Historical Women's Fiction
Welcome to Louise Ryder’s Historical Women’s Fiction.
A world where women’s courage, hidden histories, love, identity, and resilience come together. From God in a Box to School of Hard Knocks, Louise Ryder explores powerful journeys of women who challenge expectations, overcome adversity, and discover the strength to embrace their own truth.
For readers who love emotional stories, historical depth, and unforgettable women who refuse to be defined by their circumstances.
God in a Box
Stacey gets a ticket to heaven. But restrictions apply.
She’s lost the love of her life already. Will she lose the other half of her dreams now?
Stacey gets a ticket to heaven. But restrictions apply.
After spending her life savings to fly to Europe and become a meditation teacher, Stacey is told to go home. Lesbians are not welcome. She’s lost the love of her life already. Will she lose the other half of her dreams now?
It’s the early 1970s. On a lark, Stacey Carmichael attends a lecture about meditation from one of those new Indian gurus who have suddenly appeared everywhere. Intrigued in spite of her skepticism, she learns to meditate— and has the experience of a lifetime.
Delighted, Stacey pursues this new path, tasting the possibility of enlightenment, becoming at peace with herself, opening the doors of her own perception.
Stacey decides to become a teacher of meditation herself—and then the human side of this organization rears its ugly head. Lesbians need not apply. Leave your partner, become a celibate, and then we’ll see.
How can she give up this meditation that has given her so much? But how can she give up who she really is?
School of Hard Knocks
Three generations of women. A devastating connection.
Can they endure their personal tragedies?
Three generations of women. A devastating connection. Can they endure their personal tragedies?
North Carolina, 1893. Thirteen-year-old Maggie Winters lives with daily danger. As the daughter of a former slave, her secret quest for education can’t protect her for long. When vicious racists bent on teaching blacks their place attack her home, Maggie’s innocence dies, but she barely survives…
Nearly 60 years later, a frightened mother calls on Maggie to perform an exorcism on a girl who talks to spirits. As she prepares to help, Maggie discovers a family secret that resonates with her own painful past.
When more skeletons come to light, she must re-open the wounds of the past to heal the mother, the daughter… and herself.
School of Hard Knocks is a poignant work of historical fiction. If you like sweeping sagas, politically-charged stories, and women overcoming adversity, then you’ll love Louise Ryder’s inspiring novel.
Still Shots: A Short Story
A Story of Desire, Connection, and Unexpected Love
A single moment can change everything.
She danced like she was the only woman in the room—lost in the music, fearless, and completely alive. With every movement, she drew attention without asking for it, carrying a confidence that was impossible to ignore.
I watched her, captivated by the freedom in the way she moved, telling myself it was only a moment, only a night.
I took her home. I promised myself I wouldn’t fall in love.
But promises are easy to make before the heart gets involved.
Still Shots is a passionate and intimate short story about attraction, desire, and the unexpected emotions that can grow from a chance encounter.
A story of chemistry, connection, and the beautiful danger of discovering someone who changes everything.
Solstice: A Short Story
A Story of Memory, Discovery, and Returning Home
Sometimes, what we lose is not an object—but a piece of ourselves waiting to be found again.
Certain that she has left something important behind, Elizabeth returns to her childhood home searching for what she believes she has lost.
But as she walks through familiar spaces filled with echoes of the past, she discovers that the missing piece is not a possession—it is a forgotten memory, a moment buried deep within her that holds the key to understanding herself.
As old feelings resurface and forgotten connections come back into focus, Elizabeth must confront the memories she left behind and the emotions she never fully faced.
Solstice is a heartfelt short story about the power of memory, the pull of home, and the unexpected truths we uncover when we revisit the places and moments that shaped us.
A quiet yet powerful journey of reflection, healing, and rediscovering the parts of ourselves we thought were lost forever.