At the end of the Second World War, Cyril Conroy combines luck and a single canny investment to begin an enormous real estate empire, propelling his family from poverty to enormous wealth. His first order of business is to buy the Dutch House, a lavish estate in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. Meant as a surprise for his wife, the house sets in motion the undoing of everyone he loves. Cyril's son Danny and his older sister Maeve are exiled from...

"She knows what's best for everyone but herself ... With a past like hers, Jessica Clayton feels safer in a life spent on the road. She's made a career out of helping others downsize - because she's learned the hard way that the less "stuff," the better, a policy she applies equally to her relationships. But a new client is taking Jess back to Cape Sanctuary, a town she once called home ... and that her little sister, Rachel, still does. The years...

Juno was wrong about Winnie Crouch. Before moving in with the Crouch family, Juno thought Winnie and her husband, Nigel, had the perfect marriage, the perfect son--the perfect life. Only now that she's living in their beautiful house, she sees the cracks in the crumbling facade are too deep to ignore. Still, she isn't one to judge. After her grim diagnosis, the retired therapist simply wants a place to live out the rest of her days in peace. But that...

"Laid off from her department store job, Carmen has little cash and few options. Spending Christmas with her perfect sister Sofia and her perfectly ordered life does not appeal. But Sofia has a client who needs help revitalizing his bookshop. So Carmen moves in and takes the job. Thrown into the workings of Mr. McCredie's ancient bookshop in historic Edinburgh, Carmen is intrigued. The store is dusty and disorganized but undeniably charming. Can she...

"Lucy Barton is recovering slowly from what should have been a simple operation. Her mother, to whom she hasn't spoken for many years, comes to see her. Gentle gossip about people from Lucy's childhood in Amgash, Illinois, seems to reconnect them, but just below the surface lie the tension and longing that have informed every aspect of Lucy's life: her escape from her troubled family, her desire to become a writer, her marriage, her love for her two...

It's been too long since the entire Quinn family has been able to celebrate the holidays under the same roof, but that's about to change. With Bart back safe and sound from Afghanistan, the Quinns are preparing for a holiday more joyous than any they've experienced in years. And Bart's safe return isn't the family's only good news. Kevin is enjoying married life with Isabelle; Patrick is getting back on his feet after paying his debt to society; Ava...

Anne is the mother of five, with never a dull moment in her lively home. She now has a new baby on the way and ready to make her cherished husband fall in love with her all over again

"The Palmer sisters couldn't be more different. Karen, the eldest, is the responsible one the one who got the grades, married the perfect guy, and has two wonderful, high-achieving children. Cassie is the rebellious one, who got pregnant right after high school and married the wrong man, despite her family's misgivings. And Nicole is a free, creative spirit, who's always been indulged and pampered as the baby of the family who could do no wrong. These...

"In Dad is Fat, stand-up comedian Jim Gaffigan, who's best known for his legendary riffs on Hot Pockets, bacon, manatees, and McDonald's, expresses all the joys and horrors of life with five young children--everything from cousins ("celebrities for little kids") to toddlers' communication skills ("they always sound like they have traveled by horseback for hours to deliver important news"), to the eating habits of four year olds ("there is no difference...

The further adventures of the Quimby family as Ramona enters the third grade.