Brigette Manie's Blog: Godsgirlsreadromance2

Walking in 2 Worlds: Logan's Story (Convict to Christianity: Book 1)

Spring is here and with a new season, I debuted a new book and a brand new series. About the trials, temptations, and triumphs of five ex-cons (Logan, Drake, Gunther, Luke, and Patrick--Trick) the Convict to Christianity series starts out with Logan Dunn stepping out of the penitentiary and into the pages of this romantic fiction. Here's a bit about his story...

To avoid actions that landed him an 18-year stretch in the penitentiary, Logan Dunn needs legitimate employment. He gets it with The Thrive Center. The only thing is that he has to become a member of the church. Logan didn't want anything restricting his lifestyle. He'd had enough of that in prison. But he does what he must to get what he wants. He converts but isn't convicted.

Marcia Freeman sees right through the fraud of a felon her brother brings home. He's no kind of Christian, not with his flaw. A fake is what the man is. Angry with Logan's double-dealing, she voices her objection and sparks fly between them.

Logan cannot stand the woman with the acidic tongue and bad attitude. Her example of Christianity leaves nothing to be desired.

With a single eventful encounter, the two combatants discover that fury's not the only type of spark flying between them. Desire and attraction are all up in the mix as well. Neither wants to cave in to the chemistry between them. After all, they walk in separate worlds--she in the light and he in darkness.

Will these two people who walk in separate worlds find a middle ground where they can meet? A discovery makes it expedient for them to do so.

Interested? I hope so. Get your copy right here on Amazon.

Massive thanks to all 474 readers who participated in the giveaway for "The Man Beside Her." Your interest is greatly appreciated. Congrats to the winners. Blessings and thanks again everybody.

"He was a minister of a different faith...Interest in him was not an option. Unfortunately for her, it was a reality."

(excerpted from "Other Sheep Have I")

"Other Sheep Have I," the fifth installment in the Pioneers in the Pulpit series, debuted this morning. I'm exhausted and elated. Usually, my life takes a backseat to my stories, but with this novel, it was the other way around. I'm just grateful to God that, by His grace, this work is completed.

On the re-read, I liked the chemistry between the heroine and hero of this novel as well as their thought-provoking conversations on church life and beliefs. Tiana is a strong woman of faith who is open-minded but traditional when it comes to matters of the heart. Jermaine Billings has the right amount of patience and charisma to channel her mind towards an alternative way of thinking.

Romantic and rich with conflict, as well, I enjoyed writing "Other Sheep Have I." Hope you'll love reading it.

Strong, sassy, serene, and solid describe Diane, Scottie, Carolyn, and Sandra, the first four pioneers. Silent, some think, yet eloquent, they discover, best describe Tiana Washington, the tallest pioneer. Meet her in “Other Sheep Have I,” coming soon. Take a look here…

Turn the other cheek. Seriously? How many can you turn? You've only got two. People mistake Pastor Tiana Washington's silence for lack of eloquence. August Granger does. You'd think he'd learn after Tiana's thorough slap-down, but troublemakers like him rarely do.

Against her gender, dress, leadership, and everything about her, August Granger is determined to drive Pastor Washington from Mt. Salem SAB. Without meaning to, Tiana arms him with bullets against her when she forms a friendship with Jermaine Billings, pastor of HCE Ministries. Very aware of their denominational differences, Tiana doesn’t plan on taking this friendship beyond that. Jermaine has other ideas and sets out to change her mind with charm and persistence. She doesn't know that he has a history with the SAB Church and has been blacklisted by them. Associating with him isn't in her professional interest.

With malicious intent, Granger claims that she has an unacceptable association with a 'black sheep' and advocates for her dismissal. Soon Tiana faces an ultimatum: end her friendship with Jermaine or end her employment with the SAB Church. The choice isn't easy because this friendship with Jermaine has become much more than that.

At 75% off, it's a steal! (smile). A peek into the pages...

A man at odds with her church member...

"Stay away from this church and my music department, or you'll regret it."
The threat stopped Slade cold. Turning slowly, hatred rising in him like a rocket, he snarled, "If you don't back off, you'll not live to regret a thing. Who do you think you are, trying to tell me what to do and where to go? If I want to come to this church and play the piano and the organ for that matter, I'll darn well do that, and you can't do a thing to stop me!"
Eugene Bennett's pale face turned florid with rage. His features contorting with emotion, he raised his voice. "Listen boy," he snapped, jabbing his finger into Slade's chest.
Slade grabbed the man's forefinger and gave it a vicious twist. The crack accompanied by Bennett's howl of pain said it was broken.

...and the man her elders don't like...

"Pastor, we want to talk to you about Slade Patterson," Elder Findlay started, moving out of the way as Diane advanced.
The tense way he pronounced Slade's name suggested that he might have a problem with the man. Taking her time to respond, Diane sat in her chair, crossed her legs, and folded her fingers across her waist. "What about him?" she asked the elder with a pleasant smile.
"We don't want him here."
Diane's eyebrows almost shot up to her hairline. She sat forward in her chair, losing her smile and making her face as sober as Findlay's. "I thought the church was a place of salvation and refuge for all people."
"It is, but not for him--at least not Judah." This came from Elder Martin Small. His surname reflected his physical stature.
She leveled a cold stare at him. "I also thought that God isn't a respecter of persons."
"You can quote scripture all you want, Pastor, but some people only bring trouble when they come to church." Elder Isaiah Bennett joined the conversation.
Diane turned her attention to the tall man whose suit hung on his sparse frame like he didn't live in a nation of plenty. "And what kind of trouble did Mr. Patterson bring today? As far as I could see he was a great blessing to our congregation. If not for him, we would not have had music."
"Well, Pastor, maybe if you'd taken a different approach with Eugene Bennett, our musicians would have been here."

...is the man she wants.

"He was a soul...that needed to be ministered to. She was his shepherd; it was her job. That she was attracted to him made it all the more urgent."

"I like to say that I write about real people with real problems who just happen to be Christians... I hope people will experience a relaxing read with 'The Man Beside Her' and all the other books. I pray that readers will be encouraged, inspired, and informed by the scriptural references in this novel and all the others in the series." Brigette Manie

A year ago, seven women waded into waters teeming with male barracudas hostile to their gender, but they didn't back out of the turbulent waters.

Diane McPherson, the first courageous woman of faith stepped out in "The Man Beside Her" and is still going strong today. Meet her here.

The Man Beside Her

After an intense writing marathon, it's finally done, edited, and published. The Man Beside Her has debuted and is the first of seven novels in my new series: Pioneers in the Pulpit. Here's a sneak peek into the pages…

“I don’t date men outside my faith.”
“How about one in the faith who just pulled your leg?”
Her mouth went slack. He’d been joking about the whole basketball thing. He began to nod before she asked him the question. Diane seriously thought about taking off her stiletto and clocking him upside his head.
“Now will you go out with me?” he pressed. Still close, he smiled at her coaxingly.
Diane studied his beguiling brown eyes and sighed. “I can’t.”
“Why not?” he asked, startling her a little when he took her hand and started playing with her fingers.
“Slade, you’re my parishioner.”
“So what?”
His finger grazed her palm slightly, and her train of thought ran off course. “I’m the pastor. I’m supposed to be praying for you.”
“Please do. I need a lot of prayers.” He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed the inside of her wrist.
What had she been about to say? Diane shook her head to get some focus. What he just did with his lips felt wonderful. She wished he’d repeat it. But no, she needed to dissuade him. What was her next line? Yes, now she remembered. “I’m supposed to pray for you not prey on you.”
With a tiny tug, he pulled her against him and wrapped his arms around her. His lethal smile full of mischief and intimate interest, he whispered, “Who’s preying on whom?”
Diane didn’t have time to respond and could not have even if there were time. Slade’s mouth was coming closer and the fine line between pastor and parishioner, between praying and preying disintegrated faster than the bat of her eyelash. When his lips touched hers, all Diane thought was, please don’t stop!

Dear Reader,

From their first kiss in the final chapter of A Price Too High, I knew that Adrianna and Christopher had a story to share.  His internal conflict was very clear to me due to the circumstances of his first wife's death. His unyielding stance on not having kids with Adrianna came as no surprise.  Yet, as with every novel that I write, the story took some twists and turns and had some unexpected character revelations that amazed me. Both Christopher and Adrianna surprised me with their 'closet pasts' that colored their future and fostered the conflict between them.

Writing A Matter of Trust took me on an emotional ride as Dri and Chris struggled with the issues facing them.  And when it looked like they reached a resolution to one problem, things took another tumble into a worse situation. When one of my daugter's read chapter 15 with a hand slapped over her mouth reaction which was later followed by tears, I realized I wasn't the only one affected by what God allowed me to place on the page.

My prayer is that you too will be moved by the contents of this novel.  More than that I trust that you will see that God's desire for us is forgiveness of one another's wrongs inside marriage.  I hope that you will experience the joy of these characters when they forgive each other and that you'll delight in the peace and love that reigns in their lives afterwards.

Blessings and happy reading.

Brigette Manie