Adult

Eastern Europe, 1944: Three women believe they are pregnant, but are torn from their husbands before they can be certain. Rachel is sent to Auschwitz, unaware that her husband has been shot. Priska and her husband travel there together, but are immediately separated. Also at Auschwitz, Anka hopes in vain to be reunited with her husband. With the rest of their families gassed, these young wives are determined to hold on to all they have left --- their lives, and those of their unborn babies.

Young couples gather to participate in an annual "chainsaw party," cutting down trees for firewood in anticipation of the winter. A group of men spend a weekend hunting for mushrooms in the wilderness where they grew up and where some still find themselves trapped. An aging environmentalist takes out his frustration and anger on a singular, unsuspecting target. Together, the 10 stories in Nickolas Butler’s collection evoke a landscape that will be instantly recognizable to anyone who has traveled the back roads and blue highways of America.

Detective Lindsay Boxer is called to a gruesome crime scene, where a woman has been murdered in broad daylight. As she investigates, shocking video footage of another crime surfaces. Their faces obscured by masks, the cold-blooded criminals on the tape could be anyone --- and now all of Lindsay's co-workers are suspects. As a rash of violence sweeps through San Francisco, Lindsay and her friends must risk their lives in the name of justice before it's too late.

From Mary Higgins Clark’s first-ever published story, to classic tales featuring Alvirah and Willy, My Gal Sunday and many more, DEATH WEARS A BEAUTY MASK AND OTHER STORIES gives readers the chance to revisit the short story highlights from the “Queen of Suspense.” The jewel of this collection is the title novella showcasing the dazzling and dangerous world of high fashion in 1970s New York City. Mary began the story in 1974 but put it aside to write WHERE ARE THE CHILDREN?, the book that launched her career. Fortunately, she returned to it nearly 40 years later.

Annabel Beam spent most of her childhood in and out of hospitals with a rare and incurable digestive disorder that prevented her from ever living a normal, healthy life. When she was able to go outside and play with her sisters one day, she fell three stories headfirst inside an old, hollowed-out tree. Implausibly, she survived without a scratch. While unconscious inside the tree, with rescue workers struggling to get to her, she visited Heaven. After being released from the hospital, she defied science and was inexplicably cured of her chronic ailment.

With her weight issues at the forefront of her mind, Seraphina Darling prefers to place herself comfortably in the background. But when her best friend and older brother announce their engagement, she vows to make a permanent change in her appearance and her life. Meanwhile, her younger sister, Amy, lands her dream job: coordinating the restoration of the community theater’s arts programs. As the deadline for the project’s completion approaches, Amy continues to run herself ragged, struggling to delegate and trust anyone but herself.

FBI Agent Laurel Evertson’s investigation into a scam targeting the elderly takes an unexpected twist when key evidence leads her to Morton Wilmington, a felon she arrested five years ago on her first undercover assignment. Houston Police Officer Daniel Hilton fears his grandparents may be the scammer’s next targets, and he’ll do anything to protect his family --- even force interagency cooperation. But he’s quickly drawn to Laurel’s empathy and zeal, and agrees to follow her lead...even if it means teaming up with a felon.

Long before anyone would christen it “The Dust Bowl,” Nola Merrill senses the destruction. She’s been drying up bit by bit since the day her mother died. A hasty marriage to a young preacher didn’t bring the escape she desired. Now, 12 years later with two children to raise, new seeds of dissatisfaction take root. When Jim, a mysterious drifter and long-lost friend from her husband’s past, takes refuge in their home, Nola slowly springs to life under his attentions until a single, reckless encounter brings her to commit the ultimate betrayal of her marriage.

The Bible can seem like a big, intimidating book. How can 21st-century readers make sense of it all? Author Stan Guthrie’s answer: begin by zooming in on one key verse for each of the Bible’s 66 books. Seeking to bring clarity and simplicity to the study of God’s Word, Guthrie has written a concise, easy-to-digest collection of wisdom anchored by one verse for each book, from Genesis to Revelation --- a verse that summarizes or lays the foundation for that book, placing it in context with the rest of the Scriptures.

Well-known biblical phrases --- "in the fullness of time," "fearfully and wonderfully made," "in the beauty of holiness" and others --- suggest and evoke and invite. In WHAT'S IN A PHRASE?, Marilyn Chandler McEntyre offers brief reflections on more than 50 such scriptural phrases that prompt readers to pay attention, to pause where we sense a beckoning. The three sections of the book --- "Assurance," "Invitation" and "Surprise" --- organize the reflections by tone as well as theme.