In Heart of the Lonely Exile, Book Two of BJ Hoff's acclaimed and bestselling Emerald Ballad series, readers will find heroine Nora Kavanagh struggling to build a new life for herself and her son Daniel in America. With help from a wealthy American family and friendship and support from a British gentleman, Nora nevertheless finds herself caught in a conflict of the heart.
Michael Burke, a strong, dedicated Irish policeman, desperately wants to keep his promise to his best friend Morgan Fitzgerald to marry Nora and protect her. But Nora's instincts urge her to resist Michael's proposal and follow her heart in a different direction.... More troubling still, in the midst of her personal struggle, the heartaches from her homeland continue to plague her.
Heart of the Lonely Exile continues the saga of the Kavanagh pilgrimage-a journey of the soul in a strange new land, where all those who are exiles and aliens seek to finally find their true home.
BJ Hoff's writing is known for her historical settings, her unforgettable characters, and her lyrical prose. She is the bestselling author of numerous historical fiction series, including the Riverhaven Years, the Mountain Song Legacy, the Song of Erin saga, the American Anthem series, and An Emerald Ballad series.
Her five-volume Emerald Ballad series was the first major work of fiction to bring the Irish immigration experience to the CBA marketplace-and the work that first brought BJ an international reading audience.
Her readers know they can expect to meet some memorable people in her novels and also know that many of those people will be immigrants-Irish immigrants particularly but not exclusively.
BJ admits to a passion for "building worlds." Whether her characters move about in small country towns or metropolitan areas, reside in Amish settlements, secluded mansions, or coal company houses, she creates communities where people can form relationships, raise families, pursue their faith, and experience the mountains and valleys of life.
She's intent on making her historical novels relevant to the present by developing characters and settings that, while staying true to the history and culture of their times, reflect many of the spiritual trials and social problems faced by contemporary readers. Her novels are meant to be "stories that build a bridge from the past to the present."
Her literary awards include the Christianity Today's Critics Choice Book Award for fiction; a Gold Medallion Award finalist; and a number of Excellence in Media Silver Angel awards. Her books have been translated into many foreign languages, and she frequently hears from her international readers in countries such as Ireland, England, Norway, and Germany.
A former church music director and music teacher, BJ is a member of the Authors Guild, the Irish American Cultural Institute, and the Appalachian Writers Association.
She writes from her home in a small town in east central Ohio. She and her husband share a love of music, books, and time spent with their family: two married daughters, three lively young grandsons, a loopy Golden Retriever, and a cunning, incorrigible but lovable cat.
