Tillamook Main Branch Library
1716 3rd St. Tillamook, OR 97141
503-842-4792
Monday thru Friday: 9 am to 6 pm
Saturday: 10 am to 5 pm
"Night and Day takes us from the dusty shelves of an uncanny library filled with fictional characters to a bunker deep beneath the earth where scientists seek revenge on old Nazis; from an English marsh haunted by a mother and her son to a country house where a grieving widower finds comfort from a most unlikely source. Concluding with the author's account of how an obscure horror film brought him closer to his lost father, and how nostalgia can help to keep us sane, this is a collection that will move, entertain, and keep you reading late into the night."-- Provided by publisher.
"After nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College, Violet Sorrengail knows there's no more time for lessons. No more time for uncertainty. Because the battle has truly begun, and with enemies closing in from outside their walls and within their ranks, it's impossible to know who to trust. Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves--her dragons, her family, her home, and him. Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything. They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find--the truth. But a storm is coming...and not everyone can survive its wrath." -- provided by publisher.
"A semi-famous artist announces her plan to drive cross-country, from LA to NY. Twenty minutes after leaving her husband and child at home, she spontaneously exits the freeway, beds down in a nondescript motel, and immerses herself in a temporary reinvention that turns out to be the start of an entirely different journey"-- Provided by publisher.
"When Works Progress Administration (WPA) editor Millie Lang finds herself on the wrong end of a potential political scandal, she's shipped off to Montana to work on the state's American Guide Series--travel books intended to put the nation's destitute writers to work. Millie arrives to an eclectic staff claiming their missed deadlines are due to sabotage, possibly from the state's powerful Copper Kings who don't want their long and bloody history with union organizers aired for the rest of the country to read. But Millie begins to suspect that the answer might instead lie with the town's mysterious librarian, Alice Monroe. More than a decade earlier, Alice Monroe created the Boxcar Library in order to deliver books to isolated mining towns where men longed for entertainment and connection. Alice thought she found the perfect librarian to staff the train car in Colette Durand, a miner's daughter with a shotgun and too many secrets behind her eyes. Now, no one in Missoula will tell Millie why both Alice and Colette went out on the inaugural journey of the Boxcar Library, but only Alice returned. The three women's stories dramatically converge in the search to uncover what someone is so desperately trying to hide: what happened to Colette Durand."-- Provided by publisher.
"Author Grady Green is having the worst best day of his life. He calls his wife, Abby, to share some exciting news as she is driving home. He hears Abby slam on the brakes when she sees something in the road ahead. Over Grady's protests, Abby gets out of the car. When he eventually finds her car by the cliff edge, the headlights are on, the driver's door is open, her phone is still there... but his wife has disappeared. A year later, Grady is still overcome with grief and desperate to know what happened to Abby. He can't sleep, and he can't write, so he travels to a tiny, remote Scottish island to try and get his life back on track. And then he sees the impossible: a woman who looks exactly like his missing wife" --back cover.
"Hope is the first autobiography in history ever to be published by a Pope. Written over six years, this complete autobiography starts in the early years of the twentieth century, with Pope Francis's Italian roots and his ancestors' courageous migration to Latin America, continuing through his childhood, the enthusiasms and preoccupations of his youth, his vocation
"Junie has always yearned for more. Born and raised on the Bellereine plantation in the Alabama countryside, the sixteen-year-old spends her days working for the McQueens and serving as a maid for their daughter Violet, her oldest and closest friend. In the daytime, she entertains herself with poetry and imagines grand romances and faraway worlds. Under the cover of night, she steals away to the woods,curling up by the riverbank. But consumed by grief over the recent death of her older sister Minnie, she has vowed never to leave her family's side. Her world is capsized at the arrival of the Taylors, awealthy brother and sister from New Orleans. The McQueens are keen to marry Violet off to Mr. Taylor, and if they succeed, Junie would be ripped away from everyone she knows and loves"-- Provided by publisher.
The small Oregon town of Mountain Valley seems like the perfect place to safely raise a family, away from the dangers of the big city. Vanessa's parents think so, until the day their 14-year-old daughter doesn't come home for dinner. An attendant at the local gas station mentions seeing a girl fitting Vanessa's description getting into a pick-up truck that he thinks belongs to one of the Spanglers. Everyone knows the Spanglers - the richest, most influential family for miles around. Patriarch Milton Spangler offers a $50,000 reward, determined to quash any notion that his family might be involved. But as search parties fail to yield any clues, another young woman goes missing. Are these simply disillusioned runaways? Or does the Spangler family have something to hide? Myra Rutledge has honed her instincts over scores of missions, and the news stories about missing young women set her internal alarms ringing. She shares her concerns with other women of the Sisterhood, and they agree to look into the goings-on in Mountain Valley. But a small town like this can have deep secrets, especially when one family holds so much power.
"Recovering from a psychotic breakdown, Nancy North moves into a new flat and becomes convinced a new neighbor's sudden death isn't a suicide, while Detective Maud O'Connor battles institutional apathy to uncover the truth, as both women face mounting pressure and blurred lines between reality and suspicion"-- Provided by publisher.
"In July 1944, Arielle von Auspeck arrives at the glamorous HotelRitz in occupied Paris. Half French, half German, she is happy to be back in France, where her husband Gregor, a retired colonel, will join her soon from Germany. Arielle and Gregor have thus far been able to hide their private opposition to Hitler. Then her world falls apart: she receives word that Gregor was part of Operation Valkyrie,a failed attempt to assassinate Hitler in Poland, and has been shotas a traitor. Now, holding a French passport handed to her by another high-level collaborator, she is whisked away from Paris under cover of darkness for her own safety"-- Provided by publisher.
"Cece and Charlie are in love and a few weeks away from their summer wedding. But when Cece meets Charlie's best friend from college,Garrett, her long-held expectations for her future begin to crumble. As Garrett's gruff mask slips, Cece begins to anticipate the big day with dread as her feelings for Garrett become impossible to bury.And as she decides to follow her instincts, ditching her groom for his best man, she will alter the three of their lives forever, the events of that July reverberating through marriage, parenthood, and, in the end, across generations"-- Provided by publisher.
"Source Code is not about Microsoft or the Gates Foundation or the future of technology. It's the human, personal story of how Bill Gates became who he is today: his childhood, his early passions and pursuits. It's the story of his principled grandmother and ambitious parents, his first deep friendships and the sudden death of his bestfriend; of his struggles to fit in and his discovery of a world of coding and computers in the dawn of a new era; of embarking in his early teens on a path that took him from midnight escapades at a nearby computer center to his college dorm room, where he sparked a revolution that would change the world"-- Provided by publisher.
"Lila Kennedy has a lot on her plate. A broken marriage, two wayward daughters, a house that is falling apart, and an elderly stepfather who seems to have quietly moved in. Her career is in freefall and her love life is--complicated. So when her real dad--a man she hasbarely seen since he ran off to Hollywood thirty-five years ago--suddenly appears on her doorstep, it feels like the final straw. But it turns out even the family you thought you could never forgive might have something to teach you about love, and what it actually means to be family"-- Provided by publisher.
"Pat Barker has crafted the latest in a brilliant reimagining of Greek mythology, and The Voyage Home is the work of a writer at the height of her powers. In this third outing, she follows the young Ritsa and the unpredictable Cassandra on their perilous return journey to Mycenae. Cassandra has acquired the powers of prophecy from the kiss of Apollo, but the very same god has taken away the people's belief in her abilities. Though she warns of the carnage that awaits the Greek warrior king Agamemnon--who numbs himself with alcohol on the storm-plagued trip home--her shipmates disregard her. While Cassandra's prophecies fall on deaf ears, Ritsa instead remains focused on surviving once they make land. When a mysterious young girl begins to shadow them, and Agamemnon's cruelty takes a new turn, Ritsa must find a safe place for Cassandra, whose mood alternates between cruelty and frenzy. But it's the ongoing ire between Queen Clytemnestra and Agamemnon that could prove fatal for everyone. In The Voyage Home, Barker elevates myth and legend and asks us to examine the stories we hold dear through a feminist lens, and in doing so she has crafted a tale that upholds her legacy as one of our finest contemporary novelists"-- Provided by publisher.
"Detective John Bowie is one misstep away from being fired from the Auclair Police Department in coastal Louisiana. Recently divorcedand slightly heavy-handed with his liquor, Bowie does all that he can to cope with the actions taken (or not taken) during the investigation of Crissy Mellin, a teenage girl who disappeared more than three years prior. But now, Crisis Point, a long-running true crime television series, is soon to air an episode documenting the unsolved Mellin case. Bowie has been instructed by his unscrupulous boss to keep to himself his grievances and criticisms over the mishandling ofthe investigation. Beth Collins, a senior producer on Crisis Point, knows what classifies as a great story and when there's something more to be told. After working on the show for seven years researching, fact checking, and editing dozens of episodes, Collins is convinced that Crissy Mellin's disappearance was not an isolated incident"-- Provided by plisher.
"In this irresistible and thrilling debut novel, a former antique hunter investigates a suspicious death at an isolated English manor, embroiling her back in the dangerous world of tracking stolen artifacts. What antique would you kill for? Freya Lockwood is shocked when she learns that Arthur Crockleford, antiques dealer and her estranged mentor, has died under mysterious circumstances. She has spent the last twenty years avoiding her quaint English hometown, but when she receives a letter from Arthur asking her to investigate--sent just days before his death--Freya has no choice but to return to a life she had sworn to leave behind. Joining forces with her eccentric Aunt Carole, Freya follows clues and her instincts to an old manor house for an advertised antiques enthusiast's weekend. But not all is as it seems. It's clear to Freya that the antiques are all just poor reproductions and her fellow guests are secretive and menacing. What is going on at this estate and how was Arthur involved? More importantly, can Freya and Carole discover the truth before the killer strikes again?"-- Provided by publisher.
"A sweeping story that follows a Greek woman through the mid-twentieth century as she reconciles her family's troubled past and forges a path all her own. Demitra, a young artist, comes of age in post-World War II Greece, struggling with her widowed father's emotional unavailability as she dreams her dead mother watches over her, like the goddesses she reads about in her mythology books. While visiting family on Corfu, Demitra defies her father's commands to return home and marry the man he chose for her. She instead stays on Corfu, where she falls in love with painting and a forbidden man. But after suffering a devastating betrayal, Demitra has no choice but to return home to Cephalonia and ask forgiveness from her father. Before they can make amends, the island is struck by a massive earthquake that kills thousands and reduces entire villages to rubble. Amid the ruins, Demitra finds the courage to confront her father and start a new life in America centered around her art. Set among the lush Ionian islands of Corfu and Cephalonia, Demitra's story is steeped in the myths and traditions of Greece. Over the course of decades, Demitra fights to find her voice and independence at a time when women are only as valuable as their dowries, ultimately learning the devastating secret of her family's history and the unforgivable act of revenge and betrayal that cemented her fate and future."-- Provided by publisher.
"Set again in the beloved Japanese bookshop and nearby coffee shop in the Jimbocho neighborhood of Tokyo, a new cast of regulars have appeared in the shop, including an old man who wears the same ragged mouse-colored sweater and another who collects books solely for the official stamps with the author's personal seal. As time passes, Satoru, with Takako's help, must choose whether to keep the bookshop open or shutter its doors forever. Making the decision will take uncle and niece on a journey back to their family's roots and remind them what a bookstore can mean to an individual, a neighborhood, and a whole culture"-- Back cover.
"Sixteen-year-old Odile is an awkward, quiet girl vying for a coveted seat on the Conseil. If she earns the position, she'll decide who may cross her town's heavily guarded borders. On the other side, it's the same valley, the same town. Except to the east, the town is twenty years ahead in time. To the west, it's twenty years behind. The towns repeat in an endless sequence across the wilderness. When Odile recognizes two visitors she wasn't supposed to see, she realizes that the parents of her friend Edme have been escorted across the border from the future, on a mourning tour, to view their son while he's still alive in Odile's present. Edme--who is brilliant, funny, and the only person to truly see Odile--is about to die. Sworn to secrecy in order to preserve the timeline, Odile now becomes the Conseil's top candidate. Yet she finds herself drawing closer to the doomed boy, imperiling her entire future"-- Provided by publisher.
"In her second story collection, Sittenfeld shows why she's as beloved for her short fiction as she is for her novels. In these ... stories, she conjures up characters so real that they seem like old friends, laying bare the moments when their long-held beliefs are overturned. In 'The Patron Saints of Middle Age,' a woman visits two friends she hasn't seen since her divorce. In 'A for Alone,' a married middle-aged artist embarks on a creative project intended to disprove the so-called Mike Pence Rule, which suggests that women and mencan't spend time alone without lusting after each other. And in 'Lost but Not Forgotten,' Sittenfeld gives readers of her novel Prep a window into the world of her ... character Lee Fiora, decades later,when Lee attends an alumni reunion at her boarding school"-- Provided by publisher.
"Beth Rivers needs to disappear. Her one-time kidnapper, Travis, is on his way to her town in Alaska, and she's losing time to get out quickly. The perfect spot for Beth and her boyfriend, Tex, to hide presents itself in a camp in the woods, away from Benedict. But when their trip takes them by Blue Mine, a small community that has seen tragedy over the last couple months, plans get diverted. Beth and Tex bring the widow of a recently murdered man back to Benedict for Police Chief Gril to investigate, only to find that nothing is quite what it seems. When the woman vanishes, Beth must be on high alert for further danger. Who knows what other unwelcome disappearances or appearances might be lurking in the unforgiving Alaska storms."-- Provided by publisher.
"Summer guests are eager to sink their teeth into the tantalizing desserts Jacobia "Jake" Tiptree and Ellie White serve at their bakeshop in the island village of Eastport, Maine. But attracting the wrong kind of attention can be deadly . . . With the August heat strong enough to melt solid chocolate into syrup, Jake and Ellie crave a break from the bakery ovens, despite tourist season promising a sweet payday. But they never envisioned spending the last weeks of summer drifting around Passamaquoddy Bay searching for pirate's treasure -- and a dead body. Sally Coates believes her husband was murdered off the coast, and begs Ellie, a trusted childhood friend, to locate his remains. It's unusual that a skilled fisherman would vanish along with the gold doubloon he inherited from his grandfather. And Sally isn't the only one coveting the valuable heirloom for her own. As Jake and Ellie island-hop for answers, they find themselves caught between hungry sharks and hungrier suspects. Can the duo tempt fate and dodge danger before there's blood in the water -- or are they destined to fall into the jaws of a killer's trap?"-- Provided by publisher.
"Newlywed Chief of Police Kate Burkholder is awakened by an urgent midnight call summoning her to a suspicious fire in the woods. When she arrives at the scene, she discovers a charred body. According to the coroner, the deceased, an Amish man named Milan Swanz, was chained to a stake and burned alive. It is an appalling and eerily symbolic crime against an upstanding husband and father. Kate knows all too well that the Amish prefer to handle their problems without interference from the outside world, and no one will speak about the murdered man. From what she's able to piece together, Swanz led a deeply troubled life and had recently been excommunicated. But if that's the case, why are the Amish so reluctant to talk about him? Are they protecting the memory of one of their own? Or are they afraid of something they dare not share?"-- Provided by publisher.
"Running from the ghosts of yesterday . . . There was a time when classical guitarist Ian Hart was on top of the world. Awards. International acclaim. Adoring fans. And the belief that it was forever. Now, under the shadow of a scandal and betrayal that destroyed his career, Ian wonders what the next day will bring. In the midst of a life in turmoil, Ian's Aunt Amelia -- his closest friend and greatest supporter -- passes away, leaving him her home in Miramar. It's just the quietude he needs to reflect and try to move forward. But what awaits Ian in the tranquil seaside town is more than he ever expected. Toward a hopeful tomorrow . . . Kari Langham is a stranger in her own family -- misunderstood, dismissed, and underestimated. They strive for wealth, status, and fame while Kari finds personal fulfillment in painting. Wanting nothing more than to escape the soul-crushing sheen of a Hollywood life, Kari does the only thing that makes sense. She flees to Miramar. Renovating an old barn into her home and atelier, Kari finds anonymous sanctuary. But the openhearted town, and the world at large, has something else in mind -- for Kari and for another newcomer to Miramar. Ian and Kari are finding themselves in a haven by the sea, and it's just the beginning. They're ready for whatever the future brings, and to embrace the things that matter most with all their hearts."-- Provided by publisher.
"By all accounts, Carl and Roy Opgard are doing quite well for themselves. Or at least they're doing as well as can be expected in a small town like Os. Carl manages the area's swanky and successful spa and hotel, while Roy runs a nearby gas station and harbors grand plans to build it out into an entire amusement park complete with a roller coaster. But when news breaks about a new highway to be built nearby, bypassing Os and leaving the town cut-off and isolated, it's clear that something has to be done... even if the methods are bound to be dirty. Fortunately, Carl and Roy have experience with just that kind of work. Meanwhile, the town sheriff has gotten his hands on new technology that will enable him to take a deeper look at a slate of unsolved murders from years past - including that of his own father. And just as the sheriff reopens his investigation, the death toll begins to climb. It's like Roy says about his roller coaster: "Once it's rolling, it's too late to get off." Blood Ties is a tense, compulsively readable tour de force about loyalty, family ties, and love that is as destructive as it is powerful"-- Provided by publisher.
"Keru and Nate first meet in college, brought together by a joke at a Halloween party (would a "great white" costume mean dressing like a shark or a privileged Ivy League student?) and marrying a few years later. Misfits in their own families, they find in each other a feeling of home. Keru is the only child of strict, well-educated Chinese immigrant parents who hold her to impossible standards even as an adult ("To use a dishwasher is to admit defeat," says her father). Nate is from a rural, white, working class family that has never trusted his intellectual ambitions or - now - the citizenship status of his "foreign" wife. Nevertheless, some years into their marriage, Keru and Nate find themselves incorporating their families into two carefully planned vacations. The results are disastrous and revealing. First in a cozy beach house on Cape Cod, and later in a luxury bungalow in the Catskills, the couple is forced to confront the hidden truths at the core of their relationship. Alongside their giant sheepdog Mantou, Keru and Nate navigate visits from in-laws, a sibling, and surprising new friends, all while trying to determine if they have what it takes to make themselves and each other happy. How do you cope when your spouse and your family of origin clash? How many people (and dogs) are needed to make a family? And when the pack starts to disintegrate, what does it take to shepherd everyone back together?"-- Provided by publisher
"Tao is an immigrant fortune teller, traveling between villages with just her trusty mule for company. She only tells small fortunes: whether it will hail next week; which boy the barmaid will kiss; when the cow will calve. She knows from bitter experience that big fortunes come with big consequences . . . Even if it's a lonely life, it's better than the one she left behind. But a small fortune unexpectedly becomes something more when a (semi) reformed thief and an ex-mercenary recruit her into their desperate search for a lost child. Soon, they're joined by a baker with a "knead" for adventure, and of course a slightly magical cat. Tao starts down a new path with companions as big-hearted as her fortunes are small. But as she lowers her walls, the shadows of her past close in and she'll have to decide whether to risk everything to preserve the family she never thought she could have."-- Provided by publisher.
"Vacant homes in a new housing development are erupting into flames in broad daylight with no apparent cause. It's a perplexing mystery for dogged arson investigator Walter Sharpe and his restless new partner, Andrew Walker, an ex US marshal who craves action. But as they puzzle over the blazes, another home miles away burns to the ground, leaving a man's corpse in the ashes and homicide detectives Eve Ronin and Duncan Pavone demanding answers. The burn patterns and charred body tell Sharpe a bizarre story that only creates more questions for Eve. So the four detectives team up to find the answers. Their investigation into the two unrelated cases leads to one shocking discovery after another. Now they must gamble their lives to unmask a brilliant arsonist, crack open a massive swindle, track down a desperate fugitive with a terrifying secret, and race against time to save thousands of people from an agonizing death."-- Provided by publisher.
"Cotton Malone is on the hunt for a forgotten 16th century Pledge of Christ--a sworn promise made by Pope Julius II that evidences a monetary debt owed by the Vatican, still valid after five centuries, now worth in the trillions of dollars. But collecting that debt centers around what happened to the famed Medici of Florence--a family that history says died out, without heirs, centuries ago. Two more things also hang in the balance. Who will become the next prime minister of Italy, and who will be the next pope. Finding answers to all three proves difficult until Cotton realizes that everything hinges on when, and if, the Medici return"-- Provided by publisher.
"I was mostly a Good Dog until they sold me out to animal control, okay? But if it's a choice between Oz, with its creepy little singing dudes, and being behind bars in gray old Kansas, I'll choose the place where animals talk and run the show for now, thanks. It's not my fault that the kid is stuck here too, or that she stumbled into a tug-of-war over a pair of slippers that don't even taste good. Now one witch in good eyeliner calls her pretty and we're off on a quest? Teenagers. I try to tell her she's falling in with the wrong crowd when she befriends a freaking hedge wizard made of straw, that blue jay with revolutionary aspirations, and the walking tin can. Still, I'm not one to judge when there's the small matter of a coup in the Forest Kingdom.... Look, something really stinks in Oz, and this Wizard guy and the witches positively reek of it. As usual, it's going to be up to a sensible little dog to do a big dog's job and get to the bottom of it. And trust me: Little dogs can get away with anything"-- Provided by publisher.
"Audrey Penault once led a glamorous life as a model but now works as devoted secretary to Mr. Wynton. To her fellow employees, she is too vain and uppity. Mary Jo Johnson, a wife and mother, longs to find her worth in the cosmetics department, but it may take a while for the shy housewife to discover her voice. Vivian Sheffield owns and runs the bridal salon within Wynton's. She is proud of her accomplishments and won't let anyone take them away. Gigi Woodard dislikes her job as waitress in the store's lunchroom, but she is determined not to let her secret shortcomings cause her to lose the position. These four women have much to dislike about each other, but they unanimously agree that Mr. Wynton is the best of employers and must be protected at all costs from someone who seems determined to see him gone for good. When other employee deaths occur, can the women band together to solve the murders, or will they discover it is one of their own bent on destroying Wynton's from within?"-- Amazon.com
Gela Nathaniel, head of Royal Hastings University's new Multimedia Art course, must find six students from all walks of life across the United Kingdom for her new master's program before the university cuts her funding. The students are nothing but trouble from day one. There's Jem, a talented sculptor recently graduated from her university program and eager to make her mark as an artist at any cost. Jonathan, who has little experience in art practice aside from running his family's gallery. Patrick runs an art supply store, but can barely operate his phone, much less design software. Ludya is a single mother and graphic designer more interested in a paycheck than homework. Cameron is a marketing executive in search of a hobby or a career change. And Alyson, already a successful artist, seems to be overqualified. Finally, there is the examiner, the man hired to grade students' final works--an art installation for a local cloud-based solutions company that may have an ulterior agenda--and who, in sifting through final essays, texts, and message boards, warns that someone is in danger...or already dead. And nothing about this course has been left up to chance.
Washington, DC, 1950. Everyone keeps to themselves at Briarwood House, a down-at-the-heels all-female boardinghouse in the heart of the nation's capital where secrets hide behind white picket fences. But when the lovely, mysterious widow Grace March moves into the attic room, she draws her oddball collection of neighbors into unlikely friendship: poised English beauty Fliss, whose facade of perfect wife and mother covers gaping inner wounds; policeman's daughter Nora, who finds herself entangled with a shadowy gangster; frustrated baseball star Beatrice, whose career has come to an end along with the women's baseball league of WWII; and poisonous, gung-ho Arlene, who has thrown herself into McCarthy's Red Scare. Grace's weekly attic-room dinner parties and window-brewed sun tea become a healing balm on all their lives, but she hides a terrible secret of her own. When a shocking act of violence tears the house apart, the Briar Club women must decide once and for all: who is the true enemy in their midst?
"All Hamish Macbeth wants is a quiet life in his peaceful home inthe Highland village of Lochdubh. But when his newly-assigned constable arrives, he presents Hamish with a surprise and a secret. Getting to the bottom of the secret becomes the least of Hamish's problems when he meets a family who have a score to settle with a sinister man who has mysteriously gone missing. Discovering a murdered woman's body puts further pressure on Hamish, especially when it becomes clear that the murdered woman and the missing man are linked"-- Provided by publisher.
"How many times have you wanted to object, disagree, or opt out of something-but ended up swallowing your words, shaking your head, and just going along? Analyzing cases from corporate corruption to sexual abuse to everyday acquiescence at work, the doctor's office, and in our personal lives, award-winning organizational psychologist Dr. Sunita Sah delves deep into why the pressure to comply is a corrosive and often invisible force in our society. With her own revelatory research, she radically transforms our idea of defiance from a misunderstood negative trait into a crucial, positive force for personal and societal change. Taking us through her five stages of defiance, Dr. Sah equips readers with simple tools to make decisions that align with their values. Defy is the essential playbook for how to speak up and act when it matters most"-- Provided by publisher.
The modern world presents a challenge: distractions, a loss of focus, and an increasing tendency to engage with things that may not be serving our best interests. We encounter people absorbed in their phones, sometimes even noticing it in ourselves. In social settings, it's common to see individuals engrossed in their devices rather than engaging with those around them. There has been a significant shift in how we balance the public and private spheres--historically, this boundary was more defined, but now, as Chris Hayes points out, "With the help of a few tech firms, we basically tore it down in about a decade." Hayes suggests that this moment in history mirrors the changes seen in labor during the nineteenth century, where attention has become a commodity extracted from individuals, creating a sense of alienation. The Sirens' Call aims to offer clarity and guidance in this era of transition. There is a breaking point: devices and notifications are designed to capture our attention at all hours, serving the interests of powerful companies that profit from our focus. As Hayes notes, "Now our deepest neurological structures, human evolutionary inheritances, and social impulses are in a habitat designed to prey upon, to cultivate, distort, or destroy that which most fundamentally makes us human." The Sirens' Call offers a comprehensive framework to understand and address this issue, helping individuals reclaim control over their time, attention, and ultimately, their future.
In 1919, a high school teacher from Washington, D.C arrives in Harlem excited to realize her lifelong dream. Jessie Redmon Fauset has been named the literary editor of The Crisis. The first Black woman to hold this position at a preeminent Negro magazine, Jessie is poised to achieve literary greatness. But she holds a secret that jeopardizes it all. W. E. B. Du Bois, the founder of The Crisis, is not only Jessie's boss, he's her lover. And neither his wife, nor their fourteen-year-age difference can keep the two apart. Amidst rumors of their tumultuous affair, Jessie is determined to prove herself. She attacks the challenge of discovering young writers with fervor, finding sixteen-year-old Countee Cullen, seventeen-year-old Langston Hughes, and Nella Larsen, who becomes one of her best friends. Under Jessie's leadership, The Crisis thrives...every African American writer in the country wants their work published there. When her first novel is released to great acclaim, it's clear that Jessie is at the heart of a renaissance in Black music, theater, and the arts. She has shaped a generation of literary legends, but as she strives to preserve her legacy, she'll discover the high cost of her unparalleled success.--Back cover
"Stella Hobhouse is a brilliant rider, stalwart friend, skilled sketch artist and completely overlooked. Her outmodish gray hair makes her invisible to London society. Combined with her brother's pious restrictions and her dwindling inheritance, Stella is on the verge of a lifetime marooned in Derbyshire as a spinster. Unless she does something drastic . . . like posing for a daring new style of portrait by the only man who's ever really seen her. Aspiring painter Edward "Teddy" Hayes knows true beauty when he sees it. He would never ask Stella to risk her reputation as an artist's model but in the five years since a virulent bout of scarlet fever left him partially paralyzed, Teddy has learned to heed good fortune when he finds it. He'll do anything to persuade his muse to pose for him, even if he must offer her a marriage of convenience. After all, though Teddy has yearned to trace Stella's luminous beauty on canvas since their chance meeting, her heart is what he truly aches to capture . . ."-- Provided by publisher.
"What is a truly fearless man capable of? They're about to find out. . . . Ben Koenig used to head the US Marshal's elite Special Operations Group. His team hunted the bad guys -- the really bad guys -- and he could find anyone. Then one day Koenig himself disappeared. Koenig has been on the run for six years. Now suddenly his face is on every television screen in the country and his cover is blown. A woman has gone missing, and her father will do anything to find her. He wants Koenig to discover what happened, no matter the cost. The trail leads Koenig to a small town in the burning heat of the Chihuahuan Desert, where some people have a secret they'll do anything to protect. But Koenig has a secret of his own: a unique condition that makes him unable to feel fear. Now Koenig is coming for them. And they should be afraid."-- Provided by publisher.
"France, 1531. Orphaned by the age of five, Marguerite de la Rocque was heir to a chateau with its own village and lands. But her guardian, Jean Francois de la Rocque de Roberval, sells Marguerite's property to embark on an expedition to New France, bringing Margueriteand her maidservant with him. Aboard the ship, the women are limited to the company of the captain, the navigator, Roberval, and his secretary--a man whose musical talent, literary knowledge, and dark eyes intrigue Marguerite. It isn't long before the two of them are meeting secretly to declare their love for one another. When Roberval discovers this transgression, he is furious, seeing their affection as betrayal. As punishment, he maroons them on a small island off thecoast, condemning them to certain death"-- Provided by publisher.
"A vacation in the Hamptons goes terribly wrong for three friends with a complicated history. It was meant to be a harmless prank. Growing up, May Hanover was a good girl, always. Well-behaved, top of her class, a compulsive rule-follower. Raised by a first-generation Chinese single mother with high expectations, May didn't have room to slip up, let alone fail. Her friends didn't call her the Little Sheriff for nothing. But even good girls have secrets. And regrets. When it comes to her friendship with Lauren and Kelsey, she's had her fair share of both. Their bond--forged when May was just twelve years old--has withstood a tragic accident, individual scandals, heartbreak and loss. Now the three friends have reunited for the first time in years for a few days of sun and fun in the Hamptons. But a chance encounter with a pair of strangers leads to a drunken prank that goes horribly awry. When she finds herself at the center of an urgent police investigation, May begins to wonder whether Lauren and Kelsey are keeping secrets from her, testing the limits of her loyalty to lifelong friends. What had they gone and done? A propulsive thriller that explores of-the-moment social issues, The Note is a page-turner of the highest order from one of our greatest contemporary suspense writers"-- Provided by publisher.
"From the porch of his home, Charles Lamosway has watched the life he might have had unfold across the river on Maine's Penobscot Reservation. He caught brief moments of his neighbor Elizabeth's life from the day she came home from the hospital to her early twenties. But there's something deeper and more dangerous than the river that divides him from her and the rest of the tribal community. It's the secret that Elizabeth is his daughter, a secret Charles is no longer willing to keep. Now, it's been weeks since he's seen Elizabeth, and Charles is worried. As he attempts to hold on to and care for what he can -- his home and property; his alcoholic and bighearted friend Bobby; and his mother, Louise, who is slipping deeper into dementia -- he becomes increasingly haunted by his past. Forced to confront a lost childhood on the reservation, a love affair cut short, and the death of his beloved stepfather, Fredrick, Charles contends with questions he's long been afraid to ask. Is his secret about Elizabeth his to share? And would his daughter want to know the truth, even if it could cost her everything she's ever known?"-- Provided by publisher.
"After facilitating a handful of successful romances, Katie Donald is eager to continue helping the lovelorn citizens of Edinburgh find connection. Word of her expertise spreads quickly, and more people than ever are flocking to the Perfect Passion Company seeking Katie's advice. With each client's distinctive quirks and unique personalities, Katie finds herself seeking new and creative solutions to locate their perfect match. With the tenderness of which only McCall Smith is capable, The Perfect Passion Company charmingly illuminates the fascinating psychology of matchmaking, the universal search for love and compassion, and the mysterious spark of attraction that can, at times, catch hold of us all"-- Provided by publisher.
"Gail Baines is long divorced from her husband Max, and not especially close to her grown daughter Debbie. Today is the day before Debbie's wedding. To start, Gail loses her job--or quits, depending who you ask. Then, Max arrives unannounced on Gail's doorstep, carrying a cat, without a place to stay and without even a suit in which towalk their daughter down the aisle. But the true crisis lands when Debbie shares with her parents a secret she has just learned about her husband-to-be. It will not only throw the wedding itself into question but also send Gail back into her past and how her own relationship fell apart"-- Provided by publisher.
"One of the biggest concerns among aging men and women is the fear of falling. Chair yoga, or "yoga while seated," allows anyone to experience all of the benefits of an exercise program without being afraid. In Chair Yoga for Seniors, registered yoga practitioner and instructor Lynn Lehmkuhl offers readers easy-to-follow yoga positions and stretches that can be done at home, while sitting down." -- Goodreads.
"On a cold winter day in 1832, Sarah Cornell was found hanging ina barn, four months pregnant, after a disgraceful liaison with a charismatic Methodist minister, Reverend Ephraim Avery. Some (Avery's lawyers) claimed her death was suicide--but others weren't so sure.Determined to uncover the real story, intrepid Victorian writer Catharine Williams threw herself into the investigation and wrote what many claim is the first American true-crime narrative: Fall River. The case and Williams's book became a sensation--one that divided thecountry and inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter. But the reverend was not convicted, and questions linger to this day about what really led to Sarah Cornell's death. ... In [this account], ... true-crime historian Kate Winkler Dawson travels back in time to 19th century small town America, emboldened to finish the work Williams started nearly two centuries before."-- Publisher description.
"At every death scene, Bennett says a prayer over the victim. But recently, too many of departed have been fellow cops. 'I want you to look at these deaths on special assignment,' NYPD Inspector Celeste Cantor says. 'Report only to me.' Bennett excels as a solo investigator. But he's chasing a killer who feeds on isolation--and paranoia"-- Provided by publisher.
" Lynch's story of an odyssey is one of love and determination. Pony devotes his life to finding Penny in an account that will be appreciated by horse lovers. Library Journal Cozy fans looking for something out of the ordinary should saddle up. Publishers Weekly Pony has been passed from owner to owner for longer than he can remember. Fed up, he busts out and goes on a cross-country mission to exact his revenge on the only little girl he ever loved, Penny, who abandoned him so many years ago without a backward glance. Penny, now an adult, is living an ordinary life when she gets a knock on her door and finds herself in handcuffs, accused of murder and whisked back to the place she grew up. Her only comfort when the past comes back to haunt her are the memories of her precious, rebellious pony. Hearing of Penny's fate, Pony knows that, no matter his feelings toward her, Penny is no murderer. So, as smart and devious as he is cute, the pony must use his hard-won knowledge of human weakness and cruelty to try to clear Penny's name and find the real killer. This acutely observant feel-good mystery reveals the humanity of animals and beastliness of humans in a rollicking escapade of epic proportions."-- Provided by publisher.
"When Nancy Pelosi asked her youngest daughter is she should run for Congress, Alexandra Pelosi answered: "Mother, get a life!" And so Nancy did, and what a life it has been. In The Art of Power, Pelosi describes what it takes to make history as the first woman to ascend to the most powerful legislative role in our nation. She describes the perseverance, persuasion, and respect that it took to succeed, but also the joy of seeing America change for the better. The Art of Power is about the fighting spirit that has always animated her, and the historic legacy that spirit has produced"-- Back cover.
"Paul Brightman is a man on the run, living under an assumed namein a small New England town with a million-dollar bounty on his head. When his security is breached, Paul is forced to flee into the New Hampshire wilderness to evade Russian operatives who seem to be able to predict his every move. Flash to six years earlier, when Paulwas a rising star on Wall Street who fell in love with a beautiful photographer named Tatyana--unaware that her father was a Russian oligarch, the object of considerable interest from several US intelligence agencies. In order to save his own life, Paul must unravel a decades-old conspiracy that extends to the highest reaches of the government"-- Provided by publisher.
The daughter of an affluent Black family pieces together the connection between a childhood tragedy and a beloved heirloom in this moving novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Black Cake, a Read with Jenna Book Club Pick When ten-year-old Ebby Freeman heard the gunshot, time stopped. And when she saw her brother, Baz, lying on the floor surrounded by the shattered pieces of a centuries-old jar, life as Ebby knew it shattered as well. The crime was never solvedand because the Freemans were one of the only Black families in a particularly well-to-do enclave of New Englandthe case has had an enduring, voyeuristic pull for the public. The last thing the Freemans want is another media frenzy splashing their family across the papers, but when Ebby's high profile romance falls apart without any explanation, that's exactly what they get. So Ebby flees to France, only for her past to follow her there. And as she tries to process what's happened, she begins to think about the other loss her family suffered on that day eighteen years agothe stoneware jar that had been in their family for generations, brought North by an enslaved ancestor. But little does she know that the handcrafted piece of pottery held more than just her family's historyit might also hold the key to unlocking her own future. In this sweeping, evocative novel, Charmaine Wilkerson brings to life a multi-generational epic that examines how the past informs our present.
"In 1879, Faith Kenner is pursuing her dream to become a doctor and use her gift to help the native populations. When she meets Andrew Gratton, an injured riverboat captain, a friendship grows between them-but will secrets and rising tensions prevent them from finding true happiness?"-- Provided by publisher
"When Olive Porter's off-the-grid parents go missing, she reluctantly seeks out Noah Turner, her ex and the only person she both trusts implicitly and not at all. As a special investigative agent for the National Park Service, Noah's used to living under intense pressure. Or he was until he got injured on the job. Now unhappily recuperating at home while being smothered by his loving but nosy family, he'd love nothing more than a good distraction. So when Olive shows up looking like a million bucks, he has to do a gut and heart check. Because nope, no matter what, he can't fall for her again, the woman who once blew up his entire life and never looked back. How ironic then that his own personal hell (Olive) is also his ticket out of town. The question is, will the risk be worth the reward?"-- Page 4 of cover.
"Sometimes the power of love... A.J. Grayson has come a long way from adopted orphan to fast-rising executive at a cutting-edge technology firm. Now an anti-terrorist agency wants to use the revolutionary artificial intelligence system she developed to thwart a plot against Jafir's monarchy-and handsome, dynamic Damon Toca, the region's newly crowned king. . . . can be the most seductive weapon of all. In six short months, Damon has gone from gallery owner to controversial politician. When his cabinet hires A.J. Grayson-without his consent-he gets ready for a battle. Expecting a computer geek, and skeptical of A.J.'s highly touted secret invention, he is stunned to find a strong-minded beauty who arouses much more than his suspicions. But someone in his inner circle is in league with a treacherous adversary who threatens his throne, his nation's tenuous peace . . . and his future with a woman he'll risk everything to have and to hold"-- Publisher's description.
"In June 1993, a group of young guerrilla filmmakers spent four weeks making Horror Movie, a notorious, disturbing, art-house horror flick. The weird part? Only three of the film's scenes were ever released to the public, but Horror Movie has nevertheless grown a rabid fanbase. Three decades later, Hollywood is pushing for a big budget reboot. The man who played 'The Thin Kid' is the only surviving cast member. He remembers all too well the secrets buried within the original screenplay, the bizarre events of the filming, and the dangerous crossed lines on set that resulted in tragedy. As memories flood back in, the boundaries between reality and film, past and present start to blur. But he's going to help remake the film, even if it means navigating a world of cynical producers, egomaniacal directors, and surreal fan conventions--demons of the past be damned. But at what cost? Horror Movie is an obsessive, psychologically chilling, and suspenseful feat of storytelling genius that builds inexorably to an unforgettable, mind-bending conclusion." -- Provided by publisher.
"One morning in December, Kyungha receives a message from her friend Inseon saying she has been hospitalized in Seoul and asking thatKyungha join her urgently. The two women have last seen each other over a year before, on Jeju Island, where Inseon lives and where, two days before this reunion, she has injured herself chopping wood. Airlifted to Seoul for an operation, Inseon has had to leave behind her pet bird. Bedridden, she begs Kyungha to take the first plane toJeju to save the animal. A snowstorm hits the island when Kyungha arrives. She must reach Inseon's house at all costs, but the icy windand snow squalls slow her down as night begins to fall. She wondersif she will arrive in time to save Inseon's bird-or even survive the terrible cold that envelops her with every step. Lost in a world of snow, she doesn't yet suspect the vertiginous plunge into the darkness which awaits her at her friend's house. There, the long-buried story of Inseon's family surges into light, in dreams and memories passed from mother to daughter, and in the archive painstakingly assembled at the house, documenting a terrible massacre on the island."-- Provided by publisher.
"Disabled, disinclined to marry, and more interested in writing than a lucrative career, Zelu has always felt like the outcast of her large Nigerian family. When she's fired from her job and her novel is rejected by yet another publisher, her dreams are crushed, so she decides to write something just for herself: a far-future epic where androids and AI wage war in the ruins of human civilization. She calls it 'Rusted Robots'. Zelu does not realize she is about to embark on a life-altering journey -- one that will catapult her into literary stardom but also perhaps obliterate everything her book was meant to be. From Chicago to Lagos to outer space, 'Rusted Robots' will change the future not only for humanity but also for the robots who come next" -- from publisher.
"Rusty is a retired judge attempting a third act in life with a loving soon-to-be wife, Bea, with whom he shares both a restful home on an idyllic lake in the rural Midwest and a plaintive hope that this marriage will be his best, and his last. But the peace that's taken Rusty so long to find evaporates when Bea's young adult son, Aaron, living under their supervision while on probation for drug possession, disappears. If Aaron doesn't return soon, he will be sent back to jail. Aaron eventually turns up with a vague story about a camping trip with his troubled girlfriend, Mae, that ended in a fight and a long hitchhike home. Days later, when she still hasn't returned, suspicion falls on Aaron, and when Mae is subsequently discovered dead, Aaron is arrested and set for trial on charges of first-degree murder. Faced with few choices and even fewer hopes, Bea begs Rusty to return to court one last time, to defend her son and to save their last best hope for happiness. For Rusty, the question is not whether to defend Aaron, or whether the boy is innocent--it's whether the system to which he has devoted his life can ever provide true justice for those who are presumed guilty"--Inside jacket flap.
Wyoming Territory, 1873. Tim Colter and his trusted guide, mountain man Jed Reno, are on the trail of a vicious gang of train robbers when they happen upon a bloody and shocking scene. Lying on the ground, barely breathing, a Secret Service agent has been left for dead in the wake of a brutal ambush. His final words: 'President Grant ... assassination ... Dugan ... trust nobody.' It's a message that chills Colter and Reno to the bone. President Ulysses S. Grant is scheduled to arrive soon in Cheyenne. Dugan is a former Confederate guerrilla who leads a notorious gang of cutthroats. And the agent's last words - 'trust nobody' - suggest this conspiracy could reach to the highest levels of American power. Colter and Reno are determined to stop the assassins by any means possible - even if they have to enter hell itself, better known as Dugan's Den. But to get there, they'll have to bust a lady outlaw out of prison then convince her to take them to Dugan's hideout - with a lunatic killer on their tail and the president on a collision course with death ...
"Charlie and Helen Louise's wedding is only a month away. The last thing Charlie needs is a new mystery to solve. Enter Tara Martin, a shy, peculiar woman who has recently started working part-time at Helen Louise's bistro and helping Charlie in the archive. Tara has an angry outburst and then she abruptly leaves in the middle of her work shift. When Tara is viciously attacked and lands in the hospital, Charlie digs deeper, and discovers shocking glimpses into Tara's past. Will they catch the villain before Charlie's own happily ever after with Helen Louise is ruined?"-- Back cover.
"When Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore dies, she's not only North Carolina's richest woman, she's also its most notorious. The victim of a famous kidnapping as a child and a widow four times over, Ruby ruled the tiny town of Tavistock from Ashby House, her family's estate in the Blue Ridge Mountains. But in the aftermath of her death, her adopted son, Camden, wants little to do with the house or the money - and even less to do with the surviving McTavishes. Instead, he rejects his inheritance, settling into a normal life as an English teacher in Colorado and marrying Jules. Ten years later, his uncle's death pulls Cam and Jules back into the family fold at Ashby House. Its views are just as stunning as ever, its rooms just as elegant, but the legacy of Ruby is inescapable. And as Ashby House tightens its grip on Jules and Camden, questions about the infamous heiress come to light. Soon, Jules and Cam realise that an inheritance can entail far more than what's written in a will - and that the bonds of family stretch far beyond the grave." -- Back cover.
"Chef Nagare and his daughter Koishi serve their customers more than delicious food at their Kamogawa Diner down a quiet street in Kyoto. They can help recreate meals from their customers' most treasured memories. Through ingenious investigations, these "food detectives" untangle flavors and pore through old shopping lists to remake unique dishes from the past. From the swimmer who misses his father's lunchbox to the model who longs for fried rice from her childhood, each customer leaves the diner forever changed--though not always in the ways they expect... A beloved bestseller in Japan, The Restaurant of Lost Recipes is a tender and healing novel that celebrates the power of community and delicious food."-- Provided by publisher.
"Louise Lloyd is finally living the quiet life she'd longed for, working in a parfumerie by day and spending time with her new friends every night at the Aquarius club in Paris. When a desperate mother asks for help locating her artist daughter, Louise initially refuses to keep her hard-won but fragile peace intact. But the woman comes with a letter of introduction from an old friend in Harlem, and Louise realizes she has no choice but to do what she can to find the missing young woman. The woman's daughter, Iris Wright, is part of an elite social circle. Louise soon finds herself drawn into a world of privilege and ice-cold ambition--a young group of artists who will do anything to get ahead--but would they murder one of their own? With the help of some friends from home, Louise must untangle a web of lies, jealousy, and betrayal to find out what really happened to Iris while fighting to keep her new life from crashing down around her."-- Provided by publisher.
"They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they're sent to Wellwood House in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, to give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened. Fifteen-year-old Fern arrives at the home in the sweltering summer of 1970, pregnant, terrified and alone. Under the watchful eye of the stern Miss Wellwood, she meets a dozen other girls in the same predicament. There's Rose, a hippie who insists she's going to find a way to keep her baby and escape to a commune. And Zinnia, a budding musician who plans to marry her baby's father. And Holly, a wisp of a girl, barely fourteen, mute and pregnant by no-one-knows-who. Everything the girls eat, every moment of their waking day, and everything they're allowed to talk about is strictly controlled by adults who claim they know what's best for them. Then Fern meets a librarian who gives her an occult book about witchcraft, and power is in the hands of the girls for the first time in their lives. But power can destroy as easily as it creates, and it's never given freely. There's always a price to be paid...and it's usually paid in blood."-- Provided by publisher.
"Oona Kelly Webster has much to be grateful for. A striking woman with red hair and green eyes, she has a loving family and a job she adores. To celebrate their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, she and her husband Charles have planned a visit to France. But then Charles drops a bombshell. He has been living a lie--hiding an affair for a year--and he is leaving Oona for a younger male lover. Although devastated, Oona decides to travel to France without Charles. She arrives in a charming village an hour outside of Paris, and settles into the house she has rented. But just as she's catching her breath, she's dealt another blow: her company's merger will eliminate her job."-- Provided by publisher.
"Success has come quickly to Holmes, Marple & Poe Investigations. The New York City agency led by three detectives--Brendan Holmes, 'the brain,' Margaret Marple, 'the eyes,' and Auguste Poe, the 'muscle'--with famous names and mysterious pasts is one major case away from cementing its professional reputation. But as a series of child abductions tests the PIs' legendary skills, the cerebral Holmes's absence leaves a gaping hole in the agency roster"-- Provided by publisher.
"As Indigenous scientist and author of Braiding Sweetgrass Robin Wall Kimmerer harvests serviceberries alongside the birds, she considers the ethic of reciprocity that lies at the heart of the gift economy. How, she asks, can we learn from Indigenous wisdom and the plant world to reimagine what we value most? Our economy is rooted in scarcity, competition, and the hoarding of resources, and we have surrendered our values to a system that actively harms what we love. Meanwhile, the serviceberry's relationship with the natural world is an embodiment of reciprocity, interconnectedness, and gratitude. The tree distributes its wealth--its abundance of sweet, juicy berries--to meet the needs of its natural community. And this distribution ensures its own survival. As Kimmerer explains, 'Serviceberries show us another model, one based upon reciprocity, where wealth comes from the quality of your relationships, not from the illusion of self-sufficiency'" -- Amazon.
"One of only two non-presidents to appear on US currency, Ben Franklin was a founder, statesman, scientist, inventor, diplomat, publisher, humorist, and philosopher. He believed in the American experiment, but Ben Franklin's greatest experiment was . . . Ben Franklin. Eric Weiner embarks on an ambitious quest to live the way Ben lived. Not a conventional biography, Ben & Me is a guide to living and thinking well. At a time when history is either neglected or contested, Weiner argues we have much to learn from the past and that we'd all be better off if we acted and thought a bit more like Ben did"-- Back cover.
Richmond Upon Thames is one of the most desirable areas to live in London. And Riverview Close - a quiet, gated community - seems to offer its inhabitants the perfect life. At least it does until Giles Kenworthy moves in with his wife and noisy children, his four gas-guzzling cars, his loud parties and his plans for a new swimming pool in his garden. His neighbours all have a reason to hate him and are soon up in arms. When Kenworthy is shot dead with a crossbow bolt through his neck, all of them come under suspicion and his murder opens the door to lies, deception and further death. The police are baffled. Reluctantly, they call in former Detective Daniel Hawthorne. But even he is faced with a seemingly impossible puzzle. How do you solve a murder when everyone has the same motive?
"In the spring of 1972, twelve-year-old Tomoko leaves her mother behind in Tokyo and boards a train alone for Ashiya, a coastal town in Japan, to stay with her aunt's family. Tomoko's aunt is an enigma and an outlier in her working-class family, and her magnificent home-and handsome, foreign husband, the president of a soft drink company-are symbols of that status. The seventeen rooms are filled with German-made furnishings; there are sprawling gardens and even an old zoo where the family's pygmy hippopotamus resides. The family is just as beguiling as their mansion-Tomoko's dignified and devoted aunt, her German grandmother, and her dashing, charming uncle who confidently sits as the family's patriarch. At the center of the family is Tomoko's cousin Mina, a precocious, asthmatic girl of thirteen who draws Tomoko into an intoxicating world full of secret crushes and elaborate storytelling. In this elegant jewel box of a book, Yoko Ogawa invites us to witness a powerful and formative interlude in Tomoko's life, which she looks back on briefly from adulthood at the novel's end.? Behind the family's sophistication are complications that Tomoko struggles to understand-her uncle's mysterious absences, her German grandmother's experience of WWII, and her aunt's misery. Rich with the magic and mystery of youthful experience, Mina's Matchbox is an evocative snapshot of a moment frozen in time-and a striking depiction of a family on the edge of collapse"-- Provided by publisher.
Ellery Wainwright is alone at the edge of the world. She and her husband, Luke, were supposed to spend their twentieth wedding anniversary together at the luxurious Resort at Broken Point in Big Sur, California. Where better to celebrate a marriage, a family, and a life together than at one of the most stunning places on earth? But now she's traveling solo. To add insult to injury, there's a wedding at Broken Point scheduled during her stay. Ellery remembers how it felt to be on the cusp of everything new and wonderful, with a loved and certain future glimmering just ahead. Now, she isn't certain of anything except for her love for her kids and her growing realisation that this place, though beautiful, is unsettling. When Ellery discovers the body of the groom floating in the pool in the rain, she realises that she is not the only one whose future is no longer guaranteed. Before the police can reach Broken Point, a mudslide takes out the road to the resort, leaving the guests trapped. When another guest dies, it's clear something horrible is brewing. Everyone at Broken Point has a secret. And everyone has a shadow. Including Ellery.
"Christmas has come to Lighthouse Cove, but business hasn't slowed down for Shannon Hammer. She's been contracted to renovate a local hotel owned by the Garrisons, a family that serves a seven-course dinner every night from Thanksgiving through Christmas. Everyone in town loves the hotel's spirit, except the Garrisons' children and their spouses, who are hum-bugged by the money being wasted on holiday cheer while their inheritance goes up the chimney. Things turn nasty when a mischief-maker close to the family is found dead. It's up to Shannon and Mac to catch a sinister Scrooge before all of Lighthouse Cove receives coal for Christmas"-- Back cover.
"It's late 1936, and King Edward is in turmoil, having fallen in love with the scandalous Wallis Simpson. He wants to marry her but knows that doing so will jeopardize his crown. Edward confides in his dear friend Darcy, Georgie's husband, and the couple agree to hide Wallis in their home while Edward figures out what to do. But unbeknownst to Georgie and Darcy, Sir Hubert, the owner of the estate, has given a film crew permission to shoot a motion picture about on the grounds. When one of the stars of the film is found murdered on set, Georgie must solve the crime for king and country before scandal threatens to envelop them all"-- Back cover.
"Doctor Jack Troy was born and raised in the little town of Faha, but his responsibilities for the sick and his care for the dying mean he has always been set apart his community. A visit from the doctor is always a sign of bad things to come. His daughter, Ronnie, has grown up in her father's shadow, and remains there, having and passed up an offer of marriage from an unsuitable man. But in 1962, as the town readies itself for Christmas, Ronnie and Doctor Troy's lives are turned upside down when a baby is left in their care. As the winter passes, father and daughter's lives, the understanding of their family, and their role in their community are changed forever"-- Back cover.
When Funke's mother dies in a tragic accident in Lagos, she's sent to live with her maternal family in England. Traumatised by grief and against a backdrop of condescension and mild neglect, conformist Funke strives to fit in, determined to become one of them. Free-spirited Liv has always wanted to break free of her joyless family, resolved to be nothing like them. Fiercely protective of Funke, she at last has a purpose, and an ally. The two cousins give each other what they need most: love. But the past casts long shadows and the choices made by their mothers haunt Funke and Liv, shaping the trajectory of their adult lives. Can they escape their legacy?
Young Lucy Honeychurch leaves Edwardian England for a tour of Italy, where she becomes immersed in an exotic new environment full of unexpected possibilities. A Room With a View by E.M. Forster is an influential classic that follows Lucy as she encounters characters and events far outside her previous experience and must see through the clash of cultures and personalities to recognize both herself and whom she loves.
"When a pet is sick, people -- even the rich and famous -- are at their most authentic and vulnerable. They could have a Monet on the wall and an Oscar on the shelf, but if their cat gets a cold, all they want to talk about are snotty noses and sneezing fits. That's when they call premier in-home veterinarian Dr. Amy Attas. In Pets and the City, Dr. Amy shares all the funny, heartbreaking, and life-affirming experiences she's faced throughout her thirty-year career treating the cats and dogs of New Yorkers from Park Avenue to the projects. Some of her stories are about celebs, like the time she saw a famous singer naked (no, her rash was not the same as her puppy's). Others are about remarkable animals, like the skilled service dog who, after his exam was finished, left the room and returned with a checkbook in his mouth. Every tale in this rollicking, informative, and fun memoir affirms a key truth about animal, and human, nature: Our pets love us because their hearts are pure; we love them because they're freaking adorable. On some level, we know that by caring for them, we are the best version of ourselves. In short: Our pets make us better people."-- Provided by publisher.
"When the patriarch of a famed hotel empire dies under suspicious circumstances, his daughter and her estranged brother join forces to find out what happened, unraveling a larger mystery about who their father really was. Liam Noone was many things to many people. To the public, he was an exacting, self-made hotel magnate fleeing his past. To his three ex-wives, he was a loving albeit distant family man who kept his finances flush and his families carefully separated. To Nora, he was a father who often loved her from afar -- notably a cliffside cottage perched on the California coast from which he fell to his death. The authorities rule the death accidental, but Nora and her estranged brother Sam have other ideas. As Nora and Sam form an uneasy alliance to unravel the mystery, they start putting together the pieces of their father's past -- and uncover a family secret that changes everything."-- Provided by publisher.
"Pippa Jones is a fortyish former literary sensation who fears she will be a one-hit wonder. After the follow-up book she was almost done writing, Podlusters, had to be tossed (it ended up sharing a plot and title with superstar author Ella Rankin's summer blockbuster!), she couldn't write a thing. Months of staring at a blank page made her confidence vanish like a one-night stand. When she finds out that she has only five days left to finish (or rather, start) or repay an advance she's already spent, Pippa has a brilliantly original idea. Okay, fine, her twelve-year-old son came up with it as a joke, but Pippa and her teenage daughter approved. Pippa's not only going to make a bold statement, but she'll change the book world while she's at it! Can she pull it off? At this point, she doesn't have a choice. When Pippa's publisher gets intimately involved, it unlocks a series of plot twists she never saw coming. From the courtyards of posh Beverly Hills hotels and Malibu mega-mansions to Brentwood and Santa Monica bookstores, Pippa races against time -- in her used Volvo -- and discovers more about her career, marriage, family, friends, and herself than she ever could have dreamed up."-- Provided by publisher.
"Born to a French mother and American father, graceful Dahlia de Beaumont has been sole owner and CEO of the venerable family perfume business based in Paris since her early twenties, following the death of her parents. For twenty-five years, after losing her young skier husband in an avalanche, her life has centered on running Lambert Perfumes and being a devoted single mother to her four now-adult children: indecisive Charles, volatile Alexa, kind-hearted business visionary Delphine, and dreamy artist Emma. Now fifty-six, she has an "arrangement" with a married French man but has been questioning that relationship. Dahlia comes to San Francisco on a routine business trip to check on her stores in the States. But shortly after her arrival, brush fires ignite in Napa Valley. Watching the sweeping devastation on the news, Dahlia is moved to help. But doing so will bring unforeseen consequences that endanger not only her life, but her entire future. Forced to remain in San Francisco in the aftermath, she will make unexpected connections while also fighting to protect all she has worked for. What Dahlia learns will provide a new perspective of her life, forever changing what really matters to her and what comes next for her journey. With this uplifting novel, Danielle Steel beautifully dramatizes how life's unforeseen challenges can sow the seeds for growth and a fresh chance at love--if one is willing to take the risk"-- Provided by publisher.
"When Regis Royle dreams, he dreams big. And since everything's bigger in Texas, his dream is to make the Royle Ranch the biggest cattle supplier in the country. Problem is, the country is splitting apart, people are taking sides, and everyone's gearing up for a full-blown War Between the States. Regis's kid brother, Shepley, has enlisted in the Army. His trusted foreman "Bone" McGraw has left to rejoin the Texas Rangers. And the rail lines have been rerouted for the war effort. Which means Regis has to transport his cows the hard way: a cattle drive. This will be one hellish journey he'll never forget. If he survives. With only a skeleton crew of ranch hands, Regis takes the lead to drive the cattle northward -- facing more perils than he ever imagined. He and his men are attacked by a brutal, thieving band of Apache, Comanche, Kiowa, and half-breeds. They're plagued by violent storms, relentless heat, stampeding herds, and poisonous snakes. When Regis gets separated from his men, he fears he's reached the end of the line. But giving up is not an option. A Texan knows he has to keep fighting -- even in America's darkest hour -- to keep the dream alive ..." -- Provided by publisher.
"Tinhorn, Texas, is a small town, quiet and peaceful. Sheriff Buck Jackson and Deputy Flint Moran go to great pains to keep it that way. So when two drifters arrive in town--one nursing a bullet wound--the lawmen suspect trouble ain't far behind. Bart McCoy and Roy Tate claim to be cattlemen and have more than enough cash to prove it. But Buck and Flint don't believe Tate's story of accidentally shooting McCoy while cleaning his gun. Then four more men arrive, armed to the teeth, looking to fill the supposed ranchers full of lead. Turns out six outlaws robbed a Wells Fargo Office and murdered a guard. Then the thieves turned against each other--and McCoy and Tate's escaped with the loot. Now their former friends have hunted them to Tinhorn and will massacre everyone in town to retrieve their ill-gotten gains. Buck and Flint have sworn to protect Tinhorn to the fullest extent of the law. And in the wild west of Texas, the only law bandits and killers understand comes from the business end of a gun.
"In the dusty frontier town of Rebel Ridge, Sheriff Jesse Loman rules with an iron fist, exploiting the local populace through unjust taxes and a corrupt legal system. His gang of outlaw deputies ensures his dominance, staging mock trials and sentencing innocents to the gallows while protecting their own. But when chaos grips Rebel Ridge, hope arises in the form of a legendary bounty hunter. Renowned for his unwavering principles, Dane Caulder reluctantly steps in to free the town from Jesse's grasp, pitting himself against corrupt deputies in a deadly showdown. Can Dane deliver the long-awaited justice that the oppressed town of Rebel Ridge yearns for-or will its chance at peace be slaughtered once and for all?"-- Provided by publisher.
Teddy Fay is ready to embark on the European press tour of Peter Barrington's latest film Storm's Eye, when he receives an unexpected visit from Lance Cabot, director of the CIA. Several CIA agents have been turning up dead. The commonality? They were all part of a mission Teddy was involved in -- Golden Hour. Lance wants Teddy to use his trip as a cover to investigate who is behind these killings. From Venice and Budapest to their last stop at a film festival in Berlin, Teddy must dodge excited fans, enamored women, and a few too many assassins who seem dead set on tracking down Golden Hour agents. And if Teddy doesn't work fast enough, his identity - and life - might just be the next target in the killer's ruthless plot for revenge.
"Alice had hoped to retire before turning sixty-five, not struggle to keep her home and job. But even after divorce leaves her a mess, the pieces always come together with a little help from her friends. So, when it's time to defend close confidant Ruby Milliner, she springs into action. Only, in this case, supporting Ruby means proving she didn't murder her husband! Alice dives into a secret search to exonerate Ruby. But restoring peace to West Hazel is a real gamble. Because if successful, Alice will meet a vengeful killer whose game she doesn't yet know how to play"-- Back cover.
"Reluctant lawyer Andy Carpenter is relieved to be headed back to Paterson, New Jersey, after a week-long family vacation in the Adirondacks. He's ready to put the holly jolly season way behind him and settle in at home with his three dogs. But when they finally arrive, there is an extra dog eagerly awaiting them, as well as one anxious dog sitter. When the dog showed up on the doorstep a few days ago, the sitter knew Andy would know what to do. Indeed, Andy recognizes Murphy, who the Carpenters fostered before the dog went home with BJ Bremer and his mother. BJ wanted to learn all he could about caring for Murphy, which made Andy like him immediately. When Andy goes to take Murphy back to the Bremers, though, instead of the happy reunion he expects, he finds BJ's mother in tears. It turns out Murphy ran off... after BJ was arrested for murder. Andy had hoped for a quiet Christmas vacation, but he likes Murphy's family and his golden retriever, Tara, likes Murphy, so he can't resist getting involved. The case isn't as simple as Andy thought it would be, though, with BJ suspected of murdering one of his professors. With nothing to go on but Andy's own conviction in BJ's dog-loving character, proving his innocence would be a Christmas miracle."-- Provided by publisher.
"Retired lawyer Andy Carpenter has a dog rescue for years. It's always been his calling, even as Andy's pulled into court. His investigator, Marcus Clark, has been at Andy's side for a long time. Marcus keeps his personal life a mystery, so it's a shock when Marcus arrives at the Tara Foundation with two strangers. Turns out Marcus takes disadvantaged young men under his wing, gets them jobs, a place to live, and a chance at a different life. One of the men, Nick, falls in love with one of the dogs. When there's a mass shooting at Nick's work, all signs point to Nick. Despite Nick's troubled background, Andy takes the case"-- Back cover.
"Ember Lee Cardinal has not always been a liar. But her job search falters, she takes matters into her own hands. No one wanted Native American Ember, but white Ember has just landed her dream accounting job. She thrives in corporate life - and her love life is looking up as well: Danuwoa Colson, the IT guy and fellow Native who caught her eye, seems to be interested in her too. But when they're caught in a compromising position on a work trip, a colleague blackmails Ember about their relationship. As threats grow, so do Ember's lies, and she must decide between silence and the truth -- which could cost her everything." -- Back cover.
Never one to let a day off work go to waste, café owner Gia Morelli and a friend head out for a blissful kayaking trip through the local national forest. But the peacefulness of the day is soon shattered when they come across Cole, her head cook, standing over a dead body. Worse still, the victim was a lifelong enemy of Cole's, and clues found on the body point to the cook as the culprit. When the police take Cole in and subject him to an intense grilling, Gia vows to do everything she can to prove his innocence. As even more incriminating evidence surfaces - including when the murder weapon itself is found hidden at the café - Gia knows she's up against someone brutal enough to kill and devious enough to frame Cole for the deed. With the police ready to make an official arrest and wrap up what they consider an open-and-shut case, Gia turns for help to an old friend who's not above breaking the law himself. Because if she can't find the killer, Cole may go from serving up hot dishes to serving a life sentence.
"Professional football players Keogh Graham and Tyler Matthews want to open a Fairy Tale Cupcakes franchise. They're spending the off-season in Mel's bakery, learning about the business and how to bake show-stopping cupcakes. Everyone's excited the athletes are pursuing their dream--except for those who fear the players will retire early from professional sports. When the owner of their team is found dead on the floor of their bakery following an argument with Keogh, the pros become prime suspects. As the investigation heats up, Mel must step up and prove her franchise owners are innocent before it's game-over for the new bakers"-- Back cover.
"Members of the Reynolds and Hill families have gathered at Tea by the Sea to sip some delicious blends while they shower bride-to-be Hannah Hill with presents. But the mothers-in-law have been sniping at each other--and then Lily overhears the groom's father, Ralph, offering his son a very sizable bribe to call off the wedding. The event is suddenly postponed when Ralph is found dead, a bottle of whiskey beside him. When tests indicate the booze was infused with a lethal substance, it becomes a murder case. Now, to find out whether all this family drama led to a fatality, Lily will have to turn up the heat"-- Back cover.
"Under Heaven's Own Blue is a collection of short fiction. In "Truth and Principle," detective Henry Tresh helps a woman find the truth about the death of her son. In "Double Deceit," detective Dunbar is tracking a malefactor who killed a woman and is now conducting a medical practice without a license. In "Bitter Range," ranch hand Orin Blake becomes caught up in an intrigue in which a former ranch hand is discovered to be having an affair with the wife of Blake's boss. In "Shadow of the Butte," Vance Luverne moves to Wyoming to take over a homestead left to him by his late uncle." --Provided by Publisher.