Julie L. Cannon (1962 – 2012) was the author of the award-winning “Homegrown” series, published by Simon & Schuster and described as “Jan Karon crossed with Fannie Flagg.” She tops today’s Buffet with Twang, which one reviewer called an “achingly honest and engrossing novel about a Taylor Swift hopeful who nearly loses herself when she finds fame — a must-read for fans of country music and anyone who’s ever dreamed of becoming a star.”
Julie had this to say about the book:
“I love stories and I love country music. Maybe because country music tells stories. When I sat down to do some research for Twang, it seemed every article I read from a country star’s perspective had some bit about how their great songs sprung from tortured times in their past. There’s even a saying that “you can’t be happy and write good songs.” Twang shows how a wounded country music diva uses her pain to create powerful hit songs that touch others’ lives. My hope and prayer is that Twang shows how cathartic it is to look those hurtful memories in the eye, and ultimately to use the wisdom you glean in your valleys to help others.”
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Twang
Literature & Fiction
Author: Julie L. Cannon
The songs Jennifer Clodfelter writes and sings about drinkin’, cheatin’, lyin’, and leavin’ aren’t from her imagination. With innocence and passion, Jenny pours the pain from her childhood into the lyrics of one Billboard country hit after another. Her manager tells her that confronting those years wrapped in abuse and heartache is a necessary evil, part of the unstoppable force of her destiny to become a country music diva.
For a while, Jenny’s in heaven. She basks in the spotlight on stage and loves living in Nashville, Tennessee. But soon she begins to find there’s a heavy price to pay for such vulnerability. The emotional fallout is staggering when Jenny revisits a certain memory of her teen years. She begins to seriously doubt if the price she’s paying to write her hits songs is worth it. Jenny’s hairdresser, Tonilynn, sees the wounded little girl beneath the star’s on-stage smiles and she attempts to fix Jenny’s broken spirit along with her hair. This is a country music diva’s song of reconciliation with her dark past.
The Rogue and the Hellion
Historical Romance
Author: Connie Mason
When an audacious highwayman held up his coach and pointed a pistol at him, the Marquis of Bathhurst had a critical choice to make – give up his dead brother’s ring or lose the family jewels. Gabriel decided to part with the memento, but only temporarily. He would track down the thief with the unforgettable green eyes if it was the last thing he did.
Everyone knew of the scandalous reputation of the Rogues of London. So when their most infamous member took her in his arms at a society ball, Olivia Fairfax realized his intentions were far from honorable. Gabriel’s hot pursuit made her emerald eyes widen and her pulse race, but was he after a lover or the hellion who’d dared to rob him at gunpoint? Either way, Olivia knew it was now her turn to hand over the good, and she was more than willing to give him her body and her heart.
Whiskey Sour
Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Police Procedurals
Author: J.A. Konrath, Jack Kilborn
Lieutenant Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels is having a bad week. Her live-in boyfriend has left her for his personal trainer, chronic insomnia has caused her to max out her credit cards with late-night home shopping purchases, and a frightening killer who calls himself ‘The Gingerbread Man’ is dumping mutilated bodies in her district.
While avoiding the FBI and its moronic profiling computer, joining a dating service, mixing it up with street thugs, and parrying the advances of an uncouth PI, Jack and her binge-eating partner, Herb, must catch the maniac before he kills again…and Jack is next on his murder list.
All for You
Romance > Contemporary
Author: Kate Perry
Anna Godwin likes it spicy. At least she used to. Somewhere between law school and real life, she lost her sparkle. Now she wears boring business suits to boring dates in her boring life.
The last time Anna remembers feeling that sizzle was with the one man who’s all cayenne and passion: Max Corazao, the one who got away.
Except Max still sees Anna as a woman full of spice. And Anna intends to do whatever she can to be that woman again—with his (unknowing) help…
Medicine Men: Extreme Appalachian Doctoring
Biographies & Memoirs > Medical
Author: Carolyn Jourdan
A collection of the most memorable moments from old-school rural physicians who each practiced medicine for more than 50 years in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. Hilarious, heroic, heartwarming true stories of miracle cures, ghost dogs, and much madcap medical mayhem.
Recession-Proof Retirement
Personal Finance > Retirement Planning
Author: Mark J. Orr CFP
In thinking about your own retirement, does it seem “more probable” to you that your MONEY will outlive you… or that YOU will outlive your money? In either case, the proven strategies in this book can safely make your savings work much harder.
This book is a must have for people who are already retired or within just a few years of their retirement. It shows retirees how to safely increase your interest income, reduce your income taxes and/or predictably increase your security, wealth and legacy.
A successful retirement is no longer a “slam dunk”. With fewer retirees getting sizable pensions, the lingering effects of the great recession of 2008, a decade of stock market volatility and continuing historically low interest rates, managing finances for a long and prosperous retirement can be tricky for all but the very wealthy.
Looking for La La
Women’s Fiction > Humor
Author: Ellie Campbell
Bored stay-at-home mother Cathy finds her predictable routine upturned as she investigates a lipstick-covered love postcard sent to husband, Declan. Who is this mysterious La La? Could Declan really be having an affair? And – wait – is Cathy actually being stalked?
With all her friends hiding secrets, a sexy admirer igniting long-forgotten sparks, and the stress of organizing the school’s Save The Toilets dance, soon it’s not only Cathy’s marriage that’s in jeopardy. Add in the scheming antics of Declan’s new assistant and a possible murderer on the scene and the stage is set for a dangerous showdown and some very unsettling, even deadly, revelations.’
Zombie Cajun Chronicles: A Time To Run
Science Fiction > Post-Apocalyptic
Author: Paul Spite, Ricky Hooter
So you think you’re an expert on the zombie apocalypse? The walking dead, World War Z, warm bodies? All just entertainment, if you find the walking dead amusing. But there was nothing funny about the beginning of the outbreak. Of course, you can really only learn about the beginning, if you’re willing to invest time in the Zombie Cajun Chronicles.
Back in New York, Landon figured his mother was crazy. Always insisting they eat Zombie Cajun Hot Sauce on about everything. But then, maybe his mother wasn’t as insane as he thought. The question haunts him. He’ll find the truth in the bayous of southern Louisiana. You will too. But may we suggest you take a bottle with you?
Mine For Tonight: The Billionaire’s Obsession
Romance > Contemporary
Author: J.S. Scott
Down on her luck, nursing student and full-time waitress Kara Foster gets a massive blow to her already desperate financial situation that will surely find her living on the streets. Needing nothing less than a miracle to save her, Kara gets rescue from an unknown, unlikely and overwhelming source. Billionaire Simon Hudson makes her an offer that is impossible to refuse, but terrifying to accept from a man that she’s never met. Will the handsome, alpha billionaire really be a solution to her problems, or will he end up being a major complication and a danger to her emotional sanity?
Seven Unholy Days
Genre Fiction > Action & Adventure
Author: Jerry Hatchett
A simple glitch in a power grid heralds the beginning of a madman’s scheme to bring about a biblical apocalypse.
Tech celebrity Matt Decker is on top of the world until his flagship creation, the system that runs the U.S. power grid, suffers a crippling cyber attack. Chaos follows as a ruthless maniac sets out to create his own version of Revelation’s battle of Armageddon. And he’s making it personal as he blames Decker for the escalating disasters that stretch from New York to Israel to the “sulfurous scarps of hell.”
Three Moons Over Sedona
Women’s Fiction > Contemporary Women
Author: Sherry Hartzler
- $2.99 List Price
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Georgia Mae Brown has always lived an ordinary life. That is, until her husband dies in the arms of a younger woman. Six weeks after his death, Georgia slides behind the wheel of her husband’s beloved 1976 Fleetwood convertible, starts the engine and just keeps driving. Empowered by a volatile mix of freedom and retribution, Georgia begins a journey of a lifetime.
Unseen
Mystery > Women Sleuths
Author: John Michael Hileman
Life for Jake Paris is stable and ordinary–until a mysterious old woman pays him a visit and he begins to have encounters with unruly children everywhere he goes—children only he can see.
When Jake’s estranged sister, Holly, finds herself the target of a national serial killer who has chosen her son as his next victim, Jake begins to wonder if there is a connection. Could these children be the ghosts of the killer’s victims?
The Seven Steps to Closure
Romantic Comedy
Author: Donna Joy Usher
Tara Babcock awakes the morning after her 30th birthday with a hangover that could kill an elephant — and the knowledge she is still no closer to achieving closure on her marriage breakup. Things go from bad to worse when she discovers that, not only is her ex-husband engaged to her cousin but that Jake is also running for Lord Mayor of Sydney.
… See the rest of today’s Editor’s Picks here on page 2