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With a Friend Like You by Fanny Blake


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Saints in Limbo


River Jordan - 2009
    I give it FIVE diamonds in the Pulpwood Queen’s TIARA!”–Kathy L. Patrick, founder of the Pulpwood Queens Book Clubs and author of The Pulpwood Queens’ Tiara Wearing, Book Sharing Guide to LifeEver since her husband Joe died, Velma True’s world has been limited to what she can see while clinging to one of the multicolored threads tied to the porch railing of her home outside Echo, Florida.When a mysterious stranger appears at her door on her birthday and presents Velma with a special gift, she is rattled by the object’s ability to take her into her memories–a place where Joe still lives, her son Rudy is still young, unaffected by the world’s hardness, and the beginning is closer than the end. As secrets old and new come to light, Velma wonders if it’s possible to be unmoored from the past’s deep roots and find a reason to hope again.    Praise for River Jordan“[River Jordan’s] literary spice rack has everything you need to put together a good book.”–Rick Bragg, author of All Over but the Shoutin’ and Ava’s Man“River Jordan writes so beautifully.” –Joshilyn Jackson, author of Gods in Alabama and The Girl Who Stopped Swimming

Driving with the Top Down


Beth Harbison - 2014
    Colleen Bradley is married with a teenage son, a modest business repurposing and reselling antiques, and longtime fear that she was not her husband’s first choice. When she decides to take a road trip down the east coast to check out antique auctions for her business, she also has a secret ulterior motive. Her one-woman mission for peace of mind is thrown slightly off course when sixteen year old Tamara becomes her co-pilot. The daughter of Colleen’s brother-in-law, Tamara is aware that when people see her as a screw-up, but she knows in her heart that she’s so much more. She just wishes her father could see it, too. The already bumpy trip takes another unexpected turn when they stop at the diner that served as Colleen’s college hangout and run into her old friend, Bitty Nolan Camalier. Clearly distressed, Bitty gives them a story full of holes: angry with her husband, she took off on her own, only to have her car stolen. Both Colleen and Tamara sense that there’s more that Bitty isn’t sharing, but Colleen offers to give Bitty a ride to Florida. So one becomes two becomes three as Colleen, Tamara, and Bitty make their way together down the coast. It’s a road trip fraught with tension as Tamara’s poor choices come back to haunt her and Bitty’s secrets reach a boiling point. With no one to turn to but each other, these three women might just discover that you can get lost in life but somehow, true friends provide a roadmap to finding what you’re really looking for.

Just One Wish


Rachael Johns - 2019
    Alice has always been a trailblazer as a scientist, activist and mother. She knew her choices would involve sacrifices, but now, on the eve of her eightieth birthday, she's beginning to wonder if she's sacrificed too much.Alice's daughter, Sappho, rebelled against her unconventional upbringing, choosing to marry young and embrace life as a homemaker, but her status as a domestic goddess has recently taken a surprising turn.Ged has always been the peacemaker between her grandmother and mother. A tenacious journalist, she knows what she wants in life and love, yet when everything in her world starts falling apart, she begins to question whether she really knows anyone at all.At a crossroads in each of their lives, Alice, Sappho and Ged embark on a celebratory trip together, but instead of bringing them closer, the holiday sparks life-changing consequences and lifts the lid on a fifty-year-old secret.Can Ged rescue her family if their story is built on a betrayal?From bestselling, ABIA award-winning author Rachael Johns comes an engrossing and wise novel about ambition, choices and what it means to be a woman.

Mothers and Other Liars


Amy Bourret - 2010
    Fast forward nine years: Ruby and her daughter Lark live in New Mexico. Lark is a precocious, animal loving imp, and Ruby has built a family for them with a wonderful community of friends and her boyfriend of three years. Life is good. Until the day Ruby reads a magazine article about parents searching for an infant kidnapped by car-jackers. Then Ruby faces a choice no mother should have to make. A choice that will change both her and Lark's lives forever.

Lost and Found in Paris


Sasha Wagstaff - 2019
    First her boyfriend announces that, far from wanting to get engaged, he’s off to Dubai for work. Then, in Paris, her mother goes missing. Feeling totally lost and with nothing to lose, Sophie travels back to her childhood home for the first time in five years to help find her mother and look after the family macaron shop in Paris. It should be a dream gig, but when it comes to family - and love - nothing is ever that simple, especially when there’s a sexy, complicated ex involved... Can Sophie find her mother? Can she find herself again? Who is she truly in love with? Maybe Paris, the gorgeous city of romance can help her figure all of this out…

Guardians Of Mayhem MC Box Set (Books 1-10) (MC Romance Box Set Collection Book 3)


Hope Stone - 2021
    

10 Reasons not to Fall in Love


Linda Green - 2009
    1) I’d have to shave my legs – even in winter2) Couldn’t get away with wearing big knickers3) Or having spaghetti hoops for tea4) He’d have to meet my mother5) My boss is my ex and no man could accept that6) Single mums are about as attractive to men as syphilis7) ‘I’ll Never Fall in Love Again’ is my theme tune8) Last time I was dumped for a weathergirl9) I no longer trust menAnd most importantly…10) Can’t risk Alfie getting hurt againJo Gilroy gave her heart away once.She won’t be making the same mistake twice.In fact, she’s got 10 reasons not to fall in love.Until Dan Brady comes along,with some reasons of his own…

The Empty Nesters


Nina Bell - 2011
    Along with Clover's stylish, powerful friend, Alice, they share holidays, sleepovers, school runs and childcare. They're like one big family. But all families have their secrets. When the children leave home, Clover and Laura's lives and marriages change forever, and the old rules on love and loyalty no longer apply. And when Alice decides she wants what they've got, Clover and Laura have to find out who they really are. Without the children, can their marriages - and friendship - survive?

The Nearness of You


Amanda Eyre Ward - 2017
    Brilliant heart surgeon Suzette Kendall is stunned when Hyland, her husband of fifteen years, admits his yearning for a child. From the beginning, they’d decided that having children was not an option, as Suzette feared passing along the genes that landed her mother in a mental institution. But Hyland proposes a different idea: a baby via surrogate. Suzette agrees, and what follows is a whirlwind of candidate selections, hospital visits, and Suzette’s doubts over whether she’s made the right decision. A young woman named Dorothy Muscarello is chosen as the one who will help make this family complete. For Dorrie, surrogacy (and the money that comes with it) are her opportunity to leave behind a troubled past and create a future for herself—one full of possibility. But this situation also forces all three of them—Dorrie, Suzette, and Hyland—to face a devastating uncertainty that will reverberate in the years to come. Beautifully shifting between perspectives, The Nearness of You deftly explores the connections we form, the families we create, and the love we hold most dear.

The Choices We Make


Karma Brown - 2016
    While they've been close as sisters ever since, Hannah can't help but feel envious of the little family Kate and her husband, David, have created—complete with two perfect little girls. She and Ben have been trying for years to have a baby, so when they receive the news that she will likely never get pregnant, Hannah's heartbreak is overwhelming. But just as they begin to tentatively explore the other options, it's Kate's turn to do the rescuing. Not only does she offer to be Hannah's surrogate, but Kate is willing to use her own eggs to do so. Full of renewed hope, excitement and gratitude, these two families embark on an incredible journey toward parenthood…until a devastating tragedy puts everything these women have worked toward at risk of falling apart. Poignant and refreshingly honest, The Choices We Make is a powerful tale of two mothers, one incredible friendship and the risks we take to make our dreams come true.

After the Execution


James Raven - 2012
    He's lost everything - his wife, his dreams, his future. He finally enters the death chamber at the famous 'Walls' prison in Texas. He's strapped to a gurney and given an injection of lethal drugs in front of witnesses. Minutes later he's pronounced dead. But that's not the end of it. After the execution comes the shocking revelation - Jordan is still alive. And to stop him talking he has to die all over again - before he brings down the entire American justice system.

The Appetizer When You're Not His Main Course


Ni'cola Mitchell - 2010
    Enjoying her life as a stay at home wifey, the couple is expecting a set of twins. Their life could not have been any more picture perfect, until the day that Yazmin was involved in a hit and run accident. Scared for the life of her babies, Yazmin damn near goes into shock after she attempts to call Trey only to be greeted by his wife of the past ten years……Monae and Malik have had a drama free long distance relationship for the last two years. Malik is a Marine, and is stationed in San Diego. They both have an understanding that once Monae graduates from UCLA, they will have their dream wedding. Planning an intimate surprise party just for two in his apartment, Monae discovers that she is not the only woman waiting for “her” man to come home……Knowing that Devaugn is in a relationship, Nia simply don’t care. He is the ideal man, and Nia is convinced that if she works hard enough, she can show him that she is all the woman that he needs. Stephanie will be a thing of the past and Devaugn can start taking care of Nia and her three children full time. Or will he…….These three friends all have one thing in common; they are really their man’s chick on the side. What happens when a woman find’s out that she is not her man’s main course, she is only the appetizer…..

Animal Instincts


Nell Dixon - 2009
    So when she turns up drunk at Rainbow's End, Clodagh's animal sanctuary, announcing she's in trouble and staying for a long visit, Clodagh's not exactly delighted. She has enough problems right now. The business is broke, and there's been a worrying wave of vandalism. Is someone really trying to ruin her? A big property magnate, bad-lad Jack Thatcher, has been showing a rather strong interest in Clodagh lately. But is it her or her assets he's after?

Russell Wiley Is Out to Lunch


Richard Hine - 2010
    A media executive for the failing Daily Business Chronicle, his career is teetering on the brink of collapse, and his sexless marriage is fast approaching its expiration date. With his professional and personal lives floundering, it’s no wonder Russell is distracted, unhappy, and losing faith in himself. Making matters worse are his scheming boss, a hot-shot new consultant determined to see Russell ousted, and the beguiling colleague whose mere presence has a disconcerting effect on Russell’s starved libido. Disaster seems imminent…and that’s before he makes a careless mistake that could cost the paper millions. Russell realizes he must take drastic action if he is going to salvage his career, his love life, and what little remains of his self-respect. Sardonic, edgy, and true to life, this gripping novel offers an insider’s view into a newspaper's inner sanctum and the people who oil the wheels of the "old media" machine.

Power Games


Victoria Fox
    He knows the celebrities involved, he’s determined to bring them down and he will make them answer to their sins. And he believes his plan to do so is faultless…