Post by Natalie, RN Managing Editor

Yesterday as I sat on a train headed to Chicago from Detroit, I finished reading Long Trail Home by Vickie McDonough. Though my surroundings were a chilly train with windows showing a Midwest spring, I was happy to be transported to a dusty post-Civil War Texas through Vickie’s fantastic descriptions. 

Below are five terrific descriptions that set the scenes for a few of our books. I hope you enjoy being carried to five different worlds through today’s post!

Long Trail Home by Vickie McDonough
“Her dress swished through the foot-tall grass and wildflowers, sending a grasshopper leaping away to a quieter spot. Bald cypress and live oaks hugged the creek bank, offering cherished shade from the hot Texas sun, but a few stood in the fields where she could imagine cattle and horses grazing in the wide valley.”

A Marriage Carol by Gary Chapman and Chris Fabry
“He walked with a noticeable limb and when we reached an overstuffed, leather chair, he turned it toward the fireplace. Three huge logs burned and crackled, and their warmth and aroma gave me a fresh vision of welcome that covered me as well as the afghan.”

Pearl in the Sand by Tessa Afshar
“She made certain that her inn gained a reputation for simple elegance and comfort. Decorating it with woven tapestries and rich carpets, she avoided the gaudy ornamentation common among other inns…By the time Rahab turned twenty-six, her inn was as popular as she herself, though like her body, it often remained empty. It was that very exclusivity which made it a sought-after destination.”

Latter-Day Cipher by Latayne C. Scott
“She surveyed her living quarters: the carefully framed art prints…the kitchen counter-tops populated only by a small microwave, a coffee grinder and pot, and a food processor; the garage-sale tables and bed she had painted all the same color. She remembered how she’d settled on just the right earthy red after searching for spray paint to use her favorite color, she discovered to her dismay, was paint primer.”

Night Song by Tricia Goyer

“Evie pushed aside the porthole curtain and took in the Manhattan skyline. The ship’s engines purred from somewhere below, vibrating the floor. The sound made Evie think of the rumble of German tanks spreading over Europe. War.”

What novel has your favorite setting? What makes you love that setting so much?