This beautifully written book will keep you up all night. There are plenty of clues and there are a lot of hints, but even when you put them all together, it will be close to impossible to puzzle your way to the ending. If you are looking for a book, you can't put down, then Governor's Road is just right for you. Excitement, frisky loving, a mystery of epic proportions and traditional southern pathos make this book a fun and rewarding read. The terrorized children of Governor’s Road grew up without resolution or closure to the most devastating event of their young lives. Their friend, a child their age, disappeared one afternoon and somehow, they never seem to learn what happened. Saddened parents decide to protect their children and the obvious fear recedes in the face of the calm that settles back over the neighborhood. But, fear never really disappears until it's confronted. As adults, JoBeth and Billy set out to discover what happened to little Petey Shiner. The answer brings them to conclusion that there is no perfect childhood, even in a perfect town in a perfect decade. Every town hides its secrets and puts on a good face, even at the expense of its residents. Along the way, JoBeth and Billy discover love and romance. Their kindling of love takes you to places you can only want to return to…and their future makes you happy. It’s their past that is so hard to reconcile. As well as a lot of fun, a dark mystery and hot southern romance, JoBeth and her friends also encounter the harsh reality of Alzheimer’s and aging. Sometimes, a loved one can be lost more than once. The malevolent specter of mental illness surfaces when the reader meets Lucius Sifer and begins to understand the unusual existence the boy leads. The ending is grim but satisfies that need everyone has for justice. The most humble people can achieve heroism without fanfare or acknowledgment. As always, enjoy your adventure into the south...and remember, thoughtful book reviews are welcomed with open arms. Please see Observations of a Transplanted Southern Belle for more of Laurie Byrne Smith's work.

     Struggling to make ends meet, Mary Anne Randall is offered no help by her drunk and abusive husband. A pawnbroking business run from the wash house at the back of her home is the only way she can hope to keep her three kids fed and clothed. But, as storm clouds gather over Europe, can Mary Anne break free from her loveless marriage for what might be a last chance at love...? Previously published as LOVING ENEMIES

    However, when Robert brings home a friend from medical school, Giles Kendall, it seems perhaps Pips might fall in love with an acceptable suitor after all. But the year is 1914 and the future is uncertain. Hearing that her father’s friend, Dr John Hazelwood, is forming a flying ambulance corps to take to the front lines, Pips is determined to become one of its nurses and asks Alice Dawson, her maid, to go with her. Robert and Giles offer their services as doctors, and Alice’s brother William joins them as a stretcher bearer. Nothing could have prepared them for the horrific sights they encounter. Moving their unit close to the fighting to offer first aid as quickly as possible puts them all in constant danger. But even amidst the barrage of shelling and gunfire, the unending stream of injured being brought to their post, the love between Pips and Giles survives and blossoms just like the poppies of Flanders fields.

    Then a single coin changed hands. A dismal cottage in the heart of Bolton, Lancashire, has been Sally’s prison since Joseph Goden 'bought' her from the workhouse as his wife. A drunkard and bully, Joseph rules her with a rod of iron, using fists and threats to keep her in check.When Sally gives birth, however, she knows she must do anything to save her child from her husband's clutches. She manages to escape, and taking her baby, flees for the belching chimneys of Manchester, in search of her only relative. But with the threat of discovery by Joseph, who will stop at nothing to find her, Sally must fight with every ounce of strength she has to protect herself and her son, and finally be with the man who truly loves her. For a fresh start does not come without a price . . . The bestselling debut saga novel of 2017. WHAT READERS ARE SAYING:'I was hooked on this story from the very first page' 'One of the best books I've read in a long while''I did not want the book to end''Loved every word'

    But it is there she is given a chance: for a brief, magical interlude in her otherwise harsh existence Amy finds joy in her new position as a lady’s maid. It seems as though her future might finally be assured. But Amy's introduction to the glittering Warminster family comes with its price: it's not long before Amy loses her innocence, and in the most cruel way imaginable. Subsequently caught in a horrid feud between a father and son, she is trapped between the pull of love and duty.Betrayed and alone, Amy is left facing a heartbreaking choice… A poignant and passionate love story from the author of Song of Songs, this is perfect for fans of Diney Costeloe and Margaret Dickinson. Praise for Roses Have Thorns “Good, long, satisfying… full of detail and good characterisation” Bella

    1942, Manchester World War Two is in full swing and Lily Mullins is determined to do her bit for the war effort. Her friends and sweetheart have all joined up and Lily's sure there must be a role for her that goes further than knitting socks for the troops! When she decides to volunteer for the Women's Auxiliary Air Force, Lily soon discovers that she has a talent as a wireless operator. Helped along the way by a special gang of girls, she finds strengths she didn't know she had and realises that the safety of the country might just be in her hands . . . Meanwhile, Danny is determined to marry Lily, but his letters home become more and more distant. Will a long separation mean the end of their love story?An uplifting and inspiring novel of women on the home front. '[The story] read so true to me and I really didn't want to put it down . . . It may be fiction but those things could, and did, happen.' Vera Morgan, wartime WAAF 'An impeccably researched and uplifting story of love, loss and courage: a heartwarming read that will captivate all those who love a good war story.' Clare Harvey, author of The Gunner Girl'A wonderful, inspiring story. I can't wait to read more from Shirley Mann.' Sheila Newberry

    

    A chance meeting between scullery maid Lizzy Parker and heiress Evie Creswell is about to break them all . . . Their meeting leads to more than an enduring friendship and a new job for Lizzy - it draws her into a world of privilege and intrigue and delivers her into the loving arms of a killer. Meeting the handsome but mysterious Jack Carlisle, Lizzy begins to fall for him despite rumours he had been involved in the death of Evie's father. As she becomes further embroiled in the dangerous life that Carlisle lives, she must decide if he can be trusted with the life of a close friend, and, ultimately, if he is worth the risk to her own . . . Perfect for fans of Nadine Dorries, Dilly Court and Annie Murray. The story continues in The Roses of Flanders Field, out now! 'This is the kind of novel that makes you look forward to bedtime so you can read some more - an epic true romance story' - Historical Novel Society *Shortlisted for RNA Best Historical Novel 2013*

    

    By this time, most of the Kiowa bands have been pushed west by the Lakota, who are on the move southward from the Great Lakes region. These invaders from the north want the game-rich, lush pasture lands of the territory for themselves. However, one small Kiowa band is determined to remain in their early homelands in the region of what will be one day known as eastern South Dakota. These two enemy tribes are brought face-to-face through the vision of a young Kiowa medicine man. Sky Dancer, a beautiful, Kiowa widow, and proud Lakota warrior, Dark Horse, are forced to marry in order to create an alliance between their peoples. Right from the beginning they clash in a test of wills, loathing each other on sight, making a happy marriage seem out of the question. Will the sacrifice that is asked of them save their tribes? Can these two enemies overcome their initial hatred to find love in unlikely place or will distrust keep them from the reward they both crave?

    In this epic family saga, set against the expansive and exhilarating backdrop of medieval Britain, we meet our hero Robin, the dispossessed son of the Earl of Waringham as he fights to reclaim his once prominent position in society. Expertly narrated by Miriam Margolyes OBE and featuring a full cast.

    She discovers a book written by Julian Winslett, a British war hero and writer, who was a young boy she cared for while working as a 16-year-old nanny in Bengal. His book is about those old days, and features the two of them as named characters. The 1920s British Raj was an era of expansive homes and gardens, elegant rail travel, and very strict divisions between Indians, Anglo-Indians and the British. For the rulers of India, it was a glorious period; but for Menakshi, it's a time she'd rather forget. She'd pushed away all her old feelings for Julian…but now they're back. As Menakshi reads Julian's book, she returns to a vanished world where luxury and deprivation co-exist in the same grand bungalow--and romance breaks all rules in the hills of Darjeeling and on the Bengal-Nagpur Railway. Menakshi's own recollections add suspense as his family heads toward rupture, and she is torn between loyalty toward the children and her own secret dreams. THE AYAH'S TALE is a 202-page novella by Sujata Massey, author of THE SLEEPING DICTIONARY, a longer novel set in British India that was published by Simon & Schuster in 2013. She is also the author of the contemporary Rei Shimura mystery novel series set in modern Japan, which starts with THE SALARYMAN'S WIFE.

    

    As weeks go by with no responses to his newspaper advertisement, he has taken to spending his days wandering idly about London rather than admit his failure to his beloved wife Julia, the former Lady Fieldhurst.One day, while loitering amidst the crowds thronging the Covent Garden market, he wonders morosely if it might have been better had he not been born at all. Then he sees one of his former colleagues and, in an attempt to make a discreet exit, contrives instead to knock himself unconscious.He awakens to discover that his Bow Street colleague doesn’t seem to remember him, and after staggering back home to Curzon Street, he finds someone else living in the house where he lived with Julia. But still greater surprises are in store for Pickett as he attempts to navigate his way through a world in which he never existed…With a wink and a nod to Frank Capra’s classic film IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, NOWHERE MAN offers an alternate version of many of the earlier entries in the John Pickett mystery series.

    Jane's dismayed when Edwin and Hilda become romantically involved; she knows that her father deserves happiness again after the death of her mother, but must it be with Hilda? With the help of her new fiance, Nick, Jane begins to unravel the shocking truth about Hilda's past - and soon she fears that Edwin may be about to take a step he will live to regret bitterly.