Book picks similar to
Country Plot by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles


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Single in Suburbia


Wendy Wax - 2006
    Brooke is a trophy wife collecting dust. And Candace (Don’t call me Candy) has had too many husbands and too little love. What do these three unlikely accomplices have in common besides a Little League team called the Mudhens? A plot to reclaim a little r-e-s-p-e-c-t. And they’re going to do it with a mop and a bucket.Maid for You starts as a way for Amanda to make enough money to keep the roof over her kids’ heads after her husband splits for his midlife crisis. But when Candace and Brooke join her, it becomes much more. Donning disguises, they enter the homes of those who once spurned them and discover more than just clutter in the closets of their neighbors’ otherwise tidy lives. But when Amanda takes on the job of cleaning the home of the town’s most eligible hunk, someone decides to do her dirty. Now Amanda, Brooke, and Candace are on a mission to prove that being single in suburbia isn’t a crime–even if it does lead to some irresistible temptations….

The Fairbairn Girls


Una-Mary Parker - 2013
    1891: The rich, aristocratic Fairbairn family have occupied Lochlee Castle in Argyllshire for the past five hundred years, and the current head of the family, the Earl of Rothbury, along with his wife, sons and daughters, all seem set for a happy future, until they fall victim to a wicked curse. Soon it seems the whole family is doomed, with tragedy and heartbreak around every corner. Can the surviving Fairbairns show bravery in adversity and carve out happy and successful lives, against all odds?

The Husband's Secret


Liane Moriarty - 2013
    Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret—something with the potential to destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others as well. Imagine, then, that you stumble across that letter while your husband is still very much alive. . . .Cecilia Fitzpatrick has achieved it all—she’s an incredibly successful businesswoman, a pillar of her small community, and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as her home. But that letter is about to change everything, and not just for her: Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilia—or each other—but they too are about to feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husband’s secret.Acclaimed author Liane Moriarty has written a gripping, thought-provoking novel about how well it is really possible to know our spouses—and, ultimately, ourselves.

The Beauty of Broken Things


Victoria Connelly - 2020
    In an effort to stay close to her, he reaches out to an online friend Helen often mentioned: a reclusive photographer with a curious interest in beautiful but broken objects. But first he must find her—and she doesn’t want to be found.Orla Kendrick lives alone in the ruins of a remote Suffolk castle, hiding from the haunting past that has left her physically and emotionally scarred. In her fortress, she can keep a safe distance from prying eyes, surrounded by her broken treasures and insulated from the world outside.When Luke tracks Orla down, he is determined to help her in the way Helen wanted to: by encouraging her out of her isolation and back into the world. But Orla has never seen her refuge as a prison and, when painful secrets and dangerous threats begin to resurface, Luke’s good deed is turned on its head.As they work through their grief for Helen in very different ways, will these two broken souls be able to heal?

Sunny Chandler's Return


Sandra Brown - 1987
    Never. Sunny Chandler always said she'd never go back to the tiny town where she grew up. It was just three years ago that she was at the center of a notorious scandal--and the good folks of Latham Green, Louisiana, made it clear they'd never let her forget it. So Sunny packed up and headed for New Orleans, and now she wouldn't give up city life for the world. But when she's invited to her best friend's wedding, Sunny has no choice but to go home. And with her return come the whispers...the looks...the rumors she tried to escape. It doesn't take Sunny long to see that Latham Green has nothing new to offer. Except maybe Ty Beaumont. The moment Ty and Sunny first meet at a party, he can see she's no ordinary woman. With her dazzling hair, and eyes the color of gold, she's a flesh-and-blood fantasy--and Ty vows he'll have her in his bed before the week is out. Yet even when he turns on his southern charm, Sunny makes it clear she's not interested. Sure, a night with Ty would be wilder than BourbonStreet at Mardi Gras. But Sunny's not in town to become some good ol' boy's latest conquest, no matter how sexy he is. Little does she know that Ty isn't used to taking no for an answer--and he isn't about to start now. Soon what began as an innocent flirtation becomes a tantalizingly slow, skillfully deliberate, and overwhelmingly seductive pursuit that even Sunny finds hard to resist. But resist him she will. For Sunny is harboring an agonizing secret--the painful truth of why she left Latham Green the way she did. What she really needs now is a friend--and that's when she discovers there may be more to Ty Beaumont than meets the eye. Despite his roguish facade, Sunny comes to see he has a heart of gold. Still, she doesn't know if she can trust another person with her secret heartbreak--not even the one man who may be able to heal it.

Lies, Lies, Lies


Adele Parks - 2019
    They’re a happy little family of three.So what if Simon drinks a bit too much sometimes—Daisy’s used to it. She knows he’s just letting off steam. Until one night at a party things spiral horribly out of control. And their happy little family of three will never be the same again.In Lies, Lies, Lies, #1 Sunday Times bestselling author Adele Parks explores the darkest corners of a relationship in free fall in a mesmerizing tale of marriage and secrets.Don't miss Woman Last Seen from #1 Sunday Times bestselling author Adele Parks!  Looking for more? Check out these other thrilling reads from Adele Parks:I Invited Her InJust My Luck

The Very Picture of You


Isabel Wolff - 2011
     At thirty-five, Gabriella Graham—“Ella” to her family and friends—has already made a name for herself as a successful portrait artist in London. She can capture the essential truth in each of her subjects’ faces—a tilt of the chin, a glint in the eye—and immortalize it on canvas. This gift has earned Ella commissions from royals and regular folks alike.But closer to home, Ella finds the truth more elusive. Her father abandoned the family when she was five, and her mother has remained silent on the subject ever since. Ella’s sister, Chloe, is engaged to Nate, an American working in London, but Ella suspects that he may not be so committed. Then, at Chloe’s behest, Ella agrees to paint Nate’s portrait.From session to session, Ella begins to see Nate in a different light, which gives rise to conflicted feelings. In fact, through the various people she paints—an elderly client reflecting on her life, another woman dreading the prospect of turning forty, a young cyclist (from a photograph) who met a tragic end—Ella realizes that there is so much more to a person’s life than what is seen on the surface, a notion made even clearer when an unexpected email arrives from the other side of the world. And as her portraits of Nate and the others progress, they begin to reveal less about their subjects than the artist herself.A picture is worth a thousand words, and in Isabel Wolff’s vibrant and textured story, these words are brilliantly crafted to convey the humor, mystery, and beauty that exists within each of us.

You And Me, Always


Jill Mansell - 2001
    On the same day, Lily also meets Eddie Tessler, a man fleeing fame who just might have the ability to change her world in unimaginable ways. But her childhood friend Dan has his own reasons for not wanting Lily to get too carried away by Eddie's attentions.Before long, secrets begin to emerge and Lily's friends and family become involved. In the beautiful Cotswold village of Stanton Langley, nothing will ever be the same again...

Welcome to Harmony


Jodi Thomas - 2010
    She's never had a real home of her own, but perhaps she could borrow someone else's. Under an assumed name and identity, she moves to Harmony, Texas, but keeps her distance from the welcoming townsfolk. Until prairie fires threaten Harmony-and Reagan learns the true meaning of family, friends, and home.

Into the Water


Paula Hawkins - 2017
    Earlier in the summer, a vulnerable teenage girl met the same fate. They are not the first women lost to these dark waters, but their deaths disturb the river and its history, dredging up secrets long submerged. Left behind is a lonely fifteen-year-old girl. Parentless and friendless, she now finds herself in the care of her mother's sister, a fearful stranger who has been dragged back to the place she deliberately ran from—a place to which she vowed she'd never return. With the same propulsive writing and acute understanding of human instincts that captivated millions of readers around the world in her explosive debut thriller, The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins delivers an urgent, twisting, deeply satisfying read that hinges on the deceptiveness of emotion and memory, as well as the devastating ways that the past can reach a long arm into the present. Beware a calm surface—you never know what lies beneath.

Afterwards


Rosamund Lupton - 2011
    They are in there...Black smoke stains a summer blue sky. A school is on fire. And one mother, Grace, sees the smoke and rush. She knows her teenage daughter Jenny is inside. She runs into the burning building to rescue her.Afterwards Grace must find the identity of the arsonist and protect her children from the person who's still intent on destroying them. Afterwards, she must fight the limits of her physical strength and discover the limitlessness of love.

Ghosted


Rosie Walsh - 2018
    To Sarah, it seems as though her life has finally begun. And it's mutual: It's as though Eddie has been waiting for her, too. Sarah has never been so certain of anything. So when Eddie leaves for a long-booked vacation and promises to call from the airport, she has no cause to doubt him. But he doesn't call.Sarah's friends tell her to forget about him, but she can't. She knows something's happened--there must be an explanation.Minutes, days, weeks go by as Sarah becomes increasingly worried. But then she discovers she's right. There is a reason for Eddie's disappearance, and it's the one thing they didn't share with each other: the truth.

The Debutante


Kathleen Tessaro - 2010
    Cate is sent to Devon with Rachel's colleague Jack to value the contents of Endsleigh, the grand Georgian home of a former socialite. But inside, its once elegant interiors are now worn with age and dust. Then Cate discovers hidden in the back of one of the bookshelves, an old shoebox containing an exquisite pair of silk dancing shoes from the 1930's along with a mysterious collection of objects - a diamond brooch, a photograph of a handsome young sailor, a dance card, and a beautiful pearl and emerald bracelet from Tiffany's. Unable to solve the questions in her own life, Cate quickly becomes engaged in solving the mystery of the shoe box and begins to unravel the story of Baby Blythe; bright, beautiful and reckless, she was the most famous debutante of her generation. The clues in the box reveal a tale of a dark, addictive love, a tale that will lead Cate to uncover some secrets of her own. A timeless novel from the bestselling author of Elegance.

Devil's Wind


Patricia Wentworth - 1912
    When Helen’s father dies, she moves in with Adela and her husband, the dashing Captain Richard Morton. Adela’s flirtatious behavior and imperious attitude set tongues wagging in the expatriate community, but when the spirit of rebellion spreads like wildfire amongst the sepoys of the East India Company, the time for gossip is over.   Fleeing the massacre at Cawnpore, Helen, Adela, and Captain Morton discover that the sins of yesterday are never forgotten, and that true love can blossom in even the most tragic of circumstances.   This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.

Save Me


Lisa Scottoline - 2011
    Lisa Scottoline is writing about real issues that resonate with real women, and the results are emotional, heartbreaking and honest.Rose McKenna volunteers as a lunch mom in her daughter Melly's school in order to keep an eye on Amanda, a mean girl who's been bullying her daughter. Her fears come true when the bullying begins, sending Melly to the bathroom in tears. Just as Rose is about to follow after her daughter, a massive explosion goes off in the kitchen, sending the room into chaos. Rose finds herself faced with the horrifying decision of whether or not to run to the bathroom to rescue her daughter or usher Amanda to safety. She believes she has accomplished both, only to discover that Amanda, for an unknown reason, ran back into the school once out of Rose's sight. In an instance, Rose goes from hero to villain as the small community blames Amanda's injuries on her. In the days that follow, Rose's life starts to fall to pieces, Amanda's mother decides to sue, her marriage is put to the test, and worse, when her daughter returns to school, the bullying only intensifies. Rose must take matters into her own hands and get down to the truth of what really happened that fateful day in order to save herself, her marriage and her family. In the way that Look Again had readers questioning everything they thought they knew about family, Save Me will have readers wondering just how far they would go to save the ones they love. Lisa Scottoline is writing about real issues that resonate with real women, and the results are emotional, heartbreaking and honest.