Special coverage brought to us by:
Lisa Samson, keynoter
Terri Blackstock, Donna Kehoe
Mark Mynheir, Donna Kehoe
Tom Pawlik, Donna Kehoe
Dave & Neta Jackson
Tamara Alexander & Julie Klassen
John & Tricia Goyer
Janet Kobobel Grant, Carol Johnson (former VP
of Editorial, Bethany House), Deeanne Gist, Jim
Parrish (Executive VP and
Director of Bethany House)
Rhonda Elfstrand, Christina Berry, Sherrie Ashcraft
The 2010 Christy Awards
The
2010 Christy Awards presentation was held Saturday evening, June 26,
2010, at the Renaissance St. Louis Grand in advance of the International
Christian Retail Show. The dessert reception featured a keynote address
entitled “Be That Well” by best-selling author and
entrepreneur Lisa Samson and was emceed by editor Lonnie Hull DuPont, Baker
Publishing Group. To involve Christian fiction fans not able to attend
the event in person, a liveblog of the event was provided online, and an
archive of the event can be accessed online at www.ChristyAwards.com.
WINNERS:
Contemporary Romance
Breach
of Trust by DiAnn Mills
Tyndale House Publishers
Paige Rogers survived every CIA operative’s worst nightmare—a
covert mission gone terribly wrong…a betrayal by the one man she
thought she could trust. Forced to disappear to protect the lives of her
loved ones, Paige has spent years
building a quiet life as a small-town librarian. But the day a stranger
comes to town and starts asking questions, Paige knows her careful existence
has been shattered. He is coming after her again, and this time, he intends
to silence her for good.
Award-winning author DiAnn Mills launched her career in 1998 with the publication
of her first book. Since then, she has written more than fifteen novels
and
many novellas, and more than one and a half million copies of her books
are in print. DiAnn lives in Houston, Texas, with her husband.
Contemporary Series, Sequels & Novellas
Who
Do I Talk To? by Neta Jackson
Thomas Nelson
Gabrielle Fairbanks knew her husband was upset with her, but she never
expected him to change the locks on their Chicago penthouse, cancel her
credit cards, and disappear with their two boys. Now she's literally on
the streets with her elderly mother, her mom's dog…and $220 to her
name. As her fragile plans fall apart, Gabby hits on a possibility so wild
and wonderful it has to be one of those “God
things,” something she's only seen happen to other Christians until
now.
Neta Jackson's award-winning YADA YADA books have sold over 400,000 copies
and are spawning prayer groups across the country. She and her husband,
Dave, are also an award-winning writing team, best known for the TRAILBLAZER
BOOKS—a
40-volume series of historical fiction with 1.5 million in sales—and
HERO TALES: A FAMILY TREASURY OF TRUE STORIES FROM THE LIVES OF CHRISTIAN
HEROES (vols. 1-4). The Jacksons live in the Chicago metropolitan area,
where the YADA YADA stories are set.
Contemporary Standalone
The
Passion of Mary-Margaret by Lisa Samson
Thomas Nelson
When Mary-Margaret
Fischer met Jude Keller, the lightkeeper's son, she was studying at convent
school on a small island off Chesapeake Bay. Destined for a life as a
religious sister, she nevertheless felt a pull toward Jude—rough
and tumble, promiscuous Jude.
As Mary-Margaret returns to the island to prepare for her final vows,
Jude, too, returns to the island, dissolute and hardened. Mary-Margaret
receives a
divine call that shakes her to the core, a call to give up her dreams for
the troubled man who
befriended her so long ago. For Jesus' sake, can she forsake the only life
she ever wanted for a love that could literally cost her life?
Lisa Samson is the award-winning author of twenty-six books including Quaker
Summer, Christianity Today's Novel of 2008, and Justice in the Burbs, which
she
co-wrote with her husband, Will. When not at home in Kentucky with
her three children, one cat, and six chickens, she operates cuppa: a tea
café and speaks
around the country about writing and social justice, encouraging the people
of God to “do
justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God.”
First Novel
Fireflies
in December by Jennifer Erin Valent
Tyndale House Publishers
Jessilyn Lassiter never
knew hatred could lurk in the human heart until her best friend, Gemma,
loses her parents in a tragic fire during the summer of 1932.
Jessilyn’s
father vows to care for Gemma as one of his own, despite the fact that
she is black and prejudice is prevalent in their southern Virginia town.
Violence springs
up as a ragtag band of Ku Klux Klan members unite and decide to take matters
into their own hands.
Jennifer Erin Valent lives in Central Virginia, where she has worked as
a nanny for more than fifteen years. A lifelong resident of the South,
her surroundings help tocolor the scenes and characters she writes.
Historical
Though
Waters Roar by Lynn Austin
Bethany House Publishers: a Division of Baker
Publishing Group
When Harriet Sherwood
finds herself in jail, she spends the night contemplating the series
of events that resulted in her imprisonment. Coming from a long line
of
women active in social justice, she weighs her values against her ancestors’,
searching for where she belongs in that strong and thrilling heritage.
Lynn Austin has won five Christy Awards for her historical fiction. One
of those novels, Hidden Places, was made into a Hallmark Channel movie.
Lynn and her husband have raised three children and make their home near
Chicago,
Illinois.
Historical Romance
The
Silent Governess by Julie Klassen
Bethany House Publishers: a Division
of Baker Publishing Group
Olivia Keene is fleeing her own secret; she never intended to overhear
Lord Bradley’s! Now he has given her a job and confined her to
his estate, for if his secret were to be revealed, he would lose his
reputation, his inheritance, and his very
home.
Julie Klassen is a fiction editor who has worked on both the editorial
and marketing sides of book publishing. She lives in St. Paul, Minnesota,
with her husband and two sons.
Suspense
Lost
Mission by Athol Dickson
Howard Books: a Division of Simon & Schuster
Athol Dickson’s latest novel, Lost Mission, weaves a gripping story
of suspense that
spans centuries and cultures to explore the abiding possibility of miracles.
As the ruins of a Spanish Mission are disturbed twelve generations after
it collapsed atop the
supernatural evidence of a shocking crime, one community’s understanding
of
morality, sin, and faith is challenged by that haunting secret.
Athol Dickson is an award-winning author of several novels, including the
Christy
Award-winning novel River Rising, which was named one of the “Top
Ten Christian
Novels of 2006.”
Visionary
By
Darkness Hid by Jill Williamson (Marcher Lord Press)
Young Achan Cham dreams of serving
in the Kingsguard Knights, but he is a stray—
worse than a slave—and such aspirations are out of his reach. Worse,
Achan is
beginning to hear strange voices in his head.
Jill Williamson writes stories that combine danger, suspense, and adventure
for
people of all ages. She started Novel Teen Book Reviews (www.novelteen.com)
to
help teens find great books to read. Williamson lives in Oregon with her
husband and
two children. By Darkness Hid is her first novel.
Young Adult
North!
or Be Eaten by Andrew Peterson
WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group
In Book Two of the
WINGFEATHER SAGA, escape with Janner, Tink, and Leeli Igiby as they flee
north, to the Ice Prairies, where they will be safe from the
cruel Fangs of
Dang. But first they have to survive the dangers along the way—and
the dangers
within themselves. Andrew Peterson delivers more breathtaking adventure
in this tale
for all ages.
Andrew Peterson is the author of Christy finalist On the Edge of the Dark
Sea of
Darkness, Book One in the WINGFEATHER SAGA, and The Ballad of Matthew’s
Begats. He’s also the critically-acclaimed singer-songwriter and
recording artist of ten albums. He and his wife live with their two sons
and one daughter near Nashville, Tennessee.
The 2010 Christy Award Nominees:
Contemporary Romance
Breach of Trust
by DiAnn Mills (Tyndale House Publishers)
How Sweet It Is
by Alice J. Wisler (Bethany House Publishers: a Division of Baker Publishing
Group)
Stand-In Groom
by Kaye Dacus (Barbour Publishing)
Contemporary Series, Sequels, and Novellas
Who Do I Talk To?
by Neta Jackson (Thomas Nelson)
The Hope of Refuge
by Cindy Woodsmall (WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group)
Daisy Chain
by Mary DeMuth (Zondervan)
Contemporary Standalone
June Bug
by Chris Fabry (Tyndale House Publishers)
The Passion of Mary-Margaret
by Lisa Samson (Thomas Nelson)
Veiled Freedom
by Jeanette Windle (Tyndale House Publishers)
First Novel
The Familiar Stranger
by Christina Berry (Moody Publishers)
Fireflies in December
by Jennifer Erin Valent (Tyndale House Publishers)
Scared
by Tom Davis (David C. Cook)
Historical
A Flickering Light
by Jane Kirkpatrick (WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group)
Though Waters Roar
by Lynn Austin (Bethany House Publishers: a Division of Baker Publishing
Group)
The Swiss Courier
by
Tricia Goyer & Mike
Yorkey (Revell Books: a Division of Baker Publishing Group)
Historical Romance*
Beyond This Moment
by Tamera Alexander (Bethany House Publishers: a Division of Baker Publishing
Group)
A Bride in the Bargain
by Deeanne Gist (Bethany House Publishers: a Division of Baker Publishing
Group)
The Inheritance
by Tamera Alexander (Thomas Nelson)
The Silent Governess
by Julie Klassen (Bethany House Publishers: a Division of Baker Publishing
Group)
Suspense
Intervention
by Terri Blackstock (Zondervan)
Lost Mission
by
Athol Dickson (Howard Books: a Division of Simon & Schuster)
The Night Watchman
by Mark Mynheir (WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group)
Visionary
By Darkness Hid
by Jill Williamson (Marcher Lord Press)
The Enclave
by Karen Hancock (Bethany House Publishers: a Division of Baker Publishing
Group)
Valley of the Shadow
by Tom Pawlik (Tyndale House Publishers)
Young Adult
Beautiful
by Cindy Martinusen-Coloma (Thomas Nelson)
The Blue Umbrella
by Mike Mason (David C. Cook)
North! Or Be Eaten
by Andrew Peterson (WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group)
History of the Awards
In the spring of 1999, nearly a dozen Christian publishers confirmed the need for establishing a Christian fiction award to recognize novelists and novels of excellence in several genres of Christian fiction. By late summer, ideas and planning had come together to launch The Christy Award, named in honor of Catherine Marshall’s novel and of her contribution to growth of the fiction Christians love to read.
The Christy Award is designed
to:
* Nurture and encourage
creativity and quality in the writing and publishing of fiction written
from a Christian worldview.
* Bring a new awareness of the breadth and depth of fiction choices available,
helping to broaden the readership.
* Provide opportunity to recognize novelists whose work may not have reached
bestseller status.
How the Awards Work
Every year publishers
are invited to submit novels written from a Christian worldview and copyrighted
in the year preceding the awards. Each novel is entered in one of several
genre categories and/or the first novel category. Each category of novels
is then read and evaluated against a ten-point criteria by a panel of
seven judges composed of librarians, reviewers, academicians, literary
critics, and other qualified readers, none of whom have a direct affiliation
with a publishing company.
Catherine Marshall
Catherine Marshall, writer of more than two dozen books and the subject of at least one biography, is one of America's most notable and bestselling Christian writers. Her readers around the world know Catherine as "America's most inspirational author," as described in The New York Times. More than 25 million copies of her books are in print. Nine years in the making and perhaps Catherines's best-known work, the novel Christy has more than 10 million copies in print and is estimated to have been read by more than 30 million people.
The Christy Awards
is proud to honor both the novelist and her novel through this annual
award recognizing Christian novels of excellence.
Huge thanks to Tyson Wynn, Jeane Wynn & Tosca Lee for bringing us live
blog coverage at the events! Pictured below are Tyson & Tosca.
