Book picks similar to
The Wild Child by Anne Baker
fiction
anne-baker
bought-charity-shop
family
Kill Order / Vendetta
Jack McSporran - 2017
Beautiful. On the run. When secret agent Maggie Black agrees to protect the Mayor of London, she thinks she’s in for a boring night of babysitting. The simple job gets a lot more complicated when an assassin arrives and takes out the Mayor, framing Maggie as the killer. Unable to explain the evidence against her, Maggie is branded a traitor and hunted by the very people she once fought beside. With no one to turn to, Maggie relies on the one person who has always had her back—herself. From the hidden nightclubs of Madrid, to the dark streets of Moscow, Maggie must delve into the depths of the criminal underworld to unearth the truth, and fast. Because time is running out and the enemy is closer than she thinks… KILL ORDER is the first gripping installment to the Maggie Black thriller series, and the perfect read for fans of Lee Child and James Patterson. Venice. The Mafia. A drug deal gone wrong. When a British covert intelligence agency learns of an impending drug deal between the Venetian mafia and one of the UK’s most notorious importers, agent Maggie Black is sent to stop it. Under the alias of an American drug lord, Maggie must infiltrate the crime family and stop their product from reaching British soil. A feat that gets more complicated when her colleague and old flame Leon is sent along with her. Maggie is soon thrust into the middle of a vicious war that spans generations. As blood is spilled and the scent of death lingers across the lagoons, a failed mission becomes the least of her worries. Because someone has a score to settle and they won't let Maggie stand in their way... Join Maggie Black in VENDETTA, the first heart-pounding novella in the Maggie Black Case Files series. Get your copy of the Starter Library today and discover the action-packed world of Maggie Black.
The Sixpenny Winner
Alexandra Connor - 2002
Ada falls in love with Clem Hargreaves, a young man also from the slums whom her mother strongly disapproves of, and fate plays a cruel hand when a tragic accident occurs. But worse is yet to follow and when Ada’s mother is found dead, she is left with guilt and remorse. Ada’s strength and determination pulls her through and together with her husband, they work hard to achieve their ambition of owning their own pub. The Sixpenny Winner soon becomes successful despite the depression and Ada and Clem Hargreaves find love and fulfilment with their two daughters. However when two brothers join them to help with the heavy work, Ada goes against her instinct and soon realises that her family is being torn apart and discovers evil and revenge of a kind she has not encountered before where all their lives are never the same again. Dramatic, heartbreaking and heart-warming, betrayals and full of passion, The Sixpenny Winner is the best yet from Alexandra Connor.
Gideon & Kylie (Buckley, Texas: Rolling Star Ranch Series Book 1)
Sharon Gillenwater - 2016
Wealthy and powerful, when something goes wrong, people expect him to make it right. But what can he do when his cousin leaves his bride standing at the altar? Court her himself. Kylie Beth Webster has a thriving business and is totally committed to helping revitalize downtown Buckley. Brokenhearted, humiliated, and furious, she isn’t about to fall into a rebound romance with another sweet talkin’, good lookin’ cowboy. Not even if he’s kind, upstanding, and her longtime friend. But Gideon isn’t simply trying to make amends for his cousin’s behavior. He’s determined to marry the woman he loves. All he has to do is convince her that his love is real – and win her heart.
Defector (Phantom Air Combat Book 1)
David Gledhill - 2013
Surely he is above suspicion? With thoughts of defection in his mind, and flying close to the Inner German Border, could he be tempted to make a daring escape across the most heavily defended airspace in the world? A flight test against a Mig fighter begins a sequence of events that forces his hand and after an unexpected air-to-air encounter he crosses the border with the help of British Phantom crews. How will Western Intelligence use this unexpected windfall? Are Soviet efforts to recover the advanced fighter as devious as they seem or could more sinister motives be in play? Defector is a pacy thriller which reflects the intrigue of The Cold War. It takes you into the cockpit of the Phantom fighter jet with the realism that can only come from an author who has flown operationally in the NATO Central Region.Scroll up now and Add to your cart.
Mattie's Girl: An Appalachian Childhood
Celia H. Miles - 2002
In stories deeply rooted in 1940s Appalachia, June chronicles the years between meeting the irrepressible PeeDee and losing her. She struggles to understand her mother's indifference, her father's divided love, her grandmother's sudden death, her grandfather's being institutionalized. Three years later, PeeDee, riding the rails west, brings a final gift and the truth about Cade's murder. In this world forever gone, June survives and triumphs through the grace of family and friendship. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Celia H. Miles, a native of Jackson County in western North Carolina, now lives in Asheville. She attended Brevard College and Berea College and has graduate degrees from UNC-Chapel Hill and Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). She taught at Brevard College and Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College. A long-time instructor of English, she now spends her time writing, photographing old mills and stone circles, and traveling. She has co-authored a college textbook, has published romance novels, historical and contemporary novels, along with stories and poems in various markets, and co-edited three women’s writing anthologies. Some of this material has been published in modified form in the following: “The Big Sycamore” in Cricket (October 2000) “Selling the Grit” in Yesterday’s Magazette (July-October 1998) “Backsliding” in Victoria Press (2000) “Going to the Dentist” in Victoria Press (1999)
The Chieftains of South Boston
Stephen Burke - 2011
His two older brothers never left and are at the top of their respective games—politics and the Irish Mafia. At the wedding, family fireworks go off in spectacular fashion and end with an incident that sends the whole city of Boston into turmoil. An intense seven-day drama creates the ultimate test for the three brothers: how to be loyal to family, to friends and to a place called home.
Escape to Sunrise Cottage: A Fabrian Books' feel-good novel
Zara Thorne - 2017
When artist Violet Brooke leaves her engagement ring on top of a Chinese wedding cabinet and runs away from the trendy apartment in London’s Brick Lane, there’s only one place to go – Sunrise Cottage. All she wants is to cosy up in her rural retreat, concentrate on her painting, and forget about Jayden Fox, bad boy of the East End art scene – he’s certainly forgotten about her. The last thing she needs is romance. Then handsome antique dealer Max Finch shows up in the middle of a field and the problem is, he’s impossible to resist. For Max, meeting Violet – and falling in love with her at first sight – is a turning point. His ex-wife, Sarah, has bipolar, and Max still feels partly responsible for her well-being. But Sarah has others to care for her now, and Max knows that if he is to win Violet’s trust, he must put her first. Max is not the only complication in Violet’s rural idyll. Before long, she’s shocked to discover that somebody wants her gone from the village, and they’re making sure she knows about it. But who? And why? Is this Violet’s cue to head back to London and pick up her real life? Or is Sunrise Cottage – and Max Finch – as real as it gets?
The Strategist
William Cunningham - 2013
. . and how long would you live? When a disgraced former top Wall Street strategist starts to suspect the U.S. employment data is being manipulated to influence the Presidential election, he knows no one is going to listen. But when several people show up dead, a provocative reporter, who happens to be his ex-fiancée, takes notice. As they uncover a web of secrets, lies, and corruption, they are forced to choose between ambition, loyalty and love to save their lives . . . and the global economy. Set in the aftermath of the financial crisis, The Strategist is a fast paced, plot twisting thriller straight from today's headlines by a former Wall Street insider. But could it be real? Read it, then look at the recent employment data and decide for yourself!
The Dog Got It All
Robert McCullough - 2015
Phipps is “one of those rescues who are all the rage these days,” an upscale Manhattan dog with a rich owner, a great dog walker and an idyllic New York lifestyle. But his world is turned upside down when his owner, Angie DeSoto, suddenly passes from pancreatic cancer. The good news is that Angie leaves her millions to Mr. Phipps and he finds himself temporarily in the care of Devin McCloud, his dog walker and best bud. The bad news is that her adult children, a contentious clan at best, are furious about being left out in the cold, money-wise. And there's more. According to the terms of the will, Mr. Phipps and his millions will go to one of Angie's progeny, specifically the one best qualified to take care of him. After a brief trial period in which each one takes the dog, their efforts will be judged by a panel of dog experts – a famous, Cesar Millan-style dog trainer, a pet psychic and a renowned behaviorist. To further complicate matters, love will strike on several fronts as Mr. Phipps tells his story and his fate unfolds in this charming canine romantic comedy that reads like a date night version of "Marley and Me".
New Doctor at Chestnut House: A Fabrian Books' Feel-Good Novel (Bramblewick Book 1)
Sharon Booth - 2017
Is home a place—or a person? Anna's about to leave Bramblewick behind. She's due to marry her childhood sweetheart in a few weeks, and then she'll be heading to Kent and a whole new life. Connor's a new arrival in Bramblewick. He's bringing with him a whole lot of baggage, and he's doubtful that this small village on the Yorkshire Moors is the ideal place for him and his daughter, Gracie. It's not easy for Anna, watching Connor move into her family home and take over from her beloved father at the local surgery, but she's determined to help him settle in and adjust to rural life, so that the villagers get the doctor they deserve. Connor's not convinced. This country practice is very different to what he's used to, and the locals have some strange expectations of their GP. Protective of Gracie and hiding behind self-constructed barriers, Connor struggles to adapt to life in Bramblewick. Can Anna convince him that this is the place where he and Gracie can finally find happiness? And can she convince herself that leaving Bramblewick is the right move for her?
Miss Alphie's Secret
David R. Johnson - 2010
Now that secret is about to be revealed--with potentially catastrophic geopolitical consequences.
Much Ado About a Kiss
Heather Tullis - 2017
Running the café she’d practically been raised in: Check. Her artwork in a gallery: Check. Volunteering on the library board: Check. The one thing she doesn’t need right now is a guy in her life—especially her brother’s irritating best friend from high school, so when the two men announce that they are moving home to start a ski and mountain bike shop in town, she isn’t pleased. If only she could completely forget that one kiss she and Austin shared in high school. Why does he have to upset her just-fine world? Not this time. Not if she can help it. But can she?
Joy School / Until The Real Thing Comes Along
Elizabeth Berg - 2005
Unable to fit in at school, she forges alliances where she can: with her housekeeper, with a pimply fellow misfit named Cynthia, and with the gorgeous Taylor, who gets her kicks out of shoplifting. Most frustrating of all is Katie's imperfect friendship with the proprietor of a local gas station, a handsome 23-year-old who shares her love of checkers but doesn't return her crush. With humour and an eye for telling detail, Berg conveys the way each uncompromising element of Katie's life ultimately offers her more than she had anticipated.Until The Real Thing Comes AlongPatty Murphy is facing that pivotal point in a woman's life when her biological clock ticks as insistently as a beating heart. Will she find Mr Right and start a family? But Patty is in love - with a man who is not only attractive and financially sound, but sensitive and warmhearted. There's just one small problem: He is also gay. Against her better judgment, and pleas from family and friends, Patty refuses to give up on Ethan. Every man she dates ultimately leaves her aching for the gentle comfort and intimacy she shares with him. But even as she throws eligible bachelors to the wayside to spend yet another platonic night with Ethan, Patty longs more and more for the consolation of loving and being loved. In the meantime she must content herself with waiting - until the real thing comes along . . .
Jam Butties and a Pan of Scouse
Maggie Clarke - 2017
The story covers Maggie Clarke's upbringing in the tenements close to the docks, the River Mersey and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal: an area notorious for having the worst slums in Britain, yet the closest community as well.At the tender age of 11, Maggie Clarke finds herself the matriarch of the family when her Irish mother runs off with another man. Leaving school at 14 to work at a local factory putting sticks into lollies, she is determined to make a better life for herself and her family - before starting her own family with her childhood sweetheart, who she marries at 19 after 'falling in the family way'. She has one night of married life with her husband before he is sent to India with the Navy and is devastated when she never hears from him again, presuming him a casualty of the war that is raging at home and abroad. Another tragedy strikes when Maggie's brother Tommy is also claimed by the war, leaving her father inconsolable, but Maggie knows life has to go on and falls in love with Joseph, an Irish settler who she has 8 children with. But her happiness is short-lived as her first husband suddenly appears out of the blue demanding a divorce, and her new husband drinks away what little money they have, returning in fits of rage that leave Maggie and her children hungry and afraid. Many times she is only able to feed her brood by the kindness of neighbours putting a 'pan of scouse' on the range for her, or feeding her kids jam butties to help out. Maggie's story sweeps across the changing face of Liverpool, from its squalid dock streets, the tenement blocks and cobbled roads to the decline of the docklands, new council housing, the rise of the Mersey beat, the Beatles and the energy and passion of a city that is home to a cast of colourful characters with the resilience to withstand the heartbreak and hardships that only the poorest can know.