The Granville Sisters


Una-Mary Parker - 2005
    When war is declared, the love lives of the Granville girls suffer. Rosie's husband is killed during the Blitz. Then Lousie falls in love with Jack, a sixteen-year-old evacuee from the slums of London. When she falls pregnant, she is sent to Wales in disgrace. The girls? mother, Liza, can only pin her hopes on Charlotte now . . .

The River of No Return


Bee Ridgway - 2013
    The Guild, a secretive fraternity of time travellers, informs him that there is no return. But Nick yearns for the beautiful Julia Percy, who remains in 1815. As fate and the fraying fabric of time draw Nick and Julia together once again, the lovers must match wits and gamble their hearts against the rules of time itself.  Rich in romance and historical detail, Bee Ridgway’s debut is a thrilling, fast-paced narrative evocative of Deborah Harkness’s time-bending bestsellers.

No Escape (Lexi Carmichael Mystery #13)


Julie Moffett - 2021
    But unfortunately for Lexi, things don’t always turn out as she planned.Meeting the in-laws is a daunting task even for those who are outgoing and socially capable. Since I’m neither, the prospect of meeting Slash’s parents has me scared to death. Somehow, he convinced me it would be easier meeting my in-laws for the first time at his brother’s wedding during Christmas in Italy instead of at our own church wedding in the spring. He also suggested bringing my parents along to meet them, too. That way it would reduce the chance of any unnecessary drama at our nuptials. Sounds reasonable, right? Wrong.When Slash got busy at work, I inherited his responsibility of planning some activities for the wedding party. A mysterious Italian castle, located on an island not far from the wedding venue, and supposedly filled with puzzles and challenges no one has ever been able to solve, caught my eye. Despite being built by a highly reclusive Italian billionaire who rarely permitted anyone other than carefully selected individuals to participate in the castle challenges, my impromptu request for the wedding party to visit the island was accepted.So, off we go to Italy with my parents in tow. I’m hoping everyone will be too busy talking to each other and enjoying the castle activities to notice me much. But the castle is not all that it seems to be, and suddenly the stakes are a lot higher than expected. Will we survive the challenge as a family, or will there be no escape?

Of Love and Life: 31 Dream Street / Hidden / The Two Mrs Robinsons


Lisa Jewell - 2007
    But when a quiet tragedy and an unwelcome letter interrupt Toby's sedate existence, he needs his housemates to find some direction in their lives. Leah Pilgrim has watched the tenants of the house over the road for several years, and when the owner of 31 Silversmith Road asks her for advice, he opens the door not only to the eccentric building across the street - but to five lives in various stages of turmoil. Can Toby and Leah help these misfits to grow up, move on and move out? And in doing so, can they make their own dreams come true? Hidden : A trail of blood winding through a squalid flat in Margate leads DCI Dave Gosworth to the body of Jacqui Jennings, her skull smashed with a chisel. For Dave it is just the start of a long and puzzling case...Forty miles away in South London a young single mother named Melanie Stenning is blissfully unaware of Jacqui's life and death. But that trail of blood will one day lead straight to her door - with terrifying repercussions. For Melanie is about to fall in love with a stranger...Fourteen months later, Melanie has a new husband, a new baby and a new home on the isolated Kent coast. But when her seven-year-old daughter Poppy disappears, she is forced to question everything in her new life, including the man she loves. Because DCI Dave Goswrth has come knocking - with some chilling questions... The Two Mrs Robinsons: Anna lives with Oliver Robinson and their 3-year-old son Charlie. They met when she worked as a waitress at his restaurant; he had recently separated and she was a shoulder to cry on. But friendship turned to love. Now she juggles motherhood with part-time work and she couldn't be happier. Or perhaps she could? Oliver has never divorced his first wife Eve who is everything Anna is not. Eve insists on making herself part of their lives and her demands soak up much of their time and income. Anna understands that Oliver needs to support his two teenage children, but why should they keep Eve too? The situation looks set to grumble on indefinitely unless someone or something shakes it up. And something does - it's called Fate. Oliver is killed in a car crash, leaving both women shattered. How will they react to this appalling tragedy? Will it drive them further apart, or force them to cut their losses and pull together for the sake of their children and their futures?

Labyrinth


Kate Mosse - 2005
    Eight hundred years earlier, on the eve of a brutal crusade that will rip apart southern France, a young woman named Alais is given a ring and a mysterious book for safekeeping by her father. The book, he says, contains the secret of the true Grail, and the ring, inscribed with a labyrinth, will identify a guardian of the Grail. Now, as crusading armies gather outside the city walls of Carcassonne, it will take a tremendous sacrifice to keep the secret of the labyrinth safe.

The Island of Dr Moreau


Fiona Beddall - 2007
    I drifted very slowly to the eastward, approaching the island slantingly; and presently I saw, with hysterical relief, the launch come round and return towards me.

A Taste of Peace (Malibu #1)


J.J. Sorel - 2021
    Lachlan Peace’s true passion in life is music and surfing. He also can’t take his eyes off his new admin assistant, Miranda Flowers.Miranda can’t believe her luck she’s finally landed a well-paying job working for Peace at his sprawling Malibu estate. Dazzled by the opulence of her new workplace, which boasts a private beach amongst other fine trappings, Miranda thinks she’s won a celestial lottery. One of her more pleasant tasks, missing from the job description, involves accompanying her handsome boss to lavish balls as his pretend date. Miranda soon discovers that her unfriendly and very demanding manager has her sights on Lachlan Peace, with whom the CFO shares a complicated history. When this scheming manager notices that Miranda has caught the eye of the man that she’s determined to marry she hatches a plan to force his hand.Although the obstacles come thick and fast, there’s only one thing Lachlan Peace is certain about: he’s crazy about Miranda. But can Miranda compete with her sly and crafty manager, who has something over Lachlan? And will Miranda and Lachlan’s off-the-charts chemistry survive the SEC, the mob, and the sharp claws of a dangerously ambitious woman?

Submarine U93


Charles Gilson - 2012
    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Crow Hollow


Michael Wallace - 2015
    She’s convinced her daughter is alive but cannot track her into the wilderness alone. Help arrives in the form of James Bailey, an agent of the crown sent to Boston to investigate the murder of Prudence’s husband and to covertly cause a disturbance that would give the king just cause to install royal governors. After his partner is murdered, James needs help too. He strikes a deal with Prudence, and together they traverse the forbidding New England landscape looking for clues. What they confront in the wilderness—and what they discover about each other—could forever change their allegiances and alter their destinies.

Diamond Life


Aliya S. King - 2012
    . . Set in the highest ranks of the music industry’s fame machine, Diamond Life is an intoxicating story of love, sex, ambition, money, betrayal, and the surprising realities of making it big. Alex Maxwell’s career as a journalist and celebrity ghost writer is taking off, despite the slightly embarrassing authorship of hip-hop super-groupie Cleo Wright’s memoir. And while Alex’s star is on the rise, it pales in comparison to her husband Birdie’s multiplatinum debut and world tour. Slowly but surely, everything they swore would never happen begins to come true, like leaving Brooklyn for a mansion in suburban Jersey and letting a reality TV crew into their home. Birdie is confronted time and again by the sexy groupies who pursue famous rappers like heat-seeking missiles and he’s forced to make some life-changing choices. Meanwhile, aging rapper Z, in recovery from drug addiction, is too busy trying to repair his marriage to leave much time for his son Zander, newly signed to Z’s label and struggling to maintain his appeal in the wake of a domestic violence scandal with his diva girlfriend Bunny. Record label president Jake is trying to deal with the death of his wife, multiplatinum R&B artist Kipenzi Hill, by drowning his sorrows in alcohol and women. When he meets Lily, a beautiful, quiet waitress, he can’t get her out of his head. But Lily has her own problems to handle and she wants nothing to do with the fame, drama, and baggage that Jake carries with him. This juicy follow-up to Aliya S. King’s Platinum is a scintillating roman à clef that takes readers behind the curtain once again for the real scoop on the biggest players in the hip-hop game—and the first ladies who hold them together.

The Last Templar


Raymond Khoury - 2005
    The ship vanishes without a trace.In present day Manhattan, four masked horsemen dressed as Templar Knights emerge from Central Park and ride up the Fifth Avenue steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art during the blacktie opening of a Treasures of the Vatican exhibit. Storming through the crowds, the horsemen brutally attack anyone standing between them and their prize. Attending the gala, archaeologist Tess Chaykin watches in silent terror as the leader of the horsemen hones in on one piece in particular, a strange geared device. He utters a few cryptic Latin words as he takes hold of it with reverence before leading the horsemen out and disappearing into the night.In the aftermath, an FBI investigation is led by anti-terrorist specialist Sean Reilly. Soon, he and Tess are drawn into the dark, hidden history of the crusading Knights, plunging them into a deadly game of cat and mouse with ruthless killers as they race across three continents to recover the lost secret of the Templars.

The Far Journey: A Timeslip Novel of Survival on the Oregon Trail


Tom Reppert - 2013
    In modern life, she rebels against the curfews and restrictions of her day, seeing them as unfair hardships. But now in this alien world with its buffalo stampedes, wild Indians, and deadly pestilence, she is about to find out what real hardships are. To get home, she must set aside her Rude Girl persona and learn how to survive.On the trek, Paula meets young Daniel Langdon, hunter and part-time scout, and an infatuation quickly becomes a great passion. She realizes this is the love of her life and to get home she will have to leave him behind. In the tradition of Outlander, The Far Journey is a grand epic of love and tragedy, loyalty and betrayal, peril and survival. Throughout, Paula Masters is tested in body and soul and must discover the strength and toughness inside her. "It has all the elements that make a good book hard to put down." Foster Cline, M. D., author of Parenting with Love and Logic."What a grand, mind-bending tale Tom Reppert has spun!" Jim Payne, author of One Inch above the Water."An Intriguing story that captures you from the first page." Sara Vinduska, author of Reflections.

The Avenger


E. Phillips Oppenheim - 1907
    He questions her and finds she thought she was in the apartment of his neighbor, Morris Barnes, who lives above him. While he is on the telephone, she quietly slips out of his flat and heads to Barnes’ abode. A few hours later, she is once again at his door – this time looking scared and faint. She asks Wrayson to escort her downstairs as the hallway is unlit. As they emerge, a hansom sits at the doorway with Morris Barnes in it. But, they discover that Barnes has been strangled. Wrayson soon learns that the young lady is the estranged older daughter of a club acquaintance, retired Colonel Fitzmaurice. He also discovers that he has fallen in love with her. The big question however, has he fallen for a murderess? How can he discover the truth? In typical Oppenheim style, this “whodunit” weaves a tangled web and one must wait until the end to discover the surprising truth. (Summary by Tom Weiss)

The Pale Assassin


Patricia Elliott - 2009
    Set during the French Revolution, this novel about a teen aristocrat who must question the justice of her own wealth while facing the cataclysmic divisions of her society will captivate readers as secrets come out, sympathies shift, and every choice can change or end a life.

Child 44 and The Secret Speech: Digital Omnibus Edition


Tom Rob Smith - 2011
    Defending this system is idealistic security officer Leo Demidov, a war hero who believes in the iron fist of the law. But when a murderer kills at will and Leo dares to investigate, the State's obedient servant finds himself demoted and exiled. Now, with only his wife at his side, Leo must fight to uncover shocking truths about a killer--and a country where "crime" doesn't exist.THE SECRET SPEECH:Soviet Union, 1956. It is a period of wrenching change. Stalin is dead, and a regime once held together by fear is beginning to fracture, creating a lawless society where the police have become the criminals and the criminals take vengeance against them. A series of murders now has all of Moscow on edge, and no one--no matter how powerful or connected--seems safe. With his new and secretive homicide department, Leo Demidov investigates--only to find that he, his wife, and his two adopted daughters may be in grave danger. For Leo is a former state security officer who arrested and condemned many of his fellow citizens, and despite all his efforts to atone for his past, he cannot escape the long shadow of his former career. To save his family, Leo must make a desperate choice and face an impossible journey that may bring his redemption...or shatter their fragile future.