Murder, Plainly Written by Mindy Steele

 First novel in The Plain Order Ink Society series, in which Amish writers crack the case of local mysteries.

Sadie Lynch thought inheriting her late Amish aunt’s candle shop was a blessing—a chance to leave her stalled writing career behind and find a fresh start. But running a Plain business when she's not Amish isn’t exactly filling her store with customers—especially when the local minister insists she sell out.

Sadie, who doesn’t want to leave, thankfully meets Wanda—an Amish woman with a secret obsession. As Wanda continues to visit the candle shop, an unexpected partnership blooms when Wanda agrees to help Sadie’s shop in exchange for writing advice.

But the grand reopening of the candle shop takes a deadly turn when the body of the Amish minister is discovered behind the counter. Now Sadie is the only suspect, prompting Wanda and the Plain Order Ink Society to try helping her solve the mystery.

But in this Plain community, secrets burn brighter than flames—and nothing is as simple as it seems.

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Murder, Plainly Written: Volume 1 (The Plain Order Ink Society): Steele, Mindy: 9798891514072: Amazon.com: Books

Raised in Kentucky timber country, Steele is a best-selling

and award-winning author who writes in favor of her rural

surroundings. Winner of the 2022 and 2024 FHL Reader’s

Choice award, Steele has been a welcomed addition to the

Amish genre. Her knowledge and admiration for the Amish

credits her ability to understand boundaries, and customs,

giving her readers an inside view of the Plain life. Her

accidental debut into romantic suspense proves she is a writer

of words and a storyteller at heart. Her books are peppered

with humor, and sprinkled with grace, charming all the senses

to make you laugh, cry, hold your breath, and root for the

happy ever after ending.

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

 The story chronicles the breakdown of Esther Greenwood, a bright, beautiful, enormously talented college student facing a profound identity crisis while coming of age in 1950s America, as she navigates the pressures of society along with her own ambitions. While at a prestigious, competitively won position at a New York City magazine one summer, Esther finds herself struggling with the looming expectations of marriage, motherhood, and giving up on her dreams to achieve them. She becomes increasingly disillusioned and her mental health deteriorates, ultimately leading her to undergo harsh treatment and therapy. 

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The Bell Jar: A Timeless Coming-of-Age Classic (Perennial Classics, 1): Plath, Sylvia: 9780060837020: Amazon.com: Books

Sylvia Plath was born in 1932 in Massachusetts. Her books include the poetry collections The Colossus, Crossing the Water, Winter Trees, Ariel, and The Collected Poems, which won the Pulitzer Prize. Plath is credited with being a pioneer of the 20th-century style of writing called confessional poetry. Her poem "Daddy" is one of the best-known examples of this genre.

In 1963, Plath's semi-autobiographic novel The Bell Jar was published under the pseudonym "Victoria Lucas"; it was reissued in 1966 under her own name. A complete and uncut facsimile edition of Ariel was published in 2004 with her original selection and arrangement of poems. She was married to the poet Ted Hughes, with whom she had a daughter, Frieda, and a son, Nicholas. She died in London in 1963.

Pride and Practicality by Pepper Basham

 Arianna Reeves knows how quickly admiration can turn into exile. One poorly placed trust, one disastrously charming rake, and she is no longer society's darling--but its favorite cautionary tale.

Now returned home--uninvited and unmistakably whispered about--Arianna is determined to make amends with her estranged family and do something useful with her thoroughly ruined life. Even if polite society would prefer she did it at a very great distance from anyone respectable.

Thomas Bridges, a principled clergyman with an inconvenient habit of thinking for himself, is already walking a narrow line. His congregation expects propriety, his mother expects matrimony, and both have very firm opinions about his future. Thomas, however, would prefer a life guided by conviction . . . even when it proves impractical.

When Arianna repeatedly--and quite disruptively--crosses his path, Thomas faces a dilemma no sermon prepared him for. She is not at all what she ought to be: not dull, not foolish, and--most dangerously--not someone he can overlook, but a kindred spirit who shares his passion for service and his troubling habit of defying society's expectations . . . all with good intentions, of course.

As their forbidden acquaintance deepens into something far more perilous than friendship, Arianna and Thomas must decide: preserve their reputations, or risk them entirely for the good of others—--and their own hearts. 

Pick up your copy here...                                                                                                                                     Pride and Practicality: A low-spice, high-swoon Regency rom-com: Basham, Pepper: 9780840717719: Amazon.com: Books

Pepper Basham is a best-selling author who writes romance “peppered” with grace and humor. Writing both historical and contemporary novels, she loves to incorporate her native Appalachian culture and/or her unabashed adoration of the UK into her stories. She currently resides in the lovely mountains of Asheville, NC where she is the wife of a fantastic pastor, mom of five great kids, a speech-language pathologist, and a lover of chocolate, jazz, hats, and Jesus. Her twentieth book, The Cairo Curse, came out in February. Next up is Positively, Penelope, the sequel to her bestselling novel, Authentically, Izzy. She loves connecting with readers and other authors through social media outlets like Facebook & Instagram.

The Piano Teacher of Montparnasse by Heather Morris

 In 1942, the Nazis come for a Jewish family living in the Montparnasse area of occupied Paris. In the chaos of their arrest, eleven-year-old Josephine runs to the only person she can trust: her piano teacher, Andrée Levallois, a secret French Resistance operative.

Andrée takes her in as a member of the family, spreading their rations and risking everything to keep her safe. But soon the authorities close in, and both Andrée and Josie are caught in a desperate race to stay alive.

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Heather Morris is a native of New Zealand, now resident in Australia. For several years, while working in a large public hospital in Melbourne, she studied and wrote screenplays, one of which was optioned by an Academy Award-winning screenwriter in the US. In 2003, Heather was introduced to an elderly gentleman who ‘might just have a story worth telling’. The day she met Lale Sokolov changed both their lives. Their friendship grew and Lale embarked on a journey of self-scrutiny, entrusting the innermost details of his life during the Holocaust to her. Heather originally wrote Lale’s story as a screenplay – which ranked high in international competitions – before reshaping it into her debut novel, The Tattooist of Auschwitz.

Merry Christmas Snickerdoodle! by J.D. Forester

 It’s not Christmas without the cookies! From gingerbread to sugar cookies, this pun-filled picture book features all the holiday favorites—not to mention peppermint swirls, hot chocolate, gumdrops, and more.

Rhyming affirmations pair perfectly with jolly anthropomorphized food art for a cheerful and festive read.

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Merry Christmas, Snickerdoodle!: Forester, J. D., Love, Charlotte: 9798217141081: Amazon.com: Books

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J. D. Forester is the author of several books for the youngest readers, including the My Tiny Dino Library series of board books.

The Family Friend by Claire Douglas

 When Imogen is told she’s inherited a country house near Bath, she thinks it must be a mistake. She last saw its owner, reclusive artist Dorothea Roe, sixteen years ago, during a tragic summer which changed her life for ever.

Now, with partner Josh in tow, it’s a chance for a fresh start.
But after discovering an old box with her name on it in Dorothea’s abandoned study, Imogen starts to believe the woman was trying to send her a secret message.
And when rumours begin to swirl that Dorothea was murdered, she starts to suspect that this gift might not be the life-line she thought it was.
Who would want to kill Dorothea?
Could it be tangled up in Imogen’s own dark family history?

And what if Imogen is now the one in danger?

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The Family Friend: Claire Douglas: 9781405978972: Amazon.com: Books

Claire Douglas is the Sunday Times number one bestselling author of eight stand alone novels: The Sisters (2015), Local Girl Missing (2016), Last Seen Alive (2017), Do Not Disturb (2018), Then She Vanishes (2019) and Just Like The Other Girls (2020). Her seventh, The Couple At No 9 (2021) was an Amazon number one bestseller, a number three Sunday Times bestseller and most recently hit number one on Germany's Der Spiegel paperback bestsellers chart. The Girls Who Disappeared was a Richard and Judy book club pick for Autumn 2022 and was an instant number one Sunday Times bestseller. Her books have sold over a million copies in the UK and have been published worldwide.

Last Morning at Nora's Table by Kathy Watson

 The kitchen saved Kathy Watson’s life.

In the midst of a recession, Kathy is running two restaurants with the passion of a gastronome who grew up on freshly farmed food—and the limitations of a chef who has little formal culinary education. That lack of training, a perceived shortcoming, has her bowing to the misogynistic egos of destructive, hot-headed chefs in her own kitchens. All the while, her fear and insecurity trigger childhood memories of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of her mother—a relationship that she can’t seem to reckon with.

Then, one day, one of Kathy’s chefs walks out just before dinner service, forcing her to face off with one of her long-held fears: sautéing on the hot side. The experience breaks the cycle wide open—and thus begins Kathy’s journey to throw off years of abuse to become a woman she can love.

Including more than thirty recipes and a wealth of kitchen drama, Last Morning at Nora’s Table will satisfy your appetite for delicious food and back-of-the-house gossip. Swing a sauté pan up to the stove and dive in.

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Last Morning at Nora's Table: A Chef's Memoir with Recipes: Watson, Kathy: 9798896364269: Amazon.com: Books

Kathy Watson spent years as a public relations executive and journalist, including six as editor-in-chief of Oregon Business magazine, before embarking on a new career as a chef and restaurant owner. This is her debut novel. She lives in Hood River, Oregon, where she writes, leads a chefs collective, and runs and hikes the Columbia River Gorge with her husband Stu and Satchel, the world’s best dog.