Holly Wilson has landed a dream job which involves her staying at five-star resorts around the world. There is however a proviso. She must travel incognito and that means telling lies. Holly hates lies. Her cover story, designed to minimise conversation on the subject, is that she is returning to her honeymoon destination for closure after her husband's sudden death. Holly has never been married but she does have a nineteen-year-old son, Harry, who she has raised single-handedly by working as a freelance copy editor after her boyfriend at university, Gareth, left to study in America, without knowing she was pregnant, and never returned. Philippe also has a secret. He is a novelist but writes under the pen name of Veronica Philips. His debut novel was a bestseller but he is not finding it so easy to write his second book. After scathing comments from his editor, following the submission of his first fifty pages, Philippe travelled to Mauritius for inspiration. Nine months later he knows the book is still sub-standard and his twelve month deadline is rapidly approaching. The only people on the island who know Philippe writes under a pseudonym are British couple Robert and Rosemary Forrester. Both in their late fifties, they are as much in love as when they first met eighteen years previously but now they share a terrible secret of their own. Holly meets the couple on her second evening in Mauritius. Rosemary is a similar age to Holly's mother but there the similarity ends. Holly has been estranged from her mother since falling pregnant with Harry and carries a terrible burden of guilt for the death of her father, which her mother blames her for. Rosemary's warmth highlights what Holly missed growing up and she hates the lies she is forced to tell her. Robert and Rosemary introduce Holly to their friend Philippe who is instantly smitten with her. She has not allowed herself to have a serious relationship since Gareth deserted her twenty years previously but she feels a connection with Philippe. What starts as a holiday romance soon develops into something more intense and they promise to meet up when he returns to the UK once he has finished writing his book, which she believes is a travelogue. Two months later an extraordinary twist of fate reveals what Philippe has been hiding from Holly. Will she be able to forgive him and will she be able to keep her promise to Rosemary?

New York Times bestseller! Chosen as a best summer read by People, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, and Good Morning America! Life's a bit of a beach these days for Ginger Walsh, who finds herself single at 41 and back home living in the family FROG (Finished Room Over Garage). She's hoping for a more fulfilling life as a sea glass artist, but mostly she's babysitting her sister's kids and sharing overnights with Noah, her glassblower boyfriend with commitment issues and a dog Ginger's cat isn't too crazy about. Then a shark movie comes to town, and everyone is clamoring for a close-up. "Midlife love, laughter, sibling rivalry and self-discovery . . . Goes down as easy as it sounds."—People Magazine "A gleefully quirky coming of age story."—Redbook "Laugh out loud."—Good Housekeeping "As always, Cook's delightful way with dialogue and her deft demonstrations of how family members manage to support one another even while driving each other crazy, make reading this book a day at the beach."—Hartford Courant "A funny page-turner."—Fort Worth Star-Telegram "Perfect-for-the-beach summer novel. . . a bumpy delight."—Boston Common "In this lighthearted, breezy read, Cook displays a wry sense of humor and knows how to write realistic characters."—Library Journal "Claire Cook has an original voice, a sparkling style, and a window into family life that will make you laugh and cry. Life's a Beach is filled with hilarity, sister love and sister hate, juicy arguments and hard-won reconciliations, but most of all, heart."—Adriana Trigiani "If I had a sister, I'd want her to be Claire Cook. If I had a summer, I'd want it to be the summer that two sisters sparred over everything from fertility to photography to family. And if I could follow up the wry, wacky poignancy of Must Love Dogs with any book, it would be Life's a Beach. Claire Cook is wicked good."—Jacquelyn Mitchard "Life's a Beach is a delicious coming-of-age novel—about two forty-something sisters who don't quite manage that feat until it's almost too late. I devoured this slice of family life served up in Claire Cook's inimitably warm and witty style. Tender, touching, and terribly, terribly, funny!"—Mary Kay Andrews Go to ClaireCook.com for your free gift, 41 Essential Quotes To Get Your Glow On, exclusively for newsletter subscribers. You’ll also be the first to find out when Claire's next book comes out and stay in the loop for giveaways and insider extras.

There's no two ways about it: life is better by the beach. The salty air, the sound of the waves and, above all, the relaxed way of life. This low-key attitude to living manifests itself in how we decorate our homes by the sea. Life's A Beach takes readers into beach homes around the world - from the hills of New Zealand to beaches of Brazil to the remote islands of the Aegean - exploring the many ways to decorate a cozy home by the sea. Handmade touches, natural materials and eclectic interiors all imbue a sense of wellbeing, and are found throughout the homes in Life's a Beach. From humble little beach cottages to extraordinary modern bungalows, these spaces are designed for respite and relaxation, and for enjoying the beachy surrounds.

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER FROM THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION! "Original, sparkling bright, and layered with feeling."--Sally Thorne, author of The Hating Game A romance writer who no longer believes in love and a literary writer stuck in a rut engage in a summer-long challenge that may just upend everything they believe about happily ever afters. Augustus Everett is an acclaimed author of literary fiction. January Andrews writes bestselling romance. When she pens a happily ever after, he kills off his entire cast. They're polar opposites. In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they're living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer's block. Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. She'll take him on field trips worthy of any rom-com montage, and he'll take her to interview surviving members of a backwoods death cult (obviously). Everyone will finish a book and no one will fall in love. Really.

Having survived an explosive assassination attempt, Italian police detective Aurelio Zen finds himself convalescing at a Tuscan seaside resort town, where he is under orders to lie low until he is to testify at a much-anticipated Mafia trial. The quiet—and the boredom are relieved by the pleasant distraction of the beautiful Gemma, but just when he feels he is getting somewhere with her, a the discovery of corpse in his usual lounge chair brings his holiday to an abrupt end. Convinced that the Mafia has finally located him, the police put Zen on the move again, in startling directions. And Then You Die, Michael Dibdin’s latest installment in the Aurelio Zen series, is a wicked, twisting tale that pits Zen against invisible assassins and the possibility of forced retirement. As the plot unfolds, and Zen ponders his uncertain future, bodies are stacking up around him. And Then You Die is another exceptionally surprising, consistently funny triumph from a master of the genre.

The beach has the power to restore us to ourselves. A day spent watching the waves or a long walk along the water's edge can bring us back to our center and remind us of the wisdom that resides within us all the time. At the ocean, it is possible to forget your daily worries and reconnect with your true self. A beautifully designed keepsake book, Beach Wisdom: Life Lessons from the Ocean offers spirited and contemplative philosophies about joy, trust, abundance, and common sense, accompanied by gorgeous full-color photographs. * Go in the water, even if it's cold. * When you catch a wave, ride it. * Just when you think it's getting too deep, you'll find a sandbar. * Sometimes the best thing is to jump right in. * To find the best shells, you have to walk slowly. Throughout Beach Wisdom, exhilarating photos and inspiring text artfully merge to capture the power and relevance of the ocean in our lives. Its pages bring a sense of peace and awareness to everyone who reads it.

The real life experiences of a burn survivor [Spencer Beach].

Welcome to Paradise. Otherwise known as Laguna Beach. You've seen the backstabbing, betrayal, and small-town gossip set against the wealthy beachside paradise that is Laguna Beach, California. You've seen hook-ups, break-ups, screw-ups and make-ups -- and all just during two years of school. Now find out what life was like for the stars of Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County before the hit MTV series. Think you know Kristin, Talan, Stephen, Taylor, LC, and their friends? Think again. You'll find out: • How and when Stephen and LC hooked up and the "drama" that followed • How Stephen and Kristin started dating • Why Trey got interested in activism and politics • How Lo learns that it's better to go to a party in Laguna Beach than to give one • Talan's life as a pre-teen football star • Taylor and Alex M.'s early fights over boys • What their lives were like growing up • What they all thought of each other when they first met, how their friendships formed, and more Packed with tons of exclusive material from embarrassing baby photos to first-kiss stories, here is everything you ever wanted to know about Laguna Beach's teen royalty.

An American expatriate in Rome unearths his family legacy in this sweeping novel by the acclaimed author of The Prince of Tides and The Great Santini A Southerner living abroad, Jack McCall is scarred by tragedy and betrayal. His desperate desire to find peace after his wife’s suicide draws him into a painful, intimate search for the one haunting secret in his family’s past that can heal his anguished heart. Spanning three generations and two continents, from the contemporary ruins of the American South to the ancient ruins of Rome, from the unutterable horrors of the Holocaust to the lingering trauma of Vietnam, Beach Music sings with life’s pain and glory. It is a novel of lyric intensity and searing truth, another masterpiece among Pat Conroy’s legendary and beloved novels. Praise for Beach Music “Astonishing . . . stunning . . . The range of passions and subjects that bring life to every page is almost endless.”—The Washington Post Book World “Magnificent . . . clearly Conroy’s best.”—San Francisco Chronicle “Blockbuster writing at its best.”—Los Angeles Times Book Review “Pat Conroy’s writing contains a virtue now rare in most contemporary fiction: passion.”—The Denver Post “A powerful, heartfelt tale.”—Houston Chronicle

Create your own fun-filled scene by applying 34 stickers of sunbathers and their gear to a full-color picture of a sandy beach. Included are beach umbrellas, blankets, sand castles, and much more!