Gone Missing by Linda Castillo
Rumspringa is the time
when Amish teens are allowed to experience life without the rules. It’s
an exciting time of personal discovery and growth before committing to
the church. But when a young teen disappears without a trace, the
carefree fun comes to an abrupt and sinister end, and fear spreads
through the community like a contagion.
A missing child is a
nightmare to all parents, and never more so than in the Amish community,
where family ties run deep. When the search for the presumed runaway
turns up a dead body, the case quickly becomes a murder investigation.
And chief of Police Kate Burkholder knows that in order to solve this
case she will have to call upon everything she has to give not only as a
cop, but as a woman whose own Amish roots run deep.
Kate and
state agent, John Tomasetti, delve into the lives of the missing teen
and discover links to cold cases that may go back years. But will Kate
piece together all the parts of this sinister puzzle in time to save the
missing teen and the Amish community from a devastating fate? Or will
she find herself locked in a fight to the death with a merciless killer?
The Cowboy and the Princess by Lori Wilde
Brady Talmadge was a cowboy with five unbreakable rules:
1) Never pick up a pretty hitchhiker
2) Avoid damsels in distress
3) Never order chili at a truck stop
4) Always trust your gut
5) Never tell a lie . . .
This is what happened when he broke all his rules . . . and got into a whole lot of trouble
On
the run from an arranged marriage, Princess Annabella of Monesta dons
the guise of a hitchhiking cowgirl. But when she finds herself drenched,
alone, and hungry, she has no choice but to trust the tall Texas horse
whisperer who offers her a ride. He's like no one she's ever known--a
strong sexy man who says just what he thinks. And when one wild kiss
leaves her breathless, she quickly realizes she'll give up everything to
spend a lifetime of night times in his arms. But how can there be
happily-ever-after with palace guards hot on her trail?
A Lion Among Men by Gregory Maguire
While civil war looms in
Oz, a tetchy oracle named Yackle prepares for death. Before her final
hour, an enigmatic figure known as Brrr--the Cowardly Lion--arrives
searching for information about Elphaba Thropp, the Wicked Witch of the
West. As payment, Yackle, who hovered on the sidelines of Elphaba's
life, demands some answers of her own.
Brrr surrenders his story
to the ailing maunt: Abandoned as a cub, his earliest memories are gluey
hazes, and his path from infancy in the Great Gillikin Forest is no
Yellow Brick Road. Seeking to redress an early mistake, he trudges
through a swamp of ghosts, becomes implicated in a massacre of trolls,
and falls in love with a forbidding Cat princess. In the wake of laws
that oppress talking Animals, he avoids a jail sentence by agreeing to
serve as a lackey to the war-mongering Emperor of Oz.
A Lion
Among Men chronicles a battle of wits hastened by the Emerald City's
approaching armies. What does the Lion know of the whereabouts of the
Witch's boy, Liir? What can Yackle reveal about the auguries of the
Clock of the Time Dragon? And what of the Grimmerie, the magic book that
vanished as quickly as Elphaba? Is destiny ever arbitrary? Can those
tarnished by infamy escape their sobriquets--cowardly, wicked,
brainless, criminally earnest--to claim their own histories, to live
honorably within their own skins before they're skinned alive?
Resolution by Robert B. Parker
After the bloody
confrontation in Appaloosa, Everett Hitch heads into the afternoon sun
and ends up in Resolution, an Old West town so new the dust has yet to
settle. It's the kind of town that doesn?t have much in the way of
commerce, except for a handful of saloons and some houses of ill repute.
Hitch takes a job as lookout at Amos Wolfson's Blackfoot Saloon and
quickly establishes his position as protector of the ladies who work the
backrooms?as well as a man unafraid to stand up to the enforcer sent
down from the O?Malley copper mine.
Though Hitch makes short work
of hired gun Koy Wickman, tensions continue to mount, so that even the
self-assured Hitch is relieved by the arrival in town of his friend
Virgil Cole. When greedy mine owner Eamon O?Malley threatens the loose
coalition of local ranchers and starts buying up Resolution's few
businesses, Hitch and Cole find themselves in the middle of a makeshift
war between O?Malley's men and the ranchers. In a place where law and
order don?t exist, Hitch and Cole must make their own, guided by their
sense of duty, honor, and friendship.
The Sins of the Mother by Danielle Steel
Every woman makes
choices. And no one has made more difficult choices than Olivia Grayson.
The enormously successful businesswoman missed out on much of her
children’s lives while she built her legendary home-furnishings empire.
In Danielle Steel’s character-rich new novel, Olivia faces the past,
tries to balance the present, and makes amends where due, while still
running her vastly successful business.
As a way of making up to them for time lost, Olivia spends months every
year planning a lavish holiday that everyone in her family will enjoy.
This summer she has arranged a dream trip in the Mediterranean on a
luxurious yacht, which she hopes will be the most memorable vacation of
all. Her lavish gesture every year expresses her love for them, and
regret at all the important times she missed during her children’s
younger years. Her younger daughter, Cassie, a hip London music
producer, refuses the invitation altogether, as she does every year. Her
older daughter, Liz, lives in her mother’s shadow, with a terror of
failure as she tries to recapture her dream of being a writer. And her
sons, John and Phillip, work for Olivia, for better or worse, with wives
who wish they didn’t. In the splendor of the Riviera, this should be a
summer to remember, with Olivia’s children, grandchildren, and
daughters-in-law on board. But as with any family gathering, there are
always surprises, and no matter how glamorous the setting things don’t
always turn out as ones hopes.
Family dynamics are
complicated, old disappointments die hard, and as forgiveness and
surprising revelations enter into it, new bonds are formed, and the
future takes on a brighter hue. And one by one, with life’s irony,
Olivia’s children find themselves committing the same “sins” for which
they blamed their mother for so many years. It is a summer of
compassion, important lessons, and truth.
A Christmas Home by Greg Kincaid
Todd McCray, hero of A Dog Named Christmas,
is now twenty-four years old and working at a local animal shelter,
where he meets and quickly becomes best friends with Laura, a young
volunteer. Laura, like Todd, has disabilities of her own, but her
struggles are more physical than developmental. Their friendship is
sealed when Todd—with the help of his trusted companion, the tenacious
Labrador retriever named Christmas—trains a beautiful dog named Gracie
to help Laura with the day-to-day life tasks that are difficult for her.
Life seems good for Todd, but all is not well in his
hometown. Struggling families unable to make ends meet are abandoning
more and more dogs, and the shelter is swelling to capacity. The local
government is struggling to meet its obligations too, and in early
December, on the cusp of another holiday season, Todd’s boss delivers
the bad news. Due to funding problems, the shelter will close its doors
before the end of the year. But what will happen to all the animals?
As
the Christmas holiday approaches, Todd has limited time to find homes
for all the dogs. Not to mention that he needs to secure a new job and
figure out what to do when his friendship with Laura takes an unexpected
romantic turn. All this seems overwhelming unless you’ve got a loving
family, dedicated friends, and a couple of very special dogs behind
you. In which case, nothing is impossible.
A Cowboy For Christmas by Lori Wilde
It's Christmastime in Jubilee, Texas, but Lissette Moncrief is having a hard time celebrating . . .
Especially
after she accidentally smashes her car into Rafferty Jones's pick-up
truck. Yes, he's a whole lot of handsome—from the tips of his boots to
the top of his Stetson. But he's no Christmas present. Lissy's not about
to let herself get whisked away by his charming ways and words . . .
only to watch him drive away in the end.
But what Lissy doesn't
know is Rafferty's in town just to meet her—and to give her a share in a
windfall that doesn't rightly belong to him. At first, he just wants to
do his good deed and get out. But one look at this green-eyed beauty
has him deciding to turn this into a Christmas to remember . . . making
promises he's determined to keep—whether she believes in them or not.