Amanda Eyre Ward Knihy

"A sober hedonist's guide to living a decadent, wild, and soulful life--alcohol-free. In a culture where sipping "rosé all day" is seen as the epitome of relaxation, "grabbing a drink" the only way to network; and meeting at a bar the quintessential "first date," many of us are left wondering if drinking alcohol really is the only way to cultivate joy and connection in life. Jardine Libaire and Amanda Eyre Ward wanted to live spontaneous and luxurious lives, to escape the ordinary and enjoy the intoxicating. Their drinking, however, had started to numb them to the present moment instead of unlocking it. Ward was introduced to Libaire when she first got sober. As they became friends, the two women talked about how they yearned to create lives that were Technicolor, beautifully raw, connected, blissed out, and outside the lines . . . but how? In The Sober Lush, Libaire and Ward provide a road map for living a lush and sensual life without booze"-- Provided by publisher

"The bonds between three picture-perfect, viciously protective mothers are tested when their sons uncover a horrible crime in this provocative novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Jetsetters. In Austin's Zilker Park, vigilance and money are enough to keep one insulated from the world's problems and inconveniences. Here, three mothers -- Whitney, Annette, and Liza -- have grown thick as thieves, and so have their fifteen-year-old sons. While each of them has their own set of values and backgrounds, they share the belief that they can shelter their boys from an increasingly dangerous world. They've raised their families together, and their three sons are about to begin a carefree summer as lifeguards. Their friendship is unbreakable -- as safe as the neighborhood where they've raised their sweet little boys. Until the body is found. One night, the three women have been chatting away, drinking wine, when their boys come back with a harrowing story about finding a young woman dead beside a swimming hole in the Greenbelt, a swath of hiking trails and dim wilderness areas that runs through their neighborhood. They swear they haven't done anything. They agree not to call the police -- because who would want to cause a scene, to topple their fragile images and arouse suspicion? What choice do mothers have but to believe their sons? All families harbor secrets. Privately, none of them is sure that the boys are telling the truth. And with each woman questioning her son -- and her friends' sons -- each wonders how many lies they've told each other. 'The Lifeguards' is a riveting, high-stakes novel about the secrets we tell to protect the ones we love -- and how sometimes your closest neighbor and ally can become your most dangerous foe"-- Provided by publisher

From the award-winning author of 'Forgive Me' and 'How to be Lost' comes a collection of short stories. Linking stories about love, identity and motherhood, the collection includes 'Miss Montana's Wedding', the prize-winning short story that launched Amanda Eyre Ward's career in 1999.

When seventy-year-old Charlotte Perkins submits a sexy essay to the "Become a Jetsetter" contest, she dreams of reuniting her estranged children: Lee, an almost-famous actress; Cord, a handsome Manhattan venture capitalist who can't seem to find a bride; and Regan, a harried mother who took it all wrong when Charlotte bought her a Weight Watchers gift certificate for her birthday. Charlotte yearns for the years when her children were young and she was a single mother who meant everything to them. When she wins the cruise, the family packs all their baggage—literal and figurative—and spends ten days traveling from sun-drenched Athens through glorious Rome to tapas-laden Barcelona on an over-the-top cruise ship, the Splendido Marveloso. As lovers new and old join the adventure, long-buried secrets are revealed, and the Perkins family is forced to confront the defining choices in their lives. Can four lost adults find the peace they've been seeking by reconciling their childhood aches and coming back to each other?In the vein of The Nest and The Vacationers, Ward has created a delicious and intelligent novel about the courage it takes to reveal our true selves, the pleasures and perils of family, and how we navigate the seas of adulthood to cruise—we can only hope—toward joy.

The Peacock sisters, once inseparable, now lead separate lives shaped by decades of secrets and lies. Sylvie, a grieving widow, contemplates love with the enigmatic Simon, while her sister Cleo, a successful lawyer, becomes suspicious of him and seeks to uncover the truth. Meanwhile, Emma grapples with her own deceptions and dreams of a past life. As their toxic mother reenters the picture during a dramatic weekend at a castle, the sisters confront their childhood roles and strive to rediscover forgiveness and joy in their relationships.

Drei Frauen. Drei Schicksale. Drei Versuche, dem Leben Sinn abzutrotzen in verzweifelten Zeiten. In Gatestown, Texas, sitzt die 29jährige Karen im Todestrakt und wartet auf ihre Hinrichtung für eine Serie von Morden. Nicht weit davon, in Austin, befindet sich Celia, die Witwe des letzten Opfers, immer noch in einer Art Delirium und kämpft mit ihrer Trauer. In New York verlässt zur gleichen Zeit die engagierte Ärztin Franny kurz vor der Hochzeit ihren Verlobten und flieht nach Texas, um dort eine Stelle als Gefängnisärztin anzutreten. Jede der drei Frauen ist auf ihre Art eine Gejagte - voller Angst, sich mit der Vergangenheit zu versöhnen und einen Blick in die Zukunft zu werfen. Je näher der Hinrichtungstermin der 29jährigen Karen rückt, desto enger verweben sich ihre Geschichten, und als sich schließlich die Wege der drei Frauen tatsächlich kreuzen, bedeutet diese Begegnung für jede von ihnen Erlösung. James Ellroy, Autor von „L. A. Confidential“ „Ein großartiger Roman!“ Brigitte Young Miss

Die packende Geschichte einer jungen Reporterin, die ein Verbrechen aufklären will und die Liebe findet Seitdem die engagierte Journalistin Nadine Morgan auf tragische Weise ihren Freund verlor, arbeitet sie wie eine Besessene in Krisengebieten auf der ganzen Welt, wohl wissend, dass sie dabei ihr Leben riskiert. Und sie zahlt ihren Preis: nach einem Überfall muss sie bei ihrem Vater in Amerika eine Auszeit nehmen. Dabei hilft ihr unerwartet der junge Arzt Hank, für den sie bald mehr empfindet, als sie sich zugesteht. Doch dann erhält sie Nachricht aus Kapstadt und beschließt, ein letztes Mal an den Ort zurückzukehren, an dem ihr Leben damals aus der Bahn geriet … Mitreißend wie ein guter Kinofilm.

Der Preis des Vergessens.Lauren war gerade sechs Jahre alt, als ihre Mutter ermordet wurde. Der Mörder: Laurens Vater, davon war das Gericht damals überzeugt. Seit über zwanzig Jahren sitzt er im Gefängnis. Seit über zwanzig Jahren hat Lauren den Kontakt zu ihm abgebrochen. Jede Erinnerung an die Mordnacht hat sie verdrängt. Doch als ihr Bruder Alex spurlos verschwindet, entdeckt Lauren in seinen Unterlagen einen Hinweis auf ein Schmuckstück, das am Tatort gefunden wurde. Laurens Mutter trug keine Jadeohrringe. Lauren wird klar, wenn sie erfahren will, was in jener Nacht wirklich geschah, muss sie sich ihren eigenen Erinnerungen stellen ...