Lake Geneva, Wisconsin is a small Midwestern town known for peaceful lakes and dairy farms. It is not the kind of place you’d expect to find a Playboy Resort. And nineteen-year-old Sherri Taylor—church organist, small-town girl who’s never quite felt comfortable in her own skin—is not the kind of person you’d expect to find working as a Playboy Bunny. But when both her parents die in quick succession, Sherri’s entire world collapses, and she needs an escape from the only home she’s ever known 🐰

In the winter of 1981, squeezed into a costume two sizes too small with her toes pinched by stilettos, Sherri joins the daughters of dairy farmers and factory workers in what will become the defining experience of her life. Living in the “bunny hutch”—Playboy’s version of a college dormitory—she gets an education in things the local church never covered: the joys of sisterhood, the thrill of financial independence, the magic of first love, and the heady, sometimes dangerous effects of sex, drugs, and rock and roll 💃

For the first time in her life, Sherri feels like she belongs somewhere. The other bunnies become her family, the resort becomes her world, and she discovers parts of herself she never knew existed. But as winter gives way to spring and spring surrenders to summer, Sherri finds herself caught in a romantic triangle that grows increasingly complicated and painful. The choices she makes—and the tragedy that follows—will haunt her for the next forty years ❄️

Christina Clancy traces Sherri’s journey from the Midwestern prairie to the California desert, from Wisconsin lakes to the Pacific Ocean, examining what happens when small-town life gets sprinkled with stardust. This is a story about what we lose when we leave home and what we gain in the leaving. It’s about a fleeting moment in American history when the Playboy brand promised glamour and liberation, and what that promise actually delivered to the young women who believed in it 🌟

Why this touches the heart: Clancy delivers an evocative coming-of-age story that captures a specific cultural moment—1981, when Playboy still represented a certain kind of aspirational lifestyle—while exploring timeless themes of identity, belonging, and the costs of growing up. Sherri is a heroine you genuinely root for, naive but not stupid, brave but not fearless. The novel balances nostalgia with clear-eyed honesty about exploitation and power dynamics. Perfect for readers who love character-driven fiction with heart, stories about women finding themselves in unexpected places, and narratives that examine how our past choices echo through decades 💕

Most cocktail books give you recipes. This one teaches you technique. Written by renowned bartender and cocktail blogger Jeffrey Morgenthaler, The Bar Book is the only technique-driven cocktail handbook designed for serious home enthusiasts who want to understand not just what to make, but how to make it properly. Instead of memorizing 500 recipes, you’ll master the fundamental skills that unlock countless possibilities 🍸

Morgenthaler breaks bartending down into its essential techniques—the building blocks that separate an okay drink from an exceptional one. Learn the proper way to juice citrus for maximum flavor and yield. Master the art of garnishing so your drinks look as good as they taste. Understand carbonation, why it matters, and how to control it. Discover the science behind stirring versus shaking, and why choosing the wrong method can ruin a perfectly good cocktail 🧊

The book tackles one of the most overlooked aspects of home bartending: ice. Not all ice is created equal, and Morgenthaler explains how to choose the correct type for proper chilling and dilution of each drink. Too much dilution drowns your carefully balanced flavors; too little leaves drinks harsh and unbalanced. Getting ice right is the difference between amateur and professional results, and most home bartenders never even think about it 🥃

Each technique is illustrated with how-to photography that provides both inspiration and guidance, showing you exactly what success looks like at each step. The book includes over 60 recipes that employ the techniques you’re learning, allowing you to immediately apply your new skills to building world-class drinks. But more importantly, once you’ve mastered these fundamentals, you won’t need recipes anymore—you’ll understand how cocktails work 🍹

What drew me in: Morgenthaler has created the cocktail book for people who want to actually understand what they’re doing rather than just following instructions. His approach is methodical without being pretentious, accessible without dumbing things down. The emphasis on technique over recipes means this book stays relevant regardless of changing cocktail trends. Perfect for home bartenders ready to level up their skills, anyone tired of following recipes without understanding why, and cocktail enthusiasts who want professional results without professional equipment. An essential reference that will transform your home bar 🌟

Jackson Paul had his life figured out. At forty-three, he’d settled into a comfortable routine: teaching at Rochester Technic, conducting research, and grabbing a quick drink once a week with his friend Ed at the local bar. After a devastating breakup, the quiet predictability felt safe, necessary even. It had seemed like the best path forward and eventually just became second nature. Then budget cuts hit the university, and suddenly Jackson is unemployed and forced to reinvent himself at an age when reinvention feels impossible 📚

With some savings to cushion the blow, Jackson pivots toward his real passion: making documentaries. The plan is simple—keep those savings from evaporating overnight while waiting for success to materialize. The tutoring gig his old department chair recommends isn’t his first choice, but he knows it’ll beat anything else he could drum up on short notice. At least he won’t be working with overparented children. His client is the recent wife of a local computer magnate, and she needs help preparing for her U.S. Citizenship exam 📝

The change in employment ushers in more changes than Jackson anticipated. After years of Monday night drinks at Tanner’s with Ed—comfortable, predictable, safe—Jackson suddenly finds himself with a date. With Marlee. The bartender he’s admired from a respectful distance for two years, convinced she was completely out of his league. Apparently life at forty-three still has capacity for surprise 💕

What starts as one unexpected change—losing his job—cascades into a complete life transformation. The tutoring work proves more interesting than expected, the documentary dreams start taking shape, and Marlee turns out to be even more incredible than he imagined. Jackson is discovering that sometimes the worst thing that can happen becomes the catalyst for the best thing that could happen. But can he navigate these new possibilities without retreating into the safe, quiet life he’d built after his heart was broken? 🌟

Here’s what you’re getting: Jason Hutchinson delivers a refreshingly mature romance about second chances and unexpected pivots in midlife. Jackson is a relatable protagonist—not a billionaire or alpha male, just a decent guy trying to figure out his next chapter after everything falls apart. The “non-exclusive” in the subtitle signals this explores more complex relationship dynamics than traditional romance. Perfect for readers seeking realistic adult romance, protagonists in their forties navigating life changes, and stories where starting over at midlife isn’t a tragedy but an opportunity. A quick, satisfying read about finding yourself when you thought you were already found 💫

Eliza Meeks has been abandoned by her family and left alone on the wrong side of the color line in Depression-era Louisiana with almost nothing to call her own. What she does have is a gift that others find either magical or monstrous, depending on their disposition: she can communicate with animals. Some call her a magical tender with a rare and precious ability. Others call her a she-devil. But to a talent prospector trolling the South for carnival acts, Eliza is a crowd-drawing oddity worth her weight in gold 🎪

The Bacchanal Carnival becomes Eliza’s ticket out of the swamp trap of Baton Rouge and into a wider world. Among fortune-tellers, carnies, barkers, and folks even stranger than herself, she finds something she’s never had before: a home, a family of misfits who accept her exactly as she is. For the first time, Eliza doesn’t have to hide what she can do or who she is. But the Bacchanal is no ordinary traveling carnival, and Eliza’s newfound family harbors secrets darker than she imagines 🎭

An ancient demon has made the carnival her home. She hides behind an iridescent disguise that shifts and shimmers, making her difficult to see clearly and impossible to pin down. She feeds on innocent souls, drawing sustenance from the very people who come seeking entertainment and escape. For untold years, she’s operated with impunity, moving from town to town with the carnival, leaving devastation in her wake. But she’s about to encounter something she hasn’t faced before: Eliza Meeks 💀

Eliza is only beginning to understand the true purpose of her burgeoning powers. They’re not just a parlor trick or a way to earn money—they’re meant for something far more important. As she grows stronger and more confident, she realizes she’s the demon’s match, possibly the only person who can stop the ancient evil from claiming more victims. But to save her new friends, find her scattered family, and fight the sway of a primordial demon preying upon the human world, Eliza will need to embrace the full extent of her gifts and step into a destiny she never asked for ⚡

What makes this essential: Veronica G. Henry delivers a stunning blend of historical fiction, fantasy, and horror set against the vivid backdrop of Depression-era Southern Black life. The carnival setting provides rich atmosphere while allowing Henry to explore themes of belonging, otherness, and found family. Eliza is a compelling heroine whose journey from outcast to savior feels earned rather than predestined. Perfect for readers who love historical fantasy with bite, diverse protagonists with unique powers, and stories that blend American history with mythology. A fresh, powerful voice in fantasy fiction 🌟

In the early 1960s, a struggling publishing company called Marvel Comics took a gamble on a cast of brightly costumed characters who were distinguished by something unusual: smart banter, compellingly human flaws, and problems that didn’t disappear when the villain was defeated. Spider-Man worried about paying rent. The Fantastic Four bickered like an actual family. The X-Men faced prejudice and discrimination. These weren’t the perfect, untouchable heroes of competing comics—they were flawed, relatable, and revolutionary 🕷️

Over the course of half a century, Marvel’s epic universe would evolve into the most elaborate fiction narrative in human history, a sprawling mythology with interconnected storylines spanning thousands of issues and dozens of characters. It would serve as modern American mythology for millions of readers worldwide, influencing not just comics but film, television, and popular culture itself. But the story behind the comics is just as dramatic, complex, and conflict-ridden as anything published on the page 📚

For the first time, Sean Howe reveals the outsized personalities behind the scenes: Martin Goodman, the publisher who started it all; Stan Lee, whose creative vision and promotional genius built the Marvel brand; Jack Kirby, whose artistic innovations defined the visual language of superhero comics; and generations of editors, artists, and writers who followed. These were people with fertile imaginations and passionate creative visions, but they also fought bitterly over matters of credit, control, and compensation ✏️

This is a story of lifelong friendships forged in creative collaboration, but also of action-packed fistfights in the office, third-act betrayals that destroyed partnerships, and legal battles that dragged on for decades. It’s about artists who created iconic characters but died broke while their creations generated billions. It’s about the tension between art and commerce, between creative vision and corporate mandate, between the desire to tell meaningful stories and the need to sell comic books to a fickle audience 💥

Why this deserves your attention: Sean Howe delivers the definitive behind-the-scenes history of one of America’s most beloved pop culture entities. This isn’t hagiography—it’s honest, sometimes uncomfortable examination of how creative genius, business pressure, and human ego combined to create modern mythology. The book works equally well for die-hard Marvel fans wanting to know the real story and casual readers interested in American business and popular culture. Perfect for anyone fascinated by creative industries, the complicated relationship between art and commerce, and how flawed humans created heroes that represent our better selves 🌟

Miss Audrey Parker is exhausted in ways that go beyond physical tiredness. Since her mother’s death four years ago, she’s become the de facto housekeeper and caretaker for her two younger sisters, shouldering adult responsibilities while barely out of girlhood herself. She’s managed somehow, holding the family together through grief and hardship. Then the unthinkable happens, and Audrey must grapple with an uncertain future that suddenly looks very different from anything she imagined 💔

Jacob Stanfield is a journalist and newspaper owner in New York City, living a life he built himself through hard work and determination. He’s never given much thought to his ancestry—America is supposed to be about making your own way, not relying on bloodlines. So when he receives a telegram informing him he’s the heir to the Fletcher title in England, he’s thunderstruck. He had absolutely no idea he had English relatives, let alone aristocratic ones. His curiosity piqued, Jacob sets out across the Atlantic to uncover the secrets of his newfound heritage 📰

What Jacob finds in England is nothing like he expected. The estate, the title, the responsibilities—they’re overwhelming for a self-made American who values independence and earned success over inherited privilege. But what truly upends his life isn’t the weight of aristocracy; it’s Audrey Parker, the penniless baron’s daughter who’s been managing the household with quiet competence and fierce devotion to her sisters. She’s everything Jacob never knew he was looking for 🏰

Audrey and Jacob are impossibilities for each other on paper. She’s English gentry fallen on hard times; he’s an American newspaperman who never wanted a title. She understands the rigid expectations of Regency society; he chafes against every social convention he encounters. She’s responsible for her sisters’ futures; he’s committed to his newspaper and his American life. But amidst the grandeur and opulence they must navigate, something unexpected blooms between these two unlikely souls. The question is whether they can overcome their differences—and their own fears—long enough to give their growing feelings a chance ⚡

What makes this special: Debra Elizabeth delivers a refreshing Regency romance that brings an American perspective into the typically British genre. Jacob’s outsider status allows the novel to examine English aristocracy with fresh eyes, while Audrey represents the precarious position of impoverished gentry with genuine emotional depth. The cross-cultural clash adds dimension beyond typical Regency obstacles. Perfect for readers who love their historical romance with fish-out-of-water heroes, practical heroines managing real problems, and love stories where cultural differences create opportunity rather than just conflict. First in the Twist of Fate series 💕