Welcome to the Blog Tour that brings Rendezvous 2026 to you, hosted, sponsored, and organized by JustRead Publicity Tours!

Bringing Rendezvous ’26 to You!

Rendezvous: reader and writer gathering
November 7, 2026
Holiday Inn Nashville Airport

I am so excited to go again this year to Rendezvous and meet so many authors and other reader friends! Everyone is very friendly and happy to include others. Whether you are a newbie, a longtime attender, an introvert, or an extrovert, you will find friends and join in laughter, fun, and great times of faith with like-minded readers and authors. Come!! Join us!!

Readers and Writers will gather at the fourth annual Read Write Rendezvous, organized and sponsored by JustRead Publicity Tours, LLC, on November 7, 2026, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. CT at the Holiday Inn Nashville Airport. Rendezvous celebrates Christian fiction and sweet reads, featuring corporate worship, speaker sessions, author panels, small-group discussions, games, giveaways, a pop-up bookshop, and book signings. This event aims to sweeten reading and storytelling experiences with fellowship and encouragement. Over forty featured authors are participating, including The Christy Award Hall of Fame and bestselling author Tamera Alexander who will deliver the keynote address. USA Today and top ten Publishers Weekly bestselling author Lisa Phillips will lead worship. We will announce several more authors in the coming weeks! We prayerfully honor the legacy of the Christian Fiction Readers Retreat through each Rendezvous event, and this year we are especially celebrating the very first CFRR which was held 10 years ago in Nashville. Rendezvous is open only to registered attendees. Want to extend your reader getaway? The Christy Award Gala and Art of Writing conference will be held at a nearby venue on November 6.

Learn more about the 2026 Rendezvous

If you’re unable to attend Rendezvous this year, we don’t want you to miss out on getting to know our authors and their books. Our bloggers are bringing Rendezvous to you by spotlighting several of the participating authors this week. Follow along to grow your TBR list to astronomical proportions!

Check out recent releases by these participating authors in the JustRead Amazon Storefront.

About My Featured Author

Liz Johnson is the author of more than 20 novels, a New York Times bestselling novella, and a handful of short stories. She’s a Christy Award finalist, a three-time ACFW Carol Award finalist, and winner of an FHL Readers’ Choice Award in 2025. She makes her home in Phoenix, where she loves exploring local theater, cheering for the 49ers, and doting on her nieces and nephews. She reads and writes stories filled with heart, humor, and happily ever afters.

Liz’s Featured Book

About the Book

Title: Sidelined by Love

Released: February 17, 2026

Genre: Sweet Rom-com, Sports Romance

Zoe Peebles: America’s Sweetheart or Drama Queen?

The tabloids have always been kind to me—until an on-set scandal leaves me single, unemployable, and looking for a place to hide. My only option is staying with my grandma in Colorado Springs, but my dad—owner of the local professional football team—makes it clear that he doesn’t want my personal brand of drama in his locker room. No problem. I’m not interested in dating anyone in the public eye. Ever again.

But I do need quarterback Grant Reddington’s help preparing for an audition that will be my last if I can’t land the role. As I spend time with my father’s QB1, I discover there’s a lot more to him than a rocket arm and a ridiculously handsome face.

Grant Reddington: Fumbling His Most Important Role

When my sister is deployed for six months, she asks me to take care of her 13-year-old daughter Kenna. They’re my only family, and I can hardly say no. But having a teenager obsessed with acting at my place isn’t exactly conducive to focusing on the game and taking my team to the playoffs, especially since she and I have nothing to talk about.

But the moment Kenna discovers that I know a real-life movie star, she begins to smile again, and maybe we have a way to connect. Now I have a certified drama queen hanging around my house. I can’t believe half the tabloid stories about Zoe, but that doesn’t mean it’s safe to have her around. Especially when she’s becoming my favorite distraction.

Purchase here:

https://www.amazon.com/Sidelined-Love-Fourteeners-Football-Romantic-ebook/dp/B0DXF41VFL

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My Impressions

“What do you know to be true right now?”

“Well, let’s start with the good ones. You’re forgiven. Completely and wholly by the only One who matters. You are loved by a good God and a cranky grandma. And you are worthy to be loved.” -Nan

I am to the point as a reader that one of the best parts of a book is a “Notable Quotable,” ( as I call them) a takeaway Truth that I can either live by or share with someone else in need. So this review of Liz Johnson’s sports comedy- slash-sweet rom-com may be backwards from my usual. The above truth nugget is such a life-changing mind shift if our rumor-beleaguered actress Zoe can wrap her brain around it. But it is so relevant to life today.

All that being said, guess who, besides Zoe, an actress being smeared by the tabloids, and hunky NFL quarterback Grant “Red”, is my fave secondary character? Nan, of course. I just love these supporting characters who quietly come in and stand in the gap for hurting MCs when everyone else (i.e. Zoe’s Fourteeners owner father, her agent Cyndi, and producers) treat Zoe like poison for a mistake that she couldn’t foresee. Nan is so wise, and she takes Zoe in when no one else will. If need be, Nan will become a formidable human dervish that could mow down Zoe’s naysayers.

As I write this, Father’s Day is coming. Zoe would have absolutely no reason to celebrate her rich, famous, and double-standard father. His treatment of her makes me want to cry.

Thank goodness for muscly, 5-o’clock shadow, great smelling, (did I say hunky) star quarterback Grant Reddington, who is on Zoe’s father’s team. Totally off-limits. Totally uninterested in helping Zoe when asked. But the catalysts for the start of their relationship might be furry beasts and a sullen 13-yr-old niece of Grant’s, forced to live with him temporarily.

Such a fun story to read and watch the characters grow and see the different relationships mature or dissolve. Personally, I could have used a little less emphasis on the physical, but Johnson does keep it sweet. A couple of words I prefer not to see in CF, but as some might say, soft. Still, the cute story stays within its category boundaries and I believe most will get a good kick out of it! Great for those who love sports rom-coms, sweet rom-coms, great Truth lessons, and novels written in first-person present POV with alternating narrators.

I bought my own copy of the book. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.

Notable Quotables:

“You’re not who they say you are,” he whispers into my ear. “You are who God says you are.” Grant

“The truth ceased to matter a long time ago. No one cares what really happened. They only care what they can sell. Reality is whatever the headlines declare it to be.” -Cyndi

“‘The truth always matters.’ She clamps her wrinkled and spotted hand over mine on the table. ‘It will set you free. Jesus said it, so it must be true.’” -Nan

“The Good Book says that love casts out fear. It also says that a cord of three strands is stronger than two. When you’re with the right person, you’re a stronger, better version. Of both of you.” Hank

“None of us should be judged on our worst mistakes.” -Grant

My Rating

Great! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Loved the Marriage of Sweet Rom-com and Golden Truth Nuggets!!

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Giveaway

(11) winner will receive a $30 gift card (winner’s choice of Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Christianbook, or Baker Book House)!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight June 15, 2026 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on June 22, 2026. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

Enter Giveaway

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Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

BLOG, Celebrate Lit Tour, Kindle, Purchase

Ronnie by Jennifer Lynn Cary Review and Giveaway

September 17, 2024 Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Book: Ronnie

Author: Jennifer Lynn Cary

Genre: Sweet Romcom

Release Date: June 12, 2024

She’s literally stuck in her engagement…

…He’s trying to keep her there.

But when you take the couple out of Texas, is the romance lost too?

Ronnie Webb has broken her engagement to the love of her life, Carlos (Cal) Garcia, or would have if the stupid ring would come off her finger.

To find the space to get over him and the rest of what is going wrong in her life, she leaves her dad’s Texas ranch to visit her aunt and family in Kokomo, Indiana.

But hanging out with the Weather Girls, especially with their cardinal in the sycamore legend sending out strong vibes, Ronnie’s love life may not be as dead as she thinks.

Carlitos can’t believe the letter Ronnie left him right before Christmas—his last one at home before his enlistment starts. However, his broken wrist might just be the break he needs to get Ronnie back before it’s too late.

But what does this native Texan know about mid-western Hoosier romance?

And can he learn, or is this the end?

Ronnie: A Sweet, Quirky Romantic Yarn is book five in the Weather Girls Wedding Shoppe and Venue series. Inspired by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons’ 1960’s song of the name, this charming tale with a bit of western influence finishes off 1972 and brings you into the New Year in Kokomo, Indiana.

You will enjoy this sweet and wholesome romcom with a touch of western flavor because everyone dreams of their own cowboy romance.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Historical Christian Romance author, Jennifer Lynn Cary, likes to say you can take the girl out of Indiana, but you can’t take the Hoosier out of the girl. Now transplanted to the Arizona desert, this direct descendant of Davy Crockett and her husband of forty plus years enjoy time with family where she shares tales of her small-town heritage and family legacies with their grandchildren. She is the author of The Crockett Chronicles series, The Relentless series, and The Weather Girls trilogy as well as the stand-alone novel, Cheryl’s Going Home, her novella Tales of the Hob Nob Annex Café, and her split-time novels The Traveling Prayer Shawl and The Forgotten Gratitude Journal. Her current spin-off series, The Weather Girls Wedding Shoppe and Venue, contains standalones with a common thread.

More from Jennifer

In the first chapter of Ronnie, Carlitos comes home to his mom making his favorite, Pozole. It is a Mexican soup, and the first time I had it was at my neighbor’s house. She has given me her recipe and permission to share it with you all. Two things to keep in mind: first, she and I had to work to translate this from Spanish to English. We did our best, but if you don’t understand something, just give it your best shot—or ask me. I might be able to figure it out. Maybe. Two, she usually makes big batches of this, and she cut it back for a “normal” size. So feel free to adjust as needed.

Most of all, though, enjoy!

Pozole Recipe by Araceli Estrada (my amazing neighbor and friend)

Ingredients:

For meat pot-

4 lbs. of bone-in pork loin

½ white onion–diced

1 head of garlic—clean off the paper

2 bay leaves

1 T oregano

1 T ground cumin

1 T powdered chicken bouillon

1 large can of hominy

For chili sauce-

10 chili pods

10 Ancho chilis

10-15 black pepper corns

4 cloves of garlic

For garnish—

Shredded cabbage

Diced onion

Sliced radishes

Chopped cilantro

Chunked avocado

Lime wedges—to squeeze over

Directions:

Place in a Dutch oven, the pork loin, the half onion, the head of garlic, the bay leaves, the oregano, and cumin. Add enough water to cover up to ¾ of pot. Bring to a boil and then heat. Simmer for 2 hours stirring often and skimming off the foam.

Slice open chilis and remove seeds and membranes. In a second pot, add chili pods and Ancho chilis. Cover with water and bring to a boil. After two minutes, turn off heat and allow chilis to rest in hot water for at least ten minutes. The chilis should feel soft and pliable.

Remove from water and put into blender with black peppercorns, 4 cloves of garlic, and a cup of water. Add water a little at a time, careful to not add too much. Puree until smooth. Then pour through a strainer into the meat pot.

Strain the hominy and add it plus the chicken bouillon to the meat pot. Salt to taste. Allow to simmer while preparing the garnishes.

Set garnishes out so guests can choose. Serve with warm tortillas.

(From Jenny: Not sure how much this will serve, but it is so good!)

My Impressions

This 70s rom-com, Ronnie, by Jennifer Lynn Cary, is truly a blast from the past. I loved the many spot-on references to life in that decade, like the long telephone cords, calling and reversing charges, phrase “ringy- dingys” and fear of the draft. In some ways, it was a very confusing time to live, and Cary captures that climate very well as she portrays the angst and confusion surrounding Ronnie and Cal (Carlitos’s) engagement and relationship.

Finding out Cal has enlisted in the army without discussing it with her, Ronnie leaves him a Dear John letter and flees to the relatives’ in Kokomo, IN. How can she trust him, if he is making decisions for her, without her input? “Cal had kept her locked out of the decision-making process. Obviously, he didn’t trust her. So how could she trust him?”

I am amazed by Carlos’s patience (and yes, I don’t know what to call him, just like one of the Indiana relatives says.) “I’m getting confused by all of your names. You said you were Carlos, Alice calls you Carlitos, and Ronnie says you are Cal. What should I call you?”

Multiple names aside, Carlos goes after what he wants – but how long will he have to wait and how many times will he allow Ronnie to put his heart through the ringer?

I loved meeting the Weather girls ( I haven’t read their stories, but you can be sure each one is now on my TBR!) and their husbands. I loved how the cousins and aunts all truly enfold Ronnie in the family and care so much for her.

While Ronnie accuses Carlos of making decisions by himself that affect both of them , Ronnie, in her fear, seems to have blinders on. She doesn’t see that her decisions are also affecting both of them. Will she listen to her loving relatives as they encourage her to seek God’s solutions?

“Just be honest and ask.”

“Sometimes I let my imagination fill in the blanks of a situation, usually with me being the victim. That always leads to my feeling wronged and angry and others getting hurt. Straightforward asking, without trying to prove a point, is best.” This is a lesson Ronnie needs to practice towards Carlos, for sure!

And her fear will have to go. But can she really let it? “If you say you believe, then you have to also accept there’s going to be things you won’t understand, but His love is always true, no matter what.”

Notable Quotables:

I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit. I also bought my own copy. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.

“That’s what life had turned into these days. One loss after another.”

“I don’t want to be a burden though.” “Oh, no, you wouldn’t be. In fact, you just might be an answer to prayer.” Ronnie doubted that. God never acknowledged her prayers. But maybe He could hear things better from Kokomo than Hood County.”

“From the moment his three-year-old heart fell in love with her at first sight, he’d known his destiny was to be with her, grow old with her.”

“it’s wrong to walk away from the fight. I won’t start one, but I can’t back down. You wouldn’t respect me if I did.”

“I realize you imagine you trust me, but you still think that you can control me. Is this how it will be when we get married?”

“Would she need to spend the rest of her life looking over her shoulder to make sure safe places were what they claimed to be?”

“Marriage is never perfect. It’s made up of imperfect people. But God’s love is perfect.”

“Looking back and trying to change the past showed disrespect for the future her Heavenly Father had in store for her.”

My Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Magnificent!

Blog Stops

Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions, September 18

Blossoms and Blessings, September 19 (Author Interview)

For Him and My Family, September 19

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, September 20

Artistic Nobody, September 21 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, September 22

Guild Master, September 23 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, September 24

A Reader’s Brain, September 25 (Author Interview)

Locks, Hooks and Books, September 26

Back Porch Reads, September 27 (Author Interview)

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 28

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, September 29 (Author Interview)

Pause for Tales, September 29

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, September 30

Tell Tale Book Reviews, October 1 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Jennifer is giving away the grand prize of a $50 Amazon gift card and a copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/00adcf5444

BLOG, Celebrate Lit Tour, Kindle, New-to-Me Author

The Neighbor Renovation by Grace Worthington

April 10, 2023 Babbling Becky L

About the Book

Book: The Neighbor Renovation

Author: Grace Worthington

Genre: Sweet Romantic Comedy

Release date: March 30, 2023

My perfect summer just got ruined by a brunette in a tool belt.

This was my summer to get away from it all. Live like a hermit. Fix up my family’s vacation home.

Until Ella arrived.

My infuriating neighbor has returned for beach season.

Ever since our families bought summer homes next to each other, that was the beginning of our neighbor war.

Now I have to see her every. single. day.

When I let it slip that I’m making a few home improvements, she jumps at the chance to help. She’s an interior designer who needs work. I’m a man who loathes shopping. Any mention of the words color palette makes me want to break out in hives.

We’re the dynamic duo for this fixer upper.

There’s only one problem: the more time we spend together, the more attracted I am to her. Now our on-the-job flirting is veering into dangerous territory.

Because if there’s one thing I know, Ella and I are not meant to be together.

I’m emotionally unavailable. She’s sworn off relationships. And our families hate each other.

I know my future is at stake. But I can’t seem to tear myself away from this project…or her.

So I tell myself:

I most definitely will not fall for my neighbor.

But you know what they say about promises you can’t keep? Don’t make them.

Like most home projects, I’m learning that nothing ever goes according to plan.

Especially when it comes to love

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Grace Worthington is the author of sweet romance and sweet romcom novels. She loves quaint small towns and the beach is her happy place, which is why you’ll find both in her books. She’s obsessed with chocolate, romcom movies from the 80’s & 90’s, and goldendoodles. Get a free book sweet romcom at graceworthington.com

More from Grace

I love home renovation shows, because they make it look so easy to magically turn your home into something amazing in only a half-hour. (If only that worked in real life.)

But what if two people who were enemies worked on renovating a home together? Would they survive the renovation? Could it even bring them together?

I love all the tropes, but enemies to lovers is one of the most satisfying for me, especially in romantic comedy. The huge payoff is seeing two very opposite people come together quite magically. In the end, I’m always rooting for the couple who overcomes the odds.

It’s also been my experience that no matter how much you prepare for a home project, it never goes according to plan. This sets the stage for lots of hilarious scenarios as things go wrong and the couple learns to navigate these unexpected detours together.

But in The Neighbor Renovation, it’s not just about the physical home. There is a deeper metaphor of what happens in their lives as they learn to overcome past wounds and take a chance on love. Just like the home renovation shows, the renovation that happens in their hearts is almost miraculous.

So if you like HGTV, sweet romantic comedies, grumpy sunshine couples, and second chance love stories, then you’re going to enjoy The Neighbor Renovation: A sweet romantic comedy.

–Grace Worthington

My Impressions

“It all started with an argument over a fence.”

What do you get when you mix a modern-day Romeo and Juliet with a home improvement show and turn it into a sweet rom-com? Neighbor Renovation by Grace Worthington, of course. Ella and Grant take turns narrating chapters. This novel employs the enemies-to-lovers trope, and is so full of humor, I laughed my way from beginning to end. I was so happy, as many so-called rom-coms don’t emphasize the comedy as much as I would like. But when you have

a huge out-of-control dog named Harold, gutsy friends willing to cheer one on, and a sad sack vs a perpetually smiling force of nature, well…

Trying to break into a field she feels is populated only by those from moneyed backgrounds, with impeccable family histories to match, Ella is petrified someone will discover her poor, shameful background. “… the waves soothe the voices in my head. The ones telling me I’m not enough. I’ll never be enough.”

Grant may be a Brad Pitt look-alike, but he has his own issues to overcome. He’s at his grandma’s beach house to be alone after a disastrous relationship. Will he ever be able to let go of the past and move on, or will Ella have to move on without him, carrying her broken heart with her?

I received a copy of the book from Celebrate Lit. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.

Notable Quotables:

“But when you’re swimming in money, when life is humming along smoothly, it’s hard not to connect all your success to your choices, because then you can hold on to the dangerous lie that you’re actually in control.”

…all our experiences, good and bad, make us into who we are and who we’re meant to be. It gives us a chance to remake ourselves and discover we’re stronger because we survived.

“showing up authentically means you might get rejected.”