It’s such an honor to welcome Robin Lee Hatcher to the blog today!
Robin Lee Hatcher is the author of 80 novels and novellas with over five million copies of her books in print. She is known for her heartwarming and emotionally charged stories of faith, courage, and love. Her numerous awards include the RITA® Award, Christy Award, Carol Award, HOLT Medallion, National Reader’s Choice Award, and the Faith, Hope & Love Reader’s Choice Award, and she is also the recipient of prestigious Lifetime Achievement Awards from both American Christian Fiction Writers and Romance Writers of America®. When not writing, she enjoys being with her family, spending time in the beautiful Idaho outdoors, Bible art journaling, reading books that make her cry, watching romantic movies, and decorative planning. A mother and grandmother, Robin and her husband make their home on the outskirts of Boise, sharing it with a demanding Papillon dog and a persnickety tuxedo cat.
You can connect with Robin on her website, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter.
For these two broken hearts, the first step toward love will be a huge leap of faith.
Jessica Mason isn’t looking for love when she meets Ridley Chesterfield. Instead she is still reeling from the tragic, unexpected loss of her husband and daughter—and awaiting the arrival of her unborn child. Harboring the secret of her husband’s betrayal, her pain is deeper than anyone knows.
Ridley Chesterfield is hiding out in Hope Springs, Idaho, avoiding a political scandal and the barrage of false media headlines that have tarnished his good name. The last thing Ridley wants is a relationship—but when fate leads Ridley to form a friendship with his reclusive and pregnant neighbor, he wonders if this small-town hideout might be more of a long-term destination.
When Jessica begins to read her great-grandfather’s Bible, she finds a connection with a man she never knew. Somehow the verses he marked and the words he wrote in the margins open her heart to healing. And as Ridley and Jessica help each other forgive the people who have wronged them, they must decide if the past will define them or if they will choose to love again.
Who I Am With You weaves together a modern-day romance with Jessica’s great-grandfather’s story from the 1930s, reminding us that some truths can cross generations and that faith has the power to transform families forever.
Hi Robin! Welcome to the blog!
Robin: I’m a summer gal. Of course, I live in Idaho where there is a 30 to 40 degree difference in temperature from early morning to the heat of the day, plus very low humidity. So I think summers are perfect.
Carrie: You had me at ‘low humidity’… haha!
Robin: Definitely Netflix. So many choices of what to watch. I’m a particular fan of BBC detective series, and there are lots of those available on Netflix. And there are more than a few Hallmark movies on there as well.
Carrie: The best of both worlds 🙂
Robin: Audiobooks. I have an audiobook going while I get ready for the day in the morning, when I take a walk, when I go anywhere in the car, sometimes when I cook. (I love music, too, but the audiobook gets preference.)
Carrie: My husbands prefers audiobooks too but my mind wanders too much listening to them lol.
Robin: Ebooks. For lots of reasons. Here’s three:
(1) After downsizing my house, there just wasn’t enough room for as many bookshelves as I once had. I gave away over a thousand books before and after the move. My Kindle Oasis allows me to carry around hundreds of books on one small device. No shelf space required.
(2) I have developed weak, painful wrists. It hurts to hold most print books, especially longer novels such as those written by Francine Rivers. My Oasis weighs only about 7 ounces, no matter how many books are on it.
(3) I can adjust the size of the font in an ebook. No more squinting at small type as happens too often in print.
Carrie: Those are great reasons – i concur! (Though I do still love print books too)
Q: Around here I like to say that reading is my superpower. If YOU had a superpower, what would it be?
Robin: I would want to fly. Think of all that missed traffic, if for no other reason.
Carrie: Considering that most of my close friends and all of my family (except hubby) live at least 300 miles away from me, I would definitely embrace that superpower too!
Q: Who is your favorite book character from childhood?
Robin: Trixie Belden. I owned the entire series as a girl, but the books got lost in a move. Sigh.
Carrie: Oh that’s heartbreaking!!
Q: If I sneaked a peek in your purse right now (which I would never do, I promise!), what would it tell me about you?
Robin: That I love to be organized but don’t always succeed at it. My purse has two sections. The front one has a place for everything and everything in its place. The back half holds everything else I want with me, but it is a complete jumble. I have to dig around to find what I want.
Carrie: I can totally relate to that back section lol
Q: In Who I Am With You, which character was the most difficult to write?
Robin: Jessica was the most difficult because she had suffered such a serious loss and had withdrawn so deeply inside of herself.
Carrie: I imagine that was emotionally draining on you as well ♥
Q: Did you have the whole plot outlined before you started writing, or did you let the characters dictate what came next?
Robin: I am a seat-of-the-pants writer. I don’t outline in advance. I don’t know what will happen next. The characters tell me their stories as we go along together.
Carrie: Which means that since Jessica was withdrawn deeply inside herself she really did make it difficult for you to get to know her story!
Q: What is one of your favorite quotes from the book & why do you love it?
Robin: “God had brought her through the pain and heartache and loss. God would always bring her through. He was there in the joy, and He was there in the sorrow. He was there in the sameness and in the surprises. He was with her always, just as He’d promised.” I love it because I have found it to be true in my own life. He has been with me in places of devastating grief and on mountaintops of joy. He has walked beside me and He has carried me. He is with me. Always.
Carrie: oh i love that. Such a picture of my own relationship with Jesus too
Thank you so much for taking time to talk with me! 🙂 Before we say goodbye for today, tell us what‘s coming up next for you.
Robin: The second book in the Legacy of Faith series, Cross My Heart, will release in June 2019. Jessica’s cousin, Ben Henning, is the hero of this story. In this book, readers will also follow Andrew Henning’s family during WWII.
This giveaway is hosted by I Read With Audra, not RimSP
What about you? What interests you most about this book? Can you relate to Robin’s answers?
I look forward to this book and I can totally relate to Robin’s love of Trixie Belden books. Before I ever knew Nancy Drew, I knew Trixie and she truly was my introduction to solving mysteries.
And Jim was a much better boyfriend than poor Ned. Lol
I really enjoyed the post and will be looking for Who I am With You.
Yay!
I love Robin Lee Hatcher books. She is a great author. Thank you for the chance to win one of her books.
I’m looking forward to reading this book! I love the quote Robin quoted. Makes me really excited to get my hands on it!
Right? Me too!
This sounds like a great read. Enjoyable interview.
Marilyn
Thanks, Marilyn 🙂
I still have my Trixie Belden books in a box in the basement!
Love Trixie!
This book sounds so emotional and powerful. Thank you for the opportunity!
Trixie Belden! That’s a blast from the past. I used to have that series and I’d get the Nancy Drew books from the library. I’m looking forward to reading “Who I Am with You.”
Me too 🙂
Sounds like a fascinating story. Of course!
Yes!
Sounds like a great book I can’t wait to read it! I love Trixie Belden too! I have all but three of the books. I am actively looking for them to complete my collection!
Oh wow!!!
I am a Trixie Belden fan, and a fan of Robin Lee Hatcher, too!
I so enjoyed this interview … and reading about the ways Robin conceives and writes her stories. I loved the quote … that God had always brought her through, in the joys and the sorrows, the sameness and surprises. …It made me hungry to read the story.
Me too, Lin!
It seems Robin and I have a bit in common, summer, audiobooks, BBC detective series, and a purse with a split personality–I do try so hard to be organized but at the end of the day, it’s often all jumbled up in there! Who I Am With You is a great story (I listened to the audiobook even!) Looking forward to reading more of Robin’s books. Thanks for sharing about the book and for the interview.
Are you sure you aren’t Robin? LOL 😉
God is always here when we need Him; just have to stay in His Word (KJV) and trust that He will fulfill what He says. Thanks for the opportunity to enter this giveaway! Would love to win a print book!
Amen! Although I prefer the NLT for its accuracy to the original text 🙂
sleepy brain but i’ve always loved flying in planes – how cool would it be to fly without one!!
I hate flying in planes so if I could accomplish the same travel method without the plane I would be so happy lol
I have heard glowing reviews about this story. I would love to read it. I lost my daughter 6 years ago so I know something of loss and the devastation it causes.
HUGS
Thank you for the interview with Robin Lee Hatcher. I can’t wait for the opportunity to read “Who I Am With You”. Love the cover and the storyline.
Robin gives some very good arguments for ebooks, all of which I can relate, but I still cling to the paperbacks. It’s getting harder so I may have to reconsider. 🙂
I buy my faves in paperback but as much reading as I do it really helps to be able to enlarge the text lol
The story interests me greatly. I enjoy physical books since I am old school. Nancy Drew was my favorite and then the classics.
Love Nancy Drew!