Kevin Milne

"Ever since seventeen-year-old Ann Bennett was diagnosed with a life-threatening heart condition two years ago, her family has been pulling apart. Ann and her two younger siblings fight constantly, as do their parents. When the doctors announce that Ann's only hope of survival is a heart transplant by the end of the summer, the Bennetts decide to wait for news of a donor at a family vacation home on the Oregon coast, near Haystack Rock. But rather than healing their differences, the time away only widens the rifts between them. That is, until they learn about The Winner's Game, a game their great grandparents invented to save their marriage decades ago. It doesn't work immediately, it takes some time to figure out the right way to play, but little by little things start to change. It seems everything might be okay, until the day tragedy strikes, and they are confronted with what it really means to love--and to be a family"--

For someone who owns a chocolate shop, Sophie Jones is not very sweet. Her life is full of tragedy, starting with her parents death in a car crash on her ninth birthday, up to her fianc Garrett mysteriously breaking up with her and moving away mere days before their wedding. Always a realist and a cynic, Sophie knows that nothing lasts forever and disappointment is always around the corner, and is dismayed when Garrett comes back into her life. Garrett has had a change of heart and wants another chance to make her happy. She says that true happiness is fleeting, while Garrett contends that there is no limit. They make an agreement: Garrett will put an ad in the local paper seeking long-term happiness, and if he gets 100 responses that meet Sophies exacting standards, she will go out on one last date and hear why he left her.

"A heart-tugging tale of a boy who discovers the true meaning of Christmas through his friendship with a troubled little girl"--Provided by publisher.