Worse Than Being Alone


Patricia M. Clark - 2012
    Kitty and Roni are building their fledgling investigative agency by following workers' comp cheats. Every PI's dream of catching real criminals seems to be coming true when they begin to suspect one of their targets is engaged in more nefarious activities than just a bogus comp claim. Their cat and mouse game gets twisted when they realize they are the ones being stalked. A personal and potentially lethal inquiry emerges after Roni's father marries a woman with a checkered past, and they fear he has found his Worse Than Being Alone. When their investigation points to a shady past involving a trail of life insurance payouts and dead husbands, they wonder if Dad has married a Black Widow or an extremely unlucky woman. As that case boils over, along comes the most talented con artist of them all. After his angry employer hires them to check him out, Kitty and Roni slowly come to realize he has the makings of a master criminal. They uncover numerous identities along with multiple workers' comp claims. Then here are his almost daily trips to the same bank wearing different disguises.Surprises abound as Kitty and Roni break up a sex slave ring, thwart a bank robbery, nab a shoplifter, and document a Black Widow's treachery. A sudden death leaves them stunned as they second-guess their activities, forcing them to confront a murderer.

The Quiet Village


T.J. Walter - 2017
    He discovers a quiet village deep in the countryside and settles there. He makes new friends and finds a new love, but there are undercurrents; events that threaten his newfound peace. Then a murder occurs and he finds himself drawn into the investigation, unsure of who among his new friends he can trust. How will he overcome this without losing all he has gained?

Small Town Hero


Kim Koby - 2018
    Rebecca is saving herself for marriage. After a crushing betrayal, she spins out of control when she catches her fiancé and best friend in bed together. Grief-stricken and desperate, she finds herself stranded in Tennessee and forced to rely on the kindness of a stranger.Ryan knows heartache. The only woman he loved walked away the day he proposed to her. He knew in that instant he'd never trust his heart to another. At least he has his dog to keep him company and a good job as a local firefighter.When Rebecca ends up in Ryan’s path, they blend like oil and water. While he’s content with what life gives him, she escapes by seeking her identity in expensive things. Can two broken souls find salvation with their complete opposite?

Indelible Love - Emily's Story


D.W. Cee - 2012
    Her world shattered, she picks up the pieces when she finds love again with Jake.Dr. Jake Reid - Successful doctor, loving boyfriend, the one who wants to fulfill Emily's happily ever after - falls in love with Emily at first sight and pushes their relationship fast and furious.Max Davis - Reserved, indecisive, Emily's first love - believes he let go of his first love for her sake, for all the right reasons. Eighteen months after the break-up, he's ready to win Emily's heart again.Insecure from her broken relationship, Emily can't fully trust Jake's passion and love for her and struggles between Jake, the man who wants to create a future with her, and Max, the man who wants to relive the past. When both men propose, Emily's indecision causes her to lose her true love. Laugh, cry and cheer for Emily as her relationships unfold through culinary delights that begin in Napa Valley and weaves through eateries in San Francisco, Kyoto, Tokyo, Los Angeles, and Paris. Who she chooses for her happily ever after may surprise you in the end.

Restoration


Kim Loraine - 2015
    So when she’s offered the lead position for an international restoration project, she jumps at the chance to get away from her small town, full of John’s memories. Drew Tensley has always been a hard worker. Dedicated to his family and community, he put aside his own London career to take over the family business after his mother’s terminal diagnosis. Five years later, he’s ready to start living for himself when he literally runs into his hometown’s newest architect. Grace quickly discovers that traveling halfway across the world was the best decision she’s ever made. Until she meets Drew, a man whose personality and lifestyle are the exact opposite of John’s, but whose face is the spitting image. Struggling with her own motivations and feelings, research uncovers secrets she isn’t ready for; secrets that could ruin her second chance for true love.

Love for Scale


Michaela Greene - 2016
    Despite her mother’s best efforts, she is still single. At two-hundred and forty-two pounds, she still lives at home, the victim of a constantly-cooking Jewish mother whose force-feeding techniques have become legendary. As if that isn’t bad enough, Rachel’s Friday and Saturday evenings are spent with her parents and her Saturday mornings consist of wedding gown shopping with her also single best friend. She is clearly going nowhere. But at least she’s not alone. Until her best friend snags a boyfriend. Finally, unable to stand herself and her weight problem anymore, Rachel signs up for Weight Watchers. Finnegan Schwartz, a young man who has already been successful at the Weight Watchers program, having lost a hundred pounds, champions Rachel and becomes her impromptu weight loss coach and newest friend. Rachel soon learns there’s so much more to this funny and shy guy who she’d overlooked before. Amid her mother’s overzealous attempts to fix her up, bizarre family dinners and crises that threaten to unravel the entire Stern family, will Rachel be able to find something she’s never thought was hers for the taking: self-acceptance?

Finding Love at the Oregon Coast


Angela Ruth Strong - 2017
     By Heather Woodhaven--Finding Love in Lincoln City: Liz feels stuck at her little beach magazine until a handsome rival sparks more than just friendly competition. By Lisa Phillips--Finding Love in Oceanside: Anabeth is looking to get out of her rut when a fender bender and a bizarre date with a former marine leads her to a life of love she could never have imagined. By Christina Coryell--Finding Love in Cannon Beach: Kadence feels the pressure to write a perfect love song, but an unexpected meeting with a musician will have her living one instead. By Angela Ruth Strong--Finding Love in Seaside: Christina plans to spend her honeymoon alone, but when the bed and breakfast owner offers her a position as cook, she starts to feel at home in his kitchen…and in his arms.

Only More So


Dixie Burns - 2016
    Leigh Blackburn, the main character of Deliberate, finally has the life she’s dreamed of and fought for. Happily divorced and living on a shabby chic farm with her sixteen-year-old son, she owns an upscale consignment store and has been building a new life free of tension. Free that is until her mother gets herself thrown out of her assisted living facility and moves in with Leigh. Abba Gee, Leigh's mother, will be familiar to those who have read, Spit of a Minute. Last seen at age fifteen, Abba Gee is seventy-years-old and still herself... Only More So!

Weddings Can Be Murder


Christie Craig - 2008
    Will seeing her wedding planner murdered and getting herself locked in the dark with a sexy PI do the trick?Hired by Houston's elite wedding planner to investigate some missing brides, the last thing bad-boy Carl Hades wants is to be shackled with another man's soon-to-be wife. Especially when the gorgeous redhead stirred emotions he'd avoided for years. Now, avoiding her sounds like a genius plan, especially when her future wedding goes the same the way as her engagement ring—down the toilet—making Katie available. . . and a hell of a lot more tempting. But when the missing brides come up dead, Carl suspects that Katie might be next, which makes avoiding her impossible and improbably, especially when being with her is a whole lot of fun.

Third Date


Kylie Keene - 2014
    More specifically, she’s a virgin. Dating wasn’t a priority in high school and college, but now that Morgan has a job and her own apartment, she’s ready to jump back into the dating scene. When Morgan’s friends at work inform her that most men expect sex on the third date, she panics. She’s convinced her lack of experience will be a total turn-off for guys and make for a really awkward third date. Her friends tell her to just do it with a random guy to get it over with, but Morgan isn’t sure that’s what she wants. When she meets a guy she’s certain is her dream man, she’s ready to lose it on their third date. But doing so isn’t as easy as she thought. And then there’s the fact that she can’t get another guy out of her head.Through a series of mishaps and misunderstandings, Morgan eventually finds herself at a place she wasn’t expecting, but the place she wanted to be all along.

A Family Affair


Mary Campisi - 2006
    Her father has another family which includes a mistress and a daughter. Determined to uncover the truth behind her father's secret life, Christine heads to Magdalena, prepared to hate the people who have caused her to question everything she thought she knew about her father. But what she finds is a woman who understands her, a half sister who cherishes her, and a man who could love her if she'll let him. The longer she's around them, the more she questions which family is the real one. . . Attention Book Clubs! Included on my website is a Book Club Discussion Guide for A Family Affair. This story is filled with moral ambiguity, difficult choices, and second chances--all great topics for conversation and contemplation. Truth in Lies Series: Book One: A Family Affair Book Two: A Family Affair: Spring Book Three: A Family Affair: Summer Book Four: A Family Affair: Fall Book Five: A Family Affair: Christmas Book Six: A Family Affair: Winter (TBA) Book Seven: A Family Affair: The Promise (TBA)

One Night with a Stranger


Linda Steinberg - 2015
    Wrong, Lisa Randall does something she’s never done before: has a one night stand with a stranger she meets in a bar. As amazing as the night is, the last thing she expects is to hear from the guy again. But when one night turns into two, and then three, and then more, Lisa wonders whether her infatuation with Matt is keeping her from meeting Mr. Right, or whether a passionate one night stand can actually lead to true love. Matt Owens has always considered himself the King of Jumping into Things Too Fast. He met his ex on a Tuesday, proposed on Saturday, and married her a month later. This time around he wants to take things slow, enjoy the moment. And the attractive woman he picked up in a bar seems to fit the bill. Lisa doesn’t even want to know his last name, let alone plan a future. But as he begins to develop feelings for her, he knows his one big secret could ruin any chance for something more.

Fanny Bower Puts Herself Out There


Julia Ariss - 2013
    She leads a quiet existence - keeping to the sidelines, avoiding high jinks, living in her head and waiting for something momentous to happen. A few weeks into a new job, at the urging of her socially savvy colleague, she decides to begin afresh to conquer her fears and release her inner dynamo – whatever that is.Her inaugural foray at an office cocktail reception goes horribly awry when she finds herself caught up in mayhem and thrust into the spotlight, placing her at odds with her handsome and uber-powerful employer who takes a dim view of her shenanigans. Determined to fix her crippling social anxiety, stay employed, and discover her life’s purpose, she puts herself out there. Her new “butterfly wings” are tested as they flutter incessantly between mystifying small talk and mortifying gaffes in a bid to unleash a charm offensive – whatever that means.At the very height of her confusion, she is spurred to action by the plight of a friend. She plunges headlong into a situation fraught with uncertainty and risks everything, including the alienation of the one person she’s managed to captivate in the process. Fans of quirky romantic satire will find Fanny’s journey irresistible.

The Last Goodbye


Caroline Finnerty - 2013
    . . and sometimes we cannot shake off the shackles of decisions made by others in the past.Kate Flynn has spent her whole life running away. She reckons the best decision she ever made was to leave Ireland the day after she finished school. Having seldom returned since, she would be perfectly happy if she never had to go back there. She is happy in London where she runs a successful photography gallery with her best friend Nat, though their relationship is going through a rocky patch since Nat began an affair with a married man. When Kate becomes pregnant and her partner Ben persuades her to make the trip home, she is forced to confront everything she left behind and memories of Eva, the mother she feels betrayed her. Kate finds it impossible to forgive Eva who chose to refuse cancer treatment while pregnant and died, leaving a young family motherless. Do some wounds go too deep to ever heal? Must Eva's Choice forever deny Kate real happiness?The Last Goodbye is a powerful story of love and loss, forgiveness and new beginnings - a heart-wrenching and emotional page-turner for mothers and daughters everywhere.

Taking Flight


Adrian R. Magnuson - 2012
     Two unlikely companions meet in midair: 13-year-old Jeremy, sent against his will by his career-absorbed father to spend the summer with his bipolar mother, and Harry, one-legged and afflicted with mid-stage Alzheimer’s, who escapes the confinement of home for what may be his last adventure. Their journey begins, trailed by Harry’s wife and Jeremy’s parents, who threaten to cut it short. It’s a race against time and circumstance. "In Adrian Magnuson's Taking Flight a curmudgeon losing his memory and a snarky teen fleeing his parents find a common passion in bird watching. Endearing characters, delightful story and a poignant final scene give this book wings along with the beautifully depicted birds.” —Frances Wood, author of Brushed by Feathers: A Year of Birdwatching in the West "Taking Flight is an evocative and moving contemporary novel. It is, at every level, a story about love. For one character it is a coming of age tale, for the other the end of an age. Both are runaways, yet each ultimately is searching for home. I highly recommend this heart-touching, beautifully written book." —Andrea Hurst, president of Andrea Hurst Literary Management “Filled with well-developed, real-life characters, Taking Flight’s heart-breaking but satisfying story hits on all cylinders: action, comedy, and emotion.” —Terry Persun, award winning author of Sweet Song