More about God Bless the Child

God Bless the Child is Anne Shaw Heinrich’s debut novel. Published by Speaking Volumes and released in June 2024, it is the first in a four-book series, The Women of Paradise County.

Nestled in the heart of America’s Midwest, the fictional Paradise County is where the wounded create spaces and places for themselves that simmer just beneath the surface. The dysfunction leaps off the first page.

Whether it’s needy heavyweight Mary Kline, her rebellious surrogate daughter, Elizabeth, or Ruth Pullman, the pastor’s wife who can do nothing but look the other way when she learns about her charming son’s nasty backseat reputation, the women of Paradise County are a hot mess. Some of their men started it and others are on loving standby as these tough cookies feel their way toward redemption.