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A Christian Perspective
Blue Jeans and Lavender Gowns follows two teenagers growing up in different circumstances who, over the years, struggle with faith, failure, broken marriages, and small-town judgment, for a chance and at love. Where did the image of “blue jeans” and “lavender gowns” come from?
The inspiration for this story came from a combination of personal experience, observation, and imagination. Some of the events in the book are based on real-life experiences, particularly things like the study hall scenes. I have become increasingly aware of young girls who were physically abused by their fathers, and later, by their husbands. Some of them were close friends, and their stories were tragic. That gave the basis of the story and, to a certain extent, a what-if scenario of how I might have responded to them had I been aware of their circumstances.
How important was the 1970s Midwest setting to the heart of the story?
Having grown up in the 1970s, it was easier to place things in that time setting. The window dressing of 8 tracks, school dances, small town attitudes, etc., helped shape a story that is quite relevant to any time and place, but gives it a ring of authenticity.
The story includes abuse, infidelity, and divorce. Why was it important not to shy away from these?
I wrote to emphasize these issues. Far too often, they are swept under the rug or ignored. The goal was to address these issues from a Christian perspective without being preachy. How should a Christian address these issues in real life, not from some lofty theological perspective? That was the goal. I hope that, at least to some extent, I achieved it.
What do you hope readers take away about faithfulness in ordinary life?
Real life is filled with people who are hurting, sometimes in private and unseen. Christians should open their eyes and recognize those who are hiding their scars and bruises with blue jeans or whatever else they might find. Responding compassionately and with God’s love can transform that hurting person into the beautiful person in the lavender gown, reflecting the glory of Christ.
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Terry Deitz is fascinated with her the moment she walks into his life. She has dark-brown hair, and eyes—a beautiful smile and fair complexion. There is an artless grace about her. There’s only one problem; he has no idea who she is.
Debbie Douglas is bright, funny, and has a kind, quiet nature. But something is wrong, something Terry can’t quite put his finger on.
Debbie doesn’t understand Terry. Why is he determined to go to college to get a degree in history? Why does he insist on going to church four times a week? Does he look down on people like her?
Blue Jeans and Lavender Gowns promises laughter, tears and joy as it explores the relationship between two people who’ve grown up in different worlds. One world filled with love and happiness, the other with pain and suffering. Can their worlds ever come together?
The Last One to Know: A Wholesome Christian Romance
The Last One to Know follows Siegfried “Ziggy” Abel from college into adulthood as he stumbles through love, faith, and responsibility in small-town Illinois and nearby St. Louis. What starts as a rekindled romance with his high school girlfriend, Dana, slowly unfolds into a marriage filled with deep hurt, mental health struggles, and hard choices that end in divorce. Out of that wreckage, Ziggy grows into a man who has to decide if he will really live by his Christian convictions at work and at home, even when it might cost him his job and his reputation. Alongside that heavy journey runs a gentler thread, the steady presence of Lisa, his friend’s shy kid sister, whose quiet loyalty and courage slowly shift into a second chance at love that feels earned rather than neat. By the time the story reaches its epilogue, the book has walked through abuse, control, depression, and betrayal, and still lands on a hopeful picture of grace, healing, and a new life built on honesty and faith.
I connected with the writing most in the everyday moments. The voice feels casual and relatable. There is a lot of internal chatter in Ziggy’s head, and sometimes he overthinks, yet that fits who he is, a guy who wants to do the right thing and is afraid of messing it up. The small town scenes feel warm and specific, with things like cruising parking lots, White Castle slider bets, and awkward family teasing around the table. I liked that sense of texture. I also appreciated how the spiritual side is woven in. Church, prayer, and conscience sit inside the story like normal life, not like a sermon dropped on top. When Ziggy faces the hospital scandal and the question of calling out a dangerous doctor, his faith is part of the weight and part of the strength, and that moved me.
The book takes its time. There are stretches where conversations and inner doubts are revisited in slightly different ways. That slow burn makes the emotional turns hit harder when they finally arrive, especially the long unraveling of Ziggy and Dana’s marriage and Dana’s fragile recovery after the divorce. The handling of mental illness and suicidal thoughts felt tender and respectful, and that touched me. I liked that Dana is not turned into a villain. She is hurting, she makes painful choices, yet she is also the one who releases Ziggy and blesses his future with Lisa. Her final letter gave me a lump in my throat. Lisa herself worked as a character for me. She starts out as a shy teen who gets teased by her family, and by the end she has become this strong, steady woman who encourages Ziggy to live bravely instead of shrinking back. That arc felt really satisfying.
I came away feeling like I had read about real people through a long, messy decade of life and somehow ended in a place of quiet joy. The writing is straightforward and emotional, with enough humor to keep the darkness from sinking the story. I would recommend The Last One to Know to readers who enjoy clean Christian romance, slow and character-driven plots, and small-town settings with a lot of heart. It will especially resonate with people who have lived through divorce, complicated first loves, or seasons of deep doubt and still want to believe that God can bring something good out of the worst chapters.
Pages: 378 | ASIN : B0G78CWFZ8
Blue Jeans and Lavender Gowns
Blue Jeans and Lavender Gowns follows Terry Deitz from his first sight of Debbie Douglas at a high school pool in 1971 through years of friendship, dating, heartbreak, and slow reconciliation in small-town Illinois and Indiana. The story moves from study hall and football games to farm chores, college, bad marriages, and single parenthood, all filtered through Terry’s first-person voice as a Christian young man trying to grow up. The romance stays clean and sits inside the wider Finding Love in the Heartland series, with a strong focus on faith, family, and the long haul of commitment rather than quick sparks.
I had a soft spot for the writing whenever it stayed close to everyday details. The banter around the study hall table, the running jokes about teachers, and the way everyone teases Debbie about her blue jeans felt warm and authentic. Later, when the lavender gowns start to show up, the title clicks into place, and the contrast between work clothes and dress-up moments gives the romance a neat visual thread. The dialogue carries most of the load and often sounds like real teens or young adults from that time period, with talk about homecoming, 8-tracks, and small diners. At times, the prose can get wordy, especially when Terry circles the same worry, and the pacing in the middle third slows while careers and side relationships are mapped out. Even so, I stayed invested because the author clearly likes these characters and lets them make mistakes without turning them into jokes.
The book is not just a “will they or won’t they” high school romance. It digs into controlling parents, emotional and physical abuse, infidelity, and the stigma around divorce in a churchy small town. I felt angry more than once, especially when Debbie’s early choices box her into a painful marriage, and I felt protective of both her and Terry as they try to navigate guilt and shame that are not always theirs to carry. The Christian themes are upfront, but they mostly show up as characters wrestling with conscience, prayer, and forgiveness rather than long sermons. When Terry talks about the kind of husband and father he wants to be, the story’s view of masculinity becomes clear. It values steadiness, gentleness, and repentance more than swagger. That spoke to me and gave the last few chapters a real emotional weight.
By the end, I felt like I had walked with these people for a big slice of their lives, which is the book’s strength. The long time span gives their eventual peace a satisfying heft. I appreciated the steady, kind tone and the way the story honors ordinary decency as much as big romantic gestures. I would recommend Blue Jeans and Lavender Gowns to readers who enjoy wholesome Christian romance, small-town and 1970s nostalgia, and love stories told from a male point of view. If you want a gentle, faith-colored second-chance romance that takes its time and cares about everyday faithfulness, then you’ll heartily enjoy this story.
Pages: 271 | ASIN : B0FZ2V62J7
The Last One to Know: A Wholecome Christian Romance
The Last One to Know is a wholesome Christian romance that follows Siegfried “Ziggy” Abel from small-town Illinois into college, marriage, heartbreak, and finally a quieter, steadier kind of love. We watch him fall hard for Dana Stewart in high school, navigate her controlling parents and their secret meetings in the woods, marry her, and then slowly realize that love alone cannot fix deep wounds, mental illness, or repeated betrayal. Years later, after a painful divorce that he cannot in good conscience stop, Ziggy finds himself drawn toward Lisa Kohler, the shy girl who used to blush over hot chocolate in his parents’ kitchen, and the story moves toward a second-chance romance that feels gentler and more rooted. The setting is the 1970s and 80s Midwest, and the book wears its label as a clean Christian romance openly, with faith and church life shaping nearly every big decision Ziggy makes.
Ziggy tells everything in first person, in plain language, and there are stretches where we linger in the everyday details of school, work, and family jokes, like the legendary White Castle slider contest or Clint’s quest to get a “four-dollar drunk” after giving blood. Those moments of humor matter because the book also walks into some very dark rooms: Dana’s brutal beatings at the hands of her father, her suicide attempts, the slow disintegration of the marriage, and the shock of Ziggy learning he is “the last one to know” about her infidelity and her determination to leave. The writing can feel unusually detailed at times, almost like a diary that refuses to skip any of the hard or awkward bits, but that density also makes the big emotional turns feel earned. When Ziggy finally sits in a lawyer’s office, reading a divorce agreement that asks for almost nothing and quietly admits multiple affairs, the scene stings because we have trudged through all the little compromises that led there.
I liked how honestly the book handles faith and failure. This is a Christian romance, but it is not a neat sermon with a bow on top. Ziggy believes in God, values marriage, and hates the idea of divorce, yet his pastor and friends gently push him to see that clinging to Dana will likely cost her life and his sanity. The story lets that tension sit for a while, instead of rushing to a tidy answer. I also appreciated the way Lisa is woven in from early on, not as a shiny replacement, but as a girl with her own hurts, stuck in a family that teases her relentlessly and does not always listen. Ziggy’s steady kindness to her years before romance is even on the table makes their later relationship feel like the slow clearing of fog rather than a sudden thunderbolt, and by the time he realizes they have quietly been dating for months, it feels completely natural that he sees her as the person he has been looking for all along.
I feel like the book is less about sparks and more about choosing what is right when everything hurts, learning to forgive without excusing harm, and trusting that God can shepherd someone through both divorce and new love without wasting the pain. If you like character-driven stories, small-town settings, and Christian fiction that is honest about abuse, mental illness, and messy marriages while still staying clean and hopeful, The Last One to Know is worth reading.
Pages: 378 | ASIN : B0G78CWFZ8
Blue Jeans and Lavender Gowns
A. W. Anthony’s Blue Jeans and Lavender Gowns follows Terry Deitz as he grows up in small–town Illinois during the 70s and 80s. The story tracks his friendships, his awkward steps toward romance, and his slow discovery of who he wants to be. The heart of the book sits in his connection with Debbie Douglas, a quiet farm girl who surprises him again and again. Much of the book lives inside everyday moments. School hallways. Study hall banter. Football games. Long drives on dark country roads. It all builds a picture of simple places where small choices shape a whole life.
I felt myself leaning in as I read because the writing has this easy, steady flow that feels honest. Sometimes it rambles the way teenagers talk, and sometimes it snaps into sharp little moments that hit harder than expected. The author keeps the language simple, but the emotions run deep. I appreciated how Anthony lets Terry speak for himself without polishing his thoughts. He admits fear. He overthinks things. He wants to do the right thing, then stumbles. That made him feel real to me. Debbie felt real, too. She works hard. She hides her nerves. She wants kindness more than anything. Watching them circle closer together gave me a warm, hopeful feeling.
The book looks at family pressure, faith, and the everyday pain that people try to hide. Some of the scenes surprised me with how tense or tender they got. I liked how the author handles faith with a light touch. The characters lean on God without turning the story into a sermon. It shows how young people try to make sense of love, fear, failure, and forgiveness. The dialogue sometimes made me laugh, and the charm of the book carried me through.
By the time I finished, I felt like I had spent time with people I might actually know. That is what made the story work for me. I would recommend Blue Jeans and Lavender Gowns to readers who enjoy wholesome romance, small–town nostalgia, and stories that unfold gently. Teens and adults who like clean Christian fiction would enjoy it most. If you want a book that feels warm and sincere, with characters that you’ll keep thinking about, this one is worth reading.
Pages: 271 | ASIN : B0FZ2V62J7
The Legacy of Prairie Winds: Third Edition
The Legacy of Prairie Winds is a sweeping historical fiction novel that follows young Johann Gehring, a German immigrant who leaves everything he knows in 1881 to build a life on the wide-open prairie of Nebraska. The book opens with vivid scenes of his family conflict, his difficult voyage across the Atlantic, and his first uncertain steps into a new world. From there, it widens into a multi-generational story about hardship, faith, love, and the slow shaping of a family’s place on the land. The tone shifts between raw struggle and quiet beauty, giving the reader a sense of how fragile and powerful hope can be in an unforgiving landscape.
I kept feeling as if the author were guiding me by the elbow, pointing out details I might miss on my own. The depictions of the Sandhills, for example, stay with me. The grasslands are described with a kind of reverence, but they’re never sentimental. They’re hard, windswept, and sometimes lonely, which makes Johann’s determination feel all the more human. I rooted for him from the start. His fight with his father, his fear on the ship, and his first shaky steps in Nebraska all felt believable because they’re grounded in everyday sensations. The book doesn’t rush. It lets moments breathe, even the uncomfortable ones.
I also appreciated how the story handles the emotional weight of immigration. The scenes of steerage life on the ship, the seasickness, the smell, the fear of disease, and the simple joy of fresh air form a collage of what leaving home really costs. Yet the author doesn’t lean on drama alone. There are tender beats too, especially Johann’s fleeting friendship with Astrid, which adds a spark of warmth in the middle of all the uncertainty. Some passages read almost like oral history, others like a quiet journal entry. The rhythm switches between short, sharp observations and longer, reflective stretches, mirroring the uneven pace of real life. It made me slow down and sit with the characters instead of just watching them move.
By the end, I felt the book was less about the events themselves and more about how people hold on to themselves while the world shifts under their feet. The prairie becomes a character. So does the wind. So does hope. If you enjoy historical fiction that feels intimate rather than sprawling, or stories about immigration, family legacy, and the grit behind ordinary lives, this book will speak to you. It’s a gentle but steady read, ideal for someone who wants to be immersed in a place and a time rather than hurried through them.
Pages: 380 | ASIN : B0FC2Z7SP8
Joint Salvation
Judging Athena follows a humble and kindhearted research assistant who meets a curator at an art gallery, and what begins as a chance encounter over a necklace for a young girl’s birthday unfurls into a deep and poetic romance. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
The idea came to me while I was walking one evening last October. There is a real art gallery gift shop in a charming New England town. Many years ago, I purchased some custom nickel jewelry from the shop manager, a lovely woman with an accent (the nationality of which I cannot recall). On my walk, I suddenly suspected a story was lurking in the memory. As I strolled along, it all began to coalesce in my mind, blending with a few other ideas. I decided to go home, start typing, and see how far it went. Three and a half weeks later, I had a rough draft.
I enjoyed the romantic relationship between Josh and Athena. How did their relationship develop while you were writing it? Did you have an idea of where you wanted to take it or was it organic?
I’m glad you enjoyed it! I had a notion about both characters and their interaction. While they eventually presented themselves well in the first draft, initially, both were somewhat difficult for me to conceptualize. Josh was a challenge because of his humility and piety, and because I wasn’t sure how he would relate to Athena. She was very challenging due to her rarified nature and utterly unique circumstances. And her essence changed quickly in my mind, from a mere legend into something higher and in keeping with her arc of redemption. Fortunately, all my quandaries were resolved as I wrote. Once I was used to the sincerity and kindness in both characters, writing them became a nearly effortless pleasure.
Because of my marital deliverance theme, and partly in defiance of postmodern trends, I knew I wanted the relationship to progress from meeting to matrimony as quickly as possible. Yet in getting there, I decided to dwell on the details of dates, thoughts, emotions, and so forth. And many, many roses! That is why the betrothal period, less than two months long, essentially occupies half the book. I felt the emphasis on clean and honest dating and development, along with genuine understanding behind the marriage, was that important. As an aside, part of me almost wishes I could have dedicated the same level of attention to the rest of the story. However, that would have resulted in a book of 95,000 pages, not words, and I was pleased with the second half anyway.
I did have an idea of where I wanted Athena and Josh to go, though the idea evolved a bit. Most unusual for me, the ideas pretty much landed in the word processor in an organic fashion. Ordinarily, I erratically plot, fill in via scattershot, overthink, and stall manuscript development for months or even years. I practically wrote Judging Athena straight through from page one to “The End.”
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Perhaps the most important element is the Christian concept of joint salvation, manifested through the three primary reasons for marriage, as explained by Father Josias in Chapter Four. This is a core tenant of the Church, however, too much of its veracity has been lost or diluted in our era. The tale I tell is, sadly, not my own. Rather, it is an idealistic expression of the ideal romance. My plot device or hook regarding Athena’s true nature is an admittedly extreme use of speculative theology. However, given the extreme state of the real world around us, I thought it was important to provide a strong counterbalance.
Another important concept, for me and, hopefully, for readers, is the complete deference to God offered by two imperfect people who, by dispensing with solipsism, offer anathema to the postmodern concept of the individual über alles. Fiction provides a forum for letting be what should be, even if the imagined vehicle approaches the fantastical.
Many of the themes and subthemes in Judging Athena stem from First Corinthians. I really enjoyed working various metaphors into the characters’ perceptions, their relationship, and their interaction with God, others, and the world. In addition to all else, the titular matter of judgment requires a real apophatic leap of faith. While hinting all around, I do not expressly explain how it happens. I don’t know technically how these matters unfold. No one does. Hence, a degree of trust is warranted. Had I delivered a detailed verdict, I doubt anyone would have liked it—least of all the author.
Also, I really like writing “innocent” fiction. All too often, my work veers into the polemical and the expositive. I may have finally discovered it is better to suggest than to force certain matters. Beyond telling what I hope is a sweet and entertaining story, I ultimately hope to encourage young men and women to defy the world, unite, be fruitful, and help each other redeem themselves through and into the glory of the Almighty.
What is the next book that you’re working on, and when can your fans expect it out?
Next up, Tom Ironsides returns in AURELIUS, a hard-charging action novella wherein the CIA’s former best blasts through the ranks of assorted international criminals. It’s another book that’s been simmering for a while, since around 2020. With any luck, it should be out late this year or in the winter of 2026. As with Judging Athena and The Substitute, it will come to market via Green Altar Books, the growing and outstanding literary imprint of Shotwell Publishing.
I generally have four or five manuscripts in development at any given time, and now is no exception. My “save the world” inclinations are slowly giving way to something more genteel and with more genuine literary quality. I have a few more romances in the works, including an outline for something of the levels of apologetics in Judging Athena. And there’s always more coming along—in due time.
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JUDGING ATHENA is an exciting foray into innocent, pure, and productive love. It is also a clarion call to return to the traditions of marriage, large families, and genteel society.
More Than Luck Required: A Journey of Healing, Hope, and Love
More Than Luck Required is a heartfelt journey through grief, redemption, and rediscovery, wrapped up in a slow-burning romance that sneaks up on you just like real love sometimes does. The story follows Lora Hamilton, a woman burdened by the traumatic loss of her daughter and the emotional wreckage left behind by an abusive marriage. When her father dies, she reluctantly returns to Orca Park in Washington—a place filled with both painful and peaceful memories—to fulfill a final promise to him: start living again. What begins as a soul-searching trip with her mother soon unravels into something far more transformative when she gets lost and is rescued by Cooper Martin and his spirited teenage daughter, Emma.
I wasn’t prepared for how deeply this book would hit. Right out of the gate, Morgan doesn’t ease us in—she drops us into Lora’s storm of guilt, pain, and emotional paralysis. The writing is raw in a way that doesn’t try too hard. It just lands. That moment when Lora finds a single daisy in a flower bed and smiles for the first time in what feels like years? That hit me. It was so subtle and beautiful—a soft nudge from life, saying, Hey, I’m still here if you want me. That tiny moment carried so much weight, and I found myself hoping she’d hang onto it.
Morgan’s dialogue is refreshingly authentic. The conversations between Lora and her mom felt like eavesdropping on something private. Their exchanges are laced with grief, unsaid things, love, and all the awkward clumsiness that comes with trying to help someone heal when you’re broken too. And the way Morgan peels back Lora’s layers through little things—hesitations, tiny smiles, anxious inner monologues—she doesn’t rush her. The healing feels earned, not handed over with a bow.
The love story between Lora and Cooper doesn’t try to be slick. And thank God for that. It’s hesitant. Awkward. Kind. Full of missteps and warmth. Cooper’s gruff charm and Emma’s playful sass ground the story in a way that makes their household feel like a soft place to land. When Lora wears Emma’s too-small sweatshirt, covered in a faded boy band, and feels ridiculous but cared for? I loved that scene. It was such a gentle, honest glimpse at a woman remembering how to let people in. And while some romantic tropes are here—single dad, handsome rescuer, cozy dinners—they never feel cheap. They feel earned, like everything in Lora’s journey.
The book sometimes leans into its symbolism. The sea glass, the daisy, the storm—at times, I felt like I was being nudged too obviously. But even then, I couldn’t help but appreciate how consistent Morgan is in weaving these elements throughout Lora’s evolution. It’s clear they mean something to her as a writer, and by the end, they meant something to me, too.
More Than Luck Required is for anyone who’s had their heart broken and wondered if it was possible to piece it back together. It’s for people stuck in their grief, who’ve forgotten what warmth feels like. It’s not flashy or overly clever, and that’s exactly why it works. If you’re into books that make you cry a little, smile a lot, and maybe call your mom afterward, then you’ll enjoy this book.
Pages: 349 | ASIN : B0F5QKMHLQ
