This angel encounter comes from a dear friend and historical romance novelist, Leslee Breene. Leslee's third novel, Hearts on the Wind, was recently released from Five Star-Gale and was launched at a gala book signing event at the Highlands Ranch Tattered Cover in November.

Hearts on the Wind is a dynamic journey into the heartland of America, leading the reader through the passions, greed, revenge, and fulfillment of its characters. This is the story of two lovers, whose odyssey plunges them into the turbulent Great Chicago Rail Strike as they seek to fulfill their promises and their seemingly impossible future together. ~ Tattered Cover

If you missed the Tattered Cover event, Leslee will be signing Hearts on the Wind at the Barnes & Noble S.W. at 8136 W. Bowles Avenue in Littleton on Saturday, December 6 th from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

Hearts on the Wind has received excellent reviews from Romance Reviews Today and Romantic TimesBook Reviews. It also made the "Top 10 Local Fiction Bestseller List" in The Denver Post, November 30th. And, the ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS gave Hearts on the Wind an "A" review under its "Spotlight on Colorado Authors."

"This fast-paced novel aptly captures the tensions of time and place while also creating endearing characters." ~ Joan Hinkemeyer

With all the whirlwind of activity and excitement surrounding Leslee's latest novel, she still found the time to share this angel encounter with us.

Leslee's Angel Encounter

Many years ago, when my husband and I were traveling through Switzerland, I experienced an "angel encounter." A young man about my age approached me while I was standing on a platform in a Zurich train station. Although the memory of his physical description is dim, I still can recall his pleasant demeanor and words. "I thought you might like to read this," he said with a smile and was gone.

Puzzled, I looked down at the small, worn paperback book he'd handed me. Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl. Of the hundreds of travelers in the station, why had this fellow given me this book?

After my husband and I boarded the train, I began to read the book and couldn't put it down. The true story of Dr. Frankl, a Viennese professor, who'd suffered untold degradation at Auschwitz and other Nazi death camps during World War II was compelling. Separated from his immediate family, he later learned of their tragic fate after the war. Only he and his sister had survived.

Stripped of all humanity through continued imprisonment, he learned that "everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the freedom to choose one's attitude, to choose one's own way. It is his or her spiritual freedom." Although others lost their lives, Dr. Frankl was spared time after time.

He managed to smuggle notes from the camps for his future work in existentialism and logotherapy. He became a renowned professor at the Vienna University Medical School, the United States International University, and Stanford University. A sought-after lecturer, he also authored over twenty books.

I have often wondered why my path was intercepted by this young man in the Swiss train station. I do know that Viktor Frankl's journey of valiant courage and his ability to save scraps of paper in spite of daily life-or-death experiences kindled a spark of hope in me that I might one day write and become a published author.

This small paperback book, its pages yellowed with age, still resides on my library shelf. To this day, I remember and appreciate the angel messenger who placed it in my hand.