The Traveling Feast: On the Road and at the Table with My Heroes by Rick Bass

Acclaimed author Rick Bass decided to thank all of his writing heroes in person, one meal at a time, in this “rich smorgasbord of a memoir . . . a soul-nourishing, road-burning act of tribute” (New York Times Book Review).

From his bid to become Eudora Welty’s lawn boy to the time George Plimpton offered to punch him in the nose, lineage has always been important to Rick Bass. Now at a turning point — in his midfifties, with his long marriage dissolved and his grown daughters out of the house — Bass strikes out on a journey of thanksgiving. His aim: to make a memorable meal for each of his mentors, to express his gratitude for the way they have shaped not only his writing but his life.

The result, an odyssey to some of America’s most iconic writers, is also a record of self-transformation as Bass seeks to recapture the fire that drove him as a young man. Along the way we join in escapades involving smuggled contraband, an exploding grill, a trail of blood through Heathrow airport, an episode of dog-watching with Amy Hempel in Central Park, and a near run-in with plague-ridden prairie dogs on the way to see Lorrie Moore, as well as heartwarming and bittersweet final meals with the late Peter Matthiessen, John Berger, and Denis Johnson. Poignant, funny, and wistful, The Traveling Feast is a guide to living well and an unforgettable adventure that nourishes and renews the spirit.

The Girl Who Couldn't Leave: An absolutely uplifting and emotional page-turner by Catherine Miller

She hasn’t left her house in five years. Can love unlock the door?

It’s been 1,825 days since Fiona Dexter last set foot outside 14 Wellington Drive.

Five years ago, something happened that changed Fiona forever. Now she is too afraid to walk beyond her front gate.

It’s not the life Fiona had dreamed of but she has made it work, finding happiness in the safe routine of her days. On Mondays she treats herself to a glass of Chardonnay. On Tuesdays she has a working lunch at her desk (usually peanut butter on toast). On Wednesdays and Thursdays, she alternates spinning classes in her shed with yoga in the garden. Saturdays are for tidying up and Sundays are for relaxing in her favourite armchair.

But today is different. Today, her perfectly planned Monday is suddenly interrupted by a knock at the door and a stranger on the other side. Someone who could change everything.

Now Fiona is faced with an impossible choice. Is she brave enough to open the door? And if she does, will it set her free from her past or close her off from the world forever?

Witherpools: A Story Collection by Jason Durant

We see a man who must face his day of reckoning (“Captive”); tourists who head into the wilderness looking for wild tigers (“Tiger Walk”); tiny children who select victims and then reveal their every nuance of thought, of behavior (“Human”); butchered beings who prey insidiously on humans (“Witherpools”); a psychologist and his disturbed patient who head into backcountry and are stalked by a grizzly bear (“Yellowstone”); a disturbed man who plans to gun down four people (“Johnny Apple”); three men who attempt to save an eight-year-old girl from alien invaders (“Green Smoke”); a man who discovers he is no longer earthly, no longer mortal (“Dark Running”); and many more tales of dark pleasures and strange enchantments.

A Governess of Wise Yearsby Emily E K Murdoch

The Governess Bureau is about to close – but Miss Vivienne Clarke has one chance to redeem it, and herself.

Scandal. Intrigue. Love matches. The Governess Bureau was never supposed to be full of these things, but over the last few years, no fewer than five matches have been made.

It’s something the proprietress, Miss Vivienne Clarke, simply cannot allow to continue.

With only one client remaining for the previously esteemed Governess Bureau now it has been called into disrepute, Vivienne has no choice but to take on the assignment herself; Caring for the daughter of Edwin, Viscount Bysshe.
It would be so much easier if she had not turned down his offer of marriage fifteen years ago.

Edwin wouldn’t consider himself a man who carries a grudge, he just wants to prove to the world that Miss Clarke is incompetent and her whole Bureau idea is a scam. After all, she chose it over him all those years ago. Besides, he has secrets to hide about his daughter, and her mysterious origins.

All Vivienne wants to do is salvage her reputation, restore her business, and return to London with her heart intact.
She’s a governess of wise years, but is that enough to save herself from even more heartbreak?

This full length novel is a steamy Regency romance with a happily ever after, no cliffhangers, and is part of a series that can be read in any order.

Read Free in Kindle Unlimited!

The Governess Bureau
A Governess of Great Talents
A Governess of Discretion
A Governess of Many Languages
A Governess of Prodigious Skill
A Governess of Unusual Experience
A Governess of Wise Years

Harriet: A Jane Austen Variationby Alice McVeigh

“McVeigh’s plotting and prose are pitch-perfect” (Publishers Weekly)

Harriet is an intriguing and original ‘take’ on Jane Austen’s immortal Emma, by Publishers Weekly’s 2021 BookLife Prize quarterfinalist, Alice McVeigh.

Emma, a privileged young heiress, decides to mentor Harriet Smith, a pretty boarding-school pupil, and to matchmake her as eligibly as she can… But how is she to guess that Harriet has a secret?

Meanwhile, the brilliant, penniless Jane Fairfax consents to a clandestine engagement with Frank Churchill – though not daring to confess, even to him, that she is being relentlessly pursued by her best friend’s husband.

Harriet sidelines Emma herself in favour of the ingenious Harriet and the fascinating Jane Fairfax. It is Emma – but an Emma with a surprisingly believable twist in its tail.

“A dynamic take on a revered classic. This is still Austen’s Emma—but the story that unfolds through the recollections of these two ‘side’ characters feels remarkably fresh… With or without an understanding of Emma, Harriet contains a fully formed narrative that should satisfy even the choosiest Austen fans… Readers will rarely find the words ‘page-turner’ and ‘Jane Austen’ in the same sentence, but McVeigh’s impeccably written Harriet certainly fits the bill.” (IndieReader editorial review)

“A highly engrossing novel that captures the spirit of Austen and celebrates all the best qualities of her work from new and innovative angles… The characters are vibrant and full of life – McVeigh hits the mark spot-on.” (Readers Favorite editorial review)

“An enchanting recreation of Austen’s world” (author James Conroyd Martin)