A monsignor of the Catholic church, shamed by a secret event in his past and accused of a terrible crime, must join forces with an American missionary, a police chief, and a witch doctor and his wise-woman wife to clear his name.

Newlywed Chief of Police Kate Burkholder is awakened by an urgent midnight call summoning her to a suspicious fire in the woods. When she arrives at the scene, she discovers a charred body. According to the coroner, the deceased, an Amish man named Milan Swanz, was chained to a stake and burned alive. Kate knows all too well that the Amish prefer to handle their problems without interference from the outside world, and no one will speak about the murdered man. From what she’s able to piece together, Swanz led a deeply troubled life and had recently been excommunicated. But if that’s the case, why are the Amish so reluctant to talk about him? Are they protecting the memory of one of their own? Or are they afraid of something they dare not share? When her own brother is implicated in the case, Kate finds herself not only at odds with the Amish, the world of which she was once a part, but also the English community and her counterparts in law enforcement. The investigation takes a violent turn when Kate’s life is threatened by a mysterious stranger.

So much has changed for Thekla Jansen and the people of Burgdorf, Germany, in the year since the parliament building burned. Thekla’s lover is sure the Nazis did it to frame the communists. But Thekla believes that the communists set the fire, and encourages her 10-year-old students to join the “Hitler-Jugend” with its hikes, songs and bonfires.

Temporarily submerged by our economic woes, the debate over immigration policy simmers just below the surface of American political and social life. In MY NEW AMERICAN LIFE, Francine Prose tells the story of Lula, a savvy young Albanian immigrant trying to gain a foothold in a country that at times seems as strange as her native land.

In 1945, a German bomber crash-lands in Iceland during a blizzard, with both German and American officers on board. One of the German officers sets off in search of the nearest farm, only to disappear into the white vastness. Years later, a young Icelander stumbles upon the excavation and promptly disappears. But he first manages to contact his sister, who embarks on a desperate mission to find him.

Dr. Marina Singh is sent to Brazil to track down her former mentor, who seems to have disappeared in the Amazon while working on what is destined to be a valuable new drug. She also hopes to find answers to questions about another friend's death, the state of her company's future, and her own past.

Ellis, Julia and Dorie, who have been best friends since grade school, now find themselves in their mid-30s and at the crossroads of life and love. A month renting an old beach house in North Carolina's Outer Banks is just what each of them needs. But will this month in a summer rental steer them on the path to happiness and forgiveness?

Three women --- two seeking to earn money by donating their eggs, and one wealthier woman who believes a baby will ensure a happy ending for her marriage --- come together in this unexpected love story, which interweaves themes of class and entitlement, surrogacy and donorship, the rights of a parent and the measure of motherhood.