Just Between You and Me: A Novel of Losing Fear and Finding God


Jenny B. Jones - 2009
    Her job as a cinematographer takes her from one exotic locale to the next. When Maggie's not working, she loves to rappel off cliffs or go skydiving. Nothing frightens her.Nothing, that is, except Ivy, Texas, where a family emergency pulls her back home to a town full of bad memories, painful secrets, and people Maggie left far behind . . . for a reason.Forced to stay longer than she intended, Maggie finds her family a complete mess, including the niece her sister has abandoned. Ten-year-old Riley is struggling in school and out of control at home. The only person who can really handle the pint-sized troublemaker is Conner, the local vet and Ivy's most eligible bachelor. But Conner and Maggie keep butting heads--he's suspicious of her and, well, she doesn't rely on anyone but herself.As Maggie humorously fumbles her way from one mishap to another, she realizes she's going to need to ask for help from the one person who scares her the most.To save one little girl--and herself--can Maggie let go of her fears and just trust God?

The Fourth Hand


John Irving - 2001
    In Boston, a renowned hand surgeon awaits the opportunity to perform the nation’s first hand transplant; meanwhile, in the distracting aftermath of an acrimonious divorce, the surgeon is seduced by his housekeeper. A married woman in Wisconsin wants to give the one-handed reporter her husband’s left hand – that is, after her husband dies. But the husband is alive, relatively young, and healthy.

Long Journey Home


Sharlene MacLaren - 2008
    The last thing she needs in her life is another man, so she's less than thrilled when a handsome but brooding stranger moves into the apartment across the hall. Dan Mattson may be attractive, but his circumstances certainly aren't: a former church pastor, he abandoned his flock in Michigan and fled to the Chicago suburbs after the death of his beloved wife and baby daughter in a tragic automobile accident. Embittered by his loss, Dan turns his back on God. Callie mistrusts men, and the angry Dan often gives her good reason to. Both are weighted down by the scars and disappointment in their pasts. When Callie's ex-husband shows up to wreak more havoc in her life, Dan finds himself coming to her defense-and facing his own demons in the process. Will Dan and Callie be able to get past their baggage and give love another chance?

Prize of My Heart


Lisa Norato - 2012
    Will His Love Endure Once He Learns Her Secret?Three years ago, Captain Brogan Talvis's late wife abandoned their son, leaving no clue as to the boy's whereabouts. After searching relentlessly, Brogan discovers his son was adopted by a New England shipbuilder. And the man's daughter, Lorena Huntley, acts as loving guardian to the child.Lorena, who hides a dark truth, finds herself falling for the handsome captain and ex-privateer who's come to secure ownership of one of her father's ships. She's unaware of Brogan's own secret when another's deceit has her sailing toward Europe against her will.Haunted by thoughts of Lorena in peril, Brogan is compelled to choose between the boy he longs for and the woman who has captured his heart.

Learning to Fly


Roxanne Henke - 2008
    Each time Susan thinks she just might have a handle on this "mothering thing," Lily discovers a new stage of growth and testing and Susan tries her best to keep up.A chance meeting of a high school acquaintance, JoJo, also a new mom, in the grocery store gives both Susan and her daughter friends to learn and grow with. Parenting their girls from toddler-through-teen years is a constant challenge for the two mothers...and their daughters. As high school graduation approaches, all four of these women face new territory. Are the young women ready for life on their own? Are the mothers ready to let their girls go?"Learning to Fly" is a story of life, love, and letting go."Fiction that finds blessing in the broken"..".a CBA novelist to watch." --"Publishers Weekly"

Hurricane Season


Lauren K. Denton - 2018
    While Ty manages their herd of dairy cows, Betsy busies herself with the farm’s day-to-day operations and tries to forget her dream of motherhood. But when her free-spirited sister, Jenna, drops off her two young daughters for “just two weeks,” Betsy’s carefully constructed wall of self-protection begins to crumble.As the two weeks stretch deeper into the Alabama summer, Betsy and Ty learn to navigate the new additions in their world—and revel in the laughter that now fills their home. Meanwhile, record temperatures promise to usher in the most active hurricane season in decades.Attending an art retreat four hundred miles away, Jenna is fighting her own battles. She finally has time and energy to focus on her photography, a lifelong ambition. But she wonders how her rediscovered passion can fit in with the life she’s made back home as a single mom.When Hurricane Ingrid aims a steady eye at the Alabama coast, Jenna must make a decision that will change her family’s future, even as Betsy and Ty try to protect their beloved farm and their hearts. Hurricane Season is the story of one family’s unconventional journey to healing—and the relationships that must be mended along the way.“A story both powerful and enchanting: a don’t-miss novel in the greatest Southern traditions of storytelling.” —Patti Callahan Henry, New York Times bestselling author for The Hideaway

When the Heart Cries


Cindy Woodsmall - 2006
    She's been in love with Mennonite Paul Waddell for three years, and before returning to college for his senior year, Paul asks Hannah to be his wife. Hannah accepts, aware that her marriage will change her relationship with her family forever.On the evening of their engagement, tragedy strikes and in one unwelcome encounter, all that Hannah has known and believed is destroyed. As she finds herself entangled in questions that the Old Ways of her people cannot answer, Hannah faces the possibility of losing her place in her family, in her community- and in the heart of the man she loves.When the Heart Cries is book one in the Sisters of the Quilt series.

The Brushstroke Legacy


Lauraine Snelling - 2006
    Hidden. Denied. Can art be powerful enough to endure? Ragni Clauson’s work, relationships, and body all seem to be falling apart. And she isn’t convinced that spending her vacation fixing up her great-grandmother’s cabin and supervising her rebellious teenage niece, Erika, will offer any much-needed rejuvenation. As Ragni and Erika clean, they begin to uncover the secret paintings and life of Nilda, Ragni’s ancestor who lived in the cabin in the early 1900s. Ragni doesn’t know how much she has in common with her great-grandmother, but it becomes clear Nilda faced her own struggles. Taking care of home and menfolk, fighting off locusts, raising her daughter, and finding time to paint in the midst of it all were not easy tasks. Will Nilda’s passion for enduring art re-ignite Ragni’s artistic soul a century later? Weaving together the stories of three generations of women, The Brushstroke Legacy stirs us to believe that no matter the circumstances, we are called to use our gifts– never knowing when they might bring a stranger to a new place of hope.From the Trade Paperback edition.

The Deepest Waters


Dan Walsh - 2011
    A terrible hurricane strikes and the grand ship begins to sink. Just before it goes under, a rescue ship appears on the horizon. But it only has room enough to save the women and children. Laura soon finds herself sailing away toward New York city on a ship filled with orphans and widows, to meet John's family whom she’s never met. Desperate for a miracle, Laura braces herself to face life alone. (Inspired by a True Story)

The Dirty Parts of the Bible


Sam Torode - 2007
    Tobias is obsessed with two things: God and girls. Mostly girls, of course. But being a Baptist preacher's son, he can't escape God. When his father is blinded in a bizarre accident (involving hard cider and bird droppings), Tobias must ride the rails to Texas to recover a long-hidden stash of money. Along the way, he's initiated into the hobo brotherhood by Craw, a ribald vagabond-philosopher. Obstacles arise in the form of a saucy prostitute, a flaming boxcar, and a man-eating catfish. But when he meets Sarah, a tough farm girl under a dark curse, he finds out that the greatest challenge of all is love.

Blink


Ted Dekker - 2002
    For starters, he has one of the world's highest IQs. Now he's suddenly struck by an incredible power--the ability to see multiple potential futures.Still reeling from this inexplicable gift, Seth stumbles upon a beautiful woman named Miriam. Unknown to Seth, Miriam is a Saudi Arabian princess who has fled her veiled existence to escape a forced marriage of unimaginable consequences. Cultures collide as they're thrown together and forced to run from an unstoppable force determined to kidnap or kill Miriam.Seth's mysterious ability helps them avoid capture once, then twice. But with no sleep, a fugitive princess by his side, hit men a heartbeat away, and a massive manhunt steadily closing in, evasion becomes impossible.An intoxicating tale set amidst the shifting sands of the Middle East and the back roads of America, Blink engages issues as ancient as the earth itself...and as current as today's headlines.

Home Another Way


Christa Parrish - 2008
    When her estranged father dies, she travels to the tiny mountain hamlet of Jonah to claim her inheritance. Once there, she learns her father's will stipulates a six-month stay before she can receive the money

The Storekeeper's Daughter


Wanda E. Brunstetter - 2005
    Helping her widowed father run a store, manage a household, and raise seven children is a daunting task. There is no time to think about courtship or having her own family, though her heart yearns for the attention of Caleb Hoffmeir. But her days are plotted for her-until the afternoon her baby brother disappears from the yard. How can Naomi expect anyone to love and trust her if she can't take care of one small boy? Should she leave all that is familiar and seek a new avenue of life? The Storekeeper's Daughter is book 1 in the Daughter's of Lancaster County series. Other books in the series include The Quilter's Daughter: Book 2 and The Bishop's Daughter: Book 3.

The Art of Arranging Flowers


Lynne Branard - 2014
    In her twenty years as a florist she has stood behind the counter at the Flower Shoppe with her faithful dog, Clementine, resting at her feet. A customer can walk in, and with just a glance or a few words, Ruby can throw together the perfect arrangement for any occasion. Whether intended to rekindle a romance, mark a celebration, offer sympathy, or heal a broken heart, her expressive floral designs mark the moments and milestones in the lives of her neighbors. It’s as though she knows just what they want to say, just what they need. Yet Ruby’s own heart’s desires have gone ignored since the death of her beloved sister. It will take an invitation from a man who’s flown to the moon, the arrival of a unique little boy, and concern from a charming veterinarian to reawaken her wounded spirit. Any life can be derailed, but the healing power of community can put it right again.

While We Were Watching Downton Abbey


Wendy Wax - 2013
     When the concierge of The Alexander, a historic Atlanta apartment building, invites his fellow residents to join him for weekly screenings of Downton Abbey, four very different people find themselves connecting with the addictive drama, and—even more unexpectedly—with each other…Samantha Davis married young and for the wrong reason: the security of old Atlanta money—for herself and for her orphaned brother and sister. She never expected her marriage to be complicated by love and compromised by a shattering family betrayal.Claire Walker is now an empty nester and struggling author who left her home in the suburbs for the old world charm of The Alexander, and for a new and productive life. But she soon wonders if clinging to old dreams can be more destructive than having no dreams at all.And then there’s Brooke MacKenzie, a woman in constant battle with her faithless ex-husband. She’s just starting to realize that it’s time to take a deep breath and come to terms with the fact that her life is not the fairy tale she thought it would be.For Samantha, Claire, Brooke—and Edward, who arranges the weekly gatherings—it will be a season of surprises as they forge a bond that will sustain them through some of life’s hardest moments—all of it reflected in the unfolding drama, comedy, and convergent lives of Downton Abbey.