Paperback: 336 pages

Publisher: Scribner; Original edition (June 5, 2012)

Macau: the bulbous nose of China, a peninsula and two islands strung together like a three-bead necklace.  It was time to find a life for myself.  To make something out of nothing.  The end of hope and the beginning of it too.

About Hannah Tunnicliffe

Hannah Tunnicliffe was born in New Zealand but is a self-confessed nomad.  After finishing a degree in social sciences, she lived in Australia, England, and Macau.  A career in human resources temporarily put her dream of becoming a writer on the back burner.  The Color of Tea is her first novel.

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Hannah Tunnicliffe’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Monday, July 9th:  Book Club Classics!

Tuesday, July 10th:  BookNAround

Wednesday, July 11th:  girlichef

Monday, July 16th:  Book Addiction

Thursday, July 19th:  Twisting the Lens

Monday, July 23rd:  Regular Rumination

Wednesday, July 25th:  Stiletto Storytime

Monday, July 30th:  A Bookish Affair

Thursday, August 2nd:  Suko’s Notebeook

Friday, August 3rd:  Raging Bibliomania

Monday, August 6th:  Savvy Verse and Wit

Thursday, August 9th:  Southern Girl Reads

Tuesday, August 14th:  The Written World

Paperback: 304 pages

Publisher: Ballantine Books (August 7, 2012)

From the author of Me & Emma comes a dazzling novel of two unforgettable families bound together by their deepest secrets and haunted pasts—perfect for fans of The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes and The Book of Bright Ideas.

Nine-year-old Carrie Parker and her mother, Libby, are making a fresh start in the small town of Hartsville, North Carolina, ready to put their turbulent past behind them. Violence has shattered their family and left Libby nearly unable to cope. And while Carrie once took comfort in her beloved sister, Emma, her mother has now forbidden even the mention of her name.

When Carrie meets Ruth, Honor, and Cricket Chaplin, these three generations of warmhearted women seem to have the loving home Carrie has always dreamed of. But as Carrie and Cricket become fast friends, neither can escape the pull of their families’ secrets—and uncovering the truth will transform the Chaplins and the Parkers forever.

“Absolutely unforgettable . . . Haunting, harrowing, and exquisitely told, Flock’s brilliant, bold novel is all about imagination, grief, and one stunning young narrator’s struggle to transcend an unimaginable past in order to carve out a future.”—Caroline Leavitt, New York Times bestselling author of Pictures of You

“A gripping read that is at once heartbreaking and heartwarming. Flock masterfully combines a deeply affecting family drama with relentless suspense. You’ll find yourself reading late into the night to find out what life has in store for the indomitable Carrie Parker.”—Heather Gudenkauf, New York Times bestselling author of The Weight of Silence

“From the opening sentence of Elizabeth Flock’s exceptional new novel, I was at its tender mercies. These memorable, lovable characters jumped off the page and lodged themselves in my heart.”—Elinor Lipman, author of The Family Man and Then She Found Me

“Elizabeth Flock has created a young heroine who will win your heart. Caroline Parker is fierce, bright, and endlessly lovable. Amid this well-plotted mystery, there’s a story of great hope, survival, and resilience.”—Julianna Baggott, author of Girl Talk and Pure

About Elizabeth Flock

New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Flock is a former journalist who reported for Time and People magazines and worked as an on-air correspondent for CBS. She is the author of several acclaimed novels, including But Inside I’m Screaming and Me & Emma. She lives in New York City.

Elizabeth Flock’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Tuesday, August 7th:  Jenn’s Bookshelves

Wednesday, August 8th:  Book Addiction

Thursday, August 9th:  A Novel Source

Monday, August 13th:  WV Stitcher

Tuesday, August 14th:  Life in the Thumb

Wednesday, August 15th:  Seaside Book Nook

Thursday, August 16th:  Kritter’s Ramblings

Monday, August 20th:  The House of the Seven Tails

Wednesday, August 22nd:  Reviews by Molly

Thursday, August 23rd:  Marybeth Whalen

Monday, August 27th:  Life in Review

Wednesday, August 29th:  The Lost Entwife

Thursday, August 30th:  Chaos is a Friend of Mine

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks (July 10, 2012)

Every first Sunday in June, members of the Moses clan gather for an annual reunion at a sprawling hundred-acre farm in Arkansas. And every year, Samuel Lake, a vibrant and committed young preacher, brings his beloved wife, Willadee Moses, and their three children back for the festivities. In the midst of it all, Samuel and Willadee’s outspoken eleven-year-old daughter, Swan, is a bright light. Her high spirits and fearlessness have alternately seduced and bedeviled three generations of the family. But just as the reunion is getting under way, tragedy strikes, jolting the family to their core and setting the stage for a summer of crisis and profound change.

With the clear-eyed wisdom that illuminates the most tragic—and triumphant—aspects of human nature, Jenny Wingfield has created an enduring work of fiction.

“Raw, dark, and powerful. Southern Gothic at its best. Puts one in mind of Erskine Caldwell and Flannery O’Connor.”
—Fannie Flagg, bestselling author of Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe

“Jenny Wingfield’s richly detailed account of good and evil in 1950s Arkansas will captivate anyone who treasures the values of faith and honesty that are a part of America’s rural past. Wingfield’s sense of people and place is uncanny. After reading The Homecoming of Samuel Lake, you too will believe in miracles.”—Sandra Dallas, New York Times bestselling author of Prayers for Sale and Whiter Than Snow

“Jenny Wingfield has given us a spectacular novel with The Homecoming of Samuel Lake. This ensemble of unforgettable characters will make you laugh out loud one minute, hold your breath the next, and weep when you least expect it. I didn’t just love this book, I adored it.”—Dorothea Benton Frank, New York Times bestselling author of Lowcountry Summer

“Readers will lift up their hands in praise of this layered tale of sin, grace, and redemption. The Homecoming of Samuel Lake has a supreme cast of characters including a flawed but righteous daddy, a makes-your-skin-crawl villain, and the sassiest, truest girl heroine this side of Scout Finch. Can I get an ‘Amen’?”—Susan Rebecca White, New York Times bestselling author of A Soft Place to Land and Bound South

“Wingfield writes complex, believable heroes . . . with redemption trumping tragedies in scenes ripe with tension and dread.”—Publishers Weekly

About Jenny Wingfield

Jenny Wingfield lives in Texas with her rescued dogs, cats, and horses. Her screenplay credits include The Man in the Moon and The Outsider. The Homecoming of Samuel Lake is her first novel.

Jenny Wingfield’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Tuesday, July 10th:  The House of the Seven Tails

Wednesday, July 11th:  Twisting the Lens

Thursday, July 12th:  It’s a Crazy, Beautiful Life

Monday, July 16th:  Southern Girl Reads

Wednesday, July 18th:  Bloggin’ ‘Bout Books

Thursday, July 19th:  The Lost Entwife

Monday, July 23rd:  Book Snob

Wednesday, July 25th:  Kritter’s Ramblings

Monday, July 30th:  A Novel Source

Wednesday, August 1st:  WV Stitcher

Monday, August 6th:  A Patchwork of Books

Wednesday, August 8th:  Reviews by Lola

Monday, August 13th:  A Musing Reviews

Monday, August 20th:  Colloquium

Tuesday, August 28th:  Sweet Southern Home

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Adult (July 10, 2012)

About Linda Fairstein

Linda Fairstein was chief of the Sex Crimes Unit of the district attorney’s office in Manhattan for more than two decades and is America’s foremost legal expert on sexual assault and domestic violence. Her Alexandra Cooper novels are international bestsellers and have been translated into more than a dozen languages. She lives in Manhattan and on Martha’s Vineyard.

Connect with Linda on her website, LindaFairstein.com.

 Linda Fairstein’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Monday, July 2nd:  nomad reader

Tuesday, July 3rd:  Jen’s Book Thoughts

Thursday, July 5th:  Book Addict Katie

Monday, July 9th:  Lesa’s Book Critiques

Tuesday, July 10th:  A Bookworm’s World

Wednesday, July 11th:  Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Thursday, July 12th:  Murder by Type

Monday, July 16th:  Reviews by Molly

Tuesday, July 17th:  Life in Review

Wednesday, July 18th:  Chaotic Compendiums

Monday, July 23rd:  Bewitched Bookworms

Tuesday, July 24th:  Sara’s Organized Chaos

Wednesday, July 25th:  Colloquium

Thursday, July 26th:  Thoughts of Joy

Monday, July 30th:  Musings of a Bookish Kitty

Hardcover: 272 pages

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (June 12, 2012)

Meet Logan Pyle, a lapsed grad student and stay-at-home dad who’s holding it together by a thread. His father, Gus, has died; his wife, Julie, has grown distant; his four-year-old son has gone back to drinking from a bottle. When he finds Julie kissing another man on a pile of coats at a party, the thread snaps. Logan packs a bag, buckles his son into his car seat, and heads north with a 1930s Lousville Slugger in the back of his truck, a maxed-out credit card in his wallet, and revenge in his heart.

After some bad decisions and worse luck, he lands at his father’s old A-frame cabin, where his father’s young widow, Bennie, now lives. She has every reason to turn Logan away, but when she doesn’t, she opens the door to unexpected redemption—for both of them.

A deftly plotted exploration of marriage, family, and the road from child to parent, Brand New Human Being is a page-turning debut that overflows with heart and grace.

“A whip-smart first novel that gripped me with its wry humor and wonderfully real characters and kept me captivated through the last page. This is a fast-paced, first-rate book by an immensely talented new writer.” —Curtis Sittenfeld 

“Touching…Miller explores Logan’s resentments and insecurities with sensitivity and nuance.” —Publishers Weekly

For more info about Brand New Human Being, visit the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt website.

About Emily Jeanne Miller

EMILY JEANNE MILLER has an MS from the environmental studies program at the University of Montana and an MFA from the University of Florida in Gainesville. She lives, writes, and teaches in Washington, D.C.

Connect with Emily at her website.

Emily Jeanne Miller’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Monday, June 11th:  Between the Covers

Wednesday, June 13th:  A Library of My Own

Thursday, June 14th:  It’s a Crazy, Beautiful Life

Monday, June 18th:  Sara’s Organized Chaos

Wednesday, June 20th:  The Blog of Litwits

Thursday, June 21st:  Southern Girl Reads

Monday, June 25th:  Knowing the Difference

Wednesday, June 27th:  I Write in Books

Friday, June 29th:  Colloquium (guest post)

Saturday, June 30th:  Colloquium (review)

Monday, July 2nd:  Life in Review

Tuesday, July 3rd:  Simply Stacie

Thursday, July 5th:  Unabridged Chick

Monday, July 9th:  Peeking Between the Pages

Wednesday, July 11th:  Bookfan

Thursday, July 12th:  Girls Just Reading

Friday, July 13th:  Book Club Classics!

Monday, July 16th:  A Novel Source

Wednesday, July 18th:  A Patchwork of Books

Passing Love

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; Original edition (January 25, 2012)

Nicole-Marie Handy has loved all things French since she was a child. After the death of her best friend, determined to get out of her rut, she goes to Paris, leaving behind a marriage proposal. While there, Nicole chances upon an old photo of her father—lovingly inscribed, in his hand, to a woman Nicole has never heard of. What starts as a vacation quickly becomes an unexpected adventure.

Moving back and forth in time between the sparkling Paris of today and the jazz-fueled city filled with expatriates in the 1950s, PASSING LOVE is the story of two women dealing with lost love, secrets, and betrayal . . . and how the City of Light may hold all the answers.

“C’est magnifique! A delicious read, brimming with hope, love, and light.”—Tayari Jones, author of Silver Sparrow

“Lush, evocative and seductive. Only read Passing Love if you’re willing to give yourself over completely to the excitement of the jazz scene of post-WWII Paris, and a woman’s determination to find her place in the present-day City of Light.”—Lalita Tademy, author of Cane River and Red River 

“Passing Love is everything a novel should be: a story as complex, multilayered and rich as a French pastry and just as deceptively simple…until you take a bite. Settle back, get comfy and enjoy the journey Nicole, Malvina and Ruby (and their men) take you on through Post-WWII and contemporary Paris.”—Virginia DeBerry & Donna Grant, authors of Uptown and Tryin’ to Sleep in the Bed You Made  

“Luckett has written our Paris dreams come true–between two lives and two generations, this story delivers the romance and the heartbreak of all that the City of Lights has to offer.  You will escape with this novel and question or embrace your own unlived lives.”—Heidi W. Durrow, author of The Girl Who Fell From the Sky

PEOPLE MAGAZINE: Beautifully written and filled with vibrant scenes of Paris in its Jazz Age and today, Passing Love is a treat.

KIRKUS REVIEW: Luckett’s loving descriptions of Paris evoke the sights, smells and sounds of the City of Light. Nicole’s story is one with which any woman, regardless of age or skin color, can relate, but Ruby’s tale and the author’s meticulous research into the Paris of the period following WWII is the real star of this novel.

About Jacqueline E. Luckett

After leaving the corporate world, Jacqueline took a creative writing class on a dare, from herself, and began writing short stories and poetry and never looked back. Her essay, “Traveling with Ghosts,” was included in Best Women’s Travel Writing 2011. She is the author of two novels, Passing Love and Searching for Tina Turner.

Connect with Jacqueline:

Website / Facebook / Twitter

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Jacqueline E. Luckett’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Monday, June 11th:  BookNAround

Tuesday, June 12th:  Linus’s Blanket - Out of Twenty Q&A

Thursday, June 14th:  Chocolate and Croissants

Monday, June 18th:  Bibliosue

Wednesday, June 20th:  West Metro Mommy

Thursday, June 21st:  Kahakai Kitchen

Monday, June 25th:  Life is Short. Read Fast.

Wednesday, June 27th:  Living Outside the Stacks

Tuesday, July 3rd:  Helen’s Book Blog

Thursday, July 5th:  A Chick Who Reads

Monday, July 9th:  Historical Tapestry  cross-posted on  The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader

Tuesday, July 10th:  Colloquium  review & guest post

Wednesday, July 11th:  “That’s Swell!”

Thursday, July 12th:  Knowing the Difference

Monday, July 16th:  Books and Movies

Wednesday, July 18th:  girlichef

Monday, July 23rd:  Peeking Between the Pages

Hardcover: 320 pages

Publisher: Hogarth (May 8, 2012)

I AM FORBIDDEN is a family saga set in the most insular and fundamentalist sect of Hasidic Jews, the Satmar. Spanning generations, cultures, and continents, from pre–World War II Transylvania to 1960s Paris to contemporary New York, I AM FORBIDDEN traces the collisions between unwavering love, unyielding law, and centuries of tradition.

In 1939 Transylvania, five-year-old Josef Lichtenstein survives the brutal murder of his family by the Romanian Iron Guard and is rescued by Florina, a Gentile maid who raises him as her own. Five years later, Josef rescues a little girl, Mila Heller, after her parents are killed running toward the leader of their community, Yoel Teitelbaum (the Satmar Rebbe), who is on board the Kasztner train. (Kasztner, a Zionist envoy, has been hailed by some as a hero for securing the escape of more than 1,600 Jews who would otherwise have been deported to Auschwitz. However, others view Kasztner as a collaborator who saved the lives of a few, including his own family and those who could pay, rather than urge the masses to resist deportation.)

As I AM FORBIDDEN unfolds, Josef helps Mila reach the home of Zalman Stern, a scholar and leader in his community. It is under Zalman’s roof that Mila becomes a sister to his daughter Atara. After the war, Zalman separates Josef from his adoptive mother and sends him to the new Satmar community the Rebbe is building in America; Mila and the Sterns flee to begin a new life in Paris. As the daughters mature, Mila’s faith intensifies. Eventually, Mila moves to Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to marry Josef, while Atara, to seek personal and intellectual freedom, must make the painful decision to leave her family.

Mila and Atara grow apart over the years and are reunited when the devout Mila, after ten years of childlessness, breaks holy law by going outside her marriage in a last effort to become pregnant. Mila’s secret will make pariahs of her daughter, and her daughter’s children—if it is ever revealed. In spare and exquisite writing, I AM FORBIDDEN brings to life a community in extremes, taking us deep inside the minds of those who struggle to leave fundamentalist environments, and into the souls of those who struggle to stay.

About Anouk Markovits

ANOUK MARKOVITS was raised in France, one of fifteen children of Hasidic Jewish parents. She was sent to a religious seminary in lieu of high school. After she left home at the age of nineteen to avoid an arranged marriage, she attended Columbia University’s School of General Studies and graduated with a Bachelor of Science. She has a Master of Architecture from Harvard and a PhD in Romance studies from Cornell. Her first novel, Pur Coton, written in French, was published by Gallimard. I Am Forbidden is her English-language debut.

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Anouk Markovits’ TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Monday, May 7th:  Unabridged Chick

Tuesday, May 8th:  Dolce Bellezza

Wednesday, May 9th:  nomadreader

Thursday, May 10th:  Life in Review

Friday, May 11th:  Peeking Between the Pages

Monday, May 14th:  Diary of an Eccentric

Tuesday, May 15th:  The Literate Housewife Review

Wednesday, May 16th:  Jenn’s Bookshelves

Thursday, May 17th:  A Bookish Affair

Monday, May 21st:  Raging Bibliomania

Tuesday, May 22nd:  Stiletto Storytime

Wednesday, May 23rd:  The 3 R’s Blog

Tuesday, May 29th:  Luxury Reading

Monday, June 4th:  Suko’s Notebook

Date TBD:  Melody & Words

Date TBD:  She is Too Fond of Books - guest post

Karen Thompson Walker’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Touchstone, June 2012

Trade Paperback, 352 pages

When there’s DARKNESS ALL AROUND . . . some memories are best forgotten

Within the span of one harrowing week, Risa’s alcoholic husband, Sean, disappears, and her best friend, Carol, is brutally murdered. Eleven years later, Risa has seemingly put her life back together again, comforted by the love of her new husband, who is a local politician, and the knowledge that Carol’s killer has been convicted. But then just as suddenly as he disappeared, Sean resurfaces— sober, plagued by horrific recollections of Carol’s murder, and convinced he was the real killer.

Sean’s startling claim buzzes through the small, football-crazy Pennsylvania community, and Risa is left to wonder if the man she still loves actually committed the grisly murder. Her growing belief in his innocence sends her on a treacherous search for the truth: a search that reveals ugly secrets that her new husband and the town’s law enforcement community are hiding.

Emboldened by her discoveries, Risa convinces Sean to flee as the town’s violent forces move in to keep the truth from coming to light. But Risa doesn’t realize that her attempts to get vindication for Sean may come at a very high price.

Part murder mystery, part love story, Darkness All Around is a gripping exploration of the depths of the criminal mind, the fine line between the truth and a lie, and the bravery of the human heart.

“Magee’s book is a tantalizing puzzle that plays with your mind. Killer suspense with twists and turns and surprises until the last piece is in place. Wow. I loved it.” —R.L. Stine 

“Doug Magee’s Darkness All Around is a rarity: a real mystery by a real writer. If you’re looking for a page-turner with characters who live and breathe and a setting that’s as authentic as your hometown, you’ll be very happy you picked it up.” —Peter Blauner, Edgar-award-winning author of Slow Motion Riot and Slipping Into Darkness

For more info on Darkness All Around, check out the book’s website.

About Doug Magee

Doug Magee has been a photojournalist, screenplay writer, children’s book author, death penalty activist, film producer and director, war protestor, college football player, amateur musician, and the basis of the Aidan Quinn character in Meryl Streep’s “Music of the Heart.” This is his first novel. He lives in Spanish Harlem with his wife and two teenaged children.

Learn more about Doug and his work at his website, dougmagee.com.

Doug Magee’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Monday, June 18th:  Murder by Type

Tuesday, June 19th:  Crime Fiction Lover

Wednesday, June 20th:  Raging Bibliomania

Thursday, June 21st:  You’ve GOTTA read this!

Monday, June 25th:  Bewitched Bookworms

Tuesday, June 26th:  Life in Review

Wednesday, June 27th:  House of Crime and Mystery

Thursday, June 28th:  Inside of a Dog

Monday, July 2nd:  Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Tuesday, July 3rd:  Reviews by Lola

Thursday, July 5th:  Chaotic Compendiums

Monday, July 9th:  Man of La Book

Tuesday, July 10th:  Wordsmithonia

Thursday, July 12th:  Well Read Wife

Monday, July 16th:  A Chick Who Reads

Tuesday, July 17th:  Unabridged Chick

Wednesday, July 18th:  Reviews by Elizabeth A. White

Thursday, July 19th:  Drey’s Library

• Hardcover: 220 pages
• Publisher: Hub City Press (March 1, 2012)

Library Journal says The Iguana Tree “recalls the work of John Steinbeck.” Kirkus Reviews calls it “exceptional … a haunting tale of hope and heartbreak.” 

Michel Stone’s debut novel, set against the backdrop of illegal immigration, is one family’s story of fateful decisions, risky border crossings, and a struggle for humanity. With a dream of a more prosperous life for his family, Héctor crosses into America on a harrowing journey in a welded-shut metal compartment under a delivery truck, making his way to job on a tree farm on Edisto Island, SC. He tells Lilia, his young wife, to stay behind with her newborn until he can pay for her travel. Impulsive and impatient, Lilia abandons her village, hands off her baby to a smuggler who should not have been trusted, and swims the dark Rio Grande. The tragedy unfolds across the southern United States. As Michel Stone weaves her tale of hope and human dignity, of sorrow and suffering, we see not only the devastating consequences of Lilia’s and Héctor’s decisions, but the consequences of decisions we have made as a society and as a nation. With its themes of loss, betrayal, and redemption, The Iguana Tree has the resonance of myth.

The Iguana Tree, published by Hub City Press, is a spring Okra Pick by the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance.

“Stone has done exceptional work in making real the struggles and despair, the resolute discipline and hope, driving the desire to find a better life while also illuminating unexpected connections of near-familial love among people of difference cultures who live and work together. A haunting tale of hope and heartbreak.”–Kirkus Reviews

“Michel Stone has written a stirring novel of love and courage under the most daunting of conditions. The Iguana Tree is an impressive debut by a very talented author.”–Ron Rash, author of Serena and Waking

About Michel Stone

Michel Stone has published more than a dozen stories and essays in journals, magazines, and books. Her work has appeared numerous times in the Raleigh News and Observer’s emerging Southern writers series and she is a 2011 recipient of the SC Fiction Project Award. Raised on the South Carolina coast, Michel now lives in Spartanburg, S.C.

To learn more about The Iguana Tree, visit the publisher’s website, www.hubcity.org, or visit Michel’s website, www.michelstone.com.

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Michel Stone’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Monday, April 2nd:  Luxury Reading

Wednesday, April 4th:  Book Chase

Thursday, April 5th:  Life in Review

Monday, April 9th:  Unabridged Chick

Tuesday, April 10th:  The Feminist Texican [Reads]

Wednesday, April 11th:  The Picky Girl

Thursday, April 12th:  Indie Reader Houston

Friday, April 13th:  Raging Bibliomania

Monday, April 16th:  Book Addiction

Thursday, April 19th:  Jenn’s Bookshelves

Monday, April 23rd:  Book Club Classics!

Monday, April 23rd:  Colloquium

Tuesday, April 24th:  Estella’s Revenge

Wednesday, April 25th:  Book Chatter

Monday, April 30th:  Suko’s Notebook