Contemporary Fiction: Women's Fiction

Volumes 1 - 12

​Volume 1 | January
Madelyn Yates dreamed of opening her own bed and breakfast, but as the middle daughter, she found herself trying to hold everything together for her family, until her sister dies. Meredith’s death throws everyone in the family into turmoil, but as always Madelyn ignores her own needs to care for them.

A gift from beyond the grave changes that and Madelyn finds herself thinking she just might heed her dying sister’s wish to “live the dream.”
​Volume 2 | February
Destiny thought she had it all – a loving husband, a beautiful daughter, and a future filled with travel and adventure.

​However, when her husband is killed in Afghanistan, Destiny is devastated. How will she raise Amarra by herself without an education or a good paying job? Not to mention, she now has to forget pursuing her dream…a dream that she felt sure died with Terrence.
​Volume 3 | March
Lexie had a family and a future she thought was set, then a burst appendix changed everything. She found herself battling prescription drug addiction, until she lost her husband and her daughter. Trying to put back the pieces, she discovers the biggest obstacle is her own self-doubt, but Lexie must find a way to overcome it or lose her daughter forever.
​Volume 4 | April
Rosie’s life seemed perfect to outside observers. She had a good marriage and two sons who were doing well in school, but something was missing. Her job as a loan officer had become tedious, but the idea of going back to school when her family needed her seemed like a risky move. Until she met Madelyn Yates and discovered that sometimes you have to take a risk if you want to live out your dreams.

Now Rosie faces going to college decades after most people have already left, but unlike her classmates, Rosie has responsibilities that do not make room for things like lectures and midterms. Will she be able to balance it all or will the strain drive a wedge between her and those she loves most?
Volume 5 | May
Lizzie Reed wanted to be a pediatric nurse after watching her younger sister, Margaret, struggle as an infant with a hole in her heart. Going to college had been a given from the time she was a child. Her parents never planned it any other way, but when Lizzie goes to a party and wakes up in a guy’s bed without any memory of how she got there, the world comes crashing down around her.
​
How can she pick up and move on as if nothing ever happened? And what do you do when you can’t remember an event, but everyone is telling you you need to take a stand? Lizzie has to face her demons and make a decision that may change the course of her life forever. More than that, she has to face her parents and let them know she isn’t the same little girl they think she is.
Volume 6 | June
Orphaned at ten, Melanie Barlow was raised by her grandparents, given everything she could want and cherished by the two people who meant the world to her. Growing up, Mel knew what they expected from her – graduate high school with honors, go to college, get a career in computer engineering, then start a family. The problem was starting a family.

Mel knew early on that she was different and that she wanted different things in her life, but the things she wanted did not fit with her grandparents’ worldview. Mel must now decide whether it’s more important to be herself or if it’s better to lie to everyone, including herself, just to keep the peace.
Volume 7 | July
Margot Yates has known loss. First her husband died of a heart attack, then her daughter of breast cancer. Margot has tried to accept all that life has put before her, but her faith is badly shaken with Meredith’s passing. Facing the uncertainty of a future alone, she has no plans to find love again, until Jack Davis attempts to change her mind. Jack wants Margot to take a chance, to trust that there can be life after loss, but is Margot ready for that? Can she give her heart to someone knowing that she might lose him in the end?
Volume 8 | August
Angela Grayson ran for the school board when she was a student at UC Berkeley, then she became mayor of her hometown shortly after she graduated. Marrying young, Angela found herself trapped in an abusive marriage where her husband controlled every aspect of her life. Escaping him seemed impossible, but she prevailed and even found herself in a new relationship that was everything her first marriage wasn’t.

However, the scars were there and Angela swore she would never again feel like she had no control. She decided to run for state senate, but even in today’s world, a woman of color has to fight for the respect she deserves.

Angela is determined to help other women escape the same nightmare she faced, but when she runs up against a chauvinistic legislature, what will she have to do to make them take her mission seriously?
Volume 9 | September
Roxanne Rosales moved from Boston to California after college to pursue a career in marketing. She enjoyed her work, but something was missing. Being alone in a new place felt intimidating. Until she met Mika Yates and her family.

Roxanne’s plans to go home evaporate after Mika befriends her and introduces her to Henry. The widower with two small children makes Roxanne think she might have found someone who could make her time in Sacramento less lonely, but when she discovers a lump in her breast, Roxanne is faced with the very real fear that she might have breast cancer. It’s a diagnosis that Henry isn’t ready to face again, but can Roxanne face it alone?
Volume 10 | October
Moira Sykes has a dream. She wants to open a women’s health clinic and shelter for women who need help. The dream has almost become a reality, but the fact that she’s focusing on helping women escape bad situations has drawn the attention of men who are threatened by her mission.

When Moira receives a death threat, Detective Nathaniel Hayes steps in to protect her, but can he save her from an enemy that is determined to stop her dream in its tracks?
Volume 11 | November
Mariko Saito listens to everyone’s problems, but who listens to hers? Divorced from the only man she ever loved, she faces the reality that her son may be beyond redemption and the rift between her and her daughter might not be salvageable. When everything in your own life is in shambles, how do you heal anyone else?
Volume 12 | December
As the youngest of three sisters, Mika is thrown into turmoil by the death of her oldest sister, Meredith. She can’t admit that Meredith’s death has shaken her horribly, so she self-medicates with alcohol and finds herself in an abusive relationship.

When her ex-boyfriend makes bail, Mika fears what he’ll do to her and her family. As her life unravels, she turns to the only coping mechanism she has, but this only accelerates her decent. When Brandon Ward, a recovering alcoholic, offers to sponsor her, Mika responds with fury, but as things continue to come undone in her life, she wonders if she can learn to trust him before it’s too late.