Christian fiction set in the south

I adore winter landscapes and a snowy, woodsy story always soothes me... But there's something about summertime that makes me want to sip iced tea or lemonade and get lost in a book set in the south! If I develop a sweet little Georgia accent while I'm reading then so be it! 

Most of the southern books I've enjoyed have been secular in nature so now I'm diving into Christian fiction and finding so many to get excited about! 

📚 I absolutely adored The Wedding Dress. Think The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, but with a wedding dress instead of blue jeans! Set in Alabama, this delightful time slip novel follows three different women with different bodies for whom this wedding dress fit perfectly with no alterations. They each have very different life circumstances and the dress seems to find each of them... The audio version was wonderful!

📚 Then I adored The Dead Don't Dance. Set in South Carolina, this gripping emotional story of a man's grapple with faith after a family tragedy had me sobbing on the treadmill and deeply moved me... also great on audio! 

This summer (and maybe during the warmer parts of this spring, too!) I'm looking forward to trying at least a few of the following books:  

📚 Hurricane Season... I've talked about this TBR here before. It's taken me forever to read it despite being excited about it all along! This one is set in Alabama and sounds like the perfect fit for me as it dives headfirst into complicated family dynamics in the middle of hurricane season. 

📚 A Long Time Comin'... A grandmother, a granddaughter, a box of old letters, family secrets... I'm in! 

📚 Stars of Alabama... A teenage pregnancy, a found baby, an unlikely family. You have my attention. 

📚 That Dog Won't Hunt... I adore Brandilyn Collins after taking her class at the Spokane Christian Writers Conference. She writes primarily suspense and I loved Dark Justice and Over the Edge but just haven been in a suspense mood for a while. This book is the first in the Dearing Family series and i love books about families so I'm excited for this one! Set in small-town Mississippi, this is told from the perspective of the youngest Dearing child's girlfriend and her first time meeting the family. 

📚 A Time to Stand... How about a Grisham-esque plot set in downtown Atlanta? A white police officer shoots an unarmed black teen and a black defense attorney feels compelled to defend him. I have no idea what this 2017 novel will look like in 2021 but I'm so curious to find out! 

📚 When Stars Rain Down... Set in Georgia, this one is a 1930s historical fiction about a 17 year old girl, her life with her grandmother, and the KKK! I found Stella by Starlight and The Midwife of Hope River to both be fascinating so I have high hopes for this one.