Most people may think of ranchers and cowboys as men. But although they are under-chronicled, ranch women work from dark to dark, keeping step with hired hands, brothers, fathers and husbands. They blaze trails through unforgiving scrub. They cook supper and feed bulls. At any given time, they wear the hats--and the gloves--of geologist, veterinarian, lawyer and mechanic. They are fierce and feminine and powerful. Photojournalist and writer Alyssa Banta spent over a year following more than a dozen Texas women through their grueling daily routines, from the messy confines of the working chute to the sprawling reaches of the back pasture. The result of this unprecedented access is an intimate portrait of the challenges and achievements of the ranch women of the Lone Star State, along with the land and livestock that sustain them.
Thanks to the classic Dolly Parton film The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas and ZZ Top's ode "La Grange," many people think they know the story of the infamous Chicken Ranch. The reality is more complex, lying somewhere between heartbreaking and absurd. For more than a century, dirt farmers and big-cigar politicians alike rubbed shoulders at the Chicken Ranch, operated openly under the sheriff's watchful eye. Madam Edna Milton and her girls ran a tight, discreet ship that the God-fearing people of La Grange tolerated if not outright embraced. That is, until a secret conspiracy enlisted an opportunistic reporter to bring it all crashing down on primetime television. Drawn from exclusive interviews and expanded with newly uncovered information, Jayme Lynn Blaschke's revelatory exposition of the Ranch illuminates the truth and lies surrounding this iconic brothel.
“A stunning and emotional conclusion to the story of a family that readers have come to care for and love” from the #1 bestselling author of Texas Fury (Los Angeles Daily News). From the seductive waters of Hawaii to the rustic splendor of Vermont, from the sprawling family ranch, Sunbridge, to the high-tech glamour of Japan, the Colemans have been driven apart by the passions and betrayals of a new generation. But now, as Billie Coleman Kingsley, their beloved matriarch, lays dying, she offers new hope to heal their rifts. Even as her own strength fails, the indomitable Billie instills courage and confidence in the future. And as the Colemans gather around her, preparing for their inevitable, shattering loss, they all must transform their lives. Praise for Texas Rich “Fascinating, interesting, and exciting. One of those rare books, the kind the reader doesn’t want to end. A real winner!” —Green Bay Press Gazette “A big, rich book in every way . . . I think Fern Michaels has struck oil with this one.” —Patricia Matthews “A steaming, sprawling saga . . . As always, Fern Michaels writes a full story with bigger-than-life characters we would look forward to meeting.” —Romantic Times “Fine fare for Fern Michaels’s fans!” —The Philadelphia Inquirer
The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Texas Rich continues the Coleman family saga that’s “fine fare for Fern Michaels’s fans!” (The Philadelphia Inquirer). Built before World War II by domineering patriarch Seth Coleman, Sunbridge, the magnificent Austin, Texas, empire, now belongs to Moss and Billie’s daughter, Maggie. She’s invited the whole family—and several hundred guests—to a Fourth of July barbecue in celebration of the renewed sense of family pride she’s determined to forge. But as loved ones come together, they bring old resentments and new temptations destined to generate more than a little heat. And as Maggie hopes to be accepted as mistress of Sunbridge, she also struggles to be a good mother to her resentful son Cole and her broken-hearted daughter, Sawyer. Then there is her sister, Susan, a renowned musician who arrives home for the most terrifying performance of her life. And in the midst of it all is Maggie’s decision to divorce Cranston Tanner and her love for another man—a love that could cost her everything . . . Praise for Texas Rich “Fascinating, interesting, and exciting. One of those rare books, the kind the reader doesn’t want to end. A real winner!” —Green Bay Press Gazette “A big, rich book in every way . . . I think Fern Michaels has struck oil with this one.” —Patricia Matthews “A steaming, sprawling saga . . . As always, Fern Michaels writes a full story with bigger-than-life characters we would look forward to meeting.” —Romantic Times
While working undercover for her college newspaper, Maggie reluctantly endures mixers, rites, and peculiar rules, but soon learns that members of the sorority to which she has pledged have strange powers and a terrible secret.
Lord, help the mister who comes between Texas sisters . . . The Holiday Secret Sisterhood has a strict rule: never poach on another sister’s boyfriend, past or present. Hallie Holiday has no intentions of ever breaking that rule. After watching her big sisters become love-struck fools, men don’t even make the top five of Hallie’s wish list . . . until one night when Jace Carson slips onto the barstool next to her with his sexy lopsided smile and devilish smoky-gray eyes. Suddenly, spending the night in the muscled arms of a hot hometown hero becomes more than a wish. It becomes a steamy reality. Before Hallie can finish shoving that night into her bad-bad-sister vault and throwing away the key, Jace waltzes back into town. Soon Hallie will realize there’s no way to keep a secret from a sister . . . or from your own heart. Jace Carson plans to never step foot in Wilder, Texas, again. After an injury ends his professional football career, he has no desire to witness the townsfolk’s disappointment. Or watch his cousin live happily ever after with the woman Jace had planned to marry. But desire is a funny thing. It can change at the drop of a hat. Or the drop of a pair of lace panties. Getting involved with his ex-girlfriend’s little sister is just plain stupid, especially when Hallie is a tough cowgirl who pulls no punches—literally or figuratively. But there’s something about the way she looks at him that makes him feel like less of a failure. Like he could lasso the big ol’ harvest moon . . . and make a feisty Texas girl’s dreams come true.
"Read it for twists on twists, meditations on faith, and a deeply thoughtful treatment of an evangelical community." — Glamour, Beach Reads That Are Like Summer in a Book “A thoughtful and candid meditation on faith, family, and forgiveness . . . fabulous.” —Claire Lombardo, New York Times bestselling author of The Most Fun We Ever Had Recommended by Good Housekeeping, Elle, Parade, Real Simple, Glamour,Refinery29,Bustle, Oprah Daily, The Millions, Shondaland, Yahoo!, Literary Hub, and more! A mesmerizing debut novel set in northern Texas about two sisters who discover an unsettling secret about their father, the head pastor of an evangelical megachurch, that upends their lives and community—a story of family, identity, and the delicate line between faith and deception. Luke Nolan has led the Hope congregation for more than a decade, while his wife and daughters have patiently upheld what it means to live righteously. Made famous by a viral sermon on purity co-written with his eldest daughter, Abigail, Luke is the prototype of a modern preacher: tall, handsome, a spellbinding speaker. But his younger daughter Caroline has begun to notice the cracks in their comfortable life. She is certain that her perfect, pristine sister is about to marry the wrong man—and Caroline has slid into sin with a boy she’s known her entire life, wondering why God would care so much about her virginity anyway. When it comes to light, five weeks before Abigail’s wedding, that Luke has been lying to his family, the entire Nolan clan falls into a tailspin. Caroline seizes the opportunity to be alone with her sister. The two girls flee to the ranch they inherited from their maternal grandmother, far removed from the embarrassing drama of their parents and the prying eyes of the community. But with the date of Abigail’s wedding fast approaching, the sisters will have to make a hard decision about which familial bonds are worth protecting. An intimate coming-of-age story and a modern woman’s read, God Spare the Girls lays bare the rabid love of sisterhood and asks what we owe our communities, our families, and ourselves. “A deeply felt book about love — love for family and community, for people who sustain you and people who disappoint you. And love for God, too, which Kelsey McKinney writes about with humane and incisive frankness.”—Linda Holmes, New York Times bestselling author of Evvie Drake Starts Over “The accomplishment of this canny novel is in positing coming of age itself as a loss of faith—not only in the church, but in our parents, our family, and the world as we thought we understood it.” — Rumaan Alam, New York Times bestselling author of Leave the World Behind and Rich and Pretty
