Book picks similar to
Beyond the Shining Water by Audrey Howard


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Fall of Giants


Ken Follett - 2010
    This is a huge novel that follows five families through the world-shaking dramas of the First World War, the Russian Revolution, and the struggle for votes for women. It is 1911. The Coronation Day of King George V. The Williams, a Welsh coal-mining family is linked by romance and enmity to the Fitzherberts, aristocratic coal-mine owners. Lady Maud Fitzherbert falls in love with Walter von Ulrich, a spy at the German Embassy in London. Their destiny is entangled with that of an ambitious young aide to U.S. President Woodrow Wilson and to two orphaned Russian brothers, whose plans to emigrate to America fall foul of war, conscription and revolution. In a plot of unfolding drama and intriguing complexity, "Fall Of Giants" moves seamlessly from Washington to St Petersburg, from the dirt and danger of a coal mine to the glittering chandeliers of a palace, from the corridors of power to the bedrooms of the mighty.

The Ribbon Weaver


Rosie Goodwin - 2010
    A wealthy family's tragic secret. A girl determined to make her mark.One winter's night, Molly Earnshaw rescues a newborn baby from the snow and changes two families for ever. The tiny girl grows into a beautiful and gifted young woman. Although devoted to Molly, who she believes is her grandmother, Amy has far-reaching ambitions - encouraged by her neighbour's son, Toby, she longs to move beyond ribbon-weaving to designing the hats and clothes the ribbons adorn. Her talent is recognised by Matthew Forrester, the influential owner of famous hat factories and shops. But Matthew is a haunted man with secrets in his past that torture him and his family. His son's wife, Victoria, is deeply troubled, and when Amy's flair leads her to London and then Paris, Victoria is consumed with jealousy. Amy's dreams seem to be coming true, but as more secrets are revealed and Amy is caught between two worlds, she must choose where her heart truly belongs.

The First Time I Said Goodbye


Claire Allan - 2013
    In Derry they both start to realise that sometimes you have to say goodbye to what you thought you always wanted, in order to find what you have needed all along. Editorial Reviews “One of the most scrumptious books i think I’ve ever read”All Things Books“Like a hug in a book! ... ideal book for those who doubts there's such a thing as having it all” – Woman’s Way“An amazing story of first love and how, even years later, the feelings can still exist. Based on a true story, this was my favourite tale of true love in recent years. Sweet, warm and endearing, it stayed with me for weeks after I had finished it. For all of us that believe there is a soulmate out there for everyone.” Bleach House LibraryQuite simply, this is one of the nicest, warmest and moving love stories I have read in years and I found myself very emotional while reading it. It had some personal meaning to me, as it was a similar tale to a relative of mine, and I had to stop reading a few times in order to pull myself together. I didn’t want it to end and the lump in my throat remains with me, even as I write this review. Writing.ieI LOVED this book. I was completely absorbed in it ...I really couldn't put it down - At Home with Mrs M“A feel-good, touching and amusing tale which readers will find hard to put down” – Irish Independent

The Buccaneers


Edith Wharton - 1938
    In the New York society of the 1870s, however, only those with old money can achieve the status of the elite, and it is here that the sisters seem doomed to failure.Nan's new governess, Laura Testvalley, herself an outsider, takes pity on their plight and launches them instead on the unsuspecting British aristocracy. Lords, dukes, marquesses and MPs, it seems, not only appreciate beauty, but also the money that New York's nouveaux riches can supply.A love story of love and marriage among the old and new moneyed classes, The Buccaneers is a delicately perceptive portrayal of a world on the brink of change.

The Tea Rose


Jennifer Donnelly - 2002
    A place of shadow and light where thieves, whores, and dreamers mingle, where children play in the cobbled streets by day and a killer stalks at night, where bright hopes meet the darkest truths. Here, by the whispering waters of the Thames, Fiona Finnegan, a worker in a tea factory, hopes to own a shop one day, together with her lifelong love, Joe Bristow, a costermonger's son. With nothing but their faith in each other to spur them on, Fiona and Joe struggle, save, and sacrifice to achieve their dreams.But Fiona's life is shattered when the actions of a dark and brutal man take from her nearly everything-and everyone-she holds dear. Fearing her own death, she is forced to flee London for New York. There, her indomitable spirit propels her rise from a modest West Side shop-front to the top of Manhattan's tea trade. But Fiona's old ghosts do not rest quietly, and to silence them, she must venture back to the London of her childhood, where a deadly confrontation with her past becomes the key to her future.

The Brave


Nicholas Evans - 2009
    It's 1959 and the school bristles with bullies and sadistic staff. Tommy, a quirky loner, obsessed with cowboys and Indians, needs all the bravery he can summon.Salvation comes when his glamorous actress sister is swept off to Hollywood by one of his heroes, TV cowboy Ray Montane. But with the Cold War looming, the sinister side of Tinseltown seeps through and Tommy and Diane soon find themselves in jeopardy. Forty years on, Tommy has to confront his boyhood ghosts when his own son finds himself charged with murder.

Women & Children First


Gill Paul - 2012
    But how can life ever be the same again when you've heard thousands of people dying in the water around you?Rich with authentic historical detail, this unforgettable novel is sure to captivate fans of Downton Abbey, Rachel Hore, and Sarah Blakes The Postmistress.Will coincide with the release of Julian Fellowes' four-part Titanic mini-series and James Camersons 3d Titanic.Huge coverage expected for the centenary of the Titanic and major publicity for Women & Children FirstExclusive extra material includes original photographs from onboard the ship and the extraordinary facts behind the Titanic.

The Immigrants


Howard Fast - 1977
     Dan Lavette, the son of an Italian fisherman, battles from the rubble of the San Francisco earthquake to build a fortune in the shipping industry. Rising to success through hard work and a loveless marriage to the daughter of the city's wealthiest family, he risks it all for the exotic beauty of a woman who shares his secret and scandalous passion. From Nob Hill to the harbor, San Francisco comes alive through three immigrant families -- Italian, Irish, and Chinese -- whose intertwining dreams are propelled by the emotional events of America's coming of age...

Firefly Summer


Maeve Binchy - 1987
    Kate Ryan and her husband, John, have a rollicking pub in the Irish village of Mountfern... lovely twelve-year-old twins... and such wonderful dreams.... It was a summer of innocence... But all that is about to change this fateful summer of 1962 when American millionaire Patrick O'Neill comes to town with his irresistible charm and a pocketful of money... when love and hate vie for a town's quiet heart and old traditions begin to crumble away.... It was a summer of love that would never come again.... A time that has been captured forever in Maeve Binchy's compelling family drama... a novel you will never forget.

A Lady's Lesson in Scandal


Meredith Duran - 2011
    Pity he's a lunatic. He thinks her a missing heiress, but more to the point, he'll help her escape the slums and right a grave injustice. Not a bad bargain. All she has to do is marry him.A notorious ladies' man could take her from poverty to opulence…but at what price?A rake of the first order, Simon St. Maur spent his restless youth burning every bridge he crossed. When he inherits an earldom without a single penny attached to it, he sees a chance to start over—provided he can find an heiress to fund his efforts. But his wicked reputation means courtship will be difficult—until fate sends him the most notorious missing heiress in history. All he needs now is to make her into a lady and keep himself from making the only mistake that could ruin everything: falling in love…

Malcolm


George MacDonald - 1875
    Malcolm, a nineteenth-century Scottish fisherman, is captivated by a willful, adventurous girl whom he dares not to love, until he discovers a startling secret about her.

The Lord and The Red-Headed Hornet


G.L. Robinson - 2021
    She's a bossy, fiery red-head. Her handsome brother wants to join the army and fight against Napoleon. But he's all she has and she wants him to become a diplomat instead. She gets a job with an aristocrat hoping he will provide the contacts. Needless to say, it doesn't work out exactly as any of them expects.

A Place In The Hills


Michelle Paver - 2001
    Capturing the beauty and pain of two extraordinary love affairs separated by a gulf of 2000 years, this book explores true emotion, loss, and the healing power of forgiveness.

White Fur


Jardine Libaire - 2017
    Although they are next-door neighbors in New Haven, they come from different worlds. Elise grew up in a housing project without a father and didn't graduate from high school. Jamey is a junior at Yale, heir to a private investment bank fortune and beholden to high family expectations. The attraction is instant, and what starts out as sexual obsession turns into something greater, stranger, and impossible to ignore.The unlikely couple moves to Manhattan in hopes of forging an adult life together, but Jamey's family intervenes in desperation, and the consequences of staying together are suddenly severe. And when a night out with old friends takes a shocking turn, Jamey and Elise find themselves fighting not just for their love but also for their lives.

Wild Western Women Mistletoe, Montana: Sweet Western Historical Holiday Box Set


Caroline Clemmons - 2016
    In New York, she meets resistance to a woman doctor and feels she is no more than a midwife. When the opportunity arises for her to go to Montana and be the only doctor in the town of Mistletoe, she grabs the chance. Riley McCallister is sheriff of Mistletoe. When he learns the new doctor is a woman, he is shocked and vows never to let her treat him—no matter how beautiful she is. Slowly, Shannon’s skill wins his respect—and more. Shannon’s expertise and dedication during a measles epidemic convinces the town she is a good doctor—but does their acceptance come too late? Mistletoe Scandal by Sylvia McDaniel Everleigh Walsh’s uncle insists she come to Mistletoe, Montana to celebrate Christmas after a devastating tragedy. Trying to deal with the horrible events she has just left behind, she is stunned to discover her uncle's neighbor, Seth Ketchum, waiting for her at the train station. Just when Everleigh decides life can't get any more complicated, an unexpected blizzard forces her and Seth to seek shelter in the most unlikely place - his home! Seth moved to Mistletoe, Montana to escape after he was left at the altar. His plans to avoid women are waylaid when an unexpected accident forces him to make a promise to help his friend and neighbor, James Walsh. He quickly curses his chivalrous offer to escort Walsh's niece back to his ranch when they are caught in a wintry storm.  The weather quickly seals them together in Seth’s warm, cozy cabin, causing sparks to fly between him and the lovely Everleigh. Two broken lives are thrust together, caught in a winter wonderland where they must decide if they can build a new future together or choose a different path. Can the magic of a mistletoe kiss change their minds? Find out in Mistletoe. Mistletoe and Moonbeams by Merry Farmer Miranda Clarke is a respectable, proper woman. So when she inherits The Holey Bucket Saloon in Mistletoe, Montana from her Uncle Buford, she is livid. She feels she has no other choice than to travel to Mistletoe and keep the place open, since that’s what her uncle wanted, but it is certainly not the life she wants to lead. Randall Sinclair is a traveling brush salesman with dreams of bigger things. That is, his father has dreams of bigger things for him. And drives him relentlessly to achieve them. Randall himself would be more than happy to live a quiet life in a quiet town with a loving wife. Especially when he finds himself faced with beautiful and inimitable saloonkeeper, Miranda. Their acquaintance seems doomed to be a brief one, two ships passing in the night…until a blizzard traps them alone in the saloon together. With nothing to do but clean up the saloon and sort through their immediate and intense attraction, the final days approaching Christmas end up being anything but cold, but with so many expectations heaped on top of them, can “Randy” and “Randi” find a way to be together after the storm? Mail-Order Merry by Kirsten Osbourne Merry Winters wants something more out of life, but she feels beholden to her sister and brother-in-law, who have given her a home for the past four years. When a fire takes their lives, and leaves her with their two young children to raise, she agrees to move to Montana to be a mail order bride as long as she can keep running her business. Clyde Bellman has a plan for his life, and he’s at the point where that plan calls for a wife. He sends a letter to a matchmaker in Massachusetts hoping for a strong, independent bride. When Merry arrives with two young children in tow, he knows he needs to be the best uncle the two children have ever seen.