Great And Precious Things

How do you define yourself when others have already decided who you are? Six years ago, when Camden Daniels came back from war without his younger brother, no one in the small town of Alba, Colorado, would forgive him—especially his father. He left, swearing never to return. But a desperate message from his father brings it all back. The betrayal. The pain. And the need to go home again. But home is where the one person he still loves is waiting. Willow. The one woman he can never have, because there are secrets buried in Alba that are best left in the dark... Great and Precious Things is a heart-wrenching forbidden romance about family, betrayal, and ultimately how far we’re willing to go on behalf of those we love and who need us most.

Success, wealth, respect are never enough. Until her. She sees a man, not his reputation or disability. Will she stay when even his name is a lie? Benjamin Prescott Roth is his own man. Everything he has -- possessions, wealth, prestige, recognition for his accomplishments -- he earned. On his own. His deafness never defined him, but his father's rejection did. "You'll never amount to anything..." Every accomplishment has been to prove his father wrong. Then Jewell Kincaid is hired as his assistant and puts him in his place, and Benjamin Roth is a lost man. Jewell is breathtaking, feisty, intelligent, independent, and so much more than an assistant to him. She is everything Benjamin needs, but never knew he wanted. She gets past his walls without even trying. She makes him happy. But the fantasy can only last so long. When the foundation of his life crumbles, Jewell is there. Holding his hand. If his life is a lie, if every battle has been for nothing, if he can't accept who he really is, how can she? When the truth is a lie, what is there to offer her?

Told in alternating timelines, THE THINGS WE LEAVE UNFINISHED examines the risks we take for love, the scars too deep to heal, and the endings we can’t bring ourselves to see coming. Twenty-eight-year-old Georgia Stanton has to start over after she gave up almost everything in a brutal divorce—the New York house, the friends, and her pride. Now back home at her late great-grandmother’s estate in Colorado, she finds herself face-to-face with Noah Harrison, the bestselling author of a million books where the cover is always people nearly kissing. He’s just as arrogant in person as in interviews, and she’ll be damned if the good-looking writer of love stories thinks he’s the one to finish her grandmother’s final novel...even if the publisher swears he’s the perfect fit. Noah is at the pinnacle of his career. With book and movie deals galore, there isn’t much the “golden boy” of modern fiction hasn’t accomplished. But he can’t walk away from what might be the best book of the century—the one his idol, Scarlett Stanton, left unfinished. Coming up with a fitting ending for the legendary author is one thing, but dealing with her beautiful, stubborn, cynical great-granddaughter, Georgia, is quite another. But as they read Scarlett’s words in both the manuscript and her box of letters, they start to realize why Scarlett never finished the book—it’s based on her real-life romance with a World War II pilot, and the ending isn’t a happy one. Georgia knows all too well that love never works out, and while the chemistry and connection between her and Noah is undeniable, she’s as determined as ever to learn from her great-grandmother’s mistakes—even if it means destroying Noah’s career.

“The Last Letter is a haunting, heartbreaking and ultimately inspirational love story.“—InTouch Weekly Beckett, If you’re reading this, well, you know the last-letter drill. You made it. I didn’t. Get off the guilt train, because I know if there was any chance you could have saved me, you would have. I need one thing from you: get out of the army and get to Telluride. My little sister Ella’s raising the twins alone. She’s too independent and won’t accept help easily, but she has lost our grandmother, our parents, and now me. It’s too much for anyone to endure. It’s not fair. And here’s the kicker: there’s something else you don’t know that’s tearing her family apart. She’s going to need help. So if I’m gone, that means I can’t be there for Ella. I can’t help them through this. But you can. So I’m begging you, as my best friend, go take care of my sister, my family. Please don’t make her go through it alone. Ryan

The beloved New York Times bestselling author reflects on home, family, friendships and writing in this deeply personal collection of essays. "The elegance of Patchett’s prose is seductive and inviting: with Patchett as a guide, readers will really get to grips with the power of struggles, failures, and triumphs alike." —Publisher's Weekly “Any story that starts will also end.” As a writer, Ann Patchett knows what the outcome of her fiction will be. Life, however, often takes turns we do not see coming. Patchett ponders this truth in these wise essays that afford a fresh and intimate look into her mind and heart. At the center of These Precious Days is the title essay, a surprising and moving meditation on an unexpected friendship that explores “what it means to be seen, to find someone with whom you can be your best and most complete self.” When Patchett chose an early galley of actor and producer Tom Hanks’ short story collection to read one night before bed, she had no idea that this single choice would be life changing. It would introduce her to a remarkable woman—Tom’s brilliant assistant Sooki—with whom she would form a profound bond that held monumental consequences for them both. A literary alchemist, Patchett plumbs the depths of her experiences to create gold: engaging and moving pieces that are both self-portrait and landscape, each vibrant with emotion and rich in insight. Turning her writer’s eye on her own experiences, she transforms the private into the universal, providing us all a way to look at our own worlds anew, and reminds how fleeting and enigmatic life can be. From the enchantments of Kate DiCamillo’s children’s books (author of The Beatryce Prophecy) to youthful memories of Paris; the cherished life gifts given by her three fathers to the unexpected influence of Charles Schultz’s Snoopy; the expansive vision of Eudora Welty to the importance of knitting, Patchett connects life and art as she illuminates what matters most. Infused with the author’s grace, wit, and warmth, the pieces in These Precious Days resonate deep in the soul, leaving an indelible mark—and demonstrate why Ann Patchett is one of the most celebrated writers of our time.

Before becoming the first female private investigator in Botswana, eight-year-old Precious Ramotswe tracks down a thief who has been stealing her classmates' snacks.

Two years after the man she loved was killed in Afghanistan, Morgan Bartley is trying to put the pieces of her life back together. Renovating her dilapidated beach house in the Outer Banks might be just the distraction she needs to manage her debilitating anxiety attacks and begin to heal. That is, if she can ignore the ridiculously handsome guy next door... Jackson Montgomery’s life revolves around his five-year-old daughter and his job as a Coast Guard Search and Rescue pilot. But while his gorgeous new neighbor is clearly in distress, he’s pretty sure she’s no damsel. Morgan is stubborn with more defenses than the Hope Diamond, and the dog tags hanging from her rearview mirror give him a pretty good clue as to why. Morgan swore she’d never fall for another pilot, let alone a military man—and Jackson is heartbreak waiting to happen. But love never plays by the rules...especially when you try to play it safe. The Flight & Glory series is best enjoyed in order. Reading Order: Book #1 Full Measures Book #2 Eyes Turned Skyward Book #3 Beyond What is Given Book #4 Hallowed Ground Book #5 The Reality of Everything

A prequel to the magical novella Made Things, Adrian Tchaikovsky's "Precious Little Things" is a Tor.com Original short story offering a new perspective while set in the same action-packed gaslamp world. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

A gorgeous, enthralling and intricate mystery, with love, life and fashion entwining in a story of a mysterious beaded collar and the young woman who finds it. One for fans of Kate Morton. 'Clothes - particularly vintage and antique ones - are my weakness' Kelly Doust Spinning her love of stories, vintage fashion and frocks into an enchanting and enthralling novel of mothers and daughters, marriage, families and desire, bestselling author Kelly Doust's Precious Things is a story about how we so often reach out for the sparkly, shiny things (and people) we desire, only to realise - in the nick of time - that the most precious things are the ones we've had with us all along. Maggie is an auctioneer living in modern-day London, who comes across an intriguing crumpled, neglected beading collar in a box of old junk, and sets out on an unexpected mission to resucitate it to its original glittering glory. On a hunt to uncover its secret and elusive past, she discovers more about its journey through time in the hands of the women who made it, loved it, desired it and lost it. Maggie has a journey of her own too. Juggling a demanding job, a clingy young child and a rebellious stepdaughter, and with her once-solid marriage foundering under the pressure of a busy life, Maggie has to find out the hard way that you can't always get what you want... but sometimes, you're lucky enough to get precisely what you need. Kelly Doust is the bestselling author of a number of books on craft and fashion, including Minxy Vintage and A Life in Frocks. She's written for Vogue and Sunday Life magazine, and worked in the UK and Hong Kong. She now lives in Sydney. 'Precious Things tells the compelling story of a modern woman while weaving the fascinating and mysterious stories of many women from the past two centuries. What links each of them is a beautiful, precious thing - a bejeweled and mysterious coronet ... A wonderful and unusual story... an impressive debut.' Good Reading 'Wonderful storytelling - I was betwitched' Charlotte Smith, bestselling author of Dreaming of Dior 'Beautifully written and downright enchanting. Every character had a story and each story connected and drew me in to the point that I couldn't put the book down until I found out all their endings.' mybookdiary.com

In the middle of New York City lies a neighborhood where all secrets are valuable, all assets are liquid, and all deals are sealed with a blessing rather than a contract. Welcome to the diamond district. Ninety percent of all diamonds that enter America pass through these few blocks, but the inner workings of this mysterious world are known only to the people who inhabit it. In Precious Objects, twenty-six-year-old journalist Alicia Oltuski, the daughter and granddaughter of diamond dealers, seamlessly blends family narrative with literary reportage to reveal the fascinating secrets of the diamond industry and its madcap characters: an Elvis-impersonating dealer, a duo of diamond-detective brothers, and her own eccentric father. With insight and drama, Oltuski limns her family’s diamond-paved move from communist Siberia to a displaced persons camp in post–World War II Germany to New York’s diamond district, exploring the connections among Jews and the industry, the gem and its lore, and the exotic citizens of this secluded world. Entertaining and illuminating, Precious Objects offers an insider’s look at the history, business, and society behind one of the world’s most coveted natural resources, providing an unforgettable backstage pass to an extraordinary and timeless show.