A 14-book historical saga set in the rugged Appalachian mountains, following generations of women who fight for survival, hope, family, and love from 1899 through the 1940s.
Available in ebook, paper, and audiobook editions on Amazon; paperbacks also available from Barnes & Noble.
eBooks are FREE in Kindle Unlimited.
THE GIRL ON THE MOUNTAIN (Book 1, Mountain Women Series)
In 1899, young abandoned wife May Rose Long struggles to survive in the rough sawmill town of Winkler, where the Company rules and danger follows a woman alone. When she befriends a neglected girl and stands up to powerful men, she becomes the center of conflicts she never intended to face. As secrets surface and loyalties shift, May Rose must fight for respect, protection, and a place she can finally call home. Her choices set in motion the sweeping saga of the Mountain Women Series. Read the first chapter.
COLD COMFORT (Book 2, Mountain Women Series)
Fifteen years after riding away from Winkler, Wanda leaves her child with May Rose and returns to her mountain roots, widowed, penniless, and driven by thoughts of revenge. Her grandmother, ex-moonshiner Lucie Bosell, is the person she blames for her mother’s wretched life and death.
Wanda’s resolve to steal from Lucie wavers when she falls for Will Herff, a compelling man from her past, who is single-handedly rebuilding the ruined town of Winkler. Will tries to warn her away from the Bosells, but Wanda is bent on making Lucie pay. Read the first chapter.
MIDWINTER SUN: A LOVE STORY (Book 3, Mountain Women Series)
Three families, one ghost town, and a chance to start over: Fifteen years after heartbreak and silence, May Rose follows her headstrong stepdaughter to a ruined mountain town. Wanda hopes to win back a lost love. May Rose rekindles interest in Barlow Townsend, a quiet man with a broken past. But survival in Winkler will require persistence and cooperation, and love will require forgiveness. Read the first chapter.
FOR THE LOVE OF JAMIE LONG (Prequel Novella…read anytime)
When May Rose travels west with her uncle’s family in 1887, she meets Jamie Long, a bright, charming young man whose kindness and affection awaken feelings she has never known. Their bond grows quickly, but so do her risks as jealousy, danger, and family expectations close in around them. When a dispute forces May Rose into impossible choices, she must summon courage beyond her years. This heart-tugging prequel shows the moments of love and loss that shaped the woman readers meet in The Girl on the Mountain. Read the first chapter.
THE WOMEN’S WAR (Book 4, Mountain Women Series)
1918 brings change, hardship, and heartache to the women of Winkler. May Rose, now a mother, feels isolated as coal town tensions rise. Strikes, resentment, and the Spanish Flu test the bonds of longtime friends. In a year of upheaval, these women must stand together—or risk losing everything. The Women’s War is a powerful tale of friendship, courage, and resilience in a time of crisis. Read the first chapter.
THE BOARDINGHOUSE (Book 5, Mountain Women Series)
Finally, May Rose has the home, business, and family she always wanted, but running a boardinghouse full of troubled guests brings new challenges. As her husband’s health declines, old enemies return to stir up trouble, and a mysterious stranger arrives with unsettling intentions. When danger threatens everything she has built, May Rose must rely on her own strength—and the loyalty of those who truly love her. In a world where blood ties and secrets run deep, survival requires both heart and grit. Read the first chapter.
KITH AND KIN (Book 6, Mountain Women Series)
May Rose’s family is rocked by crisis as inheritance disputes, a risky pregnancy, and a runaway girl test the limits of love and loyalty. Old feuds flare when her stepdaughter Evie seeks to marry into a troubled family, forcing May Rose into conflicts she hoped to avoid. As the broader community fractures under economic hardship, May Rose must balance compassion with hard choices. In the struggle to keep her loved ones safe, she learns that even family can become strangers—and strangers can become kin. Read the first chapter.
FOOLS FOR LOVE (Book 7, Mountain Women Series)
In a summer filled with change, May Rose and her family face love triangles, mounting tensions, and rivalries that threaten to tear them apart. The boardinghouse becomes a crossroads for unexpected romances, unsettling newcomers, and a dangerous figure from the past. When a mysterious woman arrives and old wounds reopen, the women of Winkler must confront hard truths about love, loyalty, and forgiveness. Their choices will shape the future of every family in the valley. Read the first chapter
The Meaning of Us (Book 8, Mountain Women Series)
Winkler is transforming from a Company-owned town to a new community full of opportunity—and conflict. As new businesses, families, and dreams take root, May Rose confronts injustice that strikes at the heart of her beliefs. Meanwhile, long-buried tensions resurface, forcing old friends and rivals to confront the cost of progress. To protect those she loves, May Rose must find strength in the bonds that have carried her through every hardship. Read the first chapter
HEARTS AND SOULS (Book 9, Mountain Women Series)
What begins as a quiet summer unravels into turmoil when May Rose becomes embroiled in the troubles of a fiery preacher, a jealous wife, and a divided community. As old rivalries intensify and unexpected alliances form, she finds herself at the center of conflicts that threaten to fracture her family and friendships. Yet amid the upheaval, rare moments of healing and renewed affection offer hope. May Rose discovers that hearts can heal even as lives are reshaped by loss and change. Read the first chapter
THE PROMISE OF MONDAYS (Book 10, Mountain Women Series)
In the year 1923, May Rose faces a cascade of losses and scandals that test her resilience to the limit. As the community struggles with poverty, illness, and unrest, she must summon courage to stand by her loved ones and confront painful truths. Through grief and unexpected blessings, she discovers the quiet strength that carries families through the hardest weeks and seasons. Hope comes not from ease, but from the promises we make—and keep—through ordinary days. Read the first chapter
PRESSING ON (Book 11, Mountain Women Series)
Going on with grace and goodwill: In 1924, May Rose and her community come together to help others survive tragedy and loss, even as they struggle to find inspiration for their own way forward. In the midst of changing times, her husband contemplates a new, risky endeavor, and Charlie, her adopted son, goes west to learn if his nightmares are true. Read the first chapter.
DOWN IN THE VALLEY (Book 12, Mountain Women Series)
Some say the new woman in town is a troublemaker, but the town of Winkler is already in trouble. Two years after the stock market crash, hard times have come to everyone. As the population declines and the mine threatens to close, May Rose and her friends work to save the school, the hospital and the town with their talents and persistence. By the end of 1931, an orphan has found a home, two friends have become a couple, and the new woman in town may be the one who can save it. Read the first chapter
RONA’S HOUSE (Book 13, Mountain Women Series)
In the final years of her life, May rose leaves the boardinghouse and makes her home in the cottage on Wanda’s farmland, where she’s surrounded by old friends, the Watsons. They’ve always treated her like family, but in 1976 new challenges emerge. Bertha Watson is seriously ill, and May Rose’s daughter Hettie is traumatized by the death of her husband. As Bertha and Hettie struggle to heal, a rivalry develops between their families over Wanda’s long-abandoned farmhouse. Read the first chapter:
The Years We Missed (Book 14, Mountain Women Series)
Angry and ashamed, May Rose runs away from the disasters of her life in the sawmill town of Winkler, West Virginia, to go to the assistance of her orphaned cousins in the distant, unknown city of Fargo, North Dakota. Fortunately, she does not have to travel alone. Wanda, her stepdaughter and closest friend, is going too.
Fargo is the largest town they’ve seen, full of opportunities, immigrants and other newcomers seeking to build a life. But work for women is the same everywhere: low status with low pay, and May Rose has no idea how she’ll support herself and her cousins. Her cousins, however, are full of surprises, and so is Wanda. Read the first chapter:
CHRISTMAS WITH CHARLIE
In a remote mountain town, an extended family looks forward to gathering at Christmas. But one of them is missing–Charlie, a deputy sheriff. Though loved and admired, Charlie is not well understood, and because he leads a solitary life, he often goes away without telling anyone. Still, he promised to be with the family Christmas day.
Charlie has been a devoted family member, but he is a poor communicator. No one knows if he’s somewhere enforcing the law or buying horses, his favorite pursuit. As Christmas day approaches, family members share their tasks, treasure their time together, and try to suppress their growing fear that Charlie is in trouble. Increasingly they believe they must do something to find him.
They have no idea that Charlie’s devotion to duty is about to alter his way of life in ways that will affect them all.
Where can I find these books near Romney WV or Cumberland Md.
Ron, you may order from Amazon.com. Otherwise, the only West Virginia stores with the books are in Philippi, Elkins, Belington, and Beckley.
I have just ordered a couple of your books for the library but I see you say it is available here in town (Belington). Where is it available here in Belington?
I just finished reading Cold Mountain. The story was great and much different from your first novel. I hope you continue to write and I look forward to reading more about May Rose.
Thanks for your comment, Jeanne. Wanda is so different from May Rose – her story had to be different too. But the next book comes back to May Rose. Hope you like it too. Next year, maybe!
What I heard on the five-minute audio play, was written so well. Flowing along like a river. Good writing. I will purchase one when I get caught up with my writing and reading. My book LOVE NEVER FAILS.
Thanks, Carol. I’ll look for your book.
I just finished reading (one book after the other) The girl on the mountain, and Cold comfort. I couldn’t put the books down, just great. What other books have you written, and when is the next book coming out?
Thanks, Ruth. Midwinter Sun, the third book in the series, will come out soon.
Carol, I found your books quite by accident and have loved reading them. Among other things I have enjoyed imagining where Winkler might be and remembering with great fondness my time in the mountains. Can’t wait for the next installment of mountain women.
Joan, so good to hear from you, and imagine, you found my books! Thanks for this contact. I Hope you are all doing well. Stop by if you are ever in our area. – Carol
I just finished reading Ridgetop. I am hoping you are writing a sequal to that story, so we can find out what happens to Angela and Rudy. Interesting how you connected Alva to the Boswells.
I am enjoying your books.
It’s always helpful to hear readers’ reactions, Janie. Thanks for your comment.
I am really looking forward to reading the second and third novels. I like her writing style and her characters are so interesting.
Thanks for your comment, Vera.
Will there be a fourth book in the Mountain Women series?
Sabrina, I’m working on it, but it might not be published for another year. Thanks for your interest!
Carol, I know you:) I read the Mountain Women series and LOVED each book! I could NOT put each one down until I had read the last page. That has not happened in a long time. PLEASE write more like these books!!
Nancy, thanks for finding me and these books. Sign up to follow this blog and you’ll get an email when I post about a new book. I’m working on one now. It’s great to hear from you.
Loved, loved, loved the Mountain Women series. Read all five in three days and enjoyed each one so much. Do you plan to write more in this series?s
Janet, thanks so much for your comment. I’m very pleased you like the stories. #6 is in the works. If you click “follow” on my Amazon page, Amazon will notify you when new books come out. For other updates, follow my facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/carolervin.author/
LOVE LOVE LOVE!! Your mountain women series, could not stop reading feeling as though I was in that era right among May Rose ‘s circle of trusted friends. I was so excited to hear you are working on book 6. Can not wait! Also you have spiked my interest in W.V., time period during those days and just how mountain living was. Thank you!
Thank you, Alanda. I’m glad you like the stories, and very much appreciate your taking the time to comment here. Book 6 should be available soon. “Follow” this page or my Facebook page for announcements.
Do you plan anymore books in the Mountain Woman series. I have read and thouroughly enjoyed each one. I need more of the series! Thank you for your ability to write such interesting books. I have recommended them to everyone I know! Thanks Irma gray
Irma, I’m glad you enjoy the series. Book 9 is in the works, and I have thoughts about number 10 and 11. Thanks for telling your friends!
I just love your books and am suggesting them to my friends. You are a wonderful author! I got 1 -5 at the library but they didn’t have 6-8 so I bought them.
I hope you will continue the saga of May Rose and really wish someone would make it into a movie series. I loved Downton Abby and wished there had beeymore of it too.
Thank you, Dollie for such wonderful praise. I hope you continue to enjoy the series.
Just finished #8, thoroughly enjoyed each one, now I am hooked and need more of your books. Please hurry and finish number 9 and continue on! you are a great writer, the dialogue and character developments are wonderful, I love those people! When is the next one coming? I will be checking amazon to see any appearing! Thank you for the pleasure and joy from reading all eight books! Irene Adams
Thanks for your comment, Irene–so glad you’re enjoying the series. I keep my Facebook page updated about new books, so perhaps you’ll want to follow me there. I hope the new book will be available by February or March.
Glad to see your second career is so successful. Congratulations.
Thank you!
If i haven’t mentioned it yet, I love your stories!!!! I’m reading #9 as i write this but had to take a moment to tell you how lovely it is to read a Good book!
Carol, words like yours are always great to hear. Thank you!
Just finished number 9 and I loved them all. You kept me reading happily. Please tell me that you’re going to write more about my beloved Mountain Women!
Thank you, Candice, for your kind message. I’m so glad the series has brought enjoyment to you. Number 10 in the series is now in progress.
I just finished The Promise of Mondays. Once again, when I turned the page and the story was over, for now, I was sad. My mind had already envisioned what might be in the next page. Thank you, Carol, for continuing this most enjoyable series!
Thank you, Marci!
I love this book series. I hope they continue for a long time!
Thank you, Bonnie.
I have read all 10 books in the Mountain Woman series. Enjoyed each and every one ! Thank you
Thank you, Joanna. Stay tuned–there will be more.
Carol, I got behind in my reading the last year, so this summer I have binge read the last 5 books in the Mountain Women series. I love them! You paint such a vivid picture of our WV mountain home, and I see the characters as I read. Congratulations on such a successful series! I have enjoyed each moment in my reading!
Donna Endler
Donna, nice to hear from you. It’s great when West Virginians “get it.” Thanks for taking the time to let me know!
I wish the series wasn’t so long, even tho I liked the first few books. Do you think you will start a new book anytime soon?
Interesting comment, thank you Samlu.
I have read all 10 of the Mountain Women books and also Ridgetop. Will there be another book in the Mountain Women Series or one following Ridgetop? Thanks.
Thanks for your inquiry, Karen. Number 11 in the series is now in progress, and there may be a sequel to Ridgetop some day. To receive updates, follow me on Amazon or Facebook. Thanks again.
Thank you and how about more following Ridgetop?
I’ll think about that!
Do you know when book 11 will come out.
Barbara, I hope #11 will be ready before the end of this year. To be sure you’re notified, follow me on Amazon or Facebook. Thanks for asking.
I love this series. Just finished the 4th book and cant wait to start on the next. I’m so into this series I dont want to read anything else. Love it
Thank you, Teri!
I love this series. Just finished the 4th book and cant wait to start on the next. I’m so into this series I dont want to read anything else. Love it
Just ordered Book 1 in the series. Can’t wait to get it and start reading it. I found your books by accident looking for a series to get into. Looking forward to getting them all. One by one of course.
Waiting for #13. Haven’t read another book since your #1. Not getting much else done around here. Best I’ve read in quite awhile. Thank you!
Thank you, Diane.
I will be finishing the 12th book of the Mountain Women series. I have enjoyed every book and honestly, hate for it to end. I love the characters and your style of writing. Will there be a 13th book?
Definitely 13 and 14, Jeanie – thanks for your comment.
I look forward to reading them!
Thanks for your comment, Jeanie. The 13th book is available now. It’s Rona’s House.
Would love for you to continue the saga of May Rose into the next generation. I feel very deserted!
The story goes on, Sandra. Thank you!
I personally love your books but haven’t kept up with this series. I don’t like when books go on and on. have you written any other books besides this series? Thank you.
Ridgetop; Dell Zero.
Just finished the first book in the Mountain Women Series. I could hardly put it down. I live in Philippi and work at Broaddus Hospital in the Lab and was curious to real a book from a fellow Philippian and I was definitely not disappointed. We have a book club we’ve started in the lab and we are taking turns recommending a book each month. Your first book is definitely my choice. I just love the way you write and I can’t wait to get the next book in the series. Please keep up your talented work. Best wishes from a fan.
Thank you Sharon. It’s always good to hear from someone from home.