Kindred Spirits


Rainbow Rowell - 2016
    The whole world is a nerd.''Are you mad because other people like Star Wars? Are you mad because people like me like Star Wars?' 'Maybe.' If you broke Elena's heart, Star Wars would spill out. So when she decides to queue outside her local cinema to see the new movie, she's expecting a celebration with crowds of people who love Han, Luke and Leia just as much as she does. What she's not expecting is to be last in a line of only three people; to have to pee into a collectible Star Wars soda cup behind a dumpster or to meet that unlikely someone who just might truly understand the way she feels. Kindred Spirits is an engaging short story by Rainbow Rowell, author of the bestselling Eleanor & Park, Fangirl and Carry On, and is part of a handful of selected short reads specially produced for World Book Day.

. . . and Baby Makes Two: A Novel


Judy Sheehan - 2005
    But that’s before she sees the perfect child. There he sits in his stroller, angelic and beautiful, magnetic and serene– and he makes Jane question everything she has and everything she thought she wanted. Suddenly all she can see are babies and pregnant woman everywhere. Were there always so many of them? And while there was once a man in her life–her one true love, Sam, gone from this world too soon–there is no man now. Jane must make a choice: possibly become a bitter and childless old lady, letting her biological clock tick on ’till menopause, or tend the ache in her heart now, by becoming a single mother. As Jane struggles to make the most important decision of her life, friends and family offer no shortage of opinions. There’s Ray, her “hubstitute” and gay best friend who would be jealous of any kid who got Jane as a mom; Sheila, her sister, who went from zero to sixty when she eloped with Raoul–who had two young twin sons– and has mixed feelings about being a new mommy; her strict, Catholic father who can’ t imagine what level of hell Jane would banish herself to if she becomes a single mother; and the women of Families with Children from China who are preparing to adopt orphan daughters–without a man in sight. Just as she thinks she’s made up her mind, Jane discovers one small wrench in her plans: handsome, charming, funny Peter, who just happens to be (unhappily) married. . . . And Baby Makes Two is a heartbreakingly honest, wonderfully addictive, and funny novel about love and loss, family and friendship. Judy Sheehan, co-creator of the smash hit Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding, has perfectly captured the delights and dilemmas of the scariest job in the world: motherhood.From the Hardcover edition.

The Whispering Years


Harry Bowling - 1999
    Although her father has been dead for many years, Susan's memories of her parents' marriage are happy ones and she looks forward to the day when she and Alan can share in that happiness.But the discovery of some old letters soon forces her to face some bitter truths about her parents - and even the nature of love itself...

Choose Your Own Disaster


Dana Schwartz - 2018
     Join Dana Schwartz on a journey revisiting all of the awful choices she made in her early twenties through the internet's favorite method of self-knowledge: the quiz. Part-memoir, part-VERY long personality test, Choose Your Own Disaster is a manifesto about the millennial experience and modern feminism and how the easy advice of "you can be anything you want!" is actually pretty fucking difficult when there are so many possible versions of yourself it seems like you could be. Dana has no idea who she is, but at least she knows she's a Carrie, a Ravenclaw, a Raphael, a Belle, a former emo kid, a Twitter addict, and a millennial just trying her best. This long-form personality quiz manages to combine humor with unflinching honesty as one young woman tries to find herself amid the many, many choices that your twenties have to offer.

Promise It All: A Wedding Bells Alpha Novel


Weston Parker - 2022
    At least it is for a guy like me. As a talent agent in New York, I know how to wine and dine with the best of them. Unfortunately, work has been my main thing for a little too long. And my body is showing signs of it. Doc says I need to take a summer off. Hell yes, I do. Lucky for me, I run into my latest wedding fling as my time frees up. And the pretty girl just can’t get enough of me. She needs a plus-one for an upcoming wedding and wants to up the ante of our deception. Be her fake fiancé. She’s tired of being the bridesmaid and never the bride. Why would I ever say no? I’m a no-strings-attached kinda guy, but with her, I want to be tied up—forever. The more time I spend playing the part, the more I want to hit my knee and offer her a ring. It started with us promising nothing, but now, I want her to promise it all—to me.

Annie May's Black Book


Debby Holt - 2007
    February 6th, 1977: David Llewellyn for saying my landscape painting looked like a pig's trough and then making honking noises every time he saw me. April 12th, 1987: Peter Elton for 'borrowing' my cigarettes and never buying any of his own. 9th February, 1988: BEN SEYMOUR FOR EVERYTHING FOR EVER In her Black Book, Annie May has recorded the name and offence of everyone who has ever done her wrong. The greatest transgressor of them all was Ben Seymour: the man who jilted her at the altar seventeen years ago. Now he's moving into a house round the corner ...

The Girl Who Saw It All


Rooprashi - 2017
    Aarohi. Life is not as simple for her. She is a dreamer and it is some of her dreams which she herself finds weird. While facing heartbreak and finding love with a broken man, Aarohi works hard to achieve the goals she has made in life; sometimes even wondering if they are too high for her. The pursuit of her goals is her destiny; one she has to fulfill. Giving up on Rudra and diligently taking her tough profession, she meets Dr. Aditya Vardhan. . But was Aditya the man of her dreams? Did she understand what destiny was trying to tell her through her dreams? Was she ever able to get over Rudra? Were her efforts enough to bring success? Was she The Girl Who Saw It All….?

The Counterfeit Convert


Linda Chadwick - 2010
    With the recent death of their father, the girls must marry quickly in order to inherit their late father?s fortune.Even when Tristan finds out the three women are Mormons, a religious group he knows nothing about, he is positive he can lure Rachel into marriage?if he can convince her he?s a member of her church. Tristan soon finds himself fascinated by much more than just Rachel?s money. After a life of doing whatever?s necessary to close the deal, Tristan wonders if a fledgling testimony of the gospel can give him the strength to come clean to the woman he loves, even though it could mean losing her forever.This fresh, romantic tale is anything but your typical boy-meets-girl love story. Told with equal parts wit and heart, The Counterfeit Convert will keep you laughing while reminding you that facing consequences is the best way to conquer them.

The Chestnut Tree (A Short Story)


Jo Thomas - 2014
    Could the answer to his problems lie in the chestnut orchard at the bottom of the garden?Only Ellie can help Daniel unlock the delicious secret that will bring them the fresh starts they need. And as autumn approaches, romance will blossom amid the glowing embers of the chestnut fire...*Contains an exclusive extract from Jo's brand-new novel, THE OLIVE BRANCH, out February 2015*

Thou Shalt Not Dump the Skater Dude and Other Commandments I Have Broken


Rosemary Graham - 2005
    Now she's hard at work saving her reputation and working on her new identity as a star reporter for the school's newspaper.

Witness Protection


Barb Han - 2014
    Marshal Nick Campbell go to protect his innocent witness? US marshal Nick Campbell's life is a lie. But when a devastating explosion nearly kills Sadie Brooks, the one woman who can put away a murderer, only the truth will keep her alive. Revealing his secrets connects Nick to Sadie in ways he never expected…and unleashes an attraction he can't ignore. Minute by minute, they race closer to justice but sink deeper into the crosshairs of a deadly criminal ring. To protect his witness, Nick has to gain her trust. But once he tastes the temptation of Sadie, he's torn between breaking every boundary for a life with her…or breaking her heart and letting her go.

Six Steps To Happiness


Suzie Tullett - 2019
    But Nick and Gaye won’t budge.To add to her problems, Ronnie’s daughter and mother-in-law decide to stage an intervention. With her family keeping a close eye on her, Ronnie is forced to become more devious in her actions to get rid of Nick and Gaye.But just how far will she go?And is moving on ever that easy? Six Steps to Happiness is a hilarious look at just how far one woman will go to recover from a broken heart and find happiness again. What everyone is saying about Six Steps To Happiness: "I highly recommend this hilarious romance." "I definitely recommend this book, you won’t be disappointed!" "Some parts had me laughing and some parts left me wanting to cry." "A great happy read, with fun and laughter thrown in!" "A book with a message and also one with lots of smiles. Loved it." Suzie Tullett is the bestselling author of The French Escape, Little White Lies and Butterflies and The Trouble With Words. Six Steps To Happiness is an uplifting and laugh-out-loud Romantic comedy which will appeal to fans of authors like Sue Roberts, Marian Keyes and Sarah Morgan.

The Last Resort (Mapton-on-Sea Book 1)


Sam Maxfield - 2017
    Then meet the grandmother who raised her. Foul-mouthed, outrageous, orange-haired Gina Pontin. Two women who couldn’t be more different. When Gina has an accident the two of them are forced together in the last place Stella wants to return to. But as the June temperature soars in more ways than one, they, and the residents of Mapton-on-Sea, are in for an explosive summer no one will ever forget. 'The Last Resort has laugh out loud moments, tenderness and real heartbreak. This is a story of family and friendships which, ultimately, is as warm as the golden sand we feel between our toes. Great stuff. ' LeftLion Magazine

Janice Gentle Gets Sexy


Mavis Cheek - 1993
    Unfortunately, her agent is hiding her healthy financial position.

Bad Boys With Expensive Toys


Nancy Warren - 2004
    Tough guys hammer out deals, drink beer, and keep their well-muscled, six-foot-four physiques in shape. What they do not do is inherit frou-frou toy poodles named Mimi who only understand French. Good thing Vince was a softy for his late eccentric aunt, and really good thing she left him fourteen million dollars so he can hire a French dog nanny.The World is Too Darned Big - Mary Janice DavidsonThe name's Dyson. Benjamin Dyson. Genius engineering geek by day and unfortunately, genius engineering geek by night. Ben may work for the CIA, but he's the mild-mannered brainy type who wouldn't know a gun from a gear shift. Enter Tara Marx. She's six feet of big, bad, booty-kicking fearlessness, and she needs Ben on her mission ASAP.Guilty Pleasures - Karen KelleyComputer entrepreneur Alex Cannedy loves women - the way they move, talk, smell...and other things. He'd love to get to show Kagen Yates a good time, but his sister has declared the wealthy designer off-limits. She even makes him pinkie-swear not to so much as wink at the hot babe who's had her heart broken by men just like Alex. But Alex has no idea how his resolve, will be tested. Kagen has plans of her own.