When it seems nothing else could possibly go wrong, her car skids off an icy road and plunges into a frozen lake. There, in the cold, dark depths of the water, Sophie experiences something profound and extraordinary--something that unlocks the secrets from her past, and teaches her what it means to truly live"--Publisher description.

    The paper was an unexpected inheritance from a close colleague, and Lois must keep it for at least a year, bringing a host of challenges, lessons, and blessings into her life.When Lois pulls into Green on New Year’s Day, she expects a charming little town full of smiling people. She quickly realizes her mistake. After settling into a loaned house out on Route 2, she finds herself battling town prejudices and inner doubts and making friends with the most surprising people: troubled teenager Katy, good-looking catfish farmer Chris, wise and feisty Aunt Helen, and a female African-American physician named Kevin.Whether fighting a greedy, deceitful politician or rescuing a dog she fears, Lois notices the headlines in her life have definitely improved. She learns how to provide small-town news in a big-hearted way and realizes that life is full of newsworthy moments. When she encounters racial prejudice and financial corruption, Lois also discovers more about the goodness of real people and the importance of being part of a community.While secretly preparing the paper for a sale, Lois begins to realize that God might indeed have a plan for her life and that perhaps the allure of city life and career ambition are not what she wants after all.

    She leaves her San Francisco home to join Behan in Tombstone, Arizona, a magnet for miners (and outlaws) attracted by the silver boom. Though united by the glint of metal, Tombstone is plagued by divided loyalties: between Confederates and Unionists, Lincoln Republicans and Democrats.But when the silver-tongued Behan proves unreliable, it is legendary frontiersman Wyatt Earp who emerges as Josephine’s match. As the couple’s romance sparks, Behan’s jealousy ignites a rivalry destined for the history books…At once an epic account of an improbable romance and a retelling of an iconic American tale, The Last Woman Standing recalls the famed gunfight at the O.K. Corral through the eyes of a spunky heroine who sought her happy ending in a lawless outpost—with a fierce will and an unflagging spirit.

    She knew how. Mildred could breathe the word no to a second cup of ice cream. Could resist drinking too much champagne. But when it came right down to a friend needing a favor, she might say no first, but if someone really needed her—really needed her! —she always said yes. That’s how Mildred ended up with strangers camped out in her spare bedroom, helping her friend Fran to start a new business at the antique emporium, and walking around the empty church with a dust rag in her hand even though she hated to dust. She couldn’t say no to dust for long either. The only real no Mildred had said in recent history was to a man who loved her. Hugh wasn’t the first man to pursue her. But he was the most recent. And she had been flattered but not interested—not in the way he wanted her to be interested. Hugh didn’t give up right away. He lodged himself near her at church. Found her in the church kitchen after a fellowship supper to aid in the clean-up. And finally, her would-be lover had just asked her outright. That was the moment when Mildred had to say no. Until then Millie had been artfully dodging him. Only her best friend Fran understood. Fran said when Mildred finally felt the regretful effects of that no, “We’re all of us such fools.” But they aren’t fools. Mildred Budge and her friends are just people trying to live inside the faith released from heaven through the One who didn’t say no. This is the first novel in the series about Mildred Budge and her friends—just ordinary people trying to live out an extraordinary hope available to anyone who realizes what kind of help he or she really needs. That hope has a name, and Mildred Budge knows it. Need hope? Need a friend. Mildred Budge is a very good friend. If you like spending time with people who are just ordinary but extraordinarily hopeful, then you’ll love this story. Get a copy of this first novel in the series and find out for yourself what church ladies really think. About the author: Daphne Simpkins is an Alabama writer who writes about a variety of subjects and often on the secret lives of church ladies. Befriend her on Facebook, Twitter, or Linkedin.com.

    But here's the rub about her job as a baker ... Emma is diabetic. When she tastes her creations, it can only be in the most minute portions. Emma is considered an artisan for the stunning crEme brulee wedding cake that won her the Passionate Palette Award last year, but she's never even had one full slice of it.When Jackson Drake hears about this local baker who has won a prestigious award for her wedding cake artistry, he tells his assistant to be sure and include her in the pastry tastings scheduled at his new wedding destination hotel the following week. And for Jackson, that particular day has started out badly with two workmen trapped in a broken elevator and a delivery of several dozen 300-thread-count bed linens in the wrong size abandoned in the lobby. But when the arrogant baker he met a week prior in Roswell stumbles into the dining room with a platter of pastries and a bucketful of orders, he knows for certain: It's going to be a really rotten day.Can these two ill-suited players master the high-wire act and make a go of their new business venture? Or will they take each other crashing downward, without a net? And will the surprise wedding at The Tanglewood be theirs?

    And with the eclectic cast of characters in her world, there's tons of potential to play "connect the friends." Lauren sets out to introduce Nick, her carefree singles' pastor, to Ruby, her neurotic coworker who plans every second of every day. What could possibly go wrong? Just about everything.

    When he lands an internship at a large metropolitan church, he quite literally stumbles his way through as he learns to baptize and bury, visit and marry the faithful flock. Think Ferris Bueller Goes to Church with a side of Holden Caulfield thrown in for good measure. The cast of characters filling the pews at First Church keep him on his toes and more than a little bewildered at times. The salty widow who serves up a homemade pie with a surprise ingredient. The quirky single adult with a heart as big as Elvis who deems himself quite the ladies man. The larger-than-life music minister who pulls more than a few punches along the way, and even an old church janitor with a few ancient secrets of his own. Woven throughout Elmo�s adventures is a hundred-year-old mystery he'�s determined to solve and even a chance at true love along the way. Elmo�'s story pulls back the sacred curtain and allows the reader to examine the inner workings of a mega-church with all its warts and wonders. Ride along and watch as Elmo's cynicism slowly transforms into hope.McMillian's Moody fast-paced novel will bring a smile to even the most backslidden amongst its readers.

    The residents worship her. Nurses step out of her way. Her colleagues respect and sometimes even fear her. But surgeon Tori Taylor never expected to end up on this side of the operating table. Now she has a new heart. This life that was formerly controlled and predictable is now chaotic. Dr. Taylor had famously protected herself from love or commitment, but her walls are beginning to crumble. And strangest of all, memories surface that will take her on a journey out of the operating room and into a murder investigation. Where there once was a heart of stone, there is a heart of flesh. And there is no going back.

    . . a Fatal IllusionHaydon Owens wants to be the next Houdini. He has been practicing his craft and has already made four women disappear. All it took was a bit of rope and his two bare hands.The Thayer family has come to the north woods of Newberry, Michigan, looking for refuge, a peaceful sanctuary from a shattered past. But they are not alone. Little do they know that they are about to become part of Haydon's next act.Time is running out and already the killer has spotted his next victim. Who will escape alive?

    She wouldn't have had to go back for the yearbook camera, and she wouldn't have hit her head on the steps. She wouldn't have woken up in an ambulance with amnesia. She certainly would have remembered her boyfriend, Ace. She might even have remembered why she fell in love with him in the first place. She would understand why her best friend, Will, keeps calling her "Chief." She'd know about her mom's new family. She'd know about her dad's fiancée. She never would have met James, the boy with the questionable past and the even fuzzier future, who tells her he once wanted to kiss her. She wouldn't have wanted to kiss him back.But Naomi picked heads.After her remarkable debut, Gabrielle Zevin has crafted an imaginative second novel all about love and second chances.Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac is a 2008 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

    Serving God in a position that brings awesome responsibility and, sometimes, great sacrifice is never easy. Neither is raising twin twelve-year-old boys without a father. When she is forced to make a ruling against an old flame, her life is turned upside down.Graham Bishop has had feelings for Katie since they were in grade school together. So when someone puts a target on her back, and he's placed at the top of the suspect list, he's determined to prove to Katie and the police they're after the wrong guy.Katie wants to believe Graham would never hurt her but with all the evidence pointing to him it's obvious someone is either framing him or he isn't the man she thought he was. Trusting her instincts could prove fatal, but if she doesn't she will lose her chance at happiness again.

    A tragic accident. A young boy lost in the world... When a devastating accident leaves a young, Amish boy mute and orphaned, his uncle Simon steps up to care for him, but Simon is unsure how to help his innocent nephew Abram through his trauma. Lucy, a kind and nurturing young school teacher, finds her heart going out to this sweet new boy in her classroom. Due to her own secret past, she can relate to his tragic experience and non-verbal response, and she feels God’s hand in guiding him to her. She also cannot help but notice his handsome, caring uncle who is showing interest in her. But when Lucy’s past and shame are revealed, will Simon still be interested? Should Lucy even allow the attraction to grow knowing what she knows about herself? Only God knows how past pain and sorrow can bring hope to a questionable future for all of them. Can these three faithful souls truly become an "Unexpected Family?"

    Set on the sun-soaked beaches of Thailand and the rough waters of the Indian Ocean, The Unimaginable paints a vivid portrait of a young woman on a journey to find herself—and her harrowing fight for survival.After twenty-eight years of playing by the rules, Jessica Gregory moves from her small Indiana town to Phuket, Thailand. But her newfound routine is upended with the arrival of Grant Flynn, a captivating, elusive man who is sailing around the world while trying to move on from a past tragedy. Jessica volunteers to help crew Grant’s boat, Imagine, on a passage across the Indian Ocean and finds herself falling in love with him as the voyage gets underway. But when disaster strikes, Jessica must summon her courage as the crew is confronted by unspeakable terrors—and, aboard a boat named for such promise, comes the unimaginable.

    Instead, at 30, she’s chronically single and lives alone in a cramped condo on Chicago’s north side. Sure she’s got her beloved bookstore and her two best friends, Cameron and Oliver, but even they can’t make up for the fact that her life hasn’t turned out anything like she expected. The weighing disappointment has her questioning everything she once felt certain of, including her faith in God. So when Olly and Cam secretly volunteer her for a nationally-televised makeover, Mack decides to use the opportunity to reinvent herself. What follows is an unlikely romance with famous actor Cooper Young, a cross-continental adventure, and the long-awaited chance to make all of her dreams come true. Will Mack be able to keep her faith amidst the glitz and glamour of Cooper’s lifestyle, or will she lose herself and abandon everything and everyone she cares about in the process? Ciao, Bella is the story of one woman’s unexpected revelations about faith, love, and true happiness. It’s a novel for all who have ever been granted the desires of their hearts only to discover that what they thought they wanted could never compare to what they already had.

    God, however, had other plans. Her: “My marriage, career, and reputation just crashed around me and eliminated the little trust I had left in myself to make good decisions. I packed my bags, shook the dust off my feet, and started driving, begging God to tell me where to go. He brought me to a tiny, charming Northern Michigan town, where I’m recreating my life from scratch – without men.” Him: “My whole world turned upside down when I lost the love of my life and had to start over as a single father. I am now both mother and father to my little girl and have built my life around taking care of her; and protecting my heart from ever being hurt like that again. Love is not a part of my life anymore.” God: “We’ll see about that.” Can two people who have sworn off love stop fighting their attraction long enough to see that God is doing something? Can they trust Him enough to risk giving happiness another try?