Book picks similar to
Magnolia Storms by Janet W. Ferguson


fiction
romance
contemporary
christian-fiction

Someplace Familiar


Teresa Tysinger - 2017
    That's what a broken heart and forgotten dreams can do to a person. On little more than a whim, she reclaims her grandmother’s old home in quaint Laurel Cove, North Carolina and vows to restore its original charm. When she literally collides with childhood friend, Jack Bowdon, Livy wonders if she’s back for an entirely different reason. Jack can’t believe his childhood crush is back. As the owner of Bowdon's Supplies, and once again the town's most eligible bachelor, he offers to help Livy with repairs. Together they embark on the project—and an undeniable whirlwind romance. But it’s not all smooth sailing. Can they survive the destructive pain of their pasts to discover God’s grace waiting to renovate their hearts?*All books in the Laurel Cove Romance series are stand-alone and can be read in any order.

Welcome to Wishing Bridge


Ruth Logan Herne - 2017
    And it’s not the first time. Abandoned by her drug-addict mother as a teen, she landed in a foster-care group home where she experienced faith and community—and met her best friends, Jazz and Theadora. The trio stuck together like sisters and vowed to make their lives mean something.Now Kelsey’s pushing thirty, and her life has taken a wrong turn. Pregnant and alone after loving the wrong man, she’s on her way to making another life-changing decision when a wicked blizzard strands her outside the sleepy town of Wishing Bridge.After being rescued from a snowbank by handsome cop, she’s embraced by the welcoming village, but she still feels upside down. Fortunately, her frantic SOS brings her besties rushing to help sort things out. They soon find that Wishing Bridge has as many secrets as Kelsey does—and she’s connected to it in ways she couldn’t have imagined.

The Cowboy's Reality Bride


Lorana Hoopes - 2019
    When he gets word that he's been chosen, he can't believe it, but as his last few relationships have ended the same way, he decides to try something different and take a chance. However, he gets more than he bargained for when he falls for a woman who is not a contestant.Laney Swann has been running from her high school insecurites for years, but when she loses her job, she ends up having to return home and reunites with an old friend who convinces her to do the makeup for a reality tv show. Laney expected it to be just a job until she met the bachelor. Now she has to control her feelings while watching him date other women.Will she ever get the courage to tell him how she feels and if she does, will he prove different from the other men in her past?

Provenance


Carla Laureano - 2021
    But for all her success, skyrocketing costs have put her California home and her business in jeopardy. Then an unexpected inheritance provides a timely solution: a grandmother she never knew has left her a group of historic properties in a tiny Colorado town on the edge of ruin.To young, untried mayor Gabriel Brandt, Jasper Lake is more than another small town--it's the place that saved his life. Now, seeing the town slowly wither and die, he's desperate to restore it to its former glory. Unfortunately, his vision is at odds with a local developer who wants to see the town razed and rebuilt as a summer resort. He's sure that he can enlist the granddaughter of one of its most prominent former citizens to his cause--until he meets Kendall and realizes that not only does she know nothing of her own history, she has no interest in reviving a place that once abandoned her.In order to save his beloved town, Gabe must first help Kendall unravel the truth of her own provenance--and Kendall must learn that in order to embrace the future, sometimes you have to start with the past.

As the Light Fades


Catherine West - 2019
    With the family estate under renovations, the solitude she craves seems out of reach. Matthew Stone intends to steer clear of his new tenant. She’s carrying a load of baggage, but as long as she pays the rent, he’ll let her be. He’s got enough to deal with caring for his wayward niece, Mia. Liz doesn’t have time for teenagers and her track record with men is abysmal, but an unlikely friendship forms between the three. When her former boyfriend is charged with assault, Liz is called to testify against him. But he knows the darkest secrets of her life—secrets she’d hoped to keep buried forever, and he’s ready to reveal them. Telling the truth is the right thing to do, but it may cost her everything she’s worked so hard for, and all she’s come to love.***NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR*** As the Light Fades is published as a standalone novel, but features some characters from one of Catherine's earlier novels, The Things We Knew, published in 2016 by Thomas Nelson.

Lulu's Cafe


T.I. Lowe - 2014
    By a stroke of fate, Leah is drawn to the Southern hospitality of a small caf�, looking for a warm meal but finding so much more. Lulu, the owner, offers her a job, a place to stay and a new lease on life. Through Lulu's tenacious warmth and generosity, Leah quickly finds herself embraced by the quaint community as she tries to put herself back together. Given she's accustomed to cruelty, the kindness is overwhelming.Soon Leah meets Crowley Mason, the most eligible bachelor in town. A lawyer and friend of Lulu's, Crowley is wary of Leah's sudden, mysterious arrival. Despite his reserve, something sparks between them that can't be denied. But after all she's been through, can Leah allow herself to truly love and be loved, especially when her first urge is to run?Exploring the resiliency of both the heart and the spirit, Lulu's Caf� gorgeously illustrates how old scars can finally heal no matter how deep they seem.

Bookshop by the Sea


Denise Hunter - 2021
    But nothing could have prepared her to see the best man again.After her mother became bedridden and her father bailed on the family, Sophie found herself serving as a second mother to her twin brother, Seth, and younger sister, Jenna. Sophie supported her siblings through their college years, putting aside her own dream of opening a bookshop in Piper’s Cove—the quaint North Carolina beach town they frequented as children.Now it’s finally time for Sophie to follow her own pursuits. Seth has a new job, and Jenna is set to marry her college beau in Piper’s Cove. But the destination wedding reunites Sophie with best man Aiden Maddox, her high school sweetheart who left her without a backward glance.When an advancing hurricane strands Aiden in Piper’s Cove after the wedding, he finds the hotels booked to capacity and has to ask Sophie to put him up until the storm passes. As the two ride out the weather, old feelings rise to the surface. The delay also leaves Sophie with mere days to get her bookshop up and running. Can she trust Aiden to stick around? And will he find the courage to risk his heart?Includes discussion questions for book clubs

Starlight Inn


Lucie Ulrich - 2016
    She seeks refuge at The Starlight Inn. Though the inn is full, an elderly guest offers to share her room. Accepting the kind offer, Ella soon realizes Tillie Spencer isn’t your average “little old lady.” She knows things nobody else does, and appears to come and go on a whim. Nick Wallace runs the inn along with sister, Fran. The attraction Nick feels for Ella is instantaneous and unexpected, but with the miles that separate them, and both busy with their careers, Nick doubts much will come of their Christmas Eve meeting. Tillie, on the other hand, holds a much different view. Though Tillie won’t admit to being an angel, Nick and Ella think otherwise. How else can they explain the twists and turns that began at The Starlight Inn.

Reclaimed


Jennifer Rodewald - 2015
    He reclaims our desolate places. Suzanna Wilton has had a heavy share of heartache in her twenty-seven years. Left wounded by a marriage cut short, she leaves city life to take up residency in a tiny Nebraska town. Her introduction to her neighbor Paul Rustin is a disaster. Assuming he’s as underhanded as the other local cowboys she’s already met, Suzanna greets him with sharp hostility.Though Paul is offended by Suzanna’s unfriendliness, he can’t stop thinking about her, which unsettles his peaceful life. Intrigued by the woman who lives down the road and propelled by a sense that she carries a painful burden, he frequently drops by to offer help as she adjusts to rural living.Just as Paul’s kindness begins to melt Suzanna’s frozen heart, a conflict regarding her land escalates in town. Even in the warmth of Paul’s love, resentment keeps a cold grip on her fragile heart.When romance isn't enough, will Suzanna ever find peace?

The Gift Of Christmas Past


Cindy Woodsmall - 2017
    They meet again . . . thrown together to help a four-year-old-girl rendered mute after a suspected arson.Years of secrets and anger beg to be set free as Hadley and Monroe try to push aside past hurts and find common ground in order to help the traumatized child and her family.Can the love of Christmas past drift into the present, bringing healing and hope for all?

Gifts of Love


Carol Moncado - 2016
    But somehow, since they started teaching at Serenity Landing Elementary II, he’s managed to worm his way into her life and make himself indispensable. Vince Roberts has loved Samantha since their first date, though he hasn’t done the best job of showing it. Spending time together is one reason he volunteered both of them to plan the staff Christmas party. They work together to take care of one of their own, dealing with the recent death of her husband in a house fire. As they plan the party, Samantha tries to keep Vince from finding his way into her heart. Will she admit the feelings that have been growing for so many years or walk away from Gifts of Love?

Amish Celebrations: Four Novellas


Beth Wiseman - 2018
    The sisters couldn’t be more different: Hannah is outgoing and beautiful, while Rachel is shy and withdrawn. And when newcomer Abraham Stoltzfus arrives in Lancaster County, both women fall head over heels for him, each fighting for his affections in their own ways and driving the sisters to turn on each other. Who will Abraham choose? And will Hannah and Rachel reunite after a devastating heartbreak? A New Beginning Rebecca and Noah are in love and about to be baptized. But when Noah decides to enjoy one last night of his rumschpringe a few weeks before the ceremony, he does something that causes Rebecca to reconsider his proposal. As Rebecca and Noah navigate the turn in their relationship, Rebecca must learn to forgive Noah or abandon her dreams of marrying him. If Noah won’t forgive himself in time for the baptism, his guilt could cause him to run from his love for Rebecca and leave his community behind. A Perfect Plan (previously published in An Amish Wedding)Priscilla King has been planning to marry Chester Lapp since she was sixteen years old, and when Chester pops the question on Priscilla’s nineteenth birthday, wedding plans begin immediately. But everything begins to fall apart as Chester works to build a house for his new bride, only to have one disaster after another occur. Can true love take this couple through the challenges that threaten their union, or will they begin to doubt that they are on the right path, the one God has chosen for them? A Christmas Miracle Mary is twenty-seven years old and already has five young children. Married to her husband at age eighteen, she wasn’t quite prepared for motherhood, and exhaustion and frustration are sending her into a downhill spiral as the holidays approach. Too proud and ashamed to ask for help, Mary’s situation begins to take a toll on her marriage. But when an elderly man in a red suit and his sidekick elf befriend Mary, showering her with wisdom and advice, she must choose to accept help, learn to cope with her situation, and ultimately find the true meaning of Christmas.Sweet, inspirational Amish novellasCollection includes four stories (23K words each) that can be read together or on their ownIncludes discussion questions for book clubs

Bitter Pill


Richard L. Mabry - 2019
    At that point, doubts begin to intrude on his previously untroubled existence.Dr. Abby Davis is tired of her family practice and at odds with God. Dealing with critically ill and dying patients has crushed her spirit to the point she’s ready to quit. But she soon realizes that there’s more to healing than ministering to the physical body.Scott Anderson was the oldest graduate of his seminary class. Then again, most of them hadn’t turned away from a medical practice, hoping to atone for past mistakes (including his wife’s death) by ministering to men’s souls. Now he hopes he hasn’t made a colossal mistake in switching careers. Each of these individuals becomes linked to the other, and each finds that God has a purpose for them—but, as it often does, the lesson comes with discomfort.

Andrew


Jennifer Beckstrand - 2019
    But if their matchmaking younger siblings have their way, all three may soon bear another title: husband . . . Handsome, hardworking, and godly, Andrew Petersheim has always been sure of his place in his Wisconsin Amish community. He'll be a welcome catch for the local girl who finally captures his heart. Mary Coblenz certainly isn't that girl. Two years after "jumping the fence" for the Englischer world, she's returned, unmarried and pregnant. Yet instead of hiding in shame as others in the community expect, she's working at the Honeybee Farm, ignoring the gossips--and winning over Andrew's eight-year-old twin brothers . . .For all Andrew's certainty about right and wrong, it seems he has a lot to learn from Mary's courage, grace, and resilience. She's changing his notions about forgiveness and love, but will she in turn accept the challenge of starting over and choose to stay--with him?Praise for Jennifer Beckstrand and her Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill series "Full of kind, sincere characters struggling with the best ways to stay true to themselves and their beliefs." --Publishers Weekly"A heart-warming story of faith, hope, and second chances. The story will captivate readers who love the Amish culture and enjoy an endearing romance." --Amy Clipston, bestselling author of A Place at Our Table

Lone Star Ranger


Renae Brumbaugh Green - 2015
    She'll show the good-looking lawman he's wrong, even if it means setting out on a risky race across Texas to catch the real killer. Rett doesn't want to convict an innocent man. But he can't let the Boston beauty sway his senses to set a guilty man free. When Elizabeth follows him on a dangerous trek, the Ranger vows to keep her safe. But who will protect him from the woman whose conviction and courage leave him doubting everything—even his heart?