Book picks similar to
Thirty Something: Nothing's How We Dreamed It Would Be by Filipa Fonseca Silva


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Flower of Heaven


Julien Ayotte - 2012
    The romance and danger juxtaposed with universal twists and confused identities create an interesting read. It's a thriller that doesn't quit. From his serene parish in Lincoln, Rhode Island, Father Richard Merrill had led a seemingly quiet life as a man of the cloth, shepherding his flock toward the solace of a higher power. Now, the core of his beliefs and his being is propelled into the darkest chaos. What's more, it's all for the sake of his very own flesh and blood, two sons who were long ago given up for adoption. Their mother, Francoise Dupont, a former gallery director at the Louvre, has since married an Arab prince. And herein lies the trouble. The bloodlines of the sons place them in line to succeed her gravely ill husband, now the king. More than a few of the king's enemies are consumed with stopping them from ascending to the throne.With help from the FBI, the CIA, and an aging mercenary, the race is on. From France to Haiti, the United States, and the Middle East, Merrill will take whatever measures necessary to save his sons and unmask the scent of the Flower of Heaven. With evocative detail, high-flying action, and ingenious plot twists, Flower of Heaven is a searing, brilliantly crafted literary debut that will keep readers hungry for every enthralling page. It's a heart-stopping work that spans continents, while mining the deep channels of the human heart. Recent Awards for Flower of Heaven 2013 New York Book Festival, Honorable Mention, General Fiction Indie Book of the Day, March 19, 2013 ˃˃˃ Flower of Heaven Would Make a Great Movie. Providence Journal columnist Bill Reynolds, said, “Flower of Heaven, the fast-paced global thriller by Rhode Island writer Julien Ayotte would make a great movie.” ˃˃˃ Read the book everyone is talking about Scroll up and grab a copy today. Join the hundreds of readers enjoying Flower of Heaven

Expectation


Anna Hope - 2019
    Living on the edge of a common in East London, their shared world is ablaze with art and activism, romance and revelry - and the promise of everything to come. They are electric. They are the best of friends.Ten years on, they are not where they hoped to be. Amidst flailing careers and faltering marriages, each hungers for what the others have. And each wrestles with the same question: what does it take to lead a meaningful life?The most razor-sharp and heartbreaking novel of the year, EXPECTATION is a novel about finding your way: as a mother, a daughter, a wife, a rebel.

Second Chance


Jane Green - 2007
    In her latest book, Green tells the story of a group of people who haven’t seen each other since they were best friends at school. When one of them dies in a terrible tragedy, the reunited friends work through their grief together and find that each of their lives is impacted in ways they could have never foreseen. Warm, witty, and as wise as ever, this is a story of friendship, of family, and of life coming full circle.

I Don't Know How She Does It


Allison Pearson - 2001
    But when she finds herself awake at 1:37 a.m. in a panic over the need to produce a homemade pie for her daughter's school, she has to admit her life has become unrecognizable. With panache, wisdom, and uproarious wit, I Don't Know How She Does It brilliantly dramatizes the dilemma of every working mom.

The Improbability of Love


Hannah Rothschild - 2015
    Soon she finds herself drawn unwillingly into the tumultuous London art world, populated by exiled Russian oligarchs, avaricious Sheikas, desperate auctioneers and unscrupulous dealers, all scheming to get their hands on her painting - a lost eighteenth-century masterpiece called ‘The Improbability of Love’. Delving into the painting’s past, Annie will uncover not just an illustrious list of former owners, but some of the darkest secrets of European history – and in doing so she might just learn to open up to the possibility of falling in love again.

Some Kind of Wonderful


Giovanna Fletcher - 2017
    Now, after celebrating a decade together, everyone thinks they're about to get engaged. A romantic escape to Dubai is the perfect moment, but instead of the proposal Lizzy hopes for, Ian reveals he's not sure he even wants her anymore.Lizzy is heartbroken. But through the tears, she realises this is her chance to seize the opportunities she missed as Ian's other half. But what does she want? How much of her is really Lizzy, and how much was Ian's influence? Determined to discover who she is at heart, Lizzy sets out to rediscover the girl she was before - and in the meantime, have a little fun . . .

There's Cake in My Future


Kim Gruenenfelder - 2010
    Melissa (Mel), still ringless after dating the same man for six years, deserves the engagement ring charm. The red hot chili pepper would be perfect for Seema, who is in love with her best male friend Scott, but can't seem to make their relationship more than platonic. And recently laid off journalist Nic wants the shovel, which symbolizes hard work, to help her get her career back on track. Nic does everything she can to control who gets which silver keepsake - as well as the future it represents. But when the charmed cake is mysteriously shifted from the place settings Nic arranged around it, no one gets the charm she chose for them. And when the other party guests' fortunes begin coming true, Mel, Seema, and Nic can't help but wonder.... Is the cake trying to tell them something?

Thursdays in the Park


Hilary Boyd - 2011
    At first Jeanie was determined to confront him, but days rolled into weeks, then years, and still she has no idea why it happened. Did she do something wrong? Is he in love with someone else? George won’t talk about it. Every Thursday, Jeanie takes her granddaughter to the park, and there she meets Ray, who performs the same weekly duty for his grandson. Ray seems to be everything George isn’t – a listener, easy to talk to, open-minded – and sexy. Suddenly Jeanie feels attractive again and, against her will, finds herself falling in love with him. She knows all too well that her new passion threatens everything she holds dear. She must make a choice. Family ties, dramas, secrets and lies all weave their way though this beautiful and insightful first novel written by an author who has the perfect experience to write it.

Love the One You're With


Emily Giffin - 2008
    This is the story for anyone who has ever wondered: How can I truly love the one I'm with when I can't forget the one who got away?Ellen and Andy's first year of marriage doesn't just seem perfect, it is perfect. There is no question how deep their devotion is, and how naturally they bring out the best in each other. But one fateful afternoon, Ellen runs into Leo for the first time in eight years. Leo, the one who brought out the worst in her. Leo, the one who left her heartbroken with no explanation. Leo, the one she could never quite forget. When his reappearance ignites long-dormant emotions, Ellen begins to question whether the life she's living is the one she's meant to live. Love the One You're With is a powerful story about one woman at the crossroads of true love and real life.

Kisses in the Snow


Debbie Macomber - 2019
    This Christmas, Noelle is home to celebrate, and she and Thom discover they are still in love. Now only the decades-old rivalry between their mothers stands in the way of a second chance together.Let It SnowWhen Shelly Griffin's plane is rerouted due to weather, she's stuck sharing the last available rental car with Slade Garner. She's not immediately convinced she likes him, but she sure is attracted to him! All those hours they spend together show her that this is a man who could change her life. Shelly's special gift that she's bringing her dad might turn out to be a son-in-law!

After You'd Gone


Maggie O'Farrell - 2000
    A few hours later, Alice is lying in a coma after an accident that may or may not have been a suicide attempt. Alice's family gathers at her bedside and as they wait, argue, and remember, long-buried tensions emerge. The more they talk, the more they seem to conceal. Alice, meanwhile, slides between varying levels of consciousness, recalling her past and a love affair that recently ended. A riveting story that skips through time and interweaves multiple points of view, After You'd Gone is a novel of stunning psychological depth and marks the debut of a major literary talent.

The Secret Life of Sam Holloway: A Novel


Rhys Thomas - 2019
    Sam Holloway is a survivor, but he's not really living. His meticulous routines and quiet lifestyle keep everything nice and safe--with just one exception...Three nights a week, Sam dons his superhero costume and patrols the streets. It makes him feel invincible--but his unlikely heroics are getting him into some sticky situations.Then a girl comes along and starts to shatter the walls Sam has built around himself. Now he needs to decide if he's brave enough to take off the mask and confront the grief he's been avoiding for so long. Heartfelt and delightful, The Secret Life of Sam Holloway is a moving story about grief, love and the life-changing power of kindness.

The Rehearsal


Eleanor Catton - 2008
    When news spreads of a high school teacher's relationship with his underage student, participants and observers alike soon take part in an elaborate show of concern and dismay. But beneath the surface of the teenage girls' display, there simmers a new awareness of their own power. They obsessively examine the details of the affair with the curiosity, jealousy, and approbation native to any adolescent girl, under the watchful eye of their stern and enigmatic saxophone teacher, whose focus may not be as strictly on their upcoming recital as she implies.

The Marriage Plot


Jeffrey Eugenides - 2011
    In the cafés on College Hill, the wised-up kids are inhaling Derrida and listening to the Talking Heads. But Madeleine Hanna, dutiful English major, is writing her senior thesis on Jane Austen and George Eliot, purveyors of the marriage plot that lies at the heart of the greatest English novels. As Madeleine tries to understand why "it became laughable to read writers like Cheever and Updike, who wrote about the suburbia Madeleine and most of her friends had grown up in, in favor of reading the Marquis de Sade, who wrote about deflowering virgins in eighteenth century France," real life, in the form of two very different guys, intervenes. Leonard Bankhead - charismatic loner, college Darwinist, and lost Portland boy - suddenly turns up in a semiotics seminar, and soon Madeleine finds herself in a highly charged erotic and intellectual relationship with him. At the same time, her old "friend" Mitchell Grammaticus - who's been reading Christian mysticism and generally acting strange - resurfaces, obsessed with the idea that Madeleine is destined to be his mate. Over the next year, as the members of the triangle in this amazing, spellbinding novel graduate from college and enter the real world, events force them to reevaluate everything they learned in school. Leonard and Madeleine move to a biology laboratory on Cape Cod, but can't escape the secret responsible for Leonard's seemingly inexhaustible energy and plunging moods. And Mitchell, traveling around the world to get Madeleine out of his mind, finds himself face-to-face with ultimate questions about the meaning of life, the existence of God, and the true nature of love. Are the great love stories of the nineteenth century dead? Or can there be a new story, written for today and alive to the realities of feminism, sexual freedom, prenups, and divorce? With devastating wit and an abiding understanding of and affection for his characters, Jeffrey Eugenides revives the motivating energies of the Novel, while creating a story so contemporary and fresh that it reads like the intimate journal of our own lives.

Paint it Black


Janet Fitch - 2006
    But when she receives a call from the coroner, asking her to identify her lover's body, her bright dreams all turn to black. As Josie struggles to understand Michael's death and to hold onto the world they shared, she is both attracted to and repelled by his pianist mother, Meredith, who blames Josie for her son's torment. Soon the two women are drawn into a twisted relationship that reflects equal parts distrust and blind need.With the luxurious prose and fever pitch intensity that are her hallmarks, Janet Fitch weaves a spellbinding tale of love, betrayal, and the possibility of transcendence.