I remember the skeins of colorful wool yarn, the gift of cut flowers, the importance of a spiritual connection with God.

Hope Toler Dougherty is an inspirational romance author living in North Carolina. Her seventh book, Forever Free, is the last of four in a series about the Daniels siblings: Josie, Ben, Sam and now Heath.

Heath is a young man working on a farm owned by an elderly man and his granddaughter, Phoebe. Heath is anxious and looking to do service to maintain his recovery (in the past he used alcohol to handle his feelings).

“In the high achieving Daniels clan, he’s the one who dropped out of college, the one who struggled with substance abuse, the one who feels less than,” Hope says of her main character. “Guilt from an early tragedy along with bad choices play important parts in Heath’s personality.”

On the other hand, Hope’s character Phoebe has her hands full nurturing her cut flower farm. Stubbornly, she doesn’t need someone else to offer her advice, especially a man. In order to work together, they both have to work through their feelings. Heath needs to come out of isolation. Phoebe needs to open up to help from others. The story is their journey.

At the time I met Hope Dougherty in 2015 at a local writers group, she had authored two books. One is Irish Encounter. I liked the book because the main character, Ellen, was in search of wool yarn in Ireland for her shop in the states. I love being emersed in a world with which I’m not familiar, and learning something new. I liked the plot – a widow and a widower have a chance encounter and embark on a new journey beyond their grief. Hope has given several presentations to the local writers group on the subject of character development, developmental editing, line editing and more.

From both of these books, I remember the yarn, the fresh-cut flowers, the importance of family and relationships; of healing from grief, of feeling your feelings in a healthy way; of reaching out to others because you can’t do life alone. What stays with me most is seeking a spiritual connection with God, and letting that Higher Power lead the way.

I enjoyed getting to know Hope’s characters in Forever Free, especially Heath. I hope you’ll read Hope’s newest book. It is available online. For more information, go to her website, www.HopeTolerDougherty.com. There you’ll find a delightful trail of personal stories and even a free cookbook, Baking with Hope. Here’s one of the recipes Hope allowed me to share with you. The photo is a variation on the Swedish Nut Cake Phoebe bakes for her grandfather in Forever Free.

Swedish Nut Cake

Ingredients for cake:                                       Ingredients for icing:                                     
2 C flour                                                         1 8 oz pkg creamed cheese
1 ¾ C sugar                                                     1/2 stick butter
2 eggs                                                              1 t vanilla
2 t baking soda                                                1 ½ C powdered sugar, sifted
1 t vanilla
½ chopped nuts
1 20 oz. can crushed pineapple with juice

Directions:
Mix all ingredients for cake and bake in a greased 9×13 pan at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes. For icing, mix all ingredients and frost the cooled cake. Store in the refrigerator.