John McDonough
5) A New Song
Mitford’s longtime Episcopal priest, Father Tim, has retired. But new challenges and adventures await when he agrees to serve as interim minister of a small church on Whitecap Island. He and his wife, Cynthia, soon find that Whitecap has...
In this powerful holiday story, a man who lost everything has his whole life changed after a little girl’s letter reminds him of the true meaning of Christmas.
Ten years later Big Earl meets Gideon, a seven-year-old leukemia patient who believes with all her heart that "Christmas means never having to ask God how much he loves us." Gideon is determined to reach this lonely and hurting man who hates Christmas — and he...Originally published in 1865, this classic has been adopted into the canon of children's literature. In the tale, young protagonist Hans Brinker wants more than anything to win a local speed-skating race—and to get his hands on the beautiful silver skates awarded to the winner. Faced with a series of tragedies and tribulations, Hans makes sacrifices for the benefit of those around him and inspires others to virtue in the process. A must-read
...10) Out to Canaan
In her popular Mitford series, glimmering with gentle laughter and tears, novelist Jan Karon transports you to the cozy small town of your dreams. An instant bestseller, Out to Canaan, finds Father Tim Kavanagh, the beloved Episcopal priest, confronting some unsettling trends in the village. Preparing for his retirement, Father Tim wrestles with a reluctance to release his flock to another shepherd. His difficulties multiply when the new
...12) Shadow of Doubt
A poisoned past. A bitter present. Is Celia a murderer ... or a victim? Detective Stan Shepherd lies comatose in the hospital, a victim of arsenic poisoning. The Newpointe police have a suspect: Celia Shepherd, Stan's wife. Celia is no stranger to such charges. When her first husband died of poisoning, a technicality scuttled the case against her and Celia got of scot-free. Now it looks like the same old story—only this time, the motive appears
...13) Trial by fire
Pastor and fireman Nick Foster found the body in the inferno engulfing his church. From the bullet wound in the head, it's clear this is no ordinary fire victim. The quiet community of Newpointe, reeling from the shock of the dead man's identity, struggles with the agonizing question: who did it—and why? Paramedic Issie Mattreaux is no icon of virtue, but she cares enough about her teenage nephew, Jake, to track him down when he turns up
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