The Fellowship a novel

Bekah Richards grew up in the Fellowship of True Christian Churches, a close-knit community of three congregations in south Mississippi. Long skirts, restricted entertainment, Bible verses, and dozens of rules about interaction between the sexes, all decided by the church authorities -- this was normal life for Bekah since the age of eight. Now, at twenty, Bekah is working full time, living on her own, and dreams of owning her own business eventually. It's definitely not the life a good stay-at-home "Fellowship girl" is supposed to be living. When her pastor, dying of cancer, asks her to come back, she gives in and returns to the Fellowship. She's got good reasons for going back. She hopes to reconnect with the God she once knew. And she needs to escape her alarming new feelings for her good friend, Ty -- feelings that not only complicate their friendship, but won't go over very well with his fiancee. It's hard going back to the life of a Fellowship girl, however. Bekah decides it's time to address some problems she sees in the church. Her crusading spirit pits her against the new pastor, Kenneth, who enforces his rigid ideals with harsh punishment. She turns to her former youth pastor, Rob, for help, and discovers that his interest in her isn't merely pastorly. Then she learns of a long-buried church secret that left an abuser unpunished and free to prey on more victims. She's always been told that if they all stay faithful, the Fellowship will protect them from the world. But who will protect them from The Fellowship?

Sara Roberts Jones grew up in Mississippi, married a Canadian, and lives in Virginia. She and her husband have four children, a minivan, and a rabbit.