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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

Why I Can’t Wait to Get This Fabulous New Book

by Chautona Havig · Leave a Comment

Heidi McCahan, known for her Alaskan series, has a new book coming on Tuesday--a Southern women's fiction! via @chautonahavig

Author Hedi McCahan has a new book coming out on Tuesday–one you won’t want to miss. One Southern Summer is Heidi’s first foray into women’s fiction and with Love Inspired’s wonderful trade line (read: full-length novel, baby!). So, listen in to find out why I preordered that sucker faster than lightning on a bug… Okay, it’s not a Southern saying, but don’t you think it should be?

heidi mccahan

Note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you.

Why I Can’t Wait to Get This Fabulous New Book

Okay, Hope Floats is one of my favorite movies. Harry Connick Jr.’s line about the American Dream…

You’re talkin’ ’bout the American Dream. You find something that you love, and then you twist it, and you torture it, try and find a way to make money at it. You spend a lifetime doing that. At the end, you can’t find a trace of what you started out lovin’.

I mean, with lines like that…

And when I read the synopsis for One Southern Summer, it reminded me of that movie. Then it hit me. This is a Christian Fiction novel. It’s going to have a new twist (because it’s not the same story!) on a general idea I loved AND… faith!  What more could I ask for?

Heidi McCahan talks about how she got the idea, how long it percolated, how her editors worked with her, and more!

She even talked about her Home to Hearts Bay series! If you’re looking for an Alaska read this July (sounds refreshing to me!), then you’ll want to check those out. She also has another book coming out next month. Her Alaskan Companion is part of the K-9 Companions series.

One Southern SummerOne Southern Summer by Heidi McCahan

It’s her second chance summer…if she’s ready for it—in this warm and utterly irresistible Southern small-town novel.

When Avery Lansing Crawford left her hometown of Camellia, Alabama, she was the darling of the town. A beauty queen. Now she’s come back a disgraced and divorced mom who’s lost almost everything—her home, her husband, even her design TV show—all while the public watched. And if the humiliation wasn’t bad enough, Avery and her two small children are moving in with her mama…just in time to give everyone in Camellia something to talk about.

And oh, they’re talkin’. Especially when Avery reignites her old friendship with Cole Whitaker, who’s offered Avery the opportunity to do something real: a redesign project that would help survivors of human trafficking. It could kick-start both her career and her confidence—not to mention give her a chance to spend more time with Cole.

With three generations of strong Southern women around the family dinner table, coming home to Camellia could be the perfect fresh start. Even if Avery is the topic of salacious gossip over sweet tea and her grandmother won’t stop interfering in her love life. But the bonds of family and the promise of second chances just might lead to a future that looks nothing like she expected.

Love Inspired is having a big sale, so you can go to the WEBSITE to find out more about that.

You can learn more about Heidi McCahan on her WEBSITE.

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The Because Fiction Podcast

The Because Fiction Podcast
The Because Fiction Podcast

Taking the pulse of Christian fiction

Episode 549: A Chat with Laura DeNooyer
byChautona Havig

I’ve been anxious to read this one since the moment I saw it. I mean, come on! Secrets are always cool but then Frank L. Baum? And The Pilgrim’s Progress? WHAT? Listen in as Laura DeNooyer and I chat about A Hundred Magical Reasons.

note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you.

The L. Frank Baum connection was a draw, but then she brought in The Pilgrim’s Progress, and it took the whole story idea to a new level!

I had a blast chatting with Laura and I’m excited to read this one. It’ll probably be my flight read tomorrow. EEEP!

A Hundred Magical Reasons by Laura DeNooyer

Some fairy tales don’t end when the story is over…they begin when the truth is finally told.

At eighty-eight, Charlotte Rose Gordon has spent a lifetime guarding secrets—burdens that have turned her into the town’s most notorious recluse. But before her story ends, she has one final quest: to set the past right and clear her husband’s name.

Even if it means facing the dragons she’s spent decades avoiding.

Carrie Kruisselbrink is fighting dragons of her own. Fresh out of college and desperate to escape the weight of her parents’ expectations, she risks everything to chase a dream that feels just out of reach.

An unlikely job with the reclusive Mrs. Gordon seems like a temporary solution. Until it becomes something much more.

As Charlotte begins to unravel her past—from a stifling childhood to an extraordinary friendship with author L. Frank Baum—Carrie is drawn into a story filled with imagination, loss, and long-buried truth.

But the deeper Carrie digs, the more she’s forced to confront her own fears, her own choices… and the cost of living someone else’s life.

Because some stories were never meant to stay hidden.

Spanning generations and woven with echoes of a beloved literary legacy, A Hundred Magical Reasons is a moving tale of courage, identity, and the kind of hope that only comes when truth, grace, and imagination collide.

Can two women from different generations find the strength to rewrite their stories—before time runs out?

Step into a story of secrets, second chances, and the courage to believe again.

Learn more on Laura’s WEBSITE and follow on GoodReads and BookBub.

Like to listen on the go? You can find Because Fiction Podcast at:

  • Apple
  • Castbox
  • Google Play
  • Libsyn
  • RSS
  • Spotify
  • Amazon
  • YouTube
  • and more!
Episode 549: A Chat with Laura DeNooyer
Episode 549: A Chat with Laura DeNooyer
June 8, 2026
Chautona Havig
Episode 548: A Chat with Sarah Heatwole
June 6, 2026
Chautona Havig
Episode 547: A Chat with Terri McAdoo
June 1, 2026
Chautona Havig
Episode 546: A Chat with Chuck Richardson
May 30, 2026
Chautona Havig
Episode 545: A Chat with Gina Holder
May 25, 2026
Chautona Havig
Episode 544: A Chat with Nicholas Teeguarden
May 23, 2026
Chautona Havig
Episode 543: A Chat with Stephanie Cardel
May 19, 2026
Chautona Havig
Episode 542: A Chat with Megan Schaulis
May 16, 2026
Chautona Havig
Episode 541: A Chat with Demi Griffin
May 11, 2026
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Episodd 540: A Chat with Dana Mentink
May 9, 2026
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