Lauraine Snelling

It had taken four long, difficult years to tame the virgin prairie of Dakota Territory. Looking back through all the heartache and the body-breaking labor, Ingeborg Bjorklund knew that God had been with them every step of the way. Dreams that had turned into veritable nightmares had been...

Ever so slowly, Dakota Territory is being transformed from a vast prairie into rich farmland. With the coming of the railroad, the small town of Blessing begins to prosper, and the Bjorklund family is reaping the promised harvest that had lured them from their beloved home in Norway. But for...

Broken by life's disappointments, four women forge a friendship that leads in unexpected directions. Hope Benson is determined to do all she can for the broken souls who come to Casa de Jesus, a women's shelter in the heart of San Francisco. When a difficult pregnancy forces her to relinquish...

Ellie Wold can't wait to graduate from high school. She and Andrew Bjorklund have been waiting to get married since...well, since forever, and in June they will finally wed.....

Eighteen-year-old Astrid Bjorklund has always dreamed of becoming a doctor. Will she have to give up love to pursue her dream....

In her new homeland of Iowa, she must risk heartbreak and uncertainty for her dreams to flourish. Maya Bredesen and her husband plan to journey from Norway to a new life at her cousin's boardinghouse in America, but on one last fateful fishing trip, a fierce winter storm steals away her husband...

Eighteen-year-old Ingeborg Strand is certain she is destined to be an old maid. She's had several suitors but none she deemed worthy of spending her life with. That is, until she meets a university student from Oslo, and feelings stronger than friendship begin to develop between them. But...

The rich farmlands of the Dakota Territory in 1887 are finally beginning to yield the abundant harvest the pioneers had dreamed about so long. The establishment of the railroad has brought significant changes to the small town of Blessing as well as prosperity to the Bjorklund family and their...

Just a few short weeks into her yearlong nurse training assignment at the Blessing Hospital, Miriam Antonio is called home to Chicago, where her mother is gravely ill. With siblings to care for, Miriam pleads to be allowed to finish her training in Chicago. Her nursing supervisor grants her a...

On the verge of Mt. St. Helens' historic eruption, three women must face the mountain: two to search for their missing husbands; the third, to rediscover her life . . . After a local mountain becomes a deadly and imminent threat, three strikingly different women become linked in a desperate...

From Norway to America, they must strive for resilience amid unpromising new beginnings. On the ship to America, Norwegian immigrant Amalia Gunderson makes a solemn promise to a dying mother, vowing to watch over her five-year-old daughter, Ruth. Together, Amalia and Ruth trek to Iowa to claim...

Anji Baard Moen, a recent widow, returns from Norway with her children. She quickly settles back into life in Blessing, teaching Norwegian history in the high school and writing articles for the Blessing Gazette. When tragedy strikes, Anji steps in to run the newspaper and soon finds a kindred...

In this series finale by Lauraine Snelling, Astrid Bjorklund is trying to stop the epidemic ravaging South Dakota’s Red Bud Indian Reservation. Tribal elders remain suspicious of her until some begin to recover. Although Joshua Landsverk longs to fix his broken relationship with Astrid, he...

The Brushstroke Legacy by Gold Angel-winning author Lauraine Snelling highlights a modern woman's journey of self-discovery. When Chicago native Ragni Claussen grudgingly agrees to take her sullen niece with her to spruce up the family's old North Dakota cabin, she uncovers long-hidden secrets...

In a poignant tale of 1902 North Dakota, Lauraine Snelling - best-selling author of Sophie's Dilemma - explores the silent world of 18-year-old Grace Knutson. Surrounded by her family's love and the townsfolk's kindness, Grace finds all she could want in Blessing - except for a sweetheart. But...

Bestselling author Lauraine Snelling shares a heartfelt story of a couple who put their plans for a peaceful retirement on hold to assume guardianship of their young grandchildren. Mona and Ken Sorenson are approaching the best years of their lives. Mona's greatest concern is that Ken will learn...

Dinah Taylor has an orderly life that is just how she likes it. A perfectly furnished luxury apartment, a satisfying career as a scientist and CEO of her own company, and an uncomplicated personal life. But all of that changes when she meets seven-year-old Jonah. The boy shows up one day, a...

The dream of their own farmstead and a good life in America had brought Roald and Ingeborg Bjorklund across the Atlantic to pioneer the virgin prairie of Dakota Territory. But Roald's tragic disappearance in a winter storm turned Ingeborg's dreams into a living nightmare. Against nearly...

Can her dreams for the future—and a budding romance—survive the trouble that comes calling? Larkspur Nielsen is determined to keep her family homestead running and to fulfill their dream of starting a seed catalog, with or without her siblings’ help. With Isaac McTavish back in town, Lark...

Will their dreams fall apart when confronted with all that is stacked against them? Delphinium Nielsen and her sisters have accomplished much in the past year, traveling west and settling in Nebraska. They are on their way to building a garden in dedication to their mother and working against...