Book picks similar to
Beauty Rising by Mark W. Sasse
first-reads
romance
fiction
giveaway
The Bride Price (An African Romance, #1)
Suzanne Popp - 2012
She dreams of leaving the dusty African town of Blancville behind her and really changing the world, but she knows it will take a lot of hard work. Her hard work pays off when she is admitted to the Royal Academy – the first girl to ever be admitted to the prestigious all boys’ school.But everything changes when Myrna discovers she is pregnant. Suddenly her well-ordered life begins to unravel. When an offer of marriage from a wealthy older man is presented to her family, Myrna knows what she must do – the bride price is too great for her family to refuse. Setting her own hopes and dreams aside, Myrna accepts marriage to a man she has met only once, who will take her far from the only home she has ever known.This sweeping novel of hope and redemption follows the life of three generations of Chitundus as they discover the powerful bond of family, faith, and love is not easily broken.
With Every Letter
Sarah Sundin - 2012
Mellie Blake is looking forward to beginning her training as a flight nurse. She is not looking forward to writing a letter to a man she's never met--even if it is anonymous and part of a morale-building program. Lt. Tom MacGilliver, an officer stationed in North Africa, welcomes the idea of an anonymous correspondence--he's been trying to escape his infamous name for years.As their letters crisscross the Atlantic, Tom and Mellie develop a unique friendship despite not knowing the other's true identity. When both are transferred to Algeria, the two are poised to meet face-to-face for the first time. Will they overcome their fears and reveal who they are, or will their future be held hostage by their pasts?Combining a flair for romance with excellent research and attention to detail, Sarah Sundin vividly brings to life the perilous challenges of WWII aviation, nursing--and true love.
Stealing Jenny
Ellen Gable - 2011
A neighbor, however, is secretly hatching a sinister plot which will find Jenny and her unborn baby fighting for their lives.
In Polyester Pajamas
Catherine Dougherty - 2012
. . Jean and Rosie, opposites in every way, are dealing with different aspects of their lives when they find themselves working side-by-side in the same real estate company. Despite reluctance, they also find themselves teaming up for some new mid-life adventures filled with excitement, romance and plenty of drama. As they become better acquainted, a friendship begins to form. They laugh, cry, and even fight together. Until finally, during a slumber party and while sporting polyester pajamas, they entrust their lives completely to each other and share their deepest, darkest secrets. Through it all, they discover how truly wonderful having a best friend, at any age, can be. If you’ve ever had or needed a best friend, have wondered what life was all about, have been ashamed of something you’ve done in the past, or if you’ve ever lost someone you loved with all of your heart, then you MUST read this book! Praise for in Polyester Pajamas: “In Polyester Pajamas is at once gutsy, poignant, tear-inducing, and wickedly funny. I recommend this book to anyone who has experienced love, loss, heartbreak, happiness, and new beginnings. In short, In Polyester Pajamas is for everyone. It’s a brave, ballsy, brightly colored novel by a brave, ballsy, brightly colorful writer. Bravo, Catherine Dougherty.” —Jennifer Niven, author of Velva Jean Learns to Drive, Velva Jean Learns to Fly, and Becoming Clementine
The Darkening Dream
Andy Gavin - 2011
God, demon, monster, and sorcerer alike plot to regain what was theirs.1913, Salem, Massachusetts – Sarah Engelmann’s life is full of friends, books, and avoiding the pressure to choose a husband, until an ominous vision and the haunting call of an otherworldly trumpet shake her. When she stumbles across a gruesome corpse, she fears that her vision was more of a premonition. And when she sees the murdered boy moving through the crowd at an amusement park, Sarah is thrust into a dark battle she does not understand. With the help of Alex, an attractive Greek immigrant who knows a startling amount about the undead, Sarah sets out to uncover the truth. Their quest takes them to the factory mills of Salem, on a midnight boat ride to spy on an eerie coastal lair, and back, unexpectedly, to their own homes. What can Alex’s elderly, vampire-hunting grandfather and Sarah’s own rabbi father tell them? And what do Sarah’s continuing visions reveal?No less than Gabriel’s Trumpet, the tool that will announce the End of Days, is at stake, and the forces that have banded to recover it include a 900 year-old vampire, a trio of disgruntled Egyptian gods, and a demon-loving Puritan minister. At the center of this swirling cast is Sarah, who must fight a millennia-old battle against unspeakable forces, knowing the ultimate prize might be herself.
Claire's Not-So-Gothic Romance
Bonnie Blythe - 2008
(Christian romance)
The Frog Prince
Elle Lothlorien - 2010
Sort of."It was his pheromones that did it. With one sniff, sex researcher Leigh Fromm recognizes that any offspring she might have with the mysterious stranger would have a better-than-average chance of surviving any number of impending pandemics.But when Leigh finds out that the handsome “someone” at her great aunt’s wake is Prince Roman Habsburg von Lorraine of Austria, she suddenly doubts her instincts—not that she was intending to sleep with the guy. The royal house of Habsburg was once completely inbred, insanity and impotency among the highlights of their genetic pedigree. (The extreme “bulldog underbite” that plagued them wasn’t called the Habsburg Jaw for nothing.)It doesn’t matter that his family hasn’t sat on a throne (other than the ones in their Toilette) since 1918, or that Austria is now a parliamentary democracy. Their lives couldn’t be more different: Roman is routinely mobbed by paparazzi in Europe. Leigh is regularly mocked for having the social skills of a potted plant. Even if she suddenly developed grace, charm and a pedigree that would withstand the scrutiny of the press and his family, what exactly is she supposed to do with this would-have-been king of Austria who is in self-imposed exile in Denver, Colorado?
Cinderella Screwed Me Over
Cindi Madsen - 2013
Burned one too many times by ex-boyfriends, Darby has lost all belief in the happily-ever-after that the fairy-tale princess promised her. She's sworn off love, Prince Charmings, and happy endings and she's happy about it. Really. Or at least she was…until she met Jake, her gorgeous neighbor and the manager of her favorite restaurant. But Darby has rules about dating, ones she's culled from her years spent with so-called “princes,” and starting something with Jake would break all of them.Charming, fun, and unwilling to give up on her, Jake doesn’t fit any of the profiles Darby has created from her case studies of ex-princes-gone-bad. Finally presented with her own Prince Charming, can Darby take a chance on a happily-ever-after?Full of wit and sarcastic humor, Cinderella Screwed Me Over proves that sometimes the perfect love, like a perfect pair of shoes, is just within your grasp.
The Perfume Collector
Kathleen Tessaro - 2013
When she receives an unexpected inheritance from a complete stranger, Madame Eva d’Orsey, Grace is drawn to uncover the identity of her mysterious benefactor.Weaving through the decades, from 1920s New York to Monte Carlo, Paris, and London, the story Grace uncovers is that of an extraordinary women who inspired one of Paris’s greatest perfumers. Immortalized in three evocative perfumes, Eva d’Orsey’s history will transform Grace’s life forever, forcing her to choose between the woman she is expected to be and the person she really is.The Perfume Collector explores the complex and obsessive love between muse and artist, and the tremendous power of memory and scent.
Forever Is Over
Calvin Wade - 2011
He has terminal cancer.Through the eyes of several characters, we are taken back through the lives of Richie and Jemma.Richie is from a large middle class family. His father is a gambler, his younger brother Jim, a constant irritant and his older sister Caroline provides an unusual insight into her romantic world.Jemma is from a working class, one parent family. As her mother, who she refers to as "Vomit Breath," is far more interested in partying than parenthood, Jemma establishes a strong bond with her sister, Kelly, until one day their worlds are torn apart.Kelly was Richie's first love. The idyllic, countryside setting where Richie and Kelly used to escape they called their "Sunny Road." When Kelly disappears, Richie is forced to move on, but several years later, not knowing that Richie is now married to her sister, Jemma, Kelly writes a letter to Richie, stating her intention to return and suggests they rekindle their romance .The novel was initially inspired by the song "Sunny Road" by Emiliana Torrini.
Falling Together
Marisa de los Santos - 2011
Now, six years later, Pen is the single mother of a five-year-old girl, living with her older brother in Philadelphia and trying to make peace with the sudden death of her father. Even though she feels deserted by Will and Cat, she has never stopped wanting them back in her life, so when she receives an email from a desperate-sounding Cat asking her to meet her at their upcoming college reunion, Pen goes. What happens there sends past and present colliding and sends Pen and her friends on a journey across the world, a journey that will change everything.
The Lioness of Morocco
Julia Drosten - 2017
Still single at twenty-three, she is treated like a child and feels stifled in her controlling father’s house.When Benjamin Hopkins, an ambitious employee of her father’s trading company, shows an interest in her, she realizes marriage is her only chance to escape. As Benjamin’s rising career whisks them both away to exotic Morocco, Sibylla is at last a citizen of the world, reveling in her newfound freedom by striking her first business deals, befriending locals…and falling in love for the first time with a charismatic and handsome Frenchman.But Benjamin’s lust for money and influence draws him into dark dealings, pulling him ever further from Sibylla and their two young sons. When he’s arrested on horrible charges, the fate of Sibylla’s family rests on her shoulders, as she must decide whether she’ll leave him to his fate or help him fight for his life.
Lessons from a One-Night Stand
Piper Rayne - 2019
Get details. Details are crucial.Lesson Four: don't alter her bio in front of an auditorium of high school students unless you know she has a sense of humor for that sort of thing.Lesson Five: if you ignore Lesson Four, apologize instead of flirt when you're sent to the principal's office.Lesson Six: NEVER sleep with her again.Lesson Seven: pay attention to this one, it's the most important of them all.Don't fall for your one-night stand.Class dismissed.
Bah, Humbug!
Heather Horrocks - 2011
He digs into the snowman to discover two things: the weapon fits into the body just under the head, and the snowman was supposed to be the back drop for Lexi's next show.From this improbable beginning comes friendship. Can there be more for a woman who is afraid to get close again and a man who has shadows from his childhood?Families join together and hearts are healed as this couple goes walking in a winter wonderland.
See
Jamie Magee - 2012
Charlie Myers is on a life altering path that will cause the dammed to humble in silence.One night…just a few friends, how could it go so wrong? That was the question seventeen year old Charlie Myers was asking when she found herself in the ER. Outwardly nothing was wrong with Charlie, she was a vision of perfect heath, internally she was battling a raging headache…one the doctor told her she would overcome shortly, but Charlie knew something else was wrong …very wrong.Part of her had been stolen…she was missing memories. Those memories were sacred. They held the key to her sanity. They told her that the sinister whispers, the shadows that came to life before her were not as ominous as she felt they were. They held the bond with her late father, a famed musician. They caused her to forget the one talent that allowed her to face the darkness that haunted her every waking hour. They also masked a much deeper bond, the face of the one that had stolen her heart, long before the age of seventeen.Sitting in the ER with her angry mother she couldn’t figure out what she was missing, or even how. Her thoughts told her that she needed to protect Britain, a friend of hers, but that didn’t make any sense – Britain didn’t need to be protected from anyone, he was strong, young, and absurdly wealthy. Charlie also knew that even though her friend Bianca called Charlie her best friend, she didn’t trust her …she was almost sure she despised her, but she couldn’t figure out why, or understand how random thoughts were telling her that she adored both Britain and Bianca – that they were her saviors – that they brought silence to the unstoppable whispers, but the silence scared Charlie. In her mind anyone or anything that could bring silence to something that dark could not be good.Charlie wanted to stay in NY, figure out what she was missing, why, and who was behind it all, but her mother had other plans. Against her will, Charlie was sent to Salem to live with her sister, within that small town Charlie found her memories and so much more.Her story begins now.Ibsn: 9781301864768Word count: 104k