Book picks similar to
They Don't Know by Patricia Dixon
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Wife Support System
Kathleen Whyman - 2020
Instead of living with our partners, struggling to do everything by ourselves and only seeing each other now and then, we should do it the other way round. We should live together and see them now and then.Erica knows her suggestion sounds extreme, but when her nanny leaves without notice, she’s extremely desperate. Polly and Louise aren’t convinced, but when circumstances force them to move into Polly’s enormous but run-down house, they have to admit that life’s much easier when the childcare and workload is shared. At first, communal living seems like the answer to all their prayers - childcare on tap, rotas for cleaning, and someone always available to cook dinner (no more last-minute pizza delivery!). But over time, resentment starts to grow as they judge each other’s parenting styles and bicker over cleaning, cooking and whose turn it is to buy toilet rolls.And as one woman has her head turned by a handsome colleague, one resorts to spying on her husband and another fights to keep a dark secret, they need each other more than ever. But can Polly, Louise and Erica keep their friendship and relationships strong? Or will their perfect mumtopia fall apart?Essential reading for anyone fed up with never-ending housework/homeschooling/preparing healthy meals that their kids reject … Will have you shrieking with laughter! Fans of Why Mummy Drinks, Has Anyone Seen My Sex Life? and Beth O’Leary won’t want to miss this one!
Kiss My Name
Calvin Wade - 2013
She is there to avenge the mistreatment of her best friend, Zara. Simon begs for mercy, claiming he has no knowledge of anyone called Zara. What has happened to Zara to create such an extreme reaction from her best friend?Kiss My Name follows the lives of several characters from childhood in the 1980s to adult life in the twenty first century. As several of them gather in Blackpool, for a Stag Do and a Hen Do, mayhem ensues. Has Simon cheated on his wife to be and will he make it to the church at all?
Don't Let Me In
Phil Kurthausen - 2018
When she starts to seek the truth about the murder of a teenage girl 12 years earlier, she soon finds herself the centre of unwanted attention.While trying to manage her agoraphobia, as well as the online trolls and her family life, Sarah begins to uncover some uncomfortable facts relating to the cold case.As she edges closer to accusing someone of the murder, the online threats soon become physical and as the outside world draws closer and closer to her front door threatening her home, her family and her life, Sarah must decide between fight or flight…
Little Woodford
Catherine Jones - 2018
A peaceful, unexciting place, the very heart of middle England.In Little Woodford no one has fingers in more pies than Olivia Laithwaite, parish councillor, chair of the local WI, wife, mother and all round queen bee. So of course it's Olivia who is first to spot that The Beeches has been sold at last.Soon rumours begin to swirl around the young widow who has bought this lovely house. Why exactly did she leave London with her beautiful stepdaughter and young sons? Are they running from someone? Hiding something? Though if they are, they won't be the only ones. Sometimes the arrival of newcomers in a community is all it takes to light a fuse...Perfect for fans of Rebecca Shaw, Jill Mansell and Emma Burstall.
The High Moments
Sara-Ella Ozbek - 2020
(counts as exercise)Move out of home TO LONDON (career??)Make more friends
Be better
New Year’s Day is the ultimate cliché for Scarlett: hangover, check feeling weepy, check broken sense of self, check check check She is in her twenties, stuck living at home in small-town Topsham with an academic mother who has no time for pep-talks or consolation. The one saving grace is that her friend, Billie, still works at the pub down the road, but even the pub is losing its appeal. Feeling desperate to do something with her life and with no real plan (but the mother of all hangovers), Scarlett picks up her stuff and moves to London. But moving isn’t a miracle cure and she ends up facing exactly the same problems she was desperate to escape. In the search for ‘her path’, Scarlett is offered an internship at a fashion agency. This might not be her dream job but her mother is disgusted. So she takes it. This is her first step to becoming something but it is also her first step to becoming someone else. Each terrible decision she makes leads to another and her life begins to spiral. But people are starting to know her; she is starting to become someone. And surely it’s better to be someone – even if it’s someone you hate? With a vein of dark humour at its core, The High Moments gives an astute, often stark, look at the fashion industry. This is a filthier, more sordid Devil Wears Prada which asks real questions about what it means to be a woman today. Fans of Fleabag and Girls will love this.
Blast from the Past
Cathy Hopkins - 2019
Unlucky in love, Bea learns that her true soulmate is still out there ̶ and that he’s someone she knew in a past life.Returning home, Bea revisits the men in her life and can’t resist looking up a few old lovers – the Good, the Bad and the… well, the others. As Bea connects with the ones that got away, she suspects that her little black book has remained shut for a reason. But one man out there has her in his sights.They say love is blind and maybe Bea just needs an eye test…Funny and wise, this is the perfect read for anyone who believes in finding love, no matter what their age.
The Magic of Found Objects
Maddie Dawson - 2021
All her life she’s been torn between the two. But now that she’s been betrayed by both love and the mother she once idolized, her rational side is winning.So when her best friend from childhood proposes that they give up on romance and marry each other, Phronsie agrees. Who better to spend your life with than your best friend? Maybe the connection they already have is love. Maybe there’s no falling to be done. But immediately after they announce their engagement, she encounters someone who makes a very charming and compelling argument for revisiting romance.While her even-keeled stepmother argues for the safety that comes with her new engagement and her mother relays messages from the universe to hold out for true love, Phronsie must look to her own heart to find the answers that have been there all along.
The Start of Something Wonderful
Jane Lambert - 2015
Until he breaks up with her…Catapulted into a mid-life crisis she wishes she’d had earlier, she decides to turn her life upside-down, quitting her job and instead beginning to chase her long-held dreams of becoming an actress!Leaving the skies behind her, Emily heads for the bright lights of London’s West End – but is it too late to reach for the stars?
Don’t miss this heartwarming and uplifting debut, perfect for fans of Colleen Coleman and Cate Woods!
It Had to Be Him
Tamra Baumann - 2015
But with another job lost and the gorgeous father of her daughter trying to make contact after disappearing three years ago, a break is definitely in order. Hopefully the little town filled with big, juicy secrets can help.After being off the grid for years, Josh Granger, a man with his own secrets, wants Meg and his daughter back. But first he has to get past townspeople as protective as a pack of rottweilers. He’s not the man Meg thinks he is, but he can’t tell her why…not yet.As Meg slowly warms to Josh, it’s clear the old spark is still there. But when his secret is exposed—along with Meg’s own shocking revelation—will it tear their family apart again, or bind them forever?
Before I Found You
Daisy White - 2018
A child found alone on the beach, shouting into the waves. A mother who served ten years for a crime she says she didn’t commit. Ruby Baker is back with another seaside mystery. When she and her friends rescue a child from the beach in a storm, police are baffled. Nobody has reported a child missing, and the girl seems so traumatised that she is unable to speak. In Johnny’s hairdressing salon, the notorious Beverly Collins makes an appointment with Ruby, but it soon becomes clear the woman wants more than a haircut. Beverly has just been released from Holloway Prison after serving ten years for child cruelty. The body of her missing daughter was never found, but Beverly insists she is innocent, and she wants Ruby Baker’s Investigation Bureau to prove it. This isn’t going to be an easy investigation. Opinion is divided on Beverly’s innocence. Reporters Kenny and James are keen to uncover a big story, while Ruby’s best friend, Mary, is distracted and struggling to deal with motherhood. As Ruby tries to unravel the past, she discovers that Beverly Collins’ release seems to have triggered a bizarre chain of events. Was she really framed, and if so, where is her daughter Ella now? And who is the mystery girl on the beach? What readers are saying about BEFORE I FOUND YOU “A cracking read.” Olga “A good mystery, set in Brighton, which will keep you guessing until the end.” Barbara “An entertaining and satisfying read which I recommend to others who enjoy crime fiction.” Paromjit Hayers “The story is so good I had a hard time putting the book down.” Hannelore Cheney “Great book. Brilliant storyline and excellent main characters.” Stephanie Collins Discover a gripping new mystery writer today. Great for fans of Agatha Christie or LJ Ross. This is the second book in a mystery series set in 1960s Brighton, a tumultuous time of change and opportunity. RUBY BAKER SERIES Book 1: BEFORE I LEFT Book 2: BEFORE I FOUND YOU
Perfectly Impossible
Elizabeth Topp - 2020
An artist at heart, Anna works a day job as a private assistant for Bambi Von Bizmark, a megarich Upper East Side matriarch who’s about to be honored at the illustrious Opera Ball.Caught between the staid world of great wealth and her unconventional life as an artist, Anna struggles with her true calling. If she’s supposed to be a painter, why is she so much more successful as a personal assistant? When her boyfriend lands a fancy new job, it throws their future as a couple into doubt and intensifies Anna’s identity crisis. All she has to do is ensure everything runs smoothly and hold herself together until the Opera Ball is over. How hard could that be?Featuring a vibrant array of characters from the powerful to the proletarian, Perfectly Impossible offers a glimpse into a world you’ll never want to leave.
The Strawberry Hearts Diner
Carolyn Brown - 2017
Yet here she is, watching her car literally go up in smoke—along with her last-ditch hope of staying with her cousin in Louisiana. When Jancy spies a Help Wanted sign hanging in the window of the quaint Strawberry Hearts Diner, the memories of the two years she spent there as a teenager—and the lure of the diner’s beloved strawberry tarts—are enough to draw her in and plant her feet…but only temporarily.Raised by parents who refused to settle anywhere for long, Jancy has never known what it is to have roots. Now that Jancy’s swept up by the warmth and character of this quirky little community—and by the pull of an old crush—it’s beginning to feel like home. She’s making friends and even discovering the sweetness of falling in love. But when the town is threatened, Jancy knows it will take more than its legendary tarts to save it. Can she fight for this little Texas town—knowing she might not stay forever?
Beneath Cornish Skies
Kate Ryder - 2021
She lives in a beautiful, luxurious house in the English countryside, with a handsome, wealthy boyfriend who insists she needn't do a days' work in her life. But Cassie knows that something is not right. Her boyfriend has grown colder, treating her more like a housekeeper than a future wife. And her time feels empty and purposeless.Cassandra has always been riddled with insecurities and self-doubt, but, just for once, she decides to take a chance on a new beginning. She answers an advert for a live-in nanny, dogwalker, cook and all-round 'Superhuman' for a family living in a rambling manor house on the rugged North Cornish coast. The work is hard and tiring, but Cassie has never felt so fulfilled.As Cassie learns to connect with the natural beauty unfolding around her, Cornwall starts to offer up its secrets. Soon, Cassie starts wondering if she was drawn to this isolated part of the coast for a reason. Why was she guided to Foxcombe Manor? What are the flashes of light she sees in the valley? Is it her imagination or does someone brush past her? And who is the mysterious man living deep in the woods?A beautiful romance with a hint of ghostliness, Beneath Cornish Skies is for anyone who has ever longed to start their lives again.
The Beach House
P.R. Black - 2020
Cora's on the island vacation of her dreams: a private beach in paradise, a romantic proposal, and an eight-figure cheque following the sale of her new fiancé’s business. When their island turns out to be not so private after all, Cora tries to make the best of a bad situation by inviting their strangely friendly neighbours to celebrate with them. But it doesn't take long for her once-in-a-lifetime holiday to take a very sinister turn...
Come Away with Me
Maddie Please - 2018
With India constantly obsessing over wedding plans, Alexa has never felt more single, or more of a failure.If only she could find a man who was funny, handsome and faithful. But when she meets the enigmatic (and *gorgeous*) Gabriel Frost on the cruise, he is as cold as his name suggests… Isn’t he?Set sail for an adventure on the high seas, it’s time for Alexa to discover that sometimes romance can surprise you!