How Shall I Know You?: A Short Story


Hilary Mantel - 2014
    She had a face of feral sweetness, its color yellow; her eyes were long and dark, her mouth a taut bow, her nostrils upturned as if she were scenting the wind."In "How Shall I Know You?," a melancholic and ailing writer reluctantly travels east of London to give a lecture before a literary society. Mr. Simister, the organization's secretary, lures the world-weary novelist turned biographer with promises of a modest stipend and lodging at a charming bed-and-breakfast for her trouble. Nevertheless, on that rainy day she meets Mr. Simister at the train station, she wonders why she ever agreed to come in the first place. Driving past steel-shuttered windows and Day-Glo banners, Mr. Simister takes the writer to her hotel for the evening, which turns out to be crumbling and isolated rather than picturesque. As she crosses the threshold into the dank stench of Eccles House she is faced with the feral porter, Louise, and suffers through an evening that may be more than she bargained for.From Hilary Mantel's brilliant and darkly comic collection of contemporary stories, The Assassination of Margaret Thatcher, comes a tale told with her distinctive blend of subversive wit and gimlet-eyed characterization. "How Shall I Know You?" showcases the extraordinary genius of Hilary Mantel, called one of our "greatest living novelists" (NPR).

Chopped (Taboo Tales Book 1)


Colleen Charles - 2019
    I mean... woods.This is my forest and everything in it belongs to me.Especially things with hypnotic eyes, cascades of raven hair and killer curves that make my long, hard ax roar to life.My people have owned this land for generations.She's trespassing, so I'll claim her.Make her mine.She may try to escape... return to her boring city slicker life.But I'll make her think twice.If my perfect little Dove thinks she can just gallivant into my forest and keep her innocence...She's barking up the wrong tree.*****Chopped is a steamy long novella by USA Today Bestselling Author, Colleen Charles, about a huge ax-wielding lumberjack in the depths of the forest and the woman he claims as his own. It's the first book in the Taboo Tales series and is a standalone with all the steam and feels you're looking for, along with an emotional HEA.

Thin Girls Don't Eat Cake


Lindy Dale - 2014
     Filled with Lindy's trademark wit, humour and the usual zany cast of characters, Thin Girls Don’t Eat Cake is MORE than a girl meets boy story. It’s a tale of love, loss and growth mixed with a dash of laughter and a bowl full of frosting. Enjoy Sophie Kinsella, Trisha Ashley and Jill Mansell? Looking for a fun, beach read? A holiday read? THIN GIRLS DON’T EAT CAKE is all that and more… You'll want to grab a cupcake, make a coffee ant get ready to curl up with this wonderfully humorous romantic read. Everyone wants love and no-one more than Olivia Merrifield. After being dumped because her bottom looks like an unpeeled orange, discovering she’s heavy enough to appear on The Biggest Loser and mistaken for a pregnant woman, Olivia Merrifield is understandably depressed. So depressed, that the only way she can console herself is with a bag of peppermint slices. Since finishing her degree, the road has become rocky for Olivia. Her longing for a baby has led to an unhealthy relationship with cake. Her inability to choose a boyfriend who’s not married, weird or a player has given her self-esteem a swift kick to the kerb. Moving back to her hometown of Merrifield hasn’t helped either. Her friends are playing happy families and her mother is on her case — when she’s not joining a Kama Sutra yoga class or taking a younger lover, that is. Deciding it’s time to make over her life, Olivia embarks on a diet regime. She meets the gorgeous Cole Anderson, a former property renovator who’s recently moved to town and is causing quite a stir every time he bends over. But between grieving the death of his daughter, setting up a business and avoiding the bevy of reporters who want to document his every move, Cole hasn’t had a lot of time to get life back on an even keel. He’s merely existing until Olivia comes along. Cole likes Olivia and Olivia definitely likes Cole. He’s hot, sensible and a natural with babies. If only he didn’t own that cupcake shop across the road….

Maple Summer Wallace: A Novel


Jessica Calla - 2019
    Her plan takes a wrong turn when she finds Veronica, her twenty-year-old housekeeper and daughter of her beloved nanny, Lola, hovering over the dead body of octogenarian Randolph Brentwood, the fifth richest man in the world. Maple has never been a warm and fuzzy type of family person, and the last thing she wants to do in her final months of life is deal with Veronica’s mess. But long ago Maple made a promise to Lola that she’d always look out for her “little sister” Veronica. Still, the stubborn Maple, hardened from her own personal loss, resists involvement until she learns that Veronica is pregnant with Lola’s grandchild, an heir to the Brentwood estate. To make good on her promise to Lola, Maple vows to help Veronica. With the assistance of Michael, a handsome and savvy PI, they journey up and down the East Coast, dodging the authorities, a shady lawyer, a cold-hearted hit man, and the powerful widow, Mrs. Brentwood. As Maple’s bitterness about spending her last days saving Veronica dissipates and her friendship with Michael develops, she realizes that on the way to death, she’s found something she’s never had—life. (PLEASE NOTE: This is the Author's Women's Fiction Debut. It is NOT a Romance. Further, this book touches on serious subjects that may affect more sensitive readers.)

Uncover My Secrets


Ali Parker - 2018
     Prince. It is a title that some boys dream of, but as an orphan, I never thought it would happen to me. After being adopted by the wealthiest people in Qatar, I had a new life to look forward to. Years later, my adopted parents would have a son, a true son. My father gave me the opportunity to have my own business, and I could never repay him for what he has done for me. After a trip to Qatar to see him, I find out that he is stepping down as the king and wants me to be the new king. I know my brother is the one that should have the seat, but he is only eleven and has spoken out about not wanting to do it. All this, and now the most beautiful woman somehow pushes her way into my life. She is tough and persistent. Two very attractive qualities in a woman. I’m in a place of doubt and confusion and all I need is her. When she tells me who she really is, can I still love her? Please note that this is book 1 of a 4 books series. There will be a cliffhanger, and book 4 will have the HEA. The books are scheduled to release in two week increments for your reading pleasure.

So Unlike Me


Nikki Lynn Barrett - 2017
    Hide out under the covers at home. 2. Let your agoraphobic twin sister talk you into going to Paris in her place! Lizette Monroe would be crazy to turn down her sweepstakes entering addicted twin's offer. Paris, France? It's the perfect getaway after all she's been dealing with. All she has to do is pretend to be Nola. Can't go wrong there, right? Too bad it's not France, but a small town Tennessee town. Still, it gets her out of the public eye for awhile. Enter problem number one in the form of Dirk Ramsey, Nola's childhood best friend. He's grown up, gorgeous, and has eyes for her, except he thinks she's Nola. Lizette wants nothing more than to tell him the truth, but Nola's embarrassment and shame over her current condition has her begging Lizette to keep up the charade. It wouldn't be so hard if Dirk's touch didn't awaken a part of her soul she thought was lost. Did he really have to be there at every turn, especially when the truth is closer to coming out? And when Dirk does learn he's been reminiscing with the wrong twin - the one who didn't pay much attention to him back then, will that ruin a chance to get to know the man Lizette is now having romantic feelings for?

Tucker


Carly Keene - 2020
    And when my ancient Toyota bites the dust in the grocery store parking lot, I know I’ll be stuck with a big repair bill as well.It’s enough to make a girl break down in tears.Until the Hot Mechanic shows up.Tucker:It’s taking me months to get my car-repair service back up and out of the red, after my former partner stole from the business and left it near bankruptcy. I do all the jobs I can, because every dollar counts. I’m careful not to trust anybody the way I trusted my partner and ex-friend.And then, on a grocery run, I see the girl. She’s standing next to a clearly non-functional vehicle, sobbing her heart out, but when she realizes she isn’t alone, it almost breaks my heart to see her try to stop crying.I want to fix her car.I want to fix her life.And maybe she can help me fix mine.

Bagels & Salsa


Lara Reznik - 2018
    As the Son of Sam and a scorching heat wave plague New York City, Laila Levin, a Jewish sociologist from Long Island, meets Dr. Eduardo Quintana while giving a speech on the epidemic problem of teenage pregnancies. Laila is relationship-shy after a disastrous marriage, and Eduardo has never completely recovered from his high school sweetheart’s desertion. He is finishing up a residency in New York City and plans to open a family practice near his hometown in New Mexico.The unlikely pair share strong family values and an interest in helping prevent teen pregnancy. Their mutual passion is so intense it stuns them both. After a brief courtship, Eduardo persuades Laila to accompany him to his family ranch near Española, New Mexico, a rural area with one of the highest teenage pregnancy rates in North America.  Once in New Mexico, Laila is blatantly rejected by Sylvia, Eduardo’s controlling mama. Sylvia desperately wants Eduardo to marry Violet, his high school sweetheart. Violet has just returned to New Mexico after a failed flight attendant career, and a walk on the dark side of Hollywood. Her mama and Sylvia cook up a plan to get rid of Laila and reunite their children. The Quintanas hold a large pig roast and invite a menagerie of tattooed cousins, rodeo stars, and mariachis, where the drop-dead gorgeous Violet makes a grand entrance.In the midst of the pandemonium that results, a shocking family secret is revealed, and Laila and Eduardo’s love for each other is severely tested. Can their relationship survive the fierce clash of cultures, the murderous intentions of a Son of Sam copycat who has stalked Laila from New York City, and their own uncertainties about the upheavals that their union will cause in their lives?

Christmas to the Max A Return to Welcome Novel


Bonnie Edwards - 2020
    (Return to Welcome)Max Whyte moves to Welcome WA to live closer to his daughters after their mother remarries. He wants to fix up an old home, settle into his new position at an IT firm, and try not to think about turning forty alone.Burned by a single mother in the past, he vows not to get tangled with another woman with children. When he saves the life of a small boy, he finds himself tangled in more ways than he could imagine.When the boy’s mother turns out to be the perfect person to do his renovations, Max has trouble keeping his personal feelings out of their employer/employee relationship.Kaylin Simpson has returned to Welcome to give her boys the kind of home she wanted as a child. She needs a fresh, stable start and wants to run her own business. Her three-year-old twins keep her hopping, but after she finishes the renovations for Max, she hopes to have her life well in hand.Max is drawn to Kaylin and her adorable twin boys. Her wit and feisty spirit pull at his heartstrings until he realizes being a stepfather is never what he wanted.Christmas in Welcome can be a time to heal and move forward and Max and Kaylin must set aside their old hurts to allow love to blossom.

My Soul Loves


Barbara Gee - 2017
    She isn’t escaping a bad job or an ex-boyfriend, and she’s not in the witness protection program. She’s not even leaving the city in hopes of a grand adventure. Nope, her motive is as simple as inheriting a house in a place she loves and deciding to see whether life in a small town suits her. She isn’t looking for romance, either.....and then she meets the guy next door. Before long, Ava is thinking Jude Keller could be the one. She looks at him and sees forever. Until she doesn’t. When Ava discovers something that could change everything, she panics and almost loses the best man she’s ever known. And just when things are looking up again, Ava finds she had something to run from after all. Trouble has found her in Hidden Creek, in a form she never expected. But God and Grandma brought her to Jude, and trouble’s no match for that combination. Good thing, because Ava has found the one her soul loves, and she never wants to let him go.

River's Sigh B & B Vol. 1 - 4


Ev Bishop - 2018
     Cozy cabins, soul-soothing nature, outdoor adventures, and the healing, restorative power of love await you. “Book” your romantic getaway today! Set includes: WEDDING BANDS A terrible misunderstanding separates high school sweethearts. Years later they meet again, and Jo finds her fledgling plans—and her heart—at risk once more. HOOKED When Sam meets the daughter she gave up for adoption and starts to fall for the girl’s adoptive dad, every part of her screams, run. A romance between them would be too weird, wouldn’t it? SPOONS There’s an extreme heat wave at River’s Sigh B & B, but things have never been colder between Noelle and her husband Cade. Can shattered love ever be restored? HOOK, LINE & SINKER Brian and Katelyn fall for each other hook, line and sinker—but real life isn’t a fairy tale. If they can’t solve the increasingly dangerous threat posed by Katelyn’s ex, they won’t get a chance to pick up the pieces from their pasts or to find out if true love is real. Four page turner, full-length novels about overcoming heartbreak and finding your true home. Treat yourself today!

Chasing Butterflies


Jennifer Labelle - 2016
     Eight years ago my sister and I decided to leave our home and drug addict parents behind to build a new life somewhere else. Now that I’ve found my passion in art and tattooing I’m convinced that we’re finally happy…until tragedy changes everything. Deciding that going back to my roots is the best option for me, I return to the Hill Country of Texas, opening my own tattoo shop as a way to start over once again. One thing I didn’t count on…running into a blast from my past. Jagger is more attractive than I remember. He’s all grown up, filling those jeans and cowboy boots with raw muscle and a whole lot of sexy. The problem is, I’ve been forced to guard my heart for so long I don’t know how to let someone in. But Jagger makes it perfectly clear that he always gets what he wants. And what he wants…is me.

Never Say Never


Taylor Holloway - 2018
    Never hesitate. Never get emotionally involved.Words I've lived by. Until her.I'm a fixer.I fix bad, embarrassing, illegal problems, for the right price.My clients are rich, famous, powerful, and very dangerous.Now I’ve got a problem of my very own: Eva Martin. She just happens to be both my best friend’s little sister, and at the center of the most explosive problem I’ve ever faced. As the body count rises around us, I’m falling for the one woman that’s totally out of bounds. Her wide innocent eyes, perfect curves, and sexy, smoky voice—she’s a liability and a weakness, but I'm unable to resist.Eva’s a risky distraction for a man like me. I'm going to make her mine, and I'll use everything in my arsenal to keep her safe.Even if it means everyone else—including me—becomes collateral damage.

Ranger's Legacy


Vella Munn - 2018
    She has no room for mistakes and no time for love, so when she meets the handsome forest ranger, she vows to stay clear. Easier said than done... Garret Haute has dedicated his life and career to protecting the visitors to Montana’s vast wilderness and taking care of his family. He’s still haunted by a tragedy he was powerless to prevent, but after he meets Amber, suddenly he’s thinking about a lot more than doing his duty. When they become involved in a potentially dangerous project, sparks fly and Garret finds himself falling faster than he ever imagined. Can two people forget their pasts to embrace each other and their future?

Burning Through Gravity: Box Set


Addison Moore - 2016
     *The complete BURNING THROUGH GRAVITY Series! BURNING THROUGH GRAVITY—they soared so high so fast they never expected the fall. Two beautiful souls. Two seemingly innocent deceptions. Once they meet, Stevie and Ford explode into one another in a ball of lust, hotter than a July moon. Ford is assertive, dominate and in control, that is until Stevie brings him to his knees. He thinks she’s the most beautiful woman he’s ever met both inside and out. Stevie thinks he’s sweet, and sort of goofy—of course it doesn’t hurt that he drips sex like honey. Stevie is starting to fall hard for Ford. And Ford is all in with Stevie. She wonders if he could ever forgive her for what she’s about to do. She wonders if she wants him to. They say love conquers all. But love never met two liars like Stevie and Ford. His lie cost her a few sleepless nights. Her lie will cost him everything. A THOUSAND STARRY NIGHTS (Burning Through Gravity 2) For as long as I can remember I have wanted Aspen as my wife. The day I lost her, I could hardly stand to breathe. I want her back in the worst way. I don’t take losing very well. Aspen will be mine again. I need to have her. And I will. Aspen… Carter is back in my life. Long ago, we flew so close to the sun we were scorched by the twisted labyrinth of our own making. And now, here he is again, front and center, as if nothing ever happened. I doubt Carter and I stand a chance. In fact, I believe we were doomed right from the start. Carter is driven to Aspen. Aspen is determined to stay away from Carter. When their hearts collide once again, their love burns brighter than A Thousand Starry Nights. FIRE IN AN AMBER SKY (Burning Through Gravity 3) I don’t do redheads, I don’t do virgins, and I don’t do anyone related to the Cannons. Period. Lincoln’s story… When Macy O’Conner shows up in my office with those long legs, and wild crimson hair, I can’t look away. Usually when I use the service, and ask for a girl, they know what kind of woman to send me, and Macy is on the no-fly list. I crossed redheads off a long time ago, and I don’t plan on going down that path again. But Macy isn’t letting up. She’s eager to learn and has me pegged as her teacher. No commitment. No strings. But now she wants more. She’s curious about what’s lurking beneath these walls of mine. She’s asking questions I’m not ready to answer. Macy might think she’s toying with me, but she’s playing with fire. I should never have fallen for her. Now I’m willing to burn everything down around us just to get her back. Macy is his worst nightmare. She has one hell of a surprise. Lincoln will never see it coming. From the NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY bestselling author, Addison Moore! Cosmopolitan Magazine calls Addison's books, "...easy, frothy fun!"