Shannon here: Sarah Anne Crouch shares her inspiration for her Contemporary Romance, A Summer in Shady Springs. Comment or answer the question in any post dated Aug 4th – 28th to enter the drawing for an e-book copy plus 3 other titles. Deadline: Sept 5th, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s Sarah:
When I started writing my first novel, A Summer in Shady Springs, I had no idea Clara and Sam would eventually get their own book. They began as supporting figures, guiding the heroine Madeleine on her spiritual journey. But sometimes characters refuse to stay in the background.
Clara Lewis was the no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is aunt. A widow, long-time high school science teacher, and a faithful Christian, Clara soon became one of my favorite characters.
Sam Sullivan was the preacher who advised Madeleine to read the book of Matthew (lending her his own Bible) and gently led her to Christ. He embraced Madeleine’s difficult questions and gave her the grace she needed to grow despite her past hurts.
By the time I finished writing A Summer in Shady Springs, I knew Clara and Sam needed a romance of their own. I wasn’t the only one who grew to love them—my editor told me repeatedly and frequently that she was looking forward to Clara and Sam getting their own book. She kept reminding me every so often that I should and she couldn’t wait to read it. I knew I had to work extra hard on this story to do it justice. No pressure.
Clara and Sam are in their late forties—older than the typical romantic leads, but that made writing their story even more interesting. As I’m approaching forty myself, I often find myself frustrated with the decisions characters make in a book. I relate more to characters who’ve lived a little.
Clara and Sam don’t fall in love because of youthful excitement. They know what grief feels like. They’ve experienced disappointment. They think carefully before opening their hearts. Their romance grows from friendship, faith, and mutual respect, and I hope readers who don’t often see themselves reflected in romance novels will find a hero and heroine they can cheer for.
When New Beginnings in Shady Springs opens, Clara has been a widow for six years and believes the romantic chapter of her life is over for good. She had her one great love and was blessed to get that much. She couldn’t possibly ask for more.
Sam is lonely and secretly hopes Clara will someday look his way. But he’s been rejected in the past and assumes that his calling of ministry is keeping him from finding romance.
Through the process of writing New Beginnings, a special message rose to the forefront: God wants to give us good things.
James 1:17 says “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” (KJV)
And in Matthew 7:11, Jesus says “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?” (KJV)
Too often, I limit God with my own imagination. I think my story is over and then God will surprise me with a plot twist I didn’t expect.
God’s plans rarely look the way I expect them to, but they are always better than anything I could have imagined for myself.
In New Beginnings, a tornado tears through Shady Springs, leaving destruction in its wake. Yet it also becomes the beginning of healing—not only for the town, but for Clara and Sam. Isn’t that often how God works? He doesn’t cause every storm, but He has a beautiful way of bringing new life out of even our deepest wounds.
My prayer is that New Beginnings in Shady Springs will be a blessing and an encouragement. When readers finish the last page, I want them to be filled with hope for their own lives and their walk with God.
Writing Clara and Sam’s story reminded me that God is never finished with us. Whether we’re twenty-five or sixty-five, newly married or widowed, beginning again or wondering what’s next, the Author of our faith is still writing beautiful endings—and even more beautiful new beginnings.
Reader Question: Have you ever experienced a time when God brought an unexpected blessing out
of a difficult season? I’d love to hear about it in the comments.
August 2026 Book Bundle
Ribbons of Guilt by Laura Thomas, Romantic Suspense, ebook
New Beginnings in Shady Springs by Sarah Anne Crouch, Contemporary Romance, ebook
A Troubling Rogue by Betty Woods, Historical Romance, print
Winner’s Choice of one Montana Gold book by Janalyn Voigt, Historical Fiction, print
About Sarah: Sarah Anne Crouch lives in Arkansas with her husband, three children, and thousands of books. She spent years teaching, earned a master’s degree in library science, and now happily surrounds herself with even more books as the Acquisitions Assistant at the Brackett Library at Harding University. Sarah writes heartwarming Christian romance filled with faith, hope, and second chances. When she isn’t writing, she’s usually reading, baking cookies, playing the piano, or answering emails from readers.
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About the book – New Beginnings in Shady Springs:
When the storm passes, can two guarded hearts believe in love again?
After six years of widowhood, high school biology teacher Clara Lewis has settled into a quiet life in Shady Springs, Arkansas, pouring her heart into her students, her church, and her garden. Romance, she tells herself, belongs to another season.
Sam Sullivan understands the safety of a guarded heart. A painful childhood and a broken engagement have convinced him that love is meant for others, not for him. Yet his long-hidden feelings for Clara become harder to ignore as they work together to encourage a withdrawn teen who needs them both.
Then a devastating tornado tears through Shady Springs, drawing Clara and Sam together in the storm’s aftermath as they help rescue the hurting, shelter the displaced, and rebuild the community they love. Amid the wreckage, Clara begins to wonder whether the steady, compassionate man beside her might be part of the new life God is offering.
But opening their hearts means facing old fears, unexpected competition, and the scrutiny of a small town that notices everything.
Perfect for fans of heartwarming Christian romance, this tender small-town story weaves together friendship, faith, grief, and healing as two guarded hearts must decide whether love is worth trusting again.
Start reading today and return to Shady Springs, where faith grows, hearts heal, and hope blooms in God’s perfect timing.
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New Beginnings in Shady Springs Sarah’s Books
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