Frances Matthews, declared by Forbes magazine as the "21st century's financial wunderkind," was bright, intelligent and driven. With a figure that could turn a man's mind to mush, Frankie was shorter than most women, barely clearing five feet. Her commitment to everything she did more than made up for her lack of stature, though. Orphaned at the age of six, Frankie was taken in by her aunt and uncle at Craig Knoll. At the age of twenty-nine, she decided to move her financial business there to be closer to her family, only to discover that the place was reputedly haunted. Having since long ago buried her romantic soul deep inside of her, she found the rumor of a ghost ridiculous--until strange things started happening to her.

Colonel Benjamin Craig was running out of time. He needed to correct history, to return it to its rightful course, or his life would be lost forever. For over one hundred and forty years he had time to map out his plan of attack. He waited all those years for the one person who could help him achieve his goal. You'd think after being so patient for all that time, after having everything mapped out, the execution of his plan would be simple. No. The only person who could help him refused to believe in his existence. He was labeled a figment of an over-active imagination, a character in a dream, and a by-product of too much alcohol.

Life in 19th century Virginia was a far cry from the modern day conveniences of today. No indoor plumbing, no electricity, no microwaves and no email. Frankie's abrupt arrival in 1864 had her scrambling to keep her wits about her. She needed to save Ben's life and stop him from making a very serious mistake before she's shipped off to the nearest loony bin. The "live" Ben felt a connection to Frankie, but her forthright manner and knowledge of certain things had him thinking that she was not what she seemed. He just didn't know how right he was.

CRAIG LEGACY is a delightful mixture of historical and time-travel romance. This lighthearted offering from Terry Campbell, also known as Linda Campbell and Bobbye Terry, leaves you more appreciative of the mod-cons of today's society. Thanks to the creative ability of Ms. Campbell, the reader is given a glimpse of what it must have been like to live in Virginia during the Civil War. Although not quite believable, this quick and witty tale of Frankie and Ben is one to turn to when looking to escape from reality for a while.

Emilie Spargo
© June 2004