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July 3rd
As the executive culinary assistant to celebrity Chicago chef Patrick
Conlon, Alana Ostermann works behind the scenes—and that’s just the way
she likes it. But with developing recipes for Patrick’s cookbooks,
training his sous chefs, picking out the perfect birthday gifts for his
ex-mother-in-law, and dealing with the fallout from his romantic
escapades, she barely has a personal life, much less time to spend with
her combo platter of a mutt, Dumpling. Then a fluke online
connection brings her RJ, a transplant from Tennessee, who adds some
Southern spice to her life. Suddenly Alana’s priorities shift, and
Patrick—and Dumpling—find themselves facing a rival for her time and
affection. With RJ in the mix, and some serious decisions to make about
her personal and professional future, Alana must discover the perfect
balance of work and play, money and meaning, to bring it all to the
table—one delicious dish at a time…
An Upper West Side naïf, Beatrice Bernstein, gets swept up in the
seemingly magical life of socialite Veruca Pfeffernoose, while ghost
writing her blog. Veruca’s glitteringly opulent world soon seduces
Beatrice away from her own insular, arty family with a promise of fancy
parties, travel outside Manhattan (for once) and one desperately cute
guy. But when her new glitzy lifestyle starts to take on dark
undertones, Beatrice has to decide who she is—once and for all. With her
own magical touch, Zelevansky deftly explores the world of rarified
Manhattan in this sparkling modern fairy tale of first love, finding
one’s voice and growing up.
Actors aren’t the only ones trying to make it in Hollywood... At
twenty-three, Ruth Saunders left her childhood home in Massachusetts and
headed west with her seventy-year-old grandma in tow, hoping to make it
as a screenwriter. Six years later, she hits the jackpot when she gets
The Call: the sitcom she wrote, The Next Best Thing, has gotten
the green light, and Ruthie’s going to be the showrunner. But her dreams
of Hollywood happiness are threatened by demanding actors,
number-crunching executives, an unrequited crush on her boss, and her
grandmother’s impending nuptials. Set against the fascinating
backdrop of Los Angeles show business culture, with an insider’s ear for
writer’s room showdowns and an eye for bad backstage behavior and set
politics, Jennifer Weiner’s new novel is a rollicking ride on the
Hollywood roller coaster, a heartfelt story about what it’s like for a
young woman to love, and lose, in the land where dreams come true.
Having a baby is... complicated. Dimple knows. She's a successful actress who is turning forty—though her agent and her resume insist she's only thirty-six—and she figures it's now or never. Certainly it's not a good time for an intriguing director to show up at her door with a great script. Eva, fabulous agent to the stars, doesn't want kids—and never wanted kids. Why is her decision so damned hard for everyone else to accept? When Maryn was undergoing treatment for cancer, she and her husband both agreed to have embryos frozen. But that was way before their divorce and her remission—and now she's single and childless, and caught in the middle of a controversy she never saw coming. The traditional and nontraditional couples desperate for a baby... the adoptive parents... the single mom... the two who want nothing to do with parenthood... This is a thoroughly modern story of the pursuit of family in all its forms—and of five very different ways of getting there.
You Take It from Here by Pamela Ribon
Just because you’d give your best friend everything doesn’t mean she has to take it. On the heels of a divorce, all Danielle Meyers wants is her annual vacation with sassy, life-long best friend, Smidge—complete with umbrella cocktails by an infinity pool—but instead she’s hit with the curveball of a lifetime. Smidge takes Danielle to the middle of nowhere to reveal a diagnosis of terminal cancer, followed by an unusual request: "After I’m gone, I want you to finish the job. Marry my husband. Raise my daughter. I’m gonna teach you to how to be Smidge 2.0." As Danielle wrestles with this major life decision, she finds herself torn between being true to her best friend’s wishes and being honest with herself. Parenting issues aside, Smidge’s small-town Louisiana world is exactly the one Danielle made sure to escape. Danielle isn’t one for playing the social butterfly, or being the center of attention. And when your best friend tries to set you up on a date night with her husband, it might be time to become the bossy one for a change. How much should we sacrifice for the ones we love the most?
July 10th
Summer break... and the livin' ain't easy! Just because the students at New York College have flown the coop doesn't mean assistant residence hall director Heather Wells can relax. Fischer Hall is busier than ever, filled with squealing thirteen and fourteen-year-old girls attending the first ever Tania Trace Teen Rock Camp, hosted by pop sensation Tania Trace herself—who just happens to be newly married to Heather's ex-boyfriend, heartthrob Jordan Cartwright. But the real headache begins when the producer of a reality TV show starring Tania winds up dead... and it's clear that the star was the intended victim. Grant Cartwright, head of Cartwright Records, wants to keep his daughter-in-law (and his highest-earning performer) alive. So he hires his oldest son, black sheep of the family and private investigator Cooper Cartwright—who just happens to be Heather's new fiancé. Heather should leave the detecting to Cooper. But with a dorm full of hysterical mini-divas-in-training, she can't help but get involved. And after Tania shares a really shocking secret with her, this reality suddenly becomes more dangerously real than anyone ever anticipated.
Just because you’d give your best friend everything doesn’t mean she has to take it. On the heels of a divorce, all Danielle Meyers wants is her annual vacation with sassy, life-long best friend, Smidge—complete with umbrella cocktails by an infinity pool—but instead she’s hit with the curveball of a lifetime. Smidge takes Danielle to the middle of nowhere to reveal a diagnosis of terminal cancer, followed by an unusual request: "After I’m gone, I want you to finish the job. Marry my husband. Raise my daughter. I’m gonna teach you to how to be Smidge 2.0." As Danielle wrestles with this major life decision, she finds herself torn between being true to her best friend’s wishes and being honest with herself. Parenting issues aside, Smidge’s small-town Louisiana world is exactly the one Danielle made sure to escape. Danielle isn’t one for playing the social butterfly, or being the center of attention. And when your best friend tries to set you up on a date night with her husband, it might be time to become the bossy one for a change. How much should we sacrifice for the ones we love the most?
July 10th
L.A. is no place for widows. This is what forty-four-year-old Hannah
Bernal quickly discovers after the tragic death of her handsome and
loving husband, John. Misery and red-rimmed eyes are little tolerated in
the land of the beautiful. But life stumbles on: Hannah’s sweet
three-year-old daughter, Ellie, needs to be dropped off at her
overpriced preschool, while Hannah herself must get back to work in
order to pay the bills on “Casa Sugar,” the charming Spanish-styled
bungalow they call home. Fortunately, Hannah has her “Grief
Team” for emotional support: earth mother and fanatical animal lover
Chloe, who finds a potential blog post in every moment; aspiring actress
Aimee, who has her cosmetic surgeon on speed dial; and Jay, Hannah’s TV
producing partner, who has a penchant for Mr. Wrong. But after a series
of mishaps and bizarre occurrences, one of which finds Hannah in a posh
Santa Monica jail cell, her friends start to fear for her sanity. To
make matters worse, John left their financial affairs in a disastrous
state. And when Hannah is dramatically fired from her latest producing
gig, she finds herself in danger of losing her house, her daughter, and
her mind. One night, standing in her backyard under a majestic
avocado tree, in the throes of grief, Hannah breaks down and asks,
“Why?” The answer that comes back—Why not?—begins an astounding journey of discovery and transformation that leads Hannah to her own truly extraordinary life after death.
July 17th
Think you want to be the perfect mom? Think again… Kate Alger
has finally found the cure for her post-partum depression. After years
of suffering, all it takes to bring this mommy back to life is a few
gruesome homicides! When someone starts offing the alpha-moms from
Kate’s daughter’s preschool, Kate—who worked as an Assistant District
Attorney before she had Molly—realizes it’s time to get out of bed, dust
off the skills and find out who is killing all the mommies she loves to
hate. Perfect Is Overrated
is a romp through the life of one very needy mom, her cockeyed family,
gorgeous ex-husband, and the entire insane, entitled, over-dressed, over-zealous, eternally jealous parent body at The Hawthorne Preschool.
When in Doubt, Add Butter by Beth Harbison
As far as Gemma is concerned, her days of dating are over. In fact, it’s her job to cater other peoples’ dates, and that’s just fine by her. At thirty-seven, she has her own business, working as a private chef, and her life feels full and secure. She’s got six steady clients that keep her hands full. There’s Lex, the fussy but fabulous department store owner who loves Oysters Rockefeller and 1950s comfort food; Willa, who needs to lose weight under doctor’s orders but still believes butter makes everything better; a colorful family who may or may not be part of the Russian mob; an überwealthy Georgetown family; the picture-perfect Van Houghtens, whose matriarch is “allergic to everything”; and finally, a man she calls “Mr. Tuesday,” whom she has never met but who she is strangely drawn to. For Gemma, cooking is predictable. Recipes are certain. Use good ingredients, follow the directions, and you are assured success. Life, on the other hand, is full of variables. So when Gemma’s takes an unexpected turn on a road she always thought was straight and narrow, she must face her past and move on in ways she never would have imagined. Because sometimes in life, all you need is a little hope, a lot of courage, and---oh yes---butter.
July 24th
Where We Belong by Emily Giffin
As far as Gemma is concerned, her days of dating are over. In fact, it’s her job to cater other peoples’ dates, and that’s just fine by her. At thirty-seven, she has her own business, working as a private chef, and her life feels full and secure. She’s got six steady clients that keep her hands full. There’s Lex, the fussy but fabulous department store owner who loves Oysters Rockefeller and 1950s comfort food; Willa, who needs to lose weight under doctor’s orders but still believes butter makes everything better; a colorful family who may or may not be part of the Russian mob; an überwealthy Georgetown family; the picture-perfect Van Houghtens, whose matriarch is “allergic to everything”; and finally, a man she calls “Mr. Tuesday,” whom she has never met but who she is strangely drawn to. For Gemma, cooking is predictable. Recipes are certain. Use good ingredients, follow the directions, and you are assured success. Life, on the other hand, is full of variables. So when Gemma’s takes an unexpected turn on a road she always thought was straight and narrow, she must face her past and move on in ways she never would have imagined. Because sometimes in life, all you need is a little hope, a lot of courage, and---oh yes---butter.
July 24th
Marian Caldwell is a thirty-six year old television producer,
living her dream in New York City. With a fulfilling career and
satisfying relationship, she has convinced everyone, including herself,
that her life is just as she wants it to be. But one night, Marian
answers a knock on the door... only to find Kirby Rose, an
eighteen-year-old girl with a key to a past that Marian thought she had
sealed off forever. From the moment Kirby appears on her doorstep,
Marian’s perfectly constructed world—and her very identity—will be
shaken to its core, resurrecting ghosts and memories of a passionate
young love affair that threaten everything that has come to define her. For
the precocious and determined Kirby, the encounter will spur a process
of discovery that ushers her across the threshold of adulthood, forcing
her to re-evaluate her family and future in a wise and bittersweet
light. As the two women embark on a journey to find the one thing
missing in their lives, each will come to recognize that where we belong
is often where we least expect to find ourselves—a place that we may
have willed ourselves to forget, but that the heart remembers forever.
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