees for himself that it’s not.Together they use Beautiful Houses to help the “Old Dears” next door with their family tree. Rummaging around in their history, they discover that the 85-year-old twins have been keeping a secret from each other since 1941. And the ladies’ ancestors have a few secrets of their own.Convicted in 1871 of murder and arson, Reuben Buchanan is a blight on the family name. But was he really guilty? Abby and John must get inside the mind of a murderer to find out. But there are also heroes in the family tree—like Reuben’s ancestor Nathan Buchanan. That doesn’t mean he didn’t have a few secrets, too. And Abby and John find one that’s lain undiscovered for over 200 years.The HouseIt began life as Nathan’s log cabin built outside the walls of Lewis and Clark’s 1803 Camp River Dubois. It was added onto through the years, and at one time it was a stage coach inn called Shake Rag Corner. Today it is a condemned derelict. While watching its history unfold, Abby and John discover a legacy waiting to be reclaimed and that God’s promise to bless a thousand generations is really true. less

Every Hill and Mountainbook 3An old house + A new computer program = The travel opportunity of a lifetime…to another century.The PeopleSince Beautiful Houses worked so well for the Old Dears’ family tree project, Abby’s college roommate Kate hopes the computer program will help her find out more about her ancestor Ned Greenfield... moreEvery Hill and Mountainbook 3An old house + A new computer program = The travel opportunity of a lifetime…to another century.The PeopleSince Beautiful Houses worked so well for the Old Dears’ family tree project, Abby’s college roommate Kate hopes the computer program will help her find out more about her ancestor Ned Greenfield. Abby and John reluctantly agree to help Kate, but only on the condition that she and her fiancé Ryan promise to keep the program a secret, because if the government ever discovered they possessed a computer program that allows you to rewind and fast forward the lives of people it would surely want to get its hands on it.The two couples take a trip to the tiny town of Equality, set in the hills of southern Illinois and the breath-taking Shawnee National Forest. According to Kate’s research, Ned Greenfield was born there at a place called Hickory Hill.The mayor, police chief, and townspeople are hospitable and helpful—until the topic of Hickory Hill comes up. Then they are determined to keep them away. Eventually they find Hickory Hill on their own—both the mansion and the lonely hill it sits upon.The HouseBuilt in 1834, Hickory Hill stands sentinel over Half Moon Salt Mine where the original owner John Granger accumulated his blood-tainted fortune with the use of slave labor. In the free state of Illinois—the Land of Lincoln.Abby and her friends meet Miss Granger, Hickory Hill’s current eccentric owner, and they eventually get the chance to run Beautiful Houses there. Their shocking discovery on the third floor concerning Kate’s ancestor Ned Greenfield is almost too much to bear. What they learn sends them racing to the opposite end of the state to find the missing link in Kate’s family tree. And there they are reminded that God is in the business of redemption—that one day he’ll make all things new. less