About the Book Rebecca

Book: Rebecca

Author: Shannon McNear

Genre: Christian Fiction / Historical Romance

Release Date: July 2023

A Native Princess Follows Her Heart

Immerse yourself in the “what if” questions related to the Lost Colony of Roanoke when a native princess meets an English widower.

Born the daughter of a Powhatan chieftain and a woman of unknown origins, Matoaka enjoys a carefree life. When strange men from across the eastern waters appear near her home, she regards them at first as a mere curiosity. Soon, though, she finds herself torn between friendship with one of their leaders and the opinions and politics of her elders.

Drawn to a young Englishman, John Rolfe, who has lost a wife and baby daughter, she shares his griefs. . .and perhaps something more.

Could she have a future among the English of Jamestown, accepting their ways and even changing her name?

Could her fate be a part of the lasting legacy of the Lost Colony of Roanoke?

Author Shannon McNear portrays history with vivid authenticity.

Click here to get your copy!

My Thoughts on Rebecca

Do you enjoy a good historical fiction novel?  I do.  Though I have to say I don’t often read a lot of historical fiction novels about the Revolutionary War era or before.  This is well before as it’s about the time of the Lost Colony of Roanoke.  Not much is known about this colony.  This author has several books about it and really seems to dive in deep and research the time. In this book, we grab a glimpse of Jamestown and the famed princess Pocahontas. 

This is book three in this series, the Lost Colony series.  You really should read the series in order.  However, if you don’t have time you can read this as a stand-alone novel without much difficulty. 

Rebecca is a wonderfully written novel.  You get history and speculation mixed together with some pure fiction that ties it all together into a spectacular example of what might have happened and what the day-to-day life might have been.  The book flips from the perspective of one character to another several times throughout.  So make sure you try to keep everyone straight!

I have voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from Celebrate Lit. All views expressed are only my honest opinion. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC regulations. 

About the Author of Rebecca

Transplanted to North Dakota after more than two decades in Charleston, South Carolina, Shannon McNear loves losing herself in local history. She’s a military wife, mom of eight, mother-in-law of three, grammie of two, and a member of ACFW and RWA. Her first novella, Defending Truth in A Pioneer Christmas Collection, was a 2014 RITA® finalist.

When she’s not sewing, researching, or leaking stories from her fingertips, she enjoys being outdoors, basking in the beauty of the northern prairies. Connect with her at www.shannonmcnear.com, or on Facebook and Goodreads.

More from Shannon

Daughters of the Lost Colony—how are we at book 3 already? I’m both excited and nervous about this one, which features Pocahontas and the original Jamestown.

Why did I choose her, and this place, when the overall series is about the Lost Colony?

Among their various other aims, the Jamestown colonists were charged with finding the Roanoke Colony. John Smith’s own reports reference this, and one can sense his discouragement and frustration over their inability to find answers to the fate of those who came to the New World before them. William Strachey, early secretary to the colony, stated that Powhatan (that is, the paramount chieftain often called by the same name as his people group) had slain the last known survivors of the Roanoke Colony. But nowhere is that claim substantiated.

There were no solid historical connections between the Lost Colony and Pocahontas—so I created a plausible fictional one in the form of Emme Merrimoth, a historically documented member of the Roanoke Colony who in book 1, Elinor, experienced the fictional adventure of being carried captive to the Powhatan nation. Where Strachey lists the names of the paramount chieftain’s favored wives, I put Emme in the place of the real-life Winganuske.

I knew the research would be challenging on this one.

What I didn’t expect was to find Emme’s aspect of this story so compelling—or to fall in love with Wahunsenecawh, the great Powhatan himself. The name alone is intimidating, but you can find sound clips of how to pronounce it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Q_10PYf_0U and here: https://www.nameslook.com/wahunsenacawh/ (ignore the weird stuff and click on the little red arrows for different voices). There are at least five or six documented ways to spell it, and the one I picked is probably the most obscure. I had a year to get used to saying it, but repeat after me, slowly: wah-HUN-senacoh. Or wah-HOON-senacah, depending upon which rule you use for the U in Algonquian pronunciation, and how you interpret that “wh” at the end.

Names overall were an issue with this story.

A few reviewers have already mentioned this difficulty. The thing is, in Native culture, especially what we know of the Eastern Algonquian-speaking peoples, a name wasn’t simply a casual identifier—it defined a person’s entire identity. We don’t know what most of the names recorded from that time meant, but we can be sure they weren’t chosen lightly and were valued by those who held them.

Indeed, a change of name often accompanies a change of purpose. It has even been suggested that if the English had been paying attention, they’d have realized when Opechancanough changed his name shortly before the great attack of 1622, it signalled a critical shift in his attitude toward them.

So when you read this story, you may find it helpful to keep a finger in the cast list—or to place a bookmark on that page if you’re reading the Kindle version. Thank you so much, again, for taking this journey with me!

Blog Stops for Rebecca

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, July 27

Texas Book-aholic, July 28

Cover Lover Book Review, July 29

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, July 30

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, July 30

Locks, Hooks and Books, July 31

Alena Mentink, July 31

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, August 1

Connie’s History Classroom , August 2

For Him and My Family, August 3

Mary Hake, August 3

Holly’s Book Corner, August 4

Sylvan Musings, August 4

Tell Tale Book Reviews, August 5

Pause for Tales, August 6

Betti Mace, August 7

Books Less Travelled, August 7

To Everything There Is A Season, August 8

Lights in a Dark World, August 9

Giveaway for Rebecca

To celebrate her tour, Shannon is giving away the grand prize package of a $25 Amazon e-gift card and a copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway!

Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/26d59/rebecca-celebration-tour-giveaway