Carole Matthews

In her most accomplished and entertaining novel to date, Carole Matthews takes her London-weary heroine on a life-changing trek through the Himalayas, where she ponders the meaning of such concepts as success, love, family -- and even civilization. After her live-in boyfriend extraordinaire, Jake, dumps her for a type-A Angelina Jolie look-a-like who climbs Mt. Everest, Lyssa Allen decides maybe a little adventure of her own can win him back. Leaving hair dryer, lattes and dreams of babies behind, this funny, neurotic and tougher-than-she-thought London editor sets off for Nepal, to the envy of her all-too-fertile sister. Her month-long sojourn in the East teaches Lyssa that maybe her horizons are bigger than she knew -- and the man of her dreams far different than she thought. Even her ideas about children undergo a change, and she gains a new perspective on her former obsession with having a baby. As her eyes are opened by her handsome and serene American tour guide, Lyssa wonders if she can ever return to her old life. When it's time to go home, she has the chance to find out . . . and faces the hardest decision of her life.

Juliet Joyce is married with two grown-up children who treat the house like a hotel, a 70 year-old mother who just moved in and a father who's announced he is gay. Nothing prepares her for the unexpected return of Steven Audrey who jilted her years ago. Can Steven sweep her off her feet or can Rick remind her of the loving feeling they've lost.

Ali Kingston is happily married with three children. She isn't the type to have her head turned - but then it isn't every day that a gorgeous younger man falls at her feet. When Ed, Ali's husband, finds out that she's spent time with another man, he's sure there's more to it than just a minor indiscretion - so in a moment of madness he kicks Ali out of the house. Their family and friends do all they can to help Ali and Ed reconcile but nothing seems to work. And then fate intervenes ...

Broughton House, an old English country estate set along the Wiltshire/Dorset border in England, is the inanimate protagonist of Penny Jordan's lengthy exploration into the human drama. Three couples view the house as the answer to their personal problems. Eleanor, with her new husband, two sons from a previous marriage and troubled teenaged stepdaughter, hopes the house will help them bond as a family. Hotel manager Zoe, who dreams of turning Broughton House into a bed-and-breakfast in order to her lover, Ben, from the demands of his dysfunctional family. Finally, there is Fern, trapped in an emotionally abusive marriage to Nick. She's hopelessly in love with Nick's stepbrother Adam, with whom she once had an affair and who is now involved in the sale of Broughton House. Fern is the most interesting of the lot as she comes to realize that she is a battered wife - sans the bruises - and slowly emerges as a self-possessed woman.

Join Lucy Lombard and her fellow chocolate lovers, Autumn, Nadia and Chantal, once again as they exchange gossip and sort out each other's lives in their favourite retreat, Chocolate Heaven.

She made the final cut!Scraping by for years on bar gigs, Fern Kendal has always suspected she might actually have a decent voice. But caring for her feuding parents and sickly nephew took all her energy--until now. During one crazy week, she lands a spot on the reality television talent show Fame Game and a glam new job as personal assistant to world-famous singer Evan David.Fern's handsome new boss lives in the spotlight.Though she can't seem to master her assistant duties, Fern brings a rare smile to his face and makes him long to rejoin the real world. Through a twist of fate, Evan becomes the newest judge on Fame Game, a sour note for Fern, who has reasons for keeping her ambitions under wraps. She goes on the run, but Evan can't forget her. And thus begins the adventure of a lifetime--both onstage and off!