Books with author Jo-Cotterill

Twelve-year-old Darby loves living on her family's strawberry farm. But a big storm is coming, and it threatens to destroy everything she and her family hold dear.Darby is twelve years old and has Down syndrome. Her favorite things are music, chocolate, and her big sister Kaydee. It's a big weekend for Darby. It's time for their annual chocolate hunt, and it's all she can think about. Well, that and spending time with her big sister. But this year Kaydee's friend Lissa is staying over for the weekend, and she seems to be stealing all of Kaydee's attention. And to make things worse, the strawberry farm is hit by a tornado. Suddenly, it's as though both the chocolate hunt and her sister are slipping away from her. Although the family is prepared for the tornado, they aren't prepared for the storm of emotions that surface when a truth is brought to light. With tension rising within the family, can Darby mend what's been broken when it seems like no one is listening to her? A Storm of Strawberries is a warm, thoughtful, and empathetic novel from acclaimed author Jo Cotterill.

Things are bad in New York They’re not much better in Saigon But can Bodge find true love in the Orient? Meet CIA agent Robert "Bodge" Leon. He has been a desk jockey in New York since the Agency was formed. It’s 1952, and now they want him in the field, spying on the French in Vietnam. His best friend is missing in New York and someone is trying to kill him. How much worse can it get? How about falling in love with the Vietnamese Emperor’s beautiful concubine? But she has her own plans and where does Bodge fit in those? Colin Cotterill is the author of the Dr. Siri and Jimm Juree crime novel series.

A blind retired dentist has been run down by a logging truck on the street in Vientiane just opposite the post office. His body is duly delivered to the morgue of Dr. Siri Paiboun, the official and only coroner of Laos. At the age of seventy-four, Dr. Siri is too old to be in awe of the new communist bureaucrats for whom he now works. He identifies the corpse, helped by the letter in the man’s pocket. But first he must decipher it; it is written in code and invisible ink. The dentist’s widow explains that the enigmatic letters and numbers describe chess moves, but they are unlike any chess symbols Siri has previously encountered. With the help of his old friend, Civilai, now a senior member of the Laos politburo; Nurse Dtui (“Fatty”); Phosy, a police officer; and Aunt Bpoo, a transvestite fortune-teller, Dr. Siri solves the mystery of the note and foils a plot to overthrow the government of Laos.

Since Jimm Juree moved, under duress, with her family to a rural village on the coast of Southern Thailand, she misses the bright lights of Chiang Mai. Most of all, she's missed her career as a journalist, which was just getting started. In Chiang Mai, she was covering substantial stories and major crimes. But here in Maprao, Jimm has to scrape assignments from the local online journal, the Chumphon Gazette―and be happy about it when she gets one. This time they are sending her out to interview a local farang (European) writer, a man in his late fifties, originally from England, who writes award-winning crime novels, one Conrad Coralbank. At the same time, several local women have left town without a word to anyone, leaving their possessions behind. These include the local doctor, Dr. Sumlak, who never returned from a conference, and the Thai wife of that farang writer, the aforementioned Conrad Coralbank. All of which looks a little suspicious, especially to Jimm's grandfather, an ex-cop, who notices Coralbank's interest in Jimm with a very jaundiced eye. With a major storm headed their way and a potential serial killer on the loose, it looks like Jimm Juree, her eccentric family, and the whole town of Maprao is in for some major changes. The Axe Factor is a Jimm Juree mystery from Colin Cotterill.

On the gulf of Thailand, the Juree family are managing their run-down beach resort for the second year - still stalked by disaster. Daughter Jimm has a new love in her life, but finds herself pursued by another man with a markedly different agenda in mind. Meanwhile, Jimm's new case is that of Dr. Somluk, a champion of the rights of rural mothers, who is missing following a run-in with the marketeers of infant formula. As ever, there is blood, brine and bedlam aplenty at the Gulf Bay Lovely Resort.

Tania Dunn is a promising ice-skater, but is in for a shock when her coach decides to pair her with Zac, a daredevil novice skater, for the summer ice show. Tania is outraged! She has always been a singles skater and she doesn't trust Zac on the ice at all. But Zac is very good looking and willing to try anything and slowly but surely he begins to win Tania over.

'You did WHAT?' screamed Mari. 'You turned down the cutest boy ever? Are you crazy?'Fliss isn't exactly outgoing. But on stage she really comes alive.And this summer, she's playing Juliet opposite her dream Romeo -- Tom Mayerling. If only she could tell him how she feels!But unless Fliss finds some inner confidence, she's going to miss her chance with Tom. Because someone else has her eyes on Fliss's role -- and her leading man.

The fifth title in this wonderful series. For all fans of Cathy Cassidy and Jacqueline Wilson -- Sweet Hearts follows a huge cast of girls and their friendships, families and first loves! Lola Cassidy has it all -- wealthy parents, a gorgeous boyfriend and the daughter of a Bollywood producer as her best friend. She's going to be a model, just like her mother and is looking forward to her work experience at a famous fashion house. But things don't go to plan, and when her place in designer heaven falls through she ends up having to work in an animal sanctuary. Can Harry, as mysterious as he is good-looking, help her enjoy her new situation?

The third title in this wonderful series. For all fans of Cathy Cassidy and Jacqueline Wilson -- Sweet Hearts follows a huge cast of girls and their friendships, families and first loves!Since her mother, a famous florist, died three years ago, Kate's whole life has changed completely. She's pushed her friends away, shrunk into herself and is only finding some solace spending time in the garden amongst the flowers her mum loved so much.Desperate to try and become more like the 'normal' girl she once was, Kate gets a summer job at a garden centre. Doing something she's good at means that flashes of the old sparky girl begin to emerge again -- helped a lot by her very attractive and mysterious co-worker, Simon.

The second title in this gorgeous new series for fans of Cathy Cassidy and Jacqueline Wilson is set in the glamourous world of ballroom dancing. Megan can't believe she's had to move 200 miles away from her home. What about her school and her friends? Not to mention her dancing and her dancing partner, Jake, who has been her best friend since for ever. In an attempt to make herself feel better Megan joins a salsa class and things start to look up. She meets new friends, and even a new exciting boy. But will she listen to the warnings about him?

TO celebrate the life, every woman should wish for a talented novelist son such as Colin Cotterill. We've seen movies like Thelma & Louise and read books like Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia, which follow the exploits of women in search of meaning and fulfillment. But nothing you've seen or read will prepare you for Ethel and Joan, two English women, who take Thailand by storm. They had been married (at different times) to the same man. They became best friends. Ethel and Joan were two elderly ladies, who when most people wish to stay at home and tend their garden, set off on the road of self-discovery and adventure in Southeast Asia. This is their story. A gentle beauty unfolds as we enter their world laced with charm and humor. What son couldn't adore a mother who talked with a bar girl and said, "It doesn't matter what she does for a living. That's just society that decides what's proper and what's not. It's the person that counts." Ethel and Joan aren't with us any more. This book is a testament to their humanity, love of life, and true grit. They're continuing their spiritual journey and souvenir shopping in another dimension. We promise one thing: this book and these two ladies will stay with you forever.