Listening for Drums

by Robin Strachan

Overview

Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine Carrie Nelson has a calling: to help the Blackfeet Indians by volunteering at the tiny federal hospital outside of Glacier National Park and studying native medicine. Now the prestigious Roosevelt Award will cover her expenses and fund her research for a year. To her dismay, her father and her fiance believe she is squandering her future. Both doctors, they want her back in Philadelphia, working in her father's comfortable practice.

Inspired by her beloved grandmother, a trail-blazing doctor who believes in holistic medicine, Carrie holds her ground. She resists her fiance's stealth campaign to bring her home and falls in love with the Blackfeet people, the local medicine woman, and the spectacular though harsh land itself. Then there is Nate, the gifted young surgeon drawn to this remote area in Montana by a mysterious past.

Watched over by a she-wolf, Dr. Golden Hair is determined to find her rightful place in the universe. But what if the price of her quest is too high? Will it destroy her family, drive away her fiance, and upend her promising career?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781603816113
Publisher:	Camel Press
Publication date:	08/15/2017
Pages:	264
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.66(d)

About the Author

Robin Strachan's poetry, fiction, and nonfiction have been published in local, regional, and national publications for over thirty years. Born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, she began her writing career as a reporter doing features. Her personality feature stories for the newspaper and its sister magazine, coupled with her love of Maeve Binchy novels and all things related to the British Isles, eventually led to a decision to write fiction that includes strong individual character stories. Listening for Drums is her third novel. Her second novel, Designing Hearts, was published by Camel Press in 2015. Her first, Manifesting Dreams, was released in 2011. A sequel to Listening for Drums is in progress. Since 1981, Ms. Strachan has served in executive and development roles in higher education, health care, and medical research. She holds a bachelor of arts degree with dual majors in English and philosophy. She is also a published poet and a professional artist. She makes her home in the Chicago area. For more information, go to: robinstrachanauthor.com.

Read an Excerpt

On a gorgeous Friday evening in mid-July, with most of the medical corps volunteers and their families in town and Indian Days in full swing, Carrie accompanied Dr. Jim and Lois to the powwow grounds to watch competitive dancing. The sacred campground was the hub of Indian Days, featuring a small stadium and bleachers. Over the loudspeaker, the voice of the announcer could be heard, introducing each event.

They walked around the festival, stopping to look at booths selling trinkets, jewelry, leather garments, and other carnival fare. As they entered the stadium, Carrie saw Nate sitting on one of the bleachers. It was the first time she had seen him in anything other than scrubs and sporting two days’ growth of beard. Tonight he looked dashing in dark navy jeans and a white dress shirt open at the neck. Although she found Tom attractive and sexy, Carrie’s first thought upon seeing Nate was that he was the most handsome man she had ever seen. With his light-brown curls, show-stopping blue eyes, and muscular physique, he could have been an actor playing the part of a television surgeon.

“Carrie, over here!” Nate’s face lit up when he saw her. He beckoned her to join him on the bench. Dr. Jim and Lois stopped to talk with a group of volunteers, leaving Carrie and Nate alone.

“I’m not used to seeing you in anything other than scrubs,” she said. “I almost didn’t recognize you.”

“You clean up well, too,” he said with a grin. “Did your fiancé leave already?”

She grew quiet. “He was just here for the weekend.”

“So, is he okay with you staying here for a year?”

“No,” she said without hesitation. “But there’s a long line of people not happy with me over that decision. My father is mad that I didn’t start working in his practice like he expected me to. My mother is just now able to speak to me without crying. The truth is Tom came here to talk some sense into me. It just happened to sound more like an ultimatum.”

“That bad?” Nate looked at her. “They should be proud of you.” He smiled. “I am.”

“Thanks.” She smiled back. “My grandmother is proud of me, but that’s a story for another time. The bottom line is that I made a choice that may end up ruining my life—or so I’m told. My father may never speak to me again, and my fiancé is telling me I have a decision to make, and we know what that is.”

“Hmm. If it’s any comfort, my mother still cries on holidays when I see her. And my fiancée, Marisa, broke up with me over my coming here. Hindsight being twenty-twenty, I think it was probably for the best. She would’ve hated these long hours. I’m doing far more surgeries here than I ever did back home.”

“I bet. You probably see a lot of broken bones from falling off horses … or cliffs.”

Editorial Reviews

https://readersfavorite.com/book-review/listening-for-drums

5 Stars: “An enthralling and fascinating look at the work the Blackfeet Volunteer Medical Corps accomplishes each year as seen through the eyes of a young osteopath who defies her overbearing father and controlling fiancé to determine her own future. [….] Dr. Carrie Nelson is a marvelous character whose story feels quite like a coming of age tale as the twenty-eight-year-old strikes out on her own, despite the vigorous disapproval of her father and the threats of her fiancé. Seeing Glacier National Park and north-western Montana through her eyes is marvelous, and the lives she interacts with as Dr. Golden Hair are unforgettable. Listening for Drums is most highly recommended.”

—Jack Magnus for Readers’ Favorite Reviews

From the Publisher