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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.
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)
Havana Girl
Colin Falconer - 2013
But it’s love that’s dangerous Havana, 1958. Magdalena Fuentes knows that Angel Macheda is the only man for her, even after he takes her virginity and then tells her he is engaged to someone else. She knows they are meant to be. So why can she not stop thinking about Reyes Garcia? From the moment I saw you, he says, I knew there would be no one else. From the moment I saw you, she tells him, I knew you were arrogant, conceited and rude. Magdalena is a girl who will not let sentiment stand between her and love. But as Fidel Castro’s rebels tighten their grip around the city and she watches her family and her whole life come apart, she learns hard lessons about love and about life. Against the backdrop of the boleristas and the gangsters, the music and the guns, Magdalena discovers just how dangerous love can be.
Decades
Ruth Harris - 1974
Three Decades.Spanning the years from the optimistic post-War 1940s to the Mad Men 1950s and rebellious “Make Love, Not War” 1960s, Decades is about three generations of women who must confront the radical changes and upended expectations presented by the turbulent decades in which they lived.Evelyn, talented but insecure, faithful to the traditional values she grew up with, is a loyal and loving wife and mother whose marriage and family mean everything to her.Nick, handsome and ambitious, a chameleon who changes with the changing times, is her successful but restless husband.Joy, their daughter, coming of age at a time of anger and rebellion, needs them both but is torn between them.Barbara is the other woman. Younger than Evelyn, accomplished but alone, she wonders if she can have everything--including another woman's husband.But can she? Is she willing to pay the price? And how will Evelyn handle her rebellious daughter, her straying husband and the threat to her identity?DECADES, sweeping in scope yet intimate in detail, is the emotional, compelling story of family, marriage, crisis, betrayal and healing.DECADES was originally published in hard cover by Simon & Schuster.
The Flower Hunter's Cottage
De-ann Black - 2015
Story:Mairead is a botanical artist, gardener and quilter. She leases the flower hunter's cottage in the Scottish Highlands. She plans to get away from the city and finish the floral artwork for her new book along with her quilt designs.As part of the lease agreement she has to take care of the traditional cottage garden while the owner, the flower hunter, is away working abroad, searching for a new species of flower.Mairead arrives at the cottage in January. After settling in, she meets handsome flower grower, Tavion, and Ethel a knitter who spins and dyes her own yarn. While making new friends, Mairead is keen to get on with her artwork and quilting - and get the garden ready for the spring and summer. Romance isn't on her to-do list, but when it comes to love, nothing goes according to plan.The Flower Hunter's Cottage is filled with flowers, artwork, knitting, quilting, baking cakes, gardening and romance.Note:Franklin and Daisy, characters from one of De-ann's other romance books - The Cure For Love, are mentioned in The Flower Hunter's Cottage. The Cure For Love is set in Cornwall and London.
The Wedding Caper
Laura Briggs
Instead of unmasking the charade, Gwen makes the split second decision to play along, and finds herself roped into the challenge of her small career with a socialite bride and her domineering mother. Juggling the outlandish requests–from firing “the best man” to renting hot air balloons–thrusts Gwen into the spotlight role she always dreamed of.Knowing she should escape before her true identity is exposed, Gwen clings to the masquerade for one reason: the handsome, boyish Ryan Miller. Whose opinions of the wedding fail to impress his bride-to-be, awakening Gwen’s sympathy for the seemingly forgotten groom.Stealing her boss’ identity? Now that was the easy part. The hard part is preventing her secret crush from stealing her heart away.
Better Together
Nicola May - 2011
She is single, sorted, happy – with a great job and a buzzy social and sex-life. All of this is threatened when she falls deeply in love with Dan, who is only 23. Jess, being older, recognises this as the real, precious thing – but in his immaturity, Dan does not. Unable to cope with the stigma of being with an older woman, he eventually leaves her. Ten years pass…Jess, who is still gorgeous at 50, is married now, with a child of her own.They meet again. The years fall away.This time, Dan understands – but is it too late?
Auld Acquaintance
Ruth Hay - 2010
Anna has a part-time job in a library, and a group of good friends, but her hopes for a brighter future are growing dim. Unexpectedly, she receives a legal letter informing her that she has inherited a piece of property in Scotland. Her first instinct is to ignore this letter as she has no knowledge of the person named as the owner. Anna's friends persuade her to travel to Scotland and stay until she can decide how to dispose of the farm house near Oban. So begins an adventure which opens up prospects for Anna and introduces her to a new environment and new people who help her. Will Anna adjust to living in a farm house with the minimum of amenities?Will she solve the family mystery of the unknown relative who has bestowed this legacy on her?Will she leave Canada for Scotland or return to her homeland and her safe life there?
Flings and Arrows
Debbie Viggiano - 2012
Steph thought they were soulmates. Until recently. Surely one’s soulmate shouldn’t put Chelsea FC before her? Or boycott caressing her to fondle the remote control? Fed up, Steph uses her Tesco staff discount to buy a laptop. Her friends all talk about Facebook. It’s time to get networking.Si is worried about middle-age spread and money. Being a self-employed plumber isn’t easy in recession. He’s also aware things aren’t right with Steph. But Si has forgotten the art of romance. Although these days Steph prefers cuddling her laptop to him. Then Si’s luck changes work wise. A mate invites Si to partner up on a pub refurbishment contract.Son Tom has finished Sixth Form. Tom knows where he’s going regarding a career. He’s not quite so sure where he’s going regarding women and lurches from one frantic love affair to the next.Widowed neighbour June adores the Garveys as if her own kin. And although 70, she’s still up for romance. June thinks she’s struck gold when she meets salsa squeeze Harry. He has a big house and bigger pension – key factors when you’ve survived a winter using your dog as a hot water bottle. June is vaguely aware that she’s attracted the attention of fellow dog walker Arnold, but her eyes are firmly on Harry as ‘the catch’.
But then Cupid’s arrow misfires causing madness and mayhem. Steph rekindles a childhood crush with Barry Hastings; Si unwittingly finds himself being seduced by barmaid Dawn; June discovers Harry is more than hot to trot; and Tom's latest strumpet impacts on all of them. Will Cupid's arrow strike again and, more importantly, strike correctly? There's only one way to find out....
An Event to Remember. . .or Forget
Melissa Baldwin - 2014
Her days of slaving away at Carrie’s Classic Events and More are numbered as she is on the brink of launching her own event planning company. Her relationship with Luke Price is headed in the right direction and they are approaching their one-year mark. The future is looking bright and she knows that life could not get any better . . . That is until her perfectly planned world is thrown upside down by the unexpected arrival of someone from Luke’s past. She receives the shock of her life on the night of the biggest event of her career. Sienna will now have to pull it all together without a list or a plan. The question is, can she do it?
The Billionaire's Mistletoe Baby (a short Christmas story...) (Holiday Babies)
Tabitha Robbins - 2013
Laurel Ashwood needs a miracle. All her six-week old daughter wants for Christmas is a daddy...just for the holidays while Nana visits from Montana. Laurel and her former boss, construction tycoon Nick St. John, used to share a chemistry. But will Nick want to cooperate? Six months ago, she’d left him without a word. Nick can’t believe Laurel is back. Now he can finish what they’d begun months before. But he won’t accept a “couple of days.” If Laurel wants him to play along with a fake engagement, he’s got his own naughty and nice list. A kiss under the mistletoe is just the beginning.
Winter Affair
Doreen Owens Malek - 1985
Kyle Reardon was paying his last respects to a man everyone believed he had wronged.Leda knew Reardon was accused of destroying both her father's business and his life. She knew the townspeople scorned him as an outcast. She knew he was the one man she should avoid at all costs. But one glimpse of the pain and determination in his bleak gray eyes told her he was also the one man she could never turn away from.
Kiss Me Forever
Barbara Freethy - 2014
But whenever she is on the trail of a big story, things just... happen. Andrea is given one last chance to prove herself with the cover story on sexy billionaire heartbreaker, Alexander Donovan. The wealthy philanthropist appears to be living the American dream, but Andrea is determined to uncover the real story. When Alex’s secrets are revealed, Andrea will have to choose between climbing the ladder of success or falling in love…
Just In Case
Chrissie Manby - 2014
Though they were born within three minutes of each other and spent their childhoods dressed in matching outfits, they’ve grown up to have less in common than Kim Kardashian and the Duchess of Cambridge. So both women are horrified when a luggage mix-up means that sensible Clare must attend a company conference in the United States with Rosie’s suitcase full of pink, frills and stripper heels, while flamboyant Rosie heads for a friend’s destination wedding in Italy's Tuscany with Clare’s case full of suiting and sensible courts. Both believe wearing the other’s clothes is going to ruin their chances: Clare’s of getting a promotion and Rosie’s of getting a snog. But as three days of literally having to walk in each other’s shoes unfold, will the sisters discover they should try to be more like each other after all? This exclusive new novella (short novel at around 100 pages) by Chrissie Manby explores sisterhood, identity and love in a thoroughly summery way.
Secrets in the Sky
Pauline Wiles - 2015
From caving trips to rooftop pranks, it appeared nothing could hold her back, especially once she landed a dream job promising travel all over the world.But Sophie’s jet-setting lifestyle is not what it seems and she’s been spending more time in the quiet English village of Saffron Sweeting than she cares to admit. When her beloved Great Aunt Wol dies suddenly, Sophie loses one of the few people who truly know her. As friends, family and an old flame gather for the funeral, questions soon follow. Worse, Sophie finds herself increasingly attracted to the man most likely to expose her secrets. Can she manage to guard her past, yet finally follow her long-held dream?Featuring both new and familiar characters, this stand-alone romantic comedy is set two years before Saving Saffron Sweeting. With side helpings of British tea, cake and wit, Secrets in the Sky explores how finding the courage to be yourself can be the toughest challenge of all.