Hearts Unleashed is Julia Dumont's third novel in the Second Acts contemporary romance series. Cynthia Amas, matchmaking guru to everyone but herself, has just opened the new offices of her highly personalized boutique dating service in Hollywood, California. One of her new clientsa gorgeous, well-connected, uber-rich widowcomes in search of a new lease on life in the form of no less than a social and sexual reawakening. The story moves across the endlessly entertaining landscape of Los Angelesfrom an astonishingly erotic art exhibit to a decidedly intoxicating voyage with a wildly attractive crew of love and lust seekers via a luxury yacht up the Southern California coast.Colorful supporting characters in this sensuous and deliciously convoluted farce include Cynthia’s best friend Lolita and her ever-mystifying pack of talented dogs; Paloma, Cynthia’s beautiful young assistant; a passionate new import from Dublin named... Views: 8
BRAZOS FORTUNE HAS LEFT A TOWERING LEGACY. HIS SON TODD NOW STRUGGLES TO PROVE HIMSELF AND FIND HIS OWN IDENTITY IN THE SHADOWS OF LEGENDS. Life in the shadows. It happens to all of us. We stand so close to a dominant personality that our reflection can hardly be noticed. Someone more famous. More skilled. More powerful. Sometimes they are people we hardly know. Sometimes they are members of our own family. Brazos Fortune has left a towering legacy. His son Todd now struggles to prove himself and find his own identity in the Shadow of Legends. Todd Fortune must follow his father as he takes over the family business with his wife, a fast-paced city girl whos not willing to settle into a small town lifestyle. A tale of daily hardships and hard-earned victories, Todd struggles to prove himself a committed husband and a courageous frontiersman in the wake of his fathers legacy. Cross-country chases, deadly showdowns, and budding romances weave the story of this second power... Views: 8
Welcome to Dulcet, Texas, home of the legendary Briscoe Ranch Resort, where one woman will discover that even love is bigger in the Lone Star State.Celebrity wedding planner Remedy Lane is Hollywood royalty—until a scandal sends her packing to the wilds of Texas. She has a knack for leaving disaster in her wake, but she's determined to reboot her career at Briscoe Ranch, a luxury resort known for extravagant weddings. Little does she know that weddings don't happen at the resort without the approval of the town's cowboy-swaggering, too-hot-for-his-own-good fire chief, Micah Garrity.ONE HOT SUMMER Micah knows trouble when he sees it, and all it takes is one glimpse of Remedy's princess airs for him to know he's met his match. Too bad he can't stop thinking about her—even when she brings about one disaster after another at the resort. He and Remedy clash at every turn, but they can't stop the sparks flying between them. They come from... Views: 8
Science Fiction. 83037 words long. First published in 2001, 2001 Views: 8
She made a life with one man--but always loved another at...The Summer House. Jean Stone captured readers' imaginations with the "graceful prose, vivid imagery and compassionately drawn characters" (Publishers Weekly) of novels like Tides of the Heart and Places by the Sea. Now, in her latest novel, she reveals the public scandals of a family destined for political greatness--and the private secrets of a woman who traded her childhood dreams for a role she was born to play.... As a young girl, Liz Adams always knew that her father, Boston power broker Will Adams, had big plans--dreams and schemes that would bring Liz's older brother all the way to the White House. But when fate deals the family a tragic blow, Will is forced to change his picture-perfect plans--and place the family's political future squarely on Liz's shoulders. Two decades later, Liz has married the man her father molded into the perfect presidential candidate. But weeks before the election, tragedy strikes again--and this time Liz can't hide the pain of a life lived by someone else's rules. Seeking refuge at her family's home on Martha's Vineyard, Liz finds only painful memories of the past--and the long-lost love she let slip away. Now, as her family's darkest hour looms, the woman torn between two men will finally discover what her heart has known all along.... From the Paperback edition.From the Inside FlapShe made a life with one man--but always loved another at...The Summer House. Jean Stone captured readers' imaginations with the "graceful prose, vivid imagery and compassionately drawn characters" (Publishers Weekly) of novels like Tides of the Heart and Places by the Sea. Now, in her latest novel, she reveals the public scandals of a family destined for political greatness--and the private secrets of a woman who traded her childhood dreams for a role she was born to play.... As a young girl, Liz Adams always knew that her father, Boston power broker Will Adams, had big plans--dreams and schemes that would bring Liz's older brother all the way to the White House. But when fate deals the family a tragic blow, Will is forced to change his picture-perfect plans--and place the family's political future squarely on Liz's shoulders. Two decades later, Liz has married the man her father molded into the perfect presidential candidate. But weeks before the election, tragedy strikes again--and this time Liz can't hide the pain of a life lived by someone else's rules. Seeking refuge at her family's home on Martha's Vineyard, Liz finds only painful memories of the past--and the long-lost love she let slip away. Now, as her family's darkest hour looms, the woman torn between two men will finally discover what her heart has known all along.... Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.It had taken twenty-four years to get to New Jersey, twenty-eight if you started counting from when Daniel was killed. Which would only have been right, for that was when it had all begun...all of the planning and scheming and orchestrating that had landed Liz Adams-Barton here today, standing at a podium, acknowledging enthusiastic applause. "Thank you," she said into the microphone at the Sheraton or Hyatt or Marriott, wherever she was. It was not her job to remember. Logistics was what her brother Roger was for: Liz merely had to show up and give a short, impassioned speech that would deliver the votes to her husband. Her husband, Michael Barton, who--not Daniel--was running for president of the United States. This afternoon, her passion had been directed toward the Northeast Coalition for Handicapped Americans. For an hour now in the red-white-and-blue-decorated banquet room, the audience of eight hundred had been enrapt by her words and now cheered enthusiastically from their wheelchairs and walkers and crutches. They seemed especially delighted that Liz had brought Danny along, Danny, her twenty-two-year-old son--one of them--who sat next to the podium in his own chair with wheels. She glanced down at him. He responded with a hearty wink. Liz smiled back at the crowd. They were not exactly exploiting Danny. He wanted to be there to help put his father--and all of them--into the White House and into the history books. All of them included Liz and Michael and the three children: seventeen-year-old Greg, the politician-in-waiting; twenty-year-old Margaret--Mags--the spirited free-thinker; and of course Danny. All of them also included Will Adams, Liz's father, who stood on the other side of the podium. At seventy-eight, he was nonetheless nodding at the crowd, his faded blue eyes twinkling, the tired lines at the corners of his pale mouth turned up with the pride of accomplishment and the anticipation of a journey nearly won. He was entitled to be proud. Through every stage of the planning and the scheming and the orchestrating, Will Adams had propelled them here to New Jersey where the party's convention would convene tomorrow, where Michael Barton was expected to win the nomination for the highest office in the land. And where Liz would take her own final lap toward becoming the nation's next First Lady. The applause continued; the smile muscles ached in Liz's cheeks. She reached down and took Danny's hand. As she gently squeezed his strong fingers, she wondered what her brother Daniel would have had to say if he only could have seen them now. "You were brilliant, Mom," Danny said as Liz slid into the backseat of the handicapped-equipped van next to her son. Further back was Clay, Danny's ever-present don't-worry-be-happy Jamaican nurse; up front were Keith and Joe, the Secret Service bodyguards assigned to Liz and Danny, their faithful companions, like it or not. Liz sighed. "I wasn't brilliant," she said to her son, "but thanks for the kudos." During one of Michael's three terms as governor of Massachusetts, she had learned that politics was more about presence than it was about perfection. She pushed a shock of highlighted-blond hair from her forehead. In spite of the fact that the media proclaimed her "stunningly youthful," right now, Liz felt every day, month, and year of her forty-four years, presence or not. It had been a long campaign, and the real pressure wouldn't begin until the convention opened tomorrow. "You're much better at this than you think," Danny continued. "You'd be perfectly capable of running for president yourself, you know." She laughed. "And do what? Run against your father?" She did not mention that she could never run, not because the country wasn't "ready" for a female president, but because she had not been groomed to be anything but the physical, emotional, and spiritual support--the wife--of Michael Barton. He was the man with the schooling, the experience, and the backing of her father and his essential connections. Surprisingly, Will Adams had not foreseen that a female president would be possible, not in his lifetime or in Liz's either. It had been one of his few mistakes. "Besides," she added, "why would anyone want to be president? With all those speeches and the long hours and lousy pay? And the way they scrutinize your personal life!" She let out a strained laugh and Danny joined in. Neither of them had the strength to rehash last winter's "scrutiny," an absurd tabloid scandal that had suggested Michael was gay because there was no evidence that he had ever had an affair or even considered it. The journalistic sensation had finally died down, deemed "unfounded" by the mainstream media and "simply stupid" by Roger, Liz's brother and Michael's campaign manager. And Roger might have been the one to know. He had "come out" to the family two years ago when Michael was still governor and had asked Roger to be his presidential campaign manager. Roger had said he didn't want anything to hurt Michael's chances at the White House. His wife--who claimed she'd "suspected all along"--agreed to stand by Roger for the sake of the election. And so, Roger's secret was harbored within the walls of the Adams/Barton family, where it was protected, and where it belonged. Their royal blue Yankee blood may have been curdling inside, but, by God, the world would not know it. When the tabloid story on Michael broke, Will Adams himself went forth with a press release blasting the media for using the gay issue as the "last frontier" to discredit a candidate. The accusation was untrue, but even if it wasn't, he said, the issue of sexual preference should not be fodder for the media. His announcement was powerful, but still, the family had held their breaths for Roger's sake. And for all their sakes, because heaven only knew what the media might dream up next. Thankfully, the attack had been dropped. Liz suspected untraceable money had changed hands or that Father had called in favors, but, as usual, she had not asked. She shook her head now and patted Danny's arm. "How about you, honey? How are you feeling?" As with her father, the stress was beginning to become apparent on her son. He ran his hand over what would have been dark hair if he had not had it shaved to a trendy quarter inch. Liz liked the look. It enhanced her son's great bone structure and gorgeous brown eyes. "I'll be glad when we get to the hotel," he said. "I need a nap." "Me, too." Liz gazed out the window at the Atlantic City boardwalk, at the beaches that crawled past in summer-heat slowness. For a moment, she envied the carefree, sun-hat-clad, ice-chest-toting people who strolled toward the gray sand. She wondered how many of them worried about elections or secrets or handicapped sons. "I wish your grandfather had come back with us. He looked as if he should rest, too." She had tried to talk Will out of going across town to meet Michael at a union rally, then from there to the convention center to schmooze for last-minute delegate votes. Not surprisingly, she had failed. "Gramps loves the action, Mom. Hey--this is his dream, isn't it?" Views: 8
"In the spring of 1984, I went to the northwest of France, to Normandy, to prepare an NBC documentary on the fortieth anniversary of D-Day, the massive and daring Allied invasion of Europe that marked the beginning of the end of Adolf Hitler's Third Reich. There, I underwent a life-changing experience. As I walked the beaches with the American veterans who had returned for this anniversary, men in their sixties and seventies, and listened to their stories, I was deeply moved and profoundly grateful for all they had done. Ten years later, I returned to Normandy for the fiftieth anniversary of the invasion, and by then I had come to understand what this generation of Americans meant to history. It is, I believe, the greatest generation any society has ever produced."In this superb book, Tom Brokaw goes out into America, to tell through the stories of individual men and women the story of a generation, America's citizen heroes and heroines who came of age during the Great... Views: 8
Originally published in New Zealand and in the UK, Brandt's hilarious first novel about life, love, and the film business delves into the mind and mystery of the modern adult male. Views: 8
A killer is on the loose, blurring the line between fact and fiction. His prey — the writers of crime novels who have turned psychological profilers into the heroes of the nineties. But this killer shatters all conventional wisdom, and for one woman, the desperate hunt to uncover his identity becomes a matter of life and death. Professor Fiona Cameron is an academic psychologist who uses computer technology to help police forces track serial offenders. She used to help the Met, but when they screwed up an investigation after ignoring her advice she vowed never to work for them again. Still smarting from the experience, she’s working a case in Toledo when her lover, thriller writer Kit Martin, tells her a fellow crime novelist has been murdered. It’s not her case, but Fiona can’t help taking an interest. Which is just as well, because before too long the killer strikes again. And again. And Fiona finds herself caught in a race against time not only to save a life but to bring herself redemption, both personal and professional. Views: 8
In baseball, fielding your position at third base is tricky—that's why third is called "the hot corner." You have to be aware that anything can happen at any time.This should be the best year of Scott's life: It's his last season of varsity ball, his team is about to go to the city championship, and a pro career is on the line. Instead, everything he always counted on comes crashing down at the same time, and his whole life is like one blazing hot corner—full of deadly line drives and crazy "bad hops."Scott can't believe the awful stuff coming his way, but it's time to find out whether he has what it takes to play the hot corner—on the baseball diamond and off it. Views: 8
This is the story of two remarkable men, one of whom conquered empires with apparent ease and one of whom struggled with the day-to-day problems of a small provincial town. The first was Alexander the Great, the second, Euxenus, philosopher and tutor to the young Alexander. It is the story of two men whose paths crossed only briefly, but whose encounter changed both their livesand the course of history. Views: 8
Another snappy collection of fur-raising adventures, and this time Selby falls head over heels in love with the most gorgeous girl-dog he's ever seen! Views: 8
