Showing results by narrator "Lu Banks" in All Categories

When the man who swindled Esme Castillo out of her business is murdered, she is the prime suspect. Now, her attorney, Maureen Gould, must uncover the secrets and lies behind the conspiracies that targeted Esme. Who set up Esme to take the fall. And why?

It's not every day you get asked to be a bridesmaid for the wedding of your ex and your ex-best friend. Call me lucky? My grandmother thinks I'm crazy for agreeing, but I can't let those so-and-sos know they've pummeled my self-worth . . . even if it's true. Then my grandmother goes off the deep end and tells everyone that I have a boyfriend. A pediatric surgeon boyfriend. Worse, she's shown them his photograph. The guy in question? He's a hot piece of bad news. He may have befriended my grandmother, but he's far from being in my good graces.

A teenage girl with my eyes and a familiar glare, strolls into my life and she's calling me Dad. Vanessa was my high school girlfriend and the smartest person I knew. She had a plan, a future, and she swore nothing would get in the way. Until she became pregnant. I thought we agreed on our plan. I sent her the money. Then she disappeared. Her parents told me she was in South America for a year. They told me she needed space. I never heard from her again.

Conventional wisdom about running is passed down like folklore (and sometimes contradicts itself). In Running Smart, Mariska van Sprundel, a science journalist and recreational runner who has had her fair share of injuries, sets out to explore the science behind such claims.

Rose Wu’s ordinary life as a concierge clerk was only meant to be a means to a financial end. Yet there is one resident in her high-rise luxury building who makes coming to work worth it. Cindy Ling, the enigmatic businesswoman who always has a lady on her arm, also has a wink to spare the mild-mannered clerk looking her way. When chance brings Rose up to Cindy’s penthouse suite, her life isn’t simply changed forever. It’s transformed.

Cashing in on his family's recent good-luck streak, ten-year-old Freddy Peach has been entering his family in a bunch of sweepstakes, but he doesn't really expect to win. And then he does—a free family trip to the Ice Hotel in Sweden! Since the Peaches are now the proud owners of their own bed-and-breakfast, they decide they can't pass up on the opportunity. It's research. They'll learn more about what it takes to operate a successful hotel from one of the most famous tourist destinations in the world.

Silver Spoon Falls was supposed to be an easy mark. Instead, I'm up to my ears in cartels and complications. I waltzed into enemy territory to investigate...and waltzed back out with a new mission in life. Protecting Snow Buchanan from her stepmother and her cartel of henchmen. Her seven furry friends doubt me. Her stepmother wants to kill her. And all I want is to lay siege to her heart. This curvy little princess will be mine.

The mob boss meets his match in Silver Spoon Falls. At first glance, the curvy little doll turns my entire world upside down and inside out. The only thought on my mind is making Dr. Annabelle Girardi mine. Forever. The emergency room doctor drops into my world and turns things upside down. I might have my work cut out for me but I'll do whatever it takes to win her heart. Because walking away from Belle isn't an option. There isn't any price I won't pay to spend the rest of my life with my soulmate.

Attorney Maureen Gould has a dark secret and a hunger for justice. When a powerful movie producer attacks, and then fires, his young female assistant, Maureen sets out to make things right. Enter defense counsel and Maureen's estranged father, Frank Gould, a man more evil than his client. Inside and outside of the courtroom, Frank pulls every dirty trick known and makes up a few of his own.

College student Tara Staudenmaier will do anything for her family. When medical debt looms, she doesn’t hesitate to do whatever it takes. Even if it means putting herself - and her inexperience in love - up on the auction block. She only asks that nobody discovers her biggest secret. The reason she’s gone gray at 20 and now has something to offer a would-be suitor looking for a month-long affair.

Much to their surprise, the Peaches had a great summer running their food truck business selling their pies across the Mid-West, but they're happy to be back home in Duluth, Minnesota, where they can settle back into a routine just in time for the new school year. That is until Great Aunt Lucinda wants to gift them her historic mansion. But there are conditions: they're to turn it into a cozy bed-and-breakfast, something the Peach kids' mom always dreamed of before she passed away. And they only have until Thanksgiving to do the renovations and prove they can make the business work.

After a tough year, Lucy, Freddy, and Herb Peach are ready for vacation. Lucy wants to read all of the books on the summer reading list. Freddy wants to work on his art projects. Herb wants to swim every day. Then their dad makes a big announcement: One of the inventions their mom came up with before she passed away has sold, and now they're millionaires!

"The Millionaire" is in jail on a murder charge. Violent inmates beat him savagely, trying to extort money. To save his life, Maureen Gould must find the truth and free her client.

In 2017, DNA tests revealed to the collective shock of many scholars that a Viking warrior in a high-status grave in Birka, Sweden was actually a woman. The Real Valkyrie weaves together archaeology, history, and literature to imagine her life and times, showing that Viking women had more power and agency than historians have imagined.

Wherever I am, I'm the biggest guy in the room. People don't just gawk when they see me. They keep their distance, which is fine by me. Why do you think I bought a fixer-upper in the country? I don't mind the manual labor, just like I don't mind the solitude. I've got my own business and projects, and no room for anything—or anyone—else. That is, until an angel shows up on my doorstep, clutching a month-old advert touting a room for rent in my house.

Some guys take the easy way out. Not me. I work hard and I work out even harder. My sister would like to see me settled down with a family, but running a successful gym while building a fitness empire takes time, sweat, and discipline—three things I can't afford to spare even for a chance at happy ever after. Then the new yoga instructor struts into my gym looking like the ultimate cheat day.

In 1988, Sloan Hadfield's brother Ridge went fishing with their father and never came home. Their father was arrested and charged with murder. Ridge's body was never recovered, and Sloan's mother slowly descended into madness, insisting her son was still alive. Now, twenty years later, Sloan's life is unraveling. In the middle of a bitter divorce, she's forced to return to her rural Texas hometown when her mother is discharged from a mental health facility. Overwhelmed by memories and unanswered questions, Sloan returns to the last place her brother was seen all those years ago.

When I sign with the Tennessee Thunderbolts, I have two goals: prove my injury hasn't benched my career and get back to New York. But then, I meet Mila, the enigmatic therapist tasked with rehabbing my shoulder. With her long ponytail, professional demeanor, and girl-next-door look, Mila is nothing like my usual type. She's better—a good girl with sad eyes and a tragic past our small town loves to dissect.

Lillian came into my life swinging. Mistaking me for my abusive twin brother, she greets me with a swift kick to the balls and a busted lip. Then she really shakes up my world. She needs her job, but she needs a break just as much. And nothing silences my demons as efficiently as playing the hero. To protect her from my jerk twin—her boss—I take her on a business trip and quickly learn that she's different. Blunt. Honest. Intriguingly strange. I'm transfixed, so when she unknowingly sinks a multimillion-dollar deal, I don't speak up. Something my family won't forgive.

Healing takes time. Whether it's a broken bone or a laceration, patience is potent medicine. The same goes for relationships. I moved back to town hoping to patch things up with my son. Imagine my surprise when I meet his gorgeous best friend on the exam table at my OB/GYN office, hell-bent on ditching her V-card as quickly as possible. That's not going to happen.