Frontiers of Liberty

Series · 3 books · 2013-2023

By Shannon McNear

Books in series

The Highwayman

2018

1775—the Shenandoah Valley, Staunton, Virginia Samuel Wheeler is an ordinary wagonmaster by day, a masked vigilante by night, but what started as a lark has gotten out of hand. He hardly sleeps, his secret identity has taken over his life, and the girl he loves barely notices him while his alter ego sets her aflutter. Sally Brewster works hard at her parents’ inn, nestled in the lower Shenandoah Valley, along the Great Wagon Road that runs from Philadelphia down through the Carolinas. She pays little mind to the gossip about the mysterious highwayman who lately makes life difficult for the redcoats—until the night when the heroic figure saves her from brigands. [The third edition contains a revised version of the story which appeared as a Forget-Me-Not release and in The Most Eligible Bachelor Collection. The series will continue with re-releases of "Defending Truth" from A Pioneer Christmas Collection and "The Counterfeit Tory" from Backcountry Brides.]

Defending Truth

2013

In the aftermath of the Battle of Kings Mountain, can God’s grace and love overcome fear and prejudice? Left to care for her siblings at their mountain farm while her father is away fighting the British, Truth Bledsoe stumbles across a starving Tory hiding in a cave. When simple charity leads to friendship and the possibility of more, can she believe him when he says his political leanings have changed? Can she trust him? Can she trust her family to keep him secret? (This title was formerly published as part of A Pioneer Christmas Collection by Barbour Publishing. It has been revised and updated.)

The Counterfeit Tory

2023

1781 ... the backcountry of South Carolina Lizzy Cunningham resents any man who thinks he can get by with a wink and a smile. Doubly so the ones who try to get close to her—she knows she’s homely and difficult of temper, and that not a man has been made who can bear with her for a lifetime. Jedidiah Wheeler (Sam’s cousin from The Highwayman ) has always depended on his easy charm to get him through. He’s also used to girls falling all over themselves when he glances their way, so it’s a shock to find one who responds with definite hostility. It might also be a bit of a challenge ... especially when he discovers her connection to an infamous Tory leader he’s tasked with bringing down. As Jed gains the trust of the Tories, he sees that Lizzy is far more than the snarling tavern maid she pretends to be. Truth be told, in her unguarded moments she’s one of the most fetching misses he’s ever met—and bravest, when his own life is on the line. How can he complete the mission without endangering her? And dare Lizzy risk family loyalty for a kindness she’s sure is too good to be true?

Author

Shannon McNear

Author · 13 books

Shannon has been writing one thing or another since third grade and finished her first novel at age fifteen—but waited more than thirty years for her first book contract. In the meantime, she graduated from high school, attended college, met and married her husband, birthed nine children, lost one, taught five to drive, revised that first story innumerable times, and completed six others. Her first published novella, Defending Truth, in A Pioneer Christmas Collection (Barbour, 2013 & 2015), was a 2014 RITA® nominee, and her most recent one, The Wise Guy and the Star in Love's Pure Light was a 2021 SELAH winner. She writes regularly for Colonial Quills, is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Faith-Hope-Love Christian Writers, and is represented by Tamela Hancock Murray of the Steve Laube Agency. Transplanted to North Dakota after more than two decades in Charleston, South Carolina, she loves losing herself in local history. When this homeschooling mom isn't cooking, researching, or leaking story from her fingertips, she enjoys being outdoors, basking in the beauty of the northern prairies.