Spotlight & Giveaway: The Way Home by Eliana West

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Eliana West to HJ!

Hi Eliana and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, The Way Home!

To start off, can you please tell us a little bit about this book?:

The Way Home is about two people who both have a claim on the plantation house, Halcyon. They come from two different sides of history and when a judge awards each of them half of Halcyon, they are forced to face uncomfortable truths about history. In time, Taylor Colton and Josephine Martin learn that unlocking the secrets of the past is the key to finding a future together.

Please share your favorite lines or quote(s) from this book:

Tillie Reynolds, the owner of the Catfish Café, has a lot of fun in this book and I love her wit and wisdom.

“Men,” Tilly rolled her eyes, “y’all spend half the time not knowing what you’re talking about and the other half trying to figure out what you said wrong.

And, this quote from Jo comes from such a touching moment in the book.

“This house is nothing to me without you here. We can fix the house, but you are irreplaceable to me.”

What inspired this book?

My hometown of West Mississippi inspires this book and all the other books in The Heart of Colton series. In the Way Home I was thinking about what would the West plantation house have been like if it had survived the Civil War and what happened to two people who had a connection to the house.

The Character of Ada Mae, is inspired by my own great aunt Ada Mae. She lived in what were the original slave cabins her whole life. I used to visit her there as a child, a 10×10 shack with a dirt floor and a pot belly stove in the middle of the room. I was too young to know how to ask her about her life but I remember seeing so much history in her eyes. I always wondered what her story was.

How did you ‘get to know’ your main characters? Did they ever surprise you?

My hero in The Way Home, Taylor Colton, is a combination of Ben Napier from the show Home Town and the Property Brothers on HGTV. Taylor’s lifelong dream of bringing Halcyon back to its original glory has led him to a career in home restoration and a successful television show. Taylor struggles with what he thinks people’s expectations are of him. The minute he sets foot in Colton his goals are challenged and he’s going to have to find the courage to discover what he really believes.

Josephine Martin hasn’t found her place in the world quite yet. After a painful betrayal, she’s feeling lost and alone when an ancestor she never knew comes out of the past to guide her on a journey to a new home.

I get to know my characters as I write them. I am a pantser and no matter how much plotting I do ahead of time, my characters really come to life when my fingers hit the keyboard. What really surprised me with both characters is how their roles reversed on me. I thought Taylor would be protective, but it turned out to be Jo who was the fighter when Taylor wasn’t ready.

What was your favorite scene to write?

My favorite scene to write is when the ladies of the Colton Garden Club come to help Jo.
I like exploring themes of sisterhood. With this scene, it’s a group of older women who come to help a member of the community. They connect through gardening and restoring something that had long been neglected. The comradery isn’t just about mentorship but also genuine friendship. I wanted to show that you can have friendships with people who are older or younger than you and that sisterhood isn’t just something you share with people who are your age.

A loud knock on the door made him jump, spilling hot coffee on his shirt. “Damn it,” he muttered, wiping at the stain on the way to the front door. He jerked it open and four women stood on his doorstep glaring at him carrying baskets of plants.
“We’re not here to see you,” one of them pushed past him into the entryway.
“We’re here for Miss Josephine,” said another woman following the first one.
A third woman followed the other two. “You’d best tell us where she is,” she said.
The last woman stepped forward until they were toe to toe. “I am Mrs. Colton, I assume you are Mr. Colton.” She patted her sleek bob shot through with silver. Although she must have been in her sixties, there wasn’t a single wrinkle on her dark brown skin, she oozed elegance and style. “I am here with the ladies from the Colton Gardening Club and we are here to offer assistance to Ms. Josephine Ellis today,” she said as if she were giving a formal address to the state assembly.
It was clear he was being put in his place. He stepped back and bowed with a sweeping gesture. “Please come in, I will escort you to Miss Riley,” he said, matching Mrs. Colton’s formality.
That was a mistake, what he thought would be charming earned him angry glares from the women that surrounded him.

What was the most difficult scene to write?

There were a couple of difficult scenes to write about in this book. My heart was pounding as I wrote this scene when something of value has been stolen from Jo.

Her letters were gone. They were a talisman, the physical connection to the past that brought her to Colton and Halcyon. Thinking about Tessa coming into her room and taking them made her skin crawl.
She ignored the worried looks and words of comfort from Callie and Mae and stumbled into the small parlor, the room where she always felt closest to Ada Mae. She sank down on her knees in front of the fireplace and wept. She cried for herself, she cried for Ada Mae and all of her ancestors who were tied to Halcyon, and she cried for Taylor, for the man she’d thought he was. When she had no more tears, she drew her knees up to her chest and stared at the mantel, wanting to be the little bird who flew away.

Would you say this book showcases your writing style or is it a departure for you?

This book is definitely true to my writing style. I will spend hours setting a scene describing each small detail if I let myself and there were so many wonderful places to describe in this story. Writing the description of the fireplace in Halcyon is a good example of this.
With all of my books, I like to include historical elements, have a chance to share history through a genre that inspires hope and offers a happy ending.

What do you want people to take away from reading this book?

History is complicated, and it’s not always the story we think it’s going to be. I hope readers will learn that instead of burying the past, sometimes you have to face uncomfortable truths in order to find a way forward or in Taylor and Jo’s case to find the way home.

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have planned?

I am currently writing the fourth book in The Heart of Colton series and my next release will be The Way Beyond the third book in the series. I am so excited to tell Jacob and Mae’s story. With each book in the series, I’m looking forward to sharing more about how the members of Colton come together to face the challenges of bringing a struggling small town back to life.

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: An ebook copy of The Way Home & 3 Tule ebooks

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: Thank you all for stopping by to find out about The Way Home. Since Taylor Colton is the star of a home improvement show I’d love to know, do any of you like home improvement shows? Do you have any plans for a home improvement project this summer? My husband and I are going to be doing a bathroom remodel and I’m having way too much fun making a Pinterest board with all of my ideas.

 
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Excerpt from The Way Home:

Josephine Martin swatted at the dust bunnies drifting through the air in the attic of her parents’ house. The floorboards creaked under her father’s feet as he moved another box from the pile in the corner.
“Are you sure it’s up here?” she asked, anxiously peering over his shoulder.
“Here take this.” He grunted, handing her another box. “It should be. We haven’t gotten rid of anything since we bought the house.” He stopped, stretched his back and looked around the room. “We need to have a garage sale.”
“Let’s find the trunk first.”
Jo tried to keep the impatience out of her voice. She didn’t remember the trunk, but after having the same exact dream for the second time she needed to know if it was real.
Her father looked at her with concern. “I don’t mind helping you, sweetheart, but all this work because of a dream?”
“I know it doesn’t make sense but I had to look and see.”
Her father put down the box he was holding and gently grasped her arms. “Sweetheart, your mother and I are worried about you. You’ve lost weight since Oliver broke up with you and I can see from those dark circles under your eyes you haven’t been sleeping.”
Jo dropped her chin to her chest. “I’m so embarrassed. I thought he loved me and the whole time he was just using me.”
“I’m so sorry, sweetheart.”
“The worst part is that they all knew. My friends, coworkers, supervisors—everyone knew he was seeing my best friend behind my back and didn’t say a word to me. There were pictures online of all of them out celebrating Oliver’s promotion and their engagement last night.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. A fresh wave of anguish washed over her, threatening to take her to her knees. “It hurts so much, Dad.”
Her father pulled her into a hug and she let the tears she’d been fighting fall.
They’d had a whirlwind relationship. Thinking about how excited she was telling her best friend Courtney about her handsome coworker made Jo sick to her stomach. Courtney insisted on meeting Oliver right away telling Jo she wanted to make sure he was good enough for her. Looking back now she could see the lust in Oliver’s eyes when Jo introduced him to her best friend. But she had been blinded by what she thought was love. She wanted to believe the fairy-tale lies Oliver was telling her.
She met Oliver when a consulting firm where he worked hired her. They bonded over being young Black professionals working as system architects developing computer systems for companies and organizations. Jo had never been swept off her feet before and it was thrilling. He was always telling her how beautiful and smart she was. He treated her like an equal in a career dominated by men. Until they were both up for the same promotion.
“I still think you should go back to HR and file an appeal.”
Jo stepped out of her father’s arms and shook her head.
“They’ve already fired me. They aren’t going to take me back.”
“If they knew about how Oliver stole your designs and passed them off as his own they would.”
“The head of HR didn’t believe me when I told him. I showed them my work and they accused me of stealing from him. The way Oliver framed me they could prosecute me for theft.” Jo bit back a sob. “He said Oliver asked them not to have me arrested, just to fire me instead. As if he was doing me a favor.” She shook her head. “Even if I could get them to believe me, I don’t want to work for a company that doesn’t take their female employees seriously.”
Her father wrapped his arm around her. “I know it may be hard to believe it now, but you will be okay, sweetheart.”
Jo sniffed and wiped her eyes. “Thanks, Dad.”
She could always count on her parents’ support. Her dad was her biggest champion. There was never any doubt that if she told him about her dream he would help her.
She’d had the dream two weeks ago—the day Oliver shattered her world. It was of an elderly woman standing next to an old trunk in her parents’ attic. The woman opened the trunk and pressed her hand to the inside of the lid. “Your future is here,” she said.
Jo had the dream again last night. It was so vivid and seemed so real she got up and drove straight over to her parents’ house.
“Now, let’s see if we can find this trunk. I know it’s back here somewhere.”
It was a late summer Saturday morning and the sun cast a golden shadow through the small attic window while they worked. Together Jo and her father shifted the boxes out of the corner until a large trunk appeared. They pushed the piece into the middle of the room. She swiped away the dust on top. The wood glowed a warm golden brown, with dips and grooves that marked handiwork done without benefit of modern tools. The wood was arranged in a chevron pattern on the top. Clearly, whoever made it put a great deal of care into the project.
“Are you sure about this?” her father asked.
Jo took a deep breath, nodded, and pressed the latch. The creaking hinges released a faint musky smell and inside there was an old quilt that looked so fragile she expected it would fall apart if she picked it up. Underneath were pictures, cards, and letters scattered among other small items.
She pressed her hand against the faded floral paper on the inside of the lid the same way the woman in her dream had. There was a tearing sound when a piece of wood popped out behind the paper that covered it.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” her father whispered as Jo pulled a long thin tin box from its hiding place. She opened the lid and pulled out an envelope and another piece of paper.
Her hands shook as she read the writing on the front. In a bold script it was addressed to an Ada Mae Colton with A. M. Colton listed for the return addressee.
Her father knelt next to her, as she pulled two pieces of paper out of the envelope. She opened the first one and read.
September 7, 1860
Ada Mae,
I will refrain from calling you my dearest, as I know how those endearments upset you.
Halcyon is no longer a home now that you are gone. I can’t bear to be in the house with Julia. I have sent her to the house in Jackson and do not plan on ever letting her set foot in Halcyon again. Now I wander this house alone. Thoughts of you and our son haunt my dreams at night. It is the sharpest knife wound to my heart to hear that you have married, but I know it is for the best. I know he is a good man, as you would not settle for anything less and that assures me he will be a good father to our son.
War is coming, and I will have to fight. You should be safe where you are. I do not believe Illinois will join the Confederacy but guard your freedom papers closely. Enclosed are enough funds for you and your family to flee as far north as Canada if need be. I have made arrangements with my solicitor that when the time comes for me to depart this earth Halcyon will pass to you and our son.
You will forever be in my heart,
Absolem
She opened the second piece of paper and drew a sharp breath.
Certificate of Freedom
March 1, 1859
I, Colonel Absolem Madden Colton, do hereby make it known to all that the female slave known as Ada Mae age to be known as about twenty years and her son known as Stephen age six months are free. They are no longer to be counted as my property nor can they be claimed as property of my wife Mrs. Julia Colton.
I hereby declare Stephen to be my son and heir. He is entitled to claim such rights and privileges as a free man of the United States of America.
Colonel Absolem Madden Colton
Halcyon Plantation, Colton, Mississippi
“I heard stories but I didn’t believe them,” her dad said.
“What stories?”
Her father took a deep breath. “My great-granddaddy used to tell me how we were descended from a freed slave, a woman named Ada Mae Martin. She was free before the Civil War. He said his great-grandfather was a man named Stephen Martin and we had mixed blood. Stephen was the son of the man who owned his mama, a confederate general.” He shook his head. “I didn’t believe him. Who would want to believe that? It would mean…”
Jo wrapped her arm around her father, leaning against him. “It’s okay, Dad.”
Jo shared her father’s anguish, knowing that their ancestor had been forced to bear the child of a man who owned her.
His hand shook when he held the delicate parchment up to the light.
“Dad.” Jo spoke softly. “I want to go and see Halcyon.”
Her father looked at her with surprise. “It’s probably long gone.”
“Maybe—either way I want to go to Mississippi.”
His eyes searched hers. “Why? What are you hoping to find?”
“I’m not sure, but I know I need to see it with my own eyes.”
“Do you want me to go with you?”
She stood on tiptoe and placed a kiss on her father’s cheek. “Thanks, Dad, but I think this is a trip I want to make on my own.”
He tucked the letter back in the envelope. “We better go tell your mother about this. Your brother and sister will be here soon, and we can talk about it over dinner.”
Jo suppressed a groan. The last thing she wanted to do was share the letter with her brother and sister.
“Thanks, Dad, but I’m going to pass.”
“Your brother and sister—”
“You need to stop making excuses for them. I’m tired of putting in the effort and not getting anything in return.”
“I hate that you feel that way.”
“Just because we’re family doesn’t mean we have to get along.”
“They may not act like it but they do care.”
“Dad, you know that’s not true. We’ve never been close. The twins share a bond that I’ve just never been a part of.”
Her father sighed. “I still don’t understand what you’re hoping to find when you get to Mississippi.”
“Maybe nothing, maybe a little bit of myself…our history.”
“You can’t run away from your problems, sweetheart.”
“You and Mom have always supported us kids and you’ve always given us a safe place to land. I want to do something different. I can use this trip to heal and figure out what I want to do next. I’m scared if I don’t take a chance on something new again I never will.”

Later that night Jo stood at her dining room table with a glass of wine, looking over the various papers, letters, postcards, and photographs that were in the trunk. Her father’s family history was laid out before her. She sorted everything into piles by date. There were WWII letters from her second great-grandfather. A small journal filled with notes detailing army nurses’ training from his sister. A registration card for the Pullman Porters’ union from Ada Mae’s son Stephen. And other mementos that spanned over a hundred and fifty years of history. But nothing more from Ada Mae.
Jo opened the letter from Colonel Colton again. War is coming, and I will have to fight. You should be safe where you are. I do not believe Illinois will join the Confederacy but guard your freedom papers closely. Her pulse quickened as if she were feeling the same fear Ada Mae must have felt on the eve of war, wondering if she and her son would be secure. She looked at the piece of paper that gave Ada Mae and her son their freedom. One aged piece of parchment changed her family’s history.
She spent the rest of the evening at her computer learning everything she could about Colton, Mississippi, and the plantation house called Halcyon. She found a grainy black-and-white picture of the plantation house. She leaned forward studying the image on her screen and the words in her dream came back to her. “Your future is here.” Before she went to bed that night, Jo booked a flight to Mississippi.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

A letter from the past will transform their future…

Taylor Colton always loved the crumbling plantation house passed down through his family for generations. Now he’s bringing his popular renovation reality show to the small town of Colton, Mississippi, so he can bring the plantation house known as Halcyon back to life for the cameras.

After an ugly breakup, Josephine Martin needs a new start to heal her broken heart in peace. A hidden letter reveals a family secret that leads her to Colton to protect her family’s history and honor a promise made before the Civil War…and to a house she didn’t know was hers.

Suddenly, Josephine must decide if she’s ready for the challenge of restoring a run-down mansion and its history, and Taylor’s facing a challenge he can’t charm away. Together, they must untangle a tragic history, a rocky relationship, and risk everything they love. Can they overcome the past to find their way home?

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Meet the Author:

Eliana West writes multi-cultural romance with diverse characters. When not writing, Eliana can be found exploring the many wineries in Oregon and Washington with her husband in their vintage Volkswagen Westfalia named Bianca.

She is the founder of Writers for Diversity a community for writers interested in creating diverse characters and worlds.
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