Book picks similar to
Grasping the Gratefulness by R.A. Rooney


short-stories
contemporary
indie-authors
christian-fiction

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Claire Matthews - 2011
    Medical issues make it necessary for her to get pregnant now, but without a husband or boyfriend on the horizon, she's on the hunt for a donor. Will the gorgeous partner in her new law firm fit the bill, or will she find that her perfect baby daddy has been under her nose all along?

The Canary List


Sigmund Brouwer - 2011
    But is anywhere safe when Evil is hunting you? She’s just a twelve year-old girl, bumped around between foster homes and relegated to school classes for challenged kids, those lagging in their test scores or with behavioral issues. But her real problem is that she can sense something the other kids can’t—something dark. Something compelling her to run for her life. All Crockett Grey wants is to mark the anniversary of his daughter’s death alone. But when his student Jaimie comes to him, terrified, her need for protection collides with his grief, and a tangled web of bizarre events sends them both spiraling toward destruction. Crockett’s one hope of getting his life back is to uncover the mysterious secrets of Jaimie’s past and her strange gift. It isn’t long before his discoveries lead him to a darker conspiracy, secrets guarded by the highest seat of power in the world—the Vatican.

Five Gold Rings (Crossroads Collection)


Jaycee Weaver - 2020
    Leanne rescues him from a rooftop in a floodplain and it is clear there is much more to the story. Can their love redeem the hurts of the past to rescue their future?Laughing All the Way by Lesley Ann McDanielWhen Jessica's friends put her up to "fixing" their commitment-phobic co-worker, Conner, she doesn't take them very seriously. Conner doesn't know whether to laugh at Jessica or tell her to mind her own business.Ghosted at the Altar by Chautona HavigAfter his fiancée, Brenna, abandons Mitchell on their wedding day, she insists she loves him and still wants to marry him. As truths come to light, her little sister, Lauren, turns sleuth to solve the mystery of why Brenna ghosted Mitchell at the altar.Five Gold Rings by Amanda TruWhen three relationship-challenged couples wish for Christmas weddings, commitment coach, Oliver, teams up with a wedding planner, TeraLyn, to help make their marriage dreams come true.

Babysitting for the Billionaire


Sammi Starlight - 2018
    When she goes to work for the billionaire, Benjamin Savage, as his daughter's nanny, she is thrilled. Things start to heat up between them. Will she give in to her feelings or continue to struggle on her own?

Short Stories of Charles Bukowski


Charles Bukowski
    

Second Chances


Riley Free - 2017
     I lost my husband to a tragic car accident two years ago. Since then, I've floated through life. The only thing keeping me going is my faith in a higher power. I prayed for answers and release from my grief. One warm autumn day the Lord delivered in the form of Tex, a NASCAR driver looking for a quiet small town to settle down in. I resisted Tex's advances, but he wouldn't take no for an answer. Just when I was warming up to the idea of a new life with Tex, life through me a curveball. Questions about my husband's death left me reeling. The more I discovered the more convinced I became that I didn't really know him at all. Through the power of God, love, faith and redemption I will figure out how to mend my broken heart, even if it kills me.

Where We Left Off


J. Alex Blane - 2012
    Others you wish you simply had the opportunity to remember. Mason Everett found himself in the center of both, as he felt the warmth of an autumn sun graze his face through the tinted windows.A successful Real-estate developer, Mason had his picture perfect life. He was young, handsome, wealthy and single. No stranger to frequent hook ups at the local night clubs he avoided relationships at all costs living tirelessly by one rule:“Never let anyone close enough again to hurt you”Until he found himself falling for Sydney McCail, a young woman he met at his brother’s wedding. In the midst of a developing relationship Mason’s past begins to surface causing him to push Sydney away in fear of her finding out a secret he’d kept hidden for most of his adult life. In the wake of a tragic accident she finds that what she thought she knew was only the beginning, and what happens from there leaves them both searching for answers to a single question in what turns out to be a startling outcome, Where We Left Off.

The First Stone


Bodie Thoene - 2011
    Scrolls" Series is a SPECIAL EDITION, DIRECTOR'S CUT of 'JERUSALEM SCROLLS' from the Thoenes' popular "Zion Legacy Series"**The voices inside her whisper, Forgiveness?Yes, for them, but never for you.…The story of Mary Magdalene, in her own wordsAs the harsh Jerusalem winter of 1948 wears on Rachel Sachar, beautiful holocaust survivor, prays for some word from her husband Moshe who vanished in the secret tunnels beneath Jerusalem. Then one night a stranger named Eben Golah arrives with a message from Moshe and the translation of the ancient diary of Mary Magdalene. Like Rachel, Mary was a beautiful child. Everyone said so. Tragedy struck, everything changed in Mary’s family. Her dreams of love and children of her own abruptly ended. No amount of wealth or male companionship can bring Mary what she really longs for, nor can they stop the voices calling, “Finish it! You have no reason to live. No hope…” But might there be a second chance…even for someone like her? Secretly, she wonders…2,000 years separate the tragic stories of Mary Magdalene and Rachel Sachar, and yet their lives lead to Yeshua of Nazareth in Old Jerusalem. Will these women find freedom and forgiveness? Or will Yeshua cast the first stone? This is Mary’s story, from her own diary, as translated by Jewish Haganah fighter and scholar Moshe Sachar in 1948, as he prepares to emerge from his hiding place in the secret library under besieged Jerusalem.DISCOVER THETRUTHTHROUGHFICTION™BODIE & BROCK THOENE(pronounced Tay-nee) have written more than 60 works of historical fiction. Their novels have sold more than 20 million copies and have won eight ECPA Gold Medallion awards. The Thoenes divide their time between London and Nevada.

The Perfect Christmas


Debbie Macomber - 1998
    Cassie, at thirty-three, wants a husband and kids, and so far, nothing's worked. Not blind dates, not the Internet and certainly not leaving love to chance.What's left? A professional matchmaker. He's Simon Dodson, and he's very choosy about the clients he takes on. Cassie finds Simon a difficult, acerbic know-it-all, and she's astonished when he accepts her as a client.Claiming he has her perfect mate in mind, Simon assigns her three tasks to complete before she meets him. Three tasks that are all about Christmas: being a charity bell ringer, dressing up as Santa's elf at a children's party and preparing a traditional turkey dinner for her neighbors (whom she happens to dislike). Despite a number of comical mishaps, Cassie does it all --- and she's finally ready to meet her match.But just like the perfect Christmas gift, he turns out to be a wonderful surprise!

Second Chance Ranch: Clean & Wholesome Cowboy Romance


Jenna Hendricks - 2019
    He regrets the pain he caused. Can God help them mend their broken hearts? Montana veterinarian Elizabeth Manning is living the life of her dreams. Dating the hottest guy in town, healing animals, and helping the homeless makes her feel she’s doing God’s work. So when the boy who broke her heart returns after ten years, she refuses to dig up her buried feelings.Logan Hayes kicks himself for leaving Elizabeth so abruptly. Forced home to run his sick father’s store, his passion for his old flame has never been stronger. And he’s desperate to show her how he has grown to win her back.Arguing with her boyfriend over her charitable activities, Elizabeth wonders if he’s really the man God intended for her. If Logan wants to rekindle her devotion, he’ll have to confess the painful truth behind his abandonment.Will Elizabeth and Logan find their way to forgiveness and into each other’s arms?Second Chance Ranch is the first book in the touching Triple J Ranch contemporary Christian cowboy romance series. If you like no-nonsense cowgirls, clean stories, and heartwarming attractions, then you’ll adore Jenna Hendricks’s wholesome tale. Buy Second Chance Ranch to see faith restore love today!

Cycle Three: The Probing


Bill Myers - 2017
    In Myers's "Leviathan," the team heads to Hollywood for a taping of the new TV pilot, Live or Die, the Ultimate Reality. Little do they realize the depths of darkness they are about to enter--a darkness that, unless they stop it, will soon spread across the globe.Frank Peretti's "The Mind Pirates" offers a rousing story featuring bizarre visions and memories of a murder, a kidnapping by 17th-century pirates, and an earring with mysterious powers. The team must overcome the ruthless scheming of an evil, hidden nemesis. In "Hybrids" from Angela Hunt, the sight of two children chills the team to their bones. Seeking rest and relaxation, the four friends must instead find answers to the arrival and mission of two mysterious black-eyed children. In "The Village" from Alton Gansky, a visit to a guarded and secretive small town in North Carolina becomes the most challenging mystery they've ever faced--as they race to solve a problem they barely understand before time runs out.

Stay in the Castle


Jerry L. Ross
    

Necessary Proof


Camy Tang - 2014
    After opening his heart to Jesus in prison, Alex Villa has left his criminal past behind him. However, his efforts to take down a gang producing meth in Sonoma have made him a target. Set up to look like he’s being bribed by the gang, the police blame him for the death of a cop. Only the evidence on an encrypted laptop can prove he’s innocent. Software engineer Jane Lawton has been betrayed by the men closest to her, including a God she thought would protect her. She won’t let Alex down, because she knows what it feels like to be disbelieved and abandoned. However, the men after them have orders to repossess the evidence and make sure Jane and Alex take their knowledge to the grave. Can they prove Alex’s innocence before time runs out for them both? (Those of you who have read my Love Inspired Suspense, FORMULA FOR DANGER, will have met Jane and Alex as minor characters in that book. I'm so excited to finally write their own love story!) Camy Tang's Sonoma series: #1: Deadly Intent #2: Formula for Danger #3: Stalker in the Shadows #4: Narrow Escape #4.1: Necessary Proof (novella)#4.2: Unshakeable Pursuit (novella)#5: Treacherous Intent (coming December 2014) Excerpt: Jane Lawton nearly dropped her steaming pot of Mac-N-Cheese at the sound of a powerful fist knocking at her apartment door. "Coming!" She spooned the gooey, bad-for-you goodness into a bowl, then ran some water in the pot in the sink. The urgent knocking sounded again. Somehow it didn't sound like one of her neighbors, wanting Jane's help with a computer problem. She looked through the peephole. She felt a sharp pulse at the base of her throat. "Alex?" She opened the door. Normally a walking Calvin Klein ad, he now had a grim, serious cast to his face as he hurriedly entered her apartment with a messenger bag slung across one broad shoulder. "Quick, close the door." "What's going on?" She locked the deadbolt. It frightened her that he looked so different now, lacking his usual smile and dimples. "I need your help, Jane." She couldn't control the bitterness that burned the back of her throat. It seemed that was the only thing she was good for, helping the men in her life so they could leave her and move on. She swallowed and said carefully, "Doing what?" He pulled a laptop from his messenger bag. "There's information on this that I need, but I'm not sure if there's any type of security protecting it." "Whoa." Jane took a step back. "You're saying that's not your laptop, and you want me to get into it? What's going on?" She knew he had been in prison for a few years, but she thought he'd put his illegal past behind him. He scrubbed his hand over his high forehead. "It's not what it looks like." "That makes it sound even worse." He exhaled and seemed to study her. His intent, dark eyes made her squirm. She knew she'd changed a lot in the past year. She'd only spoken to him once in all that time, a few months ago at the party celebrating his brother's engagement to Rachel, Jane's second cousin but as close as a sister. After a minute or two of chit-chat, he had been quick to leave her to speak to Detective Carter, which had given her a pang even though she hadn't been in a sociable mood. What a difference from when she and Alex had first met years ago. He had seemed interested in her, but she'd been ... She shoved the memories aside. "I'm only going to ask this one more time. What's going on?" "I just ... I can trust you, right?" "Trust me with what?"

The Princess of Valencia


Susan Straight - 2018
    Little by little, Jacinta’s mother lost her—first to college, then to a boy she said she loved, and then, finally, to the rage of a school shooter. Snap. In an instant it was all gone. All she has now is her daughter’s phone. Like an album, gripped in the palm of her hand—texts, photos, messages, and videos of her daughter’s first three years at college. With it, Jacinta’s mother is reconstructing her daughter’s last three weeks.In this uniquely moving exploration of mourning, fury, and reminiscence, Susan Straight evokes—through a grieving mother’s devastating internal monologue—both a modern-day nightmare and exquisite proof of love’s extraordinary power to overcome it.

The Christmas Star


Diane Darcy - 2011
    A manipulative angel and a zany Christmas season are exactly what it takes to get Jason and Elise in the same vicinity again. But can they forgive each other and forget old resentments and hurts? Well, Christmas is a perfect time for miracles. Throw in the hunt for the perfect tree, a sledding competition and a desperate-for-grandchildren mother, and you have the perfect recipe for...love? # OF PAGESApproximately 80 pages.OTHER BOOKS BY DIANE DARCY:Serendipity, She’s Just Right, Once in a Blue Moon, The Christmas Star, A Penny for Your Thoughts.