Not yet ready to fully embrace adulthood, Simons finds himself surrendering to cynicism, as well as to the temptations of his “turned-out-well” first cousin, Patricia.To avoid sinking further into his rut, Simons embarks on a road trip through the South. After a disastrous stint as a Corpus Christi fisherman, he exits the Lone Star State, doubling back to the Louisiana bayou to spend some quality time with his former friend and mentor—and his mother’s ex-lover—Taurus. But as even Taurus’s once sought-after wisdom wears thin, Simons begins to suspect that the grass is not greener on the other side—it may be burnt, brown, and dead wherever he goes.

    He begins working as a washer of robes at a hotel for itinerant judges. There he meets and falls in love with Prudence, a forensic photographer whose pictures reveal the secrets of the dead.When Prudence disappears, Frank sets out in search of her, a quest that leads him into the shadowy world of a revolutionary salon, then to prison, and finally to discover the city's strange secrets and the secrets of his own heart.A haunting novel that recalls the early work of Paul Auster and Steven Millhauser, The Artist of the Missing is a stunning debut, both a richly imagined evocation of another world and a piercing examination of the mystery of love, and beautifully illustrated by the acclaimed artist Stephen Alcorn.A visionary novel about love, loss, imagination, and despair.

    This is one of those books. It's the story of a boy growing up in a lost time in an idyllic place—rural Virginia of the late 1940s. Charlie Lewis is the only child of city people who, after the war, choose to live at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains on a "gentleman's farm" near Charlottesville. Six years old when his family settles in the renovated corn crib on old Professor Jame's place, Charlie grows up in his personal version of heaven. His innocence is, of course, lost in the process. And so is his version of heaven. But, as the old saying goes, still waters run deep, and Charlie runs deep, with a natural (almost supernatural) affinity for the land and its animals. For knowledge , he instinctively turns to a group of older black men, some of whom work the farm, others who are neighbors. Jim Crow laws and "the curse left on the land by slavery"—as old Professor James puts it—are still very much in evidence. Even so, Charlie's passions endear him to these men. They understand that he is lonely even if he does not. They watch out for him. And more—they love him. Winter Run is a story that lets us escape for a moment our own noisy and complicated contemporary lives. Like The Red Pony, like Gerald Durrell's My Family and Other Animals, it takes us back to the joys of childhood's unrestricted enthusiasm and curiosity.

    She does so without thinking about the consequences until it’s too late. By the end she realises the man she wants to marry is not in any position to marry her and never will be. Well let’s think about it, he’s not in any position to marry anyone. The Catholic Church don’t allow their priests to get married let alone have secret affairs with desperate women. This isn’t your standard love story, it’s a dark and intense tale of life for one woman in 1960’s Manchester and to some extent what life is/was like for priests of the Roman Catholic Church.

    When their van breaks down outside of Morganton, North Carolina, the group decides to hike up nearby Brown Mountain while they wait for the repairs to be finished. Lizzie’s interest in nature prompts her to go on a walk by herself, hoping to get a glimpse of the legendary Brown Mountain Lights. When she unexpectedly encounters one, she naively reaches out to touch it and is thrown back in time to a place and lifestyle she comes to hate—the Antebellum South. Lizzie is taken in by three sisters who are healers. With them, she is able to put her knowledge as a medical student to good use. She finds a trusted friend in Abbie, the youngest sister, and through a budding romance with the son of a plantation owner is drawn into the dangerous world of the Underground Railroad. With a bloody and violent war looming on the horizon, at a time when women are looked upon as less than equal, Lizzie struggles to accept the differences that surround her every day in this new and challenging world. Wanting nothing more than to return home, she and Abbie continually search for the light Lizzie travelled through, hoping it will take her back to her time. But if she finds it, will she decide to stay or go?

    Jessie is just nineteen when her father passes away and her mother decides to return to her native Ireland. But Jessie, headstrong and independent, prefers to take charge of her own destiny and finds employment at a workman’s cafe, becoming the darling of the dockworkers who are fiercely protective of her.When one of her customers charms his way into her heart, Jessie becomes Mrs Conor McGonigall and soon assumes ownership of the cafe. All the pieces of her life are coming together. But when a pushy local businessman and a former employee with a grudge have other ideas, everything she has worked for is slowly chipped away. Can she find the strength to rebuild the life she wants in the face of immeasurable personal loss?‘Her debut book caused a stir among Cookson and Cox devotees, and they’ll love this. Compulsive reading’ Woman’s Weekly‘A heart-rending tale’ Gilda O’Neill‘A page-turner for all saga lovers’ Katie Fforde‘A heart-warming tale with a vividly drawn central character’ Peterborough Evening Telegraph‘Excellent and gripping . . . compelling. I am eagerly awaiting June Tate’s next offering’ Sussex Life

    Young Thomas witnessed the atrocities that the Nazis had carried out in Spain and trained his pilots to show no mercy when towards the end of the book, he breached the rules to attack German planes. Published by The Electronic Book Company

    In this superb anthology can be found the best of the English-speaking world’s inspirational and reassuring verse, including such classics as Rudyard Kipling’s ‘If’ and W.H. Davies’ ‘Leisure’. This beautifully illustrated collection of over 120 poems is sure to offer solace, hearten the soul and motivate the human spirit.

    The more time Grace spends with Bessie, her six boistrous children and her loving husband Tom, the more she realises what has been missing from her own loveless marriage. As the war takes its toll on Leicester, and one by one the men folk leave to join the fighting, Grace finds comfort in helping others. Each day, as she takes on another new challenge, Grace realises that her daughter might have been right all along - it's time to break out, really make something of her life, and possibly find true love, before it's too late...

    And from her very first visit something about it gives Rachel chills…As Rachel makes new friends and delves into local history, she is also forced to confront her own troubled past. Why is she unable to get into a healthy relationship? What’s stopping her from finding Mr Right? And what are the echoes of the past trying to tell her…?ENDLESS SKIES is thought-provoking contemporary women’s fiction novel with a heart-warming ending. It merges moving World War Two historical events with modern day drama to reveal a relatable love story.

    To save them from the workhouse, Nell returns to the family home - a mere two rooms at the top of a condemned tenement.Nell finds work at a biscuit factory and, at first, they scrape through each week. But then eight-year-old Róisín, a delicate from birth, is admitted to hospital with rheumatic fever and fifteen-year-old Kate, rebellious, headstrong and resentful of Nell taking her mother's place, runs away.When Liam finds work in London, Nell stays to struggle on alone - her unwavering devotion to her sisters stronger even than her love for him. She's determined that one day the Dublin girls will be reunited and only then will she be free to follow her heart. Look for more gripping, heartwrenching page-turners from Cathy Mansell - don't miss A Place to Belong, out now.

    We Follow The Ups And Downs Of Mr Starlight's Career As He Heads To The Bright Lights Of America, As Seen Through The Eyes Of Cled, His Brother.

     Ed tells the funny and engaging story of how he wrote the book and what happened to him along the way. There are humorous stories about the couples he counseled and about his zany editor. If you are looking for a fun, engaging story with interesting characters and laugh out loud moments, you will enjoy this book.

    He can identify every car in town from the sound of its engine, but his world is changing faster then he can fathom. His wife has become an artist, selling sea-glass sculptures to tourists. His daughter is bound for college, while his son has turned angry and lawless. Lucky's own heart is failing him, too. An operation has kept it ticking, but he can't run the boat alone any more. As the spring lobster season opens, the only deckhand Lucky can find to help load his traps is Ronette, the not-quite-divorced wife of the local lobster wholesaler. When the two make it out to the fishing grounds, someone else's buoys are bobbing in his ancestral waters. Before he knows it, Lucky is in a lobster war and has abandoned all the rules: family, health, finance, even the rules of the sea that have guided him throughout his life. As waves of trouble turn into a flood tide, Lucky's pride propels him into an epic confrontation with his enemies and a rogue whale -- a battle his unreliable heart may not survive. The Wooden Nickel is a classic story of a man raging against a changing world, full of pathos and comedy. It is a remarkable novel by a writer with a powerful, distinct, and original voice.

    His marriage is over and he is alone, teaching poetry as a visiting professor in Montana and continuing to avoid actually writing himself. He drinks to oblivion every night.At this freezing college, in the dead of winter, Winslow meets Erika, one of his poetry students. What begins with office hours and Jim Beam in paper cups becomes a road trip as they travel through Utah and Arizona. Long haunted by thoughts of death, both Erika and Winslow begin to glimpse the power life can hold if they will only open up to the shame, beauty, and heartbreak of it all.