“Hi, ma’am. I’m sorry to bother you, but a woman was wandering around your property. She looked lost. She told me she was waiting for a friend named Gayle and that she had dropped her off here. I didn’t have the heart to watch the missus stand outside. I offered to let her sit in my car.” He pointed toward the squad car and looked down at his clipboard. Flipping pages, he said, “She said her name is ...” He stopped and pointed to a line on his notepad. “Pauline Graham,” we said in unison. “So, you know her?” The officer looked at me with cool eyes, smiled, and put down his notepad. “Yes, sir.” My voice was shaking. The moment I had waited a lifetime for was finally here, but I didn’t know what to do. I was terrified about the thought of meeting her. It had been so many years. I took a deep breath.

Serafina Noland has a good life, a son she adores, a supportive family, and a successful career. The one thing she doesn’t have is a significant other, a partner to help her raise her son, Petey, someone to love her through thick and thin. Loneliness is often her companion, but she’s resigned herself to that and learned to be thankful for the life she and Petey have carved out in their little corner of the Appalachian foothills. While on vacation, she walks onto a Carolina beach and meets sinfully sexy businessman Levi Ewart. He’s thoughtful and kind and one of the most handsome men she’s ever met. The problem is he’s also entirely too young for her, and so far above her in every way possible, her head spins. What can a man like that possibly see in little ol’ her? How can she ever trust him not to walk out on her, the way Petey’s father did nearly nine years before? Sera’s age is never a problem for Levi. His own mother is centuries older than his father, and he’s witnessed dozens of couples in similar situations find their happily ever afters. He opens his heart to the reserved Sera and falls hard and fast for her and her son, but his secrets aren’t the only things standing in the way of true love. Sera’s past is a giant blight on their relationship, eating away at the core of their happiness, and Levi’s love may not be enough to overcome her doubts. Getting her to say yes to the future he wants to build with her may be the hardest task he’s ever undertaken, and the riskiest venture of his life.

It's the summer before seventh grade, and twelve-year- old Raine O'Rourke's mother suddenly takes a job hours from home at mysterious Sparrow Road- a creepy, dilapidated mansion that houses an eccentric group of artists. As Raine tries to make sense of her new surroundings, she forges friendships with a cast of quirky characters including the outrageous and funky Josie. Together, Raine and Josie decide to solve the mysteries of Sparrow Road-from its haunting history as an orphanage to the secrets of its silent, brooding owner, Viktor. But it's an unexpected secret from Raine's own life that changes her forever. An affecting and beautifully written story of family and forgiveness, Sparrow Road is an incredible gift.

Meet the Pierce family. Desmond Pierce, a hard-working man from the South is determined to give his and wife and daughters a good life in Compton, California. Pearla Pierce is a sexy and seductive mother who plays wifey and devoted mother only when her husband is home. Then there's Carmen, a promiscuous seventeen-year-old on a self-destructive path and jealous of her younger sister. Cashmere, a thirteen-year-old, struggles to hold her family together out of love for her father. When tragedy hits home, Carmen and Cashmere find themselves orphans living with their hateful aunt and having to resort to stripping and selling drugs to survive. Carmen drags Cashmere into a world of drugs, violence and sex when she allows a ruthless pimp named Black to turn her out. Against her will, Cashmere is also forced to work for Black by prostituting herself for high-class ballers. Carmen's jealousy toward her younger sister continues when she sees Black falling in love with Cashmere. Carmen's need to destroy her sister sets off a chain of events that lands Cashmere in jail. Cashmere is left alone and broken, but with the hope that some way, somehow, she can be fixed.

When your mother has alzheimer disease. A presentation of Mama from young mother to old age, and at that time, a child again. Important for families with a member suffering from Alzheimer disease. Mama's miraculous recovery is a wonderful account of familial love

Celeste Belle is a promising social studies teacher in Miami, Florida. She's young, attractive, and gullible, which is a recipe for disaster in her current teaching situation. Celeste explores her sexuality beyond boundaries to fulfill her needs no matter who she hurts. And it comes back to haunt her. Through arrogance and sexual conquests, Celeste makes formidable enemies who have a point to prove. Things take a dark turn for Celeste, and she can't stop the spiral of events that follow. After several mishaps, Celeste decides to start anew. But it won't be that easy with the mess she's made. Celeste is left to reflect on her actions in order to grow and move forward with her life. With the help of her personal and professional support system, she has to get back to the values of why she became an educator in the first place. She may be able to save her career. But it may be too late to save the one chance that she has at true love. Celeste tells the messy story of politics before educating students in this realistic fiction novel.

The author, P. J. Day and his two brothers and two sisters grew up in the magical valley of Tesuque, located just outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico. One of the family pets was a one-year-old little gray burro named Pedro. While reminiscing about that marvelous childhood Christmas Day in 2001, P. J. wrote a short poem for his daughter Jordyn, placing Pedro smack-dab in the middle of the first Christmas. A Burro's Tale evolved from that poem conceived on Christmas Day, 2001. The setting for A Burro's Tale is in fact the Tesuque Valley. Raphael's family business in the story is renting out his burros to the townsfolk who do not have a burro of their own. The burros are rented for travel, pulling carts, plowing fields, and carrying goods from the market. Pedro, the central character in A Burro's Tale, is younger and a bit smaller than the rest of the burros and has not yet been chosen for his first day of work. Pedro's journey throughout the story is really about the coming of age that all youngsters eventually face and learning to take his responsibilities seriously. Kids can be cruel, and Pedro's peer group in the story is no different. In order to gain acceptance, he must learn to ignore the relentless teasing from the other burros on the ranch (and a couple of mischievous horseflies) and work very hard to prove his worth. The story is filled with many valuable life lessons that all kids and young adults will relate to, because they will all go through them one day, or are being tested at this very moment. At all cost, it's about doing the right thing.

BIOGRAPHY/AUTOBIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR In Retold Tales, author C. J. Barnes keeps the treasured, family memories alive. She shares a collection of stories featuring tales, events, and anecdotes from her growing-up years in Faison, North Carolina. This memoir reminisces about holidays, relatives, specials events, and more. In Uncle Bennie, Barnes recalls an uncle who served in the US Army in the Pacific theater during World War II and returned home with significant post-traumatic stress disorder. Wine Making shares a funny story of an unusual wine-making experience with purple briar berries. Sunbeams remembers the joys of summer vacation and the good memories made during Vacation Bible School. With humor and descriptive details, Retold Tales captures one familys stories and history as they lived their lives in a small, rural southern community. It provides insight into the life and times of a bygone era, seeking to preserve the tales of the past.