Read some award-winning novels!

A few weeks ago I attended the American Christian Fiction Writers conference in Dallas. Each year at the ACFW conference there’s an awards gala. The gala celebrates unpublished authors with the Genesis Award, and published authors (whose books released the previous year) are honored with the Carol Awards.

These are wonderful books, and I’m pleased to share the winners with you!

The 2012 Carol Award winners ~

Debut Novel:

Fairer Than Morning by Rosslyn Elliott (Thomas Nelson)

Long Contemporary:

The Search by Suzanne Woods Fisher (Revell)

Long Contemporary Romance:

My Foolish Heart by Susan May Warren (Tyndale)

Long Historical:

Fairer Than Morning by Rosslyn Elliott (Thomas Nelson)

Long Historical Romance:

To Win Her Heart by Karen Witemeyer (Bethany House Publishers)

Mystery:

Falling to Pieces: A Shipshewana Amish Mystery by Vannetta Chapman

(Zondervan)

Novellas:

An Accidental Christmas from A Biltmore Christmas by Diane T.

Ashley/Aaron McCarver (Barbour Publishing)

Romantic Suspense:

Lonestar Angel by Colleen Coble (Thomas Nelson)

Short Contemporary:

Lakeside Reunion by Lisa Jordan (Love Inspired)

Short Contemporary Suspense:

Nightwatch by Valerie Hansen (Love Inspired Suspense)

Short Historical:

The Deepest Waters by Dan Walsh (Revell)

Speculative Fiction:

Broken Sight by Steve Rzasa (Marcher Lord Press)

Suspense/Thriller:

Fallen Angel by Major Jeff Struecker/Alton Gansky (B & H Fiction)

Women’s Fiction:

Dandelion Summer by Lisa Wingate (Penguin Praise/Berkley)

*For the first time ever a book won with five perfect scores of 10. Since I was one of the five judges who found perfection in Lisa Wingate's book, I can personally attest that it's a wonderful novel. (I would have liked to give it a score of 12, but we couldn't go above a 10.)

Young Adult:

The Merchant's Daughter by Melanie Dickerson (Zondervan)