Book picks similar to
Crossing the Line by Laura Castoro


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The Single Dad Arrangement


Tiana Cole - 2019
     Avery Patterson is hot, ambitious, determined and a total workaholic. He’s also my ex, and it didn’t end pretty. But now he’s standing at my door with an adorable baby that he says is his, and he needs my help. Not a real marriage. A fake one. One year, no promises. He helps me with my business and I help him with his. Easy peasy, right? It’s only a year, what could possibly happen? I didn’t deserve Sasha then, but I need her now. I work too much and I know it. It cost me the woman I love and now I’m standing on her doorstep asking for a favor I shouldn’t. Be my wife. My fake wife, that is, when I’d always hoped she’d be my forever wife. One year was all I needed to get her to stay. All I had to do was not screw it up. She left me once because of my workaholic ways so I had to show her things had changed. I’d changed. How hard could it be? **** This is a standalone novel with a touch of steam and HEA. ****

A Confusion of Murders


Marina Johnson - 2017
    A brother obsessed with his looks, a dog that thinks it’s human and a happy though, dull routine. Until that is, her father starts talking nonsense and she makes a shocking discovery about herself. Not to mention the strange events occurring in Frogham – a missing person and a case of dog-napping. And then, on top of everything Louise finds romance in the unlikeliest place....

The Emily Giffin Collection: Volume Two: Baby Proof, Where We Belong, Heart of the Matter


Emily Giffin - 2014
    Includes:BABY PROOFClaudia Parr has everything going for her. A successful editor at a publishing house in Manhattan, she's also a devoted sister, aunt, and friend. Yet she's never wanted to become a mother—which she discovers is a major hurdle to marriage, something she desperately wants. Then she meets her soul mate Ben who, miraculously, feels the same way about parenthood. The two fall in love and marry, committed to one another and their life of adventure and discovery. All's well until one of them has a change of heart. Someone wants a baby after all.This is the witty, heartfelt story about what happens to the perfect couple when they suddenly want different things and there is no compromise. It's about deciding what is most important in life and wagering everything to get it. And most of all, it's about the things we will—and won't—do for love.WHERE WE BELONGMarian Caldwell is a thirty-six-year-old television producer living her dream in New York City. With a fulfilling career and picture-perfect relationship, she has convinced everyone, including herself, that her life is just as she wants it to be. But one night, Marian answers a knock on the door . . . only to find Kirby Rose, an eighteen-year-old girl with a key to a past that Marian thought she had locked away forever. As Marian and Kirby embark on a quest to find the one thing missing in their lives, each will come to recognize that where we belong is often where we least expect to find ourselves. A place that we may have willed ourselves to forget, but that the heart remembers forever.HEART OF THE MATTERTessa Russo is a stay-at-home mother of two young children and the wife of a renowned pediatric surgeon. Valerie Anderson is an attorney and single mother to six-year-old Charlie—a boy who has never known his father. Although both women live in the same Boston suburb, they are strangers to one another and have little in common, aside from a fierce love for their children. But one night, a tragic accident causes their lives to converge in ways no one could have imagined. This is the moving, luminous story of good people caught in untenable circumstances. Each being tested in ways they never thought possible. Each questioning everything they once believed. And each ultimately discovering what truly matters most.

The Last Of The Great Romantics


Claudia Carroll - 2005
    She and her drop-dead gorgeous husband, Andrew, have just finished ploughing a fortune into renovating her ancestral home, Davenport Hall, and are now planning to unveil it as one of the most fabulous, luxurious, five-star country house hotels in Kildare....But life never turns out like you think, and no sooner has the red ribbon been cut at the grand opening party, than Andrew is jetting off to New York, back to his old job, old apartment, old friends and Portia very much fears, his bachelor ways.....And so the smooth running of Davenport Hall is entrusted to her beautiful younger sister, Daisy, which is a bit like leaving Country Barbie in charge of the United Nations. Especially as Eleanor Armstrong, daughter of the Irish President has chosen the Hall as the perfect backdrop for her society wedding to footballing legend, Oldcastle United's star striker and general all-round sex god, Mark Lloyd...Meanwhile, in Manhattan, Portia meets Lynn Fairweather, a single woman who's looking for Mr Right in much the same way that Scott was looking for the Antarctic. And if he just happens to be married to Portia, then that's her problem...And what is that smell coming from the cowsheds???

The Wedding Date


Liz Young - 2010
    She does, however, have an imaginary boyfriend, Dominic, a little white lie designed to keep Sophy's mother off her back. Which is fine, until his presence is demanded at a family wedding.So does Sophy admit Dominic is a fantasy? Oh no. Sophy hires an escort. But when the distinctly delicious Josh Carmichael arrives on her doorstep, Sophy can tell things are going to get tricky. And the wedding is only the beginning...

Birdcall Morning


Mark J. Asher - 2016
    The last time he was conscious, at thirty-one, O.J. Simpson had just led police on a long car chase and nobody knew the name Monica Lewinsky. When he turns on the strange-looking flat screen in his room at the nursing home, he hears reporters on one channel after another talking about Charlie Sheen’s infamous meltdown. After his mother arrives at his bedside, he learns that his father has died, his wife has divorced him, and the music store that he owned for most of his adult life has been sold. As Joel grapples with the loss of his independence, he realizes that his mother, who has driven him crazy since birth, will be his caretaker for the foreseeable future. Luckily, angels disguised as therapists and the support of old friends help him through a grueling rehabilitation. With one foot in the past and a heavy heart, Joel is about to slowly reenter a very different world than the one he left. Birdcall Morning is an emotional and life-affirming tale about the struggle to start over, the value of friendship, the true nature of love, and the changing times that we live in. It’s the sort of book that takes you on an unexpected journey that’s captivating until the very last word.

Elevating Overman


Bruce Ferber - 2012
    The novel follows the journey of Ira Overman, veteran of multiple botched careers and a singularly botched marriage, as he makes one last attempt to rise above the guilt, weakness, and self-hatred that have been hard-wired into his soul since birth. Through an unlikely side effect from a seemingly routine surgery, Overman suddenly finds himself trying to reconcile newfound powers with the man he used to be, determined not to repeat the poor choices of his past. Overman succeeds at righting some of his former wrongs, fails miserably at others, but, most importantly, gains a small yet significant window into a life that matters.

Are My Roots Showing?


Karola Gajda - 2016
     Thirty something Magda, born in England to Polish parents has recently broken up with her rotten boyfriend Matt and needs a fresh start. Quitting her job, she sets off to Warsaw to teach English, While her excited Mama thinks she is off to find a nice Polish husband, Magda simply wants to explore her roots. improve her rusty Polish and see how her parents' homeland has changed. To her horror Magda discovers that Mama and bossy cousin Dagmara have sneakily put her on a dating site. Does Magda stay in Poland? And does she find a Polish husband? And what does she learn about her mama's tragic past? A moving romantic comedy, 'Are My Roots Showing?' is about identity, migration, family, the fleetingness of life and love. Magda learns how history affects the present, and that where there are roots, new shoots can grow. …It’s a charming book which can be read as a light-hearted tale but there is a lot of meaning beneath the surface. As an exploration of how it feels to belong to and reconcile two cultures, it's really successful. It offers humour, sadness and wisdom as well as entertaining read. Just beautiful!… …Although Are My Roots Showing? explores some serious themes, it’s all done with a very light touch and a lot of laugh-out-loud humour. The characterisations are exquisite… …This is a beautiful book, sometimes really funny and sometimes heart-breaking…What readers say about the romantic comedy 'Are My Roots Showing?' ...Fantastic. A Polish Bridget Jones. Funny, and yet the Polish history interjections are interesting too. Makes me want to visit Poland, but I need to take my own food!!! You'll understand once you've read it... …It’s a charming book which can be read as a light-hearted tale but there is a lot of meaning beneath the surface. As an exploration of how it feels to belong to and reconcile two cultures, it's really successful. It offers humour, sadness and wisdom as well as an entertaining read. Just beautiful!… …Although 'Are My Roots Showing?' explores some serious themes, it’s all done with a very light touch and a lot of laugh-out-loud humour. The characterisations are exquisite… …This is a beautiful book, sometimes really funny and sometimes heart-breaking…

She Had To Kill Him


Aviva Gat - 2021
    The first, an expensive lawyer. The second, suicide. Robert Derby used the first one. I’m using the second."Mara was celebrating her 21st birthday when her family was killed by a drunk driver. Two years later, Mara wants justice. She wants the drunk driver to understand how it feels to lose everything. She has a plan and a gun and she knows how to use it. But is she capable of murder?Garrett can’t help the family he was born into. His name puts a target on his back. Maybe that’s why he always dates women who need help. But can helping the wrong person lead to disaster?She Had to Kill Him is a gripping story about the things people do for their loved ones. Perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell, Colleen Hoover, and Paula Hawkins.

New Beginnings at the Star and Sixpence


Holly Hepburn - 2018
    Nessie has moved in with the lovely Owen and his son Luke, leaving her sister Sam next door in their renovated pub, the Star and Sixpence. But is all change for the good? Sam and Joss have gone their separate ways and he’s left Little Monkham for good. New chef Gabriel Santiago is causing a flutter among the women of the village but Sam is determined not to make the same mistake again and keeps things strictly business between them. But an inconvenient attraction to Gabe is the least of Sam’s worries when an unexpected visitor arrives at the Star and Sixpence. Who is Laurie Marsh and what does he want from the sisters?If you loved Part One of the LAST ORDERS AT THE STAR AND SIXPENCE series, pre-order Part Two: Christmas Kisses at the Star and Sixpence now!

Henry's List of Wrongs


John Scott Shepherd - 2003
    A story with humor, romance, and sting, it might even make you confront your own list of regrets.

The Poet of Loch Ness


Brian Jay Corrigan - 2005
    Home to her alma mater, Scotland is also the place where seventeen years ago Perdita fell in love with Highland poet Andrew Macgruer. At the bed-and-breakfast where Perdita and Perry are staying lives an eccentric pair of sisters, Kira and Catitlìn. Among the unexpected guests are Breton Trent, Kira's old flame, and Andrew, whose allure has only improved with age. Recognizing in Kira's thwarted love an example of her own, Perdita works to bring the couple together again. In the process she finds herself growing ever closer to Andrew. Perry's subsequent anguish, however, incidentally coincides with an illness that seems to affect her heart. As three sets of love triangles hurtle toward final conclusions, the marine biologist's quest for the legendary creature of Loch Ness becomes the central metaphor for the secrets that glide beneath the surface of us all.

Preschooled


Anna Lefler - 2015
    Behind the toddler-proof gate of Santa Monica’s exclusive Garden of Happiness, it’s the grown-ups who are getting schooled.When new preschool parent Justine discovers that the man who broke her heart back in grad school is a dad in her daughter’s class, she tells herself she’s immune to the superficial charms of the ex she calls “the crapwizard.” But when his presence opens a time tunnel of potent memories from her life before motherhood, she must find a way to defuse her old attraction to him before it undermines her marriage.Then there’s Ruben, rookie stay-at-home dad and standup comic who quits his day job to pursue his TV-writing dream on his wife’s condition that he take her place among the “power mommies” on the school committees.And ruling the sand box with an iron fist is Margaret, whose ongoing divorce from her dentist-turned-New Age-surfer husband forces her to rely on her dubious people skills in order to keep the school that has become the cornerstone of her identity.When the new school year kicks off with a flight-risk rabbit named Ozone, a school secretary in desperate need of a social filter, and some double-barreled committee recruiting tactics, it’s not all juice and cookies for Justine, Ruben, and Margaret as they struggle to play nice.

Playgroups and Prosecco: The (mis)adventures of a single mum


Jo Middleton - 2019
    Readers of Why Mummy Drinks, Unmumsy Mum and The Single Mum's Wish List will love this debut novel from parenting blogger Slummy Single Mummy.'You'll end up warming to Frankie so much that you'll be wishing you could crack open a bottle of prosecco with her in real life!' MIKE GAYLE, bestselling author of The Man I Think I Know________________________________ January 3rd Jaffa Cakes - 7. Times I was forced to watch a small child do a dance involving a dusty piece of ribbon found under the sofa - 4. Inappropriate thoughts about Zac Efron - undisclosed. Single mum Frankie’s whole life revolves around her kids. But when your toddler has a more active social life, something has to change. Forget ‘me-time’, Frankie would settle for some adult conversation, and watching something other than the Disney channel. The local playgroup may be ruled by Instagram mums with perfect husbands but Frankie accidentally forms a splinter group of single parents. After all, Mummy really needs a playdate of her own. (Now pass the prosecco.)________________________________WHAT READERS ARE SAYING'As a mum of three I could totally relate to this novel on so many levels' - Titian'Hilarious - made me laugh out loud' - Dominique'Lots of funny anecdotes parents will recognise!' - Claire'With shades of Bridget Jones, Frankie stumbles through life as a single mum' - Ann'A very funny and realistic look at motherhood' - Katrina

Quality of Care


Elizabeth Letts - 2005
    But she is caught off guard when a pregnant woman is wheeled onto the labor and delivery floor with what seem to be minor complaints. The patient turns out to be Lydia Benson, a childhood friend who once saved Clara's life after a terrible horseback-riding accident. And at Lydia's side is her husband Gordon Robinson, a man whom Clara once loved passionately and then left-although she has never forgotten him. That night in the labor and delivery rooms the brief reunion goes tragically wrong. For Clara, the consequences will include a journey to California and to her own past-and a rediscovery of hope in a place she never expected.