Recommendations based on "And by the Way ..."

"He stared at himself in the mirror, wondering how he'd managed to lose track of time. Complacency had managed to set in again. . . A decent job, warm home, food on the table, and a body to curl up next to at night; he'd made the mistake of getting comfortable. Comfort fooled him into thinking it was all good when it wasn't. Damn nightmares had a way of reminding him of that."Ever since he was fifteen, John King has been on the run from the ghosts of his past, always drifting, never settling down in one place or with one woman, though more than one has certainly made the offer of forever-after. But every time his memories of life back in Texas start to haunt him too deeply into the night, John realizes that it's time to move on. That is, until he rolls into Denver, Colorado, grooving to Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It on," and meets Connie Rodgers, a woman who grew up on the mean streets and has the pain and the battle scars to prove it. And yet, she inspires him to think "If indeed there were a home for the perfect kiss, it would be on her lips." John is reluctant to admit that here is a woman who just may understand his very soul, even if she does have some baggage of her own. But both must face their pasts if they ever hope to be free to live and love.Filled with completely unforgettable characters, One Day I Saw a Black King is a stunningly powerful story that explores the power of the past over the present, the search for love and belonging and the healing gift of an extraordinary love.

Arthur Drams works for a secret government security agency, but all he really does is spend his days in a cubical writing reports no one reads. After getting another “lateral promotion” by a supervisor who barely remembers his name, it’s suggested that Arthur try to ‘make friends’ and ‘get noticed’ in order to move up the ladder. It’s like high school all over again: his attempts to be friendly come across as awkward and creepy, and no one wants to sit at the same table with him at lunch. In a last-ditch attempt to be seen as friendly and outgoing, he decides to make friends with The Alien, aka Agent Martin Grove, known for his strange eating habits, unusual reading choices, and the fact that no one has spoken to him in three years.Starting with a short, surprisingly interesting conversation on sociology books, Arthur slowly begins to chip away at The Alien’s walls using home-cooked meals to lure the secretive agent out of his abrasive shell. Except Martin just might be something closer to an actual secret agent than paper-pusher Arthur is, and it might be more than hearts at risk when something more than friendship begins to develop.Please note this book has a Heat Rating of zero.

My name is Nova Stone and I was a ghost in my own life until a knock at the door changed my whole world.Applying for guardianship of my infant half-brother was a no brainer, even if I hadn't known he existed. But that was before I met his uncles; two pro ice hockey players, and a CEO. They wanted to take Huey home with them and they were willing to pay me millions of dollars for the privilege.When that didn't work, they managed to convince me that it would be better for my brother-and for me-if I moved into their Ann Arbor mansion. At first, I said hell no. I'd listened to true crime podcasts. I'd read the newspaper articles. But a week of sleepless nights and emotional breakdowns later, I relented.They were helpful, I'd give them that. But they were also hot, and that was a problem. River with his brooding intensity, he was as huge as you'd picture an NHL enforcer to be. His foster brother Devan, who was mysterious and standoffish, and their best friend Rigby, the literal embodiment of a golden retriever in the body of a 6'2 pro athlete.But I had to do what was right for Huey, and anyway, how could I ever choose? And I had to choose...right?

From hot new talent Jordan Sonnenblick, a "Tuesdays with Morrie" for teens.16-year-old Alex decides to get even. His parents are separated, his father is dating his former third-grade teacher, and being 16 isn't easy, especially when it comes to girls. Instead of revenge though, Alex ends up in trouble with the law and is ordered to do community service at a senior center where he is assigned to Solomon Lewis, a "difficult" senior with a lot of gusto, advice for Alex, and a puzzling (yet colorful) Yiddish vocabulary. Eventually, the pair learn to deal with their past and each other in ways that are humorous, entertaining, and life changing.

A critically acclaimed #1 New York Times bestseller with more than one million copies in print! Now a major motion picture. Gritty with pain, betrayal, and brutality, this incredible true story also shines with an unexpected, life-changing love.Meet Denver, raised under plantation-style slavery in Louisiana until he escaped the “Man” in the 1960’s by hopping a train. Untrusting, uneducated, and violent, he spends 18 years on the streets of Dallas and Fort Worth.Meet Ron Hall, a self-made millionaire in the world of high-priced deals—an international arts dealer who moves between upscale New York galleries and celebrities.It seems unlikely that these two men would meet under normal circumstances, but when Deborah Hall, Ron's wife, meets Denver, she sees him through God's eyes of compassion. When Deborah is diagnosed with cancer, she charges Ron with the mission of helping Denver.From this request, an extraordinary friendship forms between Denver and Ron, changing them both forever. A tale told in two unique voices, Same Kind of Different as Me weaves two completely different life experiences into one common journey. There is pain and laughter, doubt and tears, and in the end a triumphal story that readers will never forget.Continue this story of friendship in What Difference Do It Make?: Stories of Hope and Healing, available now. Same Kind of Different as Me also is available in Spanish.

Leroy Madden is in trouble. Big, handsome, Fox Carmody trouble.Leroy has buried his attraction to the enigmatic fisherman in irritation and pointless bickering, keeping Fox at a safe distance. But with the troublesome man now living in Leroy's house, it's becoming impossible for Leroy to keep his true feelings hidden, or the fact that Leroy maybe isn't so straight, after all.Leroy hungers for something different between them. He wants more. But Leroy's business is struggling, his newly mended relationship with his brother is at risk, Fox doesn't plan to stay, and their mothers are lovers.Regardless of what Leroy's heart so desperately wants, his entire world is at stake, and nothing about a relationship with Fox Carmody was ever going to be easy.

Set in London across a single, life-altering summer, Isaac interrogates masculinity and queerness in the digital age and offers a fresh take on desire and intimacy, adolescent obsession and dangerous first love. After inexperienced seventeen-year-old Isaac loses his virginity through a dating app - a disappointing yet addictive experience - he spends his final months before university escaping into a dizzying new world of casual sex with forgettable men. This all changes when he meets twenty-eight-year-old Harrison at a party. Isaac is immediately infatuated by the handsome, charismatic artist, but while they grow closer, his sense of self becomes increasingly hazy. Harrison's demands shift constantly, and after Isaac tries everything to prove his worthiness, he must take a hard look at his ideas about love, sex and men, and his relationship with himself.

Seventeen-year-old Phil has felt like an outsider as long as he can remember. All Phil has ever known about his father is that he was Number Three on his mother’s long list—third in a series of affairs that have set Phil’s family even further apart from the critical townspeople across the river. As for his own sexuality, Phil doesn’t care what the neighbors will think; he’s just waiting for the right guy to come along.But Phil can’t remain a bystander forever. Not when he’s surrounded by his mother, Glass, who lives by her own rules and urges Phil to be equally strong; his sister, Dianne, who is abrupt and willful, with secrets to share; his uncle Gable, a restless mariner, defined by his scars; his best friend, Kat, who is generous but possessive. And finally, there is distant Nicholas, with whom Phil falls overwhelmingly in love—until he faces the ultimate betrayal and must finally find his worth . . . and place in the world.

At forty, Lan Davis is looking for his damned picket fence and 2.5 kids. What he doesn't expect is instead of a wife in the picture, his mind keeps conjuring up images of two men. One, his partner in the force, who is as straight as they came, the other an ex, who he'd hurt but never forgot.After an incident leaves Lan injured, the two men rally around him... only maybe they shouldn't have. It seems a medicated Lan is a truthful one.Parker Wilding is pissed at the world. His anger builds when his partner refuses medical care after an attack. Instead, Lan entrusts his neighbour to take care of him--a guy Parker doesn't trust. While he's aware they share a history,when the past is revealed, the truth shocks the hell out of him.Being emotionally crushed ten years ago, Easton Ravel hoped he would never have to see the man who broke him again. Hope is a fickle b*itch. And now he's not sure how to handle being face-to-face with the man he once loved. Add in the mix the annoying, testy Parker, and Easton finds his limits are pushed.Just not in the way he thought they would be.What happens next sure does come out of the blue.

Grace Park and Shawn Mathews share a city, but seemingly little else. Coming from different generations and very different communities, their paths wouldn't normally cross at all. As Grace battles confusion over her elder sister's estrangement from their Korean-immigrant parents, Shawn tries to help his cousin Ray readjust to life on the outside after years spent in prison. But something in their past links these two families. As the city around them threatens to spark into violence, echoing events from their past, the lives of Grace and Shawn are set to collide in ways which will change them all forever.