Congrats to the following Rita Award Finalists in the RWA’s Inspirational category:

■A Convenient Wife by Anna Schmidt (Steeple Hill Love Inspired Historical; Tina James, editor)

■Doctor in Petticoats by Mary Connealy (Barbour Publishing; Rebecca Germany, editor)

■Finding Her Way Home by Linda Goodnight (Steeple Hill Love Inspired; Allison Lyons, editor)

■In Harm’s Way by Irene Hannon (Revell; Jennifer Leep, editor)

■Maid to Match by Deeanne Gist (Bethany House Publishers; David Long and Julie Klassen, editors)

■Shades of Morning by Marlo M. Schalesky (WaterBrook Multnomah; Shannon Marchese, editor)

■The Wedding Garden by Linda Goodnight (Steeple Hill Love Inspired; Allison Lyons, editor)

■Whisper on the Wind by Maureen Lang (Tyndale House Publishers; Stephanie Broene, editor)

■Within My Heart by Tamera Alexander (Bethany House Publishers; Karen Schurrer and Charlene Patterson, editors)

Congrats also to the following Inspirational author who finaled in the Rita Novella Category:

■”Mountain Rose” by Cheryl St. John in To Be a Mother (Steeple Hill Love Inspired Historical; Patience Smith, editor)

Congrats to the following Inspirational authors for finaling in the Best First Book category:

■Firestorm by Kelly Ann Riley (Steeple Hill Love Inspired Suspense; Tina James, editor)

■A Tailor-Made Bride by Karen Witemeyer (Bethany House Publishers; Karen Schurrer, editor)

For a list of ALL CATEGORIES, ALL FINALISTS, see RWA’s website.

~Cecelia Dowdy~