Molly O’Brien is living the dream of a cushy city life. But when her boyfriend bails on her and their inflated mortgage, she needs a new place to live. Molly finds the answer in the quaint town of Love, where a run-down general store with an attached home were willed to her deceased mother. Trading her acrylic nails for pounding nails, Molly gives the old place a facelift. As the business grows, so does her affection for the townspeople—including Jackson, the local hardware store owner. But her new home holds secrets, and some people have long memories. At one of the town’s events, Molly is threatened. As the danger escalates, Molly must decide whether to leave Love or stay and fight for the life she’s created in the town that has stolen her heart.
In this inspiring debut from Jill Hannah Anderson Peyton Brooks, a newly-empty nester with a comatose marriage, loses her three best friends in a car crash, and reaches out to women in the To-Hell-And-Back Club, hoping they'll help resuscitate her life.
NATIONAL BESTSELLER LONGLISTED FOR THE 2021 BOOKER PRIZE NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE GLOBE AND MAIL, CBC BOOKS AND THE DAILY TELEGRAPH "I've been telling everyone I know about Mary Lawson . . . Each of her novels is just a marvel" —Anne Tyler New York Times bestselling author Mary Lawson, acclaimed for digging into the "wilderness of the human heart", is back after almost a decade with a fresh and timely novel that is different in subject but just as emotional and atmospheric as her beloved earlier work. A Town Called Solace, the brilliant and emotionally radiant new novel from Mary Lawson, her first in nearly a decade, opens on a family in crisis. Sixteen-year-old Rose is missing. Angry and rebellious, she had a row with her mother, stormed out of the house and simply disappeared. Left behind is seven-year-old Clara, Rose’s adoring little sister. Isolated by her parents’ efforts to protect her from the truth, Clara is bewildered and distraught. Her sole comfort is Moses, the cat next door, whom she is looking after for his elderly owner, Mrs. Orchard, who went into hospital weeks ago and has still not returned. Enter Liam Kane, mid-thirties, newly divorced, newly unemployed, newly arrived in this small northern town, who moves into Mrs. Orchard’s house—where, in Clara’s view, he emphatically does not belong. Within a matter of hours he receives a visit from the police. It seems he is suspected of a crime. At the end of her life, Elizabeth Orchard is also thinking about a crime, one committed thirty years previously that had tragic consequences for two families, and in particular for one small child. She desperately wants to make amends before she dies. Told through three distinct, compelling points of view, the novel cuts back and forth among these unforgettable characters to uncover the layers of grief, remorse, and love that connect them. A Town Called Solace is a masterful, suspenseful, darkly funny and deeply humane novel by one of our great storytellers.
It was the perfect plan.I needed a wife--temporarily--in order to inherit the family business.And she needed a favor--the kind that takes nine months to deliver.We had it all worked out, from the no-touching policy on our wedding night (her rule) to the no-falling-in-love decree (mine). She'd marry me, I'd give her the means to have the baby she'd always wanted, and one year later we'd amicably part ways with no hassle, no demands, and certainly no regrets.After all, Bianca DeRossi and I are experts at infuriating one another--we've been doing it since we were kids. Trouble is, she grew up gorgeous and feisty, and she still knows exactly how to get under my skin.And that wedding night? Well, it doesn't exactly go down hands-free.Then she moves in with me, and I really start to lose my mind. From her sexy little pout to her wicked sense of humor to those meatball sandwiches she makes just because she knows they're my favorite . . . I find myself wanting to break every rule we put in place. Our story was never supposed to end with happily ever after. But call me crazy, I just might be in love with my wife.
Step inside a beautiful winter wonderland where love, laughter and cosy nights by the fire will make this Christmas one to remember. Neve Whitaker loves managing the Stardust Lake hotel. She gets to work alongside her wonderful family and she's spending Christmas on the most enchanting, snow-covered island in Scotland. So why is her heart so heavy this festive season? It might have something to do with gorgeous Oakley Rey. He is the man she loved more than anything. But when Oakley was offered the opportunity of a lifetime - on the other side of the world - Neve had to let him go, so Oakley could follow his dreams. But now Neve has a secret she's struggling to keep, and when Oakley arrives on Juniper Island for Christmas she is thrown off balance. No matter how hard she tries to deny it, the old spark is still there. But can Neve let herself fall in love with Oakley again when he might not be there to stay? And will she finally get her happily-ever-after? Get swept away by this deliciously sweet and heart-warming tale, and spend an unforgettable Christmas on Juniper Island. Perfect for fans of Josie Silver, Carole Matthews and Jenny Colgan. Read what everyone is saying about Holly Martin: 'This was a fun and fabulous book to curl up with under the blanket and with a fire blazing ... And best of all it made me excited for Christmas!' Escapades of a Bookworm 'Full of Christmas romance and just so gorgeous - you will not be able to put this book down!' Rather Too Fond of Books 'It captivated me, drew me in, held me under its magical spell and left me feeling as if I'd just stepped out of a winter wonderland, the fairy-tale sort.' Becca's Books 'When I started this book I felt I should be wrapped up In blanket with a roaring log fire and a mug of hot chocolate... I loved every page of it!' The Book Review Café
The actor and novelist answers this eternal question twelve ways, in stories that explore our most complicated emotion This is a winning collection from an author writing on his favorite topic: love. Each emotionally involving story illuminates a different kind of love: star-crossed, intense, needy, eternal, unrequited, even comical. Gene Wilder's protagonists will be instantly recognizable to his fans: men and women who stumble into relationships that can fulfill them or knock them out cold. Which one it will be depends, often, on the smallest of gestures or reactions. What Is This Thing Called Love includes the stories: • "In Love for the First Time," about a lover so shy and studious that he's a "funny duck" who has to be led by the hand by his equally inexperienced girlfriend • "About Being in Love," featuring coarse but charming Buddy Silverman, who yearns for connection but looks for it in exactly the wrong kind of woman • "The Woman in the Red Hat," who shows a writer who has only explored love in his books what the real thing feels like.
Joleigh Moore lives an almost-reclusive life on her small farm in Missouri. But when she witnesses the murder of her boyfriend, Mack, she worries the assailants will come after her next. Planning to hide out until Mack’s killers are caught, Joleigh stows away in a neighbor’s station wagon and lands in a small Minnesota town. Later, she discovers a large amount of cash in her journal and realizes Mack must have hidden his drug money there. Joleigh now has what the men were willing to kill for. Joleigh takes a summer job and moves into an old run-down cabin in the woods. As she gets to know the townspeople and becomes more and more involved with them, the place she once considered temporary could be her chance for a new beginning. But before Joleigh can have a future, she’ll be forced to deal with her past.
Why is the black van still following Will and Sandra? Something is wrong in Normal. The perfect summer of being eight years old continues in a way that even two precocious kids with vivid imaginations could never have envisioned. The day before the first game of the Little League season Will’s papaw reveals a family secret that not only explains the odd things that Will has been experiencing but also changes his immediate plans. While poking around in the abandoned old house down the street, looking for a half-fairy/half-human named Homer Underby, Will and Sandra are surprised by an old lady who appears to live there. As they try to help her out, it becomes clear that she’s troubled. But when they attempt to assist her, they uncover an unsolved mystery that happened twenty years before. As the amateur sleuths investigate, strange men grab Sandra. While trying to get away, Will falls backward and through a hole in the floor landing in what he believes is the basement. With a badly sprained ankle, Will limps toward what he hopes will be the way out of the darkness, only to learn he is no longer anywhere near Normal. Somehow Will has wound up in the distant future on a subtropical island off the coast of Antarctica where Brent, the last man on Earth, lives. While the most important thing for Will is getting back home to help Sandra escape from her captors, he must trust the reluctant hermit who knows a lot more about Sandra’s abduction than Will is comfortable with. Homer Underby continues The Thuperman Trilogy as two budding superheroes must depend on each other to find answers.
Survival means finding the courage to dig deep and find that elusive inner strength… Finding herself at life’s crossroads, always-dutiful Lyn Bennett jumps at the chance to teach in historic Florence, Italy; it’s an opportunity to unearth the mysterious details of her mother’s past as one of Florence’s revered Mud Angels who helped save the city during the 1966 flood - as well as to re-evaluate the choices she’s made in her life. When her husband betrays her and a best friend falls to the wayside, Lyn is devastated. When handsome and magnetic Matteo strives to help, she has to decide if she will allow the people – and the city of Florence, with its pride, vitality and beauty - inspire her to open her heart again?
The Past Cannot Be Undone, But the Truth Can Be Uncovered... The adventures continue: Having freed Sandra and her family, Will’s first task is to convince them to trust Brent, their former captor. Brent is their only hope for resisting the intentions of The Program. While Sandra and Will continue learning about their magic, they experiment with the orbs Will brought back from the future. While exploring the strange places conjured from their imagination, the pair finds a girl who claims to have been trapped inside the orb for nearly a hundred years. But how can they help her? Questions mount as the budding Thuperheroes seek advice from Esther before setting out on a new adventure into the distant future on Brent’s subtropical island. There the two learn more about other possibilities and potentials they need to explore once they return home. As for the not so small matter of solving Essie’s murder, the kids are now pretty sure her body is buried somewhere beneath the old, deserted house. But how are they going to satisfy the old woman’s spirit enough for her to crossover to Assembly? When an unexpected turn in the case implicates someone the kids know, they enlist Brent’s assistance in getting the authorities involved.
