About
Writing has long been a passion of mine. I began writing poems and short stories at the age of 7. I live in picturesque East Texas with my husband of 27 years and four of my children. My grown son and his wife live nearby and visit often with my two grandbabies, whom I adore. If the kids and grandkids didn't make my home wild enough, we have a household full of cats (7 at last count). My blog Julia's Ramblings talks about my writing career as well as my crazy home life.
I work at a nearby university as a learning technologist, where I provide assistance and professional development to faculty on online course development and instructional technology. I am pursuing a Ph.D. in learning technologies. In my other blogs, IDT Talk and Tech Learning Bridge, I discuss topics of interest to instructional designers and educators who work with technology.
In my spare time, I enjoy reading inspirational romance and mystery stories, sewing, and cooking.
Vital Temptations: A Heart's Betrayal
Description
<p>Dr. Bethany McNeal is living her dream as a pediatric resident in one of the most sought-after medical centers in Seattle. Beautiful and intelligent, she’s missing only one thing—love, which she put on hold to focus on her career after ending a tumultuous relationship. Everything changes when she meets Dr. Brent Anderson, a charming and handsome fellow resident. Despite her reservations, Bethany falls for Brent—hard. When she learns Brent is married several months into their relationship, she immediately breaks it off. After graduating residency and going their separate ways, Bethany tries to move on with another man—real estate broker and personal trainer Charles Blakely. But just when things get serious with Charles, she realizes she’s still in love with Brent, and she finds herself caught between the two men, facing a series of difficult decisions and harrowing events that will change her life forever. Will she be able to recover from the vital temptations that turned her perfect life upside down?</p>
Story Behind The Book
Dolores and I have a lot in common. I am also on my second marriage. As a Christian, I hung on to my first marriage much longer than I should have, and once it was over I beat myself up over it. I was ready to cloister myself at a very young age so I could be a “good Christian”, whatever that means.
I still believe that in God’s perfect will, marriage is meant to be forever. But we live in a fallen world and sometimes things don’t work the way God intended them to work. God isn’t broken, but the world is and people are, and in a broken world with broken people, you have broken and bad relationships. Fortunately, we have a loving, merciful God Who wants us to know Him and wants us to find His perfect way for our lives. He’s not out to punish us. He’s waiting to forgive us and give us a fresh start. I wanted to share that message with others, so I told it through Dolores and Chris and their love story.
Reviews
<p class="font_7" style="line-height:1.3em;">New Mercies is an enjoyable romance novel that catches your heart early on and keeps you interested as you come to know the main characters, single-mom Delores and shy new minister Chris Tanner."</p>
<p class="font_7" style="line-height:1.3em;">Terry W. Sprouse, Lincoln-holic, Public Speaker</p>
