Still Life

Beautiful, happily married, surrounded by loving friends, and the owner of a successful interior design business, Casey Marshall couldnt be more content with her life. Until a car slams into her at almost fifty miles an hour, breaking nearly every bone in her body, and plunging her into a coma that leaves her conscious but unable to move or communicate. Lying in her hospital bed, observing and listening to visitors, who assume she is oblivious to what they are saying, she quickly discovers that her friends arent necessarily the people she thought them to beand that her accident might not have been an accident at all. As she struggles to break free from her living death, she begins to wonder if what lies ahead could be even worse. It is Fieldings ability to get under the skin of her charactersand her readersthat has made her such a dependably bestselling author, says the Calgary Herald . Smart, suspenseful, and overwhelmingly addictive, Still Life is a novel her fans wont soon forget. From Booklist Casey Marshall has it all: a successful interior-design business; a handsome, loving husband; wonderful friends; and a boatload of family money at her disposal. But just as shes contemplating starting a family, shes the victim of a hit-and-run accident that leaves her in a coma. But shes not completely out of it, so shes a witness to everything that happens in her hospital room. But is that so bad? Isnt it everyones dream to be a fly on the wall, to hear what might be said at ourfunerals? Even though Casey is privy to everyones private remarks and conversations as they visit, she feels trapped and helpless, especially when it becomes abundantly clear that the incident with the car was no accident. Her frustration mounts as her sister, the wayward but bighearted Drew, becomes a suspect, along with everyone close to her. While not narrated in first person, the actionrevolves aroundCaseys experiences and perceptions. Fielding makes the most of this intriguing premise without succumbing to gimmicky plot tricks. The moment that Casey solves her own attempted murder is truly riveting, and the anxiety she feels as she tries to avoid the would-be murderers completion of his task is palpable. A heart-pounding mainstream thriller. --Mary Frances Wilkens Review Fielding is a master of anticipation and knows how to create a labyrinth of tension, never providing an exit until the very last page. The Globe and Mail Casey Marshall Looks Like She Has It All; A Successful Interior Design Business, A Devoted Husband, Friends Who Love Her, And A Family Fortune That Means A Comfortable Lifestyle. But Looks Can Be Deceiving. Casey Has More Than Her Fair Share Of Worries. A Successful Business Partnership With Her Long-time Friend, Janine, Ended When Casey Left To Pursue Her Dream Of Interior Design. The Effects Of This Old Wound Are Felt In Their Mutual Friendship With Another Friend, Gail, Leaving The Previously Happy Threesome Feeling Uneasy. Casey Not Only Worries About Her Damaged Friendship With Janine, But Also Her Complicated Relationship With Her Younger Sister, Drew. After The Deaths Of Their Parents, Casey Became Responsible For Her Sibling, Both Financially And Emotionally, Creating A Rift That Has Only Deepened With Time. The Only Salvation From These Worries Is Her Marriage To Warren. Successful, Handsome, And Completely Enraptured By His Wife, Her Husband Is The Perfect Reward For A Life That, Contrary To What Some Believe, Hasn’t Always Been Smooth Sailing. Before They Married, Warren Had Even Insisted On A Prenuptial Agreement That Meant He Would Receive None Of Casey’ S Considerable Family Fortune Should They Divorce. She Trusts Him Completely And Now Thoughts Of Starting A Family Are Beginning To Take Hold. Distracted By Thoughts Of A Baby, Casey Didn’t Hear The Car Until It Was Too Late. It Slammed Into Her At Almost Fifty Miles An Hour, Breaking Nearly Every Bone In Her Body And Plunging Her Into A Coma. Lying In Her Hospital Bed, Casey Slowly Begins To Realize That Although She Is Unable To See Or Communicate, She Can Hear Everything That Goes On Around Her. She Soon Discovers That Her Friends Aren’t Necessarily The People She Thought Them To Be — And That Her Accident Might Not Have Been An Accident At All. As She Struggles To Break Free From Her Living Death, She Begins To Wonder If What Lies Ahead Could Be Even Worse. A spine-tingling thriller about a picturesque Florida town – and the killer determined to prey on its teenaged girls–from the New York Times and internationally bestselling author of Mad River Road. “I've never been a fan of blood and guts,” writes the killer, “I've always preferred the buildup to an event over the actual event itself.” In Heartstopper, bestselling author Joy Fielding creates a gripping buildup – and payoff – sure to get pulses pounding. Welcome to Torrance, Florida. Population: 4,160. A small town in the middle of Alligator Alley, a safe place where residents feel comfortable leaving their doors unlocked and allowing their children to run freely. It's also the town that Sandy Crosbie, a high school English teacher and mother of two teenagers, now calls home, thanks to her philandering husband who moved the family from New York just so he could live closer to the Barbie clone he secretly met on an Internet chat line. When the body of the most popular girl at Torrance High is found buried in a shallow, swampy grave, everyone in this cozy community becomes a suspect. Suddenly a down-on-his-luck sheriff must wade through the murkier depths of his otherwise sunny jurisdiction to determine who the killer is. Meanwhile, Sandy must do everything in her power to help target the attacker before it's too late. Alternating between the chilling journal entries of a cold-blooded murderer and the sizzling scandals of small town life, Heartstopper is Fielding's most suspenseful novel yet. In this new page-turner by New York Times bestselling author Joy Fielding, the life of a beautiful young defense attorney is thrown into turmoil when she is called back to her hometown to defend her disturbed, estranged mother, who publically shot and killed a man.High-powered, twenty-eight-year-old defense attorney Amanda Travis likes several things: the colour black, lunchtime Spinning classes at the fitness centre on Clematis Street in downtown Palm Beach; her all-white one-bedroom, oceanfront condo; a compliant jury; men whose wives don't understand them.Some of the things she doesn't: the colour pink; when the temperature outside her condo's floor-to-ceiling windows falls below sixty-five degrees; clients who don't follow her advice; being asked to show I.D. when she goes to a bar; nicknames of any shape or size.Something else Amanda Travis doesn't like: memories.But when Ben, the first of her two ex-husbands, calls from her hometown of Toronto with the alarming news that her mother has shot and killed a man in the lobby of the Four Seasons Hotel, it becomes more and more difficult for Amanda to continue running from her past. Now she must return to face her demons and the life she left behind — a love that once consumed her and a mother who holds a strange, dark power over everyone she encounters. “Puppet” is the nickname Amanda's mother once called her. But now Amanda is determined to fight her mother's fatal whims — even if it kills her. The New York Times and internationally bestselling author is at her heart-skipping best with her latest mesmerizing triumph... Charley's Web.Charley Web is a beautiful single mother who writes a successful and controversial column for the Palm Beach Post. She's spent years building an emotional wall against scathing critics, snooty neighbors and her disapproving family. But when she receives a letter from Jill Rohmer, a young woman serving time on death row for the murders of three small children, her wall slowly begins to crumble. Jill wants Charley to write her biography so that she can share the many hidden truths about the case that failed to surface during her trial — including the existence of a mysterious man she calls Jack, who may just be the actual killer. Seeing this as an opportunity to gain journalistic credibility, Charley begins her journey into the mind of this deeply troubled woman.But when a series of anonymous letters, threatening to harm her son and daughter, land in Charley's in-box, she knows her assignment has gone way too far. As Charley races against time to save her family, she begins to understand the value of her seemingly intrusive neighbors, friends and relatives. As she discovers, this network of flawed but loving people might just be her only hope of getting out alive. After spending a year in prison, Ralph has explicit plans for his first night of freedom: tonight, someone will be held accountable. He goes to murderous lengths to learn the address of his former wife – the woman he blames for his fate. Determined to bring her to his idea of justice, Ralph's next step is to travel from Florida to Ohio to find his ex-wife's house on Mad River Road.Also in Florida, Jamie Kellogg wakes from the agonizing nightmare of her mother's funeral, and assesses her life: she's a twenty-nine-year-old woman in a dead-end job, with an ex-husband in Atlanta, a married lover in the hospital, and a virtual stranger in her bed. But this stranger is everything the previous men in her life weren't: tender, attentive, and adventurous. After convincing Jamie to quit her miserable job and ditch her judgmental, perfectionist sister, Ralph proposes a romantic getaway. While Jamie wonders if this thrilling man might finally be her Prince Charming, they plan a road trip to visit his son, who lives with his mother on a street called Mad River Road. As riveting and beguiling as Joy Fielding's previous novels, Mad River Road is a tale of courage, truth, and the need to trust one's instincts. Welcome to Torrance, Florida. Population: 4,160. As Sheriff John Weber would attest, the deadliest predators to date in his tiny hamlet were the alligators lurking in the nearby swamps. But that was before someone abducted and murdered a runaway teenage girl...and before the disappearance of popular and pretty Liana Martin. The pattern is chilling to Sandy Crosbie, the town's new high school English teacher. With a marriage on the rocks, thanks to her husband's online affairs, and a beautiful teenage daughter to protect, Sandy wishes she'd never come to the seemingly quiet town with shocking depths of scandal, sex, and brutality roiling beneath its surface. And as Sheriff Weber digs up more questions than answers in a dead-end investigation, one truth emerges: the prettiest ones are being targeted, the heartstoppers. And this killer intends to give them their due.... New York Times bestselling author Joy Fielding delivers her most glamorous and intriguing book to date in a novel about the disappearance of a gorgeous young actress, and a mother whose life is thrown into turmoil as a result.Losing Julia has become a constant in Cindy Carver's life. The first time Julia disappeared, she was five years old and vanished at the playground. That inspired motherly paranoia. The second was when, at age fourteen, Julia decided to move in with her father. That broke Cindy's heart. But when twenty-one-year-old Julia disappears without a trace after a promising audition with one of Hollywood's most powerful and influential directors, Cindy begins a frantic search. Secrets are revealed, lives are forever altered, and Cindy is forced to acknowledge the disturbing truth about the young woman she realizes she never really knew.... Living a no-strings-attached life in glamorous Palm Beach, beautiful steely-nerved criminal attorney Amanda Travis knows exactly what she life: spinning classes, the color black, and one-night-stands. Here's what she dislikes, the color pink, nicknames... and memories. Which is why she has shut the door on two ex-husbands, her estranged mother, and her hometown of Toronto. Then comes the news that will shatter Amanda's untouchable world, her mother, who has always held a strange power over everyone she encounters, has shot and killed a complete stranger. Forced to return to Toronto, Amanda must confront her demons and unravel the truth behind her mother's violent act - while the taunting, teasing name from her past dances in her head Puppet...telling her that someone-else is orchestrating her fate. Beautiful, happily married, and the owner of a successful interior design business, Casey Marshall couldn't be more content with her life, until a car slams into her at almost fifty miles an hour, breaking nearly every bone in her body and plunging her into a coma. Lying in her hospital bed, Casey realizes that although she is unable to see or communicate, she can hear everything. She quickly discovers that her friends aren't necessarily the people she thought them to be - and that her accident might not have been an accident at all. As she struggles to break free from her living death, she begins to wonder if what lies ahead could be even worse. When her twenty-one-year-old daughter disappears without a trace after a promising audition with one of Hollywood's most powerful and influential directors, Cindy begins a frantic search. As secrets are revealed, she is forced to acknowledge the disturbing truth about the young woman she realizes she never knew Amanda Travis is a beautiful twenty-eight-year-old criminal attorney who wins just about every case for her less than admirable clientele. She races through her galmorous lif, her only concerns being herself, a good bottle of red, and her pristine Palm Beach condo Charley Webb, a columnist, gets drawn into writing the biography of a woman convicted of murdering three children. Somehow, Charley's own children become dangerously at risk and she is shocked when she learns the truth about the woman's accomplice Ralph just spent a year in prison, and blames it entirely on his ex-wife. Now he is out, and plans to take his vengeance against her. He goes to murderous lengths to learn her new address, and then travels to Ohio to look her up on Mad River Road Losing Julia has become a contant in Cindy Carver's life. The first time Julia disapeared, she was five years old and vanished at the playground. Every stranger was a possible fiend. The story of an ambitious journalist whose foray into the mind of a killer puts her own family in jeopardy