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In My Mailbox: Week of September 1
Chick Lit Plus

In My Mailbox: Week of September 1

Title: Arcadia’s Curse

Author: Jesi Lea Ryan

Received: Jesi Lea Ryan

Synopsis: Think high school sucks? Try being an empath who has to experience everyone else’s suckage on top of your own. (Literally.)

In the months since her family life imploded and her psychic gifts began to arise, Cady has struggled to figure out how she can fit into her normal life without going crazy from the constant presence of emotional energy. Her grades have tanked. Her best friend is afraid of her. And she begins to have doubts about why her boyfriend, Bryan, is really keeping her around. But a chance meeting with another gifted girl online opens up a whole new world of possibilities. Unfortunately, this new world comes at an awful price.

The Bridesmaid’s Best Man by Susanna CarrTitle: The Bridesmaid’s Best Man

Author: Susanna Carr

Received: Harlequin

Synopsis: Every bachelorette party has a surprise…

Angie Lawson is in Bridesmaid Hell—if Hell was a strip club filled with screaming women in stilettos. But her night’s about to get a whole lot worse. Now her ex-boyfriend is standing right in front of her—every sexy, delicious inch of him—and Cole Foster isn’t the kind of guy that any woman can just ignore….

Cole’s working undercover, but he certainly wasn’t expecting the intimate reminder of the wicked heat that he and Angie always shared. But when the maid of honor—silver stilettos and all—is knocked unconscious, Cole realizes he needs Angie’s help to get into the bridal party. And if getting there means getting her in bed, too, then he’s definitely the best man for the job!

It’s All In Your Mind by Ann HerrickTitle: It’s All in Your Mind

Author: Ann Herrick

Received: Ann Herrick

Synopsis: “I looked deep into his eyes, and thought I saw my future there.”

17-year-old Vija Skalbe wants to be an all-American girl—no matter how hard her parents try to impose their strict Latvian standards on her. She feels unsure of herself with one foot in each country.

Then Nolan, a folksinger, steals her heart at a coffeehouse. When Nolan stops at their table, it’s Vija’s friend, Caprice, who does all the talking. But it is Vija who gets his phone number—and later the back seat of his motorcycle. Soon she is cruising from one adventure to another, dizzy with joy, her new-found freedom and the excitement of being with the kind of guy who is a challenge.

However, when Vija’s father has a heart attack, she must take over running the family lawn-care business. She feels overwhelmed until sweet brainiac Joel volunteers to help. He shares the workload and lifts her spirits with his humor. But it is Nolan who fills her heart.

It doesn’t matter that Nolan wants everything his way. Or that he’s constantly eyeing other girls. Or that he can be pouty and punitive. Or that he says she’s seeing things all wrong. Until it does matter. But Vija’s in so deep. Will she deal with Nolan’s controlling tactics, or is she too far under his spell?

Double Mayhem by Sam BerrettiTitle: Double Mayhem

Author: Sam Berretti

Received: Sam Berretti

Synopsis: Action, mystery, intriguing subplots, humor, heartwarming moments and a cast of highly memorable characters combine to introduce this unlikely and believable female heroine to a genre dominated by male-centric stereotypes. She is not a super spy, she is not a trained assassin, she is someone real and much more dangerous, a smart woman pushed into a corner.

Doris, a reclusive engineer, goes on a blind date, kills a syndicate hit man, acquires a psychic child, and gets recruited as a spy. Some days you just shouldn’t leave the house.

Partner TrackTitle: The Partner Track

Author: Helen Wan

Received: Wunderkind PR

Synopsis: A young attorney must choose between the prestige of partnership and the American Dream that she—and her immigrant parents—have come so close to achieving in The Partner Track, a riveting debut from Helen Wan.

In the eyes of her corporate law firm, Ingrid Yung is a “two-fer.” As a Chinese-American woman about to be ushered into the elite rank of partner, she’s the face of Parsons Valentine & Hunt LLP’s recruiting brochures–their treasured “Golden Girl.” But behind the firm’s welcoming façade lies the scotch-sipping, cigar-smoking old-boy network that shuts out lawyers like Ingrid. To compensate, Ingrid gamely plays in the softball league, schmoozes in the corporate cafeteria, and puts in the billable hours—until a horrifically offensive performance at the law firm’s annual summer outing throws the carefully constructed image way out of equilibrium.

Scrambling to do damage control, Parsons Valentine announces a new “Diversity Initiative” and commands a reluctant Ingrid to spearhead the effort, taking her priority away from the enormous deal that was to be the final step in securing partnership. For the first time, Ingrid finds herself at odds with her colleagues—including her handsome, golden-boy boyfriend—in a clash of class, race, and sexual politics.

Revealing Us by Lisa Renee JonesTitle: Revealing Us

Author: Lisa Renee Jones

Received: Lisa Renee Jones

Synopsis: You’ve discovered Rebecca’s secrets. You’ve discovered Sara’s secrets. Now Sara will discover “his” deepest, darkest secrets…but will those secrets bind them together–or tear them apart?

Happy Any Day Now by Toby DevensTitle: Happy Any Day Now

Author: Toby Devens

Received: Penguin

Synopsis: Chaos in Judith’s life begins with the return of her first love, the judge who originally dropped her because her blood wasn’t blue enough, the sudden arrival of her Jewish father, who left when she was a young child, and her beloved mentor at the Maryland Philharmonic Orchestra is dying of cancer. With all of the turmoil in her life, it’s no wonder Judith develops a paralyzing case of stage fright.

With the help of Jeff and her mother, Judith just might figure out what the fortune teller meant when she advised Judith to work for her successes in time to make her 50th birthday the best one yet. Funny and heartfelt, this engaging novel will speak to every woman in midlife who has faced a major shake-up, whether she was ready or not.

September 1, 2013
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In My Mailbox: Week of July 7
Chick Lit Plus

In My Mailbox: Week of July 7

Title: On Grace Author: Susie Orman Schnall Received: Via CLP Blog Tours Synopsis: Grace May is truly excited about turning 40 in a few months.…

July 7, 2013
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In My Mailbox: Week of January 20
Chick Lit Plus

In My Mailbox: Week of January 20

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: Schoolgirl Cinderella

Author: Priya Narendran

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: Ten year old Briony Duke and her parents own a prestigious girls’ school in the country. This is in contrast to Mrs. Eyres, a middle-aged woman who has just been sacked by Briony’s father for embezzling funds.When Briony’s parents are killed in a car crash, Mrs. Eyres and daughter Lucy take over the school and Mrs. Eyres now becomes Briony’s guardian. Mrs. Eyres makes Briony sleep in the kitchen, cook, clean and tend to her and her daughter’s every whim.

Seven years pass and one day Briony meets 19 year old Tom Logan, the sixth richest man in the country. She slowly starts to fall in love with the intelligent, charismatic teenager, the only question is; can she win his heart before her evil stepsister does?

Title: Elly in Bloom

Author: Colleen Oakes

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: Surrounded by lush flowers and neurotic brides, chubby 32-year old Elly Jordan has carved out a sweet little life for herself as the owner of Posies, a boutique wedding florist in St. Louis. It’s not bad for a woman who drove away from her entire life just two years ago when she found her husband entwined with a red-headed artist.

Sure, Elly has an embarrassingly beautiful best friend, a terribly behaved sheepdog and a sarcastic assistant who she simply calls “Snarky Teenager”, but overall her days are pleasantly uneventful. As a bonus, her new next door neighbor just happens to be an unnervingly handsome musician who has an eye for curvy Elly. Just when she feels that she is finally moving on from her past, she discovers that an extravagant wedding contract, one that could change her financial future, is more than she bargained for.

With the help of her friends, staff and the occasional well-made sandwich, Elly bravely agrees to take on the event that threatens to merge her painful history with her bright new life, and finds herself blooming in a direction she never imagined.

Elly’s voice, both charming and hilarious, will appeal to those readers who have been looking for a new voice in chick-lit, and will give women of all sizes the realistic heroine they’ve been waiting for.

Title: Don’t Tell the Groom

Author: Anna Bell

Received: From Anna Bell

Synopsis: Bride-to-be Penny discovers that she’s lost £10,000 of wedding savings playing online bingo. So that she doesn’t have to reveal her gambling secret, she convinces her fiancé Mark that they should have a Don’t Tell the Groom themed wedding. Penny then has to plan a wedding fit for a princess on a shoestring budget. But, by the time she discovers that the true meaning of marriage isn’t a Vera Wang wedding dress or Jimmy Choos, will she still have a groom to marry?

Title: The Union Street Bakery

Author: Mary Ellen Taylor

Received: Penguin Group

Synopsis: Life can turn on a dime. It’s a common cliché, and I’d heard it often enough. People die or move away. Investments go south. Affairs end. Loved ones betray us…Stuff happens.

Daisy McCrae’s life is in tatters. She’s lost her job, broken up with her boyfriend, and has been reduced to living in the attic above her family’s store, the Union Street Bakery, while learning the business. Unfortunately, the bakery is in serious hardship. Making things worse is the constant feeling of not being a “real” McCrae since she was adopted as a child and has a less-than-perfect relationship with her two sisters.

Then a long-standing elderly customer passes away, and for some reason bequeaths Daisy a journal dating back to the 1850s, written by a slave girl named Susie. As she reads, Daisy learns more about her family—and her own heritage—than she ever dreamed. Haunted by dreams of the young Susie, who beckons Daisy to “find her,” she is compelled to look further into the past of the town and her family.

What she finds are the answers she has longed for her entire life, and a chance to begin again with the courage and desire she thought she lost for good.

Title: Sophie’s Run

Author: Nicky Wells

Received: From Nicky Wells

Synopsis: Her famous star remains her rock while life takes her on a little detour…

Who says that the road towards true love is straight and even? Sophie is certainly discovering that it is anything but.

So she has finally found the man of her dreams! Well… she knows who he is, even though she hasn’t actually quite met him yet. But she misses her opportunity, and then her life goes crazy. Rock star and ex-fiancé, Dan, keeps getting in the way of her new romance—even if he is just trying to be helpful. A fire, an impromptu mini-trip with Dan, and a dreaded wedding later, Sophie is still struggling to meet the love of her life. Then, just as she is getting it together with her perfect man, best friend Rachel commits an act of unspeakable betrayal.

Sophie has had enough. Confused and distraught, she decides that it is time for radical change. Surprising herself and shocking her friends, she embarks on a secret journey eventually gets her life back on track.

Title: The School Gates

Author: Nicola May

Received: From Nicola May

Synopsis: At 3.10pm every weekday, parents gather at Featherstone Primary in Denbury to collect their children.

For a special few, the friendships forged at the school gates will see them through lives filled with drama, secrets and sorrows. When Yummy Mummy Alana reveals the identity of her love-child’s father, she doesn’t expect the consequences to be quite so extreme. Ex Czech au-pair Earth Mummy Dana finds happiness in her secret sideline, but really all she longs for is another child. Slummy Mummy Mo’s wife-beating husband leads her down a path she never thought possible, and Supper Mummy Joan has to cope when life deals her a devastating blow.

And what of Gay Daddy Gordon? Will he be able to juggle parenthood and cope with his broken heart at the same time?

Four very different mothers. One adorable dad. And the intertwining trials and tribulations that a year at the primary school gates brings.

In Sara’s Mailbox:

Title: 12 Lessons

Author: Kate Spencer

Received: Kate Spencer

Synopsis: Move over Bridget Jones, Stephanie Slater is in town and she doesn’t believe in psychics…yet!
No one knows that beneath her groomed and successful persona Stephanie Slater is struggling to keep up the act.
When an accidental psychic reading breaks open the cracks in her perfect life, it starts to unravel for all to see.
Stephanie then starts the transformational journey to rebuild and reclaim her life lesson by lesson, month by month in a year like no other.
Each of the 12 Lessons helps her to learn more about herself and gives this entertaining story a deeper and more profound meaning, as she works towards creating the life that she has always wanted… but will she make it in time?
Can you really change your Destiny in one year?

Title: The Boy Next Door

Author: Annabelle Costa

Received: Ruth Madison

Synopsis: Through middle school, high school, bad dates, and an ill-advised punk phase, Tasha has always been able to count on Jason. Since the day he moved in next door, he’s gone from the weird kid in a wheelchair to Tasha’s most trusted friend. But lives change and the friends are going in different directions. When Jason and Tasha rekindle their friendship, sparks fly. After years of being a wild soul, now the ex-lead of a band turned music teacher is just looking for a relationship to last.

When none other than Jason introduces her to a man who can give her what she wants, Tasha is on the verge of throwing passion and love away just so she can forget her troubled past and settle down. But Jason isn’t ready to give her up just yet.

Title: The Bad Girls’ Club

Author: Kathryn O’Halloran

Received: Kathryn O’Halloran

Synopsis: Three girls are united in their realisation that keeping themselves nice has got them nowhere. It’s time to take action. It’s time to rebel. It’s time to become Bad Girls. Imogen wants to get laid but how can she be a bad girl until she loses a few kilos? Beth is happy to be a bad girl – so long as no one else finds out and so long as she is in control. Juliette’s not really sure what she’s doing, but it sure beats another Saturday night gaming with her geek boyfriend. They band together to form the Bad Girls Club, a support group for recovering nice girls, and through a series of brazen dares, push the limits of their sexuality. But are the girls ready to finally take the final leap that will have them branded as bad girls for real? To save the club, and each other, they each have to publicly acknowledge their darkest secrets. Join the bad girls in this raunchy, snort-laughingly funny chick lit adventure. The Bad Girls’ Club about sex, it’s about dares but most of all, it’s about friendship.

January 20, 2013
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In My Mailbox: Week of November 18
Chick Lit Plus

In My Mailbox: Week of November 18

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: Mad World: Epidemic

Author: Samaire Provost

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: The Black Plague is ancient history. It killed 100 million people nearly seven centuries ago, halfway around the world from the technologically advanced research center at Stanford University. Scientists there have recently begun examining samples of bone marrow from plague-infected corpses unearthed in Europe. All the necessary safeguards are in place. What could go wrong? Alyssa and Jake are away with their class on a highly anticipated year-end trip to Broadway with their senior acting class when all hell breaks loose at home. Traveling back, and trying to find their families, they encounter deadly results. Riots are breaking out. People are being evacuated. And they have no idea what’s happening to their families. Horrific ordeals, heart-pounding tragedy, and chance encounters harden them for what lies ahead. Faced with tormenting decisions, they’re forced to follow their instinct for survival at any cost – even when the cost is a heart-wrenching decision of life or death. A harrowing adventure of frightening discoveries, horrifying confrontations and narrow escapes in Epidemic, the first installment of the Mad World series. Find out what’s got everyone so terrified.

Title: Holding On

Author: Karen Stivali

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: When you have everything you’ve ever dreamed of, the hard part is Holding On.

British NYU professor Daniel Gardner thinks life can’t get better than the day his three-year-old stepdaughter, Ella, calls him Daddy for the first time. Then his wife Marienne tells him she’s pregnant. Daniel is thrilled, but worried about Marienne’s health. Not wanting to cause her stress he turns to writing to calm his nerves. He pens a screenplay, thinking it’s nothing more than a mental health exercise, but when a colleague reads it and hands it to a producer, it turns into a production contract. Daniel accepts the offer and transfers to a teaching position at Dartmouth, hoping that small town living and a shorter commute will simplify his life.

As he attempts to juggle his new responsibilities he gets an unexpected letter from Roger, the father he never knew. For the first time since they met, Daniel and Marienne are at odds; she wants him to give Roger a chance but Daniel wants nothing to do with the man he thinks abandoned his mother. As Daniel and Marienne struggle they must contend with interference from Daniel’s sexy ex-wife, who appears to want him back, and a handsome, all-too-helpful single dad who desires Marienne as more than a play-date pal. They must both confront deep-seated issues with trust and acceptance if they’re going to find a way to make their marriage work and hold on to the love they share.

Title: Mistletoe in Manhattan

Author: Talli Roland

Received: Via Talli Roland

Synopsis: As Little Missington’s first Christmas baby in fifty years and the daughter of ‘Christmas When You Like It’ party-planners, Holly West has been surrounded by the holiday spirit since birth. Trouble is, she’s not exactly filled with festive cheer. In fact, Holly can’t wait to ditch the tinsel and Santa suits for champagne and celebs, and become a party-planner to the stars.

When British film star Dean Layton hires her parents’ company to throw his holiday bash in Manhattan, Holly jumps at the chance to help, confident she can handle a little Christmas in exchange for access to Dean’s exclusive world.

But New York and Dean’s over-the-top demands are more than Holly bargained for. Can Holly deck the halls and make it a party to be proud of, or will this Christmas be one she’ll never forget . . . even if she wants to?

Note: Mistletoe in Manhattan is a novella.

Title: The Art Forger

Author: B.A. Shapiro

Received: Via SheReads

Synopsis: On March 18, 1990, thirteen works of art worth today over $500 million were stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. It remains the largest unsolved art heist in history, and Claire Roth, a struggling young artist, is about to discover that there’s more to this crime than meets the eye.

Claire makes her living reproducing famous works of art for a popular online retailer. Desperate to improve her situation, she lets herself be lured into a Faustian bargain with Aiden Markel, a powerful gallery owner. She agrees to forge a painting—one of the Degas masterpieces stolen from the Gardner Museum—in exchange for a one-woman show in his renowned gallery. But when the long-missing Degas painting—the one that had been hanging for one hundred years at the Gardner—is delivered to Claire’s studio, she begins to suspect that it may itself be a forgery.

Claire’s search for the truth about the painting’s origins leads her into a labyrinth of deceit where secrets hidden since the late nineteenth century may be the only evidence that can now save her life. B. A. Shapiro’s razor-sharp writing and rich plot twists make The Art Forger an absorbing literary thriller that treats us to three centuries of forgers, art thieves, and obsessive collectors. it’s a dazzling novel about seeing—and not seeing—the secrets that lie beneath the canvas.

In Sara’s Mailbox:

Title: The Bracelet

Author: Roberta Gately

Received: Roberta Gately

Synopsis: Newly heartbroken and searching for purpose in her life, Abby Monroe is determined to make her mark as a UN worker in one of the world’s most unstable cities: Peshawar, Pakistan. But after witnessing the brutal murder of a woman thrown from a building, she is haunted by the memory of an intricate and sparkling bracelet that adorned the victim’s wrist.

At a local women’s shelter, Abby meets former sex slaves who have miraculously escaped their captors. As she gains the girls’ trust and documents their horrifying accounts of unspeakable pain and betrayal, she joins forces with a dashing New York Times reporter who believes he can incriminate the shadowy leader of the vicious human trafficking ring. Inspired by the women’s remarkable bravery—and the mysterious reappearance of the bracelet— the duo traces evidence that spreads from remote villages of South Asia to the most powerful corners of the West, risking their lives to offer a voice to the countless innocents in bondage.

Title: Up Close

Author: Henriette Gyland

Received: Jane @ Choc Lit

Synopsis: When Dr. Lia Thompson’s grandmother dies unexpectedly, Lia is horrified to have to leave her life in America and return to a cold and creaky house in Norfolk. But as events unfold, she can’t help feeling that there is more to her grandmother’s death than meets the eye.

Too close for comfort…

Aidan Morrell is surprised to see Lia, his teenage crush, back in town. But Aidan’s accident when serving in the navy has scarred him in more ways than one, and he has other secrets which must stay hidden at all costs, even from Lia.

As Lia comes closer to uncovering the truth, she is forced to question everything she thought she knew. In a world of increasing danger, is Aidan someone she can trust?

November 18, 2012
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In My Mailbox: Week of November 11
Chick Lit Plus

In My Mailbox: Week of November 11

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: Love At 11

Author: Mari Mancusi

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: When Maddy graduated from Columbia University, she was ready to change the world. She’d get a job at Newsline, meet a nice guy, and live happily ever after with a real designer handbag on her arm. Five years later, she’s stuck producing puff pieces for the local News 9 San Diego–where “if it bleeds, it leads.” She’s still single, her family’s falling apart, and so is her knock-off Kate Spade.

Even a promotion–complete with hot camera guy–can’t seem to turn her luck around. After all, the promotion means working with the most narcissistic anchor on the planet and hot camera guy Jamie? Well, he’d be perfect…except for that pesky model/actress fiancee of his.

But just as Maddy’s ready to give up on her dreams, a secret scoop from her favorite knock-off purse guy has her suddenly chasing a huge lead. And Jamie is right by her side–in all the right ways. Can she bag the bad guy in an exclusive expose, put her family back together again, and win Jamie’s heart? Stay tuned…it’s the story of a lifetime.

Title: A Good Kind of Knowing

Author: Kathy Lynn Harris

Received: From Kathy Lynn Harris

Synopsis: Imagine if Maeve Binchy grew up in Texas and wrote an old-school Larry McMurtry novel. Think Hope Floats meets High Fidelity.

That’s how critics are describing A Good Kind of Knowing—from the author of the highly acclaimed and number-one Amazon bestseller, Blue Straggler.

A Good Kind of Knowing is a novel about the power of music and friendship, the relationship two-steps that go on in old Texas dancehalls, and the secret to finding just a little bit of common ground in a world full of distrust.

Title: The Best of Us

Author: Sarah Pekkanen

Received: From Atria Books

Synopsis: Paradise isn’t quite what it seems as four college friends meet for an island vacation in this captivating new novel from the acclaimed author of These Girls. Following a once-in-a-lifetime invitation, a group of old college friends leap at the chance to bring their husbands for a week’s vacation at a private villa in Jamaica to celebrate a former classmates’ thirty-fifth birthday. All four women are desperate for a break and this seems like a perfect opportunity. Tina is drowning under the demands of mothering four young children. Allie needs to escape from the shattering news about an illness that runs in her family. Savannah is carrying the secret of her husband’s infidelity. And, finally, there’s Pauline, who spares no expense to throw her husband an unforgettable birthday celebration, hoping it will gloss over the cracks that have already formed in their new marriage. The week begins idyllically, filled with languorous days and late nights of drinking and laughter. But as a hurricane approaches the island, turmoil builds, forcing each woman to re-evaluate everything she’s known about the others—and herself.

Title: 77 Ways to Find New Readers for Your Self-Published Book!

Author: Laura Pepper Wu

Received: From Laura Pepper Wu

Synopsis: The biggest challenge for any writer is to let people know their book exists. In this concise guide co-founder of the 30 Day Books studio Laura Pepper Wu shares actionable tips and secrets that you can use to skyrocket the sales of your book and find new readers in places far outside of your current network.

This short but sweet eBook was inspired by an author desperate for help.

Author Laura Pepper Wu poured onto paper the strategies and ideas she uses to coach self-published authors for over three years, along with actionable tips on how to use them. 77 Ways is designed to inform, inspire and entertain.

Try one new idea each day for 2-3 months, and you have a creative marketing plan that is both manageable and effective. You’ll break beyond your current network and find ways of connecting with new readers that feels comfortable and enjoyable.

Written by Laura Pepper Wu of the award-winning 30 Day Books book studio, self-published author and head of promotions for several Amazon best-sellers. Get your hands on a copy and discover a NEW approach – and several new ways – to promoting your book now!

In Sara’s Mailbox:

Title: Finding Rachel Davenport

Author: Michael Harling

Received By: Michael Harling

Synopsis: Rachel Davenport—former child prodigy, world-class gymnast and Miss Teen England—has retired from public life and lives anonymously in a small town, working as a clerk for a travel agency.

By night, however, Rachel is a self-styled crime-fighter, seeking to right the wrongs inflicted on people who cannot help themselves.

But when her first mission goes horribly awry she finds herself pursued, not merely by the media, but by the police and an assortment of criminals who want her silenced. To preserve her anonymity, as well as her life,

Rachel must prove to the police that she is one of the good guys and keep one step ahead of the bad guys, all while avoiding nosey neighbours, holding onto her job and juggling two would-be suitors.

Finding Rachel Davenport is a fun read, with a quirky plot and an explosive ending.

November 11, 2012
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In My Mailbox: Week of September 2
Chick Lit Plus

In My Mailbox: Week of September 2

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: The Twelve Days to Christmas

Author: Michele Gorman

Received: From Michele Gorman

Synopsis: Hannah’s in a bit of a pickle. In twelve days she flies from Hong Kong to the US with Sam, where he’s finally going to meet her parents… and ask to marry her.

Since overcoming a rather rocky patch in their relationship (which was totally his fault), he really is a new man, and they’re completely in love. The problem is, she feels panicky every time she contemplates matrimony. Which is perfectly normal, isn’t it? Isn’t it?! She has no idea but she’s got to find out before he pops the question… because she’s not 100% sure she’s going to say yes. Which will make for a very uncomfortable family holiday. He’s got to ask her before they go. So Operation Proposal begins.

As time ticks down to their flight, Hannah realizes that her own secrets are threatening their future. Before she can be happy with Sam, she’s got a lot to learn about herself in the twelve days to Christmas.

In Sara’s Mailbox:

Title: The Care and Handling of Roses with Thorns

Author: Margaret Dilloway

Received: unsolicited

Synopsis: Thirty-six-year-old Gal Garner lives a regimented life. Her job teaching biology and her struggle with kidney disease keep her toggling between the high school, the hospital, and her home on a strict schedule.

Only at home, in her garden, does Gal come alive. It’s here that she experiments with Hulthemia roses, painstakingly cross-pollinating various specimens in the hopes of creating a brand-new variation of spectacular beauty. But even her passion has a highly structured goal: Gal wants to win Queen of Show in a major competition and bring that rose to market.

Then one afternoon Gal’s teenaged niece Riley, the daughter of her estranged sister, arrives. Unannounced. Neither one of them will ever be the same.

Filled with gorgeous details of the art of rose breeding, The Care and Handling of Roses with Thorns is a testament to the redemptive power of love.

September 2, 2012
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In My Mailbox: Week of August 19
Chick Lit Plus

In My Mailbox: Week of August 19

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: Arcadia’s Gift

Author: Jesi Lea Ryan

Received: From Jesi Lea Ryan

Synopsis: Most people who experience death don’t live to tell about it.

When sixteen year old Arcadia “Cady” Day wakes in a hospital after experiencing what can only be called a psychic episode, she finds her family in tatters. With her twin sister gone, her dad moved out, her mom’s spiraling depression and her sister’s boyfriend, Cane, barely able to look at her, the only bright spot in her life is Bryan Sullivan, the new guy in school. When Bryan’s around, Cady can almost pretend she’s a regular girl, living a regular life; when he’s not, she’s wracked with wild, inexplicable mood swings. As her home life crumbles and her emotional control slips away, Cady begins to suspect that her first psychic episode was just the beginning…

Title: To Catch a Bad Guy

Author: Marie Astor

Received: From Marie Astor

Synopsis: Janet Maple is convinced that her life could not get any worse: her stellar career at the DA’s office ended with a lay off and her boyfriend of five years told her that he wants to be just friends. When she lands a job at one of New York’s premier boutique investment firms, Janet begins to hope that her luck is finally turning for the better. Not only is she happy with her new paycheck, but things also seem to be looking up on the personal front, as the company’s handsome attorney expresses keen interest in Janet. However, her euphoria is short-lived, as Janet soon discovers alarming facts about her new employer’s business tactics. When her boss dismisses her suspicions as groundless, Janet finds herself confiding to a cute IT engineer, Dean Snider. The closer she gets to Dean, the more Janet is tempted to break her rule of not dating co-workers, but what she doesn’t realize is that everything she knows about Dean, including his occupation and even his name, is a lie.

August 19, 2012
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In My Mailbox: Week of July 15
Chick Lit Plus

In My Mailbox: Week of July 15

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: Blue Aspen

Author: Tenaya Jayne

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: When seventeen-year-old Dulcee Elders’ mother embarks on a road trip from their home in California, Dulcee knows something odd is about to happen. Her suspicions are confirmed when they arrive at Uncle Jack’s house outside of Durango, Colorado. Without another word, Dulcee’s mother is gone, and Dulcee faces life with her reclusive and wealthy uncle in a looming rural mansion. Dulcee has suffered from insomnia ever since her father died more than ten years ago. But once at home at Uncle Jack’s, inexplicably Dulcee now can sleep; sleep brings not only strange and intricate dreams, but a dream lover. For now, Vincent Sands is only the silhouette of a man, but when Uncle Jack leaves town for business, Dulcee’s dream world and reality collide. Once she is alone, the silhouette is no longer content to remain only in her dreams. When Dulcee is asleep, Vincent can give her anything she wants, even the ability to talk to her dead father. Inevitably, Vincent must leave when Uncle Jack returns. Dulcee experiences the high price of loving Vincent-an addiction rivaling that of any hard-core drug. Desperate to bridge the gap between them, Dulcee faces a crucial decision that carries irreversible consequences.

Title: Picture Perfect

Author: Lucie Simone

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: For Lauren Tate, a high-powered TV producer, sex, lies, and scandal make for a great movie-of-the-week, but when she becomes the target of a smear campaign, even the most salacious of Hollywood’s tales can’t compare to her real life drama. With her soon-to-be-ex-husband leading the effort to sully her reputation, and her former assistant threatening to snatch her hard-earned position at Timeless Television out of her hands, Lauren’s perfectly planned life quickly begins to unravel at the seams.

Clawing her way back to the top of the TV food chain is no easy task, especially in an industry where backstabbing is a sport and gossip is a full time business. But Lauren learns just how cut-throat showbiz can truly be when the hottest scandal in Tinsel Town turns deadly and the Hollywood hunk who’s stolen her heart is missing in action. Can she salvage her career, her reputation, and her love life? Or will Hollywood be the death of her?

Title: Living in Glass Houses

Author: Zoe McNight

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: Sometimes even good people make bad decisions when it comes to affairs of the heart.

Blair is an optimistic good girl, turned jaded wife. After ten years of a disappointing marriage, she decides to reclaim her happiness and fill the void left by her wealthy, philandering husband. Just when everything she’s ever dreamed of is finally within her grasp, she’s haunted by her past, forcing her to make a decision which will forever change the path of her life.

Jonathan is a do-gooding college basketball coach in a relationship with a woman whose Park Avenue upbringing is at constant odds with his Main Street way of life. It’s a life he’s conceded to accept until he meets a woman who awakens in him everything he’s been missing and is now uncertain he can live without.

Elle is a NYC editor whose type-A personality has afforded her a fulfilling lifestyle in which she rarely doesn’t get what she wants. That’s until a failed relationship causes her walls to come crashing down around her. The man, who everyone agreed was her perfect other half, leaves her confused, insecure and incapable of moving on, even after she meets someone who’s nothing like her, but who completes her in the strangest of ways.

Living in Glass Houses is a contemporary story of three friends, all at a crossroads after discovering that sometimes even the best laid plans won’t result in the life you want. It’s about navigating the murky waters of relationships and friendships and having the courage to make those hard, life-altering decisions which mark the difference between existing and living.

Title: Memories

Author: Deanna Sletten

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis:
Michael DeCara came home from the Vietnam War a wounded man, both physically and emotionally. He tried putting his life back together, but found civilian life difficult after all he’d experienced in Nam. Raising his young daughter, Vanessa, by himself after his wife left, he found it difficult to commit to one job or one woman for any length of time. Then he met a young woman who made him feel good about himself again and who fell in love with Vanessa as well. But then a life-changing event occurred and he had to choose between his past and the present. He chose to leave without a word to the young woman, believing he was doing what was best for her. Now, years later, she has walked back into his life and he believes they may have a second chance at love-except she hates him and he doesn’t understand why.

Danielle Westerly fell in love when she was only eighteen and her heart was broken when he left her without a word. Her heartache was increased when she made a fateful decision that would alter her future, and she blamed him for her loss. Years later, she is single and has built up a successful career when she accidently runs into the man who was responsible for her past pain. Yet, their chemistry is undeniable. Can Dani give up her anger and let go of the pain of the past and fall in love again with the man she has hated all these years?

Dani and Michael share a journey of heartache, loss and painful memories that threaten to keep them apart. Can they break past these and finally find love again?

Title: The Au Pair

Author: Janey Fraser

Received: Marissa @ Cornerstone PR

Synopsis: Bonjour! Je m’appelle Antoinette Malfille and I am enormously excitable about becoming au pair! I have 19 years of age and have forever desired to visit Angleterre. My hobbies are clubbing and drinking. I tolerate children. I have (almost) forsaken smoking. I am available to work for you until Christmas as I do not pass my Baccalaureate. I await to meet you!

So starts the opening to THE AU PAIR, a romp through the world of foreign bodies and unsuspecting families. Jilly, a harassed mother of three, decides to set up an au pair agency around her kitchen table to help with family finances. Over the Channel, Marie-France signs up for Jilly’s agency in order to search for her English father who’d had a fling with her mother when she’d been an au pair, some twenty years earlier. Then there’s eight year old Lottie who is determined to drive away one au pair after another – until she meets her match.

With a cast of characters drawn straight from real life, The Au Pair takes a hilarious look at what happens when an au pair takes over your family.

In Sara’s Mailbox:

Title: The Darling Girls

Author: Emma Burstall

Received: Emma Burstall

Synopsis: Three women in love with the same man meet for the first time at his funeral. Can they separate the truth from the lies – and learn to trust again? When world famous music conductor Leo Bruck dies suddenly, he leaves behind three grieving women and a mass of unanswered questions. Did the man who juggled these simultaneous relationships while thrilling audiences around the globe, direct The Darling Girls like an orchestra? Victoria, his partner of twenty years and mother of two of his children, regards herself as his rightful widow and keeper of his legacy. However, a series of shocking discoveries – revolving around Leo’s boyhood flight on the Kindertransport from Nazi-occupied Austria – forces her to re-examine the man she thought she knew and query the very foundation of their relationship. Maddy, mother of Leo’s daughter Phoebe, has a high-powered job and seems independent and sorted. But events take a sinister turn when Maddy becomes involved with Victoria’s troubled teenage son, and her safe world starts to go awry.

Finally there’s Cat who, at just 24, is Leo’s youngest lover. Coping with a sick mother and battling demons from her childhood, she is finding it increasingly hard to hold it together. Will grief, anger and bitterness blind her to the possibility of ever finding happiness, career fulfilment – and even, perhaps, new love?

The Darling Girls is a moving story of love, loss, and the prevailing power of female friendship. Can these three very different women, whose lives become inextricably bound, break free from the masterful control Leo exerts – even from the grave – once and for all?

Title: Chasing Fools

Author: Aida Brassington

Received: Aida Brassington

Synopsis: Relationships are complicated even under the best of circumstances. For Varda Dorfman and Tommy Campi, these are the worst of times. Varda, an illegal foods smuggler, has pissed off Anthony Carluccio, the kingpin of the local underground dinner club, and put her plans for the future in serious jeopardy. Her boyfriend Gino won’t quit bugging her to get married, even though his mother hates her. Tommy, Gino’s brother and the ladies man of the family, can’t even introduce the love of his life to anyone: he’s secretly gay and dating the son of Carluccio’s biggest competition. And now Tommy’s getting pressure to go public.

When Carluccio’s hit man turns up dead in Varda’s closet after snacking on poisonous mushrooms, all hell breaks loose. Varda’s running for her life, and since his mother is dating Carluccio, Gino’s convinced the only way to save her life is to finally drag her to the altar. And when people start discovering Tommy’s hush-hush relationship, things really start to get interesting.

Title: Rita Hayworth’s Shoes

Author: Francine LaSala

Received: Francine LaSala

Synopsis: Amy Miller gets dumped on her wedding day and everyone knows it’s for the best, as her relationship with David had eaten away at her for years. Except for Amy… When her best friend, Jane Austen-Rabinowitz, and Jane’s sagacious six-year-old daughter, Zoe, convince Amy to treat herself to an extravagantly priced, super-cute pair of shoes, which purportedly once belonged to a siren of the silver screen, she balks at first, but their allure soon wears her down. Once they are hers, her life turns around. She gets refocused on her career and meets a true kindred spirit, the also-jilted English professor, Decklin Thomas. She’s not attracted to Deck at first. But when circumstances lead to them spending more time together, they bond, and Amy starts to believe she may have found her soul mate. But when Deck’s former wife goes missing, again, the perfect romance may not be what it seems…

Sparkly and witty as a 1940s screwball comedy, and filled with quirky characters and lots of delightful surprises, Rita Hayworth’s Shoes is a story of bouncing back, a heartwarming and potentially heartbreaking romance, and even a mystery rolled into one fun, hilarious page-turner.

July 15, 2012
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In My Mailbox: Week of July 8
Chick Lit Plus

In My Mailbox: Week of July 8

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: Ripple the Twine

Author: Jenn Flynn-Shon

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: A Tomboy-meets-Townie love story and tale about how friendship can save your life. Sara Quinn is a Sportswriter from Boston and over the past year she has started to earn major respect in the local market. In the process, however, she abandoned her personal relationships and put her emotions in the box. Regardless of her self-imposed timeout, a friend introduces her to Ben. With blue eyes, black hair and a brogue, he’s her ultimate triple threat. But they connect just as Sara learns that her friends are facing heavy emotional crises. She starts offering advice, becoming a rock for everyone else, and in the process Sara unearths her own long dormant insecurities. But a bag of peanut butter cups and a hockey game won’t fix her issues. She’s got to move past her emotional past without hiding behind her career for once. She needs her friend’s support as much as they need hers and the four will quickly discover that, when they stick together, their offense is virtually unstoppable.

Title: The Dinner Party

Author: Jenny Brenner

Received: From Jenny Brenner

Synopsis: Sometime back in seventh grade, Lainie and Miya pinky swore to attend the same college, snag gorgeous husbands, and live next door to one another for the rest of their lives. But is post-grad life ever what one imagines? Lainie Silver is twenty-eight, attractive, razor-sharp, and is nonetheless trapped in a mind-numbing job and a romantic slump. Sure, she’s thankful for a steady paycheck, a Fifth Avenue address, and minimal sagging of tenuous body parts. But it doesn’t seem fair that Miya managed to wangle a glamorous career as a celebrity make-up artist and a “perfect” marriage to Jake, a chef at The Union Square Café. Both are unbearable reminders of the novel Lainie can’t seem to write and the elusive love she craves. After hosting a tense dinner party (and throwing back one too many cocktails), Lainie succumbs to bitterness and bad judgment when Jake shows up at her apartment. Though Lainie can’t stand him, this minor detail doesn’t matter in the drunken haze of seduction. Eight minutes later, after mediocre sex and a hard look at the philanderer passed out on her couch, Lainie knows that her friendship—potentially her entire life—will never be the same. Determined to keep her secret, with guilty angst and acerbic wit as her must-have accessories, Lainie tries to resume so-called normalcy. This proves more difficult than she thought: she gets fired for taking too long a lunch, settles into the comfort of a boring relationship only to be cheated on when she least expects it, has a fender bender with her first love on the Long Island Expressway, and realizes she is wildly attracted to her new boss, Noah. Against the warnings of Miya and her nagging mother, Lainie nestles in to Noah’s world of custom suits and imported cars. She even lets him in on her one-night stand with Jake. She never (ok—hardly) suspects he could one day be the cause of all their undoing…

Title: The Silent Treatment

Author: Melanie Surani

Received: From Melanie Surani

Synopsis: While rebuilding her life after escaping an abusive boyfriend, twenty-five-year-old Kat Shergill doesn’t expect to find a piece of forgotten movie history during a bout of retail therapy. But there it is: a coil of long-lost silent film tucked inside an antique from an estate sale. Unfortunately, Peter, the handsome host of the sale, disappears before Kat has a chance to return it to him.

Curious, Kat watches the strip and is shocked to witness the brutal murder of a famous 1920’s star by a fellow actor. Against Kat’s wishes, the head of the department leaks the story of her valuable discovery to the media. Although she has no way of contacting Peter, who she keeps thinking about, guilt at being unable to return the piece, and unwillingness to reveal her idol as a murderer gnaws at her.

After a news article cites Kat as the film’s owner, she’s followed by a strange white car, her apartment is broken into, and she learns why some mysteries should never be messed with.

Title: Inner Circle

Author: Evelyn Lozada with Courtney Parker

Received: From Leigh @ Regal Literary

Synopsis: Against her mother’s wishes and her own reservations, Eve Inez marries Los Angeles Leopard’s superstar wide receiver, Chase Landon, and finds herself in a close-knit circle of friends who are also married to elite athletes.

Each of the wives soon discover their lives aren’t all glitz and glam, and that with wealth and fame there’s always a price to pay. It’s a regular battle of the sexes and Eve quickly realizes her circle needs protection against the everyday drama that keeps coming their way – prenups, baby mamas, scandals, cheating and worst of all, gossip.

In answer, Eve encourages the wives to band together to form The Wives Association. No athlete, no matter how rich, pampered or devious, is going to get one over on her girls – that is, until she herself is confronted with one terrible truth that strikes much closer to home than she could ever have imagined.

Inner Circle is a jaw-dropping peek into the lives of a group of women married to professional athletes. This gripping page-turner will make it impossible for readers to determine where real life ends and fiction begins and is sure to have every reader salivating for more.

Title: Where We Belong

Author: Emily Giffin

Received: From the SheKnows Book Club

Synopsis: Marian Caldwell is a thirty-six year old television producer, living her dream in New York City. With a fulfilling career and satisfying relationship, she has convinced everyone, including herself, that her life is just as she wants it to be. But one night, Marian answers a knock on the door . . . only to find Kirby Rose, an eighteen-year-old girl with a key to a past that Marian thought she had sealed off forever. From the moment Kirby appears on her doorstep, Marian’s perfectly constructed world—and her very identity—will be shaken to its core, resurrecting ghosts and memories of a passionate young love affair that threaten everything that has come to define her.

For the precocious and determined Kirby, the encounter will spur a process of discovery that ushers her across the threshold of adulthood, forcing her to re-evaluate her family and future in a wise and bittersweet light. As the two women embark on a journey to find the one thing missing in their lives, each will come to recognize that where we belong is often where we least expect to find ourselves—a place that we may have willed ourselves to forget, but that the heart remembers forever.

In Sara’s Mailbox:

Title: Midnight Promises

Author: Sherryl Woods

Received: Eric @ Finn Partners

Synopsis: When Elliott Cruz first courted struggling single mom Karen Ames, it it was a romance worthy of any Sweet Magnolia fantasy. The sexy personal trainer made it his mission to restore Karen’s strength—physical and emotional—and to charm her children.
Now, a few years into the marriage, colliding dreams threaten to tear a few years into the marriage, colliding dreams threaten to tear them them apart. Elliott’s desire to finance the business opportunity of a lifetime with their hard-earned “baby money” stirs Karen’s deep-rooted financial insecurities. It’s the discovery that their brother-in-law is cheating on Elliott’s sister—and thinks it’s justified—that puts their irreconcilable differences into perspective. Will their own loving fidelity be a bond so strong they can triumph against all odds?

Title: The Beach Holiday

Author: Anita Hughes

Received: Unsolicited

Synopsis: Have you ever wanted to escape?When Amanda finds her French husband wrapped around his sous-chef, her perfect life comes crashing down Worse, Andre seems to think she should just accept his infidelity and carry on as normal for the sake of their young son, Max Devastated by his betrayal, Amanda accepts her mother’s offer of an holiday and runs away with Max to an exclusive resort in Laguna Beach The St Regis Hotel is heaven on earth and Max is having the time of his life But while Amanda knows she should be using the time to think about what she wants, her life gets more complicated by a meeting with a handsome older man.

July 8, 2012
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