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The Rose Collection is a series of contemporary Christian novels that take a deep dive into the issue of spiritual abuse and recovery. More than highlighting the deconstruction of a wounded spirit, these books highlight the reconstruction of the rescued soul.
The books in order are:
Book 1: Plague of Lies
He taught them how to live while he was living a lie.
Scott Andrews was content to be a rule-follower, happily attending church and youth group while planning his future with his beautiful girlfriend, Cindy. He and his friends would change the world and be blessed doing it. But when Scott’s mentor is exposed as a fraud, his life turns upside down. Scott grows angry, questioning everything he was taught — until he takes it too far. He’s forced to grow up much too fast but decides that if he must live as an adult, he’ll live honestly.
Lauren is a mistake. She’s heard it her whole life. Now, she only wants to graduate high school and leave home. After that, she has no plans. But when, on her eighteenth birthday, she gets a letter from the father she’s never met, Lauren suddenly has a project. She will sit down with the man who left her when she was a baby and demand he tell her the truth.
It’s time for the lies to end.
Book 2: Twists, Turns, and Curves
An overscheduled life is no life at all.
Seven days a week, Caroline works to promote the ministry of Dr. Hammond. When she’s not teaching fourth grade, she’s running a children’s Sunday school or helping with Saturday morning visitation. It’s an exhausting life, but as an unmarried plus-sized woman in the church, her work is the only thing that makes her feel respectable.
Caroline Taft didn’t choose this life. She got her college degree and job more to keep her mother and pastor happy than because of any passion she might have had for the work. But after five years of teaching for Benchmark Baptist Christian School, Caroline is told that her career will end at the school year’s close. She has three months to discover what she wants out of life. She’ll start by pursuing a relationship with Ty Lang — the uncle of one of her students and the nicest guy she’s ever met. Now that she has time, she can finally find some joy in life.
Life may hold some Twists and Turns, but it’s time for Caroline to throw some curves.
Book 3: No Longer Invisible
The countdown is on.
Julia can keep her head down, stay quiet, and become practically invisible if that’s all it takes to survive the next two weeks. But life is never that easy. A stolen note leads to a church-wide scandal, and Julia’s dreams of leaving the sprawling town of Sampson, Arizona, are dashed to pieces. She won’t be walking with her graduating class, and now Julia’s parents insist she’ll have to stay home for another year. She’s lost the privilege of working at Camp Galilee during the summer, and college plans are on hold. According to her parents, Julia needs more discipline in her life.
But when Julia realizes she can no longer endure the punishments her parents insist are discipline, she calls the one person she hopes can rescue her. Nana believes in taking up space, speaking up, and being seen. She has much to teach, and her granddaughter, Julia, is ready to learn.
When a woman is truly free, she’s no longer invisible.
Book 4: Reinvention
If they could leave the past behind, they would.
The mountain city of Dawes is a great place to hide in plain sight. As the owner of Twice-Turned Books, Michael Bernard spends his days surrounded by gently used volumes and people who love to read. Ally James works across the mall from him at a curvy women’s clothing boutique called Vivid.
When Michael and Ally first met, they were each dealing with past traumas and hurts too tender to talk about. Neither was ready for romance, and both needed a friend. It turned out that Dawes was also a great place to heal — until a voice from the past tested Ally and Michael’s friendship, pushing them to rescue each other and let down their defenses.
There’s more to life than hiding.
Book 5: Wise and Mighty
Can you believe it when you see it?
Pastor Jason Taylor wants to believe that most people in his denomination are committed to serving God and each other. So, when the crimes of those in leadership are exposed through an eye-opening database and a popular podcast, Jason is determined to fix the organization, making it safe for everyone. After all, it doesn’t happen in every church.
Kelly Taylor has done what she could to protect the women in their church. She’s seen the red flags and is worried for those in her Wise Women class. Issues of control and abuse have plagued the denomination for years, but Jason can’t see the evidence right in front of him. As much as she loves her husband, Kelly fears for her family’s safety. She has no desire to raise her sons in a denomination that platforms abusers, but if she walks away, it might be the end of her marriage. How can she get Jason to see the truth?
Sometimes the hardest thing to do is walk away.
Book 6: The Art of Persisting
Being alone doesn’t mean being lonely.
Ginger Douglass has no regrets about leaving her past behind and moving forward alone. As an independent woman, she finally feels safe.
Two part-time jobs pay for her one-bedroom apartment, but even though her rent keeps rising, she’s thrilled to have a place to call home. She’s even ready to resurrect her art career after years of having her talent exploited. This time, however, she’s creating on her own terms. Ginger has made persistence her most valuable attribute — even when life doesn’t go as planned.
She’d like to revisit only one issue from her former life: she’s always wanted to meet her birth parents. Unfortunately, the only person who knows the truth about them is a man she can’t trust. When it comes to facing him, Ginger may need more than persistence.
Is learning the truth worth the sacrifice?
The Women Who Set the Precedents: Exploring the Bible’s Bill of Rights for Women is a Bible study centered on Bathsheba’s prophecy in Proverbs 31 and focuses on the God-given rights that every woman already possesses.
The Women Who Set the Precedents
It is time to look at Proverbs 31 in a new light.
This misunderstood passage isn’t an impossible to-do list. Instead, it celebrates women as they are — where they are. The Women Who Set the Precedents explores the lives of real women from the Bible who served as living examples of the rights enumerated in Proverbs 31.
You may discover that, by God’s grace, you are already as:
- Wise as Bathsheba
- Virtuous as Rahab
- Trustworthy as Abigail
- Profitable as Love
- Strong as Rebekah
- Talented and compassionate as Tabitha
- Fashionable as Esther
- Reputable as Huldah
- Happy in your career as Lydia
- Wise and kind as Deborah
- Energetic and respected as Ruth
- Excellent and godly as Mary and Martha
- Reputable as Mary
It’s time to embrace our God-given rights.
Marbeth Skwarczynski, Author 