Follow the story of these two shattered hearts as they discover the beauty of grace and forgiveness.

Unraveled by Heidi McCahan

About this book: Blind-sided by her questionable fiance, Lauren Carter returns to the one place she’s been avoiding, the place she used to call home. As she’s forced to look into the eyes of her past and even worse, her unraveling future she discovers that running only leaves you out of breath on a dead-end street. Will she choose to unveil the secrets that haunt her? Or will she bury them once and for all and embrace a new life so different from the one she once held dear?

Blake Tully, wildly successful and breathtakingly winsome owner of a new rafting business, finds Lauren’s unexpected reappearance confusing. As he torments himself with what if’s and what-should’ve-been’s, he can’t mistake the feeling that crawls down his spine every time he looks at her. Although she broke his heart once, he longs to give his childhood sweetheart another chance, but can he convince her to stop running away when life gets tough? And can he forgive her when he discovers the reason she’s been hiding?

About the author: A Pacific Northwest girl at heart, Heidi McCahan spent her childhood in Alaska. After a brief career as a Certified Athletic Trainer, Heidi married her husband, Steve. They now live with their three boys in North Carolina, where Heidi remains a big fan of coffee, dark chocolate and heartwarming romance.

Genre: Fiction/Christian/Romance

Would I read this book, judged on its cover alone? Since I adore beautiful covers that hint at the story within, yes.

If this book were a movie, I would rate it: PG. Appropriate for general audiences.

Reminds me of… Love Finds You in Glacier Bay, Alaska by Tricia Goyer and Ocieanna Fleiss

You’ll want to buy this book if … you’re a last-minute Mother’s Day shopper looking to gift the women in your life with a little romance. Or if you’d like a little yourself. 🙂 You may purchase a copy here.

Why did I read this book? As a member of the Unraveled book launch team. 

My short-take: I found so many things to like about this story (including the cover–isn’t it lovely?). Tension from page one, likable characters, a breathtaking setting, a bit of mystery…and lots of romance. Unraveled allows a thoughtful exploration of some of life’s big questions, while the story itself reveals a warm and beautiful heart beating at its center.

Q&A: I was fortunate enough to catch up with Heidi in the midst of her busy book launch to snatch a bit of chat. I hope you’ll enjoy getting to know her as much as I have…

Heidi, please tell us a bit about your writing journey.

After my husband, Steve, and I married, an early scene from Unraveled lived on my hard drive through the season of life I affectionately term the “baby raising” years. It was an idea I didn’t have the time or the energy to nurture. Then about three years ago, that scene started to come alive in my head. The compulsion to write was like a thirst I couldn’t quench. My friends laugh when I tell them the voices in my head got really loud. From a spiritual standpoint, I felt God was calling me to use the gifts He’d given me. So I wrote a lousy first draft. Then I entered contests, hired a freelance editor, polished and re-wrote. In December, Unraveled found a publishing home with Winslet Press.

 What’s a typical writing day like for you?

 I’m like most writers, trying to wrangle these words along with other significant responsibilities. We have two in school and one in preschool, so I try to snatch moments of writing time whenever I can get them. For the first time in ten years, we don’t have anyone in this family who needs an afternoon nap. (Well, except for me. Ha!) So this is a different season, trying to figure out how to shift and adjust to a new normal. Social media is a wonderful thing and a powerful tool in an author’s marketing arsenal, but it is the world’s largest time suck for me. Recently I started scratching out words on paper in the morning, once I’m fully caffeinated, of course. That removes the temptation of jumping online and I can get an idea going before the day gets away from me. I also write at night when everyone else is in bed and on the weekends, too.

What are you reading? Which authors particularly inspire you?

 I’m a voracious reader. I read extensively in the inspirational women’s fiction genre. There are some new releases in my To Be Read pile, namely Beth Vogt’s Somebody Like You and KatieGanshert’s A Broken Kind of Beautiful. I’m a huge fan of Denise Hunter and Lisa Wingate. If I could write deep third person point of view as well as those ladies, I would be a happy camper. I’m sure every inspirational women’s fiction author says this, but I adored Catherine Marshall’s Christy, as well.

Your reading pile sounds a lot like mine! I also agree with you about those authors to emulate, and Christy is one of my best-loved novels, ever. What’s next for you in terms of writing?

 I’m writing a sweet romance about a female sportscaster pursuing an interview with a reclusive American baseball player trying to re-start his pitching career in Japan. It’s been a blast to write, so much so that I hate to get to the end. But, that’s how this writing thing works. Also, early readers of Unraveled have mentioned a sequel, so that’s on my radar, too.

Thanks to Winslet Press for providing me a free copy of this book. All opinions are mine.