Showing results by narrator "Tara Sands" in All Categories

Poppy Banks would rather be writing mysteries than listicles for her dead-end job at Thought Buzz. But after a series of rejections, she's ready to give up all her big aspirations and settle like her mom encourages her to do. The only person not ready to give up on Poppy's dreams is her aunt Margot, whom she has secret lunches with each year. But everything changes when her beloved aunt Margot dies and her last request is to have Poppy travel to her villa in the French Riviera.

The fallen queen of the sprites is about to be voted in as Head Councilor, and she wants Nathanial in her control. The magical battle blade that he wields is too good a weapon to pass up. If only adults like Boss would let him help stop this disaster, but even Nathanial's friends think this problem is too big for teenagers to interfere with. Now, he must prove to them how imperative it is for all to act.

"I can't stand this poky little town any more. How can I bear it for three more months? Today alone has lasted years..." Disinherited by her father, the debutante Miss Layla Beck is forced to spend the hot summer of 1938 in Macedonia, West Virginia, and is tasked with recording the small town's history. She arrives with one goal: to get out as quickly as possible. Macedonia's history seems simple enough - brief and uneventful.

Atlantic City, 1934. Every summer, Esther and Joseph Adler rent their house out to holidaymakers and move into the apartment above the bakery they own. The apartment is where they raised their two daughters, Fannie and Florence, and, despite the cramped quarters, it still feels like home. Now Florence has returned from college, determined to spend the summer training to swim the English Channel and Fannie, pregnant again after recently losing a baby, is on bedrest, leaving her seven-year-old daughter, Gussie, in Esther’s care.

With her irresistible urge to tell a joke in every situation - even when she really, really shouldn't - 12-year-old Jacky Ha-Ha loves to make people laugh. And cracking wise helps distract her from thinking about not-so-funny things in her life, like her mom serving in a dangerous, faraway war and a dad who's hardly ever home. But no matter how much fun Jacky has, she can't seem to escape her worries.

Regan, Sofia, Bennett, and Darius know better by now than to think the witch's curse is done with them. A mysterious family checks into Regan's family Boo and Breakfast...and they seem to take a particular interest in Regan! They're never seen during the day, they're allergic to garlic, and they speak like they're from another time. They couldn't be...could they? But why would a family of vampires want to recruit Regan?

Becoming a sprite has come with the consequence of learning how to be tricky, a trait Nathanial has never respected but now relies on for his survival. He must use this skill to navigate the castle walls in which young sprites are learning how to properly dominate the planet. Having come here to free Aliya, Nathanial must now save her from a fate worse than her imprisonment, but she may not be the only one in need of a rescue.

Be careful what you wish for. We've all heard it, right? Nathanial only recalls ever wishing to be well. How could that possibly go wrong? He had been stuck in his bedroom hacking up a lung for 12 years, and as it had miraculously stopped about a year ago, the wishing seemed to have worked without consequence. But on his 13th birthday, that old rule of wishes comes back to bite.

Sometimes in life it feels like everything that can go wrong does, but everything happens for a reason. A relationship crumbles so someone else can mend the pieces of your broken heart. Jenn's life is nothing as she had imagined it would be. She is 20-something with a failing career and her love life has officially ended with an ultimate act of betrayal. She is ready to throw away her dreams when a chance run-in with a soldier alters her course and changes her perspective on life.

After Regan, Sofia, Bennett, and Darius successfully banished the witch's curse that led their science teacher to try to clone them, their lives should be back to normal, right? Not so! Because the curse is back and stronger than ever. Sofia's dad and Bennett's mom are finally getting married, and nothing could possibly ruin such a beautiful day . . . except for a horde of the rambling, brain-hungry undead!

From the coauthor of the international best seller The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. "I can't stand this poky little town any more. How can I bear it for three more months? Today alone has lasted years...." Disinherited by her father, the debutante Miss Layla Beck is forced to spend the hot summer of 1938 in Macedonia, West Virginia, and is tasked with recording the small town's history. She arrives with one goal: to get out as quickly as possible.

Rendered mute at birth, Portia Griffin has been silent for 16 years. Music is her constant companion, along with Felix, her deaf best friend who couldn't care less whether or not she can speak. If only he were as nonchalant about her newfound interest in the musically gifted Max Hunter.

Gwendolyn longs for a pet. What kind? Any kind! How many legs? Two, four, 10 - she's not picky! But her parents have other ideas, and instead they give her...a box of dirt. "It smells of swamp," Gwendolyn says - but her parents say it smells of possibilities. And once Gwendolyn gets savvy about seeds and soil, sun and shade, she finds they are right.

When Iris was a teen, her twin sister Piper was kidnapped. Now an adult, Iris wants one thing – proof. And if the police still won’t help, she’ll just have to find it her own way: by interning at the isolated Shoal Island Hospital for the criminally insane, where secrets lurk in the shadows and are kept under lock and key. But Iris soon realizes that something even more sinister is simmering beneath the surface of the Shoal, and that the patients aren’t the only ones being observed…

Left behind in a cold and dark burrow, a baby rabbit named Tumkit is destined to die of starvation until Vella, a shrewd and fearless mockingbird, discovers Tumkit and brings him a magic berry. The berry comes from a solitary bush that grows in a cave near the top of Laurel Mountain. Vella warns Tumkit the bush is struggling to survive, and unless they act quickly the supernatural powers of its berries will be lost forever.

Perfect for fans of Twilight. Who do you run with? It's always tough being the new kid in town. And even worse when you have to live with your grandfather in the middle of the forest. But when Katelyn starts at Wolf Springs High she realizes that her new life might not be so bad. There's the enigmatic Trick, who is always there to protect her. And Cordelia Fenner and her irresistible cousin seem extra friendly. Katelyn suspects that there is more to the Fenner Family than meets the eye. But why is she so drawn to them?

Set in the same world as Justin Sayre's previous books, Husky and Pretty, Mean explores the private and public life of Ellen, who is confident, cool, and, according to Davis, mean. But if speaking the truth and being unconcerned with petty gossip makes you mean, Ellen is fine with that.

Rising responsibilities, midlife complications, and the increasing disconnect with loved ones are some of the culprits that trigger anxiety. And these reasons can easily take a toll on your mental health and drain your spirit. But you don’t have to give in to these concerns and settle for less… there is hope for you to live a better life – the life that you have always imagined for yourself!

Maeve struggles to live up the ideals of the strong, independent, successful businesswoman and guru whose books and classes are the gold-standard for woman entrepreneurs. All Maeve has ever wanted is to design red carpet attire for Hollywood’s brightest stars. But her Midwestern family and friends have nothing but discouragement for her. Get real. Get a real job. Get back to real life. Frustrated by the clannishness of the fashion industry and the lack of support in her own life, Maeve decides to start her own online company making custom garments from her own designs.

Esther isn't afraid of anything - because she avoids pretty much everything. Elevators are off limits, as are open spaces, crowds, family pets, birds, needles, haircuts, dolls and mirrors. But when Esther is pickpocketed by her cocky old classmate Jonah Walker, Esther and Jonah become surprising friends. Jonah sets a challenge: every week they must work their way through the world's 50 most common phobias. Skydiving, horse riding, beekeeping, public speaking, reptile houses - they plan to do it all.