What's New in Christian Fiction

Welcome

Welcome to my What's New in Christian Fiction blog. After many years writing for the general romance market (30 books published), I answered God's call to write fiction that honored Him. My 60th book, A Vote of Confidence, was released in May 2009. I invite you to visit my web site to learn more about me.

Over the years, I've come to know many wonderful Christian authors, and I love to share their books with others, so I decided to do so here. I hope you'll tell your friends about this blog, and I also hope you'll discover some wonderful new authors because of it.

If you have a particular genre of Christian fiction that you enjoy, look for the category listings in the sidebar to help you find them. And come back soon. I'll be adding books on a regular basis.

Fit To Be Tied by Robin Lee Hatcher

FIT TO BE TIED
November 2009

Cleo Arlington dresses like A Cowboy, is fearless and fun-loving, and can ride, rope, and wrangle a horse as well as any man. In 1916, however, those talents aren’t what most young women aspire to. But Cleo isn’t most women. Twenty-nine years old and single, Cleo loves life on her father’s Idaho ranch. Still, she hopes someday to marry and have children.

Enter Sherwood Statham, an English aristocrat whose father has sentenced him to a year of work in America to “straighten him out.” Sherwood, who expected a desk job at a posh spa, isn’t happy to be stuck on an Idaho ranch. And he has no idea how to handle Cleo, who’s been challenged with transforming this uptight playboy into a down-home cowboy.

Just about everything either of them says or does leaves the other, well, fit to be tied. And though Cleo believes God’s plan for her includes a husband, it couldn’t possibly be Sherwood Statham. Could it?

“Hatcher knows what readers want, and she does not disappoint. Her characters are well thought out and seem like real people, not just fictional creations.” —Romantic Times Book Reviews

View the trailer for Fit To Be Tied here.

About the Author:

Robin Lee Hatcher is the best-selling author of over sixty books. Her well-drawn characters and heartwarming stories of faith, courage, and love have earned her both critical acclaim and the devotion of readers. Her numerous awards including the 2000 Christy Award for Excellence in Christian Fiction, the 1999 and 2001 RITA Awards for Best Inspirational Romance, Romantic Times Career Achievement Awards for Americana Romance and for Inspirational Fiction, and the 2001 RWA Lifetime Achievement Award. Catching Katie was named one of the Best Books of 2004 by the Library Journal.

Robin enjoys being with her family, spending time in the beautiful Idaho outdoors, reading books that make her cry, and watching romantic movies. She is passionate about the theater, and several nights every summer, she can be found at the outdoor amphitheater of the Idaho Shakespeare Festival, enjoying Shakespeare under the stars. She makes her home on the outskirts of Boise, sharing it with Poppet the high-maintenance Papillon.

Though Waters Roar by Lynn Austin

THOUGH WATERS ROAR
October 2009

"Thank goodness you're such a plain child. You'll have to rely on your wits."

So went the words of Grandma Bebe. And for all of my growing-up years, I scoffed at the beauty of my sister and what I saw as her meaningless existence. But my wits hadn't served me well in this instance, for here I was, in jail. And while I could have seen it as carrying on the family tradition (for Grandma Bebe landed in jail for her support of Prohibition), the truth is, my reasons for being here would probably break her heart.

So how did I end up becoming a criminal? I've been pondering that question all night. Perhaps the best way to search for an answer is to start at the very beginning.

Harriet Sherwood has always adored her grandmother. But when Harriet decides to follow in her footsteps to fight for social justice, she certainly never expected her efforts to land her in jail. Nor did she expect her childhood enemy and notorious school bully, Tommy O'Reilly, to be the arresting officer.

Languishing in a jail cell, Harriet has plenty of time to sift through the memories of the three generations of women who have preceded her. As each story emerges, the strength of her family--and their deep faith in the God of justice and righteousness--brings Harriet to the discovery of her own goals and motives for pursuing them.

About the Author:

Along with reading, two of Lynn Austin's lifelong passions are history and archaeology. While researching her Biblical fiction series, Chronicles of the Kings, these two interests led her to pursue graduate studies in Biblical Backgrounds and Archaeology through Southwestern Theological Seminary. She and her son traveled to Israel during the summer of 1989 to take part in an archaeological dig at the ancient city of Timnah. This experience contributed to the inspiration for her novel Wings of Refuge.

Lynn resigned from teaching to write full-time in 1992. Since then she has published twelve novels. Five of her historical novels, Hidden Places, Candle in the Darkness, Fire by Night, A Proper Pursuit, and Until We Reach Home have won Christy Awards in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, and 2009 for excellence in Christian Fiction.

Fire by Night was also one of only five inspirational fiction books chosen by Library Journal for their top picks of 2003, and All She Ever Wanted was chosen as one of the five inspirational top picks of 2005. Lynn's novel Hidden Places has been made into a movie for the Hallmark Channel.

A Measure of Mercy by Lauraine Snelling

A MEASURE OF MERCY
October 2009

Eighteen-year-old Astrid Bjorklund has always dreamed of becoming a doctor. She had intended to study medicine in Chicago or Grand Forks, but when a disaster wiped out a major portion of her family's income, Astrid stayed home instead, receiving hands-on training from Dr. Elizabeth.

Joshua Landsverk left Blessing two years ago, but he's never forgotten Astrid. Returning to town, he seeks to court her.

Astrid is attracted to him, and when the opportunity unexpectedly opens for her to go to Chicago for medical training, she finds it difficult to leave. Love blossoms through their letters, but upon arriving back home, she makes a heartbreaking discovery. She learns he's left town--again. Believing Joshua no longer loves her, Astrid makes an impetuous, heart-wrenching decision.

Will she regret the choice she's made? Will she have to give up love to pursue her dream?

About the Author:

Award-winning and best selling author Lauraine Snelling began living her dream to be a writer with her first published book for young adult readers, Tragedy on the Toutle, in 1982. She has since continued writing more horse books for young girls, adding historical and contemporary fiction and nonfiction for adults and young readers to her repertoire. All told, she has up to sixty books published.

Shown in her contemporary romances and women’s fiction, a hallmark of Lauraine’s style is writing about real issues of forgiveness, loss, domestic violence, and cancer within a compelling story. Her work has been translated into Norwegian, Danish, and German, and she has won the Silver Angel Award for An Untamed Land and a Romance Writers of America Golden Heart for Song of Laughter.

As a most sought after speaker, Lauraine encourages others to find their gifts and live their lives with humor and joy. Her readers clamor for more books more often, and Lauraine would like to comply ... if only her paintbrushes and easel didn’t call quite so loudly.

Lauraine and her husband, Wayne, have two grown sons, and live in the Tehachapi Mountains with a cockatiel named Bidley, and a watchdog Basset named Chewy. They love to travel, most especially in their forty-foot motor coach, which they affectionately deem “a work in progress."

Fields Of Grace by Kim Vogel Sawyer

FIELDS OF GRACE
October 2009

Will their Mennonite faith be shaken or strengthened by the journey to a new land?

With their eldest son nearly to the age when he will be drafted into military service, Reinhardt and Lillian Vogt decide to immigrate to America, the land of liberty, with their three sons and Reinhardt's adopted brother, Eli. But when tragedy strikes during the voyage, Lillian and Eli are forced into an agreement neither desires.

Determined to fulfill his obligation to Reinhardt, Eli plans to see Lillian and her sons safely settled on their Kansas homestead--and he's equally determined that the boys will be reared in the Mennonite faith. What he doesn't expect is his growing affection for Lillian--and the deep desire to be part of a family.

About the Author:

Best-selling, award-winning author Kim Vogel Sawyer is a wife, mother, grandmother, author, speaker, singer of songs and lover of chocolate... but most importantly, she's a born-again child of the King!

A former elementary school teacher, Kim closed her classroom door in 2005 to follow God's call on her heart to write and speak. Now blessed with multiple writing contracts with Bethany House, Barbour, and Zondervan Publishing, Kim enjoys sharing her journey to publication as well as the miraculous story of her healing from a life-long burden of pain and shame.

Kim's gentle yet forthright testimony lends credence to the promise of Ps. 117:2--"Great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever."

Intervention by Terri Blackstock

INTERVENTION
September 2009

Barbara Covington has one more chance to save her daughter from a devastating addiction, by staging an intervention. But when eighteen-year-old Emily disappears on the way to drug treatment—and her interventionist is found dead at the airport—Barbara enters her darkest nightmare of all.

Barbara and her son set out to find Emily before Detective Kent Harlan arrests her for a crime he is sure she committed. Fearing for Emily’s life, Barbara maintains her daughter’s innocence. But does she really know her anymore? Meanwhile, Kent has questions of his own. His gut tells him that this is a case of an addict killing for drugs, but as he gets to know Barbara, he begins to hope he’s wrong about Emily.

The panic level rises as the mysteries intensify: Did Emily’s obsession with drugs lead her to commit murder—or is she another victim of a cold-blooded killer?

About the Author:

Terri Blackstock’s books have sold six million copies worldwide. Her suspense novels often debut at number one on the Christian fiction best-seller lists, and True Light, published last year, was number one of all Christian books—fiction and non-fiction. Blackstock has had twenty-five years of success as a novelist.

In 1994 Blackstock was writing for publishers such as HarperCollins, Harlequin and Silhouette, when a spiritual awakening drew her into the Christian market. Since that time, she’s written over thirty Christian titles, in addition to the thirty-two she had in the secular market. Her most recent books are the four in her acclaimed Restoration Series, which includes Last Light, Night Light, True Light and Dawn’s Light. She is also known for her popular Newpointe 911 and Cape Refuge Series.

In addition to her suspense novels, she has written a number of novels in the women’s fiction genre, including Covenant Child, which was chosen as one of the first Women of Faith novels, and her Seasons Series written with Beverly LaHaye, wife of Tim LaHaye.

Blackstock has won the Retailer’s Choice Award and has appeared on national television programs such as The 700 Club, Home Life, and At Home Live with Chuck and Jenny. She has been a guest on numerous radio programs across the country and the subject of countless articles. The story of her personal journey appears in books such as Touched By the Savior by Mike Yorkey, True Stories of Answered Prayer by Mike Nappa, Faces of Faith by John Hanna, and I Saw Him In Your Eyes by Ace Collins.

White Picket Fences by Susan Meissner

WHITE PICKET FENCES
October 2009

White Picket Fences is a story about a family that seems to have the perfect iconic life. Perfect house, perfect jobs, perfect neighborhood, perfect everything. But they live on the same fallen planet as the rest of us and they have the same flaws. To pretend all is well when all is not is to doom yourself to a life of pretense and disappointment and maybe even despair. You can only sweep under the rug that which you don’t want to see for only so long before everyone starts to trip over it. The Janvier family needs to admit everything isn’t perfect and deal with ugliness. Or they will quite likely lose each other.

About the Author:

Susan Meissner is the author of eleven novels, including The Shape of Mercy, named by Publishers Weekly as one of the Best Books of 2008 and winner of the Christian Book of the Year for Fiction. When she is not working on a new novel, she is directing the small groups ministries at The Church at Rancho Bernardo. She also enjoys teaching workshops on writing and dream-following, spending time with her family, music, reading great books, and traveling. She lives in southern California with her pastor husband and their four grown children.

A Note from Susan:

I cannot remember a time when I wasn't driven to put my thoughts down on paper. I attribute this love for writing to a creative God and to parents who love books and more particularly to a dad who majored in English and passed on a passion for writing.

I was born and raised in San Diego, California, and am the second of three daughters. My first writings are a laughable collection of oddly worded poems and predictable stories I wrote when I was eight. My second-grade teacher gave me the journal I in which I recorded these poems and stories. To my knowledge I was the only student in her class that she gave a journal to; she must have seen promise in me. In high school my freshman composition teacher found all kinds of ways to encourage me to develop my skills as a writer. Without telling me beforehand, he read the first composition I ever wrote for him aloud to the class. That's how much he liked it. I have never forgotten how it felt to hear him begin to read something to the entire class and realize it was something I had written.

Several years ago I was a court-appointed advocate for children involved in protective services. There were times when I saw that despite the outward appearance of a less-than-perfect home, a child could be loved there. Just because a parent is unconventional or unsuccessful career-wise or makes choices that buck societal norms, it doesn’t mean that he or she is by default a “bad” parent. Likewise, parents who we would traditionally call “good” -meaning they provide, they protect, they don’t hit, they don’t ridicule - can nevertheless make decisions regarding their children that have hugely negative effects and yet their outward appearance would never lead anyone to suspect it. This is the thematic backdrop for White Picket Fences. Even if you live behind a white picket fence, you still have to deal with the fallout of a living in a broken world. You can’t hide from it. The perfect, idyllic life is an illusion. Life is a weave of both delight and disappointment and it’s precisely these things that give it definition and depth. To ignore what is ugly is to cheapen what is beautiful.

Soldier Daddy by Cheryl Wyatt

SOLDIER DADDY
October 2009

U.S. Air Force commander Aaron Petrowski leads pararescue teams, yet can't find one nanny for his three-year-old twins?  The widowed father is returning to duty, but not without the best care for his beloved boys. So when Sarah Graham applies, the young woman surprises everyone by passing inspection. Until Aaron discovers Sarah has a secret tied to a tragedy in his past. He can't keep her in his employ—or in his heart. Until his brave little soldier boys teach him a thing or two about love.

About the Author:

Born Valentine’s Day on a naval base, Cheryl Wyatt writes military romance.  Her Steeple Hill debuts earned RT Top Picks plus #1 and #4 on eHarlequin's Top 10 Most-Blogged-About-Books, lists including NYT Bestsellers. Join her newsletter mailing list by visiting her Web site and signing up in the space provided if you’d like Wings of Refuge recipes, new release news and goodies exclusive to newsletter subscribers.

Creede of Old Montana by Stephen Bly

CREEDE OF OLD MONTANA
October 2009

"No one knew how Avery John Creede got the scar on his face. No one except Avery and the one who did it. He never talked about it.  Most who knew him figured the other person dead.  Not the type of scar that makes you wince and turn your head, and never covered by a beard, it hung high on his cheek bone like a badge of honor."

So begins the story of Avery John Creede who rides into Fort Benton, Montana, in the 1880s for a reunion with old army pals. He discovers a running gunfight with a notorious outlaw and two women determined to distract him, each for her own reasons. The dark haired beauty, Carla Logonaire, is an old flame and the gal of Avery's dreams. Her daddy made his mega-fortune with imported glass and partnered with Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. Avery buys a diamond and sapphire ring for her, just in case.

Meanwhile, he's accosted by Sunny, the caustic mystery blonde in the yellow dress, who threatens him for jailing her bank robbery friends. She wants him dead. Avery desires only a little peace and quiet.
And just as things get real hectic, Avery's 15-year-old tenderfoot nephew, Ace, shows up with disturbing news.

About the Author:

Christy Award winning Stephen Bly has authored and co-authored, with wife Janet, 100 fiction and nonfiction books, including historical and contemporary westerns Creede of Old Montana is book #101. He pastors Winchester Community Church in Idaho and speaks at men's, family and writer's groups. He's roving editor for Big Show Journal for gun collectors and mentors students with Janet for Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writers Guild. A third generation westerner, Steve spent 30 years working family ranches and farms in central California.

A Note from Stephen:

Just when I think I know the plot, the characters up and change everything. You see, Avery John Creede needed a sidekick. Or else half the time he'd have to talk to his horse. Sometimes I’ve included a burro or a moose…or converted a saddle into sort of a sidekick to converse with in my novels. I decided in Creede of Old Montana on a young compadre. But Avery’s such a loner, he wouldn’t accept just any kid. So I provided a nephew who was named after him: Avery Creede Emerson…or Ace.

In order not to stereotype Ace, I didn’t want him to be a rank tenderfoot at everything. I wanted him to be of help to his Uncle Avery, but keep his independent personality. So, I needed a dramatic event or two to reveal his character. This helped improve the plotting.

When Ace starts using the phrase, “What would Uncle Avery do?” to  Avery's reminded of his important role in Ace’s life, a duty suddenly thrust on him. And the reader gets another layer of this character's strengths...and faults.

Guardian of the Flame by T.L. Higley

GUARDIAN OF THE FLAME
October 2009

In a city ravaged by the clash of cultures, one woman fights for solitude. Will a Roman soldier destroy her peace?

Alexandria, 48 BC.  Sophia has spent nearly twenty years as the keeper of the Lighthouse of Alexandria, alone in her task and in her heart. But when the wealthy capital of Egypt is invaded by Julius Caesar and his Roman legion, Sophia’s peace is shattered and her lighthouse invaded. The Roman general would steal both her country and its queen, the Greek Cleopatra, and when his military strategy endangers the city’s best scholars and their secret invention, Sophia must discover a way to protect the men. But as the historic war erupts with Sophia caught in its chaos, she finds that the Roman centurion instructed to invade her lighthouse is also invading her heart.

About the Author:

T. L. Higley holds a degree in English Literature and is the author of five previous novels, including the Seven Wonders Novels. She has traveled extensively through the Middle East while researching her books, and loves to bring the ancient world to life. She lives with her husband and four children near Philadelphia.

Limelight Most by Melody Carlson

LIMELIGHT
October 2009

Claudette Fioré used to turn heads and break hearts. She relished the glamorous Hollywood lifestyle because she had what it takes: money, youth, fame, and above all, beauty. But age has withered that beauty, and a crooked accountant has taken her wealth, leaving the proud widow penniless and alone.
Armed with stubbornness and sarcasm, Claudette returns to her shabby little hometown and her estranged sister. Slowly, she makes friends. She begins to see her old life in a new light. For the first time, Claudette Fioré questions her own values and finds herself wondering if it’s too late to change.

About the Author:

Melody Carlson is an award-winning, best-selling author of nearly two hundred books for teens, children, and adults, including the Diary of a Teenage Girl series, the Secret Life of Samantha McGregor series, the True Color Series, and Notes from a Spinning Planet series. Melody has two grown sons and lives in central Oregon with her husband, where they enjoy skiing, hiking, gardening, camping, and biking.