Carla's Book Crush

Anything: A Romance for Jesus Freaks by Kristina Welch
Series: Mayberry University Series – Book 1
Publisher: Independently Published
Release Date: February 1, 2025
Genre: Christian YA Romance

​​Two guarded hearts.
He’s breaking down walls and she’s building them higher
A match made in Heaven, or a blueprint for disaster?

After the fiery downward spiral of senior year, Kit Talbot crash-lands on a quirky college campus where traditions rule and dorm floors act more like family. It’s just weird enough to keep her mind off the wreckage she’s leaving behind.

Enter Levi Whitaker, known as the swooniest guy on campus. Magnetic, confident, and far too much like the ex who sent her life into that PTSD-tainted nosedive. Levi seems to be everywhere, focused on her like she’s the only girl in the world—even indulging her sugar addiction with delivered treats. But Kit’s self-preservation instincts are sharper than ever, and she deflects him like Wonder Woman blocking bullets.

That is, until Levi’s quiet faith and humble apology start to break down Kit’s defenses. He loves Jesus in the dreamiest way, looks like wow, and … somehow triggers the flashbacks she fights so hard to avoid. Every minute with him is a risk she isn’t sure she should take. Should she protect them both from the chaos of her life or learn a bravery that feels irresponsible?

As Kit fights to keep her life safe and manageable, she leans into her faith, clinging to the Bible verses God whispers to her heart. Clearly, he’s up to something, but the healing she prays for isn’t happening the way she wants.

Why is God silent on the prayer she needs most?

PURCHASE LINKS:
Goodreads | Amazon |
Barnes & Noble | Bookshop | BookBub

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About the Author

When Kristina Welch isn’t adventuring around the world with her husband and three little blondies, she’s home near Denver, Colorado. She thrives on date nights, forest hikes, and peanut butter cookies. Her days include half-homeschooling her kids, thrifting for treasures, regretting DIY home projects, and babbling to Jesus wherever she is.

Connect with Kristina by visiting kristinawelchauthor.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

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Author Q&A

Q: What first ignited the desire to become a writer?

Welch: I have this habit—some might call it a bad one—of mentally “editing” books after I finish them. I’ll catch myself thinking, This would have been so much more
satisfying/respectful/cohesive/realistic if…

I never used to write those thoughts down. They just helped me savor the story a little longer. Then one day, out of nowhere, I sat down and made a list of everything I did and didn’t love in the books I’d recently read. I just looked up that old document—it’s full of comments like “dream was unsatisfactorily resolved,” “clever conflict to solve,” “meeting one’s match,” and “male lead softening.” From those notes, an idea for my first book took shape, and I ran with it. Writing for the first time was an absolute rush, and before I knew it, it had become an all-consuming hobby—one I had to learn to tone down.

Q: You and your family enjoy travel. How does travel inspire or fit into your book writing life?

Welch: Travel has shown my family in the US that people—whether in Uganda, Japan, or anywhere else—are more similar to us than different. We’re all made in God’s image, and it’s incredible to see His image-bearers in different cultures, loving their families, enjoying creation, and looking out for their neighbors. And even more amazing—God is chasing after every one of them.

As Paul wrote, “[God] marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands … so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us.” I want my stories to whisper the profound and thrilling reality that God has placed each of us in a specific time and place. He is so near to us, always inviting us to reach out and find Him.

Q: How do you develop characters’ relationships with God?

Welch: From experience—mine, my husband’s, my friends’. A person’s background, how they found Jesus, and their personality shape their faith in distinct ways, and it’s the same for my characters.

For example, Chelsea, Kit’s mom in Anything, has a faith similar to mine because I gave her a similar origin story and personality. But Kit’s relationship, while deeply influenced by her mom, looks different. Chelsea blazes ahead, often needing the Spirit’s nudges to slow down or stay quiet. Kit, on the other hand, needs the courage and reassurance to go and do. God makes us unique on purpose, and I love to guess at His strategy in shaping us the way He does.

Q: Anything is your debut novel, what do you want the readers to get out of Kit and Levi’s story?

Welch: The two biggest takeaways I hope for are:

1) God is the Orchestrator and Mastermind of our stories.
His plans are always at work, even when we can’t see or understand them.
2) He is mysteriously accessible.
He promises that if we seek Him with our whole hearts, we will find Him.

Q: Is there anything you edited out of Anything? Maybe something you feel would be better as its own story?

Welch: It’s like you read my diary. Yes—Chelsea and Archie’s love story was originally woven throughout the book, intertwined with Kit and Levi’s. My editor suggested giving them their own short story to keep the focus on Kit. I never ended up writing that short story because Chelsea and Archie get plenty of air time in books two and three of the series.

Q: What do you consider literary success? 

A: That readers would see God for who He is, recognize how He’s cared for them, and love Him more.

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Tour Giveaway

(1) winner will receive a Book Hugger’s Bundle of leather bookmarks, Christian stickers, book tabs, reading light, signed copy of Anything, and a $25 B&N gift card!

(1) winner will receive a College Life Bundle of a notebook, pens, sticky notes, popcorn, mug, signed copy of Anything, and a $20 Starbucks gift card!

(1) winner will receive a Devo Time Bundle of a Bible, highlighters, book tabs, tea lights, signed copy of Anything, and a $25 Etsy gift card!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight February 24, 2025 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on March 3, 2025. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

Enter Giveaway

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Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!