Book picks similar to
Those Children by Shahbano Bilgrami
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Acts of Faith
Davis Bunn - 2011
Authors Davis Bunn and Janette Oke have woven an intriguing story featuring compelling fictional characters who interact with the men and women who were central to the rise of Christianity. Amid religious, political, and cultural persecution, these courageous few must shape and preserve a faith that will stand the test of time.
A Firefly in the Dark
Shazaf Fatima Haider - 2018
Or maybe you do...’—Jerry Pinto
Sharmeen’s life is disrupted when, after an unexpected tragedy, she moves into her Nani’s rambling ancestral bungalow with her family. She hates this new life: her mother, Aliya, and Nani fight constantly; her new schoolmates bully her; and the family retainer, her loving Aziz Bhai, suddenly becomes dominating. The only place where Sharmeen finds solace is the world of Nani’s fantastical stories: tales of Jinn, shapeshifters and other dastardly creatures. But slowly, unseen forces that had lain dormant for centuries start to awaken. Sharmeen meets her own personal Jinn, the prankster Jugnu, who reveals her family’s history, a pact one of her ancestors made with the Jinn-world, and also some not-so-good news—and Sharmeen realizes that it is up to her to rescue the adults in her life…Mysterious, magical and moving, A Firefly in the Dark is a page-turner and a work of fantasy and soaring imagination that will delight readers of all ages.
Harry Bentley's Second Chance
Dave Jackson - 2008
perhaps Harry was being given a chance at both.- Retired Chicago cop, Harry Bentley, was lying low. He'd blown the whistle on a gang of rogue cops and was awaiting the day when Internal Affairs would call him to testify and help put their leader, Lieutenant Matty Fagan, behind bars. His cover was working as a doorman in a luxury highrise on Chicago's lakefront. Then Gabby Fairbanks and her husband moved into the building's penthouse. She brought home a bag lady, got a job at the Manna House Women's Shelter, found her life falling apart, and managed to entangle Harry in the whole affair. (Gabby's story is in Neta Jackson's parallel novel, WHERE DO I GO?) But there was an upside. Through Gabby, Harry meets the Yada Yada brothers and the classy Estelle Williams and envisions a second chance at romance. The Yada Yada brothers provide a new circle of friends to replace his old CPD cohorts. But when Harry discovers he has a grandson he didn't know about, will he find the faith to take on the boy as a -second chance- to be the father he'd failed to be to his own son-even when the boy creates new dangers in Harry's fight against corruption, and may derail his -second chance- at love? Dave Jackson and his wife, Neta, are the award-winning authors of the 40-volume Trailblazer series. The phenomenal popularity of Neta's Yada Yada Prayer Group series inspired them to write -parallel- spin-off novels, two stories taking place in the same context ... just the way it happens in real life. They live in the Chicago area, where these stories are set.
Train to Nowhere
Kay Bratt - 2012
Mao's revolution is sweeping across the country, leaving many competing to show their loyalty with actions that will leave scars for decades. Even more traumatic than the destruction of art, books, and historic architecture, families are torn apart as they struggle to find a way to survive the upheaval.Ling, a sheltered and devoted daughter, is forced to join the feared Red Guards, a strategy concocted by her mother to ensure her protection. But for this scheme to work, Ling must hold her secrets close and trust no one. Her journey has only just begun when she is faced with a moment of truth that will impact the future she has unwillingly chosen on the Train to Nowhere.
Mademoiselle Benoir
Christine Conrad - 2006
Or, in his marvelous words, “From the moment I saw this property, I had a bead on it. I can’t completely explain why, but I had an intense feeling of belonging.” He has given up his teaching life in New York and begun working as the artist he’s always wanted to be.Letters written to his family back home sweep the reader up in Tim’s schooling in, and awakening to, the pastoral French lifestyle. From the attention to food (meals seem to Tim a semireligious rite) to the delightfully quirky neighbors who appear to spring straight out of a Balzac novel, we share Tim’s ever-growing pleasures and adventures.But his enchantment with this foreign land becomes far more complicated when his drawings—and then Tim himself—catch the eye of Mademoiselle Benoir, a beautiful, aristocratic woman twenty years his senior. Their decision to marry sets off a cluster bomb, uncovering incendiary layers of emotional and cultural complexity on both sides of the Atlantic, as his family tries to reason with him, her family declares war, and the villagers choose sides. Will tradition triumph over love?Inspired by a true story, this is a delicious stew with something for everyone.Christine Conrad has worked as the New York City film commissioner, as an editor in book publishing, as a screenwriter for motion pictures and television, and as an advocate for women's health. Her most recent book, Jerome Robbins, is a pictorial biography inspired by her long friendship with the choreographer.
Licence to Live: A Seeker's Journey to Greatness
Priya Kumar - 2010
It is a seekers journey towards finding greatness within. This wonderfully crafted fable is about finding the direction you are destined to head in and creating the life of your dreams. License to Live tells the tale of a successful corporate guru who enrolls herself in a seminar by one of the finest success coaches in the world. His radical training methods take her on a life-changing odyssey. A seven day seminar spread over three countries, puts her onto a journey where she is forced to look within and be her own teacher and guide, something she had done so well for others but missed doing for herself. Full of wisdom, wit and spiritual insights, you collect lessons that will change the way you lead your life forever. Discover within this fast paced fable : * Surviving people you don’t understand * Solving situations you seem to have no control over * Finding greatness in your daily choices * Listening to your own voice – following your own path * Taking responsibility of your life and creating a worthwhile mission * Creating a future without fear and doubt entering it * Putting your past behind and standing tall in the present * Living in the present and creating your life anew one moment at a time * Putting an end to your fake helplessness.
The Seventeen Secrets of the Karma Club
Karen McCombie - 2008
It's their mission to cheer people up with treats and surprises. But then Kezzy's mum reveals a secret of her own - she used to be married to Nell's dad. And technically, she still is!
Between Clay and Dust
Musharraf Ali Farooqi - 2012
In an old ruined city, emptied of most of its inhabitants, Ustad Ramzi, a famous wrestler past his prime, and Gohar Jan, a well-known courtesan whose kotha once attracted the wealthy and the eminent, contemplate the former splendour of their lives and the ruthless currents of time and history that have swept them into oblivion.
Headspace
J.D. Edwin - 2021
A deadly challenge. The fate of the world is on Astra’s shoulders.Twenty-five-year-old Astra Ching has never sought the spotlight. So when a mysterious black orb appears with a challenge for Earth and selects her to compete in its strange—and very public—game, she’s not pleased to find herself a sudden superstar.The rules are bewildering, and there are no second chances for losers. Yet while Astra fights to stay alive and save the world from imminent destruction, the people of Earth are more interested in tabloids and gossip, like whether or not she’s engaging in a scandalous love affair with a fellow contestant . . . or the mysterious alien known only as Eleven.In her struggle to survive, Astra forms tentative alliances with a handful of trustworthy friends. But as the global gossip seeps into the game and contestants are eliminated with each round, Astra’s celebrity threatens to become infamy and the line between friend and foe blurs.Will she emerge from the arena a hero, or just another headline?
Goodbye, Ruby Tuesday
Donna Hay - 2005
Her daft name, her hand-me-down clothes, her mother's habit of turning up to school parents' evenings dressed like Shirley Bassey. Most of all she hated being the daughter of Normanford's only single parent, failed nightclub singer and resident goodtime girl, Sadie Moon. As soon as she could, she decided to quit Yorkshire. She bought a one-way ticket to London, changed her name and escaped - for ever, so she thought. But nearly twenty years on, fate has conspired to send Roo MacPherson, now a successful management consultant, back to Normanford. Back to the friends and family she once knew too well, and the boy who broke her heart. And back to the infamous Sadie, now in her 50s and still acting like a teenager. But as Roo discovers, there are two sides to every story. Perhaps the past is not exactly as she remembers it ...
The Life of Chuck
Stephen King
Short story from "If it bleeds".
Darkness Rising Box Set: The Complete Series
Justin Bell - 2019
When a terrorist plot results in the detonation of several nuclear devices across the West Coast, the Frasers are thrown into disarray and their strained familial relationships are tested as they watch society collapse around them. Tens of millions of people are killed, injured and driven away from their homes as the result of a sinister plot that the government and its citizens are struggling to understand. With their older daughter lost in the chaos, the Frasers must somehow pull together to support each other and fight to reunite their family. Darkness Rising is a thrilling post-apocalyptic series that follows the survivors of a massive terrorist attack that isn't quite what it seems. As you learn more about the Fraser family and a few brave government agents who are attempting to unravel the horror and mystery behind the attacks, you'll soon discover that not everything in the apocalypse is as it appears to be. Written as a collaboration between Justin Bell and #1 bestselling post-apocalyptic author Mike Kraus, Darkness Rising is a gripping, unique and timely take on the post-apocalyptic genre, and is one that will leave you breathless with every turn of the page. This complete edition of Darkness Rising features all six books in the series, each one full of action, suspense and drama as the Fraser family struggles to survive the end of days.
Origins of a Pirate Lord
Marcus Sloss - 2020
Marooned in a strange land.Rescued by a sexy wood elf and her forest friends.Wes has a perilous journey in front of him to reclaim his home, his honor, his future.In a world where political corruption is rife and there are dangers in every direction, the wood elf and her friends might not be what Wes was looking for, but they might be just what he needs.
Thief
Brian James - 2008
Elizabeth is a pickpocket and thief living on the edge in New York City, torn between loyalty to her foster sister and a new boy who's recruited into their thieving ranks.
OLD SINS, LONG MEMORIES
Angela Arney - 2014
Lizzie Browne moves from London to a small town on the coast, looking forward to a quiet life, but when she finds a murdered patient on her first day it seems that perhaps Stibbington is not so quiet after all. DCI Adam Maguire, and colleague Steve Grayson, haven’t been challenged by a case for a long time, and welcome this break from their normal routine, except that there seems to be no apparent motive for anyone to kill a harmless young drop-out. When a second body, similar to the first, is found in Lizzie’s garden she is drawn into Adam’s investigation against her will, and against her better judgment her quiet life is riven with tension and conflict.