Gretchen Galway tops today’s Buffet with her romantic comedy Love Handles, the first installment in her “Oakland Hills” series.

The story: When a couch potato inherits a fitness wear company in San Francisco, sparks fly with her arrogant, Olympic-medalist vice president.

Gretchen writes romantic comedies, she says, because love is too painful to survive without laughing. A native of the American Midwest, she now lives in California with her husband and two kids.

As usual, each book listed here has gone FREE within the past 24 hours (except for the “Bargain Books” at the bottom of this page). Warning: Kindle book promotions can end without notice, so before downloading, click the link “See Kindle price at Amazon” to verify that the book is still free. (Prices and availability may differ outside USA.)

Love Handles (Oakland Hills Book 1)

 Romantic Comedy

Love Handles (A Romantic Comedy) (Oakland Hills Book 1)

The world of fitness apparel isn’t ready for Beverly Lewis. She hates the gym, is nice to everybody, and shops at Ross Dress for Less. When she’s not teaching preschool, she’s wearing yoga pants . . . to nap in. So when she inherits her estranged grandfather’s fitnesswear company in San Francisco, nobody expects her to keep it. Fite Fitness needs a heartless suit to save it from bankruptcy, not a thirty-year-old woman who cries when her students leave for kindergarten.

Someone like Liam Johnson. A former Olympic swimmer, Liam is Fite’s executive vice president. Unlike Bev, he’s devoted his life to Fite’s success. Managing one little preschool teacher—and his attraction to her—shouldn’t be an issue. Right?

But Bev’s tired of being underpaid and underrated, and refuses to step aside as an obedient figurehead. To everyone’s shock and horror, she moves up to San Francisco, sets up an office, and dives into the business. Nothing—not mockery, not exercise, not sabotage, not a disastrously hot night with her aggravating VP—is going to scare her away.

As Liam realizes she’s tougher than she looks, he discovers that losing Fite might not be nearly as bad as losing her . . .

A story about the pursuit of love, happiness, and the perfect yoga pants, Love Handles will speak to anyone who’s ever had to face what scares her most.

Home Improvement (A Pajaro Bay Cozy Mystery)

 Christian Fiction > Romance > Mystery & Suspense

Home Improvement (A Pajaro Bay Cozy Mystery + Sweet Romance)

Kimberly Bishop married her soul mate. Then he died. Now she’s a 27-year-old widow with a broken-down cottage, a bunch of crazy friends–and a big hole in her heart. But maybe a second chance at love is right under her nose….

The Pajaro Bay novels have won dozens of awards, including the Romance Writers of America’s prestigious Golden Heart® Award for Romantic Suspense. Readers praise the series for its “sweetness,” its “excellent characterization,” and say the books are “adorable, lively and like a warm hug.”

Emma (Mail-Order Brides Club Book 1)

 Romance > Westerns

Emma: (A Sweet Western Historical Romance) (Mail-Order Brides Club Book 1)

Emma Byrne grew up in a Catholic orphanage in Boston, and her prospects are limited. She and her group of girlfriends, who all met in the orphanage, are barely getting by, working as nannies, cooks, and live-in maids for rich families. When Emma’s employer, Gerald, threatens her with losing her job if she doesn’t submit to his very unwanted advances, she stumbles onto an opportunity to be a mail-order bride and decides that couldn’t possibly be worse.

Except that the groom in question had no idea that his brother sent for a wife. When Emma shows up, at the train station in Bozeman, MT, it’s her groom’s brother, Joshua that is there to greet her. As it turns out, Ethan is furious that his brother went behind his back and sent for a wife. He’s still grieving from the unexpected death of his wife Allison only a year earlier, and spends all his time when he’s not working, being a good dad to his only child, Emily, who is three.

Evicting Erlene (The Elmo Jenkins Novelettes Book 1)

 Christian Fiction > Humor

Evicting Erlene (The Elmo Jenkins Novelettes Book 1)

Loveable and eccentric Erlene Markham stars as the feisty senior adult from the popular Elmo Jenkins novels. Readers will enjoy following Erlene’s point of view as she takes on the stuffy new administrator at the Ackerman ALF where she resides. Ms. Merryweather Succop may be highly qualified to get the ALF out of the red, but she’s sorely lacking in the TLC department. As the two head-strong ladies brace for the inevitable showdown, Erlene calls in Elmo and Father Ted for reinforcement.

Who will survive this epic throw down?

The Ultimate Book of Quotations

 Reference > Quotations

The Ultimate Book of Quotations

The Ultimate Book Of Quotations is an invaluable tool for writers, public speakers, coaches, business leaders or anyone who wishes to improve communications. This book is conveniently organized by subjects with over 500 pages of quotations for every occasion , Including motivational quotes, friendship quotes, life quotes, love quotes, funny quotes, famous quotes, inspirational quotes, happiness quotes and many more. The Ultimate Book of Quotations’ alphabetical organization by subjects makes finding quotes easy and user friendly.

Quotations about Quotes:

“The wisdom of the wise, and the experience of ages, may be preserved by quotation.” – Isaac D’Israeli

“A quotation in a speech, article or book is like a rifle in the hands of an infantryman. It speaks with authority.” – Brendan Behan

“A quotation at the right moment is like bread to the famished.” – Talmud

“The wisdom of the wise and the experience of the ages is preserved into perpetuity by a nation’s proverbs, fables, folk sayings and quotations.” -William Feather

“By necessity, by proclivity, and by delight, we all quote.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Quotations help us remember the simple yet profound truths that give life perspective and meaning. When it comes to life’s most important lessons, we can all use gentle reminders.” – Chriswell Freeman

“The next best thing to being clever is being able to quote someone who is.” – Mary Pettibone Poole

Confessions of a Scholarship Judge: How Your Kid Can Easily Win $100,000 in Scholarships

 Higher & Continuing Education > Financial Aid

Confessions of a Scholarship Judge: How Your Kid Can Easily Win $100,000 in Scholarships

98% of scholarship applications end up in the trash because of a couple dozen common mistakes. And if that weren’t bad enough, it turns out scholarship judges are just as tired, frazzled, cranky and prejudiced as the rest of us. If you actually think you’re gonna win scholarship money, you’d better know EXACTLY the kind of stuff that guys like Judge Josh hate to see in a scholarship application. Josh Barsch has given over $100,000 of his own money to scholarship winners since 2003, and he wrote this book to help you join the 2% of applicants who actually win scholarship money. **Includes over 100 pages of real-life essays with instructional commentary by the author.**

A Call to Arms: Book One of the Chronicles of Arden

 Fantasy > Epic > Gay

A Call to Arms: Book One of the Chronicles of Arden

Gibben Nemesio is in trouble.

His parents are dead, his sister is missing, and he’s been left the sole provider for his two younger brothers. With a war brewing in the east and no guarantee of surviving another brutal winter, Gib’s life is plagued by uncertainty. To make matters worse, he suddenly finds himself uprooted from his home and drafted into the army.

Forced to leave his siblings behind, Gib reports to Silver City, where he enrolls in the legendary Academy of Arden. An outsider and misfit, Gib struggles to blend in among the highborn city folk. His charming candor eventually wins him a handful of friends—an enigmatic mage trainee with a secret, a young girl who has defied tradition by joining the military, and a prince looking to escape his stifling, royal life. But his new-found comrades may not be able to help when Gib alone overhears a traitorous plot—a scheme so horrible that if seen to fruition, all of Arden will suffer for it. It’s up to Gib to convince the High Council of Arden to act, to stop the terrible danger, before it’s too late.

Going Nowhere (Twenty-Something Series Book 1)

 Romance > New Adult & College

Going Nowhere (Twenty-Something Series Book 1)

Marisol Finnegan has done everything right to ensure that when she graduated college she’d have the kickass life she always wanted. That’s what we’re told right? A + B = C? Yeah, well sometimes C is being a twenty-four year old virgin moving home with your parents.

So not ideal.

Before entering this tragically pathetic phase of her life, Marisol stops at a bar for a drink. It’s here where her life really changes when she meets her catalyst…Jason Scott.

After everything you’ve ever done has backfired and you no longer trust yourself how are you able to navigate a relationship? How do you even begin to love yourself let alone someone else?

TODAY’S BARGAINS……………What’s this?

Justine (The Alexandria Quartet, 1)

 Literature & Fiction > British & Irish > Historical

Justine (The Alexandria Quartet, 1)

The acclaimed first novel of the Alexandria Quartet, and the celebrated story of an all-consuming love transcending time and place.
Set in Alexandria, Egypt, in the years between World Wars I and II, Justine is the first installment in the distinguished Alexandria Quartet. Here Lawrence Durrell crafts an exquisite and challenging modern novel that explores tragic love and the fluidity of recollection. Employing a fluctuating narrative and poetic prose, Durrell recounts his unnamed narrator’s all-encompassing romance with the intoxicating Justine. The result is a matchless work that confronts all we understand and believe about sexual desire, identity, place, and the certainty of time.

Mother Earth Father Sky (The Ivory Carver Trilogy Book 1)

 Historical Fiction

Mother Earth Father Sky (The Ivory Carver Trilogy Book 1)

A young woman fights for survival amid the brutality of the last Ice Age.
It’s 7056 BC, a time before history. On the first day that Chagak’s womanhood is acknowledged within her Aleut tribe, she unexpectedly finds herself betrothed to Seal Stalker, the most promising young hunter in the village. A bright future lies ahead of Chagak—but in one violent moment, she loses her entire way of life. Left with her infant brother, Pup, and only a birdskin parka for warmth, Chagak sets out across the icy waters on a quest for survival and revenge.

We Are All Completely Fine

 Horror > Dark Fantasy

We Are All Completely Fine

Harrison is the Monster Detective, a storybook hero. Now he’s in his mid-thirties and spends most of his time not sleeping. Stan became a minor celebrity after being partially eaten by cannibals. Barbara is haunted by the messages carved upon her bones. Greta may or may not be a mass-murdering arsonist. And for some reason, Martin never takes off his sunglasses.

Unsurprisingly, no one believes their horrific tales until they are sought out by psychotherapist Dr. Jan Sayer. What happens when these questionably-sane outcasts join a support group? Together they must discover which monsters they face are within, and which are lurking in plain sight.

The 5 Levels of Leadership: Proven Steps to Maximize Your Potential

 Business & Money > Management & Leadership

The 5 Levels of Leadership: Proven Steps to Maximize Your Potential

True leadership isn’t a matter of having a certain job or title. In fact, being chosen for a position is only the first of the five levels every effective leader achieves. To become more than “the boss” people follow only because they are required to, you have to master the ability to invest in people and inspire them. To grow further in your role, you must achieve results and build a team that produces. You need to help people to develop their skills to become leaders in their own right. And if you have the skill and dedication, you can reach the pinnacle of leadership-where experience will allow you to extend your influence beyond your immediate reach and time for the benefit of others.

The 5 Levels of Leadership are:
1. Position – People follow because they have to.
2. Permission – People follow because they want to.
3. Production – People follow because of what you have done for the organization.
4. People Development – People follow because of what you have done for them personally.
5. Pinnacle – People follow because of who you are and what you represent.

Through humor, in-depth insight, and examples, internationally recognized leadership expert John C. Maxwell describes each of these stages of leadership. He shows you how to master each level and rise up to the next to become a more influential, respected, and successful leader.

Wildflower Hill

 Women’s Fiction > Contemporary Women

Wildflower Hill

Hailed by bestselling author Kate Morton as “a gorgeous story of family and secrets and the redemptive power of love,” Wildflower Hill is s compelling and romantic novel spanning three generations and half the world, from modern day London to Australia in the 1930s.

Emma is a prima ballerina in London and at a crossroads after an injured knee ruins her career. When she learns of her grandmother Beattie’s death, and her own strange inheritance—an isolated sheep station in rural Australia—Emma is certain she has been saddled with an irritating burden. But when she returns to Australia, forced to rest her body and confront her life, she realizes that she had been using fame as a substitute for love and fulfillment.

Beattie also found herself at a crossroads as a young woman, but she was pregnant and unwed. She eventually found success—but only after following an unconventional path that was often dangerous and heartbreaking. Beattie knew the lessons she learned in life would be important to Emma one day, and she wanted to make sure Emma’s heart remained open to love, no matter what life brought. She knew the magic of the Australian wilderness would show Emma the way.

… See the rest of today’s Editor’s Picks here on page 2

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