Book picks similar to
The Summer Visitors by Fiona O'Brien
fiction
age-range-adult
so-good
language-english
Girl Unknown
Karen Perry - 2016
. .'When first-year student Zoë Barry walks into Professor David Connolly's office and tentatively says these words, he is left reeling. But it is the lives of his family - particularly his wife Caroline - which are turned upside down by the arrival of this stranger.A daughter, a sister, a friend . . . an enemy?Though no one knows quite who Zoë is, she is soon entangled in their lives. Yet her stories don't ring true and Caroline is determined to learn if the girl is the unlucky innocent she claims to be or someone with a far darker agenda.A deadly cuckoo in the nest . . .Because by letting Zoë in, David and Caroline aren't just leaving themselves vulnerable. They're risking the most precious thing in the world - the lives of their children . . .
#No Filter
Maxine Morrey - 2019
Libby’s determined to keep it at ‘just good friends’ – she’s dated someone from ‘Corporate Land’ before and it didn’t end well. As she and Charlie begin spending more time together, Libby is starting to waver – until she discovers something which makes her question if she’s ready for love.Still reeling, she suffers another blow as her blog is attacked in a national newspaper, for promoting unachievable perfection. Libby knows it’s not true – but the only way to prove that is to strip off the armour she’s been wearing for years. Is she brave enough to show the world she’s far from perfect? And will Charlie be by her side if she does…
A gloriously funny, wise, heart-warming and romantic read for all fans of Lindsey Kelk and Mhairi Macfarlane, from the author of the bestselling Winter’s Fairytale.
You And Me, Always
Jill Mansell - 2001
On the same day, Lily also meets Eddie Tessler, a man fleeing fame who just might have the ability to change her world in unimaginable ways. But her childhood friend Dan has his own reasons for not wanting Lily to get too carried away by Eddie's attentions.Before long, secrets begin to emerge and Lily's friends and family become involved. In the beautiful Cotswold village of Stanton Langley, nothing will ever be the same again...
Another Chance
Annie Dobbs - 2017
Stacy Brighton left her hometown on the coast of Maine ten years ago for bigger and better things and never looked back. But when her father dies unexpectedly, she’s forced to return. She won’t spend a minute longer than she has to, though. That town is full of bad memories and she doesn’t want to see any of the people she left behind, especially not Reid Callahan. Reid Callahan never wanted anything more than to live his life in Rocky Point. He loves the simple, small-town life and has proudly grown his small lobstering business into one of the premier restaurants in the area. He’s made a good life for himself but something seems to be missing. And when Stacy comes back to town, he knows exactly what it is. Too bad Stacy has no intention of staying… or does she? Even their growing attraction might not be enough to soothe old wounds and when their worst fears take root, one of them may have to sacrifice everything they thought they wanted in order to give their hearts another chance.
Nine Folds Make a Paper Swan
Ruth Gilligan - 2017
In 1958, a mute Jewish boy locked away in a mental institution outside of Dublin forms an unlikely friendship with a man consumed by the story of the love he lost nearly two decades earlier. And in present-day London, an Irish journalist is forced to confront her conflicting notions of identity and family when her Jewish boyfriend asks her to make a true leap of faith. These three arcs, which span generations and intertwine in revelatory ways, come together to tell the haunting story of Ireland’s all-but-forgotten Jewish community. Ruth Gilligan’s beautiful and heartbreaking Nine Folds Make a Paper Swan explores the question of just how far we will go to understand who we really are, and to feel at home in the world.
The Story of Before
Susan Stairs - 2013
Ruth declares that a bad thing will happen in the coming year - she's sure of it. But she cannot see the outline of that thing - she cannot know that it will change their lives utterly, that the shape of their future will be carved into two parts; the before and the after. Or that it will break her heart and break her family.This is Ruth's story. It is the story of before.
The Taste of Ginger
Mansi Shah - 2021
All she did was fall in love with a white Christian carnivore instead of a conventional Indian boy. Years later, with her parents not speaking to her and her controversial relationship in tatters, all Preeti has left is her career at a prestigious Los Angeles law firm.But when Preeti receives word of a terrible accident in the city where she was born, she returns to India, where she’ll have to face her estranged parents…and the complicated past they left behind. Surrounded by the sights and sounds of her heritage, Preeti catches a startling glimpse of her family’s battles with class, tradition, and sacrifice. Torn between two beautifully flawed cultures, Preeti must now untangle what home truly means to her.
Disobey
Jacqui Rose - 2015
Someone’s going to have to pay the price…Alfie Jenkins breaks a lot of rules. When he sets up an illegal casino in Soho there’s bad will all round and soon Alfie and those closest to him become embroiled in an all-out war with a dangerous gang.Unfortunately this gang is a deadly enemy to have. When Alfie’s teenage niece Chloe is kidnapped and there are rumours she’s been enslaved in a sex gang it becomes a terrifying race against time to save her. Will Alfie be able to right wrongs, build bridges and protect his family, whatever the cost?Praise for Jacqui Rose:‘Gritty and gripping – by a star in the making.’ Kimberley Chambers‘A thrilling and gripping novel.’ Roberta Kray‘A cracking good read.’ Jessie Keane‘A captivating read from one of my favourite emerging authors’ Mel Sherratt
Who Did You Tell?
Lesley Kara - 2019
"Instantly immersive, then intriguing, then insanely suspenseful, then . . . the truth. Believe me, Lesley Kara knows what she's doing."--Lee Child
We said to keep it a secret, that no one needed to know.
Astrid is newly sober and trying to turn her life around. Having reluctantly moved back in with her mother, in a quiet seaside town away from the temptations and darkness of her previous life, she is focusing on her recovery. She's going to meetings. Confessing her misdeeds. Making amends to those she's wronged. If she fills her days, maybe she can outrun the ghosts that haunt her. Maybe she can start anew.
But someone is tormenting me now. Someone knows where I am and what I've done.
Someone knows exactly what Astrid is running from. And they won't stop until she learns that some mistakes can't be corrected. Some mistakes, you have to pay for . . .
The question is: Who did you tell?
Lies We Bury
Elle Marr - 2021
At twenty-seven, Marissa’s moved beyond the trauma and is working under a new name as a freelance photographer. But when she accepts a job covering a string of macabre murders in Portland, it’s impossible for Marissa not to remember.Everything is eerily familiar. The same underground lairs. Sad trinkets and toys left behind, identical to those Marissa had as a child. And then there is the note meant just for her that freezes Marissa’s blood: See you soon, Missy.To determine the killer’s next move, Marissa must retrieve her long-forgotten memories and return to a past she’s hidden away. But she won’t be facing her fears alone. Someone is waiting for her in the dark.
The Face At The Window
Ruby Speechley - 2021
Online, people only see my picture-perfect home, my handsome husband, Nick, and my beautiful baby, Thomas.They don’t see the real Gemma Adams. They don’t see my past, the dark secrets I’m hiding in my marriage. They don’t see the fear I live in every single day.But I know someone is watching me. And now, they’ve taken Thomas.I just don’t know why.But I’m going to stop at nothing to get my baby back.Even if it destroys everything I’ve got to find him.
The Last Days of Rabbit Hayes
Anna McPartlin - 2014
And she knows that she's one of the lucky ones. She loves her life, ordinary as it is. And she loves the extraordinary people in it: her spirited daughter, Juliet; her colorful, unruly family; the only man in her big heart, Johnny Faye. Rabbit has big ideas, full of music and love and so much life. She has plans for the world. But the world, it turns out, has other plans for Rabbit: a devastating diagnosis. Rabbit is feisty. And with every ounce of love and strength in her, she promises that she will overcome. She will fight fight fight. She will be with those who love her for as long as she can, and she will live as long as she can with music and love and so much life. And as her friends and family rally round to celebrate Rabbit's last days, they look to her for strength, support, and her unyielding zest for life. Because she is Rabbit Hayes and she will live until she dies.
The Irish Nanny
Sandy Taylor - 2021
The baby is a warm weight in my arms and I pause to adjust her, trying not to think about what we left behind. I can’t look back now, I need to keep this child safe…Ireland 1939. When hardworking chambermaid Rose meets an American businessman in the hotel where she works in Cork, he makes her an offer she can’t refuse. Rose doesn’t want to leave home, but her widowed mammy and three younger sisters need the money she’d earn in her new job as a nanny to David Townsend’s two young children.Just as Rose is settling into her new life caring for Raphael and new-born baby Sarah, the world is plunged into war and David is called back to New York, leaving Rose to follow by boat with his wife and children. But disaster strikes when the ship they are on is hit by a torpedo. Separated from her group in the awful chaos, Rose has an impossible decision to make. Does she stay and search for the family she owes so much to? Or does she leave on the lifeboat to save the tiny baby left in her care?Landing on American shores, all Rose’s hopes of leaving the howling air-raid sirens and deafening bombs behind her are shattered as tragic news arrives from Pearl Harbor. Looking down at the innocent child in her arms, Rose knows that she must find the strength to survive and reunite this little girl with her family. But as fear and panic grips the country, what heartbreaking sacrifices will she have to make to protect her precious charge?An emotional, heart-wrenching story of love and family set across Ireland and America during the Second World War. Perfect for fans of Jean Grainger, Lisa Wingate and Diney Costeloe.
An Invincible Summer
Mariah Stewart - 2021
Now, on the occasion of her fortieth high school reunion, she returns to her hometown on the Massachusetts coast, picking up right where she left off with dear friends Lydia and Emma. But seeing Brett Crawford again stirs other emotions. Once, they were the town’s golden couple destined for one another. He shared Maggie’s dreams—and eventually, a shattering secret that drove them apart.Buying her old family home and resettling in Wyndham Beach means a chance to start over for Maggie and her two daughters, but it also means facing her rekindled feelings for her first love and finally confronting—and embracing—the past in ways she never thought possible. Maggie won’t be alone. With her family and friends around her, she can weather this stormy turning point in her life and open her heart to the future. As for that dream shared and lost years ago? If Maggie can forgive herself, it still might come true.
The Beauty of Impossible Things
Rachel Donohue - 2021
From a young age she has been beset by strange dreams that she believes predict the future.The summer Natasha turns fifteen, strange dancing lights appear in the sky above her small seaside town, lights that she interprets as portents of doom and which lead her to reveal her gift to the small, insular community. Meanwhile, the arrival of a new lodger, the handsome Mr Bowen, threatens to upset the delicate equilibrium between mother and daughter.As news of the lights spreads, more and more visitors arrive, creating a feverish atmosphere of anticipation and dread. Then a local teenager goes missing, and Natasha is called on to use her powers to help. But her actions over that long, hot summer will have unforeseen and ultimately tragic consequences that will cast a shadow for many years to come...