#WednesdayWordswithFriends welcomes Karen Malley @KarenLMalley !

Good Morning,

Well, the house is gone and I am two steps closer to finalizing my mom and dad's estate. 

Bittersweet relief. 

Please give today's guest, Karen Malley a huge, warm, W-E-L-C-O-M-E!!!

Thank you for having me back again, Pam!

A few years ago, I was talking with a coworker who I knew to be an avid reader. When I mentioned writing my first book, he told me “you should write a series.” At the time, I didn’t think much of it, but when I came to the end of Following the Sparrows, I knew he was right. I had so much fun writing about the characters and the town of Pine Springs, I wasn’t ready to say goodbye. There were other characters with stories to tell, so I took his advice and a series was born.

            Since that conversation, I have now written three books in the series, along with a free prequel. This month, book two, A Second Chance for Grace, releases. I’ve enjoyed exploring the secondary characters who first showed their faces in the first book.

            Here’s a little bit about it: 

A new life coming into the world disrupts Susan's quiet life ...

Susan Montgomery is used to a quiet, peaceful life managing her apartment building, where the hardest problem is her grouchy neighbor's leaky faucet. She soon finds herself dealing with a pregnant teenage niece, a mysterious briefcase left behind by a tenant, and two very different men vying for her heart.

A near-death experience gives Mac a new outlook on life ...

Christopher "Mac" MacAllister is trying to figure out how to "do the Christian thing." As a new convert, he's drawn to Susan's love for life and for God. She's nothing like the women he used to date; but can Mac compete with the guy who's come out of nowhere and knows all the right things to say?

It may be obvious from the title, but the book is all about second chances. We serve a God who specializes in second chances. Moses murdered an Egyptian and ran away to the wilderness, and when God came to recruit him, he asked God to send someone else, yet God used him to lead his people out of slavery. David committed adultery and had the woman’s husband murdered to cover up the resulting pregnancy, but God made him a mighty king of Israel. Peter spent three years of his life swearing his allegiance to Jesus, but in His time of need denied knowing the Lord. Jesus restored him and used him to draw thousand of Jewish people to Christ. Paul persecuted Christians and dragged them off to prison, but God changed his heart and he became the greatest missionary of all time. God used each of these men mightily by lifting them out of their sins. They became heroes of the faith. He can do the same for us if we open our hearts to His leading.

Personally, I’m encouraged God chose to record the mistakes made by the heroes of the faith because it means he can use even me. Maybe not to lead people out of slavery, be a king, or start dozens of churches, but I’m hopeful He uses my words to encourage others.

If you’re interested in reading about second chances, love, friendship, betrayal, and mystery, give A Second Chance for Grace a try!

Karen lives in Southeastern Pennsylvania with her husband and two sons. She works full time as a scientist, but enjoys writing in her spare time whenever she can find some! When not writing (with her left hand), she enjoys baking, volunteering at her church, camping, hiking, playing board games, and reading. She loves reading faith-based stories, because we can all use a happy ending.

Find out more about Karen by visiting her Website and connecting with her on Twitter, FaceBook, GoodReads and BookBub.

Get your copy of A Second Chance for Grace at Amazon and where other great Christian fiction is sold.

Thank you so much, Karen for visiting with us today. A Second Chance for Grace sounds like a wonderful read and we certainly wish you the best of luck and God's blessings with it and all of your writings!

Hope you enjoyed today's post as much as I did, Friends and that you'll stop by weekly for another edition of Wednesday Words with Friends and Saturday Spotlight.

Until next time, take care and God bless.

PamT