An unwelcome visitor, an unrequited love, and a dead body create chaos in a middle-aged woman's plan for a productive summer. Despite a looming divorce, an empty checkbook, and a struggling cleaning business, Cece Cavanaugh is determined to land on her own two feet. Adamant about staying a safe distance from the handsome detective who has her fantasizing about violating the morals clause in her prenuptial agreement, Cece dives headlong into her work. Even though she has no free time to spare, Cece finds herself guilted into cleaning a hoarder's home. Her discoveries in the condemned house are too shocking to ignore. Diamond-laden pachyderms, a secret cache of money, and a dead body lure Cece into launching an investigation that places her in direct contact with the one person she's desperate to avoid--hunky Detective Case Alder. With clues in hand, Cece runs down leads and eliminates suspects one by one. Her conclusion and brave accusation put a friend's life in peril forcing Cece to hatch a plan to outsmart the killer. A daring move could either save Cece and her friend or lead to their demise.

Between hot flashes and divorce papers, a middle-aged woman considers her outlook on life when she butts heads with a hot detective during a murder investigation. When Cece Cavanaugh's husband empties their joint bank account, steals her designer luggage, and runs off with a younger woman, Cece must decide whether to ask her manipulative mother-in-law for a handout or get a job. Choosing the easier path, Cece lands a job cleaning a crime scene where a high school coach was murdered. When his wife is implicated—a young woman Cece practically raised—Cece finds herself mopping floors, balancing an empty checkbook, and ferreting out a killer. Amid all this messy business, Cece bumps heads with a handsome detective. She tries to ignore her growing attraction to the detective, but he gives new meaning to the term "hot flash." After she stumbles onto a clue that could vindicate her friend, her elation turns to panic when she haphazardly confronts the killer. Through the danger and romance, Cece discovers self-reliance and inner strength. And that crime—at least, someone else's—does pay the bills.

Cece wants a day of self-care, mother-daughter time, and . . . anything but her ex-husband’s wedding. But wedding it is, as she tries to sneak the groom’s forgotten ring to her daughter before the ceremony. Her plan for a quick escape from the venue is thwarted when she discovers a body and a garden full of suspects, including her former mother-in-law. With the Cavanaugh name in danger of being dragged through the Wickford rumor mill, Cece’s ex reluctantly asks her to investigate the suspicious death and put the gossip to rest. Cece agrees . . . if he’ll pay off her van and save her housekeeper’s job. The new detective in Wickford and missed phone calls from her boyfriend, Alder, create more trouble for Cece as she questions suspects and gathers clues—not just for the murder, but trying to figure out what is up with her missing boyfriend and his elusive voice mails. Every moment is precious, because the longer it takes for Cece to clear the family name, the more likely her ex is to back out of their deal. In a desperate attempt to end Cece’s snooping, the killer sets a trap to silence her. Will Cece’s hope for justice and a paid-off van go up in flames?

A former friend, a runaway mother, and a dead body threaten to spoil a middle-aged woman’s plan for a low-key family Thanksgiving. Cece Cavanaugh’s latest job recommendation comes from a former friend—a woman who turned her back when Cece needed her friendship most. Cleaning a flooded school is a big job, and Cece needs money for Thanksgiving dinner. But when she finds herself ankle-deep in mud, checking the pulse of her friend’s ex-husband, the job takes an unexpected turn and ensures the arrival of hunky Detective Case Alder. With her divorce from her trust-fund husband just days away, Cece is determined to keep her emotions in check. That’s hard when tensions are high, and Alder is determined to keep Cece out of harm’s way. As Cece cleans the school, she learns more about the suspects, teachers and staff present the day of the murder. As she gathers evidence, the killer closes in on his next target. To compound her problems, Cece’s elderly mother arrives in Wickford—baggage in hand, and still Cece isn’t ready for Thanksgiving dinner. Despite a threatening note, a series of false leads, and wrangling her runaway mother, Cece narrows down the suspects, but will the killer seal her fate before Cece can solve the case?

Michael O'Shea is a professional thief, descended from a long line of professional thieves. A seemingly simple, well-prepared heist in the jewelry district goes slightly awry, and propels him into a heist for hire in Sunset Cove, Florida. He is enlisted to restore a painting stolen by his new employer's daughter and her drug dealing boyfriend, who are not aware it hides something of very high value. But a killer is also burglarizing homes and condominiums in Florida, and has targeted the condominium occupied by the daughter of Michael's new employer. The killer strikes almost on the heels of Michael's burglary, and kills the daughter of Michael's employer, leaving Michael as the logical suspect in her death. Michael must find and expose real killer before he is caught, and perhaps killed, by the police, his employer, or the mob-connected father of another of the killer's victims. And before long, the killer is stalking him as well. But a chance meeting with Nicki Fontaine may offer his only hope of survival.

Humans make sense of the world through language and the words that compose our stories. Engaging with writers like Dante, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Flannery O'Connor, and Marilynne Robinson, this volume encourages us not only to understand how stories nourish our faith, but to discover how our stories are part of God's great story.

More bling for the buck! The #1 guide to American slang is now bigger, more up-to-date, and easier to use This new edition of McGraw-Hill’s Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions offers complete definitions of more than 12,000 slang and informal expressions from various sources, ranging from golden oldies such as . . . golden oldie, to recent coinages like shizzle (gangsta), jonx (Wall Street), and ping (the Internet). Each entry is followed by examples illustrating how an expression is used in everyday conversation and, where necessary, International Phonetic Alphabet pronunciations are given, as well as cautionary notes for crude, inflammatory, or taboo expressions. This edition also features a fascinating introduction on “What is Slang?,” a Thematic Index that cross-references expressions by standard terms--such as Angry, Drunk, Food, Good-bye, Mess-up, Money, and Stupidity--and a Hidden Word Index that lets you identify and locate even partially remembered expressions and phrases.

In a departure for this very well-reviewed fantasist, Susan Shwartz has returned to her science fiction roots with a riveting novel of honor and its loss, love and its betrayal, and the exploration of what it means to be a true hero. What Susan Shwartz has done is to take a well-loved tale and it in an unconventional setting. Second Chances is nothing less than an homage to Joseph Conrad-think of Lord Jim in space. Just as Conrad explored in great depth the perplexing, ambiguous problem of lost honor and guilt, expiation and heroism, Shwartz has created in her Jim a man haunted by guilt over an act of supposed cowardice and his lifelong efforts to somehow atone for that action-whether or not he merited the disgrace. As Conrad's Jim was a tragic and ultimately noble hero, so too is Shwartz's Jim. A professional soldier whose time has passed, Jim is stationed about the corporate BioShip Irian Jaya security for a commercial venture critical to humanity's continued survival. The war that sundered whole worlds is over and now he's just another "tin soldier," a prop for the military to look good to war-weary civilians. But he's never stopped caring about those who scorn him and the ideals that he still clings to. That caring is tested, however, when he is thrust into a scandal not of his making. He chooses to carry the burden of guilt, no matter what. Because of his pride . . . . and maybe because that's the one thing he has left. Out of this madness will come the biggest battle for his honor and his soul. And perhaps, a promise of a second chance. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Living After Midnight consists of 6 horror and dark-fantasy stories inspired by hard-rock and heavy-metal bands. You're sure to be impressed with this original lineup: SSpooky Tooth by Randy Chandler, SIron Maiden by Matthew Fryer, SBlack Sabbath by Steven L. Shrewsbury, SJudas Priest by David T. Wilbanks, SMotorhead by Kent Gowran, and SSlayer by L.L. Soares.