Available for a limited time Past The Complete Collection
Alone without friends or family to comfort her after the death of her mother, Willow Finley’s idyllic life is over—and just beginning.
When Willow Finley awakes on a hot summer morning, she is unprepared for the grief that awaits her. Jerked from a life of isolation with her mother, Willow learns what alone really means when she finds her mother still in her bed, never to awaken again in this life.
From the moment Willow arrives in the police station with her startling announcement, Chad Tesdall fights the friendship he knows he can't avoid.
This collection contains all six volumes of Past Forward (all 28 Episodes).
Volume 1: Opens with Willow's life-changing discovery and gently guides the reader through aspects of her life--the past weaving through the present and into the future. Experience her first morning in church, her first movie, and the culture shock of her first trips to the city. A birthday party and a street faire add welcome diversion from butchering, canning, and the beating of area rugs. Disaster strikes. Will she be able to continue her life, or will an offer in the city change it all? Find out in this first volume.
Volume 2: Willow, battling grief and anger, drives Chad from the farm, but he finds himself drawn back, despite her determination to keep a wall between them. An accident and the chance of a lifetime threaten everything she thought she held dear. As the walls crumble, Chad and Willow's friendship deepens into something truly special, but to what end? Everyone around him pushes Chad into a relationship he both wants and fights, knowing that Willow simply is not ready.
Someone is wreaking havoc around her farm. Afraid for Willow's safety, the police take turns guarding her place when off duty and she finds it hard to endure the disruption of her tranquility.
And then, Chad asks her to dance. Can she trust him? Find out in this second volume.
Volume 3: In this volume, Chad and Willow's engagement doesn't stay a secret for as long as they expected. Willow is initiated in the sport of shopping, attends her first ball, and a week with Marianne and Chad at her house is followed soon after by a week of Aggie's children. This volume introduces her to weddings and ends with a surprise twist.
Volume 4: In this volume, their marriage is everything and nothing like either of them experienced. At last, the Solari trial commences--a step in removing their influence from Chad and Willow's life, but the drama isn't quite over yet! So many firsts in this volume from first days of marriage to an ending that changes everything.
Volume 5: In this volume, Chad and Willow embrace the joys of parenthood. Challenges surface as they adapt to new work loads and changes, but when Ryder presents a new opportunity, their life takes yet another turn.
Volume 6: The many changes that have taken place over the past few years slowly reverse as Chad and Willow find a comfortable groove for their little family. But amid the good and wholesome, something--or someone--foreboding lurks in the shadows, threatening the tranquility of their home and lives. When Becca feels threatened, Josh wants something done and now.
In the weeks before Becca's wedding, Willow finds her life turned upside down by a very pregnant Aggie and her nine children--yep. Nine! Overwhelmed by the sheer volume of people and work, Willow finds herself struggling with more than just the excess dishes and laundry.
Amid all of life's upheavals, the changes at Walden Farm continue, but when tragedy and loss arrive, they help the Tesdalls determine what is most important to their family, bringing Chad and Willow closer than ever.
Volume 6 is the final volume in the Past Forward Series. Look for more about Chad and Willow in its sister series, HearthLand.
**fingers skittle across the keyboard. Stop. Eyelids blink over the top**
Oh, was this bio day? Oops! I forgot. I was lost in my latest manuscript. Umm... bio. Yeah.
Hi! I’m Chautona Havig. (for those who care, that’s Shuh-TONE-uh HAVE-ig). Yeah. Just work with me here. I should have used a pseudonym, but when you grow up with a name like Chautona, it kind of sticks.
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near. ~ Hebrews 10: 23–25
Those aren’t just words on a page for me–they’re why I write. I write to encourage my brothers and sisters in Christ. The stories I create are to make people laugh, cry, question, consider.
They’re for you.
When the world screams for hope, I try to point you to the true Source of hope–Jesus.
Sometimes life in the church no longer seems a refuge from the pain of a self-serving world around us, but through my stories, I try to point you to the only Refuge that can truly help–the Father’s Everlasting Arms.
And sometimes we just need an escape from the monotony, the emptiness we see around us. We need joy, laughter–what I like to call “just the write escape.”
Christian fiction without apology or pretense–lived, not preached. What does that even mean? It means I care–about you. About your walk with Jesus. I care about the words you put before your eyes, the mental pictures those words conjure. It’s difficult to express just how much I love my brothers and sisters in Christ. It’s difficult to share just how much I love you.
But I do.
And I write for you. I sit in my little house in California’s Mojave Desert and I write to show you why one sister believes one thing, why a brother believes another. I write to show you how some Christians handle trials or triumphs–for you. So when you’re faced with something–good or bad, it doesn’t matter–maybe it’ll spark a memory. Maybe that memory will smolder until you pull out your Bible and see what the Lord said about it–about His great love for you. For YOU!
And maybe, just maybe, you’ll share that love with another hurting, confused, or blessed-with-more-than-she-knows-what-to-do-with soul.
I just happen to think that’s the most blessed giving anyone could hope to receive.
"Past Forward"by Chautona Havig is a collection of six books and it is really a fantastic read. Without a doubt, this is my favorite of Chautona Havig's books that I have read.
I was hooked from the first chapter when Willow walks into the police station to report that her mother had died. These books have it all, a mother and daughter living a life of their own, very little electricity, heartache, love, misunderstandings , friendships. This collection touches on rape, accidental murder, miscarriages and adoption and humor and mistaken identify.
This collection is one that readers will really love or hate because it is really intense and you can really feel yourself wanting to be friends and neighbors to these characters. These stories had me laughing and crying.
I felt like the characters were telling me the story instead of me reading it. I really would love to see this series made into a mini series on tv. I would definitely watch it many times.
I was given a complimentary copy by the author and Celebrate Lit. These are my own opinions.
Willow was raised by a mother that kept her on the farm and hardly ever took her out. One day her mother passes away and she doesn’t know what to do. Thankfully a lot of friends come to her aid. Friends she never knew she had. During the story a journal is being read that her mother wrote. Loved that part of the book.
It is a very long book that was originally published a little at a time. I did read some of it at time but am glad for the opportunity to read the whole book at once. Loved how Willow was so good at farming and lot of other things. But she has a lot of other things to learn for survival. I definitely recommend the book.
I received a complimentary copy of the book from Celebrate Lit. I was not required to write an positive review. This is my own opinion.
Love this collection of Past Forward. I cried, and I laughed out loud. I've read it several times in the past year. Recommend to everyone very inspiring.
I have fallen in love with Chautona Havig’s books! I just spent the last seven days reading Past Forward—the entire series. One of my favorite things in the world is a well-written, long book. Past Forward certainly qualifies! It is a very different story to most. It was written as a serial novel, with an episode of about six chapters being released every week for a long time. I didn’t read it when it was first written, but when it each episode was made free for a couple of days again the last few months I did get it. Then, I saved them all up until I had them all and read the entire series at once. It’s satisfying to be able to follow a character for so long, especially one who is as real as Willow becomes. I don’t know how Chautona is able to make her characters so real, but she certainly has a gift for that!
This was an awesome read! Watching Willow grow and change as she discovered the we world around her and watching as the world adjust to Willow, all I can say is "Wow!" (Read the book, you'll get it. :-) )