Showing results by narrator "Amy Bentley" in All Categories

Dana Fields's father never knew his parents. When Dana secretly does a DNA test for her dad, hoping to find him some distant relatives for his birthday, her entire world implodes. Instead of a few third cousins, Dana discovers a half-brother her age whose very existence means her parents' happy marriage is a lie. Dana's desire to know her half-brother, Brandon, and the extent of her dad's deception, clashes with her wish not to destroy her family.

Lulu and Jek are science nerds, and have been best friends since they were young...or at least they used to be. Lately Jek has been pulling away from Lulu, just as she's coming to terms with how she really feels about him. Just as she was ready to see if there could be something more between them. But Lulu's thoughts are derailed by a mysterious new guy who's showing up at local parties. Hyde is the definition of a bad boy, and everybody knows it...but no one can seem to resist his charms.

In the vein of The Liar's Club and The Glass Castle, Jenny Forrester's memoir perfectly captures both place and a community situated on the Colorado Plateau between slot canyons and rattlesnakes, where she grew up with her mother and brother in a single-wide trailer proudly displaying an American flag. Forrester's powerfully eloquent story reveals a rural small town comprising God-fearing Republicans, ranchers, Mormons, and Native Americans.

Sharee Samuels was 17 and 256 pounds when she hit her rock bottom. But with incredible determination and an unflaggingly positive attitude, she went on to lose more than 100 pounds over the course of five years. When she began documenting her journey on Tumblr, she never expected to become such a powerful voice for health, fitness, and self-love. But her blog, called Funeral for My Fat, soon morphed into an inspirational guide for hundreds of thousands of individuals looking for support and advice on their own fitness journeys.

Tristan Lopez is loyal to his brothers. He doesn't really have a choice, born into a gang that has a choke hold on every kid who roams its streets. He gave his life to them willingly, knowing if he did, then one day, this kingdom, led by boys drunk with power and ruled by fear, would all be his. Riley Rojas took up space on his streets, her loud mouth fearless in the face of the gang leaders who terrified everyone else. She pushed Tristan around on the hard court, and she balled better than his friends - better than him sometimes. She challenged him. She needed him. He liked it. 

Jake Matthews understands loss. In just one year, he lost his mother, his first love, his career, and now his cousin and best friend. But loss is the very thing that allows him to see the amazing woman he's always overlooked. And for the very first time, Jake wants to be worthy of such a pure love. Naomi Bennett spent the last year finding herself. Running away to Portugal was more than just a trip to find culture, but also an escape from the first man she ever gave her heart to. Now home, the last thing Naomi wants is to catch the eye of notorious playboy Jake Matthews.

Avery Nichols knows how to wear the mask. Perfect student, perfect daughter, and perfect friend. Nobody would ever guess that inside, Avery is a prisoner to her own self-loathing. Then she meets him...and everything changes. Handsome, charming, and self-assured, Jake Matthews sweeps Avery off her feet in an effortless fashion. Avery knows Jake is everything she needs and all she has ever wanted. She would destroy herself to be loved by him...until he walks away.  

Katie has always imagined her life being just like Mamm's. It's why she chose baptism and why she'll soon marry Abram Zook. But ever since her twin sister, Hannah, left, the only thing that truly makes Katie smile is the sketchpad in which she indulges her talent for drawing faces - a sin that, if discovered, could get her shunned by her family, her friends, and even Abram. Yet Katie sees her secret pastime as the only way to quiet a growing restlessness she'd just as soon ignore. That is, until their Mamm's untimely death brings Hannah back home to Pennsylvania.

Cassie's had some pretty close calls in her life, but now that she's gotten her official bad-ass badge as an integral part of the Old Guard, she feels sort of invincible. That doesn't seem to keep anyone from trying to prove otherwise, though, because everyone wants a piece of her. The King of Hearts needs her help, even while the resistance tries to sway her, and the Old Guard has its own plans for her. And then, there's Ryder.

Cassie's had a rough few months. Being a vampire came with its own risks. Being a con-artist vampire was even tougher. Being forced to fake one's own death to keep from getting thrown in the slammer or murdered and then resurrecting oneself? Really takes a lot out of a girl. Frankly, she could use a little down time. But, true to form, she's skipped that and opted to jump straight from the frying pan into the fire as a new recruit-in-training for the Old Guard. They think she's got the skill set to help them ferret out some troublemaking vampires in the Undercity.

Maddie James has finally given in to her friend Katrina's pleas to open up her cat cafe to more than 10 felines: They're now up to 15 purring friends. In fact, JJ's House of Purrs is making such a splash that she's getting national attention. The East Coast Animal Rescue League is quite interested in the cafe, and so Maddie accepts a request to meet with Laverne Gardner, the executive director. But Laverne ends up strangled with a fancy cat leash - a piece of swag they were intending to use for the fundraiser - leaving Maddie with a lot of questions to answer. 

The holiday season on Daybreak Island is a mixed bag for Maddie James. On the one hand, her Christmas spirit is in the doghouse after a break-up. On the other, she's busy enough that she doesn't have to pretend to be merry. Business at her cat café is booming, and Maddie's care-taking of a feral cat colony in one of the area's wealthiest communities only helps her bottom line. But tensions between the homeowners and animal activists are escalating to catastrophic levels...and before long a body is found dead in a snowbank.

Prince Carden of Tierney lost his home, family, and claim to the throne in one fell swoop when he rebelled against his father for a cause he knew was right. Instead of wallowing in despair, he embarks on a new journey, starting a new life on the Southern Isle. When he finds himself caught in a web woven by the famously ruthless fae queen, Coeur, he insults her and she vows to teach him the most difficult and heart-breaking lesson he will ever learn: that humans are incapable of love, and that hearts are beastly things.   

It's a difficult thing to be in love with someone who only sees you as a friend. That feeling was something Kristen Hall had long since grown accustomed to. Her epic crush on Jake Reynolds had lasted so long that her friends didn't even tease her about it anymore. Or maybe it was that she had just gotten better at hiding it after all these years. Kristen couldn't help but hope that maybe one day, somehow, miraculously, Jake would decide he loved her back. Perhaps something would just click, and he would realize he couldn't go on living without her.

Jesse Dylan was my best friend, my first kiss...and my first heartbreak. Watching him walk out of my life almost ruined me. But years have passed; the pain of losing him has long since faded. Or so I thought. One glimpse in his cobalt eyes and those old wounds reopened. Jesse wants a second chance at what might have been, but it's too late. I'm with someone new. Someone safe. Someone who can't break me. Yet the heart wants what it wants, and mine has only ever beat for the one who got away. I can't deny him. I can't resist him. He consumes my every waking thought and invades my dreams.

Tori Jones is the light of her small town. Sweet but full of grit, she's always the first one to help. Just once please, she'd like a quiet weekend to herself. Too bad her Nana has a big problem. Nana Estelle loves her cigarettes, whiskey, and big hair, but most of all, she loves Tori. Too bad her boyfriend has run off with her money and she needs Tori to track the crook down. Savage Monroe solves problems with his fists, although baseball bats work just fine too! Living in Vegas, he rides with a gang, looking for his next big score. Too bad for Tori that his "next big score" is her.

I was a thief. The invisible girl only he could see. The woman who wanted to be more. He was the mark. The extraordinary cowboy who stole my 16-year-old heart. The damaged man who still owned it, even four years later. The Line was where we began. Where fates collided. Where truths derailed. The place where our love story ends. 

Gripped by shock at the site of a presumed routine package delivery run, business woman and entrepreneur Ruby "Red" Masters just saw a woman die. And she discovered The New Rulebook, something she knew nothing about. But it knew everything about her, enough to frame her for murder. As the clock ticks, Ruby calls on the one person she trusts, her best friend and police officer, Robert Towers. Robert will find a way out. He always has.

Marisa never planned to be a snoop for hire. It wasn't like she wanted to catch her best friend's boyfriend making out with another girl. But as her reputation for sniffing out cheaters spreads all over school, Marisa finds herself the reluctant queen of busting two-timing boys. And her next case? It's for ex-frenemy Kendall. She's convinced that her boyfriend, TJ, has feelings for someone else and persuades Marissa to start spying on him. But the more Marisa gets to know sincere and artistic TJ, the more she starts to fall for him. Worse yet, the feelings seem to be mutual.

Author Hattie Cooper, the blogger behind The Anxious Girl's Guide to Dating, knows anxiety. She has lived with generalized anxiety disorder for years. Hattie shares immediate, easy-to-use strategies for tackling your social anxiety disorder and creating healthy habits. Featuring expert advice from foreword writer and registered psychotherapist Kyle MacDonald, the tools in this book will help you beat your anxiety and reveal your most confident self.