Francine Sandra Rivers (born 1947) is an American

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...

with

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

themes, including inspirational

romance novels A romance novel or romantic novel generally refers to a type of genre fiction novel which places its primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and usually has an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." Pre ...

. Prior to becoming a

born-again Christian Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sepa ...

in 1986, Rivers wrote

historical romance Historical romance is a broad category of mass-market fiction focusing on romantic relationships in historical periods, which Walter Scott helped popularize in the early 19th century. Varieties Viking These books feature Vikings during the Da ...

novels. She is best known for her inspirational novel ''

Redeeming Love ''Redeeming Love'' is a historical romance novel by Francine Rivers set in the 1850s Gold Rush in California. The story is inspired by the Book of Hosea from the Bible, and its central theme is the redeeming love of God towards sinners. In 2020, ...

'', while another novel, '' The Last Sin Eater'', received its own film adaptation released in 2007 by

Fox Faith Fox Faith (also spelled FoxFaith) was a brand of film studio 20th Century Fox targeting evangelical Christians. Established under 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment in 2006, Fox Faith acquired independent Christian-themed films for theatrical an ...

. A film based on ''Redeeming Love'' was released on January 21, 2022 through Pinnacle Peak Pictures and

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

Biography

Early years

Francine Rivers is the daughter of a

police officer A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...

and a

nurse Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...

. From the time she was a child, Rivers wanted to be a published author. She attended

Amador Valley High School Amador Valley High School is a comprehensive public high school in Pleasanton, California. It is one of three high schools in the Pleasanton Unified School District, along with Foothill High School and Village High School. Founded as Amad ...

Pleasanton, CA Pleasanton is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. Located in the Amador Valley, it is a suburb in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 79,871 at the 2020 census. In 2005 and 2007, Pleasanton was ...

. She attended the

University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a public land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada. It is the state's flagship public university and primary land grant institution. It was founded on October 12, ...

, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and journalism. After her graduation she spent time as a newspaper reporter, writing obituaries and human interest stories.

Career

After her mother-in-law lent her several romance novels, Rivers decided that she would try to write in that genre. Her first manuscript was sold and became published in 1976. For the next several years she wrote

historical History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

. In 1986, Rivers became a

, and for three years she had difficulty finding plots for new novels. She spent her time instead studying the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

, and decided to adapt her writing to focus on more Christian themes. Her first novel in the new vein, ''

'', was released in 1991. Rivers considers it to be her statement of faith. ''Redeeming Love'' updates the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

book of Hosea to the

American West The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...

of the 1850s and tells the story of a prostitute named Angel, who is eventually reformed and converted to Christianity by the stoic patience and love of a frontier farmer named Michael Hosea. Rivers' subsequent novels have all been in the inspirational fiction genre, as Rivers wants to "illustrate Christ and the Christian walk, to address difficult problems and write realistic stories." In a letter on her webpage Francine Rivers refers to the books written before her conversion to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

as her " B.C." (before Christ) bibliography. She has purchased the publication rights to her earlier romance novels so that she can prevent them from being released again, but some titles have been rereleased and others circulate in used bookstores. Her inspirational series, The Mark of the Lion, sold over half a million copies. In 2007, her novel '' The Last Sin Eater'' was made into a feature film, directed by Michael Landon Jr. and distributed by

. Rivers has been honored with many awards, including the

Christy Award The Christy Awards, established in 1999, are awarded each year to recognize fiction of excellence written from a Christian perspective with matters of faith at its core. Awards are given in several genres, including contemporary (stand-alone novel ...

the ECPA Gold Medallion ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

, and the Holt Medallion. Rivers is also a member of the

Romance Writers of America Romance Writers of America (RWA) is an American non-profit writers' association founded in 1980. Its mission is to "advance the professional and common business interests of career-focused romance writers through networking and advocacy and by incr ...

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

. She has won four RWA RITA Awards, the highest award given in romantic fiction. Her first RITA was for Best Historical Romance in 1986 for ''Not So Wild a Dream.'' Her subsequent ones, in 1995, 1996, and 1997, have been for Best Inspirational Romance. She executive produced and wrote the script for the upcoming film adaptation of her novel, ''Redeeming Love'', which is set to debut in theaters in 2021.

Personal life

Francine Rivers is married to Rick Rivers and they live together in northern

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

(where the action in many of her contemporary novels is set). They have three children: Trevor, Shannon, and Travis; and five grandchildren.

Film adaptations

''The Last Sin Eater''

In 2007, a film adaptation of ''The Last Sin Eater'' directed by Michael Landon Jr. was released by

''Redeeming Love''

A film adaptation based on Rivers' bestselling novel ''Redeeming Love'' was announced in early 2020, with

D.J. Caruso Daniel John Caruso Jr. (; born January 17, 1965) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. His work encompasses a variety of genres, including Thriller film, thriller (''Disturbia (film), Disturbia, Taking Lives (film), Taking Liv ...

directing and Pure Flix Entertainment and Lightworkers Media producing.

Bibliography

Christian–inspirational romance novels

*''

'' (1991) *

Mark of the Lion Series The Mark of the Lion series is authored by Francine Rivers and consists of three novels: ''A Voice in the Wind'' (1993), ''An Echo in the Darkness'' (1994), and ''As Sure as the Dawn''. A Voice in the Wind ''A Voice in the Wind'' (1993) is the ...

: (1993–1995) **''

A Voice in the Wind ''A Voice in the Wind'' (1993) is a novel by Francine Rivers, and the first book in the Mark of the Lion Series The Mark of the Lion series is authored by Francine Rivers and consists of three novels: ''A Voice in the Wind'' (1993), ''An Echo in ...

'' (1993) **''

An Echo in the Darkness ''An Echo in the Darkness'' (1994) is the second novel in the Mark of the Lion Series by Francine Rivers. It was awarded a RITA Award for best inspirational romance by the Romance Writers of America in 1995. Synopsis The book begins where ''A ...

'' (1994) **''

As Sure as the Dawn ''As Sure as the Dawn'' (1995) is a novel by Francine Rivers, and the third book in the Mark of the Lion Series The Mark of the Lion series is authored by Francine Rivers and consists of three novels: ''A Voice in the Wind'' (1993), ''An Echo in t ...

'' (1995) *'' The Scarlet Thread'' (1996) *'' The Atonement Child'' (1997) *'' The Last Sin Eater'' (1998) *'' Leota's Garden'' (1999) *'' The Shoe Box'' (1999) * Lineage of Grace Series: (2000–2001) **'' Unveiled'' (2000) **'' Unashamed'' (2000) **''

Unshaken "Unshaken" is a song by American singer-songwriter D'Angelo. It was produced by Daniel Lanois, who wrote the track with D'Angelo and Rocco DeLuca. The song was written for the Music of Red Dead Redemption 2, original soundtrack to the 2018 video ...

'' (2001) **'' Unspoken'' (2001) **'' Unafraid'' (2001) *'' And the Shofar Blew'' (2003) * Sons of Encouragement Series: (2004–2007) **''The Priest'' (2004) **''The Warrior'' (2005) **''

The Prince ''The Prince'' ( it, Il Principe ; la, De Principatibus) is a 16th-century political treatise written by Italian diplomat and political theorist Niccolò Machiavelli as an instruction guide for new princes and royals. The general theme of ''The ...

'' (2005) **''The Prophet'' (2006) **''The Scribe'' (2007) *'' Bible Stories for Growing Kids'' (2007) (Written together with daughter Shannon Rivers Coibion) * Marta's Legacy Series: (2010) **'' Her Mother's Hope'' (March 2010) **''Her Daughter's Dream'' (September 2010) * Bridge to Haven (2014) * The Masterpiece (2018)

Romance novels (B.C. bibliography)

*''Kathleen'' (1979) *''Sycamore Hill'' (1981) *''Rebel In His Arms'' (1982) *''This Golden Valley'' (1983) *''Sarina'' (1983) *''Not So Wild a Dream'' (1985) *''Outlaw's Embrace'' (1986) *''A Fire in the Heart'' (1987) * Second Chance at Love Series **''Hearts Divided'' (1983) **''Heart in Hiding'' (1984) **''Pagan Heart'' (1985)

References

External links

*An autobiographical essay by Francine Rivers describing her conversion: {{DEFAULTSORT:Rivers, Francine 1947 births Living people 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American romantic fiction writers American women novelists Christian novelists RITA Award winners Women romantic fiction writers 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers Converts to Christianity