Riverbend Friends Books
Real, Not Perfect is the first book in a series that travels alongside four friends as they deal with teen life in Riverbend, Indiana. The novel inspires girls and young women to deepen their relationships with God and solve their problems in God-honoring ways. Tessa has lived a trouble-free life as the only child of two loving parents—she is well-liked, gets straight As, is on the competitive swim team, and is active in her church youth group. It’s a pretty perfect life! That is, until she comes home from swim practice one day to find that her parents are divorcing. Along with that, her BFF has moved to Florida, and Tessa gets stuck in Intro to Drama—possibly the worst class ever! Soon Tessa’s mom sinks into despair and Tessa struggles with her anger and hurt. Meanwhile, her BFF posts fabulous pictures of her new life on Instagram. Tessa thinks that everyone’s posts show lives that are way better than the one she has. Why does it seem like everyone else’s life is more perfect than hers? Find out how Tessa’s new friends from Intro to Drama and Alex, her true-blue friend, help her discover that real is better than perfect.
Searching for Normal is the second book in a series that travels alongside four friends as they deal with teen life in Riverbend, Indiana. The novel inspires girls and young women to deepen their relationships with God and solve their problems in God-honoring ways. Six months ago Shay Mitchell’s life changed forever. Now she’s just trying to survive school bullies, drama class, and living with her Aunt Laura above the bookstore. No one, not even her new friends, knows her real story or the reason she’s living with her aunt in the first place. When Shay learns the truth about her biological father, she jumps at the chance to meet him. This could be her chance! Maybe she’ll finally find the normal life she’s longed for―a life where she feels loved and wanted―you know, part of a real family.
The Me You See is the third book in a series that travels alongside four friends as they deal with teen life in Riverbend, Indiana. The novel inspires girls and young women to deepen their relationships with God and solve their problems in God-honoring ways. Winter break is usually Izzy’s favorite time of year, but this year all it does is make her feel lonely. She adores her brother Sebastian, but she’s stuck at home taking care of him ALL. THE. TIME. And her squad―her friends from Drama I―are too busy with their own exciting plans to get together with her. So of course her phone is her lifeline! Izzy creates and posts videos of her amazing, to-die-for cupcake creations on her Instagram account. AND she stays connected with her squad. At least she would . . . if any of them bothered to text her back. Seriously, how hard is it to text back? But then school starts up again and Zac, the dreamy senior she’s been crushing on for months, starts texting her. But her friends are less than thrilled. If they could only see Zac like she does―he’s really a great guy! Then everything would be perfect. Riverbend Friends: A girl’s best hope for surviving high school is her friends. Join Tessa, Shay, Izzy, and Amelia as they laugh together, lean on each other, and discover that God is a Friend who’s always got their back.
Chasing the Spotlight is the fourth book in a series that travels alongside four friends as they deal with teen life in Riverbend, Indiana. The novel inspires girls and young women to deepen their relationships with God and solve their problems in God-honoring ways. Amelia’s feeling a bit lost these days. Her parents are very involved (make that over-involved) volunteering as marriage counselors with their church. Her big brother Josh, the only one who truly understands her, just got married. And her big sister, Maggie? Let’s just say they don’t exactly get along. Maggie is perfectly pretty, perfectly smart, and dates the perfect guy. On the other hand, everything about Amelia feels big―her hair, her weight . . . and her personality. Amelia’s refuge, her passion, her place of belonging is theater. Someday she’s going to be on Broadway, but this year, she’ll settle for the lead in the spring musical. And she’ll do whatever it takes to make it happen. She’s committed, she’s motivated, she’s talented―and she’s completely confident about her abilities. Really, she is! But somehow, despite her best efforts, reality is playing out a little differently than how she dreamed. Will chasing the spotlight lead to the fame and fulfillment she’s longed for, or will it cost her the friends she’s made this year? Riverbend Friends: A girl’s best hope for surviving high school is her friends. Join Tessa, Shay, Izzy, and Amelia as they laugh together, lean on each other, and discover that God is a Friend who’s always got their back.
Life in the Middle is the fifth book in a series that travels alongside four friends as they deal with teen life in Riverbend, Indiana. The novel inspires girls and young women to deepen their relationships with God as they face real-life issues and solve their problems in God-honoring ways. Tessa feels as if every part of her life is falling to pieces. She finds out that her mom and dad are officially getting divorced. Then, Alex, her boyfriend, starts working at a camp where she barely gets to see him. Now Tessa’s dad wants her to watch her half-brother every week, and he also has some news that makes her feel sick. On top of that, her mom is wanting to move out of the house she has lived in since the time she was born. No one seems to understand what Tessa is going through, what she is thinking and feeling, and she’s not sure anyone will ever understand. With everything changing, no one seems to care what she thinks. Will there ever be a group of people she can trust to be there for her and love her unconditionally?
Heart of Belonging is the sixth book in a series that travels alongside four friends as they deal with teen life in Riverbend, Indiana. The novel inspires young women to deepen their relationships with God as they face real-life issues and solve their problems in God-honoring ways. Shay desperately wants to feel loved and wanted―to be part of a real family. She thought that finally meeting her real father, a famous horse trainer, might change her life for the better. And it did. Sort of. She’s more inspired to work with horses now, for sure, but a “normal” family―like her friends talk about―doesn’t seem like it’s in her future. Living with her aunt and working with horses every day doesn’t seem to give her the love and acceptance that she longs for. So Shay finds looks herself looking for acceptance elsewhere―on the internet, looking at stuff she doesn’t think she can ever tell anyone about. She’s ashamed of where this takes her, and she suspects her friends, especially Izzy, would reject her if they found out. Can Shay begin to recognize the blessings she already has―that God’s true love, the acceptance of her friends, and the kindness of her aunt might just be enough?
Running on Empty is the seventh book in a series that travels alongside four friends as they deal with teen life in Riverbend, Indiana. The novel inspires young women to deepen their relationships with God as they face real-life issues and solve their problems in God-honoring ways. Who is the real Isabella Valadez? Izzy has been spending the summer trying to find that out. She’s tried all sorts of hobbies, games, and sports—even golf. She still loves art and showing off her baking creations, but is there something unexpected there? Speaking of something unexpected, she’s been growing closer to her cute neighbor, Cody. Could that friendship morph into something more? Maybe, but she’s starting to question everything. School is starting up again, and it’s time to choose where she’ll invest her energy, and who she’ll be doing it with. It seems everyone that she’s close to has something dark lurking beneath the surface. Daniel, Shay, and now Cody? When everyone has a smartphone, access to inappropriate or hurtful content can affect mental health and damage relationships. Gossip and misinformation spreads quickly in the age of technology, can anyone be trusted?