Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

Book Release and a Giveaway!

By

This week I’ve been celebrating the release of The Runaway Bride, the next installment of my Bride Ships Series. It’s been such a fun week as readers eagerly set sail on a new reading adventure!

I’m thrilled to announce that the book recently received a Starred Review from Book List, which is a pretty big deal since starred reviews are only given to a small selection of books.

Book List said: “The Runaway Bride is an uplifting and well-crafted second installment in Hedlund’s Bride Ships series. Hedlund has a knack for creating unlikely yet alluring matches . . . Period details, such as relations with local Native Americans and a smallpox epidemic, help immerse readers in the story’s 1862 world of cultural, class, and gender injustices. Tender moments of light sensuality infuse this inspirational romance with delectable heat.”

Thank you to Elisabeth Espinoza for this picture!

During the rewrite and editing stages of The Runaway Bride, my editors and I had some frank discussions about the sensuality level and how much is appropriate. Often it’s tough to find a balance that will please every reader and their tastes. In the end, I decided I needed to stay true to my voice and style, which the Book List review stated succinctly with “alluring matches,” “light sensuality,” and “delectable heat.”

As I said in this post “How Much Sensuality is TOO Much For Christian Fiction?” that Christian fiction has varying amounts of sensuality. Some romances are really sweet and chaste. Others have a little more sizzle and passion on the page. Mine tend to lean toward the sizzling heat side of the spectrum!

Thank you to Blessed & Bookish for this graphic!

If that’s something you enjoy, then be sure to pick up a copy of The Runaway Bride today! Or enter to WIN a copy in the Rafflecopter form below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

How about YOU? Do you like your romances to be sweet or to have a little sizzle? (NO wrong answers here! Both are perfectly okay!)

The following two tabs change content below.
My Twitter profileMy Facebook profileMy Google+ profileMy Instagram profileMy Pinterest profile

Jody Hedlund

Author
Award-winning author Jody Hedlund makes her home in central Michigan with her husband and five children. When she's not busy with her family, she loves to read and consume large amounts of chocolate and coffee.
My Twitter profileMy Facebook profileMy Google+ profileMy Instagram profileMy Pinterest profile

Latest posts by Jody Hedlund (see all)

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

LINKS IN COMMENTS

Please note: If you include a link or links in your comment (URLs or email addresses), your comment will not post right away. It will wait for a moderator to approve it, which may take some time.

Comments

  1. Probably more of a chaste gal, but if a book is by one of my favorite authors, I read it anyway. You are on that list 😊

  2. I am concerned at the content of an increasing number of ‘Christian’ books, & am surprised & disappointed at the publishers for lowering their standards. Readers who want this kind of thing are already more than catered for, & those who don’t ought to be able to rely on Christian books for clean reads. There needs to be a recognisable difference!
    Why do characters have to be so bound up with others’ looks, anyway – surely we should be demonstrating a less shallow way of life…

    • I agree with Rob….I should be able to trust Christian authors to have clean content. I prefer books without so much sizzle

      • I’ve come to the conclusion that publishers only care about selling books. I hope I’m not going to have to give up Christian Fiction.

  3. Jody, your books are the perfect amount of sizzle and I love them! I like books with a sizzle that are still clean and that’s a hard balance and you do it so well. I enjoy all your books!!!

  5. I prefer sweet, but I don’t mind a little sizzle as long as it’s tasteful. 🙂

  6. No sorry Jody. I stay away from the sizzle and stick to the sweet. I don’t think think I’ve ever read much sizzle in your romance books. I have this book on my want to read shelf . Should I remove it? Will it be a shocker for me? Kissing is fine just not a whole lot of it. Will I be comfortable reading this book?

  8. What a gorgeous cover. Congratulations. Mostly I like sweet and clean. But yours does not sound like it is too far on the opposite side. I would love to give your books a chance. I have heard nothing but good things about them.

  9. I love a sweet romance without all the specifics of the sensuality experienced between the couple. I don’t mind some details, but I don’t like explicit descriptions meant to arouse the reader. One of the reasons I read Christian fiction is because it is not explicit in describing the sensual details of a couple’s relationship.

  10. I like romances that are clean but that they have to overcome obstacles to be together. I think that makes their connection stronger and the story stronger. Thank you for the giveaway.

  12. I enjoy a little sizzle when done properly. Life has sizzle moments and when penned tastefully into a novel, I feel as though they feel more authentic.

  13. I really enjoy your books and the little sizzle is perfect! I like most types of romance and yours stand a bit above the rest. Thanks for sharing amazing stories with us!

  14. I like to read a variety of different books but if it goes too graphic I will stop reading

  18. Bring on the sizzle! I think sometimes readers are shocked by any type of intimacy or sensuality in Christian fiction, but have they ever read the Song of Solomon? EGADS !!! Talk about sizzle!! God is the one who created male and female attraction that even unmarried couples should and/or will feel towards the other. But He also puts restraints in which sex is reserved for marriage. I appreciate Christian writers (including yourself) who write within God’s parameters, but also with ‘true’ human emotions and reactions. Keep ’em coming. 🙂

    • Well said, Amy. I want a true to life experience. Why should Christian authors ignore what God created as long as it is within God’s boundaries. We are not to ignore the good gifts God has given us, just to enjoy them within the parameters He created. I like the sizzle. I also appreciate when it’s time to stop and close the doors.

  20. I definitely want sweet with a little sizzle. I want to see affections express physically between husband and wife. That tells me there is a bond there.
    sonnetta_jones(at)hotmail(dot)com

  22. I like a little sizzle but not the whole frying pan! Your example is perfect. It makes a reader want to read more, not close her eyes and think “keep it behind bedroom doors.” LOL. Romance! That’s the trick. Congratulations!

    • I really enjoyed Book 1 of this series and am looking forward to reading Book 2. A little sizzle always works for me!

  27. I love romance books that have sizzle to them, makes it more interesting, and a lot harder to put the book down

  28. I love your books! I like romance books that have some sizzle because that’s real life and pretending people don’t feel that stuff is just silly. I always like to see how the characters in Christian books handle their feelings because that’s really where the rubber meets the road.

  30. I like sweet and sizzle but if it goes too far, I just jump ahead. Looking forward to reading this book.

  31. Having started reading romance that contained “hot and sexy”, I now much prefer Christian romance and find myself turning away from authors who are very explicit in their descriptions. Two of my favorite authors, who create wonderful plots, are now on my back burner since I have begun reading more Christian authors. Rob, above, is right. There are more than enough authors that provide that kind of entertainment. However, a little sizzle is fine.

    I never have luck with raffle copter giveaways – find them hard to navigate, usually am already signed up for the newsletter, sometimes get credit for FB likes and shares, sometimes not – so I will just order the book. Beautiful cover and displays!

  33. For me personally, I love the sweet romance. However, even a sweet romance can have sparks. 🙂

  34. Shared on Facebook (Kay Garrett) , Twitter
    (@arkieclown) and Pinterest (arkieclowns).

  35. I enjoy some tension, but in a clean way if that makes sense! I shared on Pinterest!

  36. I generally prefer sweet, tender, with a little humor, but a little spice is okay…Do not care for gratuitous sex, foul language and violence which some of my used-to-be favorite authors have added evidently in an effort to attract more readers.

  37. I prefer sweet and no sizzle. But then, everyone’s definition of sizzle is a little different. I don’t even like long kissing scenes on TV–I prefer they come together to kiss, and then the camera breaks away, leaving everything else to the imagination. Too much more than that and I feel voyeuristic. We know people feel those feelings and do those things without seeing it.

    I do appreciate that you let people know ahead of time what to expect so they’re not surprised.

  38. I like a little sizzle as long as it is tasteful. It is a realistic part of relationships. That perfect amount of spark is what hooked me when I read my first Jody Hedlund book, The Preacher’s Bride. It seemed believable.

  39. I lean to the more sizzle side, but only if the couple is almost engaged. I lose respect for the characters if they are kissing within two pages of meeting one another. If it’s a married couple I want all the sizzle I can get, but no s*x scenes on the page. What is behind closed doors in real life should be closed to the reader in my opinion. I do wish that in Christian fiction they would have a rating system on the outside cover like they do with TV. Actually Harlequin has various levels in their books and I appreciate that. I personally would only read their Love Inspired lines and the Heartwarming line, but none of the others.

  40. I personally do not care for the stronger sizzle that’s why I read Christian Fiction, but I have only read one of your books and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I’ve read the first book in this Bride ship series. Would love to win this second one!!!

  41. I TOTALLY agree with Amy M.! I love sizzle and swoony stuff (whatever you want to call it), and there’s no better place for it than romance. It’s real and relatable. We read romance to relive that first rush of falling in love. Remember those early days when you and your love couldn’t bear to be apart? Every single one of God’s creatures, on varying levels, is driven to seek the basics: food, water, shelter, sleep, and sex. And what initially brings creatures together in pursuit of that last need? Physical attraction. Faith-based writers have a terrific opportunity to demonstrate that heart-melding sensuality can and should be part of a healthy Christian marriage. Let’s move on from the unhealthy shame and prudishness, shall we? We writers are perfectly capable of using clean language to describe closed-door relations, with lots of kissing and pillow talk and physical appreciation before and after, all while leaving plenty more to the reader’s imagination. I am all for it. You rock, Jody!

  43. I prefer it to be just sweet. My love language is words of affirmation, so someone’s words of love, in a book or real life, are far more interesting, gripping, and romantic than a magical touch or kiss. I take a class of English country dancing–the type of dancing you see in Jane Austen movies–and not once have I found delight in a guy’s hand around my waist (we mostly do group dances but now and then the traditional waltz); however, I almost fell flat on my face when one told me I’m “always gorgeous”!

  44. I love a sweet and sexy romance, clean of course. It has to flow with the story line though. It can’t be forced just to get a reaction. Hope that makes since.

  46. I like alittle bit of sizzle. This past year I just discovered Jody Hedlum and have been loving her books!

  49. Jody, Congratulations on your release! The cover is GORGEOUS!

    I like romance with a bit of sizzle. I believe there is a balance of sweet and sizzle. You are an author that I trust! I’m excited to read this series.

  52. I like a little sizzle–it feels more authentic and, for me, creates a stronger bond between the characters. I have loved all of your books that I have read. I can’t wait to read this one!

  53. I think I like mine to be a little of both but more sweet….
    I love reading your books and would love to read this one!!

  55. Please don’t change. Love your books. You know your heart and where your running comes from. Let your life pour out.

  59. I like both for sure! Don’t mind some sizzle at all! Couples who love each other should have some sizzle!

  61. I like sweet romance but I don’t mind a little sizzle either. I can also enjoy books that have little or no romance. As long as the plot is good, I’m good.

  65. I like sweet romances with no sexual innuendo. The latter has no place in Christian fiction! I am looking forward to reading this latest of your Bride series!

Recent Posts