In Where the River Settles, the second novel of the best-selling Hymns of Blue Hollow series, author Kemma MarShall delivers a gripping story of love tested and dark secrets unearthed.

At the Old Reed Estate in 1940s Tennessee, Esther is still unraveling the foreign language of love, wary of its warmth yet aching for it in the same breath. All she has known is how to endure, not how to trust. Ian Huggler, the steadfast German who refuses to give up on her, offers something as fierce as it is protective. Yet his tenderness feels dangerous, and surrender may cost more than survival ever did.

As their fragile bond deepens, old ghosts stir, and danger is not just memory—it is flesh and blood, armed and emboldened. A battle builds between the moonshiners and the ATU, drawing Esther into their sights.

But Ian isn’t the only one who has discovered Esther—or wants to claim her. Her innocent smile has captured the attention of a charming and unexpected rival, creating a simmering love triangle. With the lines between protection and possession blurring, the question is who she will choose and why.

Atmospheric, raw, and deeply human, Where the River Settles is a slow-burn historical romance rooted in resilience and a woman’s unbreakable strength. Sweeping and epic, it unfolds as a tale of desire, danger, and devotion—where love becomes both salvation and reckoning.