Blog Posts - Author Amy L. Gale

Books to Read (May 2020)

5/17/2020

Little Fires Everywhere
Celeste Ng

From the bestselling author of Everything I Never Told You, a riveting novel that traces the intertwined fates of the picture-perfect Richardson family and the enigmatic mother and daughter who upend their lives.

In Shaker Heights, a placid, progressive suburb of Cleveland, everything is planned—from the layout of the winding roads, to the colors of the houses, to the successful lives its residents will go on to lead. And no one embodies this spirit more than Elena Richardson, whose guiding principle is playing by the rules.

Enter Mia Warren—an enigmatic artist and single mother—who arrives in this idyllic bubble with her teenaged daughter Pearl, and rents a house from the Richardsons. Soon Mia and Pearl become more than tenants: all four Richardson children are drawn to the mother-daughter pair. But Mia carries with her a mysterious past and a disregard for the status quo that threatens to upend this carefully ordered community.

When old family friends of the Richardsons attempt to adopt a Chinese-American baby, a custody battle erupts that dramatically divides the town—and puts Mia and Elena on opposing sides. Suspicious of Mia and her motives, Elena is determined to uncover the secrets in Mia’s past. But her obsession will come at unexpected and devastating costs.

Little Fires Everywhere explores the weight of secrets, the nature of art and identity, and the ferocious pull of motherhood—and the danger of believing that following the rules can avert disaster.

If It Bleeds
Stephen King

The novella is a form King has returned to over and over again in the course of his amazing career, and many have been made into iconic films, including “The Body” (Stand By Me) and “Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption” (Shawshank Redemption). Like Four Past Midnight, Different Seasons, and most recently Full Dark, No Stars, If It Bleeds is a uniquely satisfying collection of longer short fiction by an incomparably gifted writer.

By a Thread
Lucy Score

Dominic was staring at me like he couldn’t decide whether to chop me into pieces or pull my hair and French kiss me.

Dominic
I got her fired. Okay, so I’d had a bad day and took it out on a bystander in a pizza shop. But there’s nothing innocent about Ally Morales. She proves that her first day of her new job… in my office… after being hired by my mother.

So maybe her colorful, annoying, inexplicably alluring personality brightens up the magazine’s offices that have felt like a prison for the past year. Maybe I like that she argues with me in front of the editorial staff. And maybe my after-hours fantasies are haunted by those brown eyes and that sharp tongue.

But that doesn’t mean that I’m going to be the next Russo man to take advantage of his position. I might be a second-generation asshole, but I am not my father.

She’s working herself to death at half a dozen dead-end jobs for some secret reason she doesn’t feel like sharing with me. And I’m going to fix it all. Don’t accuse me of caring. She’s nothing more than a puzzle to be solved. If I can get her to quit, I can finally peel away all those layers. Then I can go back to salvaging the family name and forget all about the dancing, beer-slinging brunette.

Ally
Ha. Hold my beer, Grumpy Grump Face.

Author’s Note: A steamy, swoony workplace romantic comedy with a grumpy boss hero determined to save the day and a plucky heroine who is starting to wonder if there might actually be a beating heart just beneath her boss’s sexy vests.

Everything I Never Told You
Celeste Ng

“Lydia is dead. But they don’t know this yet.” So begins this exquisite novel about a Chinese American family living in 1970s small-town Ohio. Lydia is the favorite child of Marilyn and James Lee, and her parents are determined that she will fulfill the dreams they were unable to pursue. But when Lydia’s body is found in the local lake, the delicate balancing act that has been keeping the Lee family together is destroyed, tumbling them into chaos. A profoundly moving story of family, secrets, and longing, Everything I Never Told You is both a gripping page-turner and a sensitive family portrait, uncovering the ways in which mothers and daughters, fathers and sons, and husbands and wives struggle, all their lives, to understand one another.

The Fifth Vital
Mike Majlak and Riley J. Ford

Mike Majlak was a seventeen-year-old from a loving, middle-class family in Milford, Connecticut, when he got caught up in the opioid epidemic that swept the nation. For close to a decade thereafter, his life was a wasteland of darkness and despair. While his peers were graduating from college, buying homes, getting married, having kids, and leading normal lives, Mike was snorting OxyContin, climbing out of cars at gunpoint, and burying his childhood friends. Unable to escape the noose of addiction, he eventually lost the trust and support of everyone who had ever loved him. Alone, with nothing but drugs to keep him company, darkness closed in, and the light inside him--the last flicker of hope--began to dim. His dreams, potential, and future were all being devoured by a relentless addiction too powerful to fight. Despair filled him as he realized he wasn't going to survive.

Somehow, he did...

HE NOT ONLY SURVIVED,

HE THRIVED.

Now he's a social media personality with millions of followers, and an entrepreneur, marketer, podcaster, YouTuber, and author who hopes to use his voice to shine a light for those whose own lights have grown dim.

This is his story.

Happy Mother's Day 2020

5/10/2020

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mom’s and fur-moms out there! Have a great day!

LOVE,
Author Amy L. Gale💐

Book Spotlight- Carve the Mark Series by Veronica Roth

4/13/2020

Carve the Mark Series
Veronica Roth

Book 1

Cyra Noavek and Akos Kereseth have grown up in enemy countries locked in a long-standing fight for dominance over their shared planet. When Akos and his brother are kidnapped by the ruling Noavek family, Akos is forced to serve Cyra, the sister of a dictator who governs with violence and fear. Cyra is known for her deadly power of transferring extraordinary pain unto others with simple touch, and her tyrant brother uses her as a weapon against those who challenge him. But as Akos fights for his own survival, he recognizes that Cyra is also fighting for hers, and that her true gift—resilience—might be what saves them both.

When Akos and Cyra are caught in the middle of a raging rebellion, everything they’ve been led to believe about their world and themselves must be called into question. But fighting for what’s right might mean betraying their countries, their families, and each other.

When the time comes, will they choose loyalty or love?

Book 2

The lives of Cyra Noavek and Akos Kereseth are ruled by their fates, spoken by the oracles at their births. The fates, once determined, are inescapable.

Akos is in love with Cyra, in spite of his fate: He will die in service to Cyra’s family. And when Cyra’s father, Lazmet Noavek—a soulless tyrant, thought to be dead—reclaims the Shotet throne, Akos believes his end is closer than ever.

As Lazmet ignites a barbaric war, Cyra and Akos are desperate to stop him at any cost. For Cyra, that could mean taking the life of the man who may—or may not—be her father. For Akos, it could mean giving his own. In a stunning twist, the two will discover how fate defines their lives in ways most unexpected.

Author the Author

Veronica Roth is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Divergent series and Carve the Mark. She was born in a Chicago suburb, and studied creative writing at Northwestern University. She and her husband and dog currently live in Chicago.

CREDITS:

I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE PICTURES, BOOK(s), MATERIAL, INFORMATION on this post. All pictures and information was obtained from the following:

AMAZON at https://www.amazon.com/Veronica-Roth/e/B004FX672S?ref_=dbs_p_pbk_r00_abau_000000
AMAZON at https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01ER5L9V2/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i10
AMAZON at https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062426966/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i8

FREE 4/6-4/10

4/6/2020

Saddle up and head out to the rodeo. Meet Bear Creek Cowboys, Luke Reno and Casey Jennings. These tough as nails bad boys are riding their way to the top of the PCRA circuit and melting hearts along the way.

Book 1- Resisting the Cowboy

Saddle bronc rider Luke Reno is taking the PRCA by storm, until he's thrown off of a horse ending up unconscious.

Straight-laced doctor Daisy Blackwell avoids taking unnecessary risks, both in and out of the Bear Creek Community hospital.

When Luke regains consciousness in the ER and saves Daisy from an attack by an unstable patient, she finds herself agreeing to dinner but never expects the feelings that follow. When she finds out about Luke's dangerous occupation her instincts want her to run but her heart has other plans.

Book 2- How to Date a Cowboy

Promoter Kayla Barnes just scored her first real job, creating buzz for the Bear Creek Rodeo. Looking to make a name for herself and increase attendance numbers like never before, she talks the star bull rider, Casey Jennings, into being the prize in her biggest contest yet.

One lucky winner gets a date with Casey, but as they work out the details and grow closer Kayla realizes she wants to be the number one contestant.

Book 3- Betting on the Cowboy

ER doctor Daisy Blackwell never dreamed she’d fall for a saddle bronc rider or be running from a hitman. After relocating from New York City to small town Texas to escape her past, it has caught up with her in Sin City.

Luke Reno is riding his way to the top. A win in the rodeo finals will make him the number one saddle bronc rider in the world, but there’s more riding on the competition than a title…his life.

When an argument at a craps table pulls him into a confrontation with a mob boss, Luke makes a deal. Bet on Luke to win the rodeo finals and collect a big payoff. But everything changes when hitmen from New York find Daisy and the Las Vegas mob.

Will Luke and Daisy beat the odds and make it out of Las Vegas unscathed or are they destined to become another casualty of Sin City.

Blissful Tragedy

3/24/2020

B L I S S F U L T R A G E D Y

Sometimes love is more than tragedy or bliss.

Ambitious 22-year-old Lexie Waters is intent on taking the advertising world by storm. When she’s offered the soon to be open position she’s been vying for at a swanky advertising agency, there’s only one last summer separating her from dreams of corporate success. Still bitter from catching her boyfriend cheating, she heads out for a night of fun to see her favorite band, Devil’s Garden, but fun turns into utter embarrassment when she insults the enticingly confident lead singer, Van Sinclair. Van is intrigued by Lexie’s ability to resist his charm and secretly obtains her cell number. Shocked but eager to get to know this captivating rocker, Lexie accepts Van’s invitation to see his next show, which requires an overnight stay. The overwhelming feelings that follow take them both by surprise, and with two months left before starting her sought after new position, Lexie joins the tour. As she’s catapulted into the world of groupies and wild parties, she questions Van’s commitment to her. So what happens at summer’s end when time runs out?

"Amy Gale's novel Blissful Tragedy kept me riveted until the very last page. It says a lot about a book when you have fresh episodes of an addictive show like Walking Dead waiting for you and you choose to read instead!" — Trev (Amazon)

"This is one of the Best Books I have read so far this year." — Dannii74 (Amazon)

"This rock and roll romance was one of the best books I have ever read. I connected with the characters emotionally and felt like I was right there in Lexie's shoes, living the life every girl dreams of. This is one book that I would love see turn into a movie and I know one day Amy Gale will have that opportunity." — Author Olivia Howe

"This was an awesome book to read. From the start the chemistry between Lexi and Van exploded on every page. Once I started reading Blissful Tragedy I had a hard time putting the book down. I would highly recommend this book to others to read." — Kimberly Morrow (Amazon)

"It kept me in suspense right to the end. I absolutely loved this book." — rita zang (Amazon)

"I had a hard time putting it down because I wanted to know what was going to happen next.." — Komal Savalia (Amazon)

Happy St. Patrick's Day 2020

3/17/2020

FUN FACTS ABOUT ST. PATRICK'S DAY

1. The first St. Patrick’s Day celebration in the United States was held in Boston (1737).
2. Shamrocks are the national flower/emblem of Ireland.
3. The color of St. Patrick’s Day was originally blue.
4. Legend says that each leaf of the clover has a meaning: Hope, Faith, Love and Luck.
5. The real St. Patrick wasn’t Irish. He was born in Britain around A.D. 390 to an aristocratic Christian family.
6. To celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, Chicago dyes the river green for a few hours.
7. Your odds of finding a four-leaf clover are about 1 in 10,000.

Book Spotlight- The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

3/10/2020

The Husband's Secret
Liane Moriarty

THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER FROM THE AUTHOR OF BIG LITTLE LIES.

One of the Best Books of the Year--Entertainment Weekly
One of the Top Ten Books of the Year--People

At the heart of The Husband’s Secret is a letter that’s not meant to be read…

My darling Cecilia,
If you’re reading this, then I’ve died…

Imagine your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death. Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret—something with the potential to destroy not only the life you built together, but the lives of others as well. And then imagine that you stumble across that letter while your husband is still very much alive…

Cecilia Fitzpatrick has achieved it all—she’s an incredibly successful businesswoman, a pillar of her small community, and a devoted wife and mother. But that letter is about to change everything—and not just for her. There are other women who barely know Cecilia—or each other—but they, too, are about to feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husband’s secret.

Editorial Reviews

“In The Husband’s Secret, Liane Moriarty has created a contemporary Pandora whose dilemma is spellbinding. Shocking, complex, and thought-provoking, this is a story reading groups will devour. A knockout!”
—Emily Giffin, New York Times bestselling author

“Brilliant.”
—Sophie Hannah, international bestselling author

“I really enjoyed The Husband’s Secret, and raced right through it in two days. It’s a knowing, touching, and entertaining page-turner. What a wonderful writer—smart, wise, funny.”
—Anne Lamott, New York Times bestselling author

“A novel that’s perfect for vacation reading: There’s humor, suspense, a circle of appealing women whose dilemmas intersect with Cecilia’s . . .”
--People

“Liane Moriarty is far more than the skillful writer of potboilers. Her compelling characters could be your friends and neighbors, nice and neurotic in equal doses . . . Amid three intertwined storylines and terrific plot twists, Moriarty presents a nuanced and moving portrait of the meaning of love, both marital and familial, and how life can hinge on a misunderstanding or a decision made in haste. The Husband’s Secret is so good, you won’t be able to keep it to yourself.”
--USA Today

“Reading groups rejoice. This meaty novel from the bestselling author will probably land on many must-read lists.”
--Dallas–Fort Worth Star-Telegram

“A smart, thoughtful read . . . [a] lip-smacking and intelligently written novel.”
--Entertainment Weekly

“Moriarty may be an edgier, more provocative, and bolder successor to Maeve Binchy.”
--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“At first, this reviewer wanted to warn readers not to be taken in by the light tone of Liane Moriarty’s The Husband’s Secret. On second thought, maybe readers should let this rather crafty novelist’s deceptive breeziness and humor sweep them along. It makes the shocks just that much more deliciously nasty, including the gob-smacking twist in the epilogue . . . The genius of The Husband’s Secret is that it makes us start to wonder what in our own lives would—or would not—have happened if, say, we had waited just fi ve more minutes before we walked out the door, had not said that hurtful thing, had applied a bit of logic to that situation.”
--BookPage

“Secrets can be sinister; they can eat you alive. But they can also set you free. The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty demonstrates this power with one of the most entertaining stories I have read in ages. Perfect for book clubs—lots to debate in these pages. I just loved it.”
—Dorothea Benton Frank, New York Times bestselling author

“This great summer read is hard to put down.”
--Library Journal

“A provocative page-turner . . .”
--Woman’s World

Author the Author

Liane Moriarty is the Australian author of six internationally best-selling novels, Three Wishes, The Last Anniversary, What Alice Forgot, The Hypnotist's Love Story and the number 1 New York Times bestsellers, The Husband's Secret and Big Little Lies.

Her breakout novel The Husband's Secret sold over three million copies worldwide, was a number 1 UK bestseller, an Amazon Best Book of 2013 and has been translated into over 40 languages. It spent over a year on the New York Times bestseller list. CBS Films has acquired the film rights.

With the launch of Big Little Lies, Liane became the first Australian author to have a novel debut at number one on the New York Times bestseller list. An HBO series based on Big Little Lies is currently in production, starring Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon.

Writing as L.M. Moriarty, Liane has also written a children's book series, The Petrifying Problem with Princess Petronella, The Shocking Trouble on the Planet of Shobble and The Wicked War on the Planet of Whimsy.

Liane lives in Sydney with her husband, son and daughter. Her new novel, Truly Madly Guilty, will be released in July 2016.

CREDITS:

I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE PICTURES, BOOK(s), MATERIAL, INFORMATION on this post. All pictures and information was obtained from the following:

AMAZON at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D7Z4GQY?_encoding=UTF8&isInIframe=1&n=133140011&ref_=dp_proddesc_0&s=digital-text&showDetailProductDesc=1#iframe-wrapper

AMAZON at https://www.amazon.com/Liane-Moriarty/e/B00459IA54/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Books to Read (March 2020)

3/3/2020

If You Tell
Gregg Olsen

A #1 Wall Street Journal, Amazon Charts, USA Today, and Washington Post bestseller.

1 New York Times bestselling author Gregg Olsen’s shocking and empowering true-crime story of three sisters determined to survive their mother’s house of horrors.

After more than a decade, when sisters Nikki, Sami, and Tori Knotek hear the word mom, it claws like an eagle’s talons, triggering memories that have been their secret since childhood. Until now.

For years, behind the closed doors of their farmhouse in Raymond, Washington, their sadistic mother, Shelly, subjected her girls to unimaginable abuse, degradation, torture, and psychic terrors. Through it all, Nikki, Sami, and Tori developed a defiant bond that made them far less vulnerable than Shelly imagined. Even as others were drawn into their mother’s dark and perverse web, the sisters found the strength and courage to escape an escalating nightmare that culminated in multiple murders.

Harrowing and heartrending, If You Tell is a survivor’s story of absolute evil—and the freedom and justice that Nikki, Sami, and Tori risked their lives to fight for. Sisters forever, victims no more, they found a light in the darkness that made them the resilient women they are today—loving, loved, and moving on.

The Dare
Lauren Landish

Have you ever had one of those really bad days at work?
You know, one where your hot boss catches you photocopying your backside in his office?
No? Just me then?

I blame my bestie and partner in chaos.
She challenged me with a not-so-innocent dare that I should’ve flat out declined.

But I’m an adrenaline junkie, and now, here I am.
I know it sounds crazy, and daredevil tendencies aside, I definitely went too far to get his attention.

But you haven’t seen him.
Colton Wolfe. My boss.
Tall, dark, and handsome, with the sexiest British accent I’ve ever heard.
His only flaw? That he’s completely oblivious to what’s been right in front of him all along.
Me.

Well, he was until a few minutes ago.
Remember those good old days?
Before I got caught making "nice" with the copy machine, and before I was totally getting fired?

But wait. Maybe I’m not.
If I can take on the biggest dare of all.
Making Colton Wolfe fall in love with me.

The Dare is a full-length romance with a HEA and no cliffhanger.

The Last Thing She Ever Did
Gregg Olsen

From the Amazon Charts and #1 New York Times bestselling author comes a psychological thriller exploring the things we dare to do when no one is looking . . .

The community along Oregon’s Deschutes River is one of successful careers and perfect families. For years, up-and-comers Liz and Owen have admired their good friends and neighbors, Carole and David. They appear to have it all—security, happiness, and a beautiful young son, Charlie.

Then Charlie vanishes without a trace, and all that seemed safe is shattered by a tragedy that is incomprehensible—except to Liz.

It took one fleeting moment for her to change the lives of everyone she loves—a heartrending accident that can’t be undone. Neither can the second-worst mistake of her life: concealing it. As two marriages crack and buckle in grief and fear, Liz retreats into her own dark place of guilt, escalating paranoia—and betrayals even she can’t imagine. Because there’s another good neighbor who has his own secrets, his own pain, and his own reasons for watching Liz’s every move.

And only he knows that the mystery of the missing boy on the Deschutes River is far from over.

In An Instant
Suzanne Redfearn

A deeply moving story of carrying on even when it seems impossible.

Life is over in an instant for sixteen-year-old Finn Miller when a devastating car accident tumbles her and ten others over the side of a mountain. Suspended between worlds, she watches helplessly as those she loves struggle to survive.

Impossible choices are made, decisions that leave the survivors tormented with grief and regret. Unable to let go, Finn keeps vigil as they struggle to reclaim their shattered lives. Jack, her father, who seeks vengeance against the one person he can blame other than himself; her best friend, Mo, who bravely searches for the truth as the story of their survival is rewritten; her sister Chloe, who knows Finn lingers and yearns to join her; and her mother, Ann, who saved them all but is haunted by her decisions. Finn needs to move on, but how can she with her family still in pieces?

Heartrending yet ultimately redemptive, In an Instant is a story about the power of love, the meaning of family, and carrying on…even when it seems impossible.

Angry God
L.J. Shen

Now #1 bestseller in the entire Kindle Store

"Mother. Of. All. Angst. This book is not for the faint of heart. It is rip-your-hair-out frustrating and full of depth and emotion." - Lana, DG Romance.

From #1 Amazon Bestseller L.J. Shen comes a new, emotional standalone about first love, second chances, and overcoming breathtaking losses at a young age.

Vaughn Spencer.
They call him an angry god.
To me, he is nothing but a heartless prince.
His parents rule this town, its police, every citizen and boutique on Main Street.
All I own is a nice, juicy grudge against him for that time he almost killed me.
Between hooking up with a different girl every weekend, breaking hearts, noses and rules, Vaughn also finds the time to bully little ole’ me.
I fight back, tooth and nail, never expecting him to chase me across the ocean after we graduate high school.
But here he is, living with me in a dark, looming castle on the outskirts of London.
A fellow intern. A prodigal sculptor. A bloody genius.
They say this place is haunted, and it is.
Carlisle Castle hides two of our most awful secrets.
Vaughn thinks he can kill the ghosts of his past, but what he doesn’t know? It’s my heart he’s slaying.

Angry God is a stand-alone, DARK High School Romance. It deals with sensitive subjects some may find triggering.

Book Spotlight- The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris

2/25/2020

The Tattooist of Auschwitz
Heather Morris

#1 New York Times Bestseller and #1 International Bestseller

This beautiful, illuminating tale of hope and courage is based on interviews that were conducted with Holocaust survivor and Auschwitz-Birkenau tattooist Ludwig (Lale) Sokolov—an unforgettable love story in the midst of atrocity.

“The Tattooist of Auschwitz is an extraordinary document, a story about the extremes of human behavior existing side by side: calculated brutality alongside impulsive and selfless acts of love. I find it hard to imagine anyone who would not be drawn in, confronted and moved. I would recommend it unreservedly to anyone, whether they’d read a hundred Holocaust stories or none.”—Graeme Simsion, internationally-bestselling author of The Rosie Project

In April 1942, Lale Sokolov, a Slovakian Jew, is forcibly transported to the concentration camps at Auschwitz-Birkenau. When his captors discover that he speaks several languages, he is put to work as a Tätowierer (the German word for tattooist), tasked with permanently marking his fellow prisoners.

Imprisoned for over two and a half years, Lale witnesses horrific atrocities and barbarism—but also incredible acts of bravery and compassion. Risking his own life, he uses his privileged position to exchange jewels and money from murdered Jews for food to keep his fellow prisoners alive.

One day in July 1942, Lale, prisoner 32407, comforts a trembling young woman waiting in line to have the number 34902 tattooed onto her arm. Her name is Gita, and in that first encounter, Lale vows to somehow survive the camp and marry her.

A vivid, harrowing, and ultimately hopeful re-creation of Lale Sokolov's experiences as the man who tattooed the arms of thousands of prisoners with what would become one of the most potent symbols of the Holocaust, The Tattooist of Auschwitz is also a testament to the endurance of love and humanity under the darkest possible conditions.

Editorial Reviews

''The Tattooist of Auschwitz is an extraordinary document, a story about the extremes of human behavior existing side by side: calculated brutality alongside impulsive and selfless acts of love … I would recommend it unreservedly to anyone, whether they'd read a hundred Holocaust stories or none.'' --Graeme Simsion, New York Times bestselling author

''What an extraordinary and important book this is. We need as many memories of the Holocaust as we can retain, and this is a moving and ultimately uplifting story of love, loyalties and friendship amidst the horrors of war.'' --Jill Mansell, author of This Could Change Everything

''Based on a true story, the wrenching yet riveting tale … is a moving testament to the power of kindness, ingenuity, and hope.'' --People

''Richard Armitage is a superb narrator whose performance here is among his best … Armitage's performance captures every emotion from fear to trepidation to hope and even to love with understated warmth. Sokolov waited until the death of his wife, whom he met in the camp, before revealing his story to Morris. It was worth the wait. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award.'' --AudioFile

Author the Author

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.

CREDITS:

I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE PICTURES, BOOK(s), MATERIAL, INFORMATION on this post. All pictures and information was obtained from the following:

AMAZON at https://www.amazon.com/Heather-Morris/e/B07B9XDBVV/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1

AMAZON at https://www.amazon.com/Tattooist-Auschwitz-Heather-Morris/dp/1982554703/ref=tmm_abk_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

WEBSITE at http://www.heathermorrisauthor.com/

Books to Read (February 2020)

2/21/2020

Open Book
Jessica Simpson

Jessica reveals for the first time her inner monologue and most intimate struggles. Guided by the journals she's kept since age fifteen, and brimming with her unique humor and down-to-earth humanity, Open Book is as inspiring as it is entertaining.

This was supposed to be a very different book. Five years ago, Jessica Simpson was approached to write a motivational guide to living your best life. She walked away from the offer, and nobody understood why. The truth is that she didn’t want to lie.

Jessica couldn’t be authentic with her readers if she wasn’t fully honest with herself first.

Now America’s Sweetheart, preacher’s daughter, pop phenomenon, reality tv pioneer, and the billion-dollar fashion mogul invites readers on a remarkable journey, examining a life that blessed her with the compassion to help others, but also burdened her with an almost crippling need to please. Open Book is Jessica Simpson using her voice, heart, soul, and humor to share things she’s never shared before.

First celebrated for her voice, she became one of the most talked-about women in the world, whether for music and fashion, her relationship struggles, or as a walking blonde joke. But now, instead of being talked about, Jessica is doing the talking. Her book shares the wisdom and inspirations she’s learned and shows the real woman behind all the pop-culture cliché’s — “chicken or fish,” “Daisy Duke,” "football jinx," “mom jeans,” “sexual napalm…” and more. Open Book is an opportunity to laugh and cry with a close friend, one that will inspire you to live your best, most authentic life, now that she is finally living hers.

American Dirt
Jeanine Cummins

#1 New York Times Bestseller
OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB PICK

“Extraordinary.”
--Stephen King

“This book is not simply the great American novel; it’s the great novel of las Americas. It’s the great world novel! This is the international story of our times. Masterful.”
—Sandra Cisneros

También de este lado hay sueños. On this side, too, there are dreams.

Lydia Quixano Pérez lives in the Mexican city of Acapulco. She runs a bookstore. She has a son, Luca, the love of her life, and a wonderful husband who is a journalist. And while there are cracks beginning to show in Acapulco because of the drug cartels, her life is, by and large, fairly comfortable.

Even though she knows they’ll never sell, Lydia stocks some of her all-time favorite books in her store. And then one day a man enters the shop to browse and comes up to the register with a few books he would like to buy—two of them her favorites. Javier is erudite. He is charming. And, unbeknownst to Lydia, he is the jefe of the newest drug cartel that has gruesomely taken over the city. When Lydia’s husband’s tell-all profile of Javier is published, none of their lives will ever be the same.

Forced to flee, Lydia and eight-year-old Luca soon find themselves miles and worlds away from their comfortable middle-class existence. Instantly transformed into migrants, Lydia and Luca ride la bestia—trains that make their way north toward the United States, which is the only place Javier’s reach doesn’t extend. As they join the countless people trying to reach el norte, Lydia soon sees that everyone is running from something. But what exactly are they running to?

American Dirt will leave readers utterly changed. It is a literary achievement filled with poignancy, drama, and humanity on every page. It is one of the most important books for our times.

Already being hailed as "a Grapes of Wrath for our times" and "a new American classic," Jeanine Cummins's American Dirt is a rare exploration into the inner hearts of people willing to sacrifice everything for a glimmer of hope.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
Suzanne Collins

Ambition will fuel him.

Competition will drive him.

But power has its price.

It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute.

The odds are against him. He's been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined - every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute . . . and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.

Last Day
Luanne Rice

From celebrated New York Times bestselling author Luanne Rice comes a riveting story of a seaside community shaken by a violent crime and a tragic loss.

Years ago, Beth Lathrop and her sister Kate suffered what they thought would be the worst tragedy of their lives the night both the famous painting Moonlight and their mother were taken. The detective assigned to the case, Conor Reid, swore to protect the sisters from then on.

Beth moved on, throwing herself fully into the art world, running the family gallery, and raising a beautiful daughter with her husband Pete. Kate, instead, retreated into herself and took to the skies as a pilot, always on the run. When Beth is found strangled in her home, and Moonlight goes missing again, Detective Reid can’t help but feel a sense of déjà vu.

Reid immediately suspects Beth’s husband, whose affair is a poorly kept secret. He has an airtight alibi—but he also has a motive, and the evidence seems to point to him. Kate and Reid, along with the sisters’ closest childhood friends, struggle to make sense of Beth’s death, but they only find more questions: Who else would have wanted Beth dead? What’s the significance of Moonlight?

Twenty years ago, Reid vowed to protect Beth and Kate—and he’s failed. Now solving the case is turning into an obsession . . .

Lost
James Patterson and James O. Born

Miami just got a lot more dangerous -- especially for one innocent young woman running for her life.

The city of Miami is Detective Tom Moon's back yard. He's always kept it local, attending University of Miami on a football scholarship, and, as a Miami PD officer, protecting the city's most vulnerable.

Now, as the new leader of an FBI task force called "Operation Guardian," it's his mission to combat international crime. Moon's investigative team discovers that the opportunistic "Blood Brothers" -- Russian nationals Roman and Emile Rostoff -- have evaded authorities while building a vast, powerful, and deadly crime syndicate throughout Europe and metropolitan Miami.

Moon played offense for U of M, but he's on the other side of the field this time. And as the Rostoffs zero in on a target dear to Tom, they're not playing by anyone's rules.