Stones River: A Novel
- Vanessa Bettencourt
- Sep 20
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 24
About the book
Published: September 2025
Publisher: Fieldwood Books
Category: Adult Fiction (18 +)
Genre: Historical, literary supernatural romance
Content rating: PG:+ M: There is no profanity. There is one sex scene that contains a generalized description of lovemaking with a few non-explicit references to bodily parts, actions, and sensations.
#StonesRiver, #MFJones, #ireadbooktours, @lauren.ireadbooktours, @ireadbooktours
4 stars
Very informational regarding Civil War, not just the technicalities of war, but also regarding clothing, crafts, daily life, and food. We start with Jessie in a reenactment camp discovering a spirit, not an evil one, but the ghost of a soldier who died honorably and needs her help to connect with his relatives, but also help the families of others as well. Very strong Christian values, and Jessie makes a point of the cons and pros of modern society. The romance is very pure, naive, and sweet.
When Jessie Gibbs meets Lemuel Sanders, she thinks she has finally found her ideal man—until she discovers that he is the ghost of a Civil War soldier. For 144 years, Lem has kept vigil at his unmarked battlefield grave, seeking someone to complete a personal mission so he can go to his final rest. As love grows between them, Jessie is torn. If she succeeds in fulfilling Lem’s wish, she’ll lose him when he passes into the afterlife. But if she fails and he remains in the world, she’ll never be free to find intimacy with a living man.A riveting story of faith, passion, and selfless devotion, STONES RIVER shows the power of love to overcome all obstacles—even death itself. STONES RIVER is Book I of The Sentinel Heart Trilogy, with Book II, SOLDIER’S JOY, coming out in 2026!
Buy the book: Available for Pre-Order!
Amazon: https://amzn.to/4lOHLLC
About the author
I began a career in publishing at Viking Press, where I discovered the bestseller Ordinary People by Judith Guest in the slush pile, and became its editor. I moved to magazines and was fiction editor at Redbook and senior editor at Family Circle and Reader's Digest, specializing in excerpting and condensing books. In 2008 I began working full-time on my own writing, and since then have created the kinds of stories that I myself would love to read. When not writing or working on publishing my books, I can be found reading, knitting (while listening to audiobooks), singing in a choir, or hiking with my rescue dog Ruby in the beautiful Tennessee woods near the home I share with my husband, composer Douglas Hedwig. We travel often to New Jersey to visit our son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter.
Connect with the author:
website: ;http://www.mfjoneswriter.com/
This looks like a fantastic read. Thanks for sharing.