Blackman Falls

About the Book

If you escaped slavery, could you willingly face your captor again? This is what Winda had to do in order to help the man she loves. Pakwis, an Ojibwa chief had stolen her from her Cree home when she was only six summers old. When she returns from the woman´s hut for the first time, he beds her and takes her for a second wife. His jealous first wife treats her as a slave, and worse when Pakwis is not around. Winda escapes during a bad winter storm hoping to find her people. She is attacked severely along the way by a bear, and is rescued by a lone trapper named Lucas Sievers.

Carrie Tanner´s whole life had been shrouded in secrets and lies. She doesn´t know that the man that raised her is not her real father, until he does the unthinkable. Ivan literary drags her into church to marry his friend in order to seal a deal between them. She is married to Dusty Blackman, a mean wretch that beats and rapes her. She finds out that Dusty and Ivan are smuggling a new kind of musket to an American general who then transports them across Lake Erie. Her husband drags her across Upper Canada with some of the crates. She meets Winda along the way and the two of them become friends, united in their hatred for Dusty.

Major Grant Sievers, Lucas´s brother, is sent to investigate Dusty Blackman and his illegal operation. He tries to infiltrate the gang, But, Dusty doesn´t trust him and tries to kill him. Grant follows a trail of dead bodies that Dusty leaves behind him,eventually capturing him. What Grant didn´t count on, is falling in love with Dusty´s wife.

Lucas Sievers takes over an extensive man-hunt for Dusty after Grant is shot. He recruits his friend Pakwis to help him bring the big man into custody. Pakwis finds out that Winda is still alive and his obsession over her nearly ruins him and his new family. Will the two men fight over her?

Carrie saves Dusty´s two little boys from a tornado that kills their mother. She ends up raising them, fearing that he will take them away from her. After Dusty´s death (by an unlikely source), she marries Grant. He insists on adopting the boys but has his own agenda in doing so.

The two boys are just the right age when war erupts in 1812. The story goes on and tells how each person deals with the trials and tribulations of war. Some will die. One returns emotionally scared, while another is crippled for life. One family barely survives it, while the other one ends in tragedy.

There are many twists and turns in this story leading up to the war. It also shows the aftermath and how it changes their lives forever. Thus the story of Blackman Falls.

About the Author

Deborah grew up in the picturesque fishing village of Port Stanley, Ontario. She is the oldest of six children from a middle class family. During her lifetime she has worked in factories, a garden centre, and retail stores. Now, she lives near Bayfield with her husband in amongst the trees. And, now that all of their children are grown up an on their own, she spends most of her time writing and gardening. Deborah has always been interested in the history of the area in which she lives: From the last ice age to the creation of Upper Canada. After several years of studying several topics covering this area, she has written her first book. She is currently taking writing courses to improve her style and writing skills.