With the verve and bite of Ottessa Moshfegh and the barbed charm of Nancy Mitford, Marlowe Granados’s stunning debut brilliantly captures a summer of striving in New York City. Isa Epley, all of twenty-one years old, is already wise enough to understand that the purpose of life is the pursuit of pleasure. She arrives in New York with her newly blond best friend looking for adventure. They have little money, but that’s hardly going to stop them. By day, the girls sell clothes on a market stall, pinching pennies for their Bed-Stuy sublet and bodega lunches. By night, they weave between Brooklyn, the Upper East Side, and the Hamptons among a rotating cast of celebrities, artists, Internet entrepreneurs, stuffy intellectuals, and bad-mannered grifters. Resources run ever tighter and the strain tests their friendship as they try to convert social capital into something more lasting than precarious gigs as au pairs, nightclub hostesses, paid audience members, and aspiring foot fetish models. Through it all, Isa’s bold, beguiling voice captures the precise thrill of cultivating a life of glamour and intrigue as she juggles paying her dues with skipping out on the bill. Happy Hour is a novel about getting by and having fun in a system that wants you to do neither.

The Happy Hour Effect: Twelve Secrets to Minimize Stress and Maximize Life, by bestselling and award-winning author Kristen K. Brown, provides easy, fun, and powerful solutions to minimize your stress and maximize your life. Kristen's voice is inspiring, motivating, witty, funny, and down to earth, and her book provides specific and actionable steps to stress less now. It isn't hard. It isn't confusing. It's a simple, straightforward, fun approach to stress relief. Each chapter includes inspiring quotes, the timing to implement each secret, the level of effort it will take, the expected results, and QR codes and links to supporting materials online that will make the respective chapter come to life. Also included are sidebars with expert interviews, anecdotes, statistics, and other visual content to reinforce the written words on each page. The QR codes and links connect to worksheets, videos, meditations, how-to tips, and other resources that will help you move forward on your stress management journey. The Happy Hour Effect is a comprehensive guide to help you live a healthier, happier, and less stressed life--quickly and easily.

Entertain at home with ease, whipping up a delectable spread of pre-dinner treats, or simply transform a weeknight into a happy hour that rivals that of the swankiest bar. Bringing the party home with drinks and snacks just got easier -- even the amateur mixologist will be shaking and stirring in no time. Happy Hour at Home boasts sure-to-please classics like the Manhattans and mojitos, along with more inventive twists like Watermelon Cosmos and Kimchi Bloody Marys. The book also includes 90 recipes for a host of delicious treats, from Spanish tapas to American bar classics like sliders and oven-baked fries, to French and Italian-inspired flatbreads and olives that pair perfectly with cocktails for the ultimate at-home happy hour.

When Rebecca Weller’s pounding, dehydrated head woke her at 3am, yet again, she stared at the ceiling, wondering why the hell she kept doing this to herself. At 39 years of age – and a Health Coach, no less – she knew better than to down several bottles of wine per week. Her increasingly dysfunctional relationship with alcohol had to stop, but after decades of social drinking, she was terrified of what that might mean. How could she live a joyful existence, without alcohol? How would she relax, socialise, or celebrate – without wine? In sheer frustration, on a morning filled with regret and tears, she embarks on a 3-month sobriety experiment that becomes a quest for self-discovery, and ultimately, transforms her entire world. A Happier Hour is a heartfelt, moving, and inspiring story for anyone who has ever had to give up something they loved in order to get what they truly wanted.

"[A] noteworthy examination of women and alcohol delivers compelling personal stories that illuminate previously neglected aspects of this devastating social problem." — Publishers Weekly Mixing cutting-edge research with affecting stories of women who struggle with alcohol problems, Happy Hours challenges our assumptions and expands our awareness of the role alcohol plays in women's lives. In this important book, Devon Jersild explores the common cultural forces that influence a woman's drinking—trauma, sexual abuse, and marital status. Jersild has spoken to treatment specialists, doctors, therapists, and counselors, and interviewed women who share their often dramatic stories. Her research findings are a wake-up call to many women who are in the dark about the effect of drinking on their mental and physical health. For example: Women metabolize alcohol differently from men, more quickly developing such physical complications as liver disease, high blood pressure, and hepatitis. Female alcoholics are twice as likely to die as male alcoholics in the same age group A female alcoholic is more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety, and eating disorders, which may not go away even if she stops drinking. An astonishing four million women in the U.S. meet the diagnostic criteria for abuse or dependence. Happy Hours is not just about alcoholics. It is aimed at any woman who has ever wondered whether she drinks too heavily or too often, and at anyone who has a sister, mother, grandmother, child, or friend whose drinking has caused them concern.

Between revving engines, smoking tires, and high speeds, two friends form a vital bond in the shadows of the blaring spotlight. Sway Reins, a track owner's only daughter, and Jameson Riley, a gritty NASCAR rookie driver, have been best friends since they were kids. Over the years, Sway becomes his safety shield during his rapid rise to the elite levels of auto racing. A night of celebrating a victory leaves Sway believing that she can convince Jameson to fall in love with her. She becomes determined to be more than just a pit lizard trolling the pits. Little does she know that this steadfast racer has his own idea of revelry. Soon their compression ratios are timed exactly right and all the reciprocating motions have led them to happy hour. As their passion revs, the inner workings of an internal combustion engine have never been so erotic. Just a taste turns into a thirst neither of them saw coming. Can she convince this rookie he can have love and his dream?

ONE DAY. THATS ALL IT TAKES TO CHANGE A LIFE A YOUNG COUPLE. A NEW BABY. PLANS FOR THE FUTURE. As a wife, new mom and successful career woman, Kristen Brown thinks her life is set. Until one morning, her husband doesnt wake up. In this bittersweet memoir, we experience Browns new life as a young widow mom grappling with the shock, pain and regret following her husbands unexpected death while managing a stressful work situation amidst the downfall of the economy. But not wanting to be a sad mom, she instead harnesses her emotions into a positive force in her life. Through a process of life-changing experiences like surfing, getting inked and starting her own company that takes her to Hollywood, she discovers her lifes purpose to be the role model for her daughter she longs to beand becomes a role model for others in the process. Kristen Brown captivates us with her story of transformation that is filled with the universal elements of loss, love, hope, humor and our ongoing search for answers that changes our perspective on the meaning of life and how we should live it. Kristen Brown bares her soul and shows us that loss can color our experiences and empower us to do more, be more and hope for more than we ever thought possible. you will fall deeply for The Best Worst Thing. Kristen Brown opens her tattered heart for all to see, then shares her rocky road back from the edge, as she finds the woman she was meant to be. Julie Bauke, author of Stop Peeing On Your Shoes "a powerful journey of love, loss, rebirth, and self-discovery. Kristen has a gift of keen insight, provocative imagery, and raw authenticity Theresa Rose, award-winning author of Opening the Kimono: A Woman's Intimate Journey Through Life's Biggest Challenges "You will be captivated from the very first word and may not be able put this book downshe tells her incredible story that will move you emotionally in many ways. Peggy McColl, New York Times Best-Selling Author Kristen Brown is a widow mom, writer, speaker and founder of Happy Hour Effect. Nominated for multiple business awards, she showcases her company at Hollywood events, has been featured extensively in the media and has adapted her company message into a training series. She lives in Minneapolis with her daughter and big black Lab.