Book picks similar to
Chasing the Avatar (Descent) (Descent Series) (Volume 1) by Jovan Jones


christianfiction
contemporary
question-of-color-and-culture
rom-free

On a Someday


Roxanne Henke - 2009
    Claire Westin has spent her adult life being a wife, mother, and college professor. The last thing she expects as she nears retirement status is to have a whole new career open before her. Her husband, Jim, has spent his life growing his chain of grocery stores. He has a grand plan to restore an old Dodge Charger...someday when he retires. Someday soon, he hopes. If his son Drew would only agree to take over the family business. Drew, however, has plans of his own. And Claire is busy climbing the ladder of her new career. She can't bear the thought that she might have to say "no" to the exciting new opportunities she's pursuing and simply sit around and watch her husband tinker on an old car. What happens when plans collide? When dreams don't materialize? How do you know when your work is done? Or is it ever? On a Someday asks the big questions of life...and tries to answer them. ..".A CBA novelist to watch." -Publishers Weekly

Shame


Greg Garrett - 2009
    He certainly thought there'd be more to it than his ramshackle Oklahoma farm and a mundane job coaching basketball at his old high school. He questions his fatherhood skills too: his oldest son won't speak to him, his younger son wants to quit the basketball team, and now his daughter wants to go out on dates. He loves his wife, but the marriage has settled into complacency. Now his twentieth high school reunion looms and he has agreed to play in an exhibition game at the reunion, which is sure to be a wretched joke. And his ex-girlfriend's back in town, newly single. Twenty years is plenty long enough for a man to mope after what might have been. It's time for John to make himself understand that.Professor of English at Baylor University, Greg Garrett is an award-winning author of both fiction and nonfiction. His critically acclaimed novel Free Bird was chosen by Publishers Weekly as one of the best first novels of 2002. He resides in Austin, Texas.

The Almosts


Em Barrett - 2014
    A new love that can never be. An unexpected pregnancy. A decision that changes everything. And all Lizzy Sutter ever wanted was a simple life… This new companion novel to Leaving Green Island follows the characters you love to places you never would have imagined. ** NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON ** http://www.amazon.com/Almosts-Em-Barr...{As a heads up, this book contains small amounts of underage drinking, explicit language and sexual content.}

Last Mango in Texas


Ray Blackston - 2009
    But after a month of bliss, they suddenly find themselves in rough waters. When Kyle inherits four oil wells from his uncle, he sees his affluence as an opportunity to impress Gretchen. But just before he makes his move, Gretchen hears news of an oil tanker spilling its load near the coast of Alaska. Leaving Kyle behind in Texas, she joins a group of campus activists in Alaska for the summer to clean oil from suffering birds.Kyle is torn between managing his business--and being left lonely in the Lone Star state--and risking everything to fly to Alaska to pursue Gretchen. The young oil man soon discovers that oil slicks are nothing compared to relational slicks. The early bird may get the worm, but the oily bird can ruin romance!

The Ultimate Guide to Darcy Carter


Teresa Slack - 2006
    Regardless, she doubts she can guide herself out of a brown paper bag. When her editor suggests she write The Ultimate Guide to Finding Mr. Right, she wants no part of it. To avoid Mr. Right--since she's pretty sure he doesn't exist--and hopefully figure out where the discontentment with her life is coming from, she heads south to research one last ultimate guidebook. The questions and doubts swirling around in her head follow. If she's no longer America's Ultimate Guide Girl, who is she? Would she recognize Mr. Right if he was standing right in front of her? Where does an Ultimate Guide Girl turn for guidance? Her heavenly father who gives wisdom to all who seek it? Or can she rely on herself, the woman with all the answers? This clean contemporary Christian romance is a feel-good, laugh-out-loud story that reminds us sometimes the things we work so hard for don't bring the fulfillment and happiness we're looking for.

Trump and the Future of America


Jeremiah Johnson - 2020
    The future belongs to the Baby Boomers and the need for a praying Church has never been greater.

The Sheikh's Imposter Bride (Sweet Sheikh Surprises Book 3)


Holly Rayner - 2021
    

Forewarned


Debra Ullrick - 2009
    Unable to get out much because of pain, she goes online in hopes of finding some new friends to fill the void the long, lonely winters bring. A budding friendship develops, and soon, Jasmine finds herself in danger. Jack Warren is in love with Jasmine and has been for years. When he discovers she’s talking to strangers on the Internet, a pit fills his stomach, signaling something’s not right about one particular person. Can he convince her to give up her budding friendship before it’s too late? Will she ever come to love him as more than just a friend?

The Designer Bag at the Garbage Dump


Jackie Macgirvin - 2012
    It's a fish out of water story about how God turns 32-year-old Julie's manicured, pedicured, self-absorbed designer life upside down. Julie, a nominal Christian, heads to New York for a weekend shopping binge. On a deserted train, she sits next to a stranger who turns out to be Jesus. After a wonderful, healing conversation she agrees to His request to, "feed My lambs." When she gets off the train she's in India.Her charmed life is shattered--she must care for 12 "filthy orphans" living on a dump before she can return to her comfortable life. She lives on the street and overwhelming new challenges arise daily. While squatting in an alley, going to the bathroom, an orphan, named Ravi, steals her designer purse. Unbeknownst to Julie, Ravi, who speaks English, holds the key to her communicating with the other orphans.Will Julie learn 1) to trust the Lord when nothing is in her control? 2) that she doesn't have to perform to be loved? and 3) that her life is built on a shaky foundation? Can she protect the orphans from a predator who steals and maims children and sends them out to beg? How will God provide food when her wallet is stolen? Can she find safe homes for the children?

Deliver Me from Evil


Kathi Macias - 2011
    Readers will also meet 18-year-old, Bible-college-bound Jonathan and his 16-year-old sister, Leah, whose paths cross Mara's and who become involved in her dramatic rescue. Interwoven between the stories of Mara, Jonathan, and Leah is the heartbreaking story of another young woman in captivity in the Golden Triangle of Thailand, whose past life mysteriously connects to the young people in San Diego.

The Bone Box


Bob Hostetler - 2008
     Archeologist and agnostic Randall Bullock has come to Israel to try and resurrect his crumbling career and shattered life. Teaming up with Miri Sharon, a beautiful representative of Israeli Antiques Authority, the two unearth a stone casket marked "Joseph, son of Caiaphas," which contains several fragile scrolls that document the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This discovery launches Miri and Randall, along with his estranged nineteen-year-old daughter, Tracy, into a race to validate the monumental find, no matter what the Israeli authorities, media circus, and archaeological rivals want the world to believe. Forced to face the power of this historical resurrection, Randall must also struggle with his own beliefs -- or lack of them -- while trying to keep the consequences of their discovery from taking a disastrous turn. The Bone Box, fraught with political intrigue, is a suspense-filled blend of historical fact, romance, and transforming faith. Through all the danger and struggle, Randall discovers how easy -- and deadly -- it is to ignore the evidence and reject the true story of Christ.

Saving the Cowboy Billionaire: A Chappell Brothers Novel (Bluegrass Ranch Book 7)


Emmy Eugene - 2021
    Andy and Ryan has done so well that Ry finally has enough to open a permanent storefront and retail space, so she's not sure why she feels like she has to work so hard to convince her friends that she's doing just fine.Just because her sister, who ran the clothing company with her, passed away five years ago doesn't mean she's going to break down at any moment.But with her fifteen-year class reunion approaching, she needs a boyfriend to show everyone she's done more than design a few hats and belts in the past decade and a half. When she runs into Conrad Chappell and asks if he's going to their class reunion, a plan forms.It doesn't hurt that she and Conrad had a little summer fling sixteen years ago...or that he's one of the wealthiest and best-looking men in all of Kentucky's horse country. Can Ry and Conrad handle their second chance at a relationship when it starts out fake?

Desperate Pastors' Wives


Ginger Kolbaba - 2007
    All desperate for something. Is it possible that their desperation will lead to hope? Mimi, Lisa, Jennifer, and Felicia all live in the fishbowl of Red River, Ohio. Everyone expects something from them. Gourmet casseroles. Perfect husbands. Well-behaved children. They expect even more of themselves. The constant demands and always-ringing phones are enough to drive any sane woman crazy. Add to all that the condescending Katherine Fleming Katt -- self-promoting pastor's wife of the town's largest church -- who loves to flaunt her superior position. In the midst of such chaos, will each woman find the one thing she longs for? When the unflappable Kitty Katt starts showing up at odd places, the four friends get suspicious. Is Kitty hiding something? What secrets lie behind her "perfect" exterior? But even more significant than unraveling Kitty Katt's secrets is finding answers for themselves.

Mercy Like Sunlight


Liz Curtis Higgs - 2014
    Adrift on the streets of Chicago, she is surrounded by strangers and hounded by demons, both real and imagined. Her neighbors in Lincoln Park call her Mad Mary—until a fearless young pastor dares to call Mary his friend.Inspired by the biblical account of Mary Magdalene, this touching contemporary story first appeared in Liz’s nonfiction book, Mad Mary, later titled Unveiling Mary Magdalene. Now updated as a stand-alone novella, Mercy Like Sunlight is a powerful tribute to God’s boundless compassion and unending grace.“I was deeply moved by the story of Pastor Jake and Mary Margaret Delaney. So well written. So challenging to me. So Christlike. And so Chicago!”—Neta Jackson, best-selling author of The Yada Yada Prayer Group“Irresistible, unconditional love shines through on each and every page!”—Sharon Ewell Foster, Christy Award-winning author of Passing by Samaria

The Billionaire's Fake Engagement (Durand Billionaire Brothers Book 1)


Leslie North - 2022