What's arrived in The Burgeoning Bookshelf's Mailbox in August

Books that have arrived in my mailbox during August and what I'm excited about reading next.

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The illegitimate son of the wealthiest man in Cedar River, Jonah Rickard spent his life avoiding his father. Forced back home for a wedding, he’s brought face-to-face with the only woman to ever threaten his hardened heart. Connie Bedford knows what it is to be haunted by the past, betrayed by trust…scared by desire. Years ago, Jonah’s father saved her. Now only Connie and her love can save Jonah—and, maybe, his family…

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 In the mid 90s, Elizabeth Booth is a young British college student studying Arabic at Durham University. With some travel and work already under her belt, she excels at her studies and is sent to Damascus to immerse herself in the language. Taken aback by the generosity and kindness of the people there, she easy slips into a life in the ancient city. She has friends, her studies, and even a handsome boyfriend. But things aren't always what they seem. Soon, in a world where mistrust and disloyalty are commonplace, Elizabeth finds herself navigating a web of lies, betrayals, and even murder involving MI6, deadly terrorist factions, and the shadowy Syrian secret police.

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 Lenny, small and sharp, has a younger brother Davey who won't stop growing - and at seven is as tall as a man. Raised by their single mother, who works two jobs and is made almost entirely out of worries, they have food and a roof over their heads, but not much else.

The bright spot every week is the arrival of the latest issue of Burrell's Build-It-at-Home Encyclopedia. Through the encyclopedia, Lenny and Davey experience the wonders of the world - beetles, birds, quasars, quartz - and dream about a life of freedom and adventure, visiting places like Saskatchewan and Yellowknife, and the gleaming lakes of the Northwest Territories. But as her brother's health deteriorates, Lenny comes to accept the inevitable truth; Davey will never make it to Great Bear Lake. (Publication Date 1st November 2018)

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It wasn't just the bad break-up that caused Eleanor's life to unravel. It was the cancer. And all the demons that came with it.
Not just the inappropriately George Clooney-handsome doctor who carved her up, or the kind sweet one that recoiled when she tried to kiss him. Or the scrapbooking workshop, or the deluge of cupcakes (What is it about breast cancer that makes people think of cupcakes? Oh. Right), the knitted sweaters from her mum or the irritatingly judgemental support groups.
It was the demons. (Publication Date 1st October 2018)

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 The last few years have been punishingly dry, especially for the farmers, but otherwise, it's all Neralie Mackintosh's fault. If she'd never left town then her ex, the hapless but extremely eligible Mitchell Bishop, would never have fallen into the clutches of the truly awful Mandy, who now lords it over everyone as if she owns the place.

So, now that Neralie has returned to run the local pub, the whole town is determined to reinstate her to her rightful position in the social order. But Mandy Bishop has other ideas. Meanwhile the head of the local water board - Glenys 'Gravedigger' Dingle - is looking for a way to line her pockets at the expense of hardworking farmers already up to their eyes in debt. And Mandy and Neralie's war may be just the chance she was looking for... (Publication Date 25th September 2018)

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   Any woman who’s ever been involved with a bad, bad man and been dumped will understand what it feels like to be broken, broken-hearted and bent on revenge. Taylor Bishop is hurt, angry and wants to destroy Angus Hollingsworth in the way he destroyed her: Insidiously. Irreparably. Like a puzzle, he’d slowly dissembled … stolen a couple of pieces from, and then discarded, knowing that nobody would ever be able to put it back together ever again. So Taylor consulted The Art of War and made a plan. Then she took the next step – one that would change her life forever.

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 Corinna Chapman, baker extraordinaire, talented sleuth, stalwart friend and lover is back! When a distraught Scottish veteran from Afghanistan is knocked unconscious, waking up to find his beloved ex-service dog missing, Corinna and her lover, Daniel,
find themselves inextricably drawn into the machinations of a notorious underworld gang of drug runners.

Corinna and Daniel need to pull together all the strings to find the connections between their wandering Scottish veteran, his kidnapped dog, a student dramatic society that's moved into Corinna's building, burglaries, and the threatening notes that begin to mysteriously appear in Corinna's apartment. Between her forays into danger, there is still time in Corinna's life for tender encounters as the delicious aromas of newly baked breads, muffins and treats waft out of Corinna's bakery, Earthly Delights.

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This is the story of an adventurer who never gave up - who set herself incredible challenges beyond her years and experience.

An adventurer who endured extremes of cold and blizzards; treacherous terrain where one wrong step could be fatal; struggled through sastrugi, ice rubble and emotional lows to achieve an extraordinary goal.

Along the way, she made a sandwich for online trolls, inspired young people, and made international headlines.

At sixteen, Jade Hameister became the youngest person in history to complete the Polar Hat Trick.

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 Five years ago, Geo's first love was revealed as a terrifying serial killer.

Except he escaped custody and went on the run.

Now bodies have started turning up, killed in exactly the same way as before.

The message is clear: he's making his way to her, one murder at a time....

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Meet Evangelia, a grieving souvlaki shop owner; Rik, a news hack haunted by his past; Nell, a lawyer who worries over her soul; and Ben, a young father desperate to measure up - four people who have everything and nothing to do with one another.

But each of their lives is about to be changed forever by Aida, a woman who never wanted their help, nor their sympathy. A woman with her own tale to tell...

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Bridge of Clay is about a boy who is caught in the current - of destroying everything he has, to become all he needs to be. He's a boy in search of greatness, as a cure for memory and tragedy. He builds a bridge to save his family, but also to save himself. It's an attempt to transcend humanness, to make a single, glorious moment: 

A miracle and nothing less. 
(Publication Date 9th October 2018)

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 A struggling actor, a Brit in America without a green card, Claire needs work and money to survive. Then she gets both. But nothing like she expected.
Claire agrees to become a decoy for a firm of divorce lawyers. Hired to entrap straying husbands, she must catch them on tape with their seductive propositions.
The rules? Never hit on the mark directly. Make it clear you’re available, but he has to proposition you, not the other way around. The firm is after evidence, not coercion. The innocent have nothing to hide.

Then the game changes.

When the wife of one of Claire’s targets is violently murdered, the cops are sure the husband is to blame. Desperate to catch him before he kills again, they enlist Claire to lure him into a confession.
Claire can do this. She’s brilliant at assuming a voice and an identity. For a woman who’s mastered the art of manipulation, how difficult could it be to tempt a killer into a trap?

But who is the decoy . . . and who is the prey?

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 Fourteen-year-old Trysten 'Tryst' Black's life changes dramatically when his oldest brother, Shaun, goes off to fight the Taliban in Afghanistan. Tryst's mother, Kirsten, deals with Shaun's absence by drinking, leaving Tryst to fend for himself. Tryst's answer to this is to rage against his father, Old Greggy Boy, who lives in a caravan by the creek, to get into a punch-up at school, and to line up for another fight with his uncle who has come to stay.

When the fractured family receives news that Shaun is coming home, things begin to look better for Tryst. But Tryst is dead worried  about his brother. And it's only his friends who'll listen.

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Thirty-year-old Tessa Lowell has a PhD in psychology and is working in Uganda to research the effects of PTSD and war on child soldiers. She joins a delegation travelling across the Congolese border, deep into the African bush, for peace talks with Joseph Kony, notorious leader of the Lord's Resistance Army.  
At the camp Tessa meets thirteen-year-old Francis, already an experienced soldier and survivor of shocking violence. The talks stall, and the camp is attacked by other rebels who take Tessa. Isolated in an increasingly volatile situation, she tries to form a bond with Francis. 

In Melbourne, Tessa's parents are notified of the kidnapping, but learn there is little that government agencies can do. Desperate, they contact their son Stephen, an astute if manipulative businessman based in Cape Town. He agrees to search for his sister but has other reasons to contact the rebel forces.
As Tessa's time runs out, her family begins to fracture. Her parents arrive in Uganda to hear awful news about what she has endured. They also learn the devastating truth about the kind of man their son has become. Only they have the power to stop a terrible injustice. 

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In the summer of 1862, a group of young artists led by the passionate and talented Edward Radcliffe descends upon Birchwood Manor on the banks of the Upper Thames. Their plan: to spend a secluded summer month in a haze of inspiration and creativity. But by the time their stay is over, one woman has been shot dead while another has disappeared; a priceless heirloom is missing; and Edward Radcliffe's life is in ruins. 
Over one hundred and fifty years later, Elodie Winslow, a young archivist in London, uncovers a leather satchel containing two seemingly unrelated items: a sepia photograph of an arresting-looking woman in Victorian clothing, and an artist's sketchbook containing the drawing of a twin-gabled house on the bend of a river.

Why does Birchwood Manor feel so familiar to Elodie? And who is the beautiful woman in the photograph? Will she ever give up her secrets?
Told by multiple voices across time, The Clockmaker's Daughter is a story of murder, mystery and thievery, of art, love and loss. And flowing through its pages like a river, is the voice of a woman who stands outside time, whose name has been forgotten by history, but who has watched it all unfold: Birdie Bell, the clockmaker's daughter. (Publication date 12th September 2018)

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 Germaine Johnson may not be all that good with people but she’s great with numbers. Unfortunately, as she discovers after the incident at Wallace Insurance, there are very few openings these days for senior mathematicians.
Then her cousin gets her a job at the council. On the Senior Citizens Helpline.
It’s not the resume entry Germaine wanted—but it turns out Mayor Verity Bainbridge has something more interesting in mind for her. A secret project involving the troublemakers at the senior citizens centre and their feud with the golf club next door. Which is run by the strangely attractive Don Thomas.

Don and the mayor want the seniors closed down.
Germaine wants what Don and the mayor want. But when she’s forced to get to know the ‘troublemakers’—things get more complicated.

August was a big month!!!!

What am I really looking forward to reading? This is going to be a hard pick as I keeping myself down to three 'I can't wait to get my hands on it' books. 

Jar of Hearts is a must pick. I bought this for love your bookshop day as I have read so many amazing reviews for it. It's one of those books I just had to have.

The Clockmaker's Daughter is another I can't wait to read. I love Historical Fiction and combine that with Kate Morton and I know this book is going to be unputdownable.

My final pick is Bridge of Clay it took Markus Zusak 10 years to write this book so I'm expecting it to be more than amazing.

I am going to have to add one more this month because I can't go without mentioning the simply courageous and inspiring Jade Hameister with her biography My Polar Dream. She is an inspiration to women everywhere.

Anything here that takes your fancy? I'd love to know what is on your must-read list for September.