With Labor Day behind us, publishers are beginning to rollout their most anticipated books. Here are some of the new fiction books hitting the books shelves this week.
Getting to Happy
by Terry McMillan
Publisher: Viking
Fifteen years after Waiting to Exhale, McMillan brings back Savannah, Gloria, Bernadine, and Robin–now in their 50s–for a disappointing and uninspired outing. As the story opens, Gloria is very happy, Savannah believes she might be happy, Bernadine is fighting addiction and losing ground, and single mother Robin is trying to resign herself to being alone while things at her job begin to unravel. Within the first few chapters, Gloria and Savannah are struck by disaster, and things go rapidly downhill from there for everyone. Most of the misery has to do with men who lie, steal, cheat, or disappear, or with adult children who face similar problems. Unfortunately, the beloved cast isn’t given a story worthy of them; instead, this reunion reads like a catalogue of personal catastrophes annotated with very long, rambling discussions, with more emphasis on simple drama than character.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
No Mercy (Dark Hunter)
by Sherrilyn Kenyon
Publisher: St. Martin’s
Live fast, fight hard and if you have to die then take as many of your enemies with you as you can. That is the Amazon credo and it was one Samia lived and died by. Now in contemporary New Orleans, the immortal Amazon warrior is about to learn that there’s a worse evil coming to slaughter mankind than she’s ever faced before. Shapeshifter Dev Peltier has stood guard at the front of Sanctuary for almost two hundred years and in that time, he’s seen it all. Or so he thought. Now their enemies have discovered a new source of power- one that makes a mockery of anything faced to date. The war is on and Dev and Sam are guarding ground zero. But in order to win, they will have to break the most cardinal of all rules and pray it doesn’t unravel the universe as we know it.
The Thorn (The Rose Trilogy, Book 1)
by Beverly Lewis
Publisher: Baker Publishing
Lancaster County, with its rolling meadows and secret byways, may seem idyllic, but it is not without its thorns. THE ROSE TRILOGY is the stirring saga of two Amish sisters on the fringes of the church, and the unforeseen discoveries that change their lives. Rose Kauffman, a spirited young woman, has a close friendship with the bishop’s foster son. Nick dresses Plain and works hard but stirs up plenty of trouble too. Rose’s sister cautions her against becoming too involved, but Rose is being courted by a good, Amish fellow, so dismisses the warnings. Meanwhile, Rose keeps house for an English widower but is startled when he forbids her to ever go upstairs. What is the man hiding? Rose’s older sister, Hen, knows more than she should about falling for the wrong man. Unable to abandon her Amish ways, Hen is soon separated from her very modern husband. Mattie, their young daughter, must visit her father regularly, but Hen demands she wear Amish attire–and speak Pennsylvania Dutch, despite her husband’s wishes. Will Hen be able to reestablish her place among the People she abandoned? And will she be able to convince Rose to steer clear of rogue neighbor Nick?
Lydia’s Charm: An Amish Widow Starts Over in Charm, Ohio
by Wanda Brunstetter
Publisher: Barbour Publishing
Widowed and jobless, Lydia King moves her son and herself to Charm, Ohio, to be close to her mother and help with her grandfather. Menno Troyer, a furniture store owner, is also recently widowed and the father of four energetic boys. Levi Stutzman, another newcomer to the area, is the only one in his family not handicapped by dwarfism and has dedicated his life to caring for them. As fall colors the countryside, will anonymous gifts left for Lydia bring her hope for a new life and romance, or will another tragedy flood her with infinite despair?
Late for School
by Steve Martin
Publisher: Grand Central
Gettting to school has never been quite this difficult—or hilarious. Celebrated writer and performer Steve Martin and dynamic artist C. F. Payne have teamed up to tell a story of the adventure, danger, and laughs of the journey to school. Enclosed with the book is a CD of Martin on banjo and vocals, singing the book’s story with a bluegrass twist.
The Unnamed
by Joshua Ferris
Publisher: Little Brown
In Ferris’s remarkable second novel (after Then We Came to the End), a life of privilege comes to ruin as a result of a strange and mysterious illness. Attorney Tim Farnsworth thought he had recovered from a disorder that compels him to walk to the point of exhaustion. But now his walking disease has returned and shows no sign of going into remission. His wife, Jane, supportive beyond measure, does everything she can to keep Tim safe during his walks, including making routine midnight trips to pick him up. As the disorder takes increasing control over their lives, however, the sacrifices they make for each other drive them further apart. Ferris manages to inject a bizarre whimsy into a devastatingly sad story, with each of Tim’s outings revealing a new aspect of his marriage. The novel’s circular aspects, with would-be happy endings spiraling back into chaos and then descending further, integrate Ferris’s themes of family, sickness, and the uncertain division between body and mind into a vastly satisfying and original book. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
If you’re interested in a more inspirational book, check out the following from Baker Publishing:
City on Our Knees
by TobyMac
Publisher: Baker Publishing
Bestselling recording artist TobyMac has a passion for inspiring believers to step out and take action for their faith. Through compelling stories and Scripture, City on Our Knees will illustrate how Christians past and present have set aside differences, come together in unity, and stepped forward in action and prayer. Readers will be encouraged and inspired to do the same, summoning the commitment, courage, and devotion to bring a city to its knees.
Have a New You By Friday: How to Accept Yourself, Boost Your Confidence & Change Your Life in 5 Days
by Dr. Kevin Leman
Publisher: Baker Publishing
How many times have we tried to change our own habits, only to find that changing ourselves is even harder than trying to change someone else? Now, what the bestselling Have a New Kid by Friday has done for families and Have a New Husband by Friday has done for couples, Have a New You by Friday will do for individuals. With his signature wit and commonsense psychology, Dr. Kevin Leman will walk readers through their own personal five-day action plan. Readers will come to -accept the truth about themselves -boost their confidence by identifying the lies they’re telling themselves–and putting them to rest for good -change their lives by concentrating on becoming who they really want to be Based on content from The Real You, Have a New You by Friday is the way to a happier, more fulfilling life.
Choosing to SEE: A Journey of Struggle and Hope
by Mary Beth Chapman
Publisher: Baker Publishing
I’ve told my kids for years that God doesn’t make mistakes,” writes Mary Beth Chapman, wife of Grammy award winning recording artist Steven Curtis Chapman. “Would I believe it now, when my whole world as I knew it came to an end?” Covering her courtship and marriage to Steven Curtis Chapman, struggles for emotional balance, and living with grief, Mary Beth’s story is our story–wondering where God is when the worst happens. In Choosing to SEE, she shows how she wrestles with God even as she has allowed him to write her story–both during times of happiness and those of tragedy. Readers will hear firsthand about the loss of her daughter, the struggle to heal, and the unexpected path God has placed her on. Even as difficult as life can be, Mary Beth Chapman Chooses to SEE.
What’s on your reading list this week?
