#shes eternally frozen to me in the school picture of a little blond teen girl and i think thats ok.

[killmonk]

will my birthday ever pass without me having to cry and grieve for my 14 year old mother. probably not. Unfortunately.

[drink-the-midnight-oil]

Our Eternity: a flashback

TRIGGER WARNING: Miscarriage

DISCLAIMER: I am not a doctor or anyone educated in the medical field. The symptoms regarding the miscarriage have been written with the help of information from medical websites. The facts may not be completely accurate and it is purely for the intention of a fictional story.

Ten Years Ago

Betty’s hands trembled as her mind registered the two lines on the little stick she held. No. No, no, no. This wasn’t supposed to happen. They’d been so careful. But all the pieces clicked. Missing her period, the morning nausea, and now, the test. She, Betty Cooper, age sixteen, was pregnant.

Her mind shifted to how her mother would react. While Alice Cooper was not a proponent of abstinence, she did believe in what she called the “Cooper Family Curse”. According to her somewhat flawed theory, all Cooper women had been cursed with teen pregnancies. And eerily, the theory had held for three generations. Betty’s grandmother, Alice, and Betty’s sister, Polly, had all been teen mothers. And now, it appeared to be Betty’s turn.

Betty looked at her reflection in the mirror in front of her. She was a mess. There were prominent dark bags under her eyes, her hair was a rat’s mess, and a dribble of vomit was stuck to her chin. Her hand mindlessly touched her abdomen in the spot where the baby would be.

Tears pooled into the corners of Betty’s eyes. How was she going to face the town? She would be mocked and laughed at. A silly sixteen-year-old girl who had gotten herself knocked up. And worse, the father was a Southside Serpent. The child would be a stigma.

And what would Jughead say? Poor, sweet Jughead who loved her more than anyone else. How was she going to break the news to him? How would he be able to deal with this on top of everything else going on?

Questions swirled in Betty’s head, like a tornado’s calamitous winds. A wave of nausea overcame her and she stumbled to the toilet, grabbing the bowl and retching bile. Her empty stomach hurt and her hair smelled. But she had to get to school. Flushing the toilet, Betty turned on the shower and stepped in.

It was going to be a long day.

“So, what did you want to talk to me about?” Jughead asked. School had ended and he and Betty were seated in the Blue and Gold’s office.

Betty’s stomach twisted itself into knots, and she clasped her hands.

“There’s something I have to tell you,” she started.

Jughead looked at her supportively, encouraging her to go on. His innocent face tugged at Betty’s heartstrings. He was always so distressed. Something or the other was always going wrong in his life, and he had told her that she was his safe place. And now, she was about to destroy that.

Betty felt her lower lip begin to quiver. She choked up, unable to speak. Tears brimmed in her eyes, making everything look blurry.

Jughead’s expression turned alarmed.

“Betty? Are you okay?” He came and sat next to her on the plaid couch. His hand started to rub soothing circles on her back.

“Hey, it’ll be alright. What’s the matter, Betts?”

His endearing nickname for her made her cry harder, unable to stop the tears.

“Betty?” Jughead’s voice was concerned.

Come on, Betty, spit it out.

“I’m late.”  Jughead’s hand stopped rubbing her back.

She peeked up at him, scared of what his reaction might be. He was frozen in place, unmoving. His blue eyes were fixated on a point on the wall.

“Jug?” she whispered, afraid.

He blinked and looked at her as if realizing that she was there too.

“Okay, well-”

“I took a pregnancy test this morning. It came out positive,” she blurted.

Jughead looked at her, silent. His blue eyes were sad. Betty’s entire body was shaking, her fears all too real.

“I- I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to-” But she couldn’t complete her sentence.

Jughead seemed to sense her anguish.

“Betty, it’s not your fault,” he said, calmly. “We used protection. We did everything right. Sometimes these things happen and you have to deal with it. I’m not going to make you go through this alone. We’ll do this together, okay?”

Betty nodded.

“Come here.” Jughead pulled her into his lap, wrapping his arms around her. She pressed her cheek against his chest. The slow sound of his heartbeat echoed in her ear. He smelled good, like peppermint and pine needles. It was a comforting scent. She felt him kiss the top of her head.

“So, we’re having a baby, huh? I always thought it was job, marriage, then family. Not all mixed up,” He joked.

Betty knew he was trying to lighten the situation and appreciated his effort. She let out something between a snort and a laugh. Now, she just had to break the news to her mother. She sighed. Alice would not take it well.

Jughead slowly pulled her back and looked straight into her eyes.

“I love you, you know that right? And I’ll always love you, no matter what.”

Betty traced the moles on his cheek.

“And I love you, Jughead. Forever.”

“I guess we should start thinking up baby names, huh? None of the Forsythe Pendleton IV nonsense. I’m not thrusting that horrendous destiny on any child of mine.”

“We still have time, Jug,” Betty giggled. They were silent.

“We have to tell our parents.” A pause.

Jughead gave her a sad smile.

“I know, baby. I know.”

He pulled her back to him and they sat there, wrapped in each other's arms. The next few months would be filled with doctor’s visits and ultrasounds but whatever it was, they’d push through it together.

3 Months Later...

Betty pushed herself up off the couch. She was 17 weeks pregnant and her baby bump was easily noticeable. Walking over to the kitchen counter, she picked up the photographs that lay there.

They were the latest ultrasound pictures that she had received. She examined the little person that was growing inside her tummy. The doctor had determined it to be a girl and Betty had been ecstatic. The baby was due on March 15th, the Ides of March. Due to Jughead’s love of Shakespearian tragedies and the coincidence of the baby’s due date, they had decided to name the child Julia, although Betty hadn’t been too happy about it at first. It was like they were dooming their daughter by naming her after a murdered Roman. However, Jughead had persisted and Betty had finally relented.

Alice Cooper had not been too surprised when Betty had broken the news to her. She had simply sighed. It was bound to happen. Although not pleased that Jughead was a Serpent, Alice hadn’t been too hard on him. But Betty suspected that it was because Alice secretly had a soft spot for FP Jones. Nevertheless, she had willingly taken part in helping Betty through the pregnancy.

The doorbell rang and Betty went to open it. Jughead stood outside, rubbing his hands together for warmth. The fall weather had been cooler and crisper than usual this year.

“Ready to go?” he asked, grinning. His cheeks were pink in contrast to his pale face.

Betty grabbed her coat and pulled the door shut behind her.

“Let’s go.”

Jughead drove up the winding road cautiously. It was pretty narrow and one mistake could mean trouble. Trees lined either side of the road, their leaves orange and red and brown. The beauty made Betty feel happy and less moody. Her pregnancy had been her avoiding any reflecting surfaces and feeling fat and lazy and useless. Even though Jughead told her that she was beautiful, Betty still felt overly large at times. Thankfully, today was a better day. The car carefully made its way through the twisting path and emerged in a flat area at the top of the hill.

Jughead got out and helped Betty get out. He grabbed their stuff which consisted of a blue blanket, a thermos filled with hot chocolate, and two cups. They walked to a nook on the edge of the peak and sat down. Jughead unscrewed the thermos and poured them each a cup. He wrapped the blanket around them and they sipped their hot chocolate, admiring the view.

From where they sat, all of Riverdale was visible. Betty could see the high school and Pop’s and far in the distance, her house. It all looked so small and peaceful from here. Autumn was always good to the town. An array of colorful leaves blew in the wind and covered the roads. The weather was pleasant if not too chilly.

Jughead pulled off his beanie. These few moments that they had alone, in between doctor’s appointments and shopping trips, not to mention school, were precious for Betty. Jughead came to see her almost every day, but they didn’t get as much time as they used to. What with Betty’s volunteering and Jughead’s part-time job at The Register, longer visits were a rarity.

But Jughead would somehow manage to find a way to whisk her away from her hectic schedule and they would go someways private and quiet and sit. Sometimes they would talk, and at other times they would sit in silence, enjoying each other’s company.

“Only a few more weeks left,” Jughead said, turning to Betty.

“That’s right,” she replied. “I hope the baby looks like you. I hope she has dark hair and blue eyes.”

Jughead chuckled.

“I’m flattered, Betty. But it could be a little blond-haired, green-eyed boy just the same. I’m happy no matter what as long as the baby is healthy. I’m just glad that I’m having this child with you.”

“Me too,” Betty said, blissful.

They sat in a comfortable silence, Betty’s head resting on Jughead’s shoulder. The sun set in the horizon, its colors splaying over the town.

Something was wrong. Betty knew it. Spotting was normal for pregnancy, but the rate at which she had started bleeding was not normal.

She clenched her jaw as the cramps rolled in, squeezing her stomach muscles. It was horrible, the pain and Betty suddenly felt weak. She crawled into her bed, clutching her stomach. This wasn’t supposed to happen. These cramps were much worse than anything she had ever experienced.

She squeezed her eyes shut but a few tears escaped and slid down her cheeks. It hurt so badly. This was definitely not normal.

Betty stumbled into the bathroom, throwing up that’s afternoon’s lunch. Her head had started pounding and the pain was getting too much for her to bear. A sudden clenching in her abdomen nearly made her pass out.

There was blood everywhere. Her clothes were soaked in it and the metallic smell filled the tiny bathroom. Betty managed to pull off her pants and underwear and heaved herself onto the toilet, breathing hard.

Then the next cramp hit. This time Betty heard someone let out a guttural scream, only to realize that the sound was coming out of her mouth. Something fell into the toilet and Betty slipped off the seat and her head hit the cold, hard floor.

Her hair was plastered to her forehead with sweat. The cool floor felt good against her cheek. The pain was blinding her. Black spots swam before her eyes. Her breathing sounded too loud.

A vague memory of the bathroom door opening. Alice Cooper screaming. Strangers lifting her up. A woman telling her to breathe. And then, darkness.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Some sort of machinery was beeping. Betty opened her eyes. Immediately, she could tell that she was not in her room. The lights were too bright and everything was too white.

She tried to raise her hand but felt something her arm. Looking down, Betty saw a tube in her arm that went up and connected to an IV next to her bed. She was in the hospital. But how?

“Betty! She’s awake! Polly, call Jughead.” A voice next to her said.

A frightened face swam in front of her, and green eyes peered down at her.

“Mom?” Betty’s voice was hoarse.

“I’m right here, honey. You’re okay. You’re fine,” Alice took Betty’s hand.

“Is- Is everything alright? How long have I been out?”

“A little over a day. They had to keep you under for some time.”

“Wha.... Why are we here?”

“Oh, Betty. I’m so sorry,” Alice said, and that’s when Betty noticed the tears in her mother’s eyes.

“Mom.” Now Betty could feel herself panicking. “What do you mean? What’s wrong?”

The door burst open and Jughead stood in the doorway, his hair a mess, his eyes wild and sleep-deprived. There was a faint shadow of stubble across his cheeks and chin. He was wearing his shirt inside-out, Betty noticed.

“The baby’s gone, Betty. You had a miscarriage.”

Gone? Something didn’t sound right. How could a baby just be gone? Silly Mom, Betty thought to herself. She laughed.

Everyone was staring at her in horror, she realized and stopped.

“She’s in shock.” It was Polly who spoke up.

No, she wasn’t. She was perfectly fine. So was little Julie. Right?

A wave of images crashed into Betty’s mind and suddenly, she was reliving the previous day’s events. The cramps, the pain, and the blood, so much blood...

No. She couldn’t have lost the baby. She just couldn’t have. Tears filled up in her eyes and Betty’s vision went blurry. She felt as if a chunk of her had been torn away, leaving her raw and bleeding. Her Julie, her sweet Julie...

A scream built up in the back of her throat and Betty let it out, horrible and devastating. She hit away her mother’s reaching hands, thrashing and writhing. Through the tears and the crying, Betty saw Jughead still in the doorway, unmoving. Why was he so still? Why wasn’t he upset? Didn’t he care at all?!

Suddenly, nurses were pushing past him and into the room. They restrained Betty’s arms and legs but she tried to fight them off, to no use. One of the nurses plunged a syringe into Betty’s arm and a liquid flowed through her veins.

Betty’s eyelids started to feel heavy, and sleep overtook her.

The last thing she saw before her eyes closed was Jughead turning and leaving the room, not looking back.

Looks like I managed to finish the flashback after all. I know that there are still a few questions that are unanswered but don’t worry, they will be addressed in the upcoming chapters. 

I hope you enjoyed this little bit. Would love to hear your feedback. The next chapter will be uploaded next week as usual so watch out for that. 

Now I gotta go and study some more.

XOXO

Rhea

[aurriii]

Holiday Gift Ideas: 19 Best Selling Books That Will Give Someone The Winter Feels

All found for less on BIGWORDS.com, starting at $1.99.

Let It Snow: Three Holiday Romances  – John Green

Three interconnected stories from three bestselling authors: John Green (Paper Towns, The Fault in our Stars), Maureen Johnson (The Name of the Star), and Lauren Myracle (The Internet Girls series.)

Major motion picture in the works!

A Christmas Eve snowstorm transforms one small town into a romantic haven, the kind you see only in movies. Well, kinda. After all, a cold and wet hike from a stranded train through the middle of nowhere would not normally end with a delicious kiss from a charming stranger. And no one would think that a trip to the Waffle House through four feet of snow would lead to love with an old friend. Or that the way back to true love begins with a painfully early morning shift at Starbucks. Thanks to three of today’s bestselling teen authors—John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle—the magic of the holidays shines on these hilarious and charming interconnected tales of love, romance, and breathtaking kisses.

A New York Times Bestseller!

Bridget Jone’s Diary – Helen Fielding

Bridget Jones’s Diary is the devastatingly self-aware, laugh-out-loud account of a year in the life of a thirty-something Singleton on a permanent doomed quest for self-improvement. Caught between the joys of Singleton fun, and the fear of dying alone and being found three weeks later half eaten by an Alsatian; tortured by Smug Married friends asking, “How’s your love life?” with lascivious, yet patronizing leers, Bridget resolves to: reduce the circumference of each thigh by 1.5 inches, visit the gym three times a week not just to buy a sandwich, form a functional relationship with a responsible adult and learn to program the VCR. With a blend of flighty charm, existential gloom, and endearing self-deprecation, Bridget Jones’s Diary has touched a raw nerve with millions of readers the world round. Read it and laugh—before you cry, “Bridget Jones is me!” Great product!

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories – Stephanie Perkins

Twelve romantic holiday stories by twelve bestselling young adult authors edited by Stephanie Perkins.

Ex-Mas – Kate Brian

Two Exes. One holiday adventure.

Merry Ex-Mas?

Seventeen-year-old Lila Beckwith’s parents just left for vacation, and Lila’s all set to throw the holiday party of the season. But when her Christmas-obsessed little brother, Cooper, discovers that global warming is melting the North Pole, he and his best friend, Tyler, take off on a runaway mission to save Santa.

Lila has to get Cooper safely home before her parents get back on Christmas Eve. But the only person who can help her is Tyler’s older brother, Beau — a.k.a. Lila’s musician, anti-everything ex-boyfriend.

It’ll take more than a Christmas miracle for Lila and Beau to overcome their differences and find their fugitive brothers. But could a journey destined for disaster help these polar opposites fall in love…all over again?

All I Want Is Everything – Cecily Von Ziegesar (Gossip Girl, #3)

It’s Chrismastime and Blair and Serena are best friends again and up to their old tricks–partying hard and breaking hearts from Park Avenue to the Caribbean. Blair’s mom and Cyrus are having their honeymoon in Salt Key. And when school lets out for the holiday, Blair, Serena, Aaron, and company head down there to blow off steam after their midterm exams. In between Pina Coladas and topless sunbathing, Blair and Serena plot revenge on super-jerk Chuck Bass. Everyone jets back to NYC for Serena’s New Year’s party, during which Nate and Blair may or may not finally go all the way, and Serena may or may not be discovered to be the secret fling of Hollywood’s hottest young leading man. Great product!

Kissing Snowflakes – Abby Sher

Just in time for the holidays comes the perfect winter break read! This fun, sweet, wintertime book is filled with humor and romance.

The picturesque montain ski lodge is the perfect place to spend winter break…if you have a boyfriend! Otherwise, that cozy leather couch in front of the crackling fire looks a lot less inviting. Good thing that there are lots of cute, blond, sweater-wearing ski instructors around to choose from….

This fun, sweet tale of holiday romance on the slopes is the perfect wintertime read!

The Book Thief – Markus Zusak

The extraordinary #1 New York Times bestseller that is now a major motion picture, Markus Zusak’s unforgettable story is about the ability of books to feed the soul.

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.

In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger, has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time. The Book Thief

You Better Not Cry: Stories For Christmas – Augustein Burroughs

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER about Christmases past and present from the #1 bestselling author of Running with Scissors, Dry, and A Wolf at the Table At eight years old, Augusten Burroughs profoundly misunderstood the meaning of Christmas. Now proving himself once more “a master of making tragedy funny” (The Miami Herald), he shows how the holidays can bring out the worst in us and sometimes, just sometimes, the very best. From the author described in USA Today as “one of the most compelling and screamingly funny voices of the new century” comes a book about surviving the holiday we love to hate, and hate to love.

Alaska, 1920: a brutal place to homestead, and especially tough for recent arrivals Jack and Mabel. Childless, they are drifting apart–he breaking under the weight of the work of the farm; she crumbling from loneliness and despair. In a moment of levity during the season’s first snowfall, they build a child out of snow. The next morning the snow child is gone–but they glimpse a young, blonde-haired girl running through the trees.

This little girl, who calls herself Faina, seems to be a child of the woods. She hunts with a red fox at her side, skims lightly across the snow, and somehow survives alone in the Alaskan wilderness. As Jack and Mabel struggle to understand this child who could have stepped from the pages of a fairy tale, they come to love her as their own daughter. But in this beautiful, violent place things are rarely as they appear, and what they eventually learn about Faina will transform all of them. magic snow child haunting fairy tale ending joy

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe – C. S. Lewis (Chronicles of Narnia #1)

A beautiful paperback edition of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, book two in the classic fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. This edition features cover art by three-time Caldecott Medal-winning illustrator David Wiesner and interior black-and-white illustrations by the series’ original illustrator, Pauline Baynes. Four adventurous siblings—Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie—step through a wardrobe door and into the land of Narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the power of the White Witch. But when almost all hope is lost, the return of the Great Lion, Aslan, signals a great change . . . and a great sacrifice. Open the door and enter a new world! The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is the second book in C. S. Lewis’s classic fantasy series, which has been captivating readers of all ages with a magical land and unforgettable characters for over sixty years. This is a stand-alone read, but if you would like to discover more about Narnia, pick up The Horse and His Boy, the third book in The Chronicles of Narnia.

Well, apparently I live here now—my mom just bought the place. And named it after me, Ashleigh, which was nice. But did she know how cold it is here?? Um, it’s a tiny island with not much to do, unless you really like sleigh rides. But I gotta say there are quite a few hot guys on this cold island . . .

The Red Garden – Alice Hoffman

In exquisite prose, Hoffman offers a transforming glimpse of small-town America, presenting more than three hundred years of passion, dark secrets, loyalty, and redemption in a web of tales where characters’ lives are intertwined by fate and by their own actions.

The Red Garden introduces us to the luminous and haunting world of Blackwell, Massachusetts, capturing the unexpected turns in its history and in our own lives. From the town’s founder, a brave young woman from England who has no fear of blizzards or bears, to the young man who runs away to New York City with only his dog for company, the characters in The Red Garden are extraordinary and vivid: a young wounded Civil War soldier who is saved by a passionate neighbor, a woman who meets a fiercely human historical character, a poet who falls in love with a blind man, a mysterious traveler who comes to town in the year when summer never arrives.

At the center of everyone’s life is a mysterious garden where only red plants can grow, and where the truth can be found by those who dare to look.

Beautifully crafted and shimmering with magic, The Red Garden is as unforgettable as it is moving.

Decked With Holly – Marni Bates (YA Read)

Holly Dayton is about to go way out of her comfort zone. . .

Spending Christmas vacation on a cruise with her two cousins from hell isn’t Holly’s idea of a good time. And when in a moment of seasick-fueled desperation she lurches into an open suite–she’s greeted with an eyeful of pepper spray. The culprit? A gorgeous guy calling himself Nick. But when Holly goes to make her exit, she gets the shock of her life: a corridor crammed with screaming teenage fans. Because Nick just happens to be Dominic Wyatt, drummer for ReadySet–one of the hottest bands in America.

Suddenly rumors are swirling, and Holly’s face is captured on countless phones and plastered all over the Internet. But the band can’t risk a scandal destroying their family-friendly image, so Dominic convinces Holly to be his fake girlfriend–just for two weeks. How bad could it be to be fauxmantically involved with one of the cutest rockstars on the planet? Holly’s about to find out. . .

“Fans of Meg Cabot will find Marni’s voice equally charming and endearing.”–Julie Kagawa, New York Times bestselling author

Dash and Lilly’s Book of Dares – Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

A whirlwind romance from the New York Times bestselling authors of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist!

“I’ve left some clues for you. If you want them, turn the page. If you don’t, put the book back on the shelf, please.”

16-year-old Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on her favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. Dash, in a bad mood during the holidays, happens to be the first guy to pick up the notebook and rise to its challenges.

What follows is a whirlwind romance as Dash and Lily trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations all across New York City. But can their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions, or will their scavenger hunt end in a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions?

Co-written by Rachel Cohn (GINGERBREAD) and David Levithan, co-author of WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON with John Green (THE FAULT IN OUR STARS), DASH & LILY’S BOOK OF DARES is a love story that will have readers scouring bookstore shelves, looking and longing for a love (and a red notebook) of their own.

Once Upon A River – Bonnie Jo Campbell

“A demonstration of outstanding skills on the river of American literature.” ―Entertainment Weekly “Bonnie Jo Campbell has built her new novel like a modern-day craftsman from the old timbers of our national myths about loners living off the land, rugged tales as perilous as they are alluring. Without sacrificing any of its originality, this story comes bearing the saw marks of classic American literature, the rough-hewn sister of The Leatherstocking Tales, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and Walden.”―Ron Charles, Washington Post

City of Thieves – David Benioff

From the critically acclaimed author of The 25th Hour and When the Nines Roll Over and co-creator of the HBO series Game of Thrones, a captivating novel about war, courage, survival — and a remarkable friendship that ripples across a lifetime.

During the Nazis’ brutal siege of Leningrad, Lev Beniov is arrested for looting and thrown into the same cell as a handsome deserter named Kolya. Instead of being executed, Lev and Kolya are given a shot at saving their own lives by complying with an outrageous directive: secure a dozen eggs for a powerful Soviet colonel to use in his daughter’s wedding cake. In a city cut off from all supplies and suffering unbelievable deprivation, Lev and Kolya embark on a hunt through the dire lawlessness of Leningrad and behind enemy lines to find the impossible.

By turns insightful and funny, thrilling and terrifying, the New York Times bestseller City of Thieves is a gripping, cinematic World War II adventure and an intimate coming-of-age story with an utterly contemporary feel for how boys become men.

Rules of Civility – Amor Towels

From the New York Times-bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow, a “sharply stylish” (Boston Globe) novel of a young woman in post-Depression era New York who suddenly finds herself thrust into high society.

On the last night of 1937, twenty-five-year-old Katey Kontent is in a second-rate Greenwich Village jazz bar when Tinker Grey, a handsome banker, happens to sit down at the neighboring table. This chance encounter and its startling consequences propel Katey on a year-long journey into the upper echelons of New York society—where she will have little to rely upon other than a bracing wit and her own brand of cool nerve.

With its sparkling depiction of New York’s social strata, its intricate imagery and themes, and its immensely appealing characters, Rules of Civility won the hearts of readers and critics alike.

Landline – Rainbow Rowell

As far as time machines go, a magic telephone is pretty useless. TV writer Georgie McCool can’t actually visit the past — all she can do is call it, and hope it picks up. And hope he picks up. Because once Georgie realizes she has a magic phone that calls into the past, all she wants to do is make things right with her husband, Neal. Maybe she can fix the things in their past that seem unfixable in the present. Maybe this stupid phone is giving her a chance to start over … Does Georgie want to start over? From Rainbow Rowell, the New York Times bestselling author of Eleanor & Park and Fangirl, comes this heart-wrenching – and hilarious – take on fate, time, television and true love. Landline asks if two people are ever truly on the same path, or whether love just means finding someone who will keep meeting you halfway, no matter where you end up. St Martin s Griffin

Blankets – Craig Thompson

“Quaint, meditative and sometimes dreamy, blankets will take you straight back to your first kiss.” –The Guardian

Blankets is the story of a young man coming of age and finding the confidence to express his creative voice. Craig Thompson’s poignant graphic memoir plays out against the backdrop of a Midwestern winterscape: finely-hewn linework draws together a portrait of small town life, a rigorously fundamentalist Christian childhood, and a lonely, emotionally mixed-up adolescence. Under an engulfing blanket of snow, Craig and Raina fall in love at winter church camp, revealing to one another their struggles with faith and their dreams of escape. Over time though, their personal demons resurface and their relationship falls apart. It’s a universal story, and Thompson’s vibrant brushstrokes and unique page designs make the familiar heartbreaking all over again. This groundbreaking graphic novel, winner of two Eisner and three Harvey Awards, is an eloquent portrait of adolescent yearning; first love (and first heartache); faith in crisis; and the process of moving beyond all of that. Beautifully rendered in pen and ink, Thompson has created a love story that lasts.

from Textbook Case | Bigwords.com http://ift.tt/2AjFC6O via IFTTT

[aurriii]

Holiday Gift Idea: 19 Best Sellers That Will Give Someone The Winter Feels

Let It Snow: Three Holiday Romances  – John Green

Three interconnected stories from three bestselling authors: John Green (Paper Towns, The Fault in our Stars), Maureen Johnson (The Name of the Star), and Lauren Myracle (The Internet Girls series.)

Major motion picture in the works!

A Christmas Eve snowstorm transforms one small town into a romantic haven, the kind you see only in movies. Well, kinda. After all, a cold and wet hike from a stranded train through the middle of nowhere would not normally end with a delicious kiss from a charming stranger. And no one would think that a trip to the Waffle House through four feet of snow would lead to love with an old friend. Or that the way back to true love begins with a painfully early morning shift at Starbucks. Thanks to three of today’s bestselling teen authors—John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle—the magic of the holidays shines on these hilarious and charming interconnected tales of love, romance, and breathtaking kisses.

A New York Times Bestseller!

Bridget Jone’s Diary – Helen Fielding

Bridget Jones’s Diary is the devastatingly self-aware, laugh-out-loud account of a year in the life of a thirty-something Singleton on a permanent doomed quest for self-improvement. Caught between the joys of Singleton fun, and the fear of dying alone and being found three weeks later half eaten by an Alsatian; tortured by Smug Married friends asking, “How’s your love life?” with lascivious, yet patronizing leers, Bridget resolves to: reduce the circumference of each thigh by 1.5 inches, visit the gym three times a week not just to buy a sandwich, form a functional relationship with a responsible adult and learn to program the VCR. With a blend of flighty charm, existential gloom, and endearing self-deprecation, Bridget Jones’s Diary has touched a raw nerve with millions of readers the world round. Read it and laugh—before you cry, “Bridget Jones is me!” Great product!

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories – Stephanie Perkins

Twelve romantic holiday stories by twelve bestselling young adult authors edited by Stephanie Perkins.

Ex-Mas – Kate Brian

Two Exes. One holiday adventure.

Merry Ex-Mas?

Seventeen-year-old Lila Beckwith’s parents just left for vacation, and Lila’s all set to throw the holiday party of the season. But when her Christmas-obsessed little brother, Cooper, discovers that global warming is melting the North Pole, he and his best friend, Tyler, take off on a runaway mission to save Santa.

Lila has to get Cooper safely home before her parents get back on Christmas Eve. But the only person who can help her is Tyler’s older brother, Beau — a.k.a. Lila’s musician, anti-everything ex-boyfriend.

It’ll take more than a Christmas miracle for Lila and Beau to overcome their differences and find their fugitive brothers. But could a journey destined for disaster help these polar opposites fall in love…all over again?

All I Want Is Everything – Cecily Von Ziegesar (Gossip Girl, #3)

It’s Chrismastime and Blair and Serena are best friends again and up to their old tricks–partying hard and breaking hearts from Park Avenue to the Caribbean. Blair’s mom and Cyrus are having their honeymoon in Salt Key. And when school lets out for the holiday, Blair, Serena, Aaron, and company head down there to blow off steam after their midterm exams. In between Pina Coladas and topless sunbathing, Blair and Serena plot revenge on super-jerk Chuck Bass. Everyone jets back to NYC for Serena’s New Year’s party, during which Nate and Blair may or may not finally go all the way, and Serena may or may not be discovered to be the secret fling of Hollywood’s hottest young leading man. Great product!

Kissing Snowflakes – Abby Sher

Just in time for the holidays comes the perfect winter break read! This fun, sweet, wintertime book is filled with humor and romance.

The picturesque montain ski lodge is the perfect place to spend winter break…if you have a boyfriend! Otherwise, that cozy leather couch in front of the crackling fire looks a lot less inviting. Good thing that there are lots of cute, blond, sweater-wearing ski instructors around to choose from….

This fun, sweet tale of holiday romance on the slopes is the perfect wintertime read!

The Book Thief – Markus Zusak

The extraordinary #1 New York Times bestseller that is now a major motion picture, Markus Zusak’s unforgettable story is about the ability of books to feed the soul.

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement.

In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger, has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time. The Book Thief

You Better Not Cry: Stories For Christmas – Augustein Burroughs

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER about Christmases past and present from the #1 bestselling author of Running with Scissors, Dry, and A Wolf at the Table At eight years old, Augusten Burroughs profoundly misunderstood the meaning of Christmas. Now proving himself once more “a master of making tragedy funny” (The Miami Herald), he shows how the holidays can bring out the worst in us and sometimes, just sometimes, the very best. From the author described in USA Today as “one of the most compelling and screamingly funny voices of the new century” comes a book about surviving the holiday we love to hate, and hate to love.

Snow Child – Eowyn Ivey

Alaska, 1920: a brutal place to homestead, and especially tough for recent arrivals Jack and Mabel. Childless, they are drifting apart–he breaking under the weight of the work of the farm; she crumbling from loneliness and despair. In a moment of levity during the season’s first snowfall, they build a child out of snow. The next morning the snow child is gone–but they glimpse a young, blonde-haired girl running through the trees.

This little girl, who calls herself Faina, seems to be a child of the woods. She hunts with a red fox at her side, skims lightly across the snow, and somehow survives alone in the Alaskan wilderness. As Jack and Mabel struggle to understand this child who could have stepped from the pages of a fairy tale, they come to love her as their own daughter. But in this beautiful, violent place things are rarely as they appear, and what they eventually learn about Faina will transform all of them. magic snow child haunting fairy tale ending joy

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe – C. S. Lewis (Chronicles of Narnia #1)

A beautiful paperback edition of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, book two in the classic fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. This edition features cover art by three-time Caldecott Medal-winning illustrator David Wiesner and interior black-and-white illustrations by the series’ original illustrator, Pauline Baynes. Four adventurous siblings—Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie—step through a wardrobe door and into the land of Narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the power of the White Witch. But when almost all hope is lost, the return of the Great Lion, Aslan, signals a great change . . . and a great sacrifice. Open the door and enter a new world! The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is the second book in C. S. Lewis’s classic fantasy series, which has been captivating readers of all ages with a magical land and unforgettable characters for over sixty years. This is a stand-alone read, but if you would like to discover more about Narnia, pick up The Horse and His Boy, the third book in The Chronicles of Narnia.

Snowed In – Rachel Hawthorne

Well, apparently I live here now—my mom just bought the place. And named it after me, Ashleigh, which was nice. But did she know how cold it is here?? Um, it’s a tiny island with not much to do, unless you really like sleigh rides. But I gotta say there are quite a few hot guys on this cold island . . .

The Red Garden – Alice Hoffman

In exquisite prose, Hoffman offers a transforming glimpse of small-town America, presenting more than three hundred years of passion, dark secrets, loyalty, and redemption in a web of tales where characters’ lives are intertwined by fate and by their own actions.

The Red Garden introduces us to the luminous and haunting world of Blackwell, Massachusetts, capturing the unexpected turns in its history and in our own lives. From the town’s founder, a brave young woman from England who has no fear of blizzards or bears, to the young man who runs away to New York City with only his dog for company, the characters in The Red Garden are extraordinary and vivid: a young wounded Civil War soldier who is saved by a passionate neighbor, a woman who meets a fiercely human historical character, a poet who falls in love with a blind man, a mysterious traveler who comes to town in the year when summer never arrives.

At the center of everyone’s life is a mysterious garden where only red plants can grow, and where the truth can be found by those who dare to look.

Beautifully crafted and shimmering with magic, The Red Garden is as unforgettable as it is moving.

Decked With Holly – Marni Bates (YA Read)

Holly Dayton is about to go way out of her comfort zone. . .

Spending Christmas vacation on a cruise with her two cousins from hell isn’t Holly’s idea of a good time. And when in a moment of seasick-fueled desperation she lurches into an open suite–she’s greeted with an eyeful of pepper spray. The culprit? A gorgeous guy calling himself Nick. But when Holly goes to make her exit, she gets the shock of her life: a corridor crammed with screaming teenage fans. Because Nick just happens to be Dominic Wyatt, drummer for ReadySet–one of the hottest bands in America.

Suddenly rumors are swirling, and Holly’s face is captured on countless phones and plastered all over the Internet. But the band can’t risk a scandal destroying their family-friendly image, so Dominic convinces Holly to be his fake girlfriend–just for two weeks. How bad could it be to be fauxmantically involved with one of the cutest rockstars on the planet? Holly’s about to find out. . .

“Fans of Meg Cabot will find Marni’s voice equally charming and endearing.”–Julie Kagawa, New York Times bestselling author

Dash and Lilly’s Book of Dares – Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

A whirlwind romance from the New York Times bestselling authors of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist!

“I’ve left some clues for you. If you want them, turn the page. If you don’t, put the book back on the shelf, please.��

16-year-old Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on her favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. Dash, in a bad mood during the holidays, happens to be the first guy to pick up the notebook and rise to its challenges.

What follows is a whirlwind romance as Dash and Lily trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations all across New York City. But can their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions, or will their scavenger hunt end in a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions?

Co-written by Rachel Cohn (GINGERBREAD) and David Levithan, co-author of WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON with John Green (THE FAULT IN OUR STARS), DASH & LILY’S BOOK OF DARES is a love story that will have readers scouring bookstore shelves, looking and longing for a love (and a red notebook) of their own.

Once Upon A River – Bonnie Jo Campbell

“A demonstration of outstanding skills on the river of American literature.” ―Entertainment Weekly “Bonnie Jo Campbell has built her new novel like a modern-day craftsman from the old timbers of our national myths about loners living off the land, rugged tales as perilous as they are alluring. Without sacrificing any of its originality, this story comes bearing the saw marks of classic American literature, the rough-hewn sister of The Leatherstocking Tales, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and Walden.”―Ron Charles, Washington Post

City of Thieves – David Benioff

From the critically acclaimed author of The 25th Hour and When the Nines Roll Over and co-creator of the HBO series Game of Thrones, a captivating novel about war, courage, survival — and a remarkable friendship that ripples across a lifetime.

During the Nazis’ brutal siege of Leningrad, Lev Beniov is arrested for looting and thrown into the same cell as a handsome deserter named Kolya. Instead of being executed, Lev and Kolya are given a shot at saving their own lives by complying with an outrageous directive: secure a dozen eggs for a powerful Soviet colonel to use in his daughter’s wedding cake. In a city cut off from all supplies and suffering unbelievable deprivation, Lev and Kolya embark on a hunt through the dire lawlessness of Leningrad and behind enemy lines to find the impossible.

By turns insightful and funny, thrilling and terrifying, the New York Times bestseller City of Thieves is a gripping, cinematic World War II adventure and an intimate coming-of-age story with an utterly contemporary feel for how boys become men.

Rules of Civility – Amor Towels

From the New York Times-bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow, a “sharply stylish” (Boston Globe) novel of a young woman in post-Depression era New York who suddenly finds herself thrust into high society.

On the last night of 1937, twenty-five-year-old Katey Kontent is in a second-rate Greenwich Village jazz bar when Tinker Grey, a handsome banker, happens to sit down at the neighboring table. This chance encounter and its startling consequences propel Katey on a year-long journey into the upper echelons of New York society—where she will have little to rely upon other than a bracing wit and her own brand of cool nerve.

With its sparkling depiction of New York’s social strata, its intricate imagery and themes, and its immensely appealing characters, Rules of Civility won the hearts of readers and critics alike.

Landline – Rainbow Rowell

As far as time machines go, a magic telephone is pretty useless. TV writer Georgie McCool can’t actually visit the past — all she can do is call it, and hope it picks up. And hope he picks up. Because once Georgie realizes she has a magic phone that calls into the past, all she wants to do is make things right with her husband, Neal. Maybe she can fix the things in their past that seem unfixable in the present. Maybe this stupid phone is giving her a chance to start over … Does Georgie want to start over? From Rainbow Rowell, the New York Times bestselling author of Eleanor & Park and Fangirl, comes this heart-wrenching – and hilarious – take on fate, time, television and true love. Landline asks if two people are ever truly on the same path, or whether love just means finding someone who will keep meeting you halfway, no matter where you end up. St Martin s Griffin

Blankets – Craig Thompson

“Quaint, meditative and sometimes dreamy, blankets will take you straight back to your first kiss.” –The Guardian

Blankets is the story of a young man coming of age and finding the confidence to express his creative voice. Craig Thompson’s poignant graphic memoir plays out against the backdrop of a Midwestern winterscape: finely-hewn linework draws together a portrait of small town life, a rigorously fundamentalist Christian childhood, and a lonely, emotionally mixed-up adolescence. Under an engulfing blanket of snow, Craig and Raina fall in love at winter church camp, revealing to one another their struggles with faith and their dreams of escape. Over time though, their personal demons resurface and their relationship falls apart. It’s a universal story, and Thompson’s vibrant brushstrokes and unique page designs make the familiar heartbreaking all over again. This groundbreaking graphic novel, winner of two Eisner and three Harvey Awards, is an eloquent portrait of adolescent yearning; first love (and first heartache); faith in crisis; and the process of moving beyond all of that. Beautifully rendered in pen and ink, Thompson has created a love story that lasts.

from Textbook Case | Bigwords.com http://ift.tt/2AX6k20 via IFTTT