I’ve Received Many Questions About The Duchess of Idaho
I’ve been promising this FAQ to my newsletter friends for a couple of months now, so let’s do this!
1. Are James and Sarah in the new book?
Of course! What would a Loving Husband story be without James and Sarah? The main focus this time, though, is Grace, their daughter. No one familiar with the Wentworths’ story would be surprised that Grace is touched by a magic all her own.
2. Which of my other favorite Loving Husband friends are there?
Olivia, everyone’s favorite motherly witch, takes center stage (as she usually does—good old Olivia). Some other favorites are not in DOI, such as Jennifer, Chandresh, Timothy, John, and Geoffrey, but never fear. They’ll make appearances in upcoming Loving Husband books.
We’ll meet some new friends too, including Annabelle Emerson Alexander—Sarah’s mother. Trust me, she’s not anything like you would expect Sarah’s mother to be. There’s also a new cast of characters in those who travel the Oregon Trail.
3. What is the correct order to read the books?
If it were up to me, I’d suggest reading in this order:
- Her Dear & Loving Husband
- Her Loving Husband’s Curse
- Her Loving Husband’s Return
- Down Salem Way
- The Duchess of Idaho
Having said this, many readers start with Down Salem Way, then read the others, and they are perfectly happy doing so. Down Salem Way is the prequel to Her Dear & Loving Husband, but Down Salem Way was written as a stand-alone. I do think you’ll get more out of it if you read HDLH and DSW together.
There are many readers who loved Down Salem Way, which prompted them to read the other books in the series. Of course, there have been readers who started with Down Salem Way and thought they should have started with HDLH, but I think that’s more because they saw that DSW wasn’t Book One and some readers simply prefer to start a series with Book One.
Keep in mind that this list doesn’t include the three books in the Grace Trilogy, as I call it, with The Duchess of Idaho being the first book of the new trilogy, and the two upcoming novellas. I’ll share another reading order after those are released.
4. Did you know that The Duchess of Idaho is the name of a movie?
As a matter of fact, I did. The film is called Duchess of Idaho. I added the The to differentiate the novel slightly from the movie. Not only did I know about the film, but that’s where the title came from. I’ll have more to say about where the title when it’s closer to the release of DOI.
5. Did you know that Idaho wasn’t a state during the time of the Oregon Trail?
This is why I love my readers. Not only are they super nice, but they’re also super smart! Yes, I do know that Idaho didn’t become a state until 1890. As a matter of fact, I lived in Boise, Idaho for a year between 2002 and 2003.
The novel takes place on the Oregon Trail in 1850. At that time, the state we know today as Idaho was part of the Oregon Territory. Those of you who are LH readers know that it’s hard to talk about any of the books without giving too much away. Spoilers! All I can say for now is that the title will make sense when you read it.
6. When will The Duchess of Idaho be released?
Gosh, if I had a dollar for every time I was asked this question! I mean that in the very best of ways because I’m so happy that readers are excited about the new book.
If you’ve been following me for any amount of time, you know that I’m terrible at guessing when books will be finished. Over the years, I’ve learned to accept that books take as long as they take regardless of when I think they should be done. I had hoped to have DOI out Autumn 2021 (which is now) but obviously that didn’t happen.
I’m cautiously optimistic that a late February/early March 2022 release is in the cards for DOI. There will be a second Loving Husband story, a novella, out after DOI is released. That I feel confident saying, but then again the muses may have other ideas. I’ll have more to say about the novella after DOI is published.
7. Is The Duchess of Idaho like the Loving Husband Trilogy with past and present storylines?
Yes! There is a past and present storyline in DOI, just like the first three James and Sarah books. This time, as I mentioned earlier, the past storyline revolves around the Oregon Trail.
8. Are you mentioning COVID in the present storyline?
One lovely reader in Michigan asked me this last month. My answer is no. I read and write fiction to escape reality, so to write about the current pandemic would place me more firmly in reality than I care to be at the moment.
I know that some writers are using COVID storylines in their books, and that is a perfectly legitimate choice. I made the decision to continue with the Loving Husband universe as the fantasy world that it has always been.
9. How many books will there be in total in the series?
This is a great question that I don’t actually have an answer to. There is the original trilogy, Down Salem Way, and the three Grace books—so far that’s seven. There are two definite novellas on the horizon.
Longtime Loving Husband fans know that I only intended for the series to be a trilogy. I was so certain the story was done after Her Loving Husband’s Return. Fans had other ideas. I kept writing more James and Sarah stories because readers wanted them.
Lately, I’ve found a few angles that will allow me to continue the story in ways I had never imagined when I first published Her Dear & Loving Husband. Some of those angles were directly inspired by readers. So thank you!
I Love Hearing From Readers!
I love hearing from readers, and I love answering reader questions. If you have a question that isn’t addressed above, you can use the Contact form at the top of this page. Your question may appear in a future edition of Frequently Asked Questions!
To my American friends, Happy Thanksgiving. I’m thankful for all of my wonderful readers from all over the world who have supported James, Sarah, Grace, Olivia, and me over the past decade.