The Laramie Series Series by Karen J. Hasley

Read the book - and meet the woman - that started Karen J. Hasley's acclaimed Laramie Series. Louisa Caldecott, a progressive woman and independent business owner in 1880 Kansas, is principled, strong-willed, passionate, and generous to a fault. Satisfied with her comfortable life, she's happy to live in her sister Lily's shadow. Until Lou meets John Rock Davis, Civil War veteran and man with a past. Until everything she loves is put at risk... moreRead the book - and meet the woman - that started Karen J. Hasley's acclaimed Laramie Series. Louisa Caldecott, a progressive woman and independent business owner in 1880 Kansas, is principled, strong-willed, passionate, and generous to a fault. Satisfied with her comfortable life, she's happy to live in her sister Lily's shadow. Until Lou meets John Rock Davis, Civil War veteran and man with a past. Until everything she loves is put at risk. Until she is forced to take a stand that threatens her safety, her happiness, and her future. Then all hell - but heaven, too - breaks loose, and self-sufficient Lou finally understands the cost of courage and the power of love. Karen J. Hasley's books have been reviewed as "satisfying," "sparkling," and "captivating," her research described as "flawless." Discover why readers return to Karen J. Hasley's fiction again and again for authentic stories about compelling women in historical settings. less

It’s 1905 and the new century overflows with opportunities for the smart, the strong, the confident, and the determined. All words that describe Hope Birdwell to a T. Her first twenty years had their share of trouble and torment, but she’s certain the next twenty hold only promise. Hope leaves a sordid past behind and heads for Wyoming to take up homesteading. Never mind that she’s alone in the world and has never known a real home in her whole life... moreIt’s 1905 and the new century overflows with opportunities for the smart, the strong, the confident, and the determined. All words that describe Hope Birdwell to a T. Her first twenty years had their share of trouble and torment, but she’s certain the next twenty hold only promise. Hope leaves a sordid past behind and heads for Wyoming to take up homesteading. Never mind that she’s alone in the world and has never known a real home in her whole life. Her name is Hope, after all, so what could possibly go wrong? Well, maybe the long reach of perverted violence from a brute she would rather forget could get in the way of her dreams. Maybe the warmly distracting appeal of friends and community could compromise her independence. Maybe the loving attention of a handsome young man with the unnerving ability to change her opinions about true freedom could cause her to falter. Maybe. Hope Birdwell knows she is poised at the edge of a bright future, if only she can protect herself and the people she’s grown to love from the dark and deadly menace of her past. Maybe that means she’ll have to risk everything she’s dreamed about and planned for and maybe she won’t succeed. Maybe she’s gone too long without the truth. Maybe. Hope Birdwell will discover some surprising truths in the wilds of Wyoming. That there’s danger in deception, freedom in sacrifice, and a cost to love. Hard and painful lessons, every one of them, for a modern, single-minded girl. But she’s not one to give up on her dreams no matter what—and her name is Hope, after all. less

The year is 1910. Katherine Davis, M.D. is an intelligent, self-assured, and attractive woman whose confidence perfectly reflects the confidence of a new century overflowing with scientific, medical, and technological breakthroughs. Without a moment's hesitation, young Dr. Davis accepts the professional invitation of a lifetime when she travels to Chicago's Hull-House to work with the celebrated social reformer, Jane Addams... moreThe year is 1910. Katherine Davis, M.D. is an intelligent, self-assured, and attractive woman whose confidence perfectly reflects the confidence of a new century overflowing with scientific, medical, and technological breakthroughs. Without a moment's hesitation, young Dr. Davis accepts the professional invitation of a lifetime when she travels to Chicago's Hull-House to work with the celebrated social reformer, Jane Addams. Katherine is an excellent doctor eager to make a difference in the world and the people around her, and Chicago's crowded tenements with their burgeoning immigrant population offer just that opportunity. Everything Katherine believes about right and wrong, about good and evil she learned from her parents and the secure childhood they gave her. But times have changed, and Katherine can no longer rely on the values of the past. She has outgrown that past and the home of her childhood seems outdated and old-fashioned compared to the progressive society around her. She's an independent woman, who must make her own way and follow her own ideals. When Katherine meets the dazzling Douglas Gallagher, a man as confident and as fearless as she, a successful man who has left his own past behind, an uncompromising-even ruthless-man, she is asked to choose between her past and her future. And the choice is so much more complicated than she expected! Because for Katherine, deciding where-and who-home really is will change her forever. And for good. less

In the fall of 1919, Thea Hansen’s world seems to spiral out of control. First, her dearly loved father dies suddenly from the influenza epidemic sweeping across the globe. Then her brother, Lloyd, returns from The Great War transformed into a brooding stranger. Could it get any worse? Yes, indeed. With a brutal murder close to home and her brother as chief suspect, Thea’s wildly spinning world doesn’t look like it will slow down anytime soon... moreIn the fall of 1919, Thea Hansen’s world seems to spiral out of control. First, her dearly loved father dies suddenly from the influenza epidemic sweeping across the globe. Then her brother, Lloyd, returns from The Great War transformed into a brooding stranger. Could it get any worse? Yes, indeed. With a brutal murder close to home and her brother as chief suspect, Thea’s wildly spinning world doesn’t look like it will slow down anytime soon. She’s lived in bucolic Blessing, Kansas, all her life, after all, and hasn’t had much experience with out-of-control worlds. Still, the bright and level-headed Thea knows a good thing when she sees it, and she sees it in the person of Augustus Davis. As her brother’s former commanding officer, Gus Davis knows Lloyd is no murderer and as a skilled attorney, he’s determined to prove it. Together, Thea and Gus will deal with unexpected malice and obsession, with assault and fear, with secrets and suspects, and in the end, ordinary little Blessing will hold a lot of shocks for Thea Hansen. Passions revealed. Lies uncovered. Murderers exposed. But what Thea is willing to do to keep her world balanced and her future settled may be the most surprising thing of all. ********************************************************************* Smiling at Heaven concludes where the first novel of Hasley’s Laramie Series began —in Blessing, Kansas. With 40 years between events in the first book and last, the story of the Davis family and their extended lives comes to a satisfying conclusion. **************************************** The Laramie Series 1. Lily’s Sister 2. Waiting for Hope 3. Where Home Is 4. Circled Heart 5. Gold Mountain 6. Smiling at Heaven less