Book picks similar to
The Man in a Haystack by Alice Huskisson


chick-lit
true-story
general-library
internet

Discovering Nowhere


Lisa Bork - 2012
    Floundering, Moira grabs on to a surprise inheritance, her husband’s childhood home in a Midwestern town she’d never seen and had always thought of as Nowhere. Discovering her husband harbored secrets in the town makes Moira's arrival there anything but a soft landing. When a visit by her stepson and his newshound mother threatens to destroy the social fabric of the tiny town and reveal its heartaches, Moira must choose between her love for her stepson and her desire to protect a place she never expected to call home.

This is your Life


Susie Martyn - 2011
    Not to mention the elusive Tom - who she knows she's met before...As she rediscovers the magic in life, will she at last find the happiness that eludes her?

Critical Incident


Troy Blackford - 2012
    As the city's police force begins looking into this seemingly harmless rise in crime, darker and more dangerous issues quickly come to the fore.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W26zdj...

Second Chance


Virginia Jewel - 2011
    Tired of being harassed by the same kids who used to be her playmates, she faded into the background of Burton. Ten years later, she still lives in town and even works in the local bar owned by her dad. But she’s still just as invisible as she was in high school.Nothing is working out the way Rob Clairon planned. Jobless, alone, and playing nurse to his dying father, Rob is not pleased to be back in Burton. Despite the depressing state of his life, he finds himself drawn to Tallie, the girl he thought he knew a long time ago. What he needs right now is to start over.Sometimes life gives you a second chance to do what you should have done the first time. Tallie and Rob just might get that second chance, as long as life doesn’t get in their way.

Good Girls


Joycey Ann Crutchley - 2006
    Good Girls is a feel good, fast paced, thought provoking novel about four heroines. Four best friends who epitomise the newly evolved 21st Century Woman. The woman who dares to be different, the woman who dares to rebel. Straight-laced Cat steps out of character when she secretly flies all the way to Sydney to 'boil her soul mate's rabbits ' Jules embraces single-dom and commitment phobia, so when she falls in love with an actor ten years her junior, in the space of twenty-four hours, a spanner is well and truly thrown into her perfect life. Kizzy also meets the man of her dreams and much to her mother's chagrin they plan to spend all summer together. Unfortunately unbeknownst to everyone the man is actually her father. There's only so much sexist behaviour a woman can take. So bitter and twisted, Em leaves Japan and her boyfriend behind and embarks upon a journey that will not only avenge the male race but hopefully put her back on her correct and spiritual path. "Absolutely disgusting." Grandma. "Funny as f*#%. If Jackie Collins and Helen Fielding got it on then Crutchley would be their love child." Emma Twigge, The CP Gazette.

Worth Lying For


Lisa Cheney - 2012
    But at forty, she finds herself fantasizing about sprawling Tuscan villas and fitting into 'juniors department' fashions. Instead, another twenty years in a two-bedroom ranch, sale-rack slacks and a receptionist job at Idid-a-Rod Auto Garage seem to be her destiny. Until... GOOD GRIEFMary stumbles on a bag of cash in the car of two-bit drug dealer Jimmy Adler... and steals it. Confiding in best friend, Caryn, she vows to make good by playing Robin Hood in the sleepy town of Stillwater Village. Only she must keep the plan under wraps from devoted husband, Nick, who just happens to be the local sheriff. GOOD INTENTIONS As one unexpected event after another turns Mary's once tapioca-bland life hotter than three-alarm chili, she is more than a little tempted to indulge in a few retail therapy sessions. Charity begins at home, after all, but where should it end? When the fate of her imperfect yet loving family is put on the line, Mary must decide what the good life really means, and if it is Worth Lying For.

Sprite


Peter Meredith - 2012
    Odd doesn't protest. This is her life and it can be no other way, not when she's deformed as she is.Born with a combination of rare birth defects, Odd's eyes are a startling and dreadful red. Demon eyes is the first thought that springs to mind and the little girl takes care to hide them behind dark sunglasses. This is something her mother insists on, except when she's trading freak show peeks for dollars or drinks, a practice that is a nightly torture for the girl.Yet when her mom abandons her, Odd discovers that loneliness and fear of the unknown are far worse than being a freak. Desperate for the least love, the girl with red eyes begins a quest through the American underclass that takes her halfway across the country. She thinks her adventure is a search for her mother, but in truth she's after so much more.

Best Friends and Bastards


Jaci Byrne - 2011
    Living on Sydney's sublime northern beaches, she's a well-respected Nurse Unit Manager of a busy obstetrics unit and married to a successful realtor. She should have ‘no worries mate’, as the Aussie saying goes.However, for Angie, this is far from the truth. Although she suspects her husband George of having had past dalliances, she chooses to live in complete denial, believing that a baby will solve this dilemma. Only problem: her biological clock is ticking, and there's no baby in sight. And her interfering mother constantly adds fuel to the proverbial marital fire.Booking a romantic holiday to Bali for her and George in order to reinvigorate their marriage, Angie soon finds herself in a situation far out of her comfort zone when her husband backs out of the holiday and her best friend Charlotte takes his place. After arguing with Charlotte, Angie calls 'time out' and travels to the Ubud Writers' Festival where she fortuitously meets the loveable larrikin Jack Ambrose. Consumed with guilt towards her feelings for Jack, Angie flees Bali.On her return to Australia, she desperately attempts to bury her feelings and concentrate on her marriage, but when she begins to suspect her husband of being a right bastard, her world is turned upside down. And her best friend is no help at all - indeed, Angie discovers that Charlotte is part of the problem.Written with splashes of compassion, streams of humour, rivers of emotion and oceans of passion, ‘Best Friends and Bastards,’ by Jaci Byrne is a waterfall of brilliant reading and a real page turner packed with action and intrigue.

Look What You Made Me Do


Kelvin F. Jackson
    Caught in the middle of snakes greed and decietful conspiracy, Destiny and her son are forced to go on the run from one of the most notoriously feared gangsters in Brooklyn.Icon's legacy and a trail of unsolved murders emits a prescnce that has evoked fear in the most ruthless of killers dating back twenty-plus years. When his son is murdered, Icon's team of hitmen AKA "The Death Squad" are sent to track down the young lady responsible for pulling the trigger.Donovan has just returned home from his tour of duty in Iraq. He left being a loving son to his mother and deeeply in love with his childhood sweetheart. Who he returned as was someone very different after living life as a part of the U.S Marines Special Forces Unit. He meets Destiny and her son and his life changes.Prepare to be captivated by the debut of a unique story teller and get ready for the ride of a lifetime as the fast paced page turner tells a tale of love, life and harsh realities.

The Cowgirl Takes Her Man (Bitterpill, Texas 78020 series: Book 1)


Barbara Catlin - 2016
    On top of that, fans glory in her sweet yet sensual stories that are praised for their "cleaner than usual" language--and old-fashioned values galore.     ...So if you've loved the past writings of 'The 3Ms'--Debbie Macomber, Susan Mallery, Ava Miles--but find that you're clamoring for something fresh, fun and exciting, turn to the books penned by award-winning author Barbara Catlin. Fall in love with the captivating heroes and heroines, with all the endearing characters, of tiny Bitterpill, Texas 78020! THE COWGIRL TAKES HER MAN:  Could she live with Cam . . . but without his love?Struggling to operate her ranch, Terra Lee Bradford realizes the full extent of the Glory B's dire financial straits. Cameron Stoner's neighboring ranch, on the other hand, is thriving. Yet he's overwhelmed with problems trying to tame his three motherless children--not to mention his libido.. . . Concocted as an instant solution to everyone's woes, their marriage of convenience soon turns into a lusty battle of wills. He'll be damned if he'll give her his heart, and she refuses to settle for less!

Bombshells


T. Elliott Brown - 2011
    Six-year-old Birdie Adams wants to run away and join the circus but guesses she’ll have to go to the first grade and hang around with her new baby brother instead. Maybe her big sister needs a little help, too. The circus will have to wait.Twelve-year-old Melanie Adams wants her friend to stop bugging her to get her first kiss. Melanie’s already had her first kiss, but won’t spoil the special secret by talking about it. Norah Adams is a good mother and wife who wants to keep her family safe and happy, but tucking the order form for dogtags in her daughters’ lunch boxes is a big change from the everyday bologna sandwiches.Lola Carter wants the life her sister, Norah, has. Instead she has a factory job, an alcohol and prescription drug addiction, and an abusive boyfriend. Even if President Kennedy prevents World War III, these women’s lives will be changed forever.

Cupidity


Holly Hepburn - 2013
    Modern day matchmaking is tough – people are busy, their hearts are harder to hit and he’s had enough of wall-to-wall romance. And St Valentine has noticed…Annelise is a Lost Cause. She runs a dating agency but her heart is colder than a penguin’s feet. She thinks love is about compatibility and has no time for passion.Can Cupid prove to St Valentine that he hasn’t lost his touch by melting Annelise’s heart? Or is it curtains for Cupid?A romantic comedy novella - 23,000 words long'Gorgeously romantic, unputdownable and utterly delicious!' Miranda Dickinson, Sunday Times Bestseller (Fairytale of New York, It Started With A Kiss, When I Fall In Love)'A completely charming, fantastically funny, romantic romp, perfect reading for a sunny afternoon.' Scarlett Bailey (Married by Christmas, The Night Before Christmas, Santa Maybe)

Babes and Billionaires: Free Romance Box Set


Serena Grey - 2018
     DRAWN TO YOU A one-night stand leaves two strangers craving for more. On the night she discovers her ex’s engagement, Rachel meets Landon, the sexiest man she’s ever seen, who, for some reason, mistakes her for a hooker. The thing is, he’s so sexy, and it’s just one night. What harm can there be in giving in to the desire to lose herself in his touch? 

Landon prefers his women beautiful and sophisticated, with no desire for romance or commitment, so when his brother ignores his protests and sends him a hooker on his birthday, he’s surprised by how willing he is to continue paying for her services. It should be easy, except she’s no hooker, and she has no intention of letting him into her life.

 As the billionaire owner of Swanson Court Hotels, Landon is accustomed to getting what he wants, and Rachel is not going to be an exception.
 WILD SEXY THING Daphne doesn’t want love, or romance, or sex, or even a relationship. She wants some time alone without casual sex with guys whose names she can’t be bothered to remember in the morning–a temporary period of celibacy. Too bad her new roommate’s brother is hot, insanely hot, like melt your panties and spread your legs kind of hot. From the moment she sets eyes on Jason Wild, Daphne can’t stop craving the sensual delight she knows she will find in his arms. Her self-imposed celibacy is no match for his blatant sexuality and all the naughty things he promises to do to her. Jason is not interested in commitment, and Daphne is done with hookups, but it’s only a matter of time before they indulge in their naughty fantasies about each other. Only, what happens after, when it’s time to walk away? AWAKENING (A DANGEROUS MAN #1) His voice is hoarse. “I am going to make love to you now,” he says. “So if you want me to stop, tell me.” 
I shake my head frantically. If he stops at this point, I’ll probably die.
 Sophie Bennett has virtually no experience with men. Orphaned from birth, she’s been sheltered all her life. So nothing prepares her for David Preston. The intensely attractive businessman is entirely out of her league and dangerous for her heart. Can she handle him, or is she in over her head? UNDENIABLE Her passion for him ruined her life once already, but he still has the power to make her crave him with just one touch. Olivia Wilder fell in love with Jackson Lockewood the first time she laid her eyes on him. She gave him her heart and her love, and she ended up alone, heartbroken, and with scars that were almost too much for her to bear.
 Seven years later, they cross paths again. Jackson is everything she remembers, only more irresistible. Underneath his disdain, his desire to possess her lights a response within her, but she has no desire to rekindle their past or face the pain of all those years ago.
 However, Jackson has no intention of making it easy for her. This time, he’s determined to make her pay for the past, and for the future they should have had, even if it means destroying her in the process. "Serena Grey drew me in and held my attention through the Awakening series. Knocked me out with her stand-alone "Undeniable" and most recently has body slammed me with "Drawn to You." - Epic Book Addict.

A Rosie Life In Italy: Why Are We Here?


Rosie Meleady - 2020
    Everyone dismisses her long-term dream to live in Italy as another ‘mad hippy whim.’ While she’s busy planning other people’s happy endings, grief, eviction and debt nip at her heels. Trying to stabilise her life as an entrepreneur in the middle of an economic crash is almost impossible.When her landlord suddenly doubles the rent, Rosie is left with no choice but to pack up her family, two dogs and possessions into a 20-year-old camper van and head off in search of her own happy ending in sunny Italy.She soon discovers integrating into life in a new country isn’t as easy as it looks on TV, especially when the language is a minefield of accidental sexual innuendo. And trying to buy an abandoned villa in Umbria from eight crazy cousins with a longstanding family battle bubbling under the surface doesn’t make it any easier. While Rosie is determined to create the perfect life for her family in Italy, despite a hurricane, a raucous family dispute and a little thing called a global pandemic to top it all off, she begins to realise that the Italian dream may be too big for her. Will she ever get to live her rosy life in Italy? Or has she bitten off more than she can chew?

Stella in Stilettos


Jan Romes - 2013
    As far as she's concerned, she needs to focus on the one thing that won't leave her teary-eyed on a Friday night - her job with the lingerie company. That plan goes horribly awry when drop-dead gorgeous, Alex Clay, is temporarily assigned to her department. He frustrates and excites her, turns her into a klutz, and she's afraid her heart is in real danger once again.Alex Clay is restless and trying to find his place in the business world. His boss seems to be grooming him for big things by giving him a taste of everything from the mailroom to the boardroom. When he does a short stint in the advertising department and meets hardheaded but intriguing, Stella Matson, she challenges his convictions and stirs an unwanted desire. He doesn't know whether to kiss her until they're both breathless, or find a new job.Will Stella and Alex act on the attraction sizzling between them? Or will they extinguish it with doubt, mistrust, and a belief that they shouldn't get involved with someone they work with?