Shelf Indulgence Book Club

“None of us ever know all the possible courses our lives could have and maybe should have taken. It's probably just as well. Some secrets are meant to stay secret forever. Just ask Pandora.”  ― Liane Moriarty, The Husband's Secret  About the book:   My Darling Cecilia, if you’re reading this, then I’ve died… Imagine your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death. Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret – something with the potential to destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others too. Imagine, then, that you stumble across that letter while your husband is still very much alive… Cecilia Fitzpatrick has achieved it all – she’s an incredibly successful business woman, a pillar of her small community and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as her home. But that letter is about to change everything, and not just for her: Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilia – or each other –...

  What was the inspiration for your Whitney Awards finalist novel? Watching the Elizabeth Smart autobiography I was saddened by how often she had to try to explain why she didn’t try to escape “sooner”. It reminded me of how hard it is to explain to people the mental processes involved in leaving an abusive situation. So, the idea came to me that if a reader could actually experience that “mind prison” that they might be able to see why it isn’t so easy to “just leave” like victims of abuse are so often counseled.  What was the tipping point that turned this novel from “just an idea” to a project you HAD to complete? I had recently become fascinated with the idea of the fake perfection of YouTube family videos after my young daughter had become invested in a few channels. I was a newly single mom of four kids and my daughter wanted to know why these people on line had seemingly perfect lives when we had been through the struggle of divorce. I tried to explain that the YouTube ...

About the book:   Adopted by her controlling foster mother at the age of eight, twenty-year-old Tara has seen little of the outside world. Lonely, punished for the slightest offense, her only distraction comes from watching the Feely family’s online videos. They’re an affectionate vlogging quintet and an internet sensation. Most important, they are Tara’s mental refuge. Then the opportunity arises for them to be something more. When Tara accepts an internship with the close-knit clan, they’re her escape. Daring to run away, and defying Mother’s rules, Tara is welcomed into the loving fold. But the more Tara gets to know them, the more she realizes that not everything is as it seems. As secrets slowly surface, the image of the perfect family begins to crack. For Tara, it’s another trap. To claim a life of her own, she’ll need a new escape plan. Because as the show’s popularity explodes, reaching even more fascinated viewers, Tara can’t shake the feeling that Mother is among their ra...

  "There is always one more thing to say..." About the book:   The long-awaited sequel to the international bestseller  PS, I Love You ! It's been seven years since Holly Kennedy's husband died six since she read his final letter, urging Holly to find the courage to forge a new life.   She s proud of all the ways in which she has grown and evolved. But when a group inspired by Gerry's letters, calling themselves the PS, I Love You Club, approaches Holly asking for help, she finds herself drawn back into a world that she worked so hard to leave behind.   Reluctantly, Holly begins a relationship with the club, even as their friendship threatens to destroy the peace she believes she has achieved. As each of these people calls upon Holly to help them leave something meaningful behind for their loved ones, Holly will embark on a remarkable journey one that will challenge her to ask whether embracing the future means betraying the past, and what it means to love someo...

About the book:   YOU ARE NOT THE FIRST. AND YOU WILL CERTAINLY NOT BE THE LAST. YOUR PHONE RINGS. A STRANGER HAS KIDNAPPED YOUR CHILD. TO FREE THEM YOU MUST ABDUCT SOMEONE ELSE'S CHILD. YOUR CHILD WILL BE RELEASED WHEN YOUR VICTIM'S PARENTS KIDNAP ANOTHER CHILD. IF ANY OF THESE THINGS DON'T HAPPEN: YOUR CHILD WILL BE KILLED. YOU ARE NOW PART OF THE CHAIN Group Discussion Questions:   What do you think about the comment – with Facebook/social media, we’re becoming our own surveillance?(as we upload location, favorite foods, interest, hobbies and political ideas) Are we really our own Secret Police? How much information is too much to share? Do we share too much?    If you had to describe the Chain in 3 adjectives what would you choose?  Could you continue The Chain?  Could you not picture yourself going to the police or would you take your chances? Would you get a gun and go through a kidnapping?  How would you pick your target? Would you go for a chil...

    About the book:   Aldrich University is rocked to its core when a hacker dumps 40,000 people's e-mails—the entire faculty, staff, students, alums—onto an easily searchable database. Rumors and affairs immediately leak, but things turn explosive when Kit Manning's handsome husband, Dr. Greg Strasser, is found murdered. Kit's sister, Willa, returns for the funeral, setting foot in a hometown she fled fifteen years ago, after a night she wishes she could forget. As an investigative reporter, Willa knows something isn't right about the night Greg was killed, and she's determined to find the truth. What she doesn't expect is that everyone has something to hide. And with a killer on the loose, Willa and Kit must figure out who killed Greg before someone else is murdered. Told from multiple points of view, Reputation is full of twists, turns, and shocking reveals. It's a story of intrigue, sabotage, and the secrets we keep—and how far we go to keep them hidden....

Ladies,  Welcome to Shelf Indulgence Book Club. Our mission this year is to read a book a month or more, to explore books that you may not have  have picked up. I hope to inspire each other with meaningful connections across the United States through reading and discussion.  I believe in the power of book club to enhance the reading experience, support lifelong learning and to build a community here. Books are written to bring us together. Through regular meetings, shared perspectives, a community and support system will emerge.  THANK YOU for joining us for the 2020 Shelf Indulgence Book Club year.  Here is our schedule of books and meetings: 

ArtsATL:  Paula Vauss is a fascinating character, full of nuance and passion. How did you create her? Joshilyn Jackson:  Paula is a minor character in [my sixth novel]  Someone Else’s Love Story, and she was one of those characters who just kept taking over everything she was in. I probably cut 10,000 words of Paula out of  Someone Else’s Love Story . She had the best lines, and I just knew she was going to get her own book.  She’s an iteration of a character I’ve written before in a number of other books, but always in a minor role. She always showed up as a minor or secondary character because it’s hard to have a narrator that is that vicious and relentless and sometimes mean. But she has dimension for the reader because you see her past and you know that she was an underdog. As an adult, she has such a heart for the underdog and she’s oftentimes relentless for people who can’t be relentless for themselves. And she’s very loyal and ethical. Those things save h...