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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

Who Knew Family History Could Inspire Wonderful, Heart-Wrenching Stories?

by Chautona Havig · Leave a Comment

Some of the best stories are rooted deep in family history, and the same is true for the Sedgwick County Chronicles by Amanda Wen. via @chautonahavig

Sometimes you see a name everywhere and wonder why you haven’t read a book by that author. Then you schedule an interview with said author and go, “WAIT! Why haven’t I read this author???”  Yeah, that’s what happened with Amanda Wen, author of the recent release, The Songs that Could Have Been and the upcoming collection, O Little Town. Seriously, guys. I keep thinking I need to open a secondhand book shop to help defer the costs of all these books!  Because I need these books!!! Listen in and see why I think Amanda Wen may be a new favorite author.

Amanda Wen The Songs That Could Have Been

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

Who Knew Family History Could Inspire Wonderful, Heart-Wrenching Stories?

Amanda Wen, author of the Sedgwick County Chronicles including Roots of Wood and Stone and The Songs that Could Have Been and “Book 3” (I agree… she needs a better title, but she assures us that Kregel is fabulous at naming her babies), takes family history and spins beautiful, heartwrenching tales of love and family from the holes in that history. I don’t know if we’re looking at a trilogy, a tetralogy, a pentalogy… (I vote for the latter), but I think (having only read the opening line of Songs) that I could read them indefinitely.

Despite the love and romance in these novels, Amanda Wen’s stories aren’t light and fluffy. They deal with hard things–racial issues, church abuse, adoption, dementia… And all in a way that I’m chomping at the bit to read. Not to mention, audiobooks. There’s audio. With what sounds like a good narrator AND the same narrator for both of the published works. EEEP!

But that’s not all Amanda writes…

She does have a couple of romances. The first you can get if you sign up for her newsletter–a nice little Valentine’s short story that I don’t know about you but I don’t want to miss (more about that later). The next in the upcoming novella collection, O Little Town with authors Janyre Tromp and Deborah Raney. Taking place in three different times, O Little Town features a fictional Michigan town with a rich Dutch heritage and its little schoolhouse.

Amanda Wen The Songs That Could Have BeenThe Songs That Could Have Been by Amanda Wen

Two couples in love. Two sets of impossible circumstances. One powerful God of grace.

After a tailspin in her late teens, Lauren Anderson’s life is finally back on track. Her battle with bulimia is under control, her career is taking off, and she’s surrounded by a loving family. Then a chance meeting with Carter Douglas, her first love and the man who broke her heart, leads to old feelings returning with new strength. And suddenly her well-balanced world is thrown off kilter.

Now a TV meteorologist, Carter is determined to make amends with Lauren. After all, she still owns his heart. But the reasons they broke up aren’t lost–and those old demons are forcing him toward the same decision he faced in the past. He isn’t sure he’s courageous enough to make a different choice this time around.

When Lauren’s elderly grandmother, Rosie, begins having nightmares about a man named Ephraim–a name her family has never heard before–a fascinating and forbidden past love comes to light. As Lauren and Carter work to uncover the untold stories of Rosie’s past in 1950s Wichita, they embark on a journey of forgiveness and second chances that will change their lives–and Rosie’s–forever. Along the way they’ll learn that God wastes nothing, His timing is perfect, and nothing is beyond his grace and redemption.

The Songs That Could Have Been is full of the same deftly handled, resonant writing that readers and critics alike enjoyed in Amanda Wen’s first book in the series. Fans of Lisa Wingate and Rachel Hauck will add Amanda Wen to their must-read shelves.

You can learn more about Amanda (and get her free Valentine’s story) 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 265: A Chat with Karen Witemeyer
byChautona Havig

Nothing says fairy tale like a sweet western romance by an author like Karen Witemeyer… unless it’s a fairytale retelling set in Texas in the late 19th century, right?  Fairest of Heart takes the familiar “Snow White” and turns it on its head with retired cowboys, a self-absorbed actress, a Texas Ranger, and a sweet girl who knows the true Source of her beauty.  Listen in to see all the genius Easter eggs Witemeyer planted in this book.

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

Sometimes All a Girl Needs Is a True Change of Heart

I fell in love with the cover of Karen Witemeyer’s Head Over Heels a few years back (only to learn it’s much older than that, even), and meant to read that book.  I didn’t.  #BecauseIdiot. Well, that’ll be rectified just as soon as I’m done listening to her first book in a trilogy of fairytale retellings. I loaded it up on my Audible app tonight and wheeeeeeee. Here I go! So much for no new books until October. HA! 

Karen talks about her heart for young women today and how they’re taught by every bit of media blasting at them that they need to use their bodies to get what they need or want when the Lord has a better plan. And I can’t guarantee it, but I strongly suspect she does it without preaching. SQUEE!

Fairest of Heart by Karen Witemeyer

Once upon a time in Texas . . .

Beauty has been nothing but a curse to Penelope Snow. When she becomes a personal maid for a famous actress whose troupe is leaving Chicago to tour the West, she hides her figure beneath shapeless dresses and keeps her head down. But she still manages to attract the wrong attention, leaving her prospects in tatters–and her jealous mistress plotting her demise.

After his brother lost his life over a woman, Texas Ranger Titus Kingsley has learned to expect the worst from women and is rarely disappointed. So when a young lady found in suspicious circumstances takes up residence with the seven old drovers living at his grandfather’s ranch, Titus is determined to keep a close eye on her.

With a promotion hanging in the balance, Titus is assigned to investigate a robbery case tied to Penelope’s acting troupe, and all evidence points to Penelope’s guilt. But Titus might just be convinced that the fairest woman of all has a heart as pure as her last name . . . if only he can prove it.

You can learn more about Karen Witemeyer and her books on her WEBSITE. Don’t forget the book is 30% off on BakerBookHouse.com.  

Follow Karen on BookBub and GoodReads.

And don’t forget her Posse Group on Facebook.

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

  • Apple 
  • Castbox 
  • Google Play
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  • Spotify
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  • and more!
Episode 265: A Chat with Karen Witemeyer
Episode 265: A Chat with Karen Witemeyer
September 29, 2023
Chautona Havig
Episode 264: A Chat with Romance Author, Sarah Monzon
September 26, 2023
Chautona Havig
Episode 263: A Chat about The Love Script w/ Toni Shiloh
September 23, 2023
Chautona Havig
Episode 262: Chatting about The Legacy of Longdale Manor with Carrie Turansky
September 19, 2023
Chautona Havig
Episode 261: Chatting with Christian Youth Fiction Author, Candice Yamnitz
September 15, 2023
Chautona Havig
Episode 260: A Chat with Rachel Hauck
September 12, 2023
Chautona Havig
Episode 259: A Chat with Debut Author, Laura Conaway
September 8, 2023
Chautona Havig
Episode 258: A Louisiana Christmas to Remember
September 2, 2023
Chautona Havig
Episode 257: A Chat with Fantasy Author, N. Ford
September 1, 2023
Chautona Havig
Episode 256: A Chat about Summer in the Spotlight w/ Liz Johnson
August 29, 2023
Chautona Havig
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