About The Book

Book:  The Builder’s Reluctant Bride

Author: Stacey Weeks

Genre:  Christian romance, women’s fiction

Release Date: July 8, 2016

He wants a second chance. She says there’s no going back. Ten years ago, a public disgrace sent Jenna Jenkins running from her hometown. Now, the success of her professional future hinges on joining her hometown church restoration project. Her partner and team leader on the job is William Scott—expert renovator, volunteer fireman, and the ex-flame who ruined her life.  William is in crisis, facing the tightening screws of personal and professional failure. When the interior designer on the church renovation project turns out to be Jenna Jenkins, William sees it as a chance to make amends. But Jenna wants nothing to do with him.  How much will William sacrifice to redeem his mistakes and prove his love? Can Jenna protect her heart this time or will William break her for good?

Click here to get your copy.

About The Author

Stacey Weeks is the multi-award-winning author of Glorious Surrender (2016), and Chasing Holiness (2020), inspirational romances The Builder’s Reluctant Bride (2016), Mistletoe Melody (2018), Mistletoe Mission (2019), and inspirational romantic suspense novels In Too Deep (2017), and Fatal Homecoming (2019). Stacey lives in Ontario where she speaks at women’s conferences, teaches writing and bible study workshops, and writes about the things of the Lord. www.staceyweeks.com

More from Stacey

Afflicted but Not Crushed

I created the character, Jenna, from The Builder’s Reluctant Bride, during a time of life filled with chaos. Changed ripped stability out from underneath me. I couldn’t tell if my challenges were from God deigned to build my faith or if they were a temptation from the enemy to doubt God. Life struck with a severity that stole the breath from my lungs, so I retreated into a fictional world to process. I needed to be reminded, like Jenna, that my current struggles didn’t negate the ways God was using me. I needed to remember that God would use everything in my life to shape me into His image and draw me closer to Him.

“I thought after his mom died, I had lost the both of them. Then, you came around.” The corners of his eyes crinkled.

“Me?” she squeaked.

“Yes. You changed everything for him. I know you left for college right after graduation, so you likely didn’t see the change. But God took that seed you planted in my son and grew this man.” He gestured to William, who stood with his fire jacket off and held a dog while it licked his soot-covered face. “This man of God.” Carmen looked squarely into her eyes. “I am indebted to you, Jenna.”

She squirmed at his unquestionable sincerity. She didn’t deserve his praise for directing his son to faith, the same faith that later let her down in every conceivable way.

When life’s chaos hit Jenna, it caused her to question her faith and question God’s goodness. It took her time to sift through the mess and find the truth. God is good.

Still.

Always.

Never changing.

Good.

It might not feel good. You might want to give up. You might think there is no way for God to redeem your story, but Jenna would tell you that you would be wrong.

Q&A with Stacey Weeks

Why did you choose the contemporary romance genre?

Our culture often depicts love in steamy images as if love is solely based on sexual feelings. Our culture manipulates hearts and stirs up inappropriate passions. I believe this world needs clean, wholesome, and God-honouring stories. It needs authors bold enough to call cheap, broken, and worldly lust what it is—sin. It needs stories of purity, characters that honour God first, and illustrations of how true satisfaction comes from a right relationship with God, not from a human relationship. Ephesians 4:29 refers to speech, but it applies to authors as well, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.”

Christian romance stories thrive within the boundaries God has created for love, and that gives hope to those who have only known broken love. Not hope in the right man, but hope in the Lord. 

What types of research do you pursue? Books, on-site visits, etc.

I will research whatever the book requires. One book required me to become familiar with augmented reality gaming. The kids and I participated in one game using my smart phone. This game superimposed images into our environment when we looked through the lens of the camera phone. 

For another book, we climbed a rock wall before I wrote the rock-climbing scene, and I used a zipline (but that never made it into the book). Less hands-on research has included interviews with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, firemen, paramedics, police officers, a sniper, and a private detective. I complete as much research as I can online and use face-to-face interviews to discover the information unavailable online.

What does a typical writing day look like? Are you structured or informal in your writing schedule?

I write nearly every day, but I would say I am informal with my schedule. I rise before the children wake and reserve those early hours for the Lord. I’ve found that when I prioritize the most important things in life, not allowing hobbies or personal interests to shove aside the absolutes to which God has called me, I manage my remaining available time better. As a home-schooling mom, my mornings are spent teaching the children, but I might get a bit of writing time in before we start. I try to carve out a few hours in the afternoon to pick up my latest work-in-progress while the kids are participating in sports. If the evening permits, I’ll write more. I enjoy trading fiction writing with non-fiction. The intensity and emotional investment for each are vastly different, providing a sweet mental break. I am always thinking about my story and taking notes. I try to hold loose to my schedule and take each day as it comes. Several times a year, I will block off an entire day to write, and at least once a year, I try to get away for a few days to focus on writing. 

What do you want your readers to take away with them after finishing one of your novels?

I hope they realize that they are, right now, in a love story. Some love stories are dramas. They’re full of heart-wrenching moments and climatic events. Some love stories are like a feel-good-girls-night-out; everything falls into place at the right moment and clicks. Some love stories are suspenseful; they have us biting our nails and wondering if good will ever prevail. 

And some of you are thinking – a love story? – yeah right!

I don’t know your circumstances or life story, but what I hope all my readers understand is that there is Someone who does. He is greater than any fictional prince, and He left his kingdom to pursue your heart. Not only is He pursuing you, but He is writing your story as a part of His story. He has promised that the stories of all His children end in victory for His glory.

Readers always want to know what is next for an author. Do you have any works in progress you can share about?

I am working on the final installment of a trilogy of novellas set in the quaint Christmassy town of Mistletoe Meadows. I loved writing book one, Mistletoe Melody, which was inspired by two young women who endured unexpected trials. Book two, Mistletoe Mission, blends several personal experiences, including a trip to Haiti. I’m still drafting book three, and I am having so much fun wrapping up the stories of this beautiful place. I’m also working on a free devotional series that will lead up to the release of my next non-fiction book in August.

Blog Stops

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 14

deb’s Book Review, March 15

Texas Book-aholic, March 16

Artistic Nobody, March 17 (Author Interview)

Inklings and notions, March 18

For Him and My Family, March 19

Andrea Christenson, March 20 (Author Interview)

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, March 21

A Baker’s Perspective, March 22 (Author Interview)

Create! Teach! Inspire!, March 23

CarpeDiem, March 24

By The Book, March 25 (Author Interview)

Simple Harvest Reads, March 26

For the Love of Literature, March 27 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Stacey is giving away the grand prize of a dainty bracelet with each word spelled out in Morse Code with beads!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/f661/the-builder-s-reluctant-bride-celebration-tour-giveaway

Tags: romance fiction, Stacey Weeks