Romance

The Bend in Redwood Road (Missing Pieces Book 1) by Danielle Stewart

Most days it’s manageable. No more than a quiet wondering around the edges of her mind.

What has become of the baby she left behind?

Smiling through the pain and suffering in silence, Leslie Laudon marches forward. Embracing the life skillfully designed by her husband Paul. Living right could be penance for an impossible choice made with an uneasy heart. Dutiful and anchoring, Leslie poured herself into her other children. Nurturing them through infancy, protecting them as toddlers, guiding them as teens. As her youngest child heads off to college with her suitcases and coordinating dorm room accessories, so goes Leslie’s identity. The chaotic life of a busy working mother threatens to become dangerously quiet. Quiet enough to hear the voices she’s tried to silence for decades.

Gwen Fox was adopted by two perfect people. Noel and Millie have always treated her the same as their two biological sons. Her parents love is strong and unwavering, yet a soul-deep ache still lingers. Plagued by an unnamed, hard to explain, longing Gwen could never shake.

Riddled with doubt and dragged down by the undertow of unanswered questions, Leslie and Gwen both find their lives suddenly upended. One seeks the truth about the day she was born. The other seeks herself, the woman she was before motherhood. Before she made a choice to leave a piece of her heart lying asleep in the hospital nursery.

In this complex journey for answers, blame is abundant. Guilt is thick enough to choke on. Marriages are brought to the brink of disaster. As the ripples of the past vibrate through their lives, Gwen and Leslie realize there is no turning back. What they have put into motion cannot be stopped. The road toward the truth will be littered with casualties.

“You will not be disappointed if you take a journey around The Bend in Redwood Road. You will hang on every word wondering if resolution will be possible” Michele, 5 stars

“Stewart has a knack for creating rich, complicated characters. One standout is Leslie’s daughter, Kerry, who is defiantly vocal about the issues within her family and laudably supportive of her mother. The author treads carefully around the subject of adoption, respectfully noting systematic issues while preserving the emotional complexities of Gwen’s experience. Another intriguing feature is the romantic subplot” – Kirkus Reviews

The Taartwork Pies Cookbook: Grandmother’s Recipe, Granddaughter’s Remix by Brittany Bennett

"Armed with her Oma’s generations-old dough recipe and a decidedly Brooklynized pantry, Bennett established her taart company. Its best recipes have been assembled in this innovative, scrapbook-feeling collection." – The New York Times

Discover a Secret Family Pie Recipe That Has Survived Generations

The origin of Taartwork Pies, Brittany Bennett’s Brooklyn-based bakery, was her Oma and an old, crumpled piece of paper that held a very special recipe– one that her Oma brought all the way from Amsterdam. Since then, all of Brittany’s standout pies have incorporated that perfect pie crust recipe– a sweet, crispy texture with a hint of lemon, a combination that gives these pies that extra special something.

With simple, fresh ingredients, you can create a dessert that will have family and friends coming back for seconds–or even thirds. Enjoy recipes like Traditional Dutch Appeltaart, Strawberry-Thyme Balsamic Pie with Ricotta Whip, Rose Hip Poached Cherries with Pistachio Crumble or Plum and Juniper Berry Tart–each one celebrating in-season produce to capture the most dynamic flavors. And with each filling, you have the option of using Oma’s Dutch Taart Dough, Chocolate Dough or Vegan Dough, so there will always be new flavor combinations to try.

As Brittany’s Oma would say, it’s not just about eating, it’s about indulging in the time spent together. So gather those closest to you, crack open The Taartwork Pies Cookbook and create new memories with every delicious treat.

The Music of Mars by George G. Moore

**2018 The Wishing Shelf Book Awards Finalist

After a disagreement with her project leader, Gretchen Blake finds herself blackballed from the archaeology field. Around the same time, her husband declines to renew their marriage contract.

Alone, with money a growing concern, she accepts a job from MarsVantage to decipher odd symbols in a remote Martian cave. If she can correctly interpret them, MarsVantage will gain access to a cavern filled with an energy source that could dramatically improve their circumstances while Gretchen could reclaim her position on Earth.

Interplanetary, MarsVantage’s Earth-based rival, will stop at nothing–industrial espionage, bribery, theft, and even murder–to keep Gretchen and MarsVantage from succeeding.

Before ever stepping on to the Martian plain, Gretchen finds herself caught in the middle, wanting only to finish the job and return to Earth. As time goes on, she discovers something more valuable than energy–she finds intriguing alien information that could forever alter her future as well as MarsVantage’s and quite possibly humanity’s.

Can Gretchen secure the alien technology? Will she stay on Mars, a place she finally feels like she belongs, and pursue a budding relationship with her MarsVantage project leader, Frank?

Croak, Monsieur!by Susan Kiernan-Lewis

For some people not even the apocalypse can ruin a nice day on the water.

A spring boat ride with no motor, no GPS and no radio.

What could possibly go wrong?

When Jules goes to Marseille to run an errand for the twins, she meets an exotic new friend who offers her a day trip on a French yacht to wash away the gloom of the post-apocalyptic winter Jules has just endured.

The trip promises everything Jules has been craving for the last six months…sunshine, rosé wine, exciting company, bracing sea air…and murder.

What starts out as a pleasure cruise quickly turns into the sail of the damned as, trapped on a boat with a killer, Jules scrambles to find out who not to turn her back on.

Failed Momentsby A. Robert Allen

Patrick Walsh relives his Failed Moments in two past lives in order to salvage his modern day existence. Can he correct the mistakes of his past?

Patrick travels back to:
The French Caribbean in 1790- Just Before the Slave Revolution
Biracial plantation owner Patrice Beaumont is known as a “kinder” slave master committed to ending slavery, but his actions don’t back-up his words. Is being the “best of the worst” all he’s capable of or will he have the courage to stand up for what is right?

1863 New York City- During the Draft Riots
Irish street fighter Patrick Allen is days away from the biggest fight of his career, when the Draft Riots ignite dangerous racial conflicts around the city and deadly acts of violence by Irish gangs. Never one to take sides outside the ring, he steers clear of the angry mobs. So when he stumbles on a lynching in progress, who can expect him to do anything more than look away?

Patrick is guided by his Aunt Grace who has been with him in each of his lives. The stakes are high—this is his last chance. Success moves both of them forward. There is no going back.

Volume #1 of A. Robert Allen’s Slavery and Beyond Series- Stories tackling race relations during times leading up to or immediately following the end of slavery.

Tales of the Late Twentieth Centuryby James Snyder

TALES OF THE LATE TWENTIETH CENTURY

An aging, ex-musician working inside the incinerator chamber of an old 19th century hotel discovers a locked room that contains a Book of Souls of tenants of the past century. A soldier returning from the Iraq War meets a beautiful and enigmatic girl waging her own military campaign, as darkly terrifying as the one he left behind. The son of a New Orleans mobster hit-man receives a beyond-the-grave message from his once-abusive, now-dead father that changes everything he thought he knew about their lives. A homeless man, collecting cans to survive, finds himself being followed by a stranger he is sure is the reincarnation of Dick Tracy. A woman who has lost her Texas ranchman husband and any further meaning to her life, is suddenly contacted by a young runaway cousin whose parents are also dead, and is now in hot pursuit of her own aimless existence.

From tragic to comic and in-between, these and other tales journey and explore the zeitgeist, the spirit of our age, which was the late twentieth century. (Short Stories)

James Snyder’s previous works include the young-adult, literary trilogy THE BEAUTIFUL-UGLY; the military thriller AMERICAN WARRIOR; and the award-winning, suspense thriller DESOLATION RUN: “Simultaneously brutal, bloody and beatific, this is crime fiction done right. A relentlessly paced, unpredictable page-turner powered by well-developed characters.” Kirkus Reviews

Ring Bell for Service?: Never Force Your Customers to Get Your Attention, When You Should Already Have Theirs!by Dr. Timothy K. Johnston

A collection of customer service stories (some good, some bad, and all amusing) and the business lessons to be learned from them, along with implementation strategies for any level employee, manager or owner.

Anyone who deals with customers, patients or clients can benefit from the advice given in this book to improve relationships with every person they meet.

One Winter Nightby Ali Parker

Snow covers the ground and love is in the air in the southern city of Savannah.

I’ve only recently gotten out of the military, but my best friend’s father gave me a good job at his security firm.

The last person I expected to find working there was my best friend’s little sister – all grown up.

She’s beyond beautiful and such a handful – in more ways than one.

I can’t help but think about what we could be if she would stop being so damn difficult, but it’s part of her charm.

She’s in for the adventure of her lifetime with me, and it’s going to start one winter night soon.