Signed Sealed Delivered

 @RitaSGalieh

BIO

Indie Publisher, Rita Galieh, has written a trilogy of historical romance novels & has also contributed to several US anthologies. She is now completing a second historical romance series set in the Edwardian Era & has sent the first two M/Ss to Iola Goulton to edit.
 
She can be found on Facebook and www.ritastellapress.com  

Rita studied art at the National Art School then joined the family ceramics studio. After their marriage, she and her husband attended Emmaus Bible College, and currently co-present Vantage Point, an Australia-wide Christian FM radio program. She enjoys giving her fun-filled presentations of ‘Etiquette of the Victorian Era’ in costume. 

 Signed Sealed Delivered  Book I

How can she believe in her future when she cannot escape her past?

Employed as a governess, Megan Trevallyn never suspects the turmoil she will soon be facing. After secretly marrying her love, Capt. Charles Cantrell, he leaves for the battlefield. With twins on the way, her nightmare begins.

Accused of the heinous crime of kidnapping, and expelled from the household, by Cornelia, its scheming mistress, she faces harsh transportation to a penal colony in Australia. Stripped of everything except her faith, will she survive? And will Charles ever find her?

Prologue

Very early each morning when butlers shone boots, maids scurried about, and cooks prepared breakfast, Megan Trevallyn grasped the opportunity to escape to her one sanctuary in this Georgian mansion—the library. With the musty smell of old books welcoming her, she turned up the gaslight. The warm glow endowed the wood panelling with pleasing hues of coppery gold, which never failed to please her.

She reached over to select a reference volume when a shadow fell across the wall.

What? She whirled around.

The master of the household loomed before her.

In one swift motion, he pushed her up against the bookcase, pinioning her between his outstretched arms. Only the large tome she managed to clasp to her chest separated them. But the narrowed eyes and husky breaths of this repulsive gentleman revealed a rapacious hunger.

‘What have you got there, Miss … ah, why don’t I call you Megan? My, my, perhaps a book of romantic verses? Something to get your little heart beating faster?’

Although doubtful about the scandalous downstairs whispers, she’d always managed to avoid the sole company of her employer. Now this. Her mind raced as she tried to quash the rising panic, She must somehow overcome this intimidating situation and diffuse it.

‘Sir, I’m holding a book of Ancient History for your daughter.’ She forced an authoritative tone. ‘We’re to study it when she arrives.’

He glanced back at the grandfather clock. ‘It seems we have a whole hour before Ellie’s lesson begins, my dear. Time enough for us to become, shall we say, much better acquainted.’

Despite her indignation, she gritted her teeth. In this household an employee’s word counted for nothing. And in such a confrontation, the conviction she’d be damned if she gave

in and damned if she didn’t, infuriated her.

With barely time to pray, Lord, help me, she steeled herself against the assault.

As he lowered his whiskered face to hers, his breath—reeking of tobacco—turned her stomach. And as one clammy hand clutched her neck and the other groped for her thigh, pure instinct spurred her on. She let go of the heavy book.

It landed right onto his foot.

Cursing, he sprang back. ‘You’ve broken my toes, you little vixen!’

She snatched the moment and ducked around him then launched herself from the library. With a hammering heart, she rushed to her room.

Oh yes, she’d heard about predators like this. A helpless governess, maidservant, or even a lowly scullery maid offered a pleasant diversion to the master of the household. Willing or unwilling, no questions were ever asked. And if complaints arose then the victims would soon find themselves on the street without references. In this way many an assault would be covered up, concealing distasteful scandal, and leaving the perpetrator free reign.

If it hadn’t been for her unhesitating action when she’d been at her most vulnerable, this man would surely have compromised her. Now, through no fault of her own except for self-preservation, she must leave what she’d thought was a safe haven. Disillusionment threatened to drain the last of her optimism.

She dashed unwanted tears away and gathered up her few belongings before creeping down the back stairs. The injustice of this whole incident rankled, but recognising the futility of asking, she’d go quietly without the wages owed.

Only one thing consoled her. She’d had the satisfaction of repudiating his advances. His power and menacing presence no longer dangled over her. Nor would it ever again.

Lord willing, she’d pore over every single line of the help wanted section in her search to find another employment opportunity.

That … or go hungry.

Lasting Romance?

As we are today

When I was a very young woman, a family member 

once said to me,"Oh, you're just in love with love." And this, "You have a head full of romance. Come down from the clouds."

I didn't listen because some of these women in our family were not happily married. And I knew I didn't want to beforever quarelling with the man I'd someday marry. 

The whole idea of being courted and treated as someone extra special appealed so much. I wanted to be loved and cherished for myself. And if that's what romance really meant, then I believed in it and yearned for it to be true in my own experience. Why shouldn't a young woman have these hopes?I didn't want to be taken for granted, nor would I treat my true love that way.

 

I can speak about this subject with some authority. Only because my husband and I have lived out these ideals during our many years of a fulfilled, happy marriage.    

 

 Of course we've had our differences, but

 forgiveness always follows arguments and

 romance has been nourished. In all this we are grateful for Christaian faith and thank the Lord for guiding us daily as we read His precious Word.

 

 

 

God's Love in Cambodia

Our Cambodian friends are very dear to us. Horn Kimoun and Sothea Col were married in Cambodia. The ceremony is very special with bride and groom wearing different clothes on every occasion.

I asked Sothea how he met his lovely bride, Kimoun. He said he met her when he went to the Takeo Province to help his friend, Nget begin a school of English and Computing and she enrolled. How could a young man not be attracted to this dear girl?

This school was begun in 2010 to help poor villagers and since then it has grown. In that same year, God called Sothea to start a Bible class. He asked his friend Nget where they should go and Nget asked his parents' permission to hold it in their home. They agreed.

Every Saturday they taught songs to the children. The adults came along and enjoyed every moment, especially the Bible teaching.

The next step was to separate the children with Nget teaching them while Sothea  taught the adults. And last year their Christmas celebration was a huge success. Everyone received a gift and enjoyed the meal. It was a lovely time for them to remember Jesus' birth.

* Now they have a gorgeous little fellow, Joel, who has brought so much joy into their lives. We love to see him growing thanks to pictures of him on Facebook.

I enjoy sharing people's experiences about how they met their intended. And I'd really appreciate it it if you shared yours with me together with a wedding photo, so I could post it on this blog.

If you want to keep following me - and I hope that you do! - please also see the following:

http://www.ritastellapress.com/author-blog

God bless you!

Rita

Getting Personal

1.Who are you & where do you come from?

My husband would be the best person to answer that as he knows the real me. A Sydneysider, I always wanted to be an artist so I studied art and joined the family ceramics studio and enjoyed etching Australian flora and fauna exclusively for Prouds in Sydney. I met my violinist husband at a YFC meeting and he challenged me to use my gift for God. After our marriage we attended Emmaus Bible College and then joined Dr Gene Jeffries and American evangelist as his music team. We spent two years in America and then answered the call to be involved in missions in Australia. Each year in December, we minister throughout Thailand with a Thai interpreter, Somchai Soothornturasuk. He arranges for us to use our art and music in schools, prisons, orphanages, hospitals and churches where we explain the real meaning of Christmas. During our many years of travelling over countries in SE Asia, I began to write seriously. Though looking back, I used to spin stories with my grandma and I think the seeds were sown then.

 

 2. Tell us about your writing. What do I write?

I love reading historicals. I also love the extensive research involved in writing these. So my chosen genre is Historical Romance. I have had two published by a Sydney publisher. My next was a trilogy: Signed Sealed Delivered, The Tie That Binds, A Parcel of Promises were Indie published.

3. Tell us about your program, what challenges you most and what helps you most?

As I also write and record radio programs with my husband, I'm always challenged to find the time to write my novels.(I wish I had a maid and a cook like those in my historicals!) However I can tune out even with the TV on, because when I write, I am not in my room, not in my suburb and not in my time. I read my Bible study and notes each morning and ask the Lord to guide me in whatever I write as I want it to honour Him. My Thesaurus helps me most of all when I am searching for just the right word.

4. What are your writing goals?

I am now writing 3 synopses for a Book proposal of another series I have just completed under the series name: Daughters of Resilience: Book 1.  Speechless, Breaking Miss Sophie's Silence, Book 2. Defenseless, Miss Dengate's Deliverance, Book 3. Heartless, Miss Kate's Great Expectations.( I use US spelling.) The setting is the Edwardian Era. So my goal is to find an agent who likes my work and who will find a publisher who in turn will actually snap up my trilogy! Easy? Nooooo. I'd value your prayers about this.

5. How does my faith impact my writing?

To answer this I'll share what I have written in my Book Proposal:

Resilience - a combination of perseverance and hope - is a universal theme in my novels. When facing difficult issues, today’s Christian woman can relate when facing hard decisions between making a God honouring choice or whatever is expedient at the time. 

I truly want to share my faith in a practical way. Just as Jesus used stories to illustrate a spiritual truth, so I really want my readers to gain something that might help them in their own life.

Rita has learned her craft by making every mistake in the book!  But perseverance is the key. Besides reading fiction and nonfiction,  read plenty of books in the genre you write. Then write your heart out. Write all your doubts and struggles into your characters. And have fun creating your nasty antagonists.

If you feel the Lord has called you to write, just keep at it whatever it is articles, scripts, Sunday school lessons, women's devotionals, there's a need for all of these.
And never give up.