Catherine Palmer - Leaves Of Hope

“Catherine Palmer is the diva of heartbreak fiction!”

—Romantic Times BOOKclub

“Palmer has created some interesting characters…Brock’s faith journey is realistic and will touch readers.”

—Romantic Times BOOKclub on Love’s Haven

“Believable characters tug at heartstrings, and God’s power to change hearts and lives is beautifully depicted.”

—Romantic Times BOOKclub on That Christmas Feeling

“Fans of…the award-winning Palmer will enjoy this light and tightly written romance.”

—Library Journal on Victorian Rose

“A powerful mix of lightness and intensity, this novel demonstrates a beautiful message of Christian love. Expertly drawn characters and Ms. Palmer’s gifted insight into the human heart make this one of the best inspirational and historical romances of the year.”

—Romantic Times BOOKclub on Prairie Fire

“Palmer certainly doesn’t preach, yet spiritual truths come part and parcel with the story. Balancing her characters’ flood of negative emotions with their spiritual reawakening is difficult, but Palmer succeeds admirably. Fans of Dee Henderson’s fast-paced Christian thrillers will find Palmer’s novel just as riveting.”

—Publishers Weekly on A Dangerous Silence

www.millsandboon.co.uk

For Tim Palmer, whose humble service to

“the least of these” bears daily witness that any

man who is in Christ is a new creation.

A book’s roots run deep. This story’s legacy goes all the way back to the tea and coffee fields of my childhood in Kenya. To Carol Lloyd, whose friendship saved my mother and brought intense joy to my young life. To her husband, Thomas Lloyd, manager of Tinderet tea estate, a man whose life demonstrates that hard, honest work can break down every barrier. To Richard Wilson, who brought me more happiness than he will ever know. And to his family, whose life in Kenya helped spark the very essence of my imagination.

While the oldest and deepest roots hold a plant in place, the newer ones provide the nourishment that gives it life. For this book’s existence, I thank my husband, Tim, who patiently lived the story of Jan and Beth with me and who edited every word of the manuscript before it left my hands. I am so grateful to my Steeple Hill editor, Joan Marlow Golan, who listened to my heart and gave me freedom to stretch my wings in writing the story of two generations bound by a message in a teapot. My gratitude also to Karen Solem, my agent, a woman who always keeps me pressing forward in the Christian race. May God richly bless all of you!

1. Do you think Beth should have opened the cardboard box with her name on it? Why or why not? Is it ever all right to disobey a parent’s wishes?

2. Why do you think Jan kept the tea set Thomas Wood had given her? Why do you think she put the note inside it? Do you believe she told Beth the truth about her reasons for holding on to the gift from Thomas?

3. What do you think of Jan’s relationship with John Lowell? Was she right to have married him? Do you believe she really loved him? Did he really love her? What kind of man do you think he was—and why did he behave as he did? How does Beth feel toward John before and after the discovery of the teapot?

4. Why is Jan so upset to discover that her hair color has been discontinued? What does the dye symbolize to her? How do Jan’s feelings about her age change through the story? Why?

5. Jan has always painted roses. Why was she so determined to put her daughter into a pink bedroom? Why are the sayings on the walls and paintings of the roses so important to Jan? Why does she suddenly start painting children?

6. What do you think of Beth’s attitude and behavior toward her mother? Should she have confronted Jan about her discovery of the note? When she was dealing with the news about her birth father, did her life give evidence of her faith in Christ? She regularly talks about running a race. What does she mean by that?

7. How are Jan and Beth different? Are they alike in any way? How have they affected and changed each other through the years?

8. What part does Jim Blevins play in Jan’s life? Do you think she treats him well? How does Jim play a role in Beth’s life? What do you suppose will happen to Jim?

9. Miles Wilson describes himself as “boorish.” What sort of man is he when Beth meets him? Why does she have such a powerful impact upon him? Why is Malcolm Wilson important in his brother’s life? What kind of man is Miles at the end of the book?

10. Do you believe Jan and Miles were right when they decided their new faith in Christ should bear physical evidence of change? Did they really need to go all the way to India to prove it? What did Jan and Miles mean when they discussed that Beth seemed to “glow”? Paul said that any person who gives his or her life to Christ becomes a new creation. Do you believe that new life in Christ always brings about a dramatic change? How did Beth, Jan, Miles and Thomas live out their faith?

To ask questions or for further information,

please visit the author’s Web site:

www.catherinepalmer.com

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Lake Palestine, Texas

Being home again felt better than she had expected. With her mother living in a new house by the lake and her father gone, Beth Lowell had feared things might seem strange. But there in the pink armchair sat her mom reading a magazine. By the door stood the familiar brass coatrack. On the table sat a bouquet of fresh roses, as always. As much as she wished her mother would wake up and do something exciting with her life, Beth couldn’t deny the pleasure in the familiar aroma of Jan Lowell’s warm cherry cobbler. The taste of her famous chicken salad. The tang of fresh, homemade lemonade.

“Do you realize how many times your phone has tweedled, sweetie?” Jan lifted her head from the magazine. “I bet you’ve had fifteen calls since you got here this afternoon.”

“Is that bothering you?” Beth asked as she set the phone beside her on the old beige sofa.

“It does make conversation difficult. I haven’t seen you in almost a year, but we can hardly finish a sentence. Before this last call, you were telling me about your boss.”

“I don’t want to talk about Joe anymore.” Beth crossed her legs and rubbed her toes, determined to avoid the subject of the man she had been dating for two months. “He’s a good guy, but he doesn’t understand my job. They bought us out because they knew they needed us, but Joe hasn’t found time to learn what we do.”

Her mom’s eyebrows lifted. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Beth. Who’s they, and who’s us? And what do you really do?”

“My division of the company used to be an independent consulting firm. We assisted various corporations with international transitions. Last year, Global Relocation Services acquired the firm and moved us to New York. Now we help their clients.”

As Jan shook her head in confusion, Beth wondered why her mother suddenly looked so old. Why did she wear a faded pink chenille bathrobe and that ancient flannel nightgown? And why did she still have those awful fake-fur slippers she’d gotten for Christmas a jillion years ago?