Couple talk: Bethany House Publishers will release Closer by Jim and Cathy Burns next month. Following in the vein of the popular book The Love Dare, the devotional is designed to be shared by couples, with stories, conversation-starters and practical action steps. The hardcover book will retail for $19.99.

Motivating the unmotivated: Elisa Morgan seeks to challenge the estimated 90% of inactive church members to participate in ministry in SDWSC (She Did What She Could) (Tyndale House Publishers), releasing this month. Morgan, a former CEO of MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers)> International, focuses on the biblical story of Mary, who anointed Christ's feet with oil. The hardcover title retails for $9.99.

Best in show: Best-selling general market novelist Charlene Ann Baumbich, author of the "Dearest Dorothy" series, is introduced to the Christian market with Stray Affections, releasing Sept. 15 from WaterBrook Press. The book, centering on a snow globe that sparks memories of childhood days, including a stray dog, will release in softcover and retail for $13.99.

David G. Evans, author and pastor, confronts cultural myths about manhood in Dare to Be a Man, releasing Sept. 20 from G.P. Putnam's Sons. Based on a popular DVD/CD series by the author, the book was written to enlighten both men and women on the problems men face and how best to approach relationships. The hardcover title will retail for $23.95.

Dee Brestin, a best-selling author and Moody Radio host, chronicles her journey of bereavement after losing her husband to cancer in The God of All Comfort ($16.99, Zondervan), releasing this month.

Halfway to Each Otherby Susan Pohlman (GuidepostsBooks) tells the author's story of approaching divorce and then falling in love with her husband again during a business trip to Italy. Pohlman's inspirational memoir releases this month in hardcover for $22.