Paperbacks & Playlists: Listen to the Astonished soundtrack

Happy July, readers, and a blessed Month of the Precious Blood of Jesus ❤️! It’s 110 degrees in St. Louis with the heat index and some days, we have 90% humidity, but I’m trying to be thankful for the sunshine. A few weeks ago, our church parish had our ChristPower Mission Week which was both inspiring and a lot of fun. Over 700 youth participants were there, including Vacation Bible School, our Middle School Service Retreat, and our High School Service Retreat. I helped out by driving teens to and from community service sites, and it was amazing to see how on fire for the Lord these kids are.

What’s in this Edition:

18 days to Go! – Astonished-Inspired Extras
Vampires and Near-Death Experiences – Release Day Twins
Recent Reads I Recommend – My favorite books from last month.
Upcoming Events – Where to find me in 2026

18 days to go!

Only 18 days until release day for Astonished! While the ebook doesn’t release on major retail sites until July 24, you can get the paperback online now. Those who order through my online store will receive some fun swag and an extra entry into the release day giveaway.

Release Day Giveaway (open 7/24 – 8/1): I’m super excited about this giveaway as it includes three Christian Fiction novels about asylums and mental health by authors Crystal Caudill, Erica Colahan, and Jocelyn Green. Any ideas which ones they might be? Spoiler: Find out here.

Aesthetic Photos: If you’re interested to see the many photos I used as aesthetic inspiration while writing Astonished, check out my Unsplash collection. Here are a few of my favorites:

Music: For those who enjoy book soundtracks, I’ve created a Spotify playlist of songs that either fit different scenes in the story or the book’s general mood. Songs are in no particular order. Enjoy!

Grab Your Copy of Astonished

Signed Paperback – Direct from Author

Paperback – All other retail sites

eBook – Direct from Author

eBook Pre-Order – All other retail sites

Vampires and Near Death Experiences

I also recently discovered that Astonished shares a release day for The Dawn We Seek, the final Sr. Allison Regina Gliot’s Catholic vampire trilogy. It just feels right that a novel about near-death experiences and a novel about vampires should come out on the same day. Sr. Allison’s series is seriously amazing, and I can’t recommend it enough. Go grab the first two books now, so you’re ready for book 3 on July 24!

(*No one is paying me to promote this. Pauline Media isn’t endorsing my book. As far as I know, Sr. Allison has no idea that I’m sharing this in my newsletter.)*

Recent Reads I Recommend

Need another book for your TBR? Of course you do. Here are the books I’ve recently read and loved. (Note: I receive no compensation for featuring the books below.)

The Summer Scrapbook by Florence Migga reminded me of what YA books used to be and what they still should be. No sex, no profanity, just sweet romance, the challenges of growing up, and the joys and drama of teen friendship. How I remember them well from my youth! This book actually had a very nineties vibe even though it’s set in present day. That could have just been me though as a child of the 90s. 😁

Some of the things I loved:
1. Although the main characters all had to deal with similar things throughout the summer, I liked how they were each their own person, too.
2. They had parents who were generally interested in their lives and family members respected one another.
3. The “popular” girl wasn’t what I expected.
4. There were good lessons in how new friends or boyfriends don’t have to take away from the best friends you already have. In fact, new friends can enhance existing friendships if you let them.

I’d love to see a continuation of this series to find out what happens to them next summer!

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Upcoming Events

Mark your calendars! Here’s where you can find me and my books in 2026, including the opportunity to pre-order Astonished. As additional events are scheduled, I’ll add details on my website.

Elks Lodge 2587 Craft Fair – July 18, 2026 – O’Fallon, MO (with author Susan Laspe)
Encounter School of Ministry Summer Intensive – July 27-30, 2026 – St. Charles, MO (Requires registration.)
St. Joseph Catholic School Craft Fair – October 10, 2026 – Cottleville, MO (with author Susan Laspe)
Francis Howell High Band Craft Fair – December 5, 2026 – Weldon Springs, MO (with author Susan Laspe)