Gist, Deeanne

PERSONAL:

Married; husband's name Greg; children: four. Education: Graduated from Texas A&M University.

ADDRESSES:

Home—TX.

CAREER:

Writer; founder of Pressing Matters Publishing Company, Woodlands, TX. Has also worked as an elementary school teacher, the owner of a home accessory and antique business, and the chief financial officer of an engineering firm. Owner of the "I Did It!" line of parenting products.

MEMBER:

Romance Writers of America.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Christy Award, 2006, for A Bride Most Begrudging.

WRITINGS:

A Bride Most Begrudging, Bethany House (Minneapolis, MN), 2005.

The Measure of a Lady, Bethany House (Minneapolis, MN), 2006.

Courting Trouble, Bethany House (Minneapolis, MN), 2007.

Contributor to periodicals, including People, Parents, Parenting, Family Fun, Houston Chronicle, and Orlando Sentinel.

SIDELIGHTS:

Deeanne Gist is the author of a number of inspirational romances. "My main goal in writing is to use my gifts and talents to glorify the Lord," Gist told an interviewer for FaithfulReader.com. "I have themes for my novels, but I don't set out to convey a particular spiritual message to my readers. To me, that is between God and the reader."

A former elementary teacher and entrepreneur, Gist published her debut title, A Bride Most Begrudging, in 2005. Set in seventeenth-century Virginia, the work concerns the "tobacco brides," a group of female convicts who were shipped from Great Britain to America to appease the male colonists and help populate the new land. When Lady Constance Morrow slips aboard an English vessel to say good-bye to her jailed uncle, she is held captive by the unscrupulous ship's captain, and she later becomes the property of tobacco farmer Drew O'Connor. Though O'Connor has no plans to wed the feisty redhead, especially when he learns that Constance cannot cook or run a household, he is forced to marry her to pacify his neighbors in the settlement. Curled Up with a Good Book reviewer Elisha Darville praised the novel's well-drawn characters, stating that readers "become attached to Constance because of her passionate nature and mind," and Romantic Times Online contributor Jill Elizabeth Nelson wrote: "The sparks between Drew and Constance light up the pages." Darville added: "Gist is subtle in her attempt to bring faith into the book."

Gist drew inspiration for The Measure of a Lady, her second novel, after reading about the difficulties faced by women who settled in a gold rush town. After her father dies on the journey from New Jersey to San Francisco, Rachel Van Buren finds herself the sole provider for her younger brother and sister. Fortunately, saloon and gambling parlor owner Johnnie Parker takes the family under his wing, offering them food and shelter in exchange for housekeeping duties. The refined, pious, and headstrong Rachel proves more than a match for the charismatic Parker, a former missionary whose faith is rekindled through his relationship with the Van Burens. "Gist's imagery is believable and her characters strong," noted Bev Huston in Romantic Times, and BookLoons critic Melissa Parcel stated that "the detail, intriguing drama and exciting conclusion will appeal to historical fiction readers." "Thoroughly researched and poignantly written, readers will find this inspirational romance riveting and insightful," noted a critic on the Inspirational Romance Writers Web site.

Set in 1894, Courting Trouble centers on Essie Sprecklemeyer, an eccentric, single, thirty-year-old woman who wishes to avoid spinsterhood at any cost and sets out to find a husband. After her unconventional ways frighten away Hamilton Crook, a young widower, Essie falls for Adam Currington, a charming drifter. Romantic Times Online critic Jennifer Reyes complimented the novel's "great storyline, highlighted with humor."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Library Journal, June 1, 2005, Tamara Butler, review of A Bride Most Begrudging, p. 110.

ONLINE

BookLoons,http://www.bookloons.com/ (July 1, 2007), Melissa Parcel, review of A Bride Most Begrudging and The Measure of a Lady.

Christian Fiction,http://christianfiction.blogspot.com/ (August 12, 2005), "Two Dees & the Tobacco Bride."

Curled up with a Good Book,http://www.curledup.com/ (July 1, 2007), Elisha Darville, review of A Bride Most Begrudging.

FaithfulReader.com,http://www.faithfulreader.com/ (July 30, 2007), "Deeanne Gist Answers The Faithful Fifteen."

Faith in Fiction,http://faithinfiction.blogspot.com/ (July 7, 2005), "An Interview with Deeanne Gist."

Historical Romance Writers,http://www.historicalromancewriters.com/ (March 12, 2006), review of A Bride Most Begrudging.

Inspirational Romance Writers,http://www.inspirationalromancewriters.com/ (May 24, 2006), review of The Measure of a Lady.

Novel Journey,http://noveljourney.blogspot.com/ (May 29, 2006), Gina Holmes, "Author Interview—Deeanne Gist."

Romance Reader at Heart,http://www.romancereaderatheart.com/ (July 1, 2007), "Sue's Clues," interview with Deeanne Gist.

Romance Reader Connection,http://www.theromancereadersconnection.com/ (June 26, 2005), Wendy Keel, review of A Bride Most Begrudging; (December 23, 2006), Wendy Keel, review of The Measure of a Lady; (May 31, 2007), Wendy Keel, review of Courting Trouble.

Romance Review,http://www.aromancereview.com/news/ (July 30, 2007), "New Voices of Today: Deeanne Gist."

Romantic Times,http://www.romanticetimes.com/ (July 1, 2007), Jill Elizabeth Nelson, review of A Bride Most Begrudging; Bev Huston, review of The Measure of a Lady; Jennifer Reyes, review of Courting Trouble.

T.L. Hines Web site,http://www.tlhines.com/blog/ (August 10, 2005), "Deeanne Gist on A Bride Most Begrudging."