Christy Awards Finalists – Contemporary

What are the Christy Awards?

The Christy Award is destined to nurture creativity and quality in the writing and publishing of fiction written from a Christian worldview and showcase the diversity of genres. These 2025 finalists are books published in 2024. 

How does this giveaway work?

You select ONE of the Contemporary Romance finalists you would like to receive if your name is drawn. Mention the title in a comment. If you win that’s the book that will be sent to you. Easy Peasy. Here are the finalists. (I have provided links to my reviews of the books I have read.)

A Run at Love by Toni Shiloh – Bethany House/Baker Publishing Group – Giveaway Options: US – paperback or ebook, Canada – paperback, ebook or audible, International – ebook if you have a US Kindle account

As a Black woman in a field with little diversity, Piper McKinney is determined to make her mark on the horse racing world. Raised on a thoroughbred farm in Kentucky, Piper’s dream is for her horse to win the prestigious Kentucky Derby. With the help of her best friend and trainer Tucker Hale, she gains national attention but must grapple with the complications that arise when a journalist delves into her past as a transracial adoptee.

In an effort to win Piper’s heart, Tucker formulates a plan to train Piper’s horse to victory, hoping to prove himself to her, her parents, and his own self-doubts. Then a shocking scandal hits the media, implicating both Piper and her parents, and she and Tucker will have to survive the onslaught to find their way to the winner’s circle–and each other.

Award-winning author Toni Shiloh makes a run for the roses with this heartwarming novel that reminds us that sometimes the greatest victories are found within our own hearts. https://kavsbestreads.ca/2024/05/15/a-run-at-love-giveaway/

The Nature of Love by Toni Shiloh – Bethany House/Baker Publishing Group – Giveaway Options: US – paperback or ebook, Canada – paperback, ebook or audible, International – ebook if you have a US Kindle account

Dr. Erykah Kennedy, a renowned orthopedic surgeon, finds herself at a crossroads in life. At forty-one, she’s achieved remarkable success in her career, yet when it comes to her love life, she feels hopeless. But when she meets Christian Gamble, a passionate wildlife conservationist, an unexpected bond forms between them despite their contrasting worlds.

A wildlife enthusiast ready for more

Chris has yet to find someone to share his adventures with, but as his friendship with Erykah starts to blossom, he begins falling for her in every way. When tragedy strikes and Erykah suddenly becomes guardian to her nieces, Chris helps her pick up the pieces.

Two hearts destined by nature

With their lives turned upside down, finding their way to a lasting love while putting their faith in God may be the biggest challenge they’ve ever faced.

The Nature of Love is a clean, African American contemporary romance with themes of friends to lovers and the healing power of love. This heartfelt happily-ever-after tale is the series finale of Shiloh’s beloved Love in the Spotlight novels. https://kavsbestreads.ca/2025/02/13/the-nature-of-love-giveaway/

The Roads We Follow by Nicole Deese – Bethany House/Baker Publishing Group – Giveaway Options: US – paperback or ebook, Canada – ebook or audible, International – ebook if you have a US Kindle account

As the youngest daughter of a country music legend, Raegan Farrow longs to establish an identity away from the spotlight and publish her small-town romances under a pen name. But after her dream is dashed when she won’t exploit her mother’s fame to further her own career, she hears a rumor from a reliable source regarding a tell-all being written about the Farrow family. Making matters worse, the unknown author has gone to great lengths to remain anonymous until publication.

Raegan chooses to keep the tell-all a secret from her scandal-leery sisters as they embark on a two-week, cross-country road trip at their mother’s request and makes it her mission to expose the identity of the author behind the unsanctioned biography. But all is complicated when she discovers their hired bus driver, Micah Davenport, has a hidden agenda of his own–one involving both of their mothers and an old box of journals. As they rely on each other to find the answers they seek, the surprising revelations they unearth will steer them toward their undeniable connection and may even lead them down the most unexpected of paths.

Who Touches the Mountains by Deborah Raney – Raney Day Press – Giveaway Options: US – paperback or ebook, Canada – paperback or ebook, International – ebook if you have a US Kindle account.

Traveling all across the country is exciting…until it isn’t anymore.

Liesl Bachman enjoys success as a travel writer, but that success comes at a price. Now she feels isolated and stuck in a way she never expected in the “cool” job she always wanted. Zach Freylan is bound by an unspoken promise he made to his beloved wife before her death in a mysterious one-car crash. For two years, he’s run The Inn at Rosebud Lane that belonged to Jenny’s grandparents, but he finds little joy in maintaining what was always her dream. From the moment Liesl checks in for an extended stay at the inn, something begins to shift inside Zach, letting him dare to hope that his life could be different. Liesl feels that same promise of hope, but the clock is ticking for them both as circumstances only grow more complicated. Is thirty-seven days enough to know for sure that this is God’s yes?

Reader’s Choice Week Autumn 2025 Winners

Thanks for joining me for another week full of anticipatory bookish delights! My wishlist is plumped up and I might have placed a few preorders already! Am I the only one who noticed how many books are being released in October? Must be the ‘it’ month for book releases before Christmas.

Now it’s time to indulge my inner stats nerd (who knew she was lurking inside of me for all these years?!) I tallied all the books mentioned on the 4 specific genre days and came up with the popular pick for each one and here they are:

AND NOW FOR THE REST OF THE READER’S CHOICE WEEK WINNERS!

But wait, it’s not over yet. The Vanity category has become a blog tradition. It’s where a book is actually judged by its cover and I choose my favourite cover art per genre and then draw from a pool of readers who requested that title. Here are COVER LOVE winners!

Eyecatching. Campy. Playful. Nostalgic.

Striking contrasts. That pop of red! The softer details fading into the background. There’s more to see the more you look.

Love the warm tones, autumn leaves, the turquoise bookmobile. Plus…bookmobile…eeeeepppp!!!!!

Simple but so atmospheric!

WAIT! Don’t go away ’cause we’re not through yet. We have another Reader’s Choice tradition of picking a random number which becomes a ‘just because giveaway’ on the genre specific days. If that doesn’t make sense, all you need to know is that it means more book giveaways. Woohoo! This time the number is 70.

And that finishes off another Reader’s Choice Week. Thanks for participating and sharing your love of books!

LOOKING AHEAD TO NEXT WEEK:

Christy Award Finalists – Yes, it’s that time again. The Christy Award Finalists have been announced and we’re going to check them out by category every Monday. This week it’s Contemporary Fiction.

Hello October! Timely, since we have our lists handy after this week’s rush and lots of books to choose from. This giveaway is for October 2025 Christian Fiction releases. Only one title suggestion though, not the RCW three!

Reader’s Choice Week Giveaway – Autumn 2025 Edition – Goal Review

Quarterly reading goal reviews have become a Best Reads Blog tradition and I can’t believe we’ve reached the last quarter already! Where does the time go, I wonder? Hours spent reading I’m guessing. 🙂

I’ll share my progress (or not!) here just for some fun, book nerdy stats and, if you’re so inclined, you can share a goal or two in the comments. But no pressure – a goal can be as simple as ‘read a book.’

So, to enter this giveaway, just share anything goal related in the comments. Then, in the same comment, list a book that will help you reach your goal. So it looks like this:

“I want to catch up on some suspense series. Night Prey by Susan Sleeman.”

NOTE: BOOKS MUST BE CHRISTIAN FICTION

You can enter up to three times in three separate comments — and you can use the same goal or a different one each time, but a different title for each entry.

Books can be published any time up through to December 2025. Currently published books will be ordered this coming week for winners, otherwise it will be an IOU for a title releasing later.

WINNER’S CHOICE OF PAPERBACK OR EBOOK FOR US AND CANADIAN ENTRIES. EBOOKS ONLY FOR INTERNATIONAL READERS WHO HAVE A US KINDLE ACCOUNT.

See? Easy Peasy. But if you’re still not clear, don’t be shy about asking questions.

Here we go! Time to face up to what’s been working and what hasn’t when it comes to my goals this year.

Overall, I’ve done fairly well on my goals so far…with a few exceptions. I did manage to increase the number of indie books by a wee bit this past quarter, still aiming for more though.

And my Read to Zero Authors! Oy! I read one Hannah Linder, have Garden of the Midnights on hold at my library so that just leaves two books left (counting her new release in November.) Surely I can manage that by the end of the year! I got sidetracked with Irene Hannon when I decided to reread the whole Hope Harbor series which means I’ve only read two of her Encore edition books so far. Think I still have twelve books to go! I’ve almost given up on Sarah M Eden. Too many books to read before the end of the year. I think she’s going to become a five year plan! I did read The Best-Kept Secret (Huntresses #3) so at least I’m working on it! And I went and added two more authors to the list – Annah Conwell (7 books left) and Gracie Ruth Mitchell (11 books left) because…well…just because! 🙂

Alas, my attempt to focus on completing series has been surpassed by my compulsion to start new series so….that’s a goal well and truly failed. 😦

Okay, that’s enough nerdy stats stuff. Let’s get on with the giveaway!

Share below and remember to include a book title that will help you achieve any kind of reading goal. You can enter three times in three separate comments using the same goal or different ones. What ever strikes your fancy. Just make sure each entry is for a different title.

DRAW WILL BE HELD ON

Saturday September 27 2025

AND WINNER ANNOUNCED ON 

Sunday September 28 2025

(You can enter any of the giveaways up until noon EST on Saturday September 27. Winners will be announced on Sunday September 28 which is a bit of a switch from previous RCWs. It’s just to give me a little more time to do all the tallying and setting up the blog post.). 

Reader’s Choice Giveaway – Autumn 2025 Edition – General Christian Fiction Edition

Reader’s Choice Giveaway – Autumn 2025 – Mystery/Suspense Fiction

Reader’s Choice Giveaway – Autumn 2025 Edition – Contemporary Fiction

Reader’s Choice Giveaway – Autumn 2025 Edition – Historical Fiction

Reader’s Choice Giveaway – Autumn 2025 Edition -Christmas Fiction

September Giveaway – Week Three

Winners will be contacted if they left their email address, otherwise it’s up to the winner to contact me at kavluvstoread AT yahoo DOT ca (please note it’s ca as in Canada, not com.) From time to time a winner and I do not connect so I have a one month time frame on giveaway wins. If I haven’t been able to reach you within 30 days of your win, it will be forfeited. This has happened a few times now, so please, DON’T BE SHY — CONTACT ME IF YOU DIDN’T LEAVE AN EMAIL OR IF I HAVEN’T BEEN SUCCESSFUL IN REACHING YOU!

LOOKING AHEAD TO NEXT WEEK:

Drum roll, please…..it’s time for the final READER’S CHOICE WEEK of the year!!!! Can you believe it??????? For those of you who don’t know, RCW is when we look ahead to Christian Fiction books about to be released – in this case in the months of October, November or December 2025. The days are dedicated to specific genres and you can enter the title of a book you’re excited about (or books, actually, since you can enter up to three titles per genre day.) If your name is drawn, you win an IOU for that book, which will be preordered for you. There are more rules, so check them out in each post so you’re in the know. This is what the week is going to look like:

Last week we looked at Christmas books that got away from us. Now it’s time to look ahead to the new Christmas releases just about to come out. So, let’s get our thinking caps on and do a bit of online digging and share the festive novels we’re anticipating the most.

Historical Romance/Fiction – a full length story or novella or collection of novellas set in any time period before 1980. May cross genres such as YA, Suspense, Amish etc. and may include dual timelines.

Contemporary Romance/Fiction – a full length story or novella or collection of novellas set in any time period after 1980. May cross genres such as YA, Suspense, Amish etc. and may include dual timelines.

Mystery/Suspense Fiction – a full length story or novella or collection of novellas where mystery is an important part of the plot. The hero or heroine (or both) are often in peril (more so in suspense) Can set in any time period and cross genres such as Amish, dual timeline etc.

General Christian Fiction – a full length story or novella or collection of novellas. Any genre, including previous selections you made on other days this week as well as specific genres not covered yet such as Amish, Speculative, SciFi etc. 

Goal Reviews – where we catch each other up on how we’re doing with our reading goals and suggest books that will help us achieve those goals.

Double Protection Duty

When a toddler goes missing,
a K-9 team must move fast.

A family trip to the Wind Caves National Park quickly turns into a nightmare when K-9 officer Kenyon Graves discovers one of his twin boys has been abducted. Now Kenyon needs the help of his team and his longtime friend Raina McCord to save his toddler son. But the kidnappers are elusive—and intent on killing anyone who stands in the way of their sinister scheme. With threats closing in, time is of the essence to catch these criminals…before Kenyon and Raina pay the ultimate price.

My Review:

Who can resist a dedicated beagle K-9 officer? Especially one named Peanut! I love everything about these Love Inspired Suspense K-9 series, but especially the different dogs who come with their own unique personalities and human/dog bonding experiences.

Peanut’s partner, Kenyon is trying to get his life back together after years of trauma. His wife died leaving him a single parent to infant twins. He was shot in the line of duty, lost his memory and struggled through exhaustive rehab. His best friend Raina has been his rock through it all and now that things are finally settling into some kind of normal, he’s beginning to realize that he might have feelings for Raina that go beyond friendship. But before he can figure out what that means, danger hits way too close to home.

A kidnapped child. Multiple attacks that put Raina at risk. Suddenly everything Kenyon hold’s dear is in danger. This tense, action packed suspense featuring a friends to more romance kept me riveted right up to the last page.

This is the seventh novel in the ‘Dakota K-9 Unit’ continuity series but reads well as a standalone (has it’s own unique suspense plot) though there is more page time focusing on the gun smuggling ring with all the team because we’re getting close to the series’ grand finale. Eep!!! I can’t wait for ‘Final Showdown’s‘ release in October since there is some ominous foreshadowing at the end of this story. Plus it will feature the romance I have been waiting for! Eeeeppp! I’m so excited!

I happily listened to the audio book of ‘Double Protection Duty’ narrated by Marisa Blake whose performance added extra tension to the romance and desperation to the suspense. Really loved the way she brought this story to life.

My thanks to Harlequin Audio and Net Galley for providing me with an audio copy of this book.