Her father Brian, a Vietnam veteran struggling with the long-term effects of the war, has been missing ever since he walked out on Beth and their two children in the dead of night twenty years ago. Matt dreams of one day finding his own path like his heroic father, as Beth’s religious fervour propagates a childhood of parental disappointment. Rachel sets before her family one last request: a journey to the exotic and the unknown. Rachel, ever the free spirit, administers a dose of her notorious wanderlust.The Happiness Jar is a story about how tightly you hold on to what you believe in; how one person’s beliefs can affect a family and tear at the already fragile folds where love hides. It’s about faith, and what can endure despite the burdens we place on ourselves and each other.Set against the red dust of the Kimberley desert, and the smoky backdrop of the holy river Ganges in India, The Happiness Jar is a novel that reminds us that we continue to live in the memories we leave behind. “The Happiness Jar will take the reader on a journey of discovery, of oneself and those whom we love, and others we may not love at all. I found this book to be a wonderful read from start to finish and was left pondering at the end, my own mortality, outlook and relationships. Samantha Tidy has penned a book that you may well want to read again and again.” Gary McKay, Author

    Despite his overbearing nature, Shade delights in her new role as wife and mother. When her husband suddenly dies years later, she uncovers secrets from his past—secrets so profound they derail the lives of both her and her daughter. After tragedy strikes, thirty-six-year-old Shade gains custody of her young grandson, Tyler, and moves to a small Michigan beach town where she becomes the owner of a successful bakery and café. Shade meets and falls in love with Tyler’s baseball coach, but their love for one another is doomed. Shade’s internal struggle to honor her vow to God, while denying her own desires, throws her on a path of painful redemption.

    When poor Mr. Pepper wakes up to the loving snuggles of a ghostly femme fatale, his dead wife isn’t happy and does her best to kick the interloper to the curb. That’s when the park's owner calls in Sonya Caruthers, local ghost whisperer. Sonya’s on the job to convince the ghoulish home wrecker to rest in peace somewhere other than Mr. Pepper’s bed. But when human bones are uncovered at the site of the RV park's new pool, the police get involved. They aren’t crazy about a spirit therapist sticking her nose into their murder investigation. Sonya has to move fast. Ghosts can turn dark if they're left to wander. She’ll need all the help she can get from her two best friends, Lord Fitswilliam Dunbar, a dead but definitely high-spirited Scottish Laird, and her adorable little dog, Willard. These two don’t always get along, but when dealing with the living and the dead, they’ve got Sonya’s back. Come share in the hometown hijinks. Don’t forget to bring a healthy appetite for good food, romantic entanglements, and some lighthearted adventure. There’s always room for one more at Sonya’s kitchen table. This cozy mystery series contains no graphic violence, sex, or strong language. The Genre is: humorous cozy mysteries / cozy mystery culinary / female detective cozy mystery series / women amateur sleuth / British detective mystery MARSDEN - LACEY COZY MYSTERY SERIES Two Birds With One Stone (Book 1) Murder Travels in Threes (Book 2) Pudding Poison & Pie (Book 3) Death Drinks Darjeeling (Book 4) THE WILLOW VALLEY SERIES The Ghost in Mr. Peppers Bed (Book 1)

    She writes of the human condition with precision, in language that is both grave and conversational. Her characters step out of the real world onto the page, where she develops them quietly, but with compassionate fullness. This writer grips the reader with her keen knowledge of the psyche of individuals-—their motives and secrets—and also with the surprising things that happen to them.”—Laura Kasischke, judge, Michigan Literary Fiction AwardsOf Elaine Ford’s novel, Missed Connections, the Washington Post wrote that it is a work “of small episodes, of precise sentences, of unusual clarity.” That same clarity proves an unsettling force in Ford’s stories, where precision of prose often belies uncertainties hidden beneath. In the title piece, an American woman in England, embroiled in a relationship doomed to fail, discovers how little she understands about her own desires and impulses. In another story, another American wife, abandoned in Greece by her archaeologist husband, struggles to solve a crime no one else believes to have been committed.Throughout her stories Ford touches on the mysteries that make up our lives. Each story in itself is a masterpiece of such detail and power as to transform the way we see the world.

    A vicious, unprovoked personal attack is just the start. The discovery of his wife’s death in a road accident also reveals her affair, and his step-daughter is being expelled from university for drug use. Professionally, two teenagers have gone missing and one is soon found dead.An ordinary man might break under the strain, but Dylan is no ordinary man. He knows that his survival depends on him carrying-on regardless, burying himself in his work, relieved by the distraction of newcomer to the admin department, Jennifer Jones.His determination to pursue the criminal elements behind the events – both personal and professional – is to be his salvation, and his relationship with Jen, his ‘Guardian Angel’, will turn out to be the mainstay of his future, both within the Force and at home.Life may have changed, but nothing will stand in the way of Dylan’s determination to seek justice.

    Davis Prize for Fiction "Storm Riders examines the conflicted love of a single father struggling to raise his adopted Native American son, who was born with fetal alcohol syndrome. When a small girl mysteriously drowns near a student-housing complex, the boy is implicated and the father wrestles with his own doubt, guilt, and responsibility. Bringing to life the austere beauty of the Tlingit Alaskan village of the boy's family, as well as the highly educated pockets of the East Coast, Lesley vividly portrays a father and a son struggling to come to terms with each other and above all, with the truth. This novel, as "The Chicago Tribune noted, is "a powerful tale with a strong emotional core."

    They're inching towards that ultimate dream - buying their own land. Fenward's always been lucky with its sharemilkers: grateful, grafting folk who understand what's expected of them. Until now, when grief-stricken Ian Baxter and his precocious daughter, Gabrielle, arrive.Nickie Walker is enchanted by the glamour and worldliness of Gabrielle. Nickie's mother finds herself in the crossfire of a moral battle she dreads to confront. Each has a story to share.This is a coming-of-age story for two young girls who hold a mirror up to the place and people they love. It's a coming-of-age story, too, for a community forced to stare back at the image of a damaged soul.The question is: who will blink first?

    Orphaned during the Depression, he steals food to survive. When mischief lands him in juvenile court, he's offered a home by fellow ward member David Boone, but then suffers under Boone's unkind and unyielding treatment. And after Artie helps the victim of a robbery gone bad, he's abandoned by Boone and sentenced to juvenile hall. Then his luck and his life suddenly change. Mary Wilkerson, the feisty widow who was robbed, sees potential in Artie and takes him into her custody. Ray McCandless, the wise yet firm chauffeur, teaches Artie about cars, life, and the connections between the two. Under their care, Artie develops the desire and the ability to leave his past behind and grasp the hope in his future, which shines like Mary's luxurious Dusenberg. But when cornered by old enemies, will he defend his honor with his life? Jerry Borrowman masterfully combines emotion, morality, suspense, and humor in this tender coming-of-age story. Readers will struggle and rejoice with Artie as he discovers the value of integrity, the sweetness of family ties, and the reality of the American dream. And they will never forget the triumph that unfolds when a good boy with bad problems is given one last chance.

    To uncover the names of her attackers who played a brutal role in her abduction and vicious assault over a year ago, then lure them—one by one, to their demise. As fate would have it, there’s someone else who has also been scheming for information about the events leading up to her kidnapping. And in one night, Pasha’s life is suddenly turned upside, refueling her desire for revenge. As a result, unsuspected alliances are formed, new friendships are forged, and Pasha finds herself entangled with someone who may be as ruthless as she is fabulous. Suddenly, as lies unfold and truths are told, Pasha’s thirst for payback takes on a dramatic new twist, causing her to weave a dangerous web of seduction—using her greatest assets: her mesmerizing beauty and sexual prowess—to get what she wants, by whatever means necessary. But before she can take down the cold-blooded man she once loved and his goons, she must first confront the one person who deceived and hurt her the most. And those around her will soon learn that betrayal can cost you everything, including your life.

    Their blood merged and formed a new species of shape shifters that changed the dark world forever—the Sycamore. The Sycamore is a unique species of shifters that have not only been in the realm of humans but in the realm of the supernatural as well. Among all shape shifters, Sycamores cannot be killed by silver. Only ten Sycamores have been in existence. Their death is brought forth by the curse of mortality caused by the cutting of one’s own flesh while denouncing the bloodline. This has happened because a Sycamore would end up falling in love with a human. This 17,000 word Novella is Part 1 of a six part series. This story is written by Joni Grimes, whose love for everything paranormal has created an unquenchable thirst to tell fascinating stories. Sycamores provided blood to the ancient lycans and vampires. Their shape shifter blood helped the vampire and the lycan bloodlines survive for the longest time. As more dark creatures merge and proliferate, the Sycamores continued to dwindle in number. Now, the future of the Sycamores lies in the hands of the last two who are yet to find each other.

    They captivate us with their forbidden mystery and promises of excitement. Yet once inside us, they become toxic; compelling us to infect others, who in turn want nothing more than to be bitten. It's a vicious cycle that ensures nothing remains secret forever. The only way to protect yourself from their destructive energies is to simply turn the other way when offered one. To resist the lure of the forbidden fruit. But sometimes, something just happens to you - or you just happen to witness something - that forces one upon you; like an uninvited guest that arrives without warning, and leaves only under great duress. Unfortunately, I have been burdened by such a secret for over twenty years. You see, my childhood was stolen from me in broad daylight, right under my nose, by a cunning thief who dazzled me with his charms, only to run away with my innocence forever. It was the perfect crime, and at the time I was the perfect victim. But thankfully, I was able to pick up the pieces of my life and gradually go on to live quite normally. In fact, I even forgot all about my childhood trauma. Or so I thought. Because it was during a recent chance encounter with my old teenage diary that I realized my demons had never truly left me. They had only been lurking in the shadows all along as I busied myself with other things. I suppose I learned the hard way that a secret kept in darkness only grows in potency.  But there is one way to diffuse a secret. To take away all of its power. And that is to make it public. For no vampire can survive in the cold light of day. So it is at the behest of my wonderfully supportive husband that I have decided to lay bare the ghosts of my childhood in this book, in the hope that in doing so, I'll finally be able to lay them to rest forever. It's been a long, hard journey for me to get to this point. And I thank you, dear reader, for playing your part in my recovery. Emily WARNING: This book is based upon a true story of child abuse, and as such contains passages that some readers may find disturbing.

    51 pages of summaries and analysis on Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks.This study guide includes the following sections: Plot Summary, Chapter Summaries & Analysis, Characters, Objects/Places, Themes, Style, Quotes, and Topics for Discussion.

    A serial killer, a seller of computers and a young Muslim girl’s lives are connected by a series of tragic events. DC Rosie Probert investigates the gangland shooting of a Brixton man, but could his brother really be responsible for a number of vigilante reprisals? A story of coincidence, murder, terrorism, and vengeance, Precarious Infatuations will thrill, frighten, and enthral you.

    Nothing in life was handed to her, she had to work for it. Although she was smart academically none of that mattered, school wasn't an option, bills had to be paid. Using her doting eyes, alluring smile, and firm back side, Yssa was determined to keep a roof over her head, food in her stomach and clothes on her back. When life takes a sharp right turn she finds herself running into Pierre.Pierre wasn't your typical guy. With a hardworking single mother his priority was school and sports. Being skilled in multiple sports landed him opportunities that would have him set for life, until he meets her. The moment his eyes met Yssa, the hood chick with the 'around the way girl' persona, he falls in love. Determined to help her out of her bind, Pierre goes out of his way to make Yssa see herself for the queen she truly is. He loves her, breathes her, cherishes her; however, in Yssa eyes he's just her best friend.Pierre isn't Yssa typical pick in guys, she was a hood chick that craved that hood love. He was too well mannered, too attentive, too motivating, too good for her tainted soul. Pierre's good boy ways was only enough to earn him a seat in the friend zone, where Yssa felt he was safe. When unfortunate events separate the two Yssa is forced to reevaluate herself and the choices she's made; however, her revaluations may be a little too late.

    Running wild and free on the veldt. Elephants and giraffe for playmates. What more could a child want? As a builder for the then-Rhodesian government, Dad's job was low-paying and demanding. We were sent to areas where there were few trappings of civilization, such as electricity or potable water. My siblings and I ran barefoot in the bush and swam in crocodile and parasite-infected rivers. We were never clean. We loved it.Our camps were spartan and makeshift, and scorpions, spiders, and snakes regularly invaded our space. There were no schools. I was home-schooled by Mom. Then, at age eight, my parents sent me to a religious boarding school; an institution ripped straight out of the pages of Dickens. It was there I discovered not all adults were kind or empathetic people. In the bush, we were forced to create our own amusements--making our smash hit movie on a riverbank, or writing plays that we produced on a squeaky, portable 8-track tape recorder. We spent sultry nights playing poker in our caravan, reading books, and writing stories. My parents were artists and writers; creative, but not the most practical people. They made mistakes, and in 1963 a whopping blunder bankrupted us and forced our family back into the bush. This memoir will take the reader through my life from birth in 1950 to the abrupt end of my childhood in 1969. Tea, Scones, and Malaria is a story about my family's gypsy-like trek through the African bushveld. It is about loneliness, poverty, dysfunction, and tropical diseases. It is also the laugh-out-loud memoir of a child who finds ways to entertain herself and survive in a world that is the literal definition of wild. How I survived it all, I will never know.