Never Too Late


Robyn Carr - 2006
    She's had it with her marriage to a charming serial cheater. Even her own son thinks she's given his father too many chances. With the support of her sisters, Maggie and Sarah, she's ready to move on. Facing her fortieth birthday, Clare is finally feeling the rush of unadulterated freedom.But when a near-fatal car accident lands Clare in the hospital, her life takes another detour. While recovering, Clare realizes she has the power to choose her life's path. The wonderful younger police officer who witnessed her crash is over the moon for her. A man from her past stirs up long-buried feelings. Even her ex is pining for her. With enthusiasm and a little envy, her sisters watch her bloom.Together, the sisters encourage each other to seek what they need to be happy. Along the way they all learn that it's never too late to begin again.

We Ain't Go No Drink, Pa


Hilda Kemp - 2015
    Too little money. An abusive father too drunk to notice his family is starving. This is the true story of a little girl's struggle to survive against the odds in the slums of 1920s south-east London.'We ain't got no drink, Pa.'I trembled as I spoke. Then somewhere inside me I found the anger, the courage to answer him back.'We don't have no grog cos you drank it all!'I knew he was going for me tonight, so I reckoned I might as well go down fighting after all.Growing up in the slums of 1920s and 30s Bermondsey, Hilda Kemp's childhood was one of chaos and fear. Every day was battleground, a fight to survive and a fight to be safe.For Hilda knew what it was to grow up in desperate poverty: to have to scratch around for a penny to buy bread; to feel the seeping cold of a foggy docklands night with only a thin blanket to cover her; to share her filthy mattress with her brothers and sisters, fighting for space while huddling to keep warm. She knew what it was to feel hunger - not the impatient growl of a tummy that has missed a meal; proper hunger, the type that aches in your soul as much as your belly.The eldest of five children, Hilda was the daughter of a hard drinker and hard hitter as well. A casual dockworker by day, a bare-knuckle fighter by night and a lousy drunk to boot, her pa honed his fists down the Old Kent Road and Blackfriars, and it was Hilda or her ma who bore the brunt of them at home.This is the powerful and moving memoir of Hilda's childhood growing up in dark, filthy, crime-ridden Bermondsey; a place where you knew your neighbours, where you kept your eyes down and your ears shut as defence against the gangs at war in the streets. It's a time when days were spent running wild down the docklands, jumping onto barges and stealing coal, racing through the dank back-streets of east London like water rats, dodging the milk cart or the rag-and-bone man.And out of this bleak landscape emerges a brave, resilient young girl whose life is a testament to the power of love and good humour. Moving, dazzling and sombre by turns, once opened this brilliant, seductive book will not let you rest.

Silver Toe Shoes Mari-chan #1-6


Kimiko Uehara - 1993
    

Frozen Fever


Walt Disney Company
    It's Anna's birthday and Elsa and Kristoff are determined to give her the best celebration ever, but Elsa's icy powers may put more than just the party at risk.

Never Say Die: RPA's Favourite Surgeon on his Life from Doctor to Patient


Chris O'Brien - 2008
    As he knew, few sufferers survive past 12 months. Nevertheless, he was determined to beat the odds.With the support of his close family, O'Brien took the option of radical brain surgery under the supervision of well-known neurosurgeon Dr. Charlie Teo. His health and relative youth - he was 54 when diagnosed - have helped him make the painful transition from doctor to patient, and renewed his faith in the importance of an optomistic outlook as the cornerstone of recovery.Here, in his warm and lively memoir, Chris O'Brien takes a look back over his life and the forces that have shaped him - from his modest beginnings and early years as a doctor, to becoming the popular face of RPA and his crusade for the establishment of cancer centres, through to the shocking news that literally changed his life.

The Shipyard Girls


Nancy Revell - 2016
    The foundation book of a series. Which I shall be reading as each one is written. Loved it.' - 5 star real reader reviewSunderland, 1940, and the women go to the shipyards to do their bit for the war effort.Polly never dreamed she would be able to work in the shipyards like the men in her family but times are tough and her new job ends up giving her more than she ever expected when she meets enigmatic dock diver Tommy Watts.During the day, head welder Rosie teaches her fledgling flock of trainees their new trade, but at night she hides a secret life.And mother hen Gloria signs up to escape her brutal husband, but finds she cannot run from her problems.The Shipyard Girls start off as strangers - but end up forging an unbreakable bond of friendship in the most difficult times.

Happy Home: Everyday Magic for a Colorful Life


Charlotte Hedeman Guéniau - 2013
    Happy Home brims with useful ideas for transforming a ho-hum home with relaxed contemporary style featuring bright colors, cheerful patterns, and varying textures and scale inspired by designer Charlotte Hedeman Gueniau and her home furnishings company Rice, which are well-known among design fans for innovative home furnishings and houseware collections featuring ethically sourced and produced products. The book shows how the basics of everyday life can be enlivened by bringing color and a sense of fun to daily living, whether by using brightly colored accessories or by introducing fabrics with patterns, textures, and hints of humor throughout the home. Included are practical suggestions that add informal charm to any room, as well as do-it-yourself projects ranging from brightly colored throws and cushions, storage ideas to hide clutter, hand-painted furniture, and decorative motifs for walls and other surfaces.

The Girl from Cobb Street


Merryn Allingham - 2015
    Forging her own way in the world, determined Daisy struggles to make ends meet as the country finds itself on the brink of the Second World War.Her fortunes change when she finds solace in the arms of Gerald Mortimer, a handsome cavalry subaltern in the Indian army. Finally, Daisy has found someone to love of her very own. But soon she discovers she’s pregnant and fate was never going to give her an easy ride.Gerald is not all he claims to be and, as he leads her along a path of danger and scandal, Daisy must find the strength within herself to get through her darkest hour.The Daisy’s War trilogyThe Girl from Cobb Street – Book 1The Nurse’s War – Book 2Daisy’s Long Road Home – Book 3Each story in the Daisy’s War series can be read and enjoyed as a standalone story – or as part of this compelling trilogy charting the fortunes of Daisy Driscoll.

Freeing Grace


Charity Norman - 2010
    They're finally approved to adopt a baby, Grace, but there's one thing they can't plan for - the Harrisons, Grace's birth family. The family send the charming Jake Kelly on a quest that will force a confrontation.

Bad Behaviour


Liz Byrski - 2009
    She works, she gardens and she loves her supportive husband Archie and their three children. But the arrival of a new woman into her son Daniel's life unsettles Zoe. Suddenly she is feeling angry and hurt, and is lashing out at those closest to her.In Sussex, England, Julia is feeling nostalgic as she nurses her best friend through the last painful stages of cancer. Her enthusiastic but dithering husband Tom is trying to convince Julia to slow down. Although she knows Tom means well, Julia cannot help but feel frustrated that he is pushing her into old age before she is ready. But she knows she is lucky to have him. She so nearly didn't...These two women's lives have been shaped by the decisions they made back in 1968 – when they were young, idealistic and naive. In a world that was a whirl of politics and protest, consciousness raising and sexual liberation, Zoe and Julia were looking for love, truth and their own happy endings. They soon discover that life is rarely that simple, as their bad behaviour leads them down paths that they can never turn back from.

Silverbacks and Second Chances: Complete Series Box Set


Harmony Raines - 2018
    She threw herself into raising her boys and showered them with love. Her sense of betrayal ran deep. After all, Hector had told her they were true mates, fated to be together forever. Now, another man is telling her the same thing. Can she believe in fate again? Can she risk opening her heart once more? She’s here. Catherine. His Catherine, the woman who Julius recognized as his mate on the exact same day she married another man. Lucky Bear Ruth is new in town. After spending years raising her siblings, she is now fulfilling her own ambitions. Training to be a teacher was the best thing she ever did, right alongside moving to Bear Creek. Sure, she’d like a man to share her life with, but if that doesn’t pan out, she is content to be alone. Michael lives a simple life. He might be a lottery winner, which earned him the name, lucky bear, but he knows money doesn’t buy you happiness. It does, however, buy you a large parcel of forest to call home. If only he had a mate to share it with, he’d be the happiest bear alive. Or cubs. And two cubs just walked into his life. Fostered by his best friend, Dean, Jason and Jenny are in need of a permanent home. Could he take them in and give them the life, and love, they deserve? Fated Bear Frankie’s heart isn’t her own. Literally. So how is she supposed to know if the man she’s met is her fated mate, or that of her borrowed heart? Can she trust in fate? Adam always though his fated true mate was dead. He’d built a life on the knowledge that he would be alone forever. Frankie turns all his plans upside down. Yet both of them have inner ghosts. Ghosts from the past that might destroy their future together. Song Bear Elise has known loss. Now she’s ready to love. Moving to Bear Creek was a big decision for bear shifter, Elise. She left behind a life, a career, and a mountain of memories. However, the thought of watching Frankie’s children grow up, and the chance to open a new organ transplant coordination department at the hospital in Bear Bluff, persuaded Elise it was the right decision. Then, on a morning run in the mountains, she hears a song. Not just any song. And not just any singer. Elise lost her heart to Hank Rivera when she was fourteen. He was hers. And she was his. It didn’t matter that every other girl on the planet thought the exact same thing. Then he disappeared. Until now. Could it be that the Hank Rivera truly is hers? Blind Date Bear Tiana is resigned to her life as a single woman after her husband left her years ago. Who has time for a relationship when you have a child to raise and elderly parents to care for? Not to mention her ex-husband who lives in a trailer at the end of the garden. Then she's set up on a blind date by her best friends and her world changes forever. Because her date is a bear shifter and she's his mate. His mate for life and he doesn't intend to ever let her go. When Mason agrees to go on a blind date, he never expects to meet his true mate. But here she is in front of him. Now all he has to do is convince Tiana she has room in her life, and her heart, for a bear shifter in love. Builder Bear After a disastrous first marriage to an abusive husband, Haley is just about getting by. She has built a new life for herself and her two wonderful daughters with the help of her amazingly supportive friends, Tiana and Sorcha.

Jacaranda


Mandy Magro - 2012
    Then one drunken night she falls into bed with Mark, a cowboy just passing through. By the time Molly realises she's pregnant, Mark is long gone.Now, at twenty-six, Molly's life is almost perfect. She's the devoted mother of Rose, and a renowned horse trainer. She lives amid the beauty of Jacaranda Farm, surrounded by family and friends – none closer than hunky stockman Heath. But she's still looking for the love of her life, and a father for Rose. When Mark stumbles back into her world, as charming as ever, Molly begins to hope for a future she'd long ago relinquished.But how will Mark react when he learns he's a father? And could the man of Molly's dreams be closer to home than she thinks?

The MacKenzies


Liliana Hart - 2019
    It’s been ten years since he left the woman he loved behind to make a name for himself, and now he’s bound and determined to claim her once and for all. Thomas's Vow Cat Randolph is the best cat burglar in the world. But when a job goes wrong and she’s shot, it’s Doctor Thomas MacKenzie who comes to her rescue. Unfortunately, it’s a lot harder to keep secrets when you’re risking the life of someone you love. Riley's Sanctuary Riley MacKenzie is one of the world’s leading experts on Egyptian artifacts. But when Maggie Lawrence walks into his life with a priceless stolen artifact and bad guys on her trail, he has no choice but to whisk her away to the safety of Surrender, Montana. Cooper's Promise Claire Drexel has loved Cooper MacKenzie since she was fourteen years old. But being ten years older, he’s never seen her as anything more than a kid sister. So she decides to take matters into her own hands. Grant's Christmas Wish Grant MacKenzie is ready to settle down and start a family. The only problem is the one woman he’s interested in doesn’t seem to be ready for the long haul. But fate lends Grant a helping hand in getting exactly what he wants under his Christmas tree.

Tumbleweeds


Leila Meacham - 2012
    She is quickly taken under the unlikely wings of up-and-coming gridiron stars and classmates John Caldwell and Trey Don Hall, orphans like herself, with whom she forms a friendship and eventual love triangle that will determine the course of the rest of their lives. Taking the three friends through their growing up years until their high school graduations when several tragic events uproot and break them apart, the novel expands to follow their careers and futures until they reunite in Kersey at forty years of age. Told with all of Meacham's signature drama, unforgettable characters, and plot twists, readers will be turning the pages, desperate to learn how it all plays out.Duration: approximately 15 hr.