The Beyond the Borders zone of American Christian Fiction Writers is the home of international Christiann writers, and includes many Australian and New Zealand members.
American Christian Fiction Writers is a writing organisation devoted to improving the craft of Christian Fiction. Members can benefit from:
- Online critique groups, writing training, and webinars.
- Discounted entry to the First Impressions and Genesis Awards for unpublished writers.
- Discounted entry to the Carol Awards for novels published in the previous year.
- Free announcements of new releases.
- Member rates for the annual ACFW Conference.
ACFW also has regional zone groups and local chapters. The Beyond the Borders zone covers all members outside the USA—there are almost 100 of us, from over a dozen different countries.
We’re sharing what our members have achieved in the last few months.
Deb Bremmer has completed Give it a Go, the second book in her New Beginnings series.
By Way of the Moonlight by Elizabeth Musser was chosen by Publishers Weekly as a Top Ten Pick for Fall Releases 2022 in Religion and Spirituality—the only novel on the list!
Midnight’s Budding Morrow by Carolyn Miller
Released 31 May 2022
Can real love grow between a wallflower and an unrepentant rogue?
When James Langley returns to his family’s estate, he can’t be bothered to pay attention to his responsibilities as the heir. War is raging and he wants only distraction, not serious tethers. But his roguish ways have backed him into a corner, and he has little choice but to obey his father’s stunning decree: marry before returning to war, or else. Suddenly he finds himself wedded to a clever and capable woman he does not love.
Sarah craves love and a place to belong, neither of which James offered before returning to the battlefront. Now everyone around her thinks she married above her station, and they have no intention of rewarding her for such impertinence. It isn’t until her husband returns from war seemingly changed that she begins to hope they may find real happiness. But can she trust that this rake has truly reformed?
When tragedy strikes, this pair must learn to trust God and his plans. Will they be destroyed . . . or will they discover that even in the darkest depths of night, the morning still holds hope?
Winning Julia’s Heart (Sydney Sweethearts #2) by Narelle Atkins
Released 24 June 2022
Can a former bad boy be redeemed?
It took time and faith, but Sean is finally on the right path. And his feelings for Julia have only grown stronger. But when Sean’s past threatens to jeopardize their future, can he convince Julia they both want the same thing; a love that can overcome every mistake?
Rebuilding Hearts by Carolyn Miller
Released 28 June 2022
Who knew a bank robbery could show a girl that good guys still exist?
Tim Franklin. Quiet, shy, almost incapable of speaking to a girl, and a budding horticulturist. Oh, and he survived a bank robbery five years ago, not to mention its resulting trauma.
Bookworm Bella Dwyer just wants to feel safe, and Tim’s actions during the robbery made her believe there might be guys who live up to her fictional heroes. Trouble is, a chance with Tim seems as remote as this year’s celebrity heartthrob.
Instead, she settled for a relationship with a guy who’s commitment-phobic.
So when Bella encounters Tim on tiny Sparrow Island, the challenges of her past and present collide, and she questions whether there really is a future with a man who can’t commit.
In a leap of faith, Bella dumps her boyfriend, even before shy-guy Tim can make a move. But in wanting to live by faith and conquer fear, has she made the right choice, or are her hopes for freedom and a future destined to fail?
A Feeling of Home by Susan Anne Mason
Released 5 July 2022
Can she set aside the pain from the past to embrace a new love?
Isabelle Wardrop’s well-to-do life has completely unraveled. Within months, she’s lost both her parents, her fortune, and her home. With nowhere else to turn, she and her younger sister move in with a trusted former servant in an impoverished area of the city. Desperate for work but having no qualifications, Isabelle is forced to accept help from Dr. Mark Henshaw, the very man she blames for her mother’s death.
Mark Henshaw has admired Isabelle for several months, but after the tragic death of her mother, he vows to make amends for the past and help her find her way. But when Mark learns his younger brother has formed an undesirable friendship with Isabelle’s sister–one that brings a whole new set of problems into their lives–he doesn’t know if Isabelle will ever forgive him.
When startling developments begin to take place, both within Isabelle’s heart and their siblings’ relationship, her future looks very different than anything she could have imagined.
Muskoka Blue by Carolyn Miller
Released 28 July 2022
An ice princess with a broken heart. A pro hockey player with a secret.
For Sarah Maguire, spending the summer at Lake Muskoka was supposed to be about finding the courage to put back the pieces of her shattered life—not falling in love with the charming yet unsophisticated hockey player from next door.
Daniel Walton may have been praying for Miss Right to appear, but Sarah’s ice princess act just cries Miss Wrong. Dan’s summer plans hadn’t included befriending a redhead with a sassy tongue and cute accent, but as Muskoka works its magic he soon discovers that underneath the frost and prickles is the funny, feisty, loving woman he’s waited all his life to meet.
As their friendship deepens, Sarah comes to appreciate Dan’s patience and kindness yet struggles to let go of the past and embrace the future, while Dan, only too conscious of the personal history he wants to forget, questions the wisdom of pursuing a girl whose heart may never be wholly his – who may soon return to live on the opposite side of the world.
Will past regrets lead to further heartbreak? Or can Sarah and Dan learn to leave the past in the past and embrace God’s promises for the future?
Seaside Proposal by Narelle Atkins
Released 29 July 2022
Billie Radcliffe has a secret.
And she isn’t sharing it with anyone, including Zach Montford. Even though she feels an instant connection with the good-looking banker and youth leader, she’s wary of rejection. Besides she’s only in the close-knit beach community until she meets the one man who can fill in the blanks about her history.
Zach hopes his temporary stint with the church will help him decide whether to go into full-time ministry. Though his career plans are uncertain, he’s sure about his growing feelings for Billie. When a shocking revelation throws everything into question, Zach and Billie have a chance to put the past to rest … and walk into the future together.
By Way of the Moonlight by Elizabeth Musser
Released 2 August 2022
Two courageous young women, tied together by blood and shared passion, will risk everything to save what they love most.
For as long as she can remember, Allie Massey, a gifted physical therapist, has dreamed of making her grandparents’ ten-acre estate into a trauma recovery center using equine therapy–a dream her grandmother, Nana Dale, embraced wholeheartedly. But when her grandmother’s will is read, Allie is shocked to learn the property has been sold to a developer.
Decades earlier, headstrong Dale Butler’s driving passion is to bring home the prized filly her family lost to the Great Depression, but with World War II looming, she’s called upon in ways she never could have imagined. And while her world expands to include new friends and new love, tragedy strikes close to home one fateful night during the Battle of the Atlantic, changing her life forever.
As Nana Dale’s past comes to light in Allie’s search for answers, Dale’s courage and persistence may be just what Allie needs to carry on her grandmother’s legacy and keep her own dreams alive.
Congrats all. I had seen about Elizabeth and that is so exciting for her. Congrats on all new releases.
So many books, so little time!
Congratulations on all these novels. Just wish I had nothing else to do but read! I’ll be looking towards reading some of these. Well done.