Author Interview: Treason Trail by Kit Hawthorne

Welcome to the Blog Tour for Treason Trail by Kit Hawthorne, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

About the Book

Title: Treason Trail
Series: Cape Fear Legacy #3
Author: Kit Hawthorne
Publisher: Independently Published
Release Date: June 18, 2024
Genre: Sweet Historical Romance

A mysterious stranger holds the key to the fate of the nation. 

In the final days of the American Revolutionary War, Nessa Shaw tends to the sick and wounded at the Continental Army camp in Charlestown, South Carolina. When she stumbles upon a man lying unconscious on a forest trail, she quickly realizes he is unlike any patient she has ever encountered. With no memory of his past, his only clues to his identity are his first name—August—and the certainty that he is a Patriot. Against her better judgment, Nessa grows closer to August, trusting him with secrets that could cost her dearly. But when she discovers a deadly plot that could change the course of the war, Nessa must question everything she thought she knew about August and his true allegiances.

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop | BookBub

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More Books in This Series

 

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Excerpt

Her eyes filled with fresh tears. “What if the war isn’t ending at all? What if the British have been stalling for time for their conspiracy? Can they truly mean to go on fighting? Both sides are exhausted—at least, our side is, and their side appears to be, but maybe that’s part of their plan, to make us think that, when in fact they’re just gathering their strength to strike again.”

She was gripping his hands with both of hers. “I can’t do it anymore, August. I can’t keep changing sheets in the hospital and spoon-feeding broth to men who are never going to get better. I want to leave this dirty, overcrowded camp forever, and go home to my family, and breathe the clean air. I can hardly remember what peace is like. It seems to belong to some mythical past. I want to get up in the morning and make a good breakfast, eggs and porridge and milk, and real coffee, and not a scrap of salt pork in sight. I want to buy dress goods, and make new gowns, and not mend the same shirts over and over until there’s nothing left of them but patches. I want to plant a garden without wondering if British raiders will come and destroy it. I want to see cattle and horses grazing in green pastures, with plenty of flesh covering their bones. I want to lie down at night in a soft bed with a real roof over my head, and hear the wind in the pine trees, and not be afraid.”

He put his arm around her again and drew her to him. She clung to him and wept. He wished he had words of comfort to offer, but what could he say? That everything would turn out all right in the end? That he wouldn’t let anything hurt her? He hadn’t even managed to discover something as simple as his own identity. Nay, he would not insult her with empty promises. Action, not speech, was what was needed.

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About the Author

A lifelong resident of the American South, Kit Hawthorne makes her home on a Texas farm that has been in her husband’s family for seven generations. She spent many years singing, composing, and playing Irish pennywhistle in a Celtic folk band. All those ballads and boat songs awakened in her a love for a Scottish heritage that spans both sides of the Atlantic. She’s an avid reader, especially of history, biography, mystery, theology, and romance, and enjoys logging her reads (and plotting her life) in her Bullet Journal. She also enjoys drawing, sewing, quilting, knitting, and restoring old furniture to beauty and usefulness.

Connect with Kit at kithawthorne.com to follow her on social media and sign up for email updates.

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Author Interview

Q: What inspired you to write Treason Trail? 

Kit: I’d already written the first two books in the series and knew I wanted to write Nessa’s story next. She’s a fun character, very outspoken and proactive and quick to empathize. I thought she’d be a natural as a nurse in a Patriot hospital. At this stage of the Revolutionary War, the fighting was winding down, but a Patriot victory was not quite a done deal. I wanted to explore ways the war could still have been lost, and bring in a hero with memory loss.


Q: Nessa is a unique name. Did you choose it for any particular reason? 

Kit: I wanted all the Shaw siblings to have Scottish names. I liked Nessa because it is feminine and strong, and unusual without being hard to pronounce. It means “miracle” or “wonder” in Hebrew, and is also the name of a legendary Irish princess.


Q: How long did it take you to write this book? 

Kit: I started the research in 2018, took a ton of notes, and had the framework of a plot in place by the end of the year. Then I set the project aside to focus on my books with Harlequin. I picked it up again early in 2024. Because I’d already done so much research, the actual writing took only a few months.


Q: What surprised you while researching/writing this novel? 

Kit: That there are so many fascinating people and incidents in the American Revolutionary War that hardly anyone knows about, especially in the South. I started my research for the series in 2016 and I have only scratched the surface.


Q: Do you have a favorite quote from Treason Trail? 

Kit: “If there were no risk of living to regret an oath, there would be no reason to take one in the first place. That is what oaths are for, to hold the oath-maker to his purpose after the first flush of fervor has passed.”


Q: When did you first know you wanted to be an author? 

Kit: When I was nine years old, I learned that being an author was a legitimate job that people got paid for. I went right to work on a Civil War novel (it was terrible), followed by a Star Wars rip-off (slightly less terrible). I never looked back. Eventually my work stopped being terrible, and I did in fact get paid for it.


Q: Would you share something about yourself that most readers wouldn’t know? 

Kit: I do P90X! I love it because it’s an excellent workout program that I can do at home. I use the old DVDs and they are starting to wear out.


Q:What are you currently reading?

Kit: Pride and Prejudice for about the millionth time.


Q:What is your favorite genre to read? 

Kit: Hard to say. I love biography, military history, business books, historical fiction, and Golden Age detective fiction. When I want comfort I turn to old favorites like the Betsy-Tacy books and anything by Jane Austen.


Q: What is your favorite hobby? 

Kit: Anything productive—gardening, sewing, painting the woodwork. Bonus points if I can listen to an audiobook at the same time.


Q: What is your favorite season and why? 

Kit: Winter. I love fall as well, but where I live, much of fall is really summer part 2. By early winter the colors have mellowed and the dropped leaves are revealing the architecture of the land. I also love the diminished sunlight and overcast skies.

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Tour Giveaway

(2) winners will each win print copies of all 3 books in the Cape Fear Legacy series!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight July 2, 2024 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on July 9, 2024. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

Enter Giveaway

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