This groundbreaking book explains why women experience burnout differently than men-and provides a simple, science-based plan to help women minimize stress, manage emotions, and live a more joyful life. Burnout. Many women in America have experienced it. What's expected of women and what it's really like to be a woman in today's world are two very different things-and women exhaust themselves trying to close the gap between them. How can you "love your body" when every magazine cover has ten diet tips for becoming "your best self"? How do you "lean in" at work when you're already operating at 110 percent and aren't recognized for it? How can you live happily and healthily in a sexist world that is constantly telling you you're too fat, too needy, too noisy, and too selfish? Sisters Emily Nagoski, PhD, and Amelia Nagoski, DMA, are here to help end the cycle of feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. Instead of asking us to ignore the very real obstacles and societal pressures that stand between women and well-being, they explain with compassion and optimism what we're up against-and show us how to fight back. In these pages you'll learn • what you can do to complete the biological stress cycle-and return your body to a state of relaxation • how to manage the "monitor" in your brain that regulates the emotion of frustration • how the Bikini Industrial Complex makes it difficult for women to love their bodies-and how to defend yourself against it • why rest, human connection, and befriending your inner critic are keys to recovering and preventing burnout With the help of eye-opening science, prescriptive advice, and helpful worksheets and exercises, all women will find something transformative in these pages-and will be empowered to create positive change. Emily and Amelia aren't here to preach the broad platitudes of expensive self-care or insist that we strive for the impossible goal of "having it all." Instead, they tell us that we are enough, just as we are-and that wellness, true wellness, is within our reach. Advance praise for Burnout "Burnout is the gold standard of self-help books, delivering cutting-edge science with energy, empathy, and wit. The authors know exactly what's going on inside of your frazzled brain and body, and exactly what you can do to fix it. Truly life-changing."-Sarah Knight, New York Times bestselling author of Calm the F*** Down

Spitfire

Ballantine Books

Ballantine Books

Ballantine Books

RITA Finalist for Historical Romance Scotland's King Robert the Bruce is retaking his kingdom from the invading English. To win, he'll need all the grit and courage of his elite band of warriors, the Highland Guard, men who fight without fear and love without limits. Fiery, aggressive, and bold, Kenneth Sutherland is a true champion-skilled with any weapon and driven to win. Now Kenneth is ready for his greatest challenge: joining Robert the Bruce's secret army to fight among the elite. Kenneth's best chance to attain that honor is by winning the Highland Games. Focused and prepared for victory, he is caught off guard by a lovely wisp of a woman-and a stolen moment of wicked seduction. Her innocent arousal and her shameless hunger fire his blood. He will win his place in the guard-and in Mary of Mar's bed. The ruggedly handsome hero-in-the-making stirs a heart that should know better. Mary vows that her surrender will be sport only-no promises, no heartbreak, just one night of incredible passion. Nothing, she swears, will persuade her to give up her hard-wrought independence and put her fate in the hands of another powerful man. But with every gentle touch and heart-pounding kiss, Kenneth makes her want more. Now Mary wants his heart. But is this determined champion willing to surrender everything for love?

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The author of the cherished bestseller On Mystic Lake returns with a poignant, funny, luminous novel about a mother and daughter--the complex ties that bind them, the past that separates them, and the healing that comes with forgiveness. "[Kristin] Hannah is superb at delving into the characters' psyches and delineating nuances of feeling."-Washington Post Book World Years ago, Nora Bridge walked out on her marriage and left her daughters behind. She has since become a famous radio talk-show host and newspaper columnist beloved for her moral advice. Her youngest daughter, Ruby, is a struggling comedienne who uses her famous mother as fuel for her bitter, cynical humor. When the tabloids unearth a scandalous secret from Nora's past, their estrangement suddenly becomes dramatic: Nora is injured in an accident and a glossy magazine offers Ruby a fortune to write a tell-all about her mother. Under false pretenses, Ruby returns home to take care of the woman she hasn't spoken to for almost a decade. Nora insists they retreat to Summer Island in the San Juans, to the lovely old house on the water where Ruby grew up, a place filled with childhood memories of love and joy and belonging. There Ruby is also reunited with her first love and his brother. Once, the three of them had been best friends, inseparable. Until the summer that Nora had left and everyone's hearts had been broken. . . . What began as an expose evolves, as Ruby writes, into an exploration of her family's past. Nora is not the woman Ruby has hated all these years. Witty, wise, and vulnerable, she is desperate to reconcile with her daughter. As the magazine deadline draws near and Ruby finishes what has begun to seem to her an act of brutal betrayal, she is forced to grow up and at last to look at her mother--and herself--through the eyes of a woman. And she must, finally, allow herself to love. Summer Island is a beautiful novel, funny, tender, sad, and ultimately triumphant.

For eons, Earth has been under observation by the Firstborn, beings almost as old as the universe itself. The Firstborn are unknown to humankind - until they act. In an instant, Earth is carved up and reassembled like a huge jigsaw puzzle. Suddenly the planet and every living thing on it no longer exist in a single timeline. Instead, the world becomes a patchwork of eras, from prehistory to 2037, each with its own indigenous inhabitants. Scattered across the planet are floating silver orbs impervious to all weapons and impossible to communicate with. Are these technologically advanced devices responsible for creating and sustaining the rifts in time? Are they cameras through which inscrutable alien eyes are watching? Or are they something stranger and more terrifying still? The answer may lie in the ancient city of Babylon, where two groups of refugees from 2037 - three cosmonauts returning to Earth from the International Space Station, and three United Nations peacekeepers on a mission in Afghanistan -have detected radio signals: the only such signals on the planet, apart from their own. The peacekeepers find allies in nineteenth-century British troops and in the armies of Alexander the Great. The astronauts, crash-landed in the steppes of Asia, join forces with the Mongol horde led by Genghis Khan. The two sides set out for Babylon, each determined to win the race for knowledge . . . and the power that lies within. Yet the real power is beyond human control, perhaps even human understanding. As two great armies face off before the gates of Babylon, it watches, waiting. . . .

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Jane Rizzoli and Maura Isles-the inspiration for the hit TNT series-continue their bestselling crime-solving streak. "Crime writing at its unputdownable, nerve-tingling best."-Harlan Coben Boston medical examiner Dr. Maura Isles is shocked to discover that the murdered woman looks exactly like her. For Maura, an only child, a DNA test confirms the startling fact: the mysterious doppelgänger is in fact her twin sister. Now an already bizarre homicide investigation becomes a disturbing excursion into a past full of dark secrets and twisted truths. It is a journey that leads Maura to the mother she never knew-an icy and cunning woman who gave Maura life . . . and who just might have a plan to take it away. Don't miss Tess Gerritsen's short story "John Doe" and a special excerpt from her novel Girl Missing in the back of the book. Praise for Tess Gerritsen and Body Double "One of the most versatile voices in thriller fiction today."-The Providence Journal "Masterful . . . Gerritsen rises to her best yet."-Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "The story zips along."-Entertainment Weekly "Chilling suspense . . . leaves the reader breathless."-The Philadelphia Inquirer

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A deeply moving, gripping, and intelligent page-turner about a daughter’s search for her mother, Leaving Time is Jodi Picoult at the height of her powers. Look for Jodi Picoult’s new novel, By Any Other Name, available now! Throughout her blockbuster career, Jodi Picoult has seamlessly blended nuanced characters, riveting plots, and rich prose, brilliantly creating stories that “not only provoke the mind but touch the flawed souls in all of us” ( The Boston Globe). Now, in Leaving Time, she has delivered a book unlike anything she’s written before. For more than a decade, Jenna Metcalf has never stopped thinking about her mother, Alice, who mysteriously disappeared in the wake of a tragic accident. Refusing to believe she was abandoned, Jenna searches for her mother regularly online and pores over the pages of Alice’s old journals. A scientist who studied grief among elephants, Alice wrote mostly of her research among the animals she loved, yet Jenna hopes the entries will provide a clue to her mother’s whereabouts. Desperate to find the truth, Jenna enlists two unlikely allies in her quest: Serenity Jones, a psychic who rose to fame finding missing persons, only to later doubt her gifts, and Virgil Stanhope, the jaded private detective who’d originally investigated Alice’s case along with the strange, possibly linked death of one of her colleagues. As the three work together to uncover what happened to Alice, they realize that in asking hard questions, they’ll have to face even harder answers. As Jenna’s memories dovetail with the events in her mother’s journals, the story races to a mesmerizing finish. Praise for Leaving Time “Piercing and uplifting . . . a smart, accessible yarn with a suspenseful puzzle at its core.” —The Boston Globe “Poignant . . . an entertaining tale about parental love, friendship, loss.” —The Washington Post “A riveting drama.” —Us Weekly “[A] moving tale.” —People “A fast-paced, surprise-ending mystery.” —USA Today “In Jenna, [Jodi] Picoult has created an unforgettable character who will easily endear herself to each and every reader. . . . Leaving Time may be her finest work yet.” —Bookreporter “[A] captivating and emotional story.” —BookPage

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Jane Rizzoli and Maura Isles-the inspiration for the hit TNT series-continue their bestselling crime-solving streak. "Crime writing at its unputdownable, nerve-tingling best."-Harlan Coben Boston medical examiner Dr. Maura Isles is shocked to discover that the murdered woman looks exactly like her. For Maura, an only child, a DNA test confirms the startling fact: the mysterious doppelgänger is in fact her twin sister. Now an already bizarre homicide investigation becomes a disturbing excursion into a past full of dark secrets and twisted truths. It is a journey that leads Maura to the mother she never knew-an icy and cunning woman who gave Maura life . . . and who just might have a plan to take it away. Don't miss Tess Gerritsen's short story "John Doe" and a special excerpt from her novel Girl Missing in the back of the book. Praise for Tess Gerritsen and Body Double "One of the most versatile voices in thriller fiction today."-The Providence Journal "Masterful . . . Gerritsen rises to her best yet."-Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "The story zips along."-Entertainment Weekly "Chilling suspense . . . leaves the reader breathless."-The Philadelphia Inquirer

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A deeply moving, gripping, and intelligent page-turner about a daughter’s search for her mother, Leaving Time is Jodi Picoult at the height of her powers. Look for Jodi Picoult’s new novel, By Any Other Name, available now! Throughout her blockbuster career, Jodi Picoult has seamlessly blended nuanced characters, riveting plots, and rich prose, brilliantly creating stories that “not only provoke the mind but touch the flawed souls in all of us” ( The Boston Globe). Now, in Leaving Time, she has delivered a book unlike anything she’s written before. For more than a decade, Jenna Metcalf has never stopped thinking about her mother, Alice, who mysteriously disappeared in the wake of a tragic accident. Refusing to believe she was abandoned, Jenna searches for her mother regularly online and pores over the pages of Alice’s old journals. A scientist who studied grief among elephants, Alice wrote mostly of her research among the animals she loved, yet Jenna hopes the entries will provide a clue to her mother’s whereabouts. Desperate to find the truth, Jenna enlists two unlikely allies in her quest: Serenity Jones, a psychic who rose to fame finding missing persons, only to later doubt her gifts, and Virgil Stanhope, the jaded private detective who’d originally investigated Alice’s case along with the strange, possibly linked death of one of her colleagues. As the three work together to uncover what happened to Alice, they realize that in asking hard questions, they’ll have to face even harder answers. As Jenna’s memories dovetail with the events in her mother’s journals, the story races to a mesmerizing finish. Praise for Leaving Time “Piercing and uplifting . . . a smart, accessible yarn with a suspenseful puzzle at its core.” —The Boston Globe “Poignant . . . an entertaining tale about parental love, friendship, loss.” —The Washington Post “A riveting drama.” —Us Weekly “[A] moving tale.” —People “A fast-paced, surprise-ending mystery.” —USA Today “In Jenna, [Jodi] Picoult has created an unforgettable character who will easily endear herself to each and every reader. . . . Leaving Time may be her finest work yet.” —Bookreporter “[A] captivating and emotional story.” —BookPage

As Civil War between the Republic and the Separatists rages across the galaxy, nowhere is the fighting more fierce than on the swamp world of Drongar, where a beleaguered mobile hospital unit wages a never-ending war of its own . . . A surgeon who covers his despair with wise-cracks; another who faces death and misery head-on, venting his emotions through beautiful music . . . A nurse with her heart in her work and her eye on a doctor . . . A Jedi Padawan on a healing mission without her Master . . . These are the core members of a tiny med unit serving the jungle world of Drongar, where battle is waged over the control of a priceless native plant, and an endless line of medlifters brings in the wounded and dying—mostly clone troopers, but also soldiers of all species. While the healers work desperately to save lives, others plot secretly to profit from the war—either by dealing on the black market or by manipulating the events of the war itself. In the end, though, all will face individual tests, and only those of compassionate hearts and staunch spirits can hope to survive to fight another day.

In Nicole Jordan's dazzling new Regency series, the scandalous Wilde cousins seek true love by imitating history's legendary lovers . . . beginning with Ashton Wilde, Marquis of Beaufort, who takes on the daunting role of Prince Charming to an unlikely Cinderella. Thanks to the mischievous meddling of his matchmaking sister, Ashton Wilde meets a damsel in distress during the midnight magic of a lavish ball. But Maura Collyer isn't looking for a prince-or an intimate pairing with any member of the scandalous noble Wilde family. Intrigued by Maura's beauty and daring, Ash is determined to aid in the rescue of her beloved stallion, gambled away by her wicked stepmother to an evil viscount. As their adventure becomes rife with peril and passion, Ash suspects he's found his heart's desire. Even though her dearest friend may be her self-proclaimed fairy godmother, Maura is mortified at being pushed into a romance with a notorious rake such as Ash. Dashing and charming, he comes to Maura's rescue just in time to help her steal back her precious horse. As they flee across the countryside, she can't resist his sweet seduction. But is her prince playing a role in a fairy tale to test an improbable theory, or is the love awakening in her heart proof of her own happily ever after?

NATIONAL BESTSELLER From the author The Women, a moving, powerful novel about the fragile threads that bind together our lives and the astonishing potential of second chances “A tender, beautifully told story of emotional growth, forgiveness [and] the possibility of miracles.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review Madelaine Hillyard is a world-famous heart surgeon at the top of her game. Her personal life is far less successful. A loving but overworked single mom, she is constantly at odds with her teenage daughter. At sixteen, Lina is confused, angry, and fast becoming a stranger to her mother—a rebel desperate to find the father who walked away before she was born. Complicating matters for Madelaine are the vastly different DeMarco brothers: While priest Francis DeMarco is always ready to lend a helping hand, his brother, Angel, long ago took on the role of bad boy. Years earlier Angel abandoned Madelaine—and fatherhood—to go in search of fame and fortune. His departure left Madelaine devastated, but now he reappears and seeks help from the very people he betrayed—as a patient in dire need.

Jane Rizzoli and Maura Isles-the inspiration for the hit TNT series-continue their crime-solving streak. The bestselling author of The Surgeon returns-and so does that chilling novel's diabolical villain. Though held behind bars, Warren Hoyt still haunts a helpless city, seeming to bequeath his evil legacy to a student all-too-diligent . . . and all-too-deadly. It is a boiling hot Boston summer. Adding to the city's woes is a series of shocking crimes, in which wealthy men are made to watch while their wives are brutalized. A sadistic demand that ends in abduction and death. The pattern suggests one man: serial killer Warren Hoyt, recently removed from the city's streets. Police can only assume an acolyte is at large, a maniac basing his attacks on the twisted medical techniques of the madman he so admires. At least that's what Detective Jane Rizzoli thinks. Forced again to confront the killer who scarred her-literally and figuratively-she is determined to finally end Hoyt's awful influence . . . even if it means receiving more resistance from her all-male homicide squad. But Rizzoli isn't counting on the U.S. government's sudden interest. Or on meeting Special Agent Gabriel Dean, who knows more than he will tell. Most of all, she isn't counting on becoming a target herself, once Hoyt is suddenly free, joining his mysterious blood brother in a vicious vendetta. . . . Filled with superbly created characters-and the medical and police procedural details that are her trademark-The Apprentice is Tess Gerritsen at her brilliant best. Set in a stunning world where evil is easy to learn and hard to end, this is a thriller by a master who could teach other authors a thing or two.

Ballantines Licht 20º WEIN Ballantines

The youngest son in a family of historians who has been hunted by dark forces associated with Dracula finds himself in peril at the hands of a new threat—a thrilling novel from the bestselling author of The Historian. When his mother passes away suddenly, Jay Turner finds himself at a crossroads. She was always secretive, raising him alone in Boston and staying single until her death. Returning to their brownstone to clear out her possessions, he finds two unusual items: a partially burned scrap of newspaper bearing the name “Gael Brogan;” and a small antique volume bound in leather. The sight of the volume is chilling. As a young scholar, his mother had been given the medieval book—one of a set commissioned by Vlad Tepes, otherwise known as Dracula, just before his death in 1477. She'd always warned Jay of how dangerous it was, and had donated it to a museum before she died . . . yet here it sits before him. Taking leave from his position as a history instructor at a boys’ boarding school, Jay sets out to learn more about Gael Brogan, a prominent nineteenth-century actor whose last and most famous role was the Count himself in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. As Jay begins to dig deeper—helped by a mysterious woman named Rhiannon he meets along the way—he uncovers a frightening story of a young actress who fell under Brogan's sway long ago. And before long, Jay and Rhiannon realize that something similarly implacable is also pursuing them. Hypnotic and atmospheric, Mystery Play is a novel richly steeped in lore, pulsating with tension as it chronicles a dark secret history of rituals, religion, and immortality.

A gripping Clone Wars–era adventure featuring a showdown between Grand Master Yoda and his former apprentice, the sinister Count Dooku. The savage Clone Wars have forced the Republic to the edge of collapse. During the height of the battle, one Jedi Knight escapes the carnage to deliver a message to Yoda on Coruscant. It appears that Dooku wants peace and demands a rendezvous. Chances are slim that the treacherous Count is sincere but, with a million lives at stake, Yoda has no choice. The meeting will take place on Vjun, a planet steeped in evil. The challenge could not be more difficult. Can Yoda win back his once promising pupil from the dark side or will Count Dooku unleash his sinister forces against his former mentor? Either way, Yoda is sure of one thing: this battle will be one of the fiercest he’ll ever face.

The Aguero Sisters: A Novel (Ballantine Reader's Circle)