Jack's mother agrees that he may have a pet, but when he suggests everything from an elephant to a tyrranosaurus rex, she must explain why each would be less than ideal.

"From the author of the New York Times-bestselling sensation Mostly Dead Things: a surprising and moving story of two mothers, one difficult son, and the limitations of marriage, parenthood, and love If she's being honest, Sammie Lucas is scared of her son. Working from home in the close quarters of their Florida house, she lives with one wary eye peeled on Samson, a sullen, unknowable boy who resists her every attempt to bond with him. Uncertain...

"The rich and powerful Josephine Lazarow, matriarch of Fairham Island, is dead. The police say it's suicide, but Keith, her estranged son, doesn't believe it. Keith bears scars--both physical and emotional--from his childhood, but he's worked hard to overcome the past. After walking away from his mother and her controlling ways five years ago, he's built a new life in LA. He's also accumulated a fortune of his own. But as soon as he learns of his...

Inventor Leviticus Blue creates a machine that accidentally decimates Seattle's banking district and uncovers a vein of Blight Gas that turns everyone who breathes it into the living dead. Sixteen years later Briar, Blue's widow, lives in the poor neighborhood outside the wall that's been built around the uninhabitable city. Life is tough with a ruined reputation, but she and her teenage son Ezekiel are surviving--until Zeke impetuously decides that...

"Peter Sommars is fifteen, and what he needs is a little more independence. Which is why he'd like his mom Carol to start dating. He even knows the perfect man--Alex Preston, his best friend's dad. As it turns out, Alex is interested, but Carol's doing everything she can to sidestep his pursuit, which only makes him--and the boys--more determined. Alex can't deny how he feels drawn to Carol--and how deeply he is falling for her. But will she ever...

"...his eyes met hers in the mirror. They were dark and smoldering, like the purest of blue flame. And in her own eyes was the glassy sheen of desire." Arden Gentry went to the lush island of Maui for the specific purpose of ingratiating herself into Drew McCasslin's world. The dashing widower, who had bitterly grieved the death of his wife, is ready to tackle life again and believes that his meeting with Arden is fortunate happenstance. He and his...

Sarah believes that her son Miles' disturbing behavior is a sign that an evil supernatural force has taken over him. She has to choose between the need to investigate who or what is causing the darkness in him and her maternal instinct to protect him.

Alex and his mother write notes back and forth in which Alex tries to persuade her to let him have a baby iguana for a pet.

"Tucked in bed at a new apartment, a boy and his mother trade favorite memories. Some are idyllic, like a picnic with Dad, but others are more surprising: a fall from a bike into soft piled hay, the smell of an old oil lamp when a rainstorm blew the power out. Now it's just the two of them, and the house where all those memories happened is far away. But maybe someday, this will be a favorite memory, too: happy and sad, an end and a beginning intertwined....

"When two eighteen-year-old girls go missing in Thailand, their families are thrust into the international spotlight: desperate, bereft, and frantic with worry. What were the girls up to before they disappeared? Journalist Kate Waters always does everything she can to be first to the story, first with the exclusive, first to discover the truth--and this time is no exception. But she can't help but think of her own son, whom she hasn't seen in two...