Elvis has left the building . . . and his shoes have followed suit! No holiday in tiny Salt Lick, Texas, is more revered than January 8th—Elvis's birthday! To commemorate the grand occasion, Hogg's Drive-In—where the King enjoyed many a burger on the road to fame and fortune—is displaying an “actual” pair of Elvis's blue suede shoes. That is, until some heel without a soul swipes them right out of their display case. Debbie Sue Overstreet and Edwina Perkins-Martin—the shoe-loving Domestic Equalizers—are shocked that someone would perpetrate such a dastardly crime. So the plucky detecting duo agrees to help the town's inept sheriff track down the royal blue loafers. And being majestic multitaskers, the ladies might even be able to squeeze in some matchmaking as well. Mix-ups, mayhem, the threat of gunplay, and shocking octogenarian secrets revealed—it's all in a day's work for the Domestic Equalizers, the two best friends whose motto is: Don't get mad . . . get evidence!
From a USA Today–bestselling author: First in the mystery series filled with “pure southern lunacy of the best possible kind” (Laurien Berenson). They say you can’t get to Heaven without passing through the Eternal Rest Funeral Home. And no one gets into Eternal Rest without passing muster with Elvis—the basset hound who’s convinced he’s the reincarnation of the King of Rock ’n’ Roll. Brewing up a big ol’ pitcher of Mississippi mystery, Peggy Webb’s delightful new series is as intoxicating as the Delta breeze. Normally, Callie Valentine Jones spends her days fixing up the hairdos of the dead, but when the corpse of prominent local physician Dr. Leonard Laton goes missing, it’s bad for business. So Callie and her cousin Lovie (Eternal Rest’s resident wake caterer) have no choice but to go in hot pursuit of the recently embalmed, last seen bound for Vegas by way of downtown Tupelo. In Vegas, Callie and Lovie hit the jackpot when they find the dearly departed inside a freezer owned by his showgirl mistress, Bubble Malone. But their luck runs out when Bubble decides to join her man in the afterlife. With the poisonous Laton family tree providing plenty of rotten suspects, Callie, along with some help from her basset hound, Elvis, is determined to crack this case—and have a killer singing “Jailhouse Rock” in time for her next haircutting appointment . . .
To single mom Allison Barker, men are a heap of heartbreak. So when her twelve-year-old daughter confesses that she's posted Allison's profile on an Internet matchmaking service and has been pretending to be her mom, Allison hits the roof . . . just before the doorbell rings. Standing on the porch is her date—he's Hollywood handsome and all male and he looks somehow familiar. Turns out he's famed ProRodeo bull-riding champion Quint Matthews. He whisks Allison off to dinner, but it's not Quint who captures her interest—it's his old friend, rodeo bull fighter Tag Freeman. But Quint's got something—or rather, someone, more on his mind than Allison—because the very next day he's off to visit Debbie Sue Overstreet. Debbie Sue was once taken in by Quint's sky-blue eyes and tight jeans, but that was before she remarried the best-looking man in Texas, Buddy Overstreet. When Quint turns up at Debbie Sue's door begging for help, she can't turn him down. Seems that Quint has finally gotten his comeuppance—his identity has been stolen, by a woman no less, one he met through an online dating service. The Equalizers take the case—after all, Quint is an "old friend" and, even better, he can pay! But no one would ever have guessed that the investigation would lead to murder . . . or that gender-confused Eugene/Janine—whom the Equalizers have tangled with before—would return to stir the stew. Or that there would be mixed messages and broken hearts all over the place. Of course, as Edwina has often said, there's nothin' that a pitcher of strong margaritas and some serious snooping can't cure . . . but not until Debbie Sue and Edwina go on a crazy ride across West Texas!
An informational picture book that provides children with confidence about accepting and rejecting physical contact from others is an invaluable resource that can help give children a voice in uncomfortable situations.
In this inspirational and unflinchingly honest memoir, acclaimed author Reyna Grande describes her childhood torn between the United States and Mexico, and shines a light on the experiences, fears, and hopes of those who choose to make the harrowing journey across the border. Reyna Grande vividly brings to life her tumultuous early years in this “compelling...unvarnished, resonant” (BookPage) story of a childhood spent torn between two parents and two countries. As her parents make the dangerous trek across the Mexican border to “El Otro Lado” (The Other Side) in pursuit of the American dream, Reyna and her siblings are forced into the already overburdened household of their stern grandmother. When their mother at last returns, Reyna prepares for her own journey to “El Otro Lado” to live with the man who has haunted her imagination for years, her long-absent father. Funny, heartbreaking, and lyrical, The Distance Between Us poignantly captures the confusion and contradictions of childhood, reminding us that the joys and sorrows we experience are imprinted on the heart forever, calling out to us of those places we first called home. Also available in Spanish as La distancia entre nosotros.
Told in their separate voices, sixteen-year-old Prince Oliver, who wants to break free of his fairy-tale existence, and fifteen-year-old Delilah, a loner obsessed with Prince Oliver and the book in which he exists, work together to seek his freedom.
Jamie should have known something was off about the church of the Right & the Real from the start, especially when the Teacher claimed he wasn't just an ordinary spiritual leader but Jesus Christ himself. But she was too taken by Josh, the eldest son of one of the church's disciples, and his all-American good looks. Josh was the most popular boy at school, too, and the first boy outside the drama geeks to give Jamie a second look. But getting her dad involved in a cult was not part of the plan when she started dating Josh. Neither was her dad's marriage to the fanatic Mira or getting kicked out or seeing Josh in secret because the church has deemed her persona non grata. Jamie's life has completely fallen apart. Finding her way back won't be easy, but when her dad gets himself in serious trouble, will Jamie be ready to rescue him, and maybe even forgive him?
From the New York Times bestselling author Kristin Hannah comes a powerful novel of love, loss, and the magic of friendship. . . . now a #1 Netflix series! In the turbulent summer of 1974, Kate Mularkey has accepted her place at the bottom of the eighth-grade social food chain. Then, to her amazement, the "coolest girl in the world" moves in across the street and wants to be her friend. Tully Hart seems to have it all—beauty, brains, ambition. On the surface they are as opposite as two people can be: Kate, doomed to be forever uncool, with a loving family who mortifies her at every turn. Tully, steeped in glamour and mystery, but with a secret that is destroying her. They make a pact to be best friends forever; by summer's end they've become TullyandKate. Inseparable. So begins Kristin Hannah's magnificent new novel. Spanning more than three decades and playing out across the ever-changing face of the Pacific Northwest, Firefly Lane is the poignant, powerful story of two women and the friendship that becomes the bulkhead of their lives. From the beginning, Tully is desperate to prove her worth to the world. Abandoned by her mother at an early age, she longs to be loved unconditionally. In the glittering, big-hair era of the eighties, she looks to men to fill the void in her soul. But in the buttoned-down nineties, it is television news that captivates her. She will follow her own blind ambition to New York and around the globe, finding fame and success . . . and loneliness. Kate knows early on that her life will be nothing special. Throughout college, she pretends to be driven by a need for success, but all she really wants is to fall in love and have children and live an ordinary life. In her own quiet way, Kate is as driven as Tully. What she doesn't know is how being a wife and mother will change her . . . how she'll lose sight of who she once was, and what she once wanted. And how much she'll envy her famous best friend. . . . For thirty years, Tully and Kate buoy each other through life, weathering the storms of friendship—jealousy, anger, hurt, resentment. They think they've survived it all until a single act of betrayal tears them apart . . . and puts their courage and friendship to the ultimate test. Firefly Lane is for anyone who ever drank Boone's Farm apple wine while listening to Abba or Fleetwood Mac. More than a coming-of-age novel, it's the story of a generation of women who were both blessed and cursed by choices. It's about promises and secrets and betrayals. And ultimately, about the one person who really, truly knows you—and knows what has the power to hurt you . . . and heal you. Firefly Lane is a story you'll never forget . . . one you'll want to pass on to your best friend.
Comedian Channing Hayes survived a tragic auto accident that claimed the life of his fiancée, Lauren. Physically and emotionally scarred, he’s put his performing career on hold, resigned to getting laughs vicariously as co-owner of The Last Laff Comedy Club. There, he instructs Lauren’s sister Heather in the fine art of stand-up. When Heather skips out on her set during the club’s comedy showcase, Channing searches for his AWOL protégée. Then Heather’s ex-lovers start turning up dead—and Channing must fight to keep Heather from being the next hit in this deadly line-up.
My fondest hope is that my children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren will learn to follow their hearts, love their parents, and depend on God and keep His laws. Always putting God first will keep them free from the destructive forces in life. I have known the pain of a child who puts drugs before everything else. There is in all parents a sense that we should have been able to protect our children from those things; learning not to blame ourselves is a long, hard battle. Finally, I hope that one day my children and grandchildren will realize how much they mean to me and how much I love them, and that the day I leave them on this side will not change that love. Just me - Jack
