Tonasket: Anchored in the Okanogan is a sweeping historical fiction novel that spans a century of change, challenge, and quiet triumph in Washington State’s rugged Okanogan River Valley. Told through interwoven vignettes of pioneers, Native peoples, missionaries, and townsfolk, this heartfelt narrative brings to life the trials and transformation of a land once wild and untamed.

From the early 1800s when fur trappers and tribal leaders cautiously exchanged words and wares, to the early 1900s when steam trains, apple orchards, and Baptist churches became fixtures of the valley, Tonasket draws readers into the personal stories behind the history. Each chapter captures a decade, and each segment offers a vivid glimpse into the lives of ordinary people shaped by faith, hardship, and the ever-changing frontier.

Though fictional, this book is rooted in the author’s deep familiarity with the landscape and Baptist ministry. The name “Tonasket” first caught the author’s attention in the 1990s when a small Baptist church in the remote town was in search of a pastor. Years later, now residing nearby in Republic, Washington, the author revisits that intrigue with a tale filled with grit, grace, and gratitude. While many names and events are imagined, they’re anchored in the spirit of a real place—the high country along the slow, steady flow of the Okanogan River.

This is not alternate history. It is spiritual historical fiction—deliberately fictionalized to explore deeper truths: how faith survives the fire, how communities rise from ruin, and how God works in quiet valleys far from the world’s attention. It features characters like Aeneas, a wise tribal leader with a vision for peace; the Baptist revivalist who preaches under open skies; and a widowed schoolteacher who finds her second calling in the wilderness.

Whether it’s a Fourth of July parade uniting once-feuding families, a lightning strike that tests the mettle of a whole community, or a hand-carved memorial stone laid in reverent silence, every page of Tonasket speaks to the soul of a people shaped by place, providence, and perseverance.

For readers who love:

• Pioneer and homestead stories with moral depth
• Christian fiction grounded in Biblical conviction
• Multi-generational tales of the American West
• Small-town life, Native American history, and faith-driven characters
• Historical fiction written from a conservative Baptist worldview

Tonasket: Anchored in the Okanogan is a tribute to the enduring faith of those who built, believed, and belonged in a land few knew—but God never forgot.