My husband has never been the most romantic of men and he knows it. But all I know is that after our first date of thin crust pizza and an animated movie, I involuntarily started singing At Last by Etta James as I walked towards my car at the end of the night.

If you know the rest of the lyrics, you remember that Etta serenades us with the revelation that her love has come along. But how could that be happening for me after one date — and if I’m being honest — after avoiding the guy I’d initially embarrassed when he first asked me out three years before? How could love be coming along for us when we came from totally different spheres, educational backgrounds, ethnic origins, and definitely different countries?

As the single pastor on staff at a large church, I was often teased that my husband would come rowing from a far-off way, since apparently he couldn’t be found in the congregation or community of Huntsville, Alabama. I guess they were right in a way since he stepped off a plane from Iceland in 2002 and worked himself so deeply into the community that he found home and became a home for many. It is that sense of belonging and safety I felt when I was around him. It is what drew me and romanced me because he was joyful and passionate and steady… and everything I needed.

All these layers of difference and belonging, of culture and home, ebb and flow within the pages of my debut novel, Her Part to Play. The main characters, Adanne and John, couldn’t be more unalike, and I haven’t even started on the initial dislike that permeates their first meeting. Yet, a new thing starts to spring forth for the both of them — something unexpected, yet longed for. 

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.“
Isaiah 43:19 NIV

I recall the times I bemoaned what seemed to be seasons of wilderness and wasteland, not even considering that the desires of my heart could spring up from those places. But isn’t that the way of our Lord? We may have been wandering or thirsting for so long that the breakthrough we’re waiting for seems to come out of nowhere and yet is exactly what we need. A longed-for surprise, a severing of old ways to make way for the uncomfortable, yet comforting new.

Adanne is a hometown girl from a small town in Alabama, rooted in her family’s culture and legacy. What does she have to do with this Hollywood actor filming his next movie — and revamping his dwindling career — in her beloved Hope Springs? John is everything she doesn’t want and her town is the last place he wants to be. Yet, perhaps what they need may be closer than they know, revealing their core desires for safety, authenticity, and home. Adanne and John discover much of this and more throughout their story and in the intricacies of their interactions.

“I guess it’s time to film my part before I look for someone to play this part.” 

John waved the phone at her before stashing it in his back pocket. 

Adanne folded the cape and held it to her chest. 

“Well, if I see someone eligible around here, I’ll be sure to send her your way. Maybe . . .” Her words were tentative, as if offering a wobbly olive branch with her coming suggestion. “Maybe what you need is a small-town woman who isn’t caught up in all the glitz and glamour.” 

Adanne carefully placed the cape on the empty chair in front of her, wiping imaginary dust from the seat back with her slender fingers. His breath hitched for the slightest moment at the compassion in her eyes. 

“Maybe someone down-to-earth will be less likely to make you fall . . . and break your heart.”
(Excerpt from Her Part to Play)

New situations and new seasons might be new doors God is opening for us, but they could also be what was there all along — once we are free enough to have eyes to see.

The day Etta’s song lyrics flitted through my mind wasn’t the first time my husband tried to pursue me. I won’t dig into our miscommunication and mishearing of accents and how I invited a group of co-workers to a date that was just meant for two. But even though I didn’t initially perceive it, a new thing was still on its way for me. A romance of Godly proportions was springing up for me despite the years of distance, despite the voices of inner doubt and fear, and amid the differences that should have hindered but instead brought us together. 

As I hummed under the setting sun that day, I leaned in to listen to the serenade of the Father who declared that, yes, home can be found here too. 

What new thing is God revealing in your life, despite the obstacles that say otherwise?

Her Part to Play is Jenny Erlingsson’s debut novel and is described by Library Journal as “warm, funny, and faith-filled.” This “endearing romance,” according to Publisher’s Weekly, focuses on Adanne, a woman who accepts a last-minute job as a makeup artist for a movie that’s filming in her small Alabama hometown. But the money hardly seems worth having to face the actor who got her fired from her last job in Hollywood. Sparks fly on and off the set, but will either of them follow the pull of their heart and find belonging with each other despite the differences that could pull them apart?

Award-winning author Patricia Raybon describes Her Part to Play as a “sparkling, stunning debut” featuring “a modern romance with old-fashioned courage and depth.”

Her Part to Play is a perfect read for the summer and is available now wherever books are sold. . . but leave a comment on this post and you’ll be entered to WIN* a copy for yourself!

Then join Becky Keife this weekend on the (in)courage podcast for a conversation with Jenny about this very special debut novel. Don’t miss it!

*Giveaway open to US addresses only and closes on 6/23/24 at 11:59 pm central.

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