As I mentioned earlier, Winter World of Love is a sequel to This Winter Heart. BUT it is also a prequel to the Winter Heart series: four books that explore the lives of Ophelia’s “siblings.” The first book, Lightning in a Bottle, is in the works and will (hopefully) be released in 2021. The titles and release dates for the rest of the series are still in flux. But here’s how things stand at the moment:

Series Intro

Philadelphia, 1870

As the world mourns the loss of brilliant inventor Dr. Charles Winter (known affectionately to his friends as the professor) most remain unaware of the great technical advances he had made in the areas of cloning, artificial intelligence and mechanical life-forms. Sadly, this ignorance of so much of his most far-reaching and astonishing work extends even to the professor’s own family, which includes his four adult children, the product of his marriage to the late Millicent Pearson Winter.

The younger Winters are quirky and independent, dedicated to social justice, rational science and intellectual achievement. Inculcated from earliest childhood with their mother’s Quaker beliefs and their father’s dedication to progress, the four siblings are tireless in their pursuit of whatever personal goals they happen to set for themselves.

At the time of their father’s death, the siblings had yet to discover the fact that their supposed half-sister, Ophelia, was not the result of their father’s infidelity as they’d long supposed.

This ignorance precipitated a crisis for Ophelia, as is documented in the series prequel, This Winter Heart.

Lightning in a Bottle

Persephone Winter is dedicated to continuing her father’s work.  More interested in the pursuit of knowledge than in love or marriage, she is content to leave matters of the heart — and the flesh — to her siblings. The possibility that she could fall in love with one of her experiments is not one she’s ever had to consider–until now.

Adam Gardener thought he was doomed. Created to serve as one of the world’s first mechanical soldiers, and still unfinished at the time of his creator’s death, he was left in the professor’s lab, forgotten for months, until a storm set him free. Adam is overjoyed and grateful beyond measure when Percy’s curiosity compels her to take up her father’s secret work.

But as Adam is about to discover, being alive is not without its own set of dangers. And as Persephone is about to remember, the human heart is a most vulnerable organ.

What the Heart Wants

When Persephone’s rebellion sets the Winter family in a tizzy, Beauregard Winter seizes his chance to flee the family nest with all its dreary, dreary responsibilities and seek a more relaxed lifestyle in the Republic of New Texacali. Beau has always been a lot less interested in social justice than the rest of his siblings. That is until he discovers a cause that’s unexpectedly dear to his heart.

Jedidiah Hutchinson is also seeking a better life; and he’s not real picky about where. California sounds nice, and he’s heard good things about Paris, France. But even freezing to death in the Yukon Territories would be a better fate than being repatriated to the Confederate Republic. While he waits for the next airship to take him on his way, Jed is not averse to conducting a brief dalliance with Beau, but he knows better than to count on the handsome young peacock for anything more than a few nights of pleasure.

Beau can’t argue with Jed’s assessment of his character. He’s never wanted to be responsible for himself, let alone anyone else! But that was before he met the one man who might be worth growing up for.

A  Marriage of True Minds

A committed feminist, Calliope Winter is determined to control the course of her own life. Still, she longs for a true partnership, one in which mutual respect and personal freedom are a matter of course and she will cede her heart for nothing less.

Journalist Brooks Campbell doesn’t quite know what to make of the fiery Miss Winter; she’s nothing like he was expecting when his paper set him the task of investigating and reporting back on her crusade for women’s rights. Brooks assumed Calliope would be a wealthy, spoiled debutante, someone who neither knew nor cared about the plight of the working class.

Brooks is intrigued by Calliope’s sensuous nature and quickly finds his way into her bed. Finding his way into her heart, on the other hand — especially once she learns about his real motivations — that might require some serious persuasion. Not to mention a fair amount of groveling!

Tempest in a Teapot

The eldest of the Winter siblings, Alastair Winter suffers from an overdeveloped sense of responsibility, which is not improved by his career choice, serving as solicitor and financial manager to many of Philadelphia’s undeserving rich. It’s clear to everyone who knows him that what Alastair needs is a spouse who will teach him that life is meant to be lived, not merely suffered through, and that any mistake one makes along the way, may be a catalyst for an almost magical transformation.

Luckily for him, he’s about to meet just such a paragon in the person of one Mrs. Horace B. Chudleigh, the widow of a former client and a talented songstress who goes by the name Delphinium Blue. Del’s charming-but-shiftless late husband left her all-but-penniless. But the important thing, as far as she’s concerned, is that he did leave her!

Now she’s free to once again live life on her own terms. It just so happens that part of her plans include orchestrating a triumphant return to the stage and instigating an improper affair with her very proper solicitor. Alastair has no idea what’s about to hit him.