Showing results by narrator "Becky Doughty" in All Categories

Things are finally starting to fall into a steady rhythm in the small town of Goose Creek, Kentucky. Millie Richardson is hard at work renovating a drafty Victorian house into a B&B. Her husband, Al, is busy writing checks for the renovations. And the new vet, Susan, has finally found acceptance from the town -- not to mention a hunky new boyfriend, Justin.

As Michelle Baron ascends the steps of Magnolia Middle School, her life is about to change forever. The dream of becoming a teacher leads her on an unexpected journey that will challenge her professionally and personally. Although 180 students file through her classroom daily, one demands her attention more than the others. Living in her third foster home in a year, Amber's bitterness and rebellion spark a challenge within Michelle to somehow make a difference in this troubled girl's life.

Tess Spencer loves her low-key job at the Crystal Mountain Spa, which allows her plenty of down-time with her one-year old daughter and lawyer husband, Thomas. But when a pool installation turns up eight skeletons in the spa's back yard, Tess becomes entangled in a sleuthing job destined to go awry. As the investigation gets underway, someone dumps a fresh body near the excavated burial site, confirming unspeakable fears.

Have you ever struggled with your body image or felt as if you don't measure up? If you said yes, you are not alone. In This is My Body 25 women share their deepest truths about their relationships with their bodies and their journeys to self-acceptance and love. These stories are poignant and relate-able.

This short story is the perfect introduction to best-selling author Virginia Smith's latest series, Tales from the Goose Creek B&B. Set in the years before the Richardsons launch their bed and breakfast scheme, the quirky residents of the small Kentucky town are all in a tizzy over the upcoming Fall Festival. Alison, Al and Millie's headstrong daughter, astounds everyone with the news that she's getting married - in three weeks - to a Colombian!

This is the biggest weekend for the Inn at Crescent Cove since Lily Duarte bought it a year and a half ago - it's been booked for a wedding. Now if only she can stop dwelling on the last wedding she planned, then called off at the 11th hour...her own. Trying not to regret breaking her engagement to her ex-fiancé, Lily puts all her focus on making this wedding a success. But when the bride turns out to be a nightmare and one of her key employees quits, Lily begins to question her ability to make it as a business owner.

Even though retirement is still three years away, Al Richardson is counting the days. He anticipates many enjoyable years in which every day feels like Saturday. But Al's wife, Millie, has different plans for their retirement. When she learns that a Victorian-era home is up for sale, Millie launches a full-blown campaign to convince Al that god's plan for them is to turn that house into a B&B. But a B&B won't be the only change for the small Kentucky town.

Feeling down on herself after a breakup with her ultra-critical boyfriend, Teresa arrives in Crescent Cove, Oregon, for a weekend getaway. The trouble is, her ex-boyfriend's claims that she's uninteresting and unworthy of love have left her wishing she could be someone else. Then a chance encounter with a cute guy on the beach gives her the opportunity to reinvent herself.

She could handle the nightmares. Not the terrifying visitation. Summoned by her father to Elk Park, Colorado, Melinda Maxwell hopes to finally learn why he cut off all contact with his family and became a "monster", as Melinda calls him. Four days into her stay, and frustrated by his silence, she hires genealogist Anna Denning to locate her long-lost grandparents. Already immersed in trying to locate the family of a murdered man for the Elk Park Police, Anna agrees to the challenge.

Each poem has its own reason for being. Like people, each has a unique form and voice. A potpourri is a mixture, a medley, a miscellaneous hodgepodge of things not usually placed together, as in a book such as this. Gathered from a large collection of poems written over many years, some reflect emotions or events from personal experience. Some share observations of others, or reflections on life's meaning. These selections, arranged in no particular order or style, are designed to present frequent surprises. Enjoy....

Steve Garrison is the newly elected mayor of the tiny town of Camelot, Tennessee. When his childhood friend, Amy Hart, comes up with a plan to revive the town's economy, he jumps onboard. The townspeople will perform the musical Camelot in the city's park, drawing in nightly crowds at the new outdoor theater. While excitement is high, talent is lacking. Amy casts several of the parts but is stumped when it comes to the role of King Arthur.

Michelle and her family rejoice when her father begins to regain consciousness after an unsuccessful suicide attempt. But a long journey awaits, as they seek to clear his name of the embezzlement charges that drove him to this desperate act. The days of their vigil at the hospital drag into weeks, and Michelle finds herself repeatedly drawn to the newborn nursery. Observing couples leave with tiny babes in their arms, her heart is stirred, and she begins to yearn for a child of her own.

Just days before Christmas in the mountain town of Elk Park, Colorado, genealogist Anna Denning discovers a client's body. When she starts asking questions no one wants answered, she becomes the killer's next target. Still grieving the death of her husband, Anna must draw on her wounded faith to enter a world of Wicca and witchcraft - reminders of a past she buried long ago - and discover the secret of The Witch Tree.

Susan Quinn, a social worker turned surrogate mom to foster teens, fights to save the group home she's worked hard to build. But now, she faces a dwindling staff, foreclosure, and old heartaches that won't stay buried. Her only hope lies with the last person she'd ever turn to - a brawny handyman with a guitar, a questionable past, and a God he keeps calling Father.

It's nearly Halloween in Elk Park, Colorado, and one of the Elk Valley Historical Society's founding members, a retired history professor who wanted to hire genealogist Anna Denning to complete his secret research into the family trees of two other members, has been found dead - the victim of a brutal murder. When a friend of the victim pleads with Anna to complete the professor's work, Anna agrees. Her decision leads her into a disturbing world of lies, concealed identities, and the occult.

The Andersons' marriage is no longer the fairytale it once was. Jake and Nora scramble to keep the pieces together, but hairline cracks of disillusionment and despair have been spreading, weakening the foundation beneath them. Jake steps up, but in all the wrong ways. His concerted efforts to win Nora's approval only make him seem needy, and she becomes distant and withdrawn. Caught in a vulnerable place of hopelessness, she's swept off her feet by a disarming artist who wants to capture more than her image on canvas.

Juliette, the eldest sister of the Gustafson Girls, is heartbroken after breaking up with her noncommittal boyfriend of almost ten years. Determined she isn’t “getting over Mike” quickly enough, her three sisters devise The Monday ManDates; an intervention plan requiring Juliette to endure what turns out to be a series of remarkably disastrous blind dates: TheraPaul, Frisky Frank, TAZ the rock star, and the stoic Tim Larsen, among others. Then there’s Victor Jarrett, the police officer with an affinity for pulling Juliette over when she’s at her very worst. But no one is more surprised than Juliette when she meets the only one who can right the wrongs in her past and change her future. But will she let herself fall in love with him?

Fifteen-year-old Ashley has a complicated life. There's no doubt her overachieving parents love her, but they are wrapped up in their own worlds for so much of the time it leaves her feeling like she's alone. Like a lot of teenagers, Ashley dreams of other worlds, but unlike a lot of teenagers, her world is about to collapse as rifts to an ancient fae kingdom begin to open all around her. Ashley's London is about to become a magical and mysterious warzone where the prize is Ashley herself.

Scottish widower Ian MacLean is plagued by a mischievous grannie, bitter regrets, and an ache for something he'll never have again. His only hope for freedom is to bring his grannie's sister home from America. But first, he'll have to convince her young companion, Emily Chapman, to let the woman go. Emily devotes herself to foster youth and her beloved Aunt Grace. Caring for others quiets a secret fear she holds close to her heart. But when Ian appears, wanting to whisk Grace off to Scotland, everything Emily holds dear is at risk.

Suzanne Corbin and her daughter, Beth Harris, live a seemingly easy life. Suzanne has distanced herself from her past, replacing pain with fulfillment as a wife and mother, while Beth savors her husband's love and anticipates the birth of their child. But all that is about to change.