Book picks similar to
A Summerstoke Affair by Caroline Kington


womens-fiction
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contemporary-novels

The P**e in the Jam Tart


K.L. Smith - 2017
    Trying her hardest to ignore her husband’s affair with his secretary, and doing her best to do her son’s homework to the best of her (and Google’s) ability, combined with a job she hates and a deep routed fear that she may be a racist and just not know it, her life is a trial to navigate - particularly when her head is buried permanently in the sand to avoid having to confront anything. One morning during breakfast, Claire’s head comes hurtling out of the sand at warp speed after – what she refers to as ‘the jam tart incident’. It is the straw that broke the camel’s back. After the first outburst of her life, gone is the mild-mannered lady who would turn the other cheek and pretend everything was fine, and in her place, is a grumpy middle-aged woman -clad in Shaun-the-sheep slippers - unable to control her temper. A down to earth comedy - poking fun at our politically correct times, religion and our love of stereotypes. Possibly a book to avoid if you are of a religious disposition.

We'll Meet Again


Elise Darcy - 2020
    A resident with a secret past. A woman starting over, unsure what the future holds.Working as an Occupational Therapist in a busy London hospital, Cassie loves her job but is looking forward to early retirement in five years when she reaches fifty. However, her husband has other ideas…Suddenly single, Cassie needs a fresh start. Responding to an ad for a live-in position, Cassie arrives at Fletchling Hall, a grand stately home, its corridors echoing with stories from the past.Her new position seems too good to be true, living in a cottage in the grounds, the commute into work a glorious stroll through the gardens to the imposing house in the Sussex countryside.In the cellar, a forgotten diary has languished undisturbed for nearly seventy years. When Cassie discovers the diary, she unravels the heartfelt story of two young souls from the war years, and a little boy called Ted, a young evacuee. It reveals the surprising connection Cassie, a Canadian, has to the house and its resident.An unforgettable tale of a secret spanning decades, love found, and the importance of belonging.

The Face in the Locket


Alexandra Connor - 2003
    The two sisters have their own secrets, hiding difficult childhoods yet still maintaining an air of superiority and righteousness with those around them. Living with them is their brother, Saville, an adult but with the mind of a seven year old. The little girl’s arrival soon turns their world upside down. Great plans are laid for their good-looking, headstrong niece. Harris is going to marry well. Everything changes when World War Two breaks out. Harris falls in love with a man who only has his own interests at heart. She scandalises and disgraces her family with her obsessive behaviour, making herself a laughing stock in the close-knit town. But Harris is not to be put down. She begins to build a successful business with the support of her aunts and her close friend, Bonny. She eventually meets and agrees to marry the respectable local solicitor to the happiness of her aunts, but at the altar, she hears her lost love enter the church…. And once again, she shows her true colours. When tragedy strikes, Harris fights to regain respectability in the eyes of those who care for her but has Harris learned any lessons from her obsessive past…?

FIGHTING FOR SURVIVAL: It's survival of the fittest in a Post-Apocalyptic world (Pandemic Virus Series Book 1)


Brian J. Savage - 2020
    

Irish Holiday: A Raven Hill Farm Mystery (Raven Hill Farm Mysteries Book 1)


Jane E. Drew - 2017
    Forty-six, divorced, and having recently walked away from her practice as a psychologist, she fears her best years are behind her. Fiona, Quinn's best friend since childhood, has a plan to get her out of her rut — a trip to Ireland! Quinn loves everything about Ireland: the people, the culture, the scenery and especially a little town called Ballyfrannen. On a whim, she decides to move there and Fiona is eager to do the same. At first things seem to be working out perfectly. They find a charming little stone cottage to buy and set about renovating it. Unfortunately, Quinn has a massive crush on the building contractor they hire to do the work. She feels like a tongue tied schoolgirl whenever he's around. But then, love has never gone smoothly for Quinn. A visit from Quinn's former husband only complicates her life further. Missing her work as a psychologist and desperately needing a distraction, Quinn volunteer a few hours a week at the local mental health clinic. Soon things take a dark turn. It sure seems like someone is trying to kill her. Quinn is not about to let anyone spoil her hard won new life though. Surrounded by her new friends, Fiona and a menagerie of animals, Quinn sets out to find some answers. She's in way over her head, though, as she uncovers, one by one, the dark secrets of this bucolic little town.

The Cortés Trilogy: Enigma Revenge Revelation


John Paul Davis - 2016
    Throughout the land, a strange legend has long told of an ancient people dwelling deep within the jungle whose possessions include a precious set of stones with the potential to bring unlimited power to its owner. As well as wealth beyond their wildest dreams . . .1904: In an old graveyard in a remote part of the Isles of Scilly, a distinguished academic makes a surprising discovery. The inscriptions on the gravestones are unlike any he has ever seen, at least in that part of the world. The clues point to an astounding possibility. A forgotten Spanish legend. And a four-hundred-year-old cover-up!Present Day: History lecturer Dr Ben Maloney is sitting in his office when the phone rings. A call from his cousin is rarely anything out of the ordinary, but today what he has to say is anything but normal. Their great-great-grandfather's body has been discovered in a boat near a deserted island in the Isles of Scilly. With a bullet through his skull!Dropping everything, the cousins' decision to visit the site of their ancestor's demise soon proves to be one that will change their lives forever. With nothing but a hundred-year-old diary and legends from the past to guide them, Ben soon realises their quest to solve the riddle of their ancestor's death will require them to take on an altogether greater mystery that will lead them not only halfway across the world delving deep into humanity's bloodiest past but potentially to their own deaths. An unimaginable treasure remains undiscovered - one with the ability to change the world for better or worse. And some will stop at nothing to find it . . .

I'm Just a Teenage Punchbag


Jackie Clune - 2020
    She finds solace in her anonymous blog, and in the daily chats she has with her mum's ashes (often the best conversations she has all day.)Despite the menopause, the invisibility of middle age and the daily self-esteem bashings, courtesy of her kids, Ciara manages to navigate the stormy waters of grief and family life - until her mask slips and she is cast out from the family bosom. She embarks on a mission to fulfil her mum's dying wishes to have her remains sprinkled from the top of the Empire State Building, finding company, distraction and - ultimately - herself in the process.If motherhood is a job - who says you can't resign?

Missing Chloe


John C. Dalglish - 2018
    When she's found, their worst nightmare is realized. In the weeks and months that follow, they try to put their lives back together, but tragedy haunts them. Detective Annie Logan finds herself charged with sorting through the lives of those MISSING CHLOE. She has to separate facts from lies in a case that will test both her skills and her emotions, but can she figure it out and prevent a killer from escaping justice. ************************************** MORE FROM JOHN C. DALGLISH THE CITY MURDERS SERIES(Clean Crime Fiction) BOSTON HOMICIDE - #1 MIAMI HOMICIDE - #2 CHICAGO HOMICIDE - #3 DALLAS HOMICIDE - #4 DENVER HOMICIDE - #5 SEATTLE HOMICIDE - #6 NEW ORLEANS HOMICIDE - #7 DETECTIVE JASON STRONG SERIES(Clean Crime Fiction) WHERE’S MY SON? – #1 BLOODSTAIN – #2 FOR MY BROTHER – #3 SILENT JUSTICE – #4 TIED TO MURDER – #5 ONE OF THEIR OWN – #6 DEATH STILL - #7 LETHAL INJECTION – #8 CRUEL DECEPTION – #9 LET'S PLAY - #10 HOSTAGE- #11 A CIRCLE OF FEAR - #12 DEADLY OBSESSION - #13 DEAD OF NIGHT - #14 SHADOW OF DOUBT - #15 FATAL AFFAIR - #16 DRIVEN TO KILL - #17 BOUND BY BLOOD - #18 THE CHASER CHRONICLES (Christian Adventure Fiction) CROSSOVER – #1 JOURNEY – #2 DESTINY- #3 INNER DEMONS- #4 DARK DAYS - #5 FAR FROM HOME - #6 KEIKO'S WAR - (Young Romance Historical Fiction)

Peggie


Lynda Page - 1994
    At last she can save her family from financial ruin. Ever since Cyrus Crabbe stole her father Septimus's brake and claimed it as his own vehicle, Sep has dreamed of the day he would run a bus service for the villagers of Leicester to put the Crabbes out of business once and for all. It now looks like that day is in sight. But Cyrus Crabbe is a dangerous man, determined to stop the Cartwrights from succeeding. A wicked remark from his acid tongue forces Septimus to abandon his beloved brood, and as Sep's absence stretches from weeks to months, Peggie watches her mother sink into a deep decline. Peggie's brothers and sisters are used to heartache but when Billy is beaten black and blue and Cyrus's son Reginald turns his attentions to young Letty it seems that none of the family is to be spared... Peggie knows it's up to her to keep the business afloat and spirits raised. For no matter what obstacles are thrown her way she is determined to fulfil her father's dream.

Purple Reason


Doug Mennen - 2016
    President Jackson Niles knows that the fight to bring real change to Washington could get ugly, but what comes out along the way is far worse than he ever imagined. The conspiracy surrounding the federal government threatens to bring down all that America stands for. Now a new President and a small group of patriots are forced to work behind the scenes to undo the damage caused by two parties run amok.

The Boat House Pretty Beach


Polly Babbington - 2020
    We meet the lovely Sallie Broadchurch and follow her bringing back to life an unloved old boathouse - pretty, forty and very much looking for a new life by the sea. Holly and Xian are the gorgeous owners of the Pretty Beach Bakery, along with Holly’s son Rory, a doctor in the city and Sallie’s best friend Nina. Then there’s beautiful Jessica and her amazing bride Camilla of Pretty Beach Fish and Chips, Nel the local bus driver and the delectable David Windsor, businessman extraordinaire. Top it all off with Ben Chalmers, dashing owner of Ben Chalmers Seaplanes, a lot of history behind him and wondering quite what’s happening when a new neighbour arrives in his little town by the sea.

North Korean Memoirs


Mark D. Treston - 2004
    An American idealist defects to North Korea in the 1970's only to discover the true horrors of this Stalinist state. What happens next would shock even those familiar with authoritarian regimes. The author, an American Foreign Service worker in china, meets a man by the name of "David". David entrusts the author with his diary and makes the author promise him that the diary will be shown to the world as "evidence of what North Korea is really like". Following this encounter, the author never sees David again.The author discovers that within the pages of this diary lies an incredible story of defection, survival, and an eventual escape by the man he knows only as "David". After staying up and reading the entire diary, the author is convinced that David's story must be told to the world.The diary details David's life from his fairly comfortable upbringings, through his rebellious youth, and into his extraordinary decision to defect to North Korea. At first, David enjoys an elevated status in North Korea as a "hero" and a "patriot" of the socialist cause.During two decades as an English professor at the most prestigious North Korean University, David experiences love, seduction, betrayal, and violence.

Into The Lion's Den


Martin Chimes - 2015
    Ben will stop at nothing to save his son, but what awaits him is an evil, more dangerous and insidious than he could have ever anticipated. Into the Lion’s Den is a fast-paced action thriller, a compelling saga of the love of family and the indomitable will to survive in the face of an implacable malevolence.

Eventide: A Chief Mattson Mystery (Brandon Mattson Mysteries Book 1)


R.L. Ryker - 2021
    

Never Seen (Hoskins & Fletcher Book 1)


T.L. Dyer - 2019
    Their killer drugs them and slashes their wrists. Then he cleans their bodies, combs their hair and wraps them in protective sheeting before leaving them where they’ll be easily found.Is it a compulsion? A game? Or a cry for help?These are the questions Detective Lawrence Hoskins must answer as he takes on the lead role in his first serial murder investigation. But as the bodies keep coming he feels like he’s the one holding the blade, the one standing between life and death. Under mounting pressure he turns to former colleague Cass Fletcher for help. She knows how a compulsive murderer thinks and why they can’t stop. If she can tell him why perhaps it will lead him to who.Except Hoskins has already made one mistake he’s not aware of. Involving Fletcher is another. And as the killer continues to elude him the case takes its toll on those around him in ways he never expects. More so when the signs start pointing in a new direction…“Five beautiful boys lined up in a rowNo longer unnoticed but seen by allThe officers who killed them soon everyone will knowBecause the tougher they act, the easier they fall.”NEVER SEEN is the first book in the Hoskins & Fletcher crime series