About the Book

Book: Texas Reclaimed

Author: Sherry Shindelar

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: February 3, 2026

Can love blossom between a woman haunted by her family’s past and a man haunted by the trauma of war?

Cora Scott is determined to hold onto her family’s Texas ranch and provide a stable home for her young half brother, Charlie, despite the mounting challenges of post-Civil War frontier life. But when a scheming creditor threatens to seize their land, she must accept help from Ben McKenzie, a former Yankee soldier sent by her late brother. Though Ben’s generosity and strength draw her, the man’s private struggle she stumbles upon—too reminiscent of her father’s alcoholism—makes her question whether she can trust her heart to him.

Ben McKenzie arrives in Texas intent on fulfilling his promise to his dying friend to protect Cora and Charlie. While using his inheritance to save their ranch, he battles not only the loss of their cattle but also his dependency on laudanum—a medicine that turned into a curse after his imprisonment at Andersonville. As his feelings for Cora deepen, he must choose between his promise to his father to take over their Philadelphia newspaper and his growing dream of a life with Cora in Texas.

When a Comanche warrior begins courting Cora and Ben’s responsibilities in Philadelphia threaten to tear them apart, they must decide if their love is strong enough to overcome their fears and forge a future together on the Texas frontier.

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My Thoughts:

I must say, this book had me feeling all kinds of emotions. This book at times was not an easy read, it deals with addiction in a very raw and emotional way which I appreciated. From the person who was going through the addiction to the people who were affected by it. Plus, I am getting over a very bad head cold, so for the pain, I was really feeling it with Ben.

Ben is addicted to laudanum, not by his choice but due to his imprisonment by the Confederates during the Civil War. He was imprisoned with fellow soldier Jeb Scott, who is Cora's and Charlie's brother. The descriptions of their imprisonment and subsequent torture were somewhat shocking. Needless to say, Jeb does not make it out alive. Hence Ben promises him to look after his mother and sister. However, that promise is hard to keep as Ben lives in Pennsylvania and Cora lives in Texas. However, Ben is not the same man he once was. He has a powerful addiction to laudanum that wants to control him, an almost fiancé who thinks she can make him all better, and a father with family expectations. Except Ben only wants to keep his promise to Jeb.

And so, he does. Finding Cora and Charlie in worse straits then he thought. Cora has survived much heartache and family loss. Trying to keep her land, especially now that her drunkard father has passed away. She is not sure what to think about Ben when he shows up. Many emotions, till finally she accepts him on the behalf of Jeb and tries to consider him as a brother. However, that is not going to work out. Love has other plans.

Through many trials and tribulations, a lot dealing with Ben's addiction and Cora's distrust of him because of that, we have what I felt to be a raw and emotional read. It was so good though and one that will really stick with me for a long time to come. Maybe, just maybe prepare your heart for it.

I was provided a copy of this novel from the publisher. I was not required to post a positive review, and all views and opinions are my own.

About the Author

Originally from Tennessee, Sherry loves to take her readers into the past. She is an avid student of the Civil War and the Old West. When she is not busy writing, she is an English professor working to pass on her love of writing to her students. Sherry is an award-winning writer: 2023 Genesis finalist, Maggie finalist, and Crown finalist. She currently resides in Minnesota with her husband of thirty-eight years. She has three grown children and three grandchildren.

More from Sherry

Texas Reclaimed is a story of victory, redemption, and the rebirth of trust. It is a story of courage and of freedom from the chains of the past and the chains of addiction. It is a story that honors the Civil War soldiers who survived their wounds, only to return home to fight another battle: dependency on the opioid-based medicines that had helped save their lives.

I first heard of laudanum when I watched the movie Amazing Grace about William Wilberforce’s eighteen-year battle to end the slave trade in Great Britain. Wilberforce played a pivotal role in ending the slave trade and eventually slavery itself in Britain by speaking, campaigning, and introducing bills into the British parliament. However, Wilberforce was also addicted to laudanum, a tincture of opium.

It wasn’t his intention to become dependent upon a drug. A doctor prescribed it to him when he was twenty-nine years old for ulcerative colitis and other health ailments. Laudanum was used to treat a number of health issues and ailments in the 18^th and 19^th centuries, and no one, including doctors, had much understanding about addiction and dependency. The word addiction didn’t even exist as we use it today. But the soul-deep struggle was very real for too many people, even a man of faith like Wilberforce.

Addiction is pernicious, and laudanum took its toll on Wilberforce. He suffered physically, mentally, and spiritually from its poisonous effects.

Years later, I learned that even some of the nineteenth-century authors that I admire, such as Louisa May Alcott and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, struggled with laudanum dependency, as well.

In the nineteenth century, doctors and the public viewed opium, in its various forms, as an essential medical tool. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers were wounded in the American Civil War, and many more suffered from debilitating and potentially life-threatening illnesses. A Civil War medical manual, quoted in Dr. Jonathan Jones’s Opium Slavery, states that opiates were as “important to the surgeon as gunpowder to the ordinance [military weapons].”

My heart went out to Wilberforce, the tens of thousands of soldiers, and others enslaved to laudanum or other substances through no fault of their own. For many, once infected, it could be a lifelong battle, one that many did not win on their own. But there were victories.

And I love to write about soul-deep struggles and victories.

My hero, Ben McKenzie, is a Federal Cavalry captain captured and imprisoned in the notorious Andersonville Prison Camp. He barely survives the harsh conditions of the camp. His best friend, Jeb Scott, does not. Ben makes a death bed promise to his friend that he will look after Jeb’s mother and sister who live in Texas.

Ben aims to keep that promise, but the medical treatment that he receives after his release from prison camp leaves him dependent upon laudanum. My story starts a year later. Ben determines to break the chains that are eating away at his self-respect. He throws away his bottle of medicine and heads to Texas to keep his promise.

I asked a friend of mine about his own deliverance from addiction. He had this to say, “It was a lifetime ago, my addiction was strong, but my pain was stronger. I’ve lost so much in my life, but then I found that God’s love was deep, and He was even bigger to forgive. Out of His mercy He set me free, and through His grace He healed me from my past.”-Rev. Mark Little Elk

That is my prayer for all of those who struggle. And I look forward to sharing Ben McKenzie’s story with you in Texas Reclaimed.