Lose yourself in the transporting photography of the food, the people, and the place of "The Tuscan Sun: Recipes from our Italian Kitchen" by Frances and Edward Mayes

"The Tuscan Sun: Recipes from our Italian Kitchen"   by Frances and Edward Mayes

“Tuscan food tastes like itself. Ingredients are left to shine. . . . So, if on your visit, I hand you an apron, your work will be easy. We’ll start with primo ingredients, a little flurry of activity, perhaps a glass of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, and soon we’ll be carrying platters out the door. We’ll have as much fun setting the table as we have in the kitchen. Four double doors along the front of the house open to the outside—so handy for serving at a long table under the stars (or for cooling a scorched pan on the stone wall). Italian Philosophy 101: la casa aperta, the open house.”
—from the Introduction

 
In all of Frances Mayes’s bestselling memoirs about Tuscany, food plays a starring role. This cuisine transports, comforts, entices, and speaks to the friendly, genuine, and improvisational spirit of Tuscan life. Both cooking and eating in Tuscany are natural pleasures. In her first-ever cookbook, Frances and her husband, Ed, share recipes that they have enjoyed over the years as honorary Tuscans: dishes prepared in a simple, traditional kitchen using robust, honest ingredients.
           

A toast to the experiences they’ve had over two decades at Bramasole, their home in Cortona, Italy, this cookbook evokes days spent roaming the countryside for chestnuts, green almonds, blackberries, and porcini; dinner parties stretching into the wee hours,  and garden baskets tumbling over with bright red tomatoes.
            

Lose yourself in the transporting photography of the food, the people, and the place, as Frances’s lyrical introductions and headnotes put you by her side in the kitchen and raising a glass at the table. From Antipasti (starters) to Dolci (desserts), this cookbook is organized like a traditional Italian dinner.

           
The more than 150 tempting recipes include:

·         Fried Zucchini Flowers
·         Red Peppers Melted with Balsamic Vinegar
·         Potato Ravioli with Zucchini, Speck, and Pecorino
·         Risotto Primavera
·         Pizza with Caramelized Onions and Sausage
·         Cannellini Bean Soup with Pancetta
·         Little Veal Meatballs with Artichokes and Cherry Tomatoes
·         Chicken Under a Brick
·         Short Ribs, Tuscan-Style
·         Domenica’s Rosemary Potatoes
·         Folded Fruit Tart with Mascarpone
·         Strawberry Semifreddo
·         Steamed Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Sauce

 
Frances and Ed also share their tips on stocking your pantry, pairing wines with dishes, and choosing the best olive oil. Learn their time-tested methods for hand rolling pasta and techniques for coaxing the best out of seasonal ingredients with little effort.
            

Throw on another handful of pasta, pull up a chair, and languish in the rustic Italian way of life. 


MY REVIEW:


One of my favorite "mindcations" is "Under the Tuscan Sun". In my version, everything has the beautiful glow of Renaissance reds and golds. Even I am beautiful and glowing. Rustic, yet regal, my villa is filled with light, laughter, gorgeous food and great wine, good times and good people. Acclaimed writer Frances Mayes set the wheels of my mind in motion when I saw the film version of her book, "Under the Tuscan Sun", and then I added to my enjoyment of the film by reading her books and following her blog. Now Frances and her husband Edward Mayes, an accomplished poet, have given their readers a very special gift: "The Tuscan Sun: Recipes from our Italian Kitchen". Cooking and reading are two of my favorite pastimes. The more complicated your life, the more demands made on your time, the more you need to take the time to care for yourself. Food is not just a necessity for life, it is a pleasure for all of our senses. Cooking should be something that you enjoy, never just a chore. "The Tuscan Sun Cookbook" celebrates the food and lifestyle of a region both simple and spectacular, a glorious combination of earth, sea, and sun. The well-stocked pantry, the bounty of the sea and the soil, basic, well-used pans and utensils, and timeless food preparation techniques are all highlighted here along with incredibly beautiful, vividly-hued photographs. My favorite photo in the book is the first one, which shows Frances and Ed in the kitchen of "Bramasole", their home in Cortona, Italy. Their love of each other, and the joy of their extraordinary life together clearly shines in the appealing, inviting image. Then there are the recipes, which are organized by course and expanded and illuminated by the involving stories and delicious images spread throughout the book. All of your senses will be engaged and satiated. Inhale the aromas, treat your eyes to the visual feast, and then savor the flavors of food, fabulous food such as: "When-in-Rome Artichokes"; "Fiorella's Red Pepper Tart"; "Pasta Shells with Shrimp and Three Cheeses"; "Angry Pasta"; "Minestrone: Big Soup"; "Risotto Primavera"; "Pizza with Caramelized Onion and Sausage"; "Chicken Under a Brick"; "Beef Tenderloin with Balsamic Vinegar"; "Sea Bass in a Salt Crust"; "Peach Gelato"; "Folded Fruit Tart with Marscapone"; and "Fig and Walnut Tart". There are wine suggestions for many of the recipes, and a special chapter on wine and other libations closes the book. Frances and Ed Mayes will capture your culinary imagination and leave you longing for the golden warmth of the Tuscan sun.


Review Copy Gratis Clarkson Potter Publishers

"Old-School Comfort Food--The Way I Learned to Cook" by popular TV Chef Alex Guarnaschell--lovely memoir plus delicious dishes makes a wonderful cookbook read

Old-School Comfort Food: The Way I Learned to Cook

by

Alex Guarnaschelli

How does one become an Iron Chef and a Chopped judge on Food Network—and what does she really cook at home?

 
Alex Guarnaschelli grew up in a home suffused with a love of cooking, where soufflés and cheeseburgers were equally revered. The daughter of a respected cookbook editor and a Chinese cooking enthusiast, Alex developed a passion for food at a young age, sealing her professional fate. Old-School Comfort Food shares her journey from waist-high taste-tester to trained chef who now adores spending time in the kitchen with her daughter, along with the 100 recipes for how she learned to cook—and the way she still loves to eat.

 
Here are Alex’s secrets to great home cooking, where humble ingredients and familiar preparations combine with excellent technique and care to create memorable meals. Alex brings her recipes to life with reminiscences of everything from stealing tomatoes from her aunt’s garden and her first bite of her mother’s pâté to being one of the few women in the kitchen of a renowned Parisian restaurant and serving celebrity clientele in her own successful New York City establishments. With 75 color photographs and ephemera, Old-School Comfort Food is Alex’s love letter to deliciousness.

MY REVIEW:  Our concept of "comfort food" is influenced by the family kitchen of our childhood and our encounters with food from outside the home. If you are a true "foodie", then you have a fascination with all the things that combine to complete your food and make it into the finished dish which you consume. "Old-School Comfort Food: The Way I Learned to Cook", by accomplished chef and TV personality Alex Guarnaschelli, is a perfect example of how our differences in heritage and life experiences shape our idea of what is our comfort zone, and that includes our favorite foods and beverages. Written with dry humor, and a refreshing, down-to-earth tone, this cookbook almost makes you feel as though you and Alex are having a conversation about food. Even if your idea of comfort food is much different than hers, you will appreciate her amazing "journey in food". Her earliest food impressions were provided by her esteemed cookbook-editor mother, and by her father, whose Italian heritage was blended with a love for cooking Chinese food. Once grown, and out on her own, Alex traveled the globe, cooking and learning from some of the most highly-renowned chefs in a number of the most prestigious restaurants in the world. Her eventual return to her home turf of New York added further layers to her adventures in food, as she worked in a Madison Square Garden steakhouse, taught at the Institute of Culinary Education, and even held a job as private chef for a family on Park Avenue. Now an executive chef at more than one top New York City establishment, Alex is also a veteran star of numerous TV food and cooking programs. In addition to sharing her recipes, Alex also shares cooking techniques and essential kitchen tools, and she is not afraid to specify her favorite brand names for ingredients. She also provides a "sources" pages featuring some of her personal picks for places and products. Here are some of her recipes which I found most appealing: "Overnight Garlic Bread"; "Chilled Iceberg Wedge with Blue Cheese and Leeks"; "Shrimp and Cucumber Salad"; "Mom's Meatloaf"; "Bacon-Wrapped Pork Chops with Apple and Brussels Sprouts"; "Broiled Bluefish with Corn and Bacon"; "Mashed Potatoes Chantilly"; "Yellow Cake with Chocolate Frosting and Caramel Top"; and "Evil Cheese Biscuits". Also included is a "Make it from Scratch" chapter which provides recipes for such kitchen staples as butter, pickles, BBQ sauce, and hot sauce. You will enjoy this view of "comfort food" from an author whose love of subject and considerable skills and knowledge shine through from page to page.

Review Copy Gratis Amazon Vine

Come to "NONNA'S HOUSE" and cook and reminisce with the Italian Grandmothers of ENOTECA MARIA--delicious classic recipes from the NONNAS

Nonna's House: Cooking and Reminiscing with the Italian Grandmothers of Enoteca Maria   by Jody Scaravella and Elisa Petrini

This beautiful collection of food and nostalgia features great traditions from the heart of Italy, with delicious recipes and colorful stories from the internationally celebrated grandmothers of Enoteca Maria—a one-of-a-kind Italian restaurant where a rotating cast of nonnas are the star chefs.

Enoteca Maria takes great home cooking seriously. At this intimate, hospitable restaurant on Staten Island, all the cooking is done by ten nonnas (grandmothers), drawing on their own family recipes, handed down for generations, which reflect their regional traditions. Here are their delicious homemade pastas, risottos, desserts, and more, which have foodies from all over the world taking the ferry to the forgotten borough for an authentic taste of Italy.

Beautiful full-color photography captures the fresh, distinctive flavors of these surprising dishes. Nonna Cristina shares her beautiful Risotto with Strawberries, Black Pepper, and Parmesan; Nonna Margherita offers delectable Stuffed Peppers with Pine Nuts and Raisins; and Nonna Teresa shows off her prize-winning Meat and Cheese Lasagna. Nonna Elvira whips up her peerless Linguine with Cuttlefish and Ink; Adelina creates a savory Tagliatelle with Pumpkin, Sausage, and Chestnuts; and Rosaria makes handmade Spaghetti alla Chitarra with Cherry Tomatoes and Porcini Mushrooms. Nonna Carmelina shares her classic Potato Pie with Ham, Salami, and Mozzarella; Rosa confides her nonna’s secret recipe for Rabbit with Sage; and Nina sautés Chicken alla Capricciosa, with prosciutto and mushrooms. Nonna Francesca launches the book with advice on the time-honored art of preserving everything from olives to soppressata.

With its utterly delicious tastes of grandmother’s kitchen, Nonna’s House is a legacy of flavors passed down through generations, now captured here forever. Restaurant founder Jody Scaravella says it best: “If I have a choice between a three-star Michelin chef’s restaurant and Grandma’s, I’m going to Grandma’s. I’m going to the source.”

**********

Jody Scaravella, or “Joe,” is the creator of Enoteca Maria, which opened in 2007 on Staten Island, with its signature cooking by Italian grandmothers. The “nonnas” have captivated the media, not only in New York but nationally and abroad, and have appeared on the Today show, Rachael Ray, Fox & Friends, and CNN’s Eatocracy, among other media.

BUDDY VALASTRO--"The Cake Boss"--has a rich family history with a lasting legacy of over 100 years

 


Cake Boss: Stories and Recipes from Mia Famiglia  by Buddy Valastro 


In this heartfelt memoir, master baker and star of the #1 hit TLC show, Buddy Valastro tells his inspiring story—and recounts his family’s warm memories from a lifetime of living, loving, and cake making.
Television viewers have fallen in love with Buddy Valastro, master cake maker, and his funny and fiery family, proprietors of Carlo’s Bake Shop in Hoboken, New Jersey, on the smash hit TLC series Cake Boss. Now, to coincide with Carlo’s 100th anniversary, cake designer extraordinaire Buddy Valastro brings together his passion for baking and his high-energy family stories in the pages of this charming, heartwarming book—complete with 25 recipes and tips that will make every reader the “cake boss” of their own kitchen.Buddy’s beautifully designed cakes are the stuff of legend—and so is the remarkable story of his father, a beloved pillar of the community and himself a talented baker who set the stage for his family’s rise to the pinnacle of their industry. Cake Boss recounts the story of Buddy’s life and of his family’s bakeshop, originally established in 1910 and now a Hoboken, New Jersey, landmark and culinary tourist destination. Here also are twenty-five recipes for Carlo’s Bakery’s most sought-after pastries, pies, cupcakes, and cakes, an irresistible combination of time-tested old-world recipes and modern creations, all founded on a rock-solid “old-school” baking foundation and classic techniques.This is the incredible true story of how Carlo’s Bakery came to be, how one hard-working family realized their patriarch’s dream of making their beloved bake shop a household name. The special bond and loving dynamic of the Valastro clan make this an uncommonly touching and truly inspiring memoir. 


MY REVIEW:   An engaging and involving memoir, "Cake Boss: Stories and Recipes from Mia Famiglia", by Buddy Valastro, is told in a warm, personal style just as though Buddy were speaking directly to the reader. Carlo's Bake Shop in Hoboken, New Jersey, is the family-owned and operated bakery extraordinaire which has achieved legendary status in its more than one century of making the sweetest of dreams come true for its many loyal customers. While the cakes and confections produced by the bakery fulfill the fantasies of the most fanatic foodies, it takes the lifelong hard work and devotion of the family and friends who work as a team to ensure the consistent quality and customer service for which Carlo's Bake Shop is noted. The heartfelt story of the Valastros, their family and friends, and the living legacy of their landmark bakery made a natural transition to TV with the hit show, "Cake Boss", on The Learning Channel (TLC). Included along with magical memories and appealing photos are recipes for the bakery's most popular pastries, pies, and cakes: "Classic Biscotti"; "Pecan Wedges"; "Cannoli"; "Ricotta Pie"; "Banana Cream Pie"; "Crumb Cake"; "Carrot Cake", and more. Spend some time with "The Cake Boss" and his family, and you might just hit the road to Hoboken.   


Review Copy Gratis Simon & Schuster      







The Essential Cake Boss (A Condensed Edition of Baking with the Cake Boss): Bake Like The Boss--Recipes & Techniques You Absolutely Have to Know   by Buddy Valastro 


Bake Like the Boss! 


The Essential Cake Boss is a perfect slice of Buddy Valastro’s beloved bestseller Baking with the Cake Boss—a sweet collection of Buddy’s core recipes and techniques; the building blocks of Buddy’s show-stopping desserts; and many of his most popular, signature creations. You’ll learn to work with baking and decorating equipment, bake perfectly moist cupcakes and cakes, and work magical effects with frosting and fondant. Gorgeous photos let you follow Buddy as he shows how to create his artistic flourishes and decorations. The Essential Cake Boss also features charts that let you mix and match cake flavor, frosting, and liqueur syrup to create your own trademark cakes.  


Bursting with delicious, tried-and-true recipes, handy tricks of the trade, and stories told in Buddy’s inimitable voice, The Essential Cake Boss is a rare treat— a fun, accessible guide to baking that inspires home bakers to new culinary heights, all in a gloriously designed, fully illustrated book worthy of the Cake Boss’s unique artistic vision.  


MY REVIEW:   "The Essential Cake Boss" may be a condensed version of master baker Buddy Valastro's "Baking with the Cake Boss", but it is filled to the brim with mouthwatering recipes and expert baking methods and helpful hints. While you may never achieve the level of food artistry of the "Cake Boss", you can elevate your level of baking skill and culinary knowledge. You won't just be in awe--you'll be truly inspired. Sections such as "Basic Baking Techniques", "Decorating Techniques", and "Working with Fondant" are magically mixed together with recipes for cookies, cakes and cupcakes, and frostings and fillings. Try to resist the appeal of these tempting treats: "Double Chocolate Chip Cookies"; "Pignoli Cookies"; "Christmas Tree Cupcakes"; "Raspberry Dream Cake"; "Old Fashioned Italian Rum Cake"; "Red Velvet Cake", and more. Fully illustrated from cover to cover, this slim volume contains a wealth of baking and decorating techniques. Practice makes perfect, and the test products are scrumptious.  


Review Copy Gratis Simon & Schuster   







Family Celebrations with the Cake Boss: Recipes for Get-Togethers Throughout the Year  by Buddy Valastro 



Make every gathering with your friends and famiglia extra special with these great new cookies, cupcakes, cakes, and other delicious, gorgeous desserts—and 100 other original recipes featuring the Cake Boss’s signature twist on favorite family foods! Besides being a master baker and fantastic cook, Buddy Valastro is a great host. He knows the key to every successful family dinner, gathering, or party: a fabulous cake as the starring attraction together with great food! Clear, step-by-step instructions and photos will guide you through recipes perfect for all generations and for every occasion—birthday parties, anniversary parties, summer barbeques, and feasts for the major holidays.  


As he does in every book, Buddy brings his characteristic warmth and flair to Family Celebrations with the Cake Boss, sharing personal stories alongside cooking, baking, and decorating tips. His charisma as well as his delicious appetizers, dinners, and desserts make this an indispensable cookbook for every holiday and special occasion. Whether you’re cooking for six or sixty, these delicious dishes from the Cake Boss will make your next family gathering an event to remember! 


MY REVIEW:   "Cake Boss" Buddy Valastro brings his signature style and joy for food and life to "Family Celebrations with the Cake Boss: Recipes for Get-Togethers Throughout the Year''. Featuring fantastic food for all occasions--topped off by unforgettable desserts--this photo-filled book will have you returning to the kitchen again and again to create memorable celebratory meals for family and friends. Each recipe comes with its own story, making the preparation and enjoyment of the finished dishes all the more special. You and your loved ones will appreciate the irresistible appetizing appeal of recipes like these: "Antipasto Salad"; "Apple-Oatmeal Cookies"; "Sesame Chicken Fingers"; "Blueberry-Lemon Pancakes''; "Roasted Rib Eyes with Horseradish Butter"; "Cherry-Glazed Holiday Ham''; "Eggnog Ice Cream"; "Prosciutto-Wrapped Asparagus"; "Smoked Salmon Risotto"; and much more. Organized by holidays, special occasions, and "just because" days, this cookbook offers traditional favorites and new discoveries that will add so much flavor and fun to your get-togethers with family and friends.  


Review Copy Gratis Simon & Schuster 

The "RANSOM CANYON SERIES" from master storyteller JODI THOMAS--contemporary Western Romance at its best

 

 

 

 

 

 

Winter's Camp (Ransom Canyon Prequel)  by Jodi Thomas

New York Times bestselling author Jodi Thomas has captivated readers around the world with her sweeping, heartfelt family sagas. To introduce her brand-new series, Jodi tells the story behind the unforgiving Texas landscape and how one man claims Ransom Canyon—and a timid beauty—for his legacy…

A wanderer’s life was all James Randall Kirkland had known since he was an orphaned boy in San Antonio. And while years of adventure had satisfied his younger self, now he’s longing to put down roots of his own and is prepared to go it alone. But when he sees the Apache slave woman with the startling blue eyes, the course of his journey is changed forever.

Ever since the Comanche raided her village and took her for their own, Millie hasn’t known any kind of freedom. After years of being outcast, beaten and traded from tribe to tribe, she’s unprepared for James’s patient tone and gentle ways. Still, as her handsome savior slowly earns her trust, Millie struggles between desire and fear, sure it’s just a matter of time before James tires of her and her burgeoning feelings are nothing but another wasted memory.

Ransom Canyon (Ransom Canyon 1) by Jodi Thomas

From New York Times bestselling author Jodi Thomas comes the first book in a compelling, emotionally resonant series set in a remote west Texas town—where family can be made by blood or by choice 

Rancher Staten Kirkland, the last descendant of Ransom Canyon's founding father, is rugged and practical to the last. No one knows that when his troubling memories threaten to overwhelm him, he runs to lovely, reclusive Quinn O'Grady…or that she has her own secret that no one living knows.
Young Lucas Reyes has his eye on the prize—college, and the chance to become something more than a ranch hand's son. But one night, one wrong decision, will set his life on a course even he hadn't imagined.
Yancy Grey is running hard from his troubled past. He doesn't plan to stick around Ransom Canyon, just long enough to learn the town's weaknesses and how to use them for personal gain. Only Yancy, a common criminal since he was old enough to reach a car's pedals, isn't prepared for what he encounters.
In this dramatic new series, the lives, loves and ambitions of four families will converge, set against a landscape that can be as unforgiving as it is beautiful, where passion, property and pride are worth fighting—and even dying—for.

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

Rustler's Moon (Ransom Canyon 2)  by Jodi Thomas

On a dirt road marked by haunting secrets, three strangers caught at life's crossroads must decide what to sacrifice to protect their own agendas…and what they're each willing to risk for love.

If there's any place that can convince Angela Harold to stop running, it's Ransom Canyon. And if there's any man who can reveal desires more deeply hidden than her every fear, it's Wilkes Wagner. Beneath the rancher's honorable exterior is something that just might keep her safe…or unwittingly put her in danger's path. 

With his dreams of leaving this small Texas town swallowed up by hard, dusty reality, all Wilkes has to show for his life is the Devil's Fork Ranch. Though not one to let false hope seduce him, he can't deny the quiet and cautious beauty who slips into his world and changes everything. 

Lauren Brigman finally has freedom at her fingertips. All she needs is Lucas Reyes's attention—a look, a touch, some sign that she's more to him than a girl he rescued one dangerous night. But now it's her turn to rescue someone, and the life-altering decision may cost her more than a chance with Lucas.

Lone Heart Pass (Ransom Canyon 3)  by Jodi Thomas

Where family bonds are made and broken, and where young love sparks as old flames grow dim, Ransom Canyon is ready to welcome—and shelter—those who need it 

With a career and a relationship in ruins, Jubilee Hamilton is left reeling from a fast fall to the bottom. The run-down Texas farm she's inherited is a far cry from the second chance she hoped for, but it and the abrasive foreman she's forced to hire are all she's got.

Every time Charley Collins has let a woman get close, he's been burned. So Lone Heart ranch and the contrary woman who owns it are merely a means to an end, until Jubilee tempts him to take another risk—to stop resisting the attraction drawing them together despite all his hard-learned logic. 

Desperation is all young Thatcher Jones knows. And when he finds himself mixed up in a murder investigation, his only protection is the shelter of a man and woman who—just like him—need someone to trust.

JODI THOMAS

New York Times and USA Today's bestselling author Jodi Thomas has published over 30 books in both the historical romance and contemporary genres, the majority of which are set in her home state of Texas. Publishers Weekly calls her novels "Distinctive...Memorable," and that in her stories "[tension] rides high, mixed with humor and kisses more passionate than most full-on love scenes." In 2006, Romance Writers of America (RITA) inducted Thomas into the RWA Hall of Fame for winning her third RITA for THE TEXAN'S REWARD. She also received the National Readers' Choice Award in 2009 for TWISTED CREEK (2008) and TALL, DARK, AND TEXAN (2008). While continuing to work as a novelist, Thomas also functions as Writer in Residence at the West Texas A&M University campus, where she inspires students and alumni in their own writing pursuits. Jodi Thomas says: "I'm a New York Times and USA Today Best Selling author, wife, mother, in-law, grandmother, sister, friend, and owner of one fat cat."

A fifth-generation Texan, New York Times and USA Todaybestselling author Jodi Thomas chooses to set the majority of her novels in her home state, where her grandmother was born in a covered wagon. A former teacher, Thomas traces the beginning of her storytelling career to the days when her twin sisters were young and impressionable. 

With a degree in family studies, Thomas is a marriage and family counselor by education, a background that enables her to write about family dynamics. Honored in 2002 as a Distinguished Alumni by Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Thomas enjoys interacting with students on the West Texas A&M University campus, where she currently serves as Writer in Residence.

Commenting on her contribution to the arts, Thomas said, “When I was teaching classes full-time, I thought I was making the world a better place. Now I think of a teacher or nurse or mother settling back and relaxing with one of my books. I want to take her away on an adventure that will entertain her. Maybe, in a small way, I’m still making the world a better place.”

When not working on a novel or inspiring students to pursue a writing career, Thomas enjoys traveling with her husband, renovating a historic home they bought in Amarillo and “checking up” on their two grown sons.

For more information on Jodi and her writing, visit her website and connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.

http://www.jodithomas.com/index.html

AUTHOR SHIRLEY JUMP—just the right recipe for romance—heartfelt contemporary love stories with an irresistible touch of “something extra”

WHEN SOMEBODY LOVES YOU  by Shirley Jump

First in a new series from the New York Times bestselling author of the hugely popular Sweetheart Sisters novels!

At heart, Elizabeth Palmer is a practical Jersey girl. And her life reflects that—until everything suddenly falls apart.  In a bid to change her luck, the intrepid reporter accepts a job to write a story on a reclusive quarter horse breeder in Chatham Ridge, Georgia. To her surprise, she finds herself settling into the warm, inviting town—even joining the Southern Belle Book Club—and craving the company of the rancher she’s there to interview….

Hunter McCoy has good reason to keep his distance from the determined reporter. Tragedy has taught him to stick to things that don’t require his heart. But he can’t seem to resist the vulnerability he detects beneath Elizabeth’s tough demeanor.

But when Hunter is faced with the possibility of a terrible loss and shuts Elizabeth out, she will have to prove to Hunter that having somebody love you can heal all wounds…

THE TYCOON'S PROPOSAL  by Shirley Jump

This Barlow Brother Always Gets What He Wants

Mac Barlow never met a deal he couldn't make. But this corporate shark just hit a gorgeous roadblock. Mac will do anything to acquire Savannah Hillstrand's struggling solar energy company—even return to Stone Gap and face down a shattering secret in his family's past. Just one problem: the breathtaking blonde refuses to sell.

Determined to save her father's legacy, Savannah makes Mac an offer he can't refuse. He'll show her how to turn her business around. If she fails, the company is his. Instead, it's Savannah who's changing the way the hunky, buttoned-up CEO sees the bottom line…and is in danger of losing her heart. Can she help Mac reconcile with his past and claim a future with the irresistible Barlow bachelor?

  

THE BRIDE WORE CHOCOLATE  by Shirley Jump

Take one restless, slightly nervous bride-to-be, add a mystery hunk who makes a box of Godiva look bland, and mix well.

A RECIPE FOR DISASTER?

Candace Woodrow thinks so. She has no business even looking at another man-no matter how sinfully sexy he is-much less waking up in Michael Vogler's bed three weeks before she marries Mr. Right. She's determined her wedding will go off without a hitch-as long as she can keep her meddling grandmother, her flighty mother, and her well-meaning friends from interfering with her plans-and pointing out her doubts every time she turns around.

Which won't be easy, since Michael just became Candace's biggest client, with an order for thousands of the Gift Baskets to Die For she creates with her friends. Worse, he wants to work closely with Candace...every step of the way. It's enough to drive a girl to intravenous chocolate consumption, 24/7. And the way Candace's heart flip-flops whenever Michael is around is an industrial-sized clue that keeping a tight rein on her future and her heart might not be such a good idea. But risking it all for a man she barely knows is even crazier, right?

Sometimes, crazy is a good thing...

THE SWEETHEART BARGAIN  by Shirley Jump

You can’t teach an old dog new tricks—unless you’re a Sweetheart Sister…

The Sweetheart Sisters, a trio of sassy, well-meaning grannies (who aren’t against a sip of bourbon with breakfast) are ready to dispense advice and help create happy endings with a little of what they do best—meddling.

Animal therapist Olivia Linscott is the Sweetheart Sisters’ first target. Running from a bad marriage and a lousy job, Olivia is determined to save the dog shelter she inherited from the mother she never knew and, above all, to protect her broken heart. The Sisters want to tie the spirited young do-gooder to wounded helicopter pilot Luke Winslow, but the intended pair keeps slipping the leash.

Luke’s dreams were shattered by a career-ending eye injury. Adrift and bitter, the last thing he wants is romantic involvement. But when a golden retriever in worse shape than he is scratches on the door, the dog brings in a whole lot more than puppy love…

SHIRLEY JUMP

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Shirley Jump spends her days writing romance and women’s fiction to feed her shoe addiction and avoid cleaning the toilets. She cleverly finds writing time by feeding her kids junk food, allowing them to dress in the clothes they find on the floor and encouraging the dogs to double as vacuum cleaners.

Look for her Sweet and Savory Romance series, including the USA Today bestselling book, THE BRIDE WORE CHOCOLATE, on Amazon and Nook, and the debut of her Sweetheart Sisters series for Berkley, starting with THE SWEETHEART BARGAIN and continuing with THE SWEETHEART RULES.

Visit her website at www.shirleyjump.com or read recipes and life adventures at www.eating-my-words.com.