A01=Stephanie Stalvey
abstinence
Author_Stephanie Stalvey
Category=QRM
Category=QRVS4
Category=VFVG
Category=XAB
Category=XQA
cult
deconstructionism
eq_bestseller
eq_fiction
eq_graphic-novels-manga
eq_health-lifestyle
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_new_release
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
escape
evangelical christianity
evangelism
graphic memoir
graphic novels for adults
heartache
hope
love
mental health
personal journey
personal transformation
purity culture
recovery
religious trauma
romantic love
self-acceptance
sexuality
spiritual
therapy
Product details
- ISBN 9781250347800
- Weight: 1204g
- Dimensions: 160 x 223mm
- Publication Date: 22 Jun 2026
- Publisher: Castle Point Books
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Hardback
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Stephanie grew up in an evangelical community where love and obedience were overlapping themes. In this world, sin was inevitable, her body was a temptation, and desire was dangerous. Her own thoughts could not be trusted, because she was only saved if she believed the 'right things' about God.
But as she grew, built a life of her own, and fell in love with a young seminarian named James, the complexities of the human experience became impossible to ignore. Was God truly so exacting and judgmental? Could faith exist beyond these rigid borders? Could love be both passionate and pure? Her connection to James—honest, caring, and sensual—became a safe place for her worldview to expand. And when their son was born, she understood love in a whole new way… suddenly, everything was sacred, everything was in colour.
Through striking prose and beautiful mixed media illustrations, Stalvey takes us on an emotional journey of faith, romance, motherhood, and loss. With tenderness and honesty, she unravels the fear and guilt woven into her past, reclaims her sense of self, and shows us how to embrace a love that is healing, transformative, and wholly one's own.
Stephanie Stalvey: is an artist and writer currently living in North Carolina with her husband James, son Tommy, and their cats After teaching high school painting for over a decade, she now works full time as an author and illustrator. Her autobiographical comics explore themes in relationships, spirituality, sex, religion, parenthood, and self discovery. She enjoys reading in the bath, swimming in the ocean and heart to hearts with her friends.
