What is the title of your latest release?
THE UNEXPECTED CALLER
What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
Just when a forty-something Amish widow decides she has no choice but to marry again, a mysterious caller opens up a whole new world - a secret club for Amish widows.
How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
I created a fictional town in the middle of Ohio’s Amish country. I wanted to create a place where just about anything was possible. The town of Alliance became that place.
Would you hang out with your heroine in real life?
Absolutely, because Leanna has faced a lot of difficult life experiences but has remained sweet and hopeful.
What are three words that describe your hero?
Evan Keim is persistent, patient and passionate
What’s something you learned while writing this book?
I learned to accept that my vision for this book had to be fine-tuned in order for the heroine’s story to be told well. I also learned to give myself permission to miss a deadline.
Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
I usually write about 2/3 of a book, then start revising and editing while I complete the last 1/3. I also rarely write a book in order - which is something I don’t recommend!
What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
Chocolate.
Describe your writing space/office!
I have a pretty big office in our basement. It has a wall of bookshelves on one wall and multiple copies of every book I’ve written on it. There are also travel posters, a couch, a dog bed, and a desk and desktop computer. My keyboard has almost every letter worn off but I can’t seem to make myself replace it. There are also no windows in my office - and I’m the only one who doesn’t mind that.
Who is an author you admire?
I admire so many other authors. I love to read and always wish I was as talented as other authors are. One author in particular has always been my idol, though, and that is Nora Roberts. I love her work ethic, and I love how her career has lasted for several decades.
Is there a book that changed your life?
I can’t think of a specific book-but I do remember discovering Harlequin Romances at my public library. I loved that I could check out a handful of those books and be able to read an uplifting, romantic story in a night or two. Those books changed my view about reading.
Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published). Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
I’ve had several important phone calls over the years. My favorite “Call” was when I learned that Avon Inspire was going to buy my first Amish trilogy. It was my first 3-book contract, and I was pretty stunned when my agent called. Stunned and scared - as in “now what am I going to do?”
What’s your favorite genre to read?
Romance
What’s your favorite movie?
My all-time favorite is probably Casablanca.
What is your favorite season?
Fall. I love it when the days get a little shorter and the weather is a little bit cooler
How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
I love to talk to my family and friends. My husband usually makes me dinner.
What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
Lately, I’ve been really enjoying Tournament of Champions. It’s a cooking competition show. I usually only watch about an hour of television a day. I’m not a binge tv watcher at all. I’d always rather read.
What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
Seafood. I’m always trying to eat more fish.
What do you do when you have free time?
We like to adopt dogs. Right now, we have two. I like to take them for walks or play with them at home.
What can readers expect from you next?
Readers can expect two more books in the Amish Widows Club series. I’m so excited about that.
Amish Widows Club
Amish Fiction for Your Book Club with Second Chance Romance, Friendship, and Community
She finds sisterhood in the Amish Widows Club--but will she risk loving again?
Leanna Mast never imagined she'd be a widow at forty-one, but it seems God had other plans. After mourning her husband for a year, she realizes it's time to start living again. But her community expects her to remarry, and after living on her own, she's not eager to start cooking and cleaning in another man's home.
When she's invited to join the Amish Widows Club, she discovers a place of belonging she didn't even know she needed. In this group of women who support each other through sharing books, stories, and companionship, Leanna immediately feels welcome. She's sure her life as a widow will bring her the fulfillment she craves . . . until handsome, kind Evan Keim comes calling. As their relationship deepens, her heart becomes involved. But how could she possibly leave the widows club for a dream that might be too good to be true?
New York Times bestselling author Shelley Shepard Gray skillfully draws readers into an endearing and delightful Amish community of friendship during widowhood and a second chance at love.
Christian Romance | Amish [ Revell, On Sale: July 7, 2026, Trade Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9780800747268 / eISBN: 9781493453986 ]
Uplifting Inspirational Romance
Shelley Shepard Gray is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, a finalist for the American Christian Fiction Writers prestigious Carol Award, and a two-time HOLT Medallion winner. She lives in southern Ohio, where she writes full-time, bakes too much, and can often be found walking her dachshunds on her town’s bike trail.
No comments posted.
© 2003-2026