Showing results by narrator "Lu Banks" in All Categories

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.

Dora Reynolds is just another Gilbert Girl at the Crest Stone Hotel, and she needs it to remain that way. If anyone found out who she truly is, she'd lose her friends and her position. But when money begins to disappear from the hotel's safe and a handsome new desk clerk arrives, she finds her security-and her heart-under threat.

Penny May would do anything to forget her past, even traveling all the way to the Colorado Territory to become a Gilbert Girl. Learning to be a good waitress wasn't easy, but Penny is happy with her new life and friends at the Crest Stone Hotel. At least until the handsome and infuriating county sheriff arrives in search of his kidnapped sister.

The Crest Stone Hotel is the perfect place for a man like Thomas Drexel to hide. Wanted for crimes he didn't commit, Thomas hopes he can blend in as a handyman at the newly opened hotel. But his past threatens his future when one of the hotel restaurant's waitresses discovers his identity. Caroline Beauchamp ran from Boston to escape an arranged marriage to a despicable man. She's safe in the hotel, hidden from those who want her to return home. Yet she finds herself drawn to Thomas and compelled to help him prove his innocence, even if she risks her position as a Gilbert Girl to do so.

With the sudden deaths of both of her parents, Mallory McDuff began to research sustainable practices around death and dying. For McDuff, an educator and environmentalist, what started as a highly personal endeavor expanded into a yearlong exploration and assessment of green burials, aquamation, green cemeteries, home funerals, and human composting. In Our Last Best Act, McDuff bridges the gap between environmental action and religious faith by demonstrating that when the two are combined, they become a powerful force for the greater good

When Emma Daniels's well-to-do family finds itself destitute, she answers an ad for the Gilbert Company seeking young women to be waitresses at hotel restaurants along remote railroad lines out west. The rules for a Gilbert Girl are strict: work hard, act respectably at all times, and no courting allowed. None of them present a problem for Emma, at least until she meets the hotel's builder, Monroe Hartley.

As a mother and a professor of environmental education, Mallory McDuff wanted to give her two daughters and her students a roadmap to engage in climate justice in their communities, rather than be left feeling paralyzed by the enormity of the problem. She set out to find women of diverse ages, backgrounds, and vocations—one from each of the fifty US states—as inspiration for a new kind of leadership focused on the heart of the climate crisis.

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 living in Hell for a year, I might have to amend the saying "Hell is other people" to "Hell is other people's family." Specifically, my dear demon husband's family, AKA my infernal in-laws. Even more specifically, Lucifer, my grandfather-in-law. In a revelation surprising exactly no one...

She hates me . . . I'm going to make her fall in love with me anyway. As captain of the SoCal Vipers, the last couple of seasons haven't been going well. My stats are slipping, and I'm at risk of being traded. So, I'm not in the mood for a case of mistaken identity with the woman playing bouncer...

I've been Queen Bee at our theme park for ten glorious, uncomplicated years. I'm far better at creating fictional magic than real life miracles. So when Landon Arden, my best friend's twin brother and my old high school bully, starts to work at Honeywood, I'm wishing for some gift from above to fix this mess.

The gorgeous groomsman had all my attention when my best friend's ex was allegedly killed. Fun fact? I hated the man. Another fun fact? I was the last one to see him alive. There may not be anyone on my side except that groomsman I can't stop thinking about since the wedding.

I made a promise long ago to protect her. As we grew up, I fell in love with her. I was ready to give her everything, to be anything she wanted. Then, instead of riding off into the sunset together, she left me broken and confused. Six years later, I thought I was over her. But when I found out she was in danger, I did the only thing I could to keep her safe. I dragged her back to Hallow Ranch.

Nothing comes easy. Nothing is given but must always be earned. The problem is I'm too tainted and broken to have anything good. That was a lesson I was taught early. A lesson I carried throughout my life, and into every relationship I had.

I did a dumb thing. See, Teenage Me accidentally summoned Azazel and locked him into a marriage contract with Present-Day Me. I never thought he'd actually go through with it, though. Until he does. But because he doesn't want this supernatural marriage of inconvenience any more than I do, he dumps me at his estate and tries to ignore me. Joke's on him, because I hate being ignored.

Life is good. I have great friends, a supportive family, and a job I love. Sure, there are ups and downs, but nothing could have prepared me for the return of Mac Evans—the one man who has always gotten under my skin. I haven't spoken to him since overhearing a conversation I wish I could forget. I would never fall for a professional athlete. Mac isn't my type, and I'm definitely not his. Or at least, that's what I've always believed. But now he's back, and everything feels different. I keep reminding myself he won't be here for long, and he'll be out of my life for good.

I stopped believing in the good a long time ago. My childhood was stripped from me one dark night and I was forever changed. Everywhere I looked I saw evil. Everyone I met, I looked at them as the enemy. It took a long time for me to open up and when I did I found my family. The only people I could count on. I never imagined I'd have a family. Because having a family gave me something to lose and I never wanted to feel that pain again. I never wanted to feel weak.

Devastation and devotion are two sides to the same coin, and Brian Miller flips the coin to my heart without even trying. He thinks he's not good enough—that I deserve better than a damaged single father. But his demons can't be any worse than the one stalking my every move in our small town—the one no one can bring to justice. Despite the age difference between us, I'm not a little girl, and I know the truth. Brian will never forgive himself for not being there when I needed him most. But he's the only man who can rescue me now.

There's only one woman I truly care about: my daughter. Until Maisy Stratford flounces into the front office of the Tennessee Thunderbolts with a heartfelt smile and a tray of baked goods. As the Bolts' newest hire, Maisy is optimistic, enthusiastic, and a goddess at manifestation. Everything I'm not. Known as Brawler, I'm a gruff, quiet, rough-around-the-edges, NHL defenseman. I haven't dated in decades. I've never been married and my daughter's a twenty-one-year-old mischief maker. I don't know how to talk about feelings or place my trust in the hands of a woman. 

Daxton Ford tried to warn me. He never made promises. He swore a girl like me would only get hurt by a guy like him. Did I listen? He portrays dangerous, dark, and brooding. Or so he thinks. Daxton is trouble; anyone can see that. He carries the weight of the world on his shoulders and keeps his circle of friends small.

But I'm the girl who believes in the good. I'm the girl that even when every fiber in my body is telling me to not go there. I head straight for it, even if I know I'll fall.