Summary of When the Dust Settles
A small, but growing town with tall pine trees, good fishing, and likeable residents, some who have pasts they wish to keep hidden. Come walk the streets and meet our three main characters: recently widowed, Lottie moves with her young daughter to the town of Elomina, seeking a fresh start. Upon arrival, she discovers she is pregnant, adding to the complexities of her new life.
Cora, a young woman who has spent her life working on her family farm, faces the prospect of never marrying or having a family of her own.
As the years pass with no suitors in sight, Cora begins to wonder if she is destined for a life of spinsterhood.
Ethel, a woman whose deepest desire is to become a mother, has faced the heartbreak of disappointment time and time again.
Resigned to the fact that she may never become a mother, she begins to let go of her dream.
Set against the backdrop of the close-knit town in 1925, this story explores themes of love, loss, resilience, friendship, and the enduring power of change.
Summary for Wherever You Find Yourself
When the banks fail and the jobs disappear, the small town of Elomina, Texas, feels the heavy hand of the Great Depression. For Sam and Cora Walker, that hand presses hardest of all. Sam’s decision to leave in search of work shatters the rhythm of their life together, while Cora is forced to lean on her family in ways she never imagined.
At the same time, her dear friend Lottie faces her own crossroads, balancing duty, sacrifice, and the hope of holding her family together. Side by side, the women of Elomina carry the burdens left by vanished paychecks, hungry children, and uncertain futures.
Yet beneath the hardship lies a different story—the story of neighbors who stand together, of friendships that hold fast, and of love that refuses to be erased by poverty or time