Jed

Jed Monroe has a good heart but a restless soul. He lives in 1800s Wheeling, Virginia, but every day he dreams of traveling out West to experience firsthand the adventures that he has only hear about. Meanwhile, Jed’s mother and father hope that he will follow in his father’s footsteps and become the pastor at the local church. He convinces his parents to let him travel west with some family friends, and that’s when Jed’s amazing story begins to unfold. Settling in Independence, Missouri, the waystation for settlers traveling to the American West, Jed falls in love, has a family, and also finds opportunities to chase his wanderlust into the virgin and unsettled frontier. This includes fighting in two US wars and seeing much of the fledgling United States in the process. The tale follows Jed’s life from the 1830s to the 1860s, a period during which he experiences a roller coaster ride of adventures, accomplishments, and tragedies. He seeks adventure as a way to try to realize the peace and contentment that are missing from his life. This puts him constantly in the position of having to decide between doing what he wants most while abandoning his commitments to others, or instead doing what he knows is right. Ultimately, Jed reaches a turning point, but it’s uncertain whether he will overcome his demons and achieve peace or simply give up and fade away from the life he knows. Jed is a gripping tale for all ages set against the unforgiving backdrop of 1800s America, and the first book in a series.