+70 Authors Challenge: A #JLASblog Exclusive!+ [focus on] Inspirational (#INSPY) Fiction

A Personal Challenge for the Next Five Years:

Jorie Loves A Story:
70 Author Challenge:
Focus On Inspirational Fiction
August 2013-August 2019
Re-queued and Started: August 2018 to August 2023
Specifics:
{select 1-5 titles per author}
Check their blogs/sites: {weekly, monthly}

Writing for ChristWhilst reading a recent post on Writing for Christ, {Casey Herringshaw’s blog} back in January 2013, I started to notice that I was enjoying her book reviews and author interviews! I’ve wanted to focus on recent additions to inspirational fiction ever since I grew up on the Mandie series by Lois Gladys Leppard; Judith Pella’s Frontier Lady; Frank Peretti’s Cooper Kids Adventures, and graduated into the O’Malley series by Dee Henderson! In the past four years, I’ve come across the beautiful works of: Julie Lessman and Deeanne Gist, as much as enjoying the blissful reverie of the novellas published through Heartsong Presents!

Whilst I burnt quite a heap of midnight oil, the authors below stood out to me as being the ones I’d like to read next! Only a handful of the authors I’ve come across prior to reading Ms. Herringshaw’s blog, and yet, I never had the proper chance to dig into their books! With a few exceptions, whereupon I have read one title by them! I will put an asterisk by the title to denote a prior encounter.  As I read their novels, titles will appear next to their names. Individual author’s names will link to their page on Fantastic Fiction, which is an author and book directory which aides readers in knowing which books to read first in series OR which book they want to begin their sojourn with an author!

I read such a wide cross-section of INSPY per year – everything from traditional Christian Fiction to stories set within the worlds of the Amish & Mennonite communities to World Religions and LDS Fiction, too! Inspirational Fiction itself encompasses *everything!* about leading a faith-based life – thus, it’s open to all religious backgrounds and lifestyles where a person humbly walks in faith as they live their life!

It should be said, that even though I might have found books to be less than enlightening or to my liking,… I am quite aware that there is a following for them by others. Any books by which I personally have deemed not worth completing nor such will ever be picked up again by my hands and mind, does not diminish the fact that someone, somewhere, has found them to be the absolute BEST book that they have ever dared to read. I acknowledge this as whilst I travel through my personal Challenge(s) in Literature, I might stumble across titles by authors I have included in my final list but by which have been struck through. One cannot like everything one comes across and this is what makes the world such a beautiful place: the differences that make us individuals, which includes our particular tastes and wanderings in the literary world.

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70 Authors Challenge Badge created by Jorie via Canva. Photo Credit: Unsplash Photographer Brigitte Tohm. (Creative Commons Zero)Originally this was meant to be a 12 month Challenge, except to say, when I equated out the books per week that would be needed to be read, I realised that I had short-changed myself! I cannot read 6 to 8 books per week!! Therefore, I decided a more realistic time frame for myself, is a full two year span, which turns a 12 month challenge into a full 24 month challenge! Afterall, I wanted this to be enjoyable, not something to stress over!!

The books listed by each author are the stories I intend to seek out & read by them. This is an evolving List! As I progress through sharing my ruminations, I’ll be adding to a Riffle List which compliments this page! My original selections were misplaced – thereby, through visiting FantasticFiction & re-visiting Casey’s blog, I compiled a new List in the ending hours of December, 2017.

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Add LibraryThing

*coming Spring 2020!*

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TBR List Revised: 16th August, 2018
Page updated: 25th August, 2020

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Portions of this List are being turnt into an #AudioReads List courtesy of a FREE trial on Scribd for two months (til 15th October, 2018 starting 16th August, 2018) *and!* the added blessing of having the Romance Package via Audible which allows me to seek out INSPY Audios for *free!* Whilst thereafter I maintained my Scribd membership consistently starting end of Spring start of Summer, 2020. Whereas a regional library of mine has a much more extensive audiobook catalogue via their CloudLibrary app than my local library does via OverDrive which was a bit surprising!

Note: (*audioS) = Scribd | (*audioA) = Audible Rom Pkg | (*audioCL) = CloudLibrary

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  1. Laurie Alice Eakes:* [Cliffs of Cornwall series] A Lady’s Honour; A Stranger’s Secret [One-Offs] True as Fate (*audioS); My Enemy, My Heart (*audioS); Collision of the Heart (*audioS) [Anthologies] Wild Prairie Roses
  2. Lena Nelson Dooley:* [Anthologies] Wild Prairie Roses
  3. Dorothy Love: [Hickory Ridge series] Beyond All Measure; Beauty for Ashes; Every Perfect Gift; A Proper Marriage [One-Offs] Mrs Lee and Mrs Gray; The Bracelet (*audioS); A Heart So True (*audioS) [Anthologies] Among the Fair Magnolias
  4. MaryLu Tyndall: ++ [Escape to Paradise series] Forsaken Dreams; Elusive Hope; Abandoned Memories [One-Offs] Veil of Pearls; She Walks in Beauty (*audioS)
  5. Elizabeth (Beth) Goddard: [Mountain Cove series] Buried; Untraceable; Backfire; Submerged; Tailspin; Deception [One-Offs] Treacherous Skies [Uncommon Justice series] Never Let Go; Always Look Twice; Don’t Keep Silent
  6. Laura Frantz: [The Ballantyne Legacy] Love’s Reckoning (*audioS); Love’s Awakening (*audioS); Love’s Fortune (*audioS); The Mistress of Tall Acre (*audioS) [One-Offs] The Frontierman’s Daughter (re-read); The Colonel’s Lady; A Moonbow Night; The Lacemaker (*audioS)
  7. Susan May Warren: [Daughters of Fortune series] Heiress; Baroness; Duchess [Deep Haven series] Happily Ever After; Tying the Knot; The Perfect Match; My Foolish Heart; The Shadow of Your Smile; Hook, Line & Sinker; You Don’t Know Me [One-Offs] Sons of Thunder
  8. Karen Witemeyer: [One-Offs] A Tailor-Made Bride (*audioS); Head in the Clouds (*audioS); To Win Her Heart (*audioS); A Worthy Pursuit (*audioS); More than Meets the Eye
  9. Catherine Richmond: Spring for Susannah; Through Rushing Water; Gliding the Waters; Third Strand of the Cord
  10. Erica Vetsch: [One-Offs] A Bride’s Portrait of Dodge City, Kansas; Bride Sews With Love in Needles, California; The Cactus Creek Challenge
  11. Lorna Seilstad:++ [Lake Manawa Summers series] Making Waves; A Great Catch; The Ride of Her Life [Gregory Sisters series] When Love Calls; While Love Stirs; As Love Blooms
  12. Sarah Sundin: [Wings of Glory series] A Distant Melody; A Memory Between Us; Blue Skies Tomorrow [Wings of the Nightingale series] With Every Letter; On Distant Shores; In Perfect Time [Anthologies] Where Treetops Glisten
  13. Ann H. Gabhart: [Rosey Corner series] Angel Sister; Small Town Girl; Love Comes Home [Shaker series] The Outsider; The Believer; The Seeker; The Blessed; The Gifted; The Innocent; Christmas at Harmony Hill  [One-Offs] Words Spoken True
  14. Beth Vogt: [One-Offs] Catch A Falling Star; Somebody Like You; Things I Never Told You
  15. Kim Vogel Sawyer: [Sweet Sanctuary series] Sinking Sand; Sweet Sanctuary; My Soul Sings [Ollenburger series] Waiting for Summer’s Return; Where the Heart Leads [One-Offs] Echoes of Mercy; A Whisper of Peace; Courting Miss Amsel; Song of My Heart; My Heart Remembers; Fields of Grace; A Hopeful Heart; A Hope in Drayton Valley [Anthologies] Montana Mistletoe
  16. Denise Hunter: [Big Sky Romance series] A Cowboy’s Touch; The Accidental Bride; The Trouble with Cowboys [Chapel Springs series] Barefoot Summer; Dancing with Fireflies; The Wishing Season; Married til’ Monday; +A December Bride (Novella Collection, see below)
  17. Janice A. Thompson: [Weddings by Bella series] Fools Rush In (re-read); Swinging on a Star; It had to be You; That’s Amor [American Tapestries series] Queen of the Waves [Weddings by Design series] Picture Perfect; The Icing on the Cake; The Dream Dress; A Bouquet of Love [One-Offs] Love Finds You in Groom, Texas [Anthologies] Ozark’s Weddings
  18. Joanne Bischof: [Cadence of Grace series] Be Still My Soul; Though My Heart is Torn; My Hope is Found [One-Offs] Cry of My Heart; The Lady and the Lionheart; Sons of Blackbird Mountain
  19. Cara Putman: [Hidden Justice series] Beyond Justice; Imperfect Justice; Blind Justice (+Novellas: Dying for Love*; Hidden Love) [*] Cherry Blossoms Capers [One-Offs] A Wedding Transpires on Mackinac Island
  20. Melanie Dobson: [Legacy of Love series] The Runaway [One-Offs] Love Finds You in Amana, Iowa; Chateau of Secrets; Love Finds you in Mackinac Island
  21. Lorena McCourtney: [Cait Kinkaid Files] Dying to Read; Dolled up to Die; Death Takes A Ride [Mac n’ Ivy Mysteries] Something Buried, Something Blue
  22. Suzanne Woods Fisher: [Stoney Ridge Seasons series] The Keeper; The Haven; The Lesson [Lancaster County Secrets series] The Choice; The Waiting; The Search
  23. Jocelyn Green:↑ [Heroines Behind the Lines series] Wedded to War; Widow of Gettysburg [One-Offs] The Mark of the King; A Refuge Assured [Anthologies] The Message in a Bottle
  24. Kathryn Cushman: [One-Offs] Almost Amish; Another Dawn; A Promise to Remember; Chasing Hope
  25. Ronie Kendig:++[Breed Apart trilogy] Trinity: Military Dog; Talon: Combat Tracking Team; Beowulf: Explosives Division Dog [Quiet Professionals series] Raptor 6; Hawk; Falcon; Titanis [Discarded Heroes] Nightshade; Digitalis; Wolfsbane; Firethorn; Lygos
  26. Julie Klassen: [Tales from Ivy Hill series] The Innkeeper of Ivy Hill (*audio); The Ladies of Ivy Cottage (*audio) [One-Offs] The Dancing Master (*audio); The Maid of Fairbourne Hall (*audio); The Girl in the Gatehouse (*audio); The Silent Governess (*audio); The Apothecary’s Daughter (*audio)
  27. Amber Stokes Holcomb: (Site) [One-Offs] Bleeding Heart; Forget Me Not; How A Star Falls [Novellas] Where Trains Collide
  28. Gina Holmes: [One-Offs] Dry As Rain (stories Ms Herringshaw wants to write); Wings of Glass; Driftwood Tides
  29. Maureen Lang:++ [Great War series] Look to the East; Whisper on the Wind; Springtime of the Spirit [Gilded Legacy series] Bees in the Butterfly Garden; All in Good Time
  30. Becky Wade: [Bradford Sisters Romance series] Then Came You (Novella); True to You; Falling for You; Sweet on You [Misty River Romance series] Stay With Me [Porter Family series] Undeniably Yours; Meant to Be Mine; A Love Like Ours; The Proposal (Novella); Her One And Only
  31. Tracy Higley:++ [One-Offs] Garden of Madness; Hmm…
  32. Susan Meissner: [One-Offs] A Fall of Marigolds; Lady in Waiting; A Sound Among the Trees; Secrets of a Charmed Life; Stars Over Sunset Boulevard; A Bridge Across the Ocean; As Bright As Heaven
  33. Katie Gensher: (Site) [One-Offs] Wishing On Willows [Anthologies] An October Bride(+*)
  34. Winnie Griggs:++
  35. Sandra Robbins:++
  36. Judith McCoy Miller:
  37. Elizabeth Musser:
  38. Carol Cox:++
  39. Christa Allan: [One-Offs] The Edge of Grace; Test of Faith; Since You’ve Been Gone; Because You Loved Me
  40. Lisa Norato:
  41. Deborah Raney:++
  42. Olivia Newport: The Pursuit of Lucy Banning; The Dilemma of Charlotte Farrow
  43. Rachel Hauck:++↓
  44. Candace Calvert: [series] Disaster Status
  45. Diann Mills:
  46. Vanetta Chapman:
  47. Siri Mitchell:
  48. Melanie Dickerson: [Hagenheim series] The Healer’s Apprentice [Thornbeck / Medieval Fairy Tale Romance] The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest; The Beautiful Pretender; The Noble Servant
  49. Nicole Baart:
  50. Julie Cantrell:↓ [Into the Free series] Into the Free; When Mountains Move [One-Offs] The Feathered Bone
  51. Regina Jennings: Holding the Fort
  52. Jody Hedlund: The Doctor’s Lady; The Preacher’s Bride
  53. Nicole Seitz:
  54. Tessa Afshar:↑
  55. Tammy Barley:
  56. Beth Webb Hart:↓
  57. Cindy Woodsmall:
  58. Allison Pittman:
  59. Lisa Bogart: (Site)
  60. Serena B. Miller:
  61. Jenny B. Jones:
  62. Sandra Byrd: [Daughters of Hampshire] Mist of Midnight  (print) + (*audioS); Bride of a Distant Isle (*audioS); A Lady in Disguise(*audioS); [the Victorian Ladies] Lady of a Thousand Treasures; book two comes along in 2020!
  63. Jillian Kent:*
  64. Maggie Brendan:
  65. Tamara Leigh:
  66. Bonnie Leon:
  67. Elizabeth Camden: [Empire State series] A Dangerous Legacy; A Desperate Hope; A Daring Venture;
  68. Brandilyn Collins:
  69. Jaimie Carie: (Site)
  70. Yvonne Harris:

+ A few honourable mentions of interest from Ms Herringshaw’s beautifully lovely blog!

  1. Lynne Gentry: [One-Offs] Reinventing Leona [Carthage Chronicles series] Healer of Carthage; Return to Exile; Valley of Decision; A Perfect Fit; Shades of Surrender
  2. Meg Moseley: [One-Offs] When Sparrows Fall; A Stillness of Chimes; Gone South [Anthologies] A May Bride(+*)
  3. Marybeth Whalen: [One-Offs] She Makes It Look Easy; The Mailbox
  4. Anne Mateer: [One-Offs] Wings of a Dream; At Every Turn; A Home for my Heart; Playing by Heart
  5. Victoria Bylin: Until I Found You; Of Men & Angels; West of Heaven; Abbie’s Outlaw; Midnight Marriage; The Bounty Hunter’s Bride
  6. Kristy Cambron: The Butterfly and the Violin
  7. Becky St. Amant: All’s Fair in Love and Cupcakes
  8. Melissa Tagg: Here to Stay
  9. Kathi Macias: Red Ink
  10. Sally John: Ransomed Dreams

(+*) part of a series of Bride Novellas: A December Bride (Denise Hunter); A January Bride (Deborah Raney); A February Bride (Betsy St. Amant); A March Bride (Rachel Hauck); An April Bride (Lenora Worth); A June Bride (Marybeth Whalen); A July Bride (Beth Wiseman); An August Bride (Debra Clopton); A September Bride (Kathryn Springer); An October Bride (Katie Genshert); A November Bride (Beth K. Vogt). Methinks I shall implore my ILL’ing services!! I wonder if I could sort out a way to borrow each of these per each month of the year during 2018?

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Inspirational Fiction authors
I am focusing on outside of the Challenge
of reading stories directly by the writers I found
via Writing for Christ (blog):

These are authors I crossed paths with in the book blogosphere and/or came to know before I ventured online and found myself happily enchanted by those who share their bookish lives via blogs! The first three authors on this list were authors I loved reading prior to being active online. One author I had the blessing of ‘meeting’ through discovering her stories via blog tours – of which made me a lifelong reader of her novels! I hand-selected these authors to read concurrently to the authors I found on Writing for Christ.

  1. Dee Henderson: [series] Full Disclosure; Unspoken; Undetected; Taken; Missing.
  2. Deeanne Gist: (see also BookTalk Nation post)
  3. Julie Lessman: [Daughters of Boston trilogy] A Light in the Window (prequel); A Passion Most Pure; A Passion Redeemed; A Passion Denied. [Winds of Change trilogy] A Hope Undaunted; A Heart Revealed; A Love Surrended. [Heart of San Francisco trilogy] Love at Any Cost; Dare to Love Again; Surprised by Love. [Isle of Hope trilogy] Isle of Hope; Love Everlasting; A Glimmer of Hope (novella)(awaiting POD/print) [Non-Fiction] Romance-ology
  4. Mary Ellis: [New Beginnings series] Living in Harmony; Love Comes to Paradise; A Little Bit of Charm. [Secrets of the South series] Midnight on the Mississippi; What Happened on Beale Street; Magnolia Moonlight; Sunset in Old Savannah [Wayne County series] Abigail’s New Hope; A Marriage for Meghan
  5. Brenda S. Anderson*: (Site) [Coming Home series] Chain of Mercy; Pieces of Granite; Memory Box Secrets; Hungry for Home. [Where the Heart Is series] Risking Love; Capturing Beauty; Planting Hope.
  6. Darlene Franklin: [Barbour Books omnibus novel collections]
  7. Vicki McDonough: [Barbour Books omnibus novel collections]
  8. Pam Hillman: [Barbour Books omnibus novel collections]
  9. Roseanna M. White: [Culper Ring series] Ring of Secrets [Ladies of the Manor series] The Lost Heiress; The Reluctant Duchess; A Lady Unrivaled.
  10. Ruth Axtell:++
  11. Lisa Tawn Bergren:++
  12. Marta Perry:++
  13. Steven James:
  14. Stephanie Grace Whitson: A Captain for Laura Rose; Daughter of the Regiment; Messenger by Moonlight
  15. Tracie Peterson: [Song of Alaska series] Dawn’s Prelude (re-reading)
  16. Colleen Coble:
  17. Dale Cramer:
  18. Carolyn Steele: (Site) [One-Offs] Willow Springs; Soda Springs
  19. Carla Kelly: [One-Offs] Softly Falling; Summer Campaign; Courting Carrie in Wonderland [Anthologies] A Season of Love;
  20. Debbie Lynne Costello: (Site) [Anthologies] A Cup of Christmas Cheer, Vol3 (“The Letter”);

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Belle Fiction Reading Challenge banner created by Jorie in Canva.

A sub-focus on the writers from Southern Belle View Daily – previously a group author blog.

Lisa Wingate: [Carolina Chronicles series] The Prayer Box; (Novellas: The Sea Glass Sisters, The Tidewater Sisters & The Sandcastle Sister); The Story Keeper; The Sea Keeper’s Daughters.

Kellie Coates Gilbert: [Texas Gold series] A Woman of Fortune; Where Rivers Part; A Reason to Stay; What Matters Most

Rachel Hauck: The Fifth Avenue Story Society

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The INSPY Authors I discovered whilst renewing my JOY of being chatty whilst visiting author & reader book blogs from DEC 2017 to NYE, 2018.

  1. Bethany Turner: [One-Offs] The Secret Life of Sarah Hollenbeck; Hadley Beckett’s Next Dish
  2. Linda Brook Davis: (Site) [Anthologies] A Rock Christmas Collection (+Novellas: A Christmas to Remember; A Christmas Measure of Love [One-Offs] The Calling of Ella McFarland
  3. M.L. Hamilton: (Site) Pendant

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The INSPY Authors I have been blessed to either discover through hosting blog tours and/or bookish events online whilst endeavouring to find other INSPY storycrafters who are curating the kind of INSPY I desire to read most.

  1. Rose Chandler Johnson: (Site) [Series: Pine Haven] Refuge at Pine Lake;
  2. Heidi McCahan: (Site) [Series: Seabrook Romances] Sweet Melody;
  3. Cathy Gohlke: (Site) The Medallion;
  4. Joanne Bischof: (Site) [Series: Blackbird Mountain] Sons of Blackbird Mountain; Daughters of Northern Shores;
  5. Brandy Bruce: (Site) [Series: Last Summer] The Last Summer; After the Rain;
  6. E.C. Jackson: (Site) [Series: Hope] The Certain Hope;
  7. Deborah Heal: (Site) [Series: History Mystery] Time and Again;
  8. Janalyn Voigt: (Site) [Series: Tales of Faeraven] Dawnsinger; WayFarer;
  9. Morgan L. Busse: (Site) [Series: Ravenwood Saga] Mark of the Raven; Flight of the Raven;
  10. Janice Broyles: (Site) [Series: The Saga Of David & Secret Heir] The Secret Heir; The Runaway Heir
  11. Jen Geigle Johnson: (Site) [Series: The Lords for the Sisters of Sussex] The Duke’s Second Chance; The Earl’s Winning Wager;
  12. Janine Mendenhall: (Site) [Series: Triangular Trade] Starving Hearts; Never Past Hope;
  13. Lynn Austin: (Site) [Series: Waves of Mercy] Waves of Mercy; Legacy of Mercy;
  14. Julie Matern: (Site) [One-Offs] The Secret of Haversham House;
  15. Sharon Lewis Koho: (Site) [Series: Painting on the Pond] The Painting on the Pond; To Walk in his Moccasins;
  16. Scarlette Pike: (Site) [One-Offs] In Spite of Lions;
  17. Chelsea Curran: (Site) [One-Offs] Unseen Road to Love;
  18. Heather Chapman: (Site) [Anthologies] Unexpected Love; [One-Offs] The Second Season; The Forgotten Girl;
  19. Lisa McKendrick: (Site) [One-Offs] Letters to my Future Husband; Brush With Love;
  20. Jennifer Lamont Leo: (Site) [Series: Roaring Twenties] You’re the Cream in my Coffee; Ain’t Misbehavin‘;
  21. Christy Hayes: (Site) Formula for a Perfect Life;
  22. Susan Count: (Site) [Series: Dream Horse Adventures] Mary’s Song; Selah’s Sweet Dream; Selah’s Painted Dream; Selah’s Stolen Dream
  23. Jessica Kate: (Site) A Girl’s Guide to the Outback
  24. Rebecca Connolly: (Site) [Series: The Spinster Chronicles] The Merry Lives of Spinsters; The Spinster and I; Spinster and Spice; My Fair Spinster;
  25. Robin Lee Hatcher: (Site) [Series: Legacy of Faith] How Sweet It Is;
  26. Janet W. Ferguson: (Site) [Series: Coastal Hearts] Magnolia Storms;
  27. Tina Radcliffe: (Site) [Series: Hearts of Oklahoma] Ready to Trust;
  28. Rachel McMillan: (Site) [One-Offs] The London Restoration;
  29. Lenore Rose Burkard: (Site) [Series: Forsythe Trilogy] Before the Season Ends;
  30. Katherine Reay: (Site) [One-Offs] Of Literature and Lattes;
  31. Victoria Bylin: (Site) [Series: Road to Refuge] When He Found Me; A Gift to Cherish;
  32. Maggie Platt: (Site) [Series: Tales from Adia] Kingdom Above The Cloud;
  33. Tea Cooper: (Site) The Woman in the Green Dress;
  34. Regina Scott: (Site) [Series: Grace by the Sea] The Matchmaker’s Rogue;
  35. Lauraine Snelling: (Site) Half Finished;
  36. Jaye Elliott: (Site) No Chance Meeting;
  37. Cecily Wolfe: (Site) [Series: Cliff Walk Cousins] Thorne of Grace;
  38. Camille Eide: (Site) Like There’s No Tomorrow;

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Wickedly this has included stories by #LoveInspired – either from their Romantic Suspense imprint or their Contemporary imprint; however I also love their Historicals!

  1. Stacy Henrie: (Site) [Series: Sheridan Sweethearts] A Cowboy of Convenience;
  2. Tanya Stowe: (Site) [One-Offs] Fatal Memories;
  3. Sherri Shackleford: (Site) [One-Offs] No Safe Place;
  4. Danielle Thorne: (Site) [One-Offs] His Daughter’s Prayer;

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{*KEY: * denotes author is a contributing blogger of the Christian Fiction Historical Society – known as Heroes, Heroines & History nowadays, {I had fondly referred to CFHS as merely “the Society”!} by which I had been a regular reader. I commented heavily between February to mid-April 2013, before taking a hiatus. I couldn’t return to posting commentary until after my blog {Jorie Loves A Story} launched due to the new requirement for OpenID; of which I fully understood as it was to dissuade spam. However, my hiatus lasted until 1st January, 2018 due to personal strife and adversities which due to an increase in my chronic migraines – my chatty bubbly spirit fell remiss in the years since I became a book blogger. Hence why one of my main New Year Resolutions for 2018 was to take part in a *365 Commenting Challenge* to re-inspire me to re-visit the bloggers I loved visiting before I blogged and to seek out new bloggers as well. It is also a year to focus on those bloggers I had found during my first four years as a book blogger.

↓ denotes author is a contributing blogger of Southern Belle View Daily, by which I am a regular reader and have been since early 2013. The blog was shut down within the past four years, where the authors chose to take their fellowship to Facebook instead. ++ denotes author participated in the Christian Fiction Scavenger Hunt, 17th of May through 19th of May 2013, which I was a participant! ↑ denotes author participated in the River North Fiction bookaways via the publisher’s blog whereupon each participant was asked to answer a question therein, which I participated in as well.}

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{*NOTE: The following authors were not listed on Fantastic Fiction: Brenda S. Anderson, M.L. Hamilton, Linda Brook Davis, etc. *I am a member of Brenda S. Anderson’s Street Team.}

{SOURCES: Ms. Herringshaw provided me with the badge for her blog Writing for Christ and it is used with permission. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. 70 Authors Challenge Badge created by Jorie via Canva. Photo Credit: Unsplash Photographer Brigitte Tohm. (Creative Commons Zero) I also made the Belle Fiction Reading Challenge banner in Canva.}

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 NOTE ON COPYRIGHT:

All writing and content on this blog is of my own creation, unless otherwise attributed and/or sourced. No unauthorized use and/or duplication of writing or content without permission of blog author and owner is prohibited. All Rights Reserved. Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2013-2020.

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Kindly share your book series and/or stand-alone recommendations by these lovely authors! As you can see I am adding ‘extra’ authors to focus on even though I already sorted out the ones I had wanted to focus on ahead of time! We, bookish souls, love to ADD to established lists, eh!? The first four years I’ve been a blogger have been a bit unique on the level, I haven’t accomplished reading even *half!* of these authors — however, similar to my goals reading Classical Lit, I’m striving to have this List populated with #mustreads by close of 2017!

8 responses to “+70 Authors Challenge: A #JLASblog Exclusive!+ [focus on] Inspirational (#INSPY) Fiction

  1. Wow! This is quite a list. I’m so glad you’re focusing on a genre which brings you so much joy, too. It’s important when embarking on a journey like this that you have the mental capability for it.

    Can you help me understand the overarching goal for the 70+ Author Challenge? I know you want to focus on INSPY — but is it to read ALL works by these 70+ authors?! (And I’m sorry if I missed that somewhere in this post!)

  2. Wow this is an amazing list!! Joanne Bischof’s The Lady and the Lionheart is amaaazing! Once I finish my current read, I’m going to read her latest Sons of Blackbird Mountain. Also, have you read anything by Courtney Walsh? I read Just Let Go by her and absolutely loved it.

    • *waves!*

      Hallo, Hallo Kristen!!

      I appreciate your note!! I’m still *tweaking!* this list as you can see – I had it all fleshed out once, but I lost the master copy as I was typing and handwriting it – so I decided to start over again and really get a list together I can ‘work on’ with gusto! You’ve mentioned the one author I wish I could have started reading years ago – Joanne Bischof! I wasn’t in a position to purchase her books and for some reason (back then!) her novels weren’t as easy to source through my local library! These days?! I’m wicked impressed how much INSPY is avail to borrow at libraries! A bit like they never used to have so much BBC serials and now they do! I know Sons of Blackbird Mountain is super popular because a lot readers during the Summer INSPY reading challenge I participated in (do you follow Singing Librarian Books? she’s the hostess!) were mentioning it!!

      I believe I know her only in name (Ms Walsh) I’ll add her to my list of #mustreads, then!

      I love getting rec’s for INSPY, so now you’ve blessed me twiceover!
      First for Francine Rivers and now Ms Walsh! You rock!!

      • Yay I’m so glad!! Oooh I’ll definitely be checking out that reading challenge…even though summer is dangerously close to ending :( And I just followed Singing Librarian Books! Thanks for the rec ;) I can’t wait for you to read Rivers and Walsh!!

  3. Carolyn Steele

    What an inspirational list! And I love that you’re focusing on INSPY fiction. Thank you for championing Christian fiction. I’m honored to be included in your list! (Hopefully I’ll have another title to share before your challenge is complete!)

    • Hallo, Hallo Nicki!

      I apologise I never had the chance to reply til now — I haven’t widely dipped into Ms Meissner’s backlist but I agree with you on why her stories attract me! She has something in her writings which make you want to gather all her books, have a proper readathon and just feel wholly immersed inside her worlds and the lives of her characters! I’m adding the title you’ve mentioned to my TBRList and look forward to seeing how it impresses me! She’s definitely an author I earmarked as being a #mustread per each new release!

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