January has a wide variety of offerings of books publishing in the religion and spirituality category, from Shelley Shepard Gray’s new Amish fiction title The Son’s Vow, to a look at issues of race in America’s Original Sin by Jim Wallis. Check out a list below of more noteworthy titles that go on sale next month.
Fiction
Jan. 1
The Calico Spy by Margaret Brownley (Barbour/Shiloh Run, $14.99, ISBN 978-1-62836-628-0). Pinkerton operative Katie Madison’s newest case takes her to Calico, Kans., where two Harvey House waitresses were murdered under mysterious circumstances.
Jan. 5
The Prophecy of Three by Donita K. Paul (Zonderkidz, $13.99, ISBN 978-0-310-73582-3) concludes the Realm Walkers series as Cantor, Dukmee, and Bixby face their greatest challenge yet: rescuing the nine realms from Errd Tos.
Where She Belongs: A Novel by Johnnie Alexander (Revell, $14.99, ISBN 978-0-8007-2640-9). The first book in the Misty Willow series follows Shelby Kincaid, a young widow with her sights set on transforming both her future and her family’s ancestral home.
Jan. 26
The Son’s Vow by Shelley Shepard Gray (Avon Inspire, $12.99; ISBN 978-0-06-233779-5). The first book of Gray’s Charmed Amish Life series tells the stories of the Kinsinger siblings, who are struggling to find both forgiveness and love in the face of tragedy.
The Feathered Bone by Julie Cantrell (Thomas Nelson, $15.99, ISBN 978-0-7180-3762-8). Grief unravels a family, and when a missing child is found after six years, the road to healing is difficult.
Nonfiction
Jan. 1
From the Wilderness and Lebanon: An Israeli Soldier's Story of War and Recovery by Asael Lubotzky (Toby Press, $14.95, 978-1-5926-4417-9) is a memoir recounting the deadly Second Lebanon War, offering insight to the physical, emotional, and spiritual challenges faced by Israeli soldiers.
I Was Blind (Dating), But Now I See: My Misadventures in Dating, Waiting, and Stumbling into Love by Stephanie Rische (Tyndale, $15.99, 978-1-4964-0481-7) tells the true story of blogger Rische’s search for love and finding a relationship with God instead.
Jan. 2
Letters to Jacob: Mostly About Prayer by Father John-Julian OJN (Paraclete Press, $7.99, 978-1-61261-686-5) is a record of letters to a young seminarian that explore contemplative prayer and theological subjects including the nature of God.
Jan. 3
Women of Easter by Liz Curtis Higgs (Waterbrook/Multnomah, $14.99, ISBN 978-1-60142-682-6) explores the stories of three women who played a vital role in the life and ministry of Jesus: Mary of Bethany, Mary the mother of Jesus, and Mary Magdalene.
Jan. 4
Roadmap to Reconciliation: Moving Communities into Unity, Wholeness and Justice by Brenda Salter McNeil (IVP, $16; ISBN 978-0-8308-4442-5) Salter, a teaching minister in the Evangelical Covenant Church and an associate professor at Seattle Pacific University, believes there is a path forward for racial fairness in the world.
Jan. 5
Why Liberals Win the Culture Wars (Even When They Lose Elections) by Stephen Prothero (HarperOne, $26.99; ISBN 978-0-06-157129-9). With an initial 75,000-copy print run, this examination of culture wars makes a case that culture wars have been fought in America since its founding.
Kindfulness by Ajahn Brahm (Wisdom, $9.95, ISBN 978-1-6142-9199-2) introduces a new approach to meditation and mindfulness through stories and step-by-step instructions.
To the Table: A Spirituality of Food, Farming, and Community by Lisa Graham McMinn (Brazos, $19.99, ISBN 978-1-58743-370-2) offers practical guidance on what it means to eat alone or in community with more intention, compassion, humility, and gratitude.
The Seven Laws of Love: Essential Principles for Building Stronger Relationships by Dave Willis (Thomas Nelson, $16.99, 978-0-7180-3433-7) features steps for bringing love into all life’s relationships using laws from scripture.
40 Days of Decrease: A Different Kind of Hunger. A Different Kind of Fast by Alicia Britt Chole (Thomas Nelson, $14.99; ISBN 978-0-7180-7660-3) encourages readers to give up gossip or comparison instead of sugar or caffeine during Lent this year.
The Book of Mastery: The Mastery Trilogy: Book I by Paul Selig (Penguin/Tarcher, $15.95; ISBN 978-0-399-17570-1). The first book in the channeled Mastery Trilogy offers techniques intended to heighten personal excellence.
Jan. 12
The Illusion of God’s Presence: The Biological Origins of Spiritual Longing by John C. Wathey (Prometheus Books, $28; ISBN 978-1-63388-074-0) analyzes spirituality and its associated emotions in terms of innate neonatal brain circuitry and the bonding between infant and mother.
Jan. 19
America’s Original Sin: Racism, White Privilege, and the Bridge to a New America by Jim Wallis (Brazos, hardcover, $21.99, ISBN 978-1-58743-342-9). Author and activist Wallis shows how Christians can work together to overcome racism in American society.
Be You. Do Good: Having the Guts to Pursue What Makes You Come Alive by Jonathan David Golden (Baker, $14.99; ISBN 978-0-8010-1877-0) features methods for finding your life’s passions and words of encouragement to persevere.
Jan. 26
Breaking Busy by Alli Worthington (Zondervan, $15.99 paper; ISBN 978-0-310-34222-9) applies biblical principles to big questions about finding happiness and your life’s purpose.
Divine Collision: An African Boy, an American Lawyer, and Their Remarkable Battle for Freedom by Jim Gash (Worthy, $21.99, 978-1-6179-5671-3) is the true story of an unlikely friendship between Gash and a wrongfully accused Ugandan boy locked in prison, and the fight for reform in Uganda’s criminal justice system.
Raising Grateful Kids in an Entitled World: How One Family Learned That Saying No Can Lead to Life's Biggest Yes by Kristen Welch (Tyndale Momentum, $15.99, 978-1-4964-0529-6) offers tips for resisting the urge to give in to buying material items in an effort to teach children the difference between wants and needs.
Jan. 27
The Body Under the Bridge: A Father Gilbert Mystery by Paul McCusker (Lion Fiction, $14.99, ISBN 978-1-78264-107-0) is the first in a series of modern whodunits following Friar Gilbert, a character known to listeners of Focus on the Family radio dramas.
The Christian Wallet: Spending, Giving, and Living with a Conscience by Mike Slaughter and Karen Perry Smith (Westminster John Knox Press, $15.99; ISBN 978-0-6642-6029-3) takes a comprehensive look at how Christians spend their money and the meaning behind it.
