Island Dreams


Evangeline Kelly - 2020
    I never won anything. But here I was, boarding a plane for an all-expenses paid trip to Makani Island. Alone. I wasn’t expecting anything more than a soul-soothing vacation.Then I met him. A total grouch, or so I thought. A guy I wouldn’t want to see again. Ever. But somehow, he convinced me to take a walk on the beach. The walk turned into an all-night conversation. A once in a lifetime connection. We both knew it, but his mega-wealthy parents had wedding plans set out for him already.He said he was his own man, but I refused to be a wedge between them. Could I really give him up? The bigger question was…would he let me?Island Dreams is a clean short read, and the first in a vacation romance series.

My Father's House


Todd Saville - 2012
    In two short weeks, that’s what workaholic Cole Jansen discovers. Still single at thirty-two, he’s more focused on managing his clients’ money and his own material success than he is with any woman who gets close, or reconciling his estranged relationship with his parents. But when his father’s ill health leads him from urban Cedar Rapids, Iowa to the tiny rural community of Harmony, Minnesota for a rare visit, his myopic life is suddenly questioned when he meets Rachel Miller, a young Amish woman committed to her church and family – and conflicted by forbidden dreams of meeting him, the man in the pictures she ritualistically dusts each week as part of her cleaning duties at his parents’ home. No sooner than such an unlikely courtship begins to flourish, a series of tragedies strike, and commitment and character must be confronted, bringing each of their paths to a crossroads and shaking the foundations of their lives. Will the threat of excommunication and career suicide be too great? Or is there hope for such an improbable love as this?My Father’s House, a love story of truth, tenderness and tragedy that will touch your heart.

Greg Iles Collection: The Quiet Game, 24 Hours, Dead Sleep


Greg Iles - 2003
    As a Houston prosecutor he sent sixteen men to death row, and watched seven of them die. But now, in the aftermath of his wife's death, the grief-stricken father packs up his four-year-old daughter, Annie, and returns to his hometown in search of healing. But peace is not what he finds there.Natchez, Mississippi, is the jewel of the antebellum South, a city of old money and older sins, where passion, power, and racial tensions seethe beneath its elegant façade. After twenty years away, Penn is stunned to find his own family trapped in a web of intrigue and danger. Determined to save his father from a ruthless blackmailer, Penn stumbles over a link to the town's darkest secret: the thirty-year-old unsolved murder of a black Korean War veteran. But what drives him to act is the revelation that this haunting mystery is inextricably bound up in his own past.24 HoursRead by Dick Hill (Ruth Bloomquist, Russell Byers)24 Hours begins with the perfect family. On the perfect day. About to become trapped in the perfect crime. Will Jennings is a successful young doctor in Jackson, Mississippi, with his whole life ahead of him. He has a thriving practice, a beautiful wife, and a young daughter he loves beyond measure. But Will and his family are being watched by a con man and psychopath. A man who has crafted the unbeatable crime. A man who has never been caught, and whose victims have never talked to the police. A man whose life's work strikes at the heart of every family's nightmare: the unstoppable kidnapping. But this man has never met Will and Karen Jennings.Dead SleepRead by Susie Breck (Dick Hill)Jordan Glass, a photojournalist on a well-earned vacation, wanders into a Hong Kong art museum and is puzzled to find fellow patrons eying her with curiosity. Minutes later, she stumbles upon a gallery containing a one-artist exhibition called "The Sleeping Women," a mysterious series of paintings that has caused a sensation in the world of modern art. Collectors have come to believe that the canvases depict female nudes not in sleep but in death, and they command millions at auction. When Jordan approaches the last work in the series, she freezes. The face in the painting seems to be her own. This unsettling event hurls her back into a nightmare she has fought desperately to put behind her - for, in fact, the face in the painting belongs not to Jordan but to her twin sister, murdered one year ago. At the urging of the FBI, Jordan becomes both hunter and hunted in a duel with the anonymous artist, a gifted murderer who knows the secret history of Jordan's family, and truths that even she has never had the courage to face.

Briarwood Cottage


JoAnn Ross - 2014
    Can the magic of the Emerald Isle and the Lady reunite these two wounded hearts?

The Girl in the Ragged Shawl


Cathy Sharp - 2018
    At eleven years-old, she has survived sickness, near starvation and harsh beatings.Master Simpkins and his cruel daughter rule the workhouse with a rod of iron, but when Romany boy, Joe, arrives at the workhouse, his spirit and courage give Eliza hope that another life is waiting for her outside.When she is sold into service, Eliza is relieved to be out of the workhouse and hopes her fortunes are changing for the better, but cruelty and unkindness are everywhere and her salvation could become her ruin…

Blossom Street Series Books 7-9: Summer on Blossom Street \ Hannah's List \ A Turn in the Road


Debbie Macomber - 2016
    SUMMER ON BLOSSOM STREET Knitting and life are both about beginnings—and endings. That's why Lydia Goetz, owner of A Good Yarn on Seattle's Blossom Street, offers a class called Knit to Quit. It's for people who want to quit something—or someone!—and start a new phase of their lives. But when your life—and your stitches—get snarled, your friends can always help! HANNAH'S LIST On the anniversary of his beloved wife's death, Dr. Michael Everett receives a letter Hannah wrote him. In it she reminds him of her love and makes one final request. An impossible request. I want you to marry again. She tells him he shouldn't spend the years he has left grieving—and she's chosen three women she asks him to consider. During the months that follow, he spends time with these three women, learning more about each of them…and about himself. Learning what Hannah already knew. He's a man who needs the completeness only love can offer. And Hannah's list leads him to the woman who can help him find it. A TURN IN THE ROAD In the middle of the year, in the middle of her life, Bethanne Hamlin takes a road trip with her daughter, Annie, and her former mother-in-law, Ruth. So, there they are, three women driving across America. They have their maps and their directions—but even the best-planned journey can take you to a turn in the road. Or lead to an unexpected encounter, like the day Bethanne meets a man named Max…

Those Who Wish Me Dead -- Free Preview -- The First 10 Chapters


Michael Koryta - 2014
    The plan is to get Jace off the grid while police find the two killers. The result is the start of a nightmare. The killers, known as the Blackwell Brothers, are slaughtering anyone who gets in their way in a methodical quest to reach him. Now all that remains between them and the boy are Ethan and Allison Serbin, who run the wilderness survival program; Hannah Faber, who occupies a lonely fire lookout tower; and endless miles of desolate Montana mountains. The clock is ticking, the mountains are burning, and those who wish Jace Wilson dead are no longer far behind.

Crash: How I Became a Reluctant Caregiver


Rachel Michelberg - 2021
    But when her husband, David, survives a plane crash and is left with severe brain damage, she faces a choice: will she dedicate her life to caring for a man she no longer loves, or walk away?Their marriage had been rocky at the time of the accident, and though she wants to do the right thing, Rachel doesn’t know how she is supposed to care for two kids in addition to a now irrational, incontinent, and seizure-prone grown man. And how will she manage to see her lover? But then again, what kind of selfish monster would refuse to care for her disabled husband, no matter how unhappy her marriage had been? Rachel wants to believe that she can dedicate her life to David’s needs, but knows in her heart it is impossible.Crash tackles a pervasive dilemma in our culture: the moral conflicts individuals face when caregiving for a disabled or cognitively impaired family member.

Orchid Blues / Blood Orchid


Stuart Woods - 2005
    A highly disciplined team of men hit a bank in Orchid Beach, Florida, and the waves from this robbery nearly capsize Holly's life. She vows to find these men - who have been careful enough to leave nothing behind except the corpse of a bank customer - and quickly, she discovers evidence that leads her into the midst of what appears to be a politically motivated clan. Her father, Ham, a retired Army chief master sergeant, is her ticket into this strange world, and what Ham finds there stuns both Holly and her FBI contact, Harry Crisp. Blood Orchid: This time out, Holly is trying to get her life back together after the shattering loss of her fianc?. With the help of her wily Doberman, Daisy, and her father, Ham, she throws herself back into the job with a vengeance. But before Holly can settle into her routine again, bullets crash into the home of a friend and a floater is found bobbing in the Intercoastal Waterway. Joining forces with a handsome FBI agent, she tracks the clues straight to their source, only to find a scam more lucrative and more dangerous than any this idyllic town - or Holly - has ever seen.

Hungarian Dances


Jessica Duchen - 2008
    Instead, she's a teacher, a mum and wife to Julian, a very English husband. When disaster befalls her best friend, Karina feels forced to question the very foundations of her existence.

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng | Conversation Starters


Daily Books - 2017
    Set in Shaker Heights, Ohio, Little Fires Everywhere tells the story of Elena Richardson, a woman who thrives on structure and rules, and her family. When Mia Warren, an artist who has been living a nomadic lifestyle as a single mother with her daughter, Pearl, arrives in town, it threatens everything that Mrs. Richardson has known. Slowly, Mia becomes the enemy of Mrs. Richardson. Meanwhile, in another part of town, close friends of the Richardsons have adopted a Chinese-American baby, which results in a custody battle. When a fire breaks out in the Richardson home, the town is buzzing with their ideas on who the suspect is.Little Fires Everywhere became a bestseller for The New York Times instantly after its release in September 2017. Author Paula Hawkins has called the novel tender and wise, while author John Green stated that it was his favorite novel of 2017.A Brief Look Inside:EVERY GOOD BOOK CONTAINS A WORLD FAR DEEPER than the surface of its pages. The characters and their world come alive, and the characters and its world still live on. Conversation Starters is peppered with questions designed to bring us beneath the surface of the page and invite us into the world that lives on.These questions can be used to...Create Hours of Conversation:• Promote an atmosphere of discussion for groups• Foster a deeper understanding of the book• Assist in the study of the book, either individually or corporately• Explore unseen realms of the book as never seen beforeDisclaimer: This book you are about to enjoy is an independent resource meant to supplement the original book. If you have not yet read the original book, we encourage doing before purchasing this unofficial Conversation Starters.

Putney Bridge


Helen Ryan - 2015
     Her two daughters, from a previous relationship, are now both adult. Jo, ambitious and independent, is pursuing a career as a barrister. Jo’s younger sister is very different. Shelley, just 20, sweet natured, trusting and innocent, still lives at home and works at a local animal clinic. They are a normal, happy family - and then Shelley meets Sam on the street and everything changes. Martha struggles to accept Shelley’s choice of boyfriend as, with increasing anger, she witnesses the erosion of all Shelley’s values under Sam’s influence. When Martha’s efforts to persuade Shelley to give Sam up fail, she decides on a more direct approach. The consequences of her actions are devastating for everyone and change the course of Martha’s life forever. “After I’d gone up to bed that night, leaving Gabe amidst the carnage I had created in the living room, I formulated my plan. But it was pure chance that I met Sam on Putney Bridge some three weeks later and I went ahead with it.”

After I Do


Taylor Jenkins Reid - 2014
    They decide to take a year off in the hopes of finding a way to fall in love again. One year apart, and only one rule: they cannot contact each other. Aside from that, anything goes.Lauren embarks on a journey of self-discovery, quickly finding that her friends and family have their own ideas about the meaning of marriage. These influences, as well as her own healing process and the challenges of living apart from Ryan, begin to change Lauren’s ideas about monogamy and marriage. She starts to question: When you can have romance without loyalty and commitment without marriage, when love and lust are no longer tied together, what do you value? What are you willing to fight for?

Weather or Knot


Tracy Brogan - 2019
    So when the Chanel 7 news director sends her on assignment to join a team of adrenaline-loving, tornado-seeking storm chasers, she's beyond thrilled. Live weather segments from the road is just what Allison needs to boost her on-air visibility and land that promotion she's been working toward. There's just one problem. Dylan Parks. Her one-time fiancé and the man she's never quite forgotten.The last time Dylan Parks saw Allie Winters, she'd just returned his engagement ring and twisted his heart like an F5 tornado. Now here she was in the back of his tech-laden SUV looking more beautiful than ever, and expecting to spend the week with him and his team. In the five years since their break-up, Dylan has worked hard at establishing his career - and he's worked even harder at getting over the love of his life. Neither was easy, and her surprise appearance has left him as unstable as a springtime weather system in Kansas.Long days spent chasing ominous clouds give way to nostalgic evenings that stir up long-buried emotions, but can Dylan and Allie leave behind their turbulent history in the hopes that love, like lightning, sometimes strikes twice?***Includes an excerpt of Tracy Brogan's new release THE NEW NORMAL***

The Billionaire's Fake Marriage


Hanna Hart - 2018
    A heartbroken single mother is looking for the perfect job. Can the two create an arrangement with no strings attached? Riley Armstrong is single and struggling. She’s at rock bottom after losing her house, her husband,and -after her boss finds out she’s been living at work with her three-year -old daughter- her job.Devastated by her husband leaving her for another woman, Riley is desperate to pull her life back together. When she replies to an online ad entitled “WIFE FOR HIRE” she soon realizes that being the wife of a handsome billionaire may be more than she bargained for. Logan Williams thought he had it all– charm, a dazzling fiancée, and an incoming wedding inheritance of more than one billion dollars. Until his father dies unexpectedly and his fiancée breaks off their relationship, shattering his heart and his hopes for riches. Now struggling to get over his broken heart, Logan refuses to give up his dream-life without a fight. In order to receive his father’s inheritance, Logan must be married. Through with relationships, Logan has decided to hire a wife. Riley is elated when the charming billionaire immediately offers her the job. There’s only one problem – the contract says she must not have children. What harm can a little white lie do to a fake marriage?