Winner: 2015 Independent Publishers Awards - Gold Medal "Abbie Williams is an author who excels at the romance genre. Her Shore Leave Cafe series is a showcase for her ability to weave a contemporary tapestry, complete with rich characters, vivid settings and seductive moods. With the Dove Saga trilogy, Williams takes those ingredients and deposits them into an historical back drop - in this case, the American Civil War - crafting an epic story that is her most accomplished work to date."—Dean Mayes, Author of: The Hambledown Dream, Gifts of the Peramangk, The Recipient, The Artisan Heart The Civil War has ended, leaving the country with a gaping wound. Lorie Blake, a southern orphan sold into prostitution at fifteen, has carefully guarded her aching soul from the disgrace forced upon her every evening. Two years have passed, leaving her with little hope of anything more. Meanwhile, three men – longtime friends – and a young boy with a heart of gold are traveling northward, planning to rebuild their lives in the north and leave behind the horrors of their time as soldiers in the Confederate Army. Fate, however, has plans of its own, causing their lives to collide in a river town whorehouse. Forced to flee, Lorie escapes and joins them on the journey north. But danger stalks them all in the form of a vindictive whorehouse madam and an ex-Union soldier, insane and bent on exacting revenge. At last, Lorie must come to terms with her past and devastating secrets that she cannot yet bear to reveal. Heart of a Dove is the first book in a gripping, sweeping romantic saga of pain, unbearable choices, loss and true love set against the backdrop of a scarred, post-Civil War America. The Dove Saga 1. Heart of a Dove 2. Soul of a Crow 3. Grace of a Hawk Also from Abbie Williams, A Shore Leave Cafe Romance series: 1. Summer at the Shore Leave Cafe 2. Second Chances 3. A Notion of Love 4. Winter at the White Oaks Lodge 5. Wild Flower 6. The First Law of Love 7. Until Tomorrow 8. The Way Back 9. Return to Yesterday The story continues in her most recent novel, A Place to Belong.