New Bestsellers

Unbearable Lightness: A Story of Loss and Gain by Portia de Rossi

Publishers Weekly –

The author, an actor in movies and TV, (including Ally McBeal, Arrested Development, and Better Off Ted), model, and gay rights advocate, writes that "playing the role of heterosexual while fantasizing about being a homosexual had been my reality since I was a child." It's one she played into her 20s, when she was for three years married to a man. Now, she is married to Ellen DeGeneres, whom she met in 2001 after recovering from anorexia and bulimia. De Rossi nicely chronicles the years in between, during which she starved herself to 80 pounds. She artfully draws the reader into the tension of a life lived in secrecy: did anybody notice she lunges rather than walks, the better to burn calories? will anyone guess she is gay? when she nearly fainted, was anyone around? While some details could be viewed as anorexia how-tos, they make it possible to comprehend the twisted logic of de Rossi's frantic daily pursuits, and grasp the enormity of her achievement in overcoming her problems. The path de Rossi took to her happy ending is well worth reading about: her story is a cautionary tale, an inspiration, and a triumph.

An Irish Country Christmas by Patrick Taylor

Publishers Weekly –

Taylor's delightful holiday update to the Irish Country series returns to Ballybucklebo, where Dr. Fingal O'Reilly and junior partner Barry Laverty are still practicing their humorous brand of country medicine. As Christmas draws closer, the two men contend with a variety of comical village ailments and the usual array of Ballybucklebo characters, as well as romantic troubles. O'Reilly is trying to decide if he will allow himself to love again with the vivacious Kitty O'Halloran, and Laverty is distraught because his girlfriend can't seem to make it home for the holidays. Then a new doctor comes to town and causes a ruckus by poaching their patients and prescribing ludicrous cures. This has all the charm of Taylor's previous books and adds Christmas warmth without sacrificing credibility.

The Reckless Bride by Stephanie Laurens

From the Publisher –

USA Today bestselling author Stephanie Laurens takes us on a journey of extraordinary adventure.

Four bold, brave, and determined ex-officers of the Crown band together to destroy the traitorous fiend known as the Black Cobra.

He races to complete their mission against escalating odds—his task made more perilous when he loses his heart.

She's determined to defy convention and live a solitary life—until she tastes the reckless pleasure found only in his arms.

Drawn together by fate, united by fiery passion, they pursue their shared destiny . . . one they'll live to see only if they unmask the Black Cobra.

The Twelfth Imam by Joel C. Rosenberg

Publishers Weekly –

Bestseller Rosenberg (The Last Jihad) has carved out a deep niche in conservative political fiction, vividly sweeping from 1979 Iran during the hostage crisis to a world-threatening crisis in the present day. When a prophecy of the coming Mahdi, or 12th imam, is believed to have been fulfilled through a Muslim prophet, a nuclear attack is threatened by Iran against Israel to bring the end of days. Iranian-American CIA operative David Shirazi must infiltrate the Iranian government without leaving American fingerprints and stop the ultimate disaster that would certainly escalate into international conflict. Filled with Islamic culture and history, this story of an Iranian family and an American one trying to understand one another is coupled with an emerging love story that will no doubt play out in coming books, since the ending is left open for more. Readers must keep track of many characters, but the author has provided a character list. Toeing the Christian conservative line while still writing sympathetic Muslim characters, Rosenberg is a go-to novelist for Christian political fiction.