Wilkes Judging a Book By Its Cover: Home

When Mallory Blessing's son, Link, receives deathbed instructions from his mother to call a number on a slip of paper in her desk drawer, he certainly does not expect Jake McCloud to answer. It's the late spring of 2020 and Jake's wife, Ursula DeGournsey, is the frontrunner in the upcoming Presidential election. Link is sure there's been a mistake. How do Mallory and Jake know each other? Flash back to the sweet summer of 1993: Mallory has just inherited a beachfront cottage on Nantucket from her aunt, and she agrees to host her brother Cooper's bachelor party. Cooper's friend from college, Jake McCloud, attends, and Jake and Mallory form a bond that will persevere - through marriage, children, and Ursula's stratospheric political rise - until Mallory learns she's dying.

Against the picturesque coastal Maine setting that she evokes so well, bestselling author Holly Chamberlin creates a heartfelt story of family bonds and new beginnings.

Moira Wellman has always loved makeovers—helping women find their most beautiful selves. Funny how it’s taken her five years with her abusive boyfriend, Lang, to realize she needs a life makeover. When Moira finally gets the courage to leave Lang, the beachside town of Moonlight Harbor is the perfect place to start over. Soon Moira is right at home, working at Waves Salon, making new friends and helping her clients find new confidence. When she meets a handsome police officer, she’s more than willing to give him a free haircut. Maybe even her heart. But is she really ready for romance after Lang? And what if her new friend is in hot pursuit of that same cop? This is worse than a bad perm. With all the heart and humor readers have come to expect from a Sheila Roberts novel, Beachside Beginnings is the story of one woman finding the courage to live her best life. And where better to live it than at the beach?

Piper Jane Mackenzie, mayor of Honey Creek, won't let a major scandal rip her quirky hometown apart, or jeopardize her dream of one day running for higher office. So she's willing to welcome undercover detective Colby McBride, hired to help solve the mystery behind her wannabe fiancé's disappearance. Colby's cover? That he is an old boyfriend now begging Piper for a second chance--always when there are plenty of townsfolk around to witness his shenanigans. Piper hardly knows whether to laugh or cry, especially when she finds herself drawn to the handsome rascal. He's not the only newcomer she has to deal with. There's a new interim preacher in town, Sam Cassidy. Drifting from one assignment to another since his one love died, Sam isn't sure he's the right fit for Honey Creek. But as Piper knows, this is a place chock-full of surprises. And if she can keep her town--and her heart--from going completely off the rails, there may be a sweet, unexpected future in store.

Welcome back to Camino Island, where anything can happen--even a murder in the midst of a hurricane, which might prove to be the perfect crime . . . Just as Bruce Cable's Bay Books is preparing for the return of bestselling author Mercer Mann, Hurricane Leo veers from its predicted course and heads straight for the island. Florida's governor orders a mandatory evacuation, and most residents board up their houses and flee to the mainland, but Bruce decides to stay and ride out the storm. The hurricane is devastating: homes and condos are leveled, hotels and storefronts ruined, streets flooded, and a dozen people lose their lives. One of the apparent victims is Nelson Kerr, a friend of Bruce's and an author of thrillers. But the nature of Nelson's injuries suggests that the storm wasn't the cause of his death: He has suffered several suspicious blows to the head. Who would want Nelson dead? The local police are overwhelmed in the aftermath of the storm and ill equipped to handle the case. Bruce begins to wonder if the shady characters in Nelson's novels might be more real than fictional. And somewhere on Nelson's computer is the manuscript of his new novel. Could the key to the case be right there--in black and white? As Bruce starts to investigate, what he discovers between the lines is more shocking than any of Nelson's plot twists--and far more dangerous.

A jilted bride. A struggling innkeeper. And a romantic mountain getaway that changes everything. Rising Hollywood star Mia Emerson is looking for a safe place to land in the wake of a public breakup and celebrity scandal, and she finds it in the lake town of Bluebell, North Carolina--the location of her canceled honeymoon. She wants nothing more than to hide and wait for the tabloids to die down. Soon after her arrival at the Bluebell Inn, Mia meets Levi Bennett, who runs the inn along with his two younger sisters. Drawn to one another from the start, Mia trusts Levi to keep her location from the press, and Levi confides in Mia about the precarious financial state of the inn--a secret he's been keeping from his sisters. When Mia and Levi discover an old journal that hints at a rare diamond necklace hidden in the inn, they set off on a treasure hunt to find the long-lost heirloom. What they don't expect to surface are feelings they thought were safely locked away. Mia and Levi must decide if falling in love again is too big a risk--or if it will uncover a treasure of its own instead.

A young woman unexpectedly raising her best friend's son. A wounded man recovering from losing his own son years ago. Together, with the residents of Sullivan's Crossing, they must find a way to support this young, orphaned boy.

A new bride's idyllic honeymoon becomes a nightmare when a man from a recent one-night stand shows up in this electrifying psychological thriller from the acclaimed author of Eight Perfect Murders.

USA TODAY bestselling author Sarah Morgan returns with a life-affirming exploration of love, loss, and how families come in all shapes and sizes. New York florist Flora Donovan is living the dream, but her bubbly optimism hides a secret. She's lonely. Orphaned as a child, she's never felt like she's belonged anywhere...until she meets Jack Parker. He's the first man to ever really see her, and it's life changing. Teenager Izzy Parker is holding it together by her fingertips. Since her mother passed away a year ago, looking after her dad and little sister is the only thing that makes Izzy feel safe. Discovering her father has a new girlfriend is her worst nightmare--she is not in the market for a replacement mom. Then her father invites Flora on their summer vacation. Flora's heart aches for Izzy, but she badly wants her relationship with Jack to work. As the summer unfolds, Flora must push her own boundaries to discover parts of herself she never knew existed--and to find the family she's always wanted.

Single mom Ellen Fox couldn’t be more content—until she overhears her son saying he can’t go to his dream college because she needs him too much. If she wants him to live his best life, she has to convince him she’s living hers. So Unity Leandre, her best friend since forever, creates a list of challenges to push Ellen out of her comfort zone. Unity will complete the list, too, but not because she needs to change. What’s wrong with a thirtysomething widow still sleeping in her late husband’s childhood bed? The Friendship List begins as a way to make others believe they’re just fine. But somewhere between “wear three-inch heels” and “have sex with a gorgeous guy,” Ellen and Unity discover that life is meant to be lived with joy and abandon, in a story filled with humor, heartache and regrettable tattoos.

rom star-crossed matches to unexpected love triangles, summer on Nantucket always holds the promise of romance in this sensational novel from New York Times bestselling author Nancy Thayer.

Conley Hawkins left her family’s small town newspaper, The Silver Bay Beacon, in the rear view mirror years ago. Now, after ten years of blood, sweat, and tears, Conley is exactly where she wants to be and is about to take a fancy new position at a New York City newspaper. That is, until she discovers at her own going away party that her new job is suddenly gone, disappearing overnight along with her hopes and dreams of a bright future in a big city.

Jutting from sparkling turquoise waters off the Italian coast, Isle Isola is an idyllic setting for a wedding. In the majestic cliff-top villa owned by the wealthy Compton family, up-and-coming artist Claire Hunter will marry handsome, charming Jack Compton, surrounded by close family, intimate friends...and a host of dark secrets. Then a raging storm descends, the power goes out--and the real terror begins.

Set against the breezy backdrop of coastal Rhode Island, bestselling author Marina Adair's latest novel asks whether two of a small town's biggest hearts can learn to put themselves first--in the name of love.

Lawyer Sandy Moss gets mixed up in a celebrity murder case in LA, in the first in a brand-new cozy legal mystery series.

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Lori Wilde's heartwarming follow-up to her "page-turning and passionate" (Jill Shalvis) trade paperback debut, The Moonglow Sisters, takes readers back to Moonglow Cove, Texas, with a story of twin sisters separated at birth who are reunited under unforgettable circumstances.

Romance and old secrets beckon in this small North Carolina lake town. When her parents die in a tragic accident, Molly Bennett and her siblings pull together to fulfill their parents' dream of turning their historic Bluebell, North Carolina, home back into an inn. Staying in town would be temporary--three years at most--then they plan to sell the inn, and Molly can get back to chasing her own dreams. Adam Bradford (aka bestselling author Nathaniel Quinn) is a reclusive novelist with a bad case of writer's block. Desperate for inspiration as his deadline approaches, he travels to the setting of his next book, a North Carolina lake town. There, he meets his muse, a young innkeeper who fancies herself in love with his alter ego. Molly and Adam strike up an instant friendship. When Molly finds a long-lost letter in the walls of her inn, she and Adam embark on a mission to find the star-crossed lovers and bring them the closure they deserve. But Adam has secrets he isn't ready to share. Past and present collide as truths surface, and Molly and Adam will have to decide if love is worth trusting.

Inspired by a haunting true story, a gorgeous and atmospheric novel about the mysterious disappearance of three lighthouse keepers from a remote tower miles from the Cornish coast--and about the wives who were left behind.

Yesterday's hero: When marine biologist Leah Talmadge gets the chance of a lifetime--an expedition to study the rare whales off the Diamantina Islands--she can't refuse. Even if it means temporarily marrying world-famous photographer Cain Hawkins. The governor of the islands won't allow two unmarried people to live together, and they both desperately want to document the whales. So why not? Yet an invisible link exists between Cain and Leah ... and both of them know they'll never be the same!

When Emma leaves the security of her Amish community for a job in North Carolina, she finds herself navigating choices, circumstances, and a relationship that she never could have imagined. Follow as she struggles to reconcile her faith and her complicated feelings in this romance by bestselling Amish writer Linda Byler. Plenty of young men had noticed Emma's smooth auburn hair and her quick intellect, but at twenty-six years of age, she was still single, much to the bewilderment of her Amish community. "She's just too picky," they said, and she supposed they were right. Most did not know that she had been in love once, and had wound up brokenhearted. When she becomes a nanny for an English (non-Amish) family along the coast of North Carolina, her world opens up in exciting—and confusing—ways. Not only is she getting used to life outside the safety of her Amish culture in Pennsylvania, but she finds herself spending time with Ben, the handsome Amish man who is working as a contractor on the house next door to where she's staying. He is charming, outgoing, strong, and so bold in his affection for her! When Emma is forced to leave North Carolina suddenly, she doesn't get a chance to say goodbye to Ben or to exchange phone numbers or addresses. She trusts that he will find her eventually, but as months go by with no word from him, she doesn't know what to make of the romance they had shared. Emma's best friend Eva invites her to go on a camping trip and she agrees, only to discover Eva has schemed to set Emma up with Matt, a cousin who had long since left the Amish community and was living a faithless, wordly life. Annoyed and longing for Ben, she is relieved when Matt assures her he has no interest in dating her. He's nice enough, but he's not Ben, and besides, Emma would never date a man who had chosen to leave his parents, their faith, and their deeply held traditions. When eventually Emma returns to North Carolina to reunite with Ben, her world is shattered in a way she couldn't have imagined, and she is left to grapple with her faith, her future, and her complicated feelings. Why did God keep stringing her along, only to leave her broken again and again?

New York Times bestselling author Diana Palmer revisits two classic tales of unexpected love.

Moonglow Cove, Texas was once home of the Clark sisters, brought up by their grandmother at the Moonglow Inn and nicknamed "The Moonglow Sisters." Then, a wedding-day betrayal tore them apart, and they scattered across the globe, and away from each other. But the sisters have at last come home. There's Maddie: smart, sensible, and stubborn. Shelley, who ran off to find her bliss. And Gia, a free-spirit determined to keep the peace, and whose impending wedding is the only thing keeping them together, but when they find out Gia has a secret, then all heck is going to break lose.

Eileen Jackson was happy to set aside her own dreams to raise a family with her husband, Paul. Together they built an ordinary life in a Connecticut town, the perfect place for their kids to grow up. But when Eileen discovers that Paul's late nights in the city are hiding an affair with a younger woman, she begins to question all those years of sacrifice and compromise. On the brink of forty and wondering what she's going to do with the rest of her life, is it too late for her to start over? Meanwhile, as Paul is thrust back into the role of suburban fatherhood, his girlfriend, Olivia, is in Manhattan, struggling to find herself in the shadow of her mother, a famous actress, and her grandmother, a fiercely independent ninety-two-year-old artist. With their unique brands of advice ringing in her head, Olivia takes a major step, expanding her art gallery business internationally. Seeing her mother pursue old dreams and even find new love, Olivia realizes that there is so much she must learn about herself before committing her life to someone else. Ultimately, Eileen decides to chase her own dreams as well. She's off to Paris to attend Le Cordon Bleu cooking school. What awaits is an adventure that reinvents her life and redefines her. At every age, there are challenges to be met and new worlds to discover. In this surprising, illuminating novel, Danielle Steel gives us a warmhearted portrait of people driven by their emotions, life experiences, and loyalties, who realize that it's never too late to turn a new page and start again.

An unforgettable story of resilience and resistance set during WWII and present-day France on a secluded island off the coast of Brittany

Everything happens for a reason, Maddie Grayson believes. But her motto gets sorely tested when the new minister parachutes into town and offers her a chance to change what happens next.

When Serenity Alston swabbed her cheek for 23andMe, she joked about uncovering some dark ancestral scandal. The last thing she expected was to discover two half sisters she didn't know existed. Suddenly, everything about her loving family is drawn into question. And meeting these newfound sisters might be the only way to get answers. The women decide to dig into the mystery together at Serenity's family cabin in Lake Tahoe. With Reagan navigating romantic politics at work and Lorelei staring down the collapse of her marriage, all three women are converging at a crossroads in their lives. Before the summer is over, they'll have to confront the past and determine how to move forward when everything they previously thought to be true was a lie. But any future is easier to face with family by your side.

The New York Times bestselling author of The Summer Guests returns at long last to her beloved Beach House series in this breathtaking novel about one family's summer of forging new beginnings against the enduring beauty and resilience of the natural world. It's been sixteen years since Caretta "Cara" Rutledge has returned home to the beautiful shores of Charleston, South Carolina. Over those years, she has weathered the tides of deaths and births, struggles and joys. And now, as Cara prepares for her second wedding, her life is about to change yet again. Meanwhile, the rest of the storied Rutledge family is also in flux. Cara's niece Linnea returns to Sullivan's Island to begin a new career and an unexpected relationship. Linnea's parents, having survived bankruptcy, pin their hopes and futures on the construction of a new home on Ocean Boulevard. But as excitement over the house and wedding builds, a devastating illness strikes the family and brings plans to a screeching halt. It is under these trying circumstances that the Rutledge family must come together yet again to discover the enduring strength in love, tradition, and legacy from mother to daughter to granddaughter.

She knows what's best for everyone but herself.

In this heartwarming second-chance romance, a woman returns home and discovers that, when it comes to finding love, there's no place like home.

Yesterday once more: Three years ago, Julie Houser fled from Wichita, Kansas--and left her husband-to-be practically standing at the altar. Julie couldn't face the vast disparity between her own middle-class background and his family's wealth, not to mention his mother's disapproval. But she never got over Daniel, and now she's back, hoping she can convince him to give marriage another chance.

When Sylvie Townsend's Polish ward, Rose, goes missing at the World's Fair, her life unravels. Brushed off by the authorities, Sylvie turns to her boarder and Rose's violin instructor, Kristof Bartok, for help searching the immigrant communities. When the unexpected happens, will Sylvie be able to accept the change that comes her way?

The Unhoneymooners meets The Hating Game in this whip-smart romantic comedy about a marketing manager who's forced to go on a cruise with her arch-nemesis when they're up for the same promotion.

Welcome to Blessings, Georgia! Whether you've lived here your whole life, you're returning after years of being away, or you're new in town, you're sure to find the love in a small town happy ending you're looking for.

No one knows you quite like a sister. Summer in Sunset, Kentucky, means long, hot days--and sometimes surprising new beginnings. Through it all, the ties of sisterhood will be there, guiding Autumn and Ember to the lives, and loves, they need.

First-grade teacher Holly Miller enjoys a quiet, low-profile life in Hope Harbor-but all of that changes when she must advocate for a cause dear to her heart and finds herself on the opposite side of the issue from a take-charge ex-Delta Force operator turned fisherman who complicates her mission-and threatens to steal her heart.

They both thought they knew what the future held--until the summer they crossed paths in Haven Point.

From New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis comes a friends-to-frenemies-to-lovers story... Add in a few secrets. Shake. Stir. Then read on a lazy summer day at the beach. Brynn Turner desperately wishes she had it together, but her personal life is like a ping-pong match that's left her scared and hurt after so many attempts to get it right. In search of a place to lick her wounds and get a fresh start, she heads back home to Wildstone. And then there's Kinsey Davis, who after battling serious health issues her entire twenty-nine years of life, is tired of hoping for . . . well, anything. She's fierce, tough, and she's keeping more than one bombshell of a secret from Brynn -- her long-time frenemy. But then Brynn runs into Kinsey's best friend, Eli, renewing her childhood crush. The good news: he's still easy-going and funny and sexy as hell. The bad news: when he gets her to agree to a summer-time deal to trust him to do right by her, no matter what, she never dreams it'll result in finding a piece of herself she didn't even know was missing. She could have real connections, possibly love, and a future--if she can only learn to let go of the past.

Late August is a beautiful time on the Southern coast--the peach trees are ripe, the ocean is warm, and the sweet tea is icy. A perfect time to enjoy the rocking chairs on the porch. But beneath the calm surface bubbles a threat: it's also peak hurricane season. When a hurricane threatens the coasts of Florida and South Carolina, an eclectic group of evacuees flees for the farm of their friends Grace and Charles Phillips in North Carolina: the Phillips's daughter Moira and her rescue dogs, famed equestrian Javier Angel de la Cruz, makeup artist Hannah McLain, horse breeder Gerda Klug and her daughter Elise, and island resident Cara Rutledge. They bring with them only the few treasured possessions they can fit in their vehicles. Strangers to all but the Phillips, they must ride out the storm together. During the course of one of the most challenging weeks of their lives, relationships are put to the test as the evacuees are forced to confront the unresolved issues they have with themselves and with each other. But as the storm passes, they realize that what really matters isn't what they brought with them to the mountains. Rather, it's what they'll take with them once they leave.

Welcome to the most tumultuous summer of the twentieth century. It's 1969, and for the Levin family, the times they are a-changing. Every year the children have looked forward to spending the summer at their grandmother's historic home in downtown Nantucket. But like so much else in America, nothing is the same: Blair, the oldest sister, is marooned in Boston, pregnant with twins and unable to travel. Middle sister Kirby, caught up in the thrilling vortex of civil rights protests and determined to be independent, takes a summer job on Martha's Vineyard. Only-son Tiger is an infantry soldier, recently deployed to Vietnam. Thirteen-year-old Jessie suddenly feels like an only child, marooned in the house with her out-of-touch grandmother and her worried mother, each of them hiding a troubling secret. As the summer heats up, Ted Kennedy sinks a car in Chappaquiddick, man flies to the moon, and Jessie and her family experience their own dramatic upheavals along with the rest of the country.

Adele and Justine have never been close. Born twenty years apart, Justine was already an adult when Addie was born. The sisters love each other, but they don't really know each other. When Addie dropped out of university to care for their ailing parents, Justine, a successful lawyer, covered the expenses. It was the best arrangement at the time, but now that their parents are gone, the future has changed dramatically for both women. Addie had great plans for her life but has been worn down by the pressures of being a caregiver and doesn't know how to live for herself. And Justine's success has come at a price. Her marriage is falling apart despite her best efforts. Neither woman knows how to start life over, but both realize they can and must support each other the way only sisters can. Together they find the strength to accept their failures and overcome their challenges. Happiness is within reach, if only they have the courage to fight for it.

Coming home dredges up deeply buried secrets in The Survivors, a thrilling mystery by New York Times bestselling author Jane Harper.

Travel to the bright Caribbean one last time in the satisfying conclusion to the nationally bestselling Winter in Paradise trilogy by Elin Hilderbrand, "Queen of the Summer Novel" (People).

**Large print.** As the Great War rages on, Sunset Cove continues to feel its impact. Running the small town newspaper, Anna McDowell can't escape the grim reports from the other side of the world, but home-front challenges abound as well. Dr. Daniel is serving the wounded on the front lines. And Katy, expecting her first child, with her husband in the trenches, tries to support the war effort with her Red Cross club. Even as the war winds down the costs are high -- and Sunset Cove is not spared.

The second book in a gripping new series from USA TODAY bestselling romantic suspense author Colleen Coble.

The Lakey sisters are perfect opposites. After their mother died and their father was lost in grief, Willa had no choice but to raise her sister, Harper, and their brother, Lucas. Then, as an adult, she put her own life on hold to nurse Harper through a terrifying illness.

Murphy Shepherd is a man with many secrets. He lives alone on an island, tending the grounds of a church with no parishioners, and he’s dedicated his life to rescuing those in peril. But as he mourns the loss of his mentor and friend, Murph himself may be more lost than he realizes. When he pulls a beautiful woman named Summer out of Florida’s Intracoastal Waterway, Murph’s mission to lay his mentor to rest at the end of the world takes a dangerous turn. Drawn to Summer, and desperate to find her missing daughter, Murph is pulled deeper and deeper into the dark and dangerous world of modern-day slavery. With help from some unexpected new friends, including a faithful Labrador he plucks from the ocean and an ex-convict named Clay, Murph must race against the clock to locate the girl before he is consumed by the secrets of his past—and the ghosts who tried to bury them.

A first-rate storyteller who creates believable, sympathetic characters who seem as familiar as your neighbors," (The Boston Globe), Barbara Delinsky presents a captivating new novel about a woman whose unexpected reunion with her estranged family forces her to confront a devastating past. One phone call is all it takes to lure Mallory Aldiss back to her family's Rhode Island beach home. It's been twenty years since she's been gone-running from the scandal that destroyed her parents' marriage, drove herand her two sisters apart, and crushed her relationship with the love of her life, Jack Sabathian.Twenty years during which she lived in New York, building her career as a photographer and raising her now teenage daughter Joy. But that phone call makes it clear that something has brought the past forward again-something involving Mallory's father. Compelled by concern for her family and by Joy's wish to visit her mother's childhood home, Mallory returns to Bay Bluff, where conflicting loyalties will be faced and painful truths revealed. In just seven watershed days at the Rhode Island shore, she will test the bonds of friendship and family-and discover the role that love plays in defining their lives.

A year ago, Irene Steele had the shock of her life: her loving husband, father to their grown sons and successful businessman, was killed in a plane crash. But that wasn't Irene's only shattering news: he'd also been leading a double life on the island of St. John, where another woman loved him, too. Now Irene and her sons are back on St. John, determined to learn the truth about the mysterious life -and death - of a man they thought they knew. Along the way, they're about to learn some surprising truths about their own lives, and their futures.