INSPYs 2017: Presenting the 2017 INSPY Longlists

G’morning my fellow book nerd friends. Today is a great day in the INSPY timeline. Today is the day we pull back the mysterious veil and reveal the books that YOU nominated for this year’s award in our 2017 INSPY longlists.

Many thanks so all of you who nominated these books, and many happy congratulations to the authors whose books have made the long list cut.

Without further preamble or rambling or hype, allow me to share with you all the 2017 longlist. Read on for our official INSPYs announcement.

2017 INSPY LONGLISTS

Hello fellow readers, blogger and authors. Before we announce the 2017 longlists, we first want to recap our year so far. First we welcomed our newest board member, Kara and then announced the inclusion of INDIE novels to our nomination process. Like last year, the following nomination process applied to each of our seven categories.  

To help simplify our nomination process, we made some adjustments to our awards program. To that end, instead of publicizing our long list of nominations as they poured in, the Advisory Board kept the list private since the method of nomination involved a process of popular vote. The number of books that received the most nominations (the top 15 from each category) came out as the winners, which then determined the long lists.  

Due to insufficient nominations or ineligibility, some categories fall short of the requisite 15 novels.  

From the lists below, the Advisory Board will be narrowing these respective lists down to five books per category which will become our 2017 short lists. From there, the same judging process and practices will follow.  

Grab your favorite beverage, and enjoy browsing through the books that YOU nominated, propelling them into “phase two.”

Contemporary Romance / Romantic Suspense

• – A Twist of Faith (Firefly Southern Fiction) by Pepper Basham
• – Silence in the Dark (Revell) by Patricia Bradley
• – Step by Step (Tyndale) by Candace Calvert
• – The Wedding Shop (Zondervan) by Rachel Hauck
• – Just a Kiss (Thomas Nelson) by Denise Hunter
• – Can’t Help Falling (Howard Books) by Kara Isaac
• – Tell me Lies (Brown Girls Faith) by Michelle Lindo-Rice
• – First Crush (Bling! Romance) by Ashley Elizabeth Ludwig
• – Finders Keepers (Radiant Publications) by Sarah Monzon
• – How to Charm a Beekeeper’s Heart (White Rose Publishing) by Candice Sue Patterson
• – Christmas Conspiracy (Love Inspired) by Susan Sleeman
• – The Heart’s Hostage (Sheaf House Publishers) by Jen Stephens
• – Like Never Before (Bethany House) by Melissa Tagg
• – Her One and Only (Bethany House) by Becky Wade
• – You’re the One that I Want (Tyndale) by Susan May Warren

Debut Novel

• – Forgiven (Cerrillo Press) by Carol Ashby
• – Counted with the Stars (Bethany House) by Connilyn Cossette
• – Slender Reeds: Jochebed’s Hope (Shiloh Run Press) by Texie Susan Gregory
• – The Lost Generation (Elk Lake Publishing) by Erica Marie Hogan
• – Close to You (Howard Books) by Kara Isaac
• – The Secret to Hummingbird Cake (Thomas Nelson) by Celeste Fletcher McHale
• – The Undoing of Saint Silvanus (Tyndale) by Beth Moore
• – Love, Lace, and Minor Alterations (WhiteFire) by V. Joy Palmer
• – Leaving Independence (Waterfall Press) by Leanne W. Smith

General Fiction

• – Land of Silence (Tyndale) by Tessa Afshar
• – Weighed Down (Elk Lake Publishing) by Laurie Bolden
• – The Feathered Bone (Thomas Nelson) by Julie Cantrell
• – Twilight at Blueberry Barrens (Thomas Nelson) by Colleen Coble
• – The Promise of Jesse Woods (Tyndale) by Chris Fabry
• – Forest Child (Woodhaven Press) by Heather Day Gilbert
• – Long Way Gone (Thomas Nelson) by Charles Martin
• – The Secret to Hummingbird Cake (Thomas Nelson) by Celeste Fletcher McHale
• – The Alliance (Tyndale) by Jolina Petersheim
• – Of Stillness and Storm (Thomas Nelson) by Michèle Phoenix
• – Nor Forsake (Presley Publishing) by Julie Presley
• – A Portrait of Emily Price (Thomas Nelson) by Katherine Reay
• – Song of Silence (Abingdon Press) by Cynthia Ruchti
• – Lead Me Home (Tyndale) by Amy K. Sorrells
• – The Things We Knew (Thomas Nelson) by Catherine West

Historical Romance

• – The Thorn Healer (Vinspire Publishing) by Pepper D. Basham
• – The Thorn Keeper (Vinspire Publishing) by Pepper D. Basham
• – A Flight of Arrows (WaterBrook) by Lori Benton
• – The Lady and the Lionheart (Mason Jar Books) by Joanne Bischof
• – The Ringmaster’s Wife (Thomas Nelson) by Kristy Cambron
• – The Cautious Maiden (Whitaker House) by Dawn Crandall
• – The Captive Heart (Shiloh Run Press) by Michelle Griep
• – Newton and Polly (WaterBrook) by Jody Hedlund
• – An Elegant Facade (Bethany House) by Kristi Ann Hunter
• – A Heart Most Certain (Bethany House) by Melissa Jaegers
• – Aboard Providence (CrossRiver Media) by Keely Brooke Keith
• – The Sound of Emeralds (WhiteFire) by Rachelle Rea
• – She Walks in Power (Ransom Press) by MaryLu Tyndall
• – A Lady Unrivaled (Bethany House) by Roseanna M. White
• – The Confessions of X (Thomas Nelson) by Suzanne M. Wolfe

Literature for Young Adults

• – Unblemished (Thomas Nelson) by Sara Ella
• – The Beautiful Pretender (Thomas Nelson) by Melanie Dickerson
• – The Silent Songbird (Thomas Nelson) by Melanie Dickerson
• – A Daring Sacrifice (Zondervan) by Jody Hedlund
• – I’ll Be Yours (Sweet Pea Productions) by Jenny B. Jones
• – Forever Doon (Blink) by Lorie Langdon and Carey Corp
• – Gilt Hollow (Blink) by Lorie Langdon
• – The Glass Castle (Shiloh Run Press) by Trisha White Priebe
• – One Paris Summer (Blink) by Denise Grover Swank
• – Siren’s Song (Thomas Nelson) by Mary Weber

Mystery/Thriller

• – If I Run (Zondervan) by Terri Blackstock
• – The Domino Effect (Bethany House) by Davis Bunn
• – Deep Shadows (Harvest House) by Vanetta Chapman
• – Dressed for Death (Bethany House) by Julianna Deering
• – Always Watching (Revell) by Lynette Eason
• – The Waves Break Gray (Running Girl Prodcutions) by Sibella Giorello
• – Tangled Webs (Revell) by Irene Hannon – Missing (Revell) by Lisa Harris
• – Conspiracy of Silence (Bethany House) by Ronie Kendig
• – The Bachelor Girl’s Guide to Murder (Harvest House) by Rachel McMillan
• – A Lesson in Love and Murder (Harvest House) by Rachel McMillan
• – Fatal Frost (Bethany House) by Nancy Mehl
• – When Death Draws Near (Thomas Nelson) by Carrie Stuart Parks
• – Cold Shot (Bethany House) by Dani Pettrey
• – The Progeny (Howard Books) by Tosca Lee

Speculative Fiction

• – Seasons of Glory (Blink) by Lisa T. Bergren
• – Light of the Last (Multnomah) by Chuck Black
• – The Shattered Vigil (Bethany House) by Patrick W. Carr
• – The Calling (Tyndale) by Rachelle Decker
• – Accelerant (Enclave) by Ronie Kendig
• – Merchant of Alyss (Revell) by Thomas Locke
• – Rebirth (Love2ReadLove2Write Publishing) by Amy Brock McNew
• – The Long Journey to Jake Palmer (Thomas Nelson) by James L. Rubart
• – Beast (Enclave) by Chawna Schroeder
• – A Branch of Silver, A Branch of Gold (Rooglewood Press) by Anne Elisabeth Stengl
• – Far and Near (David C. Cook) by Amanda G. Stevens
• – King’s Folly (Bethany House) by Jill Williamson

---

We’d like to congratulate all of the nominated authors and thank all of the bloggers and readers who put forth their favorite reads of 2016. 

We’re ready to get to work and find the top five in each of these categories. ♥