The job was simple. Always answer the phone—no exceptions—then solve the caller’s catastrophe as efficiently as possible.
The rules were simpler. They contact you, not the other way around. Never give them your real name, number, or any personal information not required to help a newly single dad keep his head above water. And never, ever get involved with a caller. The Single Dad Hotline exists to provide anonymous support, practical advice, and reassurance—nothing more 📞
Simple, right?
Becker Hayes was not who I was expecting to call during my shift with the Single Dad Hotline. He’s my boss’s boss. In the boardroom he’s rich, powerful, detached—the kind of executive who barely acknowledges her existence. In my calendar he’s the enigmatic one-time kiss I was never supposed to see again, a moment of weakness at an office party that should have stayed forgotten. But on the other end of the phone, he’s vulnerable and reeling from becoming guardian to his young nieces, his carefully controlled world crumbling around him 💼
I’m not thinking straight when I offer him a little help off the books. Not when my mother’s illness is winning the battle and I’d give anything for a distraction from the loneliness. His need mirrors my own—the desperation for human connection, for someone who understands the weight of caring for others when you’re barely holding yourself together. What starts as one rule-breaking favor spirals into something neither of them planned 💕
So when the Single Dad Hotline blows up my life, what’s a girl to do but say yes to everything he’s offering? Becker needs more than hotline advice—he needs partnership, support, and maybe something deeper. And she needs a reason to believe that taking risks on broken, complicated people can lead somewhere beautiful instead of just more heartbreak 🌟
Why this touches the heart: Avery Maxwell weaves grief, hope, and healing into a contemporary romance that feels authentic and emotionally rich. The Single Dad Hotline concept is fresh, the chemistry is electric, and both characters are dealing with real pain that makes their connection all the more powerful.
Recovering from a lengthy illness, Georgina Jeffries is sent to convalesce in the Devonshire home of her father’s cousin. Finding an instant friendship with his daughter, Fleur, the two of them eagerly await a garden party to be held on the fine estate of the young and handsome Duke of Calder. The peaceful countryside offers healing, but it’s the promise of society and new faces that truly lifts her spirits after months of isolation 🌸
But when she first meets him, Georgina is certain that she knows him from somewhere, she just cannot place the handsome man anywhere in her memory. There’s something in his eyes, in the way he watches her, that stirs forgotten feelings and half-remembered moments. The sensation is maddening—like trying to grasp smoke 🎭
Emerson Lockhart is a man with a secret. Now the Duke of Calder, he is painfully aware that he was not always so. And when he meets Miss Georgina Jeffries again after more than ten years, he is relieved to realize that she does not recognize him as the boy who was once a servant in her home—the boy who had once been her only friend during a difficult childhood when other children shunned her 💎
But when the Duke lets his old nickname for her slip, Georgina finds herself spiraling back in time, instantly remembering young Sammy White, the servant boy and childhood friend who had disappeared so suddenly and without explanation so many years before. The revelation shatters everything she thought she knew about class, friendship, and the man standing before her. How did a servant’s son become a Duke? And why did he vanish without saying goodbye? 👑
As a team, can the two of them discover the young Duke’s true origins? And can they, along the way, finally navigate the growing romance which both of them would try to deny? The mystery of his past becomes intertwined with their future, as secrets threaten to tear them apart just when they’ve found each other again 💕
Why this captivates: Bridget Barton creates a Regency romance with genuine mystery at its heart, exploring themes of class, identity, and childhood bonds that transcend social barriers. The reunion of friends-turned-lovers adds emotional depth that elevates this beyond typical historical romance.
With over 6,000 five-star reviews across Amazon and Goodreads, this nearly complete fae fantasy romance series is a must-read for fans of epic fae worlds and forbidden love.
A queen in hiding. Two countries at war. When eighteen-year-old Arianna is stolen from her family and sold into slavery, she spends months disguised as a half-breed Fae struggling against the devastations of a decade-long war. Every day is a fight for survival, every moment a risk of her true identity being discovered. The slave markets are brutal, but they’re nothing compared to what awaits her 👑
But she never expected to find herself at the mercy of her country’s greatest enemy. General Rion is ruthless and commanding. He relishes in his reputation as The Demon—a vile creature incapable of love or compassion, the boogeyman that mothers use to frighten children. His name alone inspires terror across the war-torn lands. To fall into his hands should mean certain death 🗡️
With a secret no one can know, Arianna strives to placate him while plotting her escape, but sometimes fate has other plans and rumors can’t always be trusted. The Demon isn’t quite what the stories claim, and proximity reveals layers she never expected. He’s still dangerous—perhaps more so because of the complexity she discovers beneath the monster’s mask ⚔️
She’ll have to make a choice. Kill the most feared male on the continent or stay and let a forbidden bond take root. But what will happen when he discovers her secret? The longer she stays, the more the lines blur between enemy and something far more dangerous. When he learns who she really is, will he see her as his prisoner, his enemy—or something neither of them can afford? 💔
What makes this irresistible: J.E. Reed builds a sweeping fae world with political intrigue, enemy-to-lovers tension, and a heroine hiding in plain sight. The massive reader following speaks to the addictive nature of this series—start book one and you’ll be bingeing straight through.
Putney: A Novel
A provocative and absorbing novel about the far-reaching repercussions of an illicit relationship between a young girl and a man twenty years her senior—and how decades later, the reckoning finally comes. A rising star in the London arts scene of the early 1970s, gifted composer Ralph Boyd is approached by renowned novelist Edmund Greenslay to score a stage adaptation of his most famous work. Welcomed into Greenslay’s sprawling bohemian house in Putney, an artistic and prosperous district in southwest London where creative types gather and boundaries blur, the musical wunderkind is introduced to Greenslay’s beautiful activist wife Ellie, his aloof son Theo, and his young daughter Daphne, who quickly becomes Ralph’s muse. 🎵
Ralph showers Daphne with tokens of his affection—clandestine gifts and secret notes that make a lonely child feel special, seen, chosen. In a home that is exciting but often lonely, where adults are consumed by art and politics and children are decorative afterthoughts, Daphne finds Ralph to be a dazzling companion for many years. When Ralph accompanies Daphne alone to meet her parents in Greece, their relationship intensifies irrevocably in ways that will haunt them both. One person knows the truth about their relationship: Daphne’s best friend Jane, whose awe of the mesmerizing Greenslay family ensures her silence—because who would believe her, and what would she lose if she told? 💔
Decades later, Daphne is back in London after years lost to decadence and drug abuse, struggling to create a normal, stable life for herself and her adolescent daughter. When circumstances bring her back in touch with Jane, their reunion inevitably turns to Ralph, now a world-famous musician also living in the city. Daphne’s recollections of her youth and her growing anxiety over her own young daughter eventually lead to an explosive realization that propels her to confront Ralph and the years they spent together. Masterfully told from three diverse viewpoints—victim, perpetrator, and witness—Putney is a subtle and enormously powerful novel about consent, agency, and what we tell ourselves to justify what we do and what others do to us. 🎭
What makes this powerful: Provocative absorbing novel about far-reaching repercussions of illicit relationship between young girl and man twenty years her senior, rising star composer Ralph Boyd welcomed into renowned novelist Edmund Greenslay’s sprawling bohemian Putney house, young daughter Daphne quickly becoming Ralph’s muse with him showering her with clandestine gifts and secret notes, relationship intensifying irrevocably when Ralph accompanies Daphne alone to Greece, and decades later Daphne back in London struggling with growing anxiety over own daughter leading to explosive realization confronting Ralph, masterfully told from three viewpoints of victim perpetrator and witness about consent and agency.
More than just a beautiful paradise of beaches and sunsets, Hawai’i has a rich culture deeply rooted in tradition that has survived colonization, exploitation, and commodification. Native Hawaiian and cultural expert Kainoa Daines has spent many years teaching visitors to the islands about this time-honored wisdom—not the tourist-brochure version of aloha, but the real teachings that have guided Native Hawaiians for generations—and now he has teamed up with journalist Annie Daly to share that knowledge with you in a way that honors rather than appropriates. 🌺
Island Wisdom is an inspirational and rewarding journey through traditional Hawaiian teachings that have stood the test of time, from how to be pono (live a balanced life in harmony with yourself, others, and the land) to how to mālama ‘āina (preserve and protect the land, recognizing that we don’t own it—we’re merely its caretakers for future generations). Filled with the voices and guidance of Hawaiian elders who’ve dedicated their lives to preserving culture, regional folklore passed down through oral tradition, and ancient teachings that modern life desperately needs—plus gorgeous local photography and illustrations throughout that capture the spirit of the islands—Island Wisdom is a celebration of Hawaiian culture, language, and values. 🌊
Between learning the true meaning of aloha (it’s not just “hello”—it’s a way of being in the world with compassion and respect), understanding the concept of ‘ohana (family, but deeper—it includes community, ancestors, and the land itself), discovering why Hawaiians greet the sunrise and what it means to live with intention, and applying these principles to modern challenges like environmental crisis and disconnection, you’ll gain a deeper understanding, appreciation, and respect for Hawai’i and the Hawaiian way of life that transforms tourism into genuine cultural connection. ☀️
What makes this meaningful: More than beautiful paradise with Hawai’i having rich culture deeply rooted in tradition, Native Hawaiian cultural expert Kainoa Daines spending years teaching visitors time-honored wisdom teaming with journalist Annie Daly, inspirational rewarding journey through traditional Hawaiian teachings standing test of time, learning how to be pono living balanced life and mālama ‘āina preserving and protecting land, and filled with Hawaiian elders’ voices with gorgeous photography celebrating culture language and values giving deeper understanding appreciation and respect.
An illustrated, nostalgic how-to guide to achieving a clean, organized, and happy home—with over 500 retro tips and tricks that actually work better than modern solutions! Return your household to the simpler times of yesteryear with this delightful guide full of time- and money-saving tips on everything from cleaning and organizing your home (without a closet full of expensive specialty products) to buying and handling food (before everything came pre-packaged and over-processed). Even in an age of endless new household products and devices promising to revolutionize your life, these old-fashioned, tried-and-true methods can help any homeowner keep a cleaner, happier home without breaking the bank. 🏠
A thoroughly researched compendium of the best American home life tips from the 1920s through the ’60s—when grandmothers knew exactly how to remove any stain, preserve any food, and solve any household crisis with ingenuity rather than credit cards—Classic Household Hints is filled with useful information that’s stood the test of time, full-color illustrations that capture the charm of mid-century domesticity, fascinating sidebars about how home life has changed (and what we’ve lost along the way), and vintage quotes that provide practical help as well as entertainment for housekeepers and neat freaks everywhere. 🧹
Between discovering that white vinegar and baking soda solve 90% of cleaning problems for pennies, learning Depression-era food preservation techniques that reduce waste, finding out how to organize without buying expensive storage systems, understanding why your grandmother’s methods for stain removal work better than modern chemicals, and rediscovering the satisfaction of maintaining a home with skill rather than consumption, this book proves that sometimes the old ways are the best ways. For anyone overwhelmed by modern complexity or budgets stretched thin by endless products, Classic Household Hints offers refreshingly simple solutions. ✨
What makes this invaluable: Illustrated nostalgic how-to guide achieving clean organized happy home with over 500 retro tips and tricks, returning household to simpler yesteryear times with time and money-saving tips on cleaning organizing and buying food, old-fashioned tried-and-true methods helping homeowners keep cleaner happier home, thoroughly researched compendium of best American home life tips from 1920s through ’60s, and filled with useful information, full-color illustrations, fascinating sidebars and quotes providing practical help and fun.
… See the rest of today ‘s Book Picks here on page 3Page 3