Showing results by publisher "Hodder & Stoughton" in Contemporary

When cynical divorce lawyer Daisy Jackson unexpectedly inherits a ramshackle farmhouse in Provence, she sets off for the French countryside to oversee renovations herself. But Gabriel Laforet has other ideas. A local builder with ties to the property, Gabriel is determined to see Daisy off and preserve the characterful, charming farmhouse—which, but for a missing will, he knows is rightfully his.

Sam's life is on track. She has the perfect doctor fiancé, Jack (his strict routines are a good thing, really), a stable job in Manhattan (unless they fire her), and is about to tour a wedding venue near her family's Long Island beach house (if only to appease her mother). Everything should go to plan, but the minute she arrives, Sam senses a disturbance in the force. Wyatt is here. Her Wyatt. But there's no reason for a thirty-year-old engaged woman to feel awkward around the guy who broke her heart when she was seventeen. Right?

Juliet's been in hiding. From her family, from her life, but most of all from the fact that Ben's not around anymore. Her mother, Diane, has run out of advice. But then she insists Juliet look after her elderly Labrador, and it becomes apparent that Coco the dog might actually be the one who can rescue her daughter. Especially when it leads to her walking dogs for a few other locals, too, including a spaniel, Damson, who belongs to a very attractive man.

Lucy Young may only be twenty-four, but she's already exhausted. She's tired of dating, tired of being on the bottom rung at work, of having no money and living off super noodles and Rice Krispies. She wants to know who she's going spend her life with, to have a successful career, and just once, to get out of her overdraft. She's ready to skip to the good part. But you should be careful what you wish for. Because when Lucy wakes up in a strange bed with a strange man, she finds that somehow the impossible has happened

One morning, Eveleth 'Evvie' Drake got up, packed her suitcase, and got ready to leave her life - and her perfect husband - behind. But before she walked out of the door, she received a phone call asking her to come to the hospital. That day, Evvie's new life as a widow began. Now wrestling with her guilt and grief, Evvie has found her independence, but not the way she planned. Unable to leave the house she once dreamed of escaping, it's clear to her best friend Andy that Evvie needs a change. And Andy might just have the answer....

What can you do to make the world a better place? Libby helps a stranger and transforms her life in the process. Libby and her husband, Jason, have moved back to his hometown to turn the family B&B into a boutique hotel. They have left London behind and all the memories - good and bad - that went with it. The injured woman Libby finds lying in the remote country road has lost her memory. She doesn't know why she came to be there, and no one seems to be looking for her.

Because love is the greatest mystery of all.... 'In a way, I'm a bit of a love detective. Because what's a greater mystery than love?' Meet Ruby Miller. A writer who makes happy-ever-afters happen. Until she discovers her fiancé is a lying cheat and loses her faith in love. So when her sister invites her on a beach holiday to Goa to forget about him, Ruby jumps on a plane...and into an extraordinary adventure.

Phoebe Baker has two passions in life: vintage dresses, and her French Bulldog, Coco Chanel. As the fierce and sassy manager of The Vintage Dress Shop, it's not only her job, but her calling to make sure everyone leaves her shop with their dream outfit. She doesn't need anyone or anything when she's in her frock heaven. When an incident between Phoebe and a customer goes viral and risks damaging the reputation of the shop, Phoebe's job is suddenly on the line.

Thirty-three-year-old Kara Moon dreamt of going to college to study floristry but couldn't bring herself to leave her emotionally delicate single father, and has worked on the market's flower stall ever since leaving school. When her good-for-nothing boyfriend, Jago, cheats on her and steals her life savings, she finally dumps him and rents out her spare room as an Airbnb. Gossip flies around the town as Kara welcomes a series of foreign guests to her flat overlooking the estuary. Then an anonymous postcard arrives, along with a plane ticket to New York.

The recently rediscovered short story 'The Lost One', perfect for fans of Daphne du Maurier, Santa Montefiore and Anya Seton. First published in Woman's Journal in 1960, and set against the backdrop of unfenced country and dark winding valleys at night, the aptly named 'The Lost One' features The Wind off the Small Isles heroine Perdita West, who brings her characteristic pluck and courage to this classic Mary Stewart tale of suspense and intrigue....

As a professional bridesmaid, Sophie is hired by brides to be their right-hand woman, posing as a friend but working behind the scenes to ensure their big day goes off without a hitch. From wrangling rowdy hen dos to navigating last minute portaloo cancellations and family dramas, there's no problem she can't solve. So when she's hired by an actual Marchioness to help plan the society wedding of the year, it should be a chance for Sophie to prove just how talented she is.

When chef Charlie Goodwin gets hit on the head on the LA set of her reality baking show, she loses a lot more than consciousness; she also loses her ability to taste and smell - both critical to her success as show judge. Meanwhile, Charlie's identical twin, Cass, is frantically trying to hold her own life together back in their quaint mountain hometown while running the family's bustling bakery and dealing with her ex. With only days until Christmas, a desperate Charlie asks Cass to do something they haven't done since they were kids: switch places.

Joel is afraid of the future. Since he was a child he's been haunted by dreams about the people he loves. Visions of what's going to happen - the good and the bad. And the only way to prevent them is to never let anyone close to him again. Callie can't let go of the past. Since her best friend died, Callie's been lost. She knows she needs to be more spontaneous and live a bigger life. She just doesn't know how to find a way back to the person who used to have those dreams. Joel and Callie both need a reason to start living for today....

The convention of a book synopsis is fundamentally ridiculous. How can I adequately convey in only 150 words the complexity and bewilderment of the past 10 months and the effect the events that occurred have had on my perfectly regulated existence? One would need much longer to record in detail how I was blackmailed into demonstrating the efficacy of my soulmate programme and forced to participate in a series of ridiculous dates. How my life has been forever altered as a consequence.

When Ava's flatmate challenges her to make a new friend, Finn happens to be in the right place at the right time. In exchange for his friendship, Finn persuades Ava to work through his London summer bucket list before he leaves the city for good. With every passing day, their fake friendship turns into something more. But the problem with summer is that it always ends.

Six months after a life-changing accident, Carys is looking for a fresh start. Feeling restless, she jumps when she is offered the chance to run The Red Cat Café, an eccentric neighbourhood eatery in the centre of Paris, over the busy festive period. Mathieu needs a change of pace. Stuck in a job he hates, the only time Mat feels truly in control is when he posts scathing anonymous restaurant reviews on his blog, Madame Incognito. When a chance encounter leads the two to meet, their connection is instant, and it seems like everything might fall into place.

Still grieving the death of her best friend, Erin knows she needs to start living - but has no idea how. Then she loses her favourite book, a heavily annotated copy of To Kill A Mockingbird containing her friend's last gift. When James finds Erin's note-filled book in his local community bookshelf, it sparks a life-changing conversation. He writes his own message for her to find, inviting her to meet him in the margins of Great Expectations. As the book exchange continues, they both begin to open up . . . and perhaps fall in love.

Beloved author Mary Stewart's long-lost novella, now available again for the first time in 40 years. In 1879 a wealthy young woman elopes with an impoverished fisherman, leaving her family, who live on the volcanic island of Lanzarote, distraught. In 1968, 23-year-old Perdita West, secretary to the famous author Cora Gresham, visits Lanzarote, the strangest and wildest of the Canary Isles, on a research trip. They meet Cora's estranged son, Mike, and fall in love with the unusual, beautiful little island.

Literary agent Zoey Moody doesn't like small town life, but here she is: exiled from Manhattan's publishing scene and trapped in a tiny Pennsylvania town with her BFF and only remaining client, Hazel. The problem? She's totally broke. All she needs is for Hazel's next romance novel to become a gigantic hit and Zoey will be back in New York. Nothing will stand in her way. Nothing except her six-foot-two-inch landlord, Gage Bishop. He's smart, serious and sexy. Worst of all, he's ready to settle down.

Unbeknownst to their friends, Bennett and Paloma were each other's first real love, which ended in crippling heartbreak. Bennett still doesn't know what happened, and Paloma is determined to stay away from the comfort she used to find only in his arms. As Bennett discovers the truth about Paloma's past, the threads to his careful control start to come unbound, and both begin to realize that letting go of everything else might be worth it, if it means they both get the real love they once shared again.