JACKPOT SUMMER BY ELYSSA FRIEDLAND
Growing up, the Jacobson siblings were taught by their parents to value every penny. But their frugal upbringing have done little for their financial discipline as adults, and their personal lives leave much to be desired.
When their mother passes away, the four siblings reunite to clean out their old beach house and put it up for sale.
Three of them pitch in to get a lottery ticket, while the eldest scoffs at the idea. When they hit the jackpot, the siblings are overwhelmed with their sudden wealth and make questionable choices.
THE PARIS WIDOW BY KIMBERLY BELLE
Happily married couple Stella and Adam are on vacation in Paris when a bomb explodes in the city. While Stella makes it out safely, Adam is nowhere to be found.
According to the police, Adam is involved with the black market as a dealer of rare and stolen antiquities, leading Stella to consider the possibility of him having been deliberately targeted.
MARGO’S GOT MONEY TROUBLES BY RUFI THORPE
Margo Millet’s life as a college student takes an unexpected turn when she gets pregnant due to an affair with her professor who wants nothing to do with the baby.
Now an unemployed single mother, Margo is on the verge of eviction and is struggling to make ends meet. When Margo’s estranged father Jinx asks to move in, she agrees under one condition: he’ll have to help look after her child.
In order to pay rent and support her child, Margo turns to the Internet and learns to create a captivating online persona with her father’s advice based on his pro-wrestling days.
INCIDENTS AROUND THE HOUSE BY JOSH MALERMAN
Eight-year-old Bela lives with her parents but they aren’t the only ones in the house.
“Other Mommy”, as Bela calls her, lives in her closet and asks the same question everyday:
“Can I go inside your heart?”
The story is written in Bela’s perspective, blending subtle horror with the innocence of a child as Other Mommy grows restless and strange incidents unfold around the house.
THE LONELY HEARTS TRIVIA NIGHT BY LAUREN FARNSWORTH
Bryony, Harry, Jaime, Luke and Donna have a few things in common – they’re all looking for friends and have a knack for trivia questions. In an attempt to meet new people, the five of them form a pop quiz team called the Red Hot Quizzy Peppers. Weeks pass by and the group gradually becomes more immersed as they try to win the quiz league and a GBP10,000 grand prize.
ASSASSINS ANONYMOUS BY ROB HART
As one of the most feared assassins, Mark is having second thoughts about his profession.
Deciding to leave his past behind, Mark joins a support group for former assassins and is now close to celebrating a year without having killed anyone – a record that he’s struggling to maintain when he’s being targeted.
Together with his trusted cat, Mark travels around the world in search of the mastermind. All the while trying his hardest not to relapse and ruin his recovery programme.
THE HOUSEMAID IS WATCHING BY FREIDA MCFADDEN
After years of meticulous saving, Millie and her husband finally have a new home to start a new life with their two children. As someone who used to clean people’s homes for a living, Millie couldn’t be happier – until she meets her neighbours.
When Mrs Lowell invites them for dinner, Millie thinks it’s an opportunity to break the ice but the maid’s cold stare makes her uncomfortable and Millie swears someone’s watching them.
Afterwards, a woman warns her to be careful of her neighbours and Millie begins to suspect there’s more to the quiet suburban street than meets the eye.
ERUPTION BY MICHAEL CRICHTON, JAMES PATTERSON
A volcano in Hawaii is on the verge of eruption, possibly the biggest of the century, threatening to destroy the island and expose a military secret that could put the entire world in danger.
To divert this crisis, they would have to redirect the lava flow, a seemingly impossible task.
The story is based on a partial manuscript left behind by Michael Crichton upon his passing, which was then completed by James Patterson. – Aqilah Rahman
