Maud is an irascible 88-year-old Swedish woman with no family, no friends, and... no qualms about a little murder. This funny, irreverent story collection by Helene Tursten, author of the Irene Huss investigations, features two-never-before translated stories that will keep you laughing all the way to the retirement home. Ever since her darling father's untimely death when she was only eighteen, Maud has lived in the family's spacious apartment in downtown Gothenburg rent-free, thanks to a minor clause in a hastily negotiated contract. That was how Maud learned that good things can come from tragedy. Now in her late eighties, Maud contents herself with traveling the world and surfing the net from the comfort of her father's ancient armchair. It's a solitary existence, and she likes it that way. Over the course of her adventures—or misadventures—this little bold lady will handle a crisis with a local celebrity who has her eyes on Maud's apartment, foil the engagement of her long-ago lover, and dispose of some pesky neighbors. But when the local authorities are called to investigate a dead body found in Maud's apartment, will Maud finally become a suspect?

There is always a man around the corner. Church trustee James Black should know--he's usually that man, carrying on adulterous affairs and sleeping with one conquest after another. But when he suddenly finds himself truly in love, the other women in his church have a thing or two to say about it--including his daughter, Jamie. Jamie has every intention of dismantling the relationship--until she discovers a mystery woman has been secretly calling her lover, Louis. Meanwhile, James's son, Darnel, spirals out of control after he catches his fiancée cheating. James knows he's to blame for the turmoil that surrounds him and his loved ones. Now he'll have to find a way to bring peace to their lives. But he can only do it by facing some hard truths about himself and changing his scandalous ways. "A charming tale. . ." --Essence® "Twisty and entertaining. . .gives fans what they want. . ." --Publishers Weekly "This family's page-turning drama keeps readers in suspense until the very last page." --Upscale Magazine

For two women generations apart, going home will change their lives in this funny, poignant, and life-affirming novel about family, secrets, and broken hearts by the author of For the Love of Friends. Four years into her marriage, Jenna is blindsided when her husband asks for a divorce. With time on her hands and her life in flux, she agrees to accompany her eccentric grandmother Evelyn on a road trip to the seaside Massachusetts town where much of their family history was shaped. When they hit the road, Evelyn spins the tale of the star-crossed teenage romance that captured her heart more than seventy years ago and changed the course of her life. She insists the return to her hometown isn't about that at all--no matter how much she talks about Tony, her unforgettable and forbidden first love. Upon arrival, Jenna meets Tony's attentive great-nephew Joe. The new friendship and fresh ocean air give her the confidence and distance she needs to begin putting the pain of a broken marriage behind her. As the secrets and truths of Evelyn's past unfold, Jenna discovers a new side of her grandmother, and of herself, that she never knew existed--and learns that the possibilities for healing can come at the most unexpected times in a woman's life.

She needs to escape into fantasy. He needs to learn to lose control. Little do they dream that a book of sensual invitations will give them both exactly what they need... After years on the streets as a runaway, Micki Carmichael suddenly has more than she ever wanted. She's saved her best friend's life, reconnected with her twin sister and is now the proud owner of Sexcapades, a book of naughty, sexy invitations for lovers. Better still, she also has gorgeous multimillionaire Sebastian Stone all to herself for seven days. He's offering to make all her dreams come true--and from the look in his eyes, it's the X-rated ones he's talking about....

If ever there was a stark contrast to the fun of the retro scene with its rockabilly fun and gorgeous little homes on wheels, it would have to be preppers, stockpiling food, and waiting for the Apocalypse. It’s not a scene that Georgie has ever had much to do with until her brother Jerry starts specializing in building Bug-Out vehicles and selling Get Out Of Dodge packs. Unfortunately, Jerry draws the attention of some of the more extreme members of the survivalist movement—and it’s not only his expertise in building the ultimate bug-out vehicle that they want! They are seeking information that he’s not ready to give, and very quickly he realizes that his usual charm isn’t going to work with this crew. Georgie, struggling right now to read anyone’s fortune, still manages to catch a glimpse of a dangerous time ahead for Jerry and Tammy, but by the time she gets word to them, it’s all too late. Jerry has disappeared, communication has broken down, and his fate is in the hands of a couple of gypsy fortune-tellers: his great-grandma Rosa and his sister Georgie. The Crystal Ball Investigation Team sets off in hot pursuit, armed with a crystal ball that appears to go to sleep when it feels like it and only a vague sense of where Georgie’s missing brother might be. Now if Jerry can just stay alive until they get there…

Up to No Good is a collection of hysterical stories from grown men about the havoc they wreaked when they were boys. Nothing is sacred in this collection that makes Eddie Haskall look like a goody two shoes--terrified nuns, electric fences, science classes gone bad--the list goes on and on. The storytellers are purportedly "perfectly decent grown men," although judging from these tales that's hard to believe. It's impossible to flip through the pages without remembering some of your own pranks--and punishments--and cringing at the thought of the poor adults who had to grin and bear it. For all the former bad boys who've been ensconced in corner offices and carpool caravans across the country, here's a great way to jog a heretofore selective memory and recall a time when gross was good and mischief was there for the making.

I am just a wife and mother. I am not famous. But I have survived the battlefields of life. This is a dark and at times despairing tale, tempered with the joy of survival. I am only 32 years old, but I have lived. It is a wondrous tale, and it needs to be told. Ultimately it is an enduring love story, mixed with tragic love, and a relationship that couldnt go anywhere. After all, isnt that the real desire of our lives? Love, births, deaths, marriages, isnt that what it is interesting for us to read about? It is a story about the heartbreaking recent loss of an illicit lover, whom I am still mourning and the enduring love of a husband.