Books published by publisher Kaylie Jones Books

Finalist for the 2019 Oklahoma Book Awards, Fiction"The murder investigation allows Loewenstein to probe into the lives of proud people who would never expose their troubles to strangers. People like John Hodge, the town's most respected lawyer, who knocks his wife around, and kindhearted Etha Jennings, who surreptitiously delivers home-cooked meals to the hobo camp outside town because one of the young Civilian Conservation Corps workers reminds her of her dead son. Loewenstein's sensitive treatment of these dark days in the Dust Bowl era offers little humor but a whole lot of compassion."--New York Times Book Review"This striking historical mystery...is brooding and gritty and graced with authenticity."--NPR, A Best Book of 2018"The Depression and a 240-day-long dry spell drive the desperate townspeople of Vermillion, OK, to hire a rainmaker, but he's murdered, leaving sheriff Temple Jennings to investigate. Loewenstein's terrific historical mystery wears its history lightly and its humanity beautifully. The first in a series, it's a realistic, expertly drawn novel with characters you'll come to love."--Library Journal, A Best Book of 2018"The plot is compelling, the character development effective and the setting carefully and accurately designed...I have lived in the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma; I know about wind and dust...Combining a well created plot with an accurate, albeit imagined, setting and characters that 'speak' clearly off of the page make Death of a Rainmaker a pleasant adventure in reading."--The Oklahoman"Set in an Oklahoma small town during the Great Depression, this launch of a promising new series is as vivid as the stark photographs of Dorothea Lange."--South Florida, One of Oline Cogdill's Best Mystery Novels of 2018"After a visiting con artist is murdered during a dust storm, a small-town sheriff and his wife pursue justice in 1930s Oklahoma. A vivid evocation of life during the Dust Bowl; you might need a glass of water at hand while reading Loewenstein's novel."--Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Editor's Pick"Laurie Loewenstein's new mystery novel...expertly evokes the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression...Loewenstein's novel sometimes reads like a combination of a Western and a mystery. But that genre mishmash works."--Washington City Paper"The plot is solid in Death of a Rainmaker, but what makes Loewenstein's novel so outstanding is the cast of characters she has assembled...Death of a Rainmaker is a suburb book, one that sets the reader right down amid some of the hardest times our country has faced, and lets us feel those hopeful farmers' despair as they witness their dreams turning to dust."--Mystery Scene MagazineWhen a rainmaker is bludgeoned to death in the pitch-blackness of a colossal dust storm, small-town sheriff Temple Jennings shoulders yet another burden in the hard times of the 1930s Dust Bowl. The killing only magnifies Temple's ongoing troubles: a formidable opponent in the upcoming election, the repugnant burden of enforcing farm foreclosures, and his wife's lingering grief over the loss of their eight-year-old son.As the sheriff and his young deputy investigate the murder, their suspicions focus on a teenager, Carmine, serving with the Civilian Conservation Corps. The deputy, himself a former CCCer, struggles with remaining loyal to the corps while pursuing his own aspirations as a lawman.When the investigation closes in on Carmine, Temple's wife, Etha, quickly becomes convinced of his innocence and sets out to prove it. But Etha's own probe soon reveals a darker web of secrets, which imperil Temple's chances of reelection and cause the husband and wife to confront their long-standing differences about the nature of grief.

Finalist for the 2019 Oklahoma Book Awards, Fiction"The murder investigation allows Loewenstein to probe into the lives of proud people who would never expose their troubles to strangers. People like John Hodge, the town's most respected lawyer, who knocks his wife around, and kindhearted Etha Jennings, who surreptitiously delivers home-cooked meals to the hobo camp outside town because one of the young Civilian Conservation Corps workers reminds her of her dead son. Loewenstein's sensitive treatment of these dark days in the Dust Bowl era offers little humor but a whole lot of compassion."--New York Times Book Review"This striking historical mystery...is brooding and gritty and graced with authenticity."--NPR, A Best Book of 2018"The Depression and a 240-day-long dry spell drive the desperate townspeople of Vermillion, OK, to hire a rainmaker, but he's murdered, leaving sheriff Temple Jennings to investigate. Loewenstein's terrific historical mystery wears its history lightly and its humanity beautifully. The first in a series, it's a realistic, expertly drawn novel with characters you'll come to love."--Library Journal, A Best Book of 2018"The plot is compelling, the character development effective and the setting carefully and accurately designed...I have lived in the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma; I know about wind and dust...Combining a well created plot with an accurate, albeit imagined, setting and characters that 'speak' clearly off of the page make Death of a Rainmaker a pleasant adventure in reading."--The Oklahoman"Set in an Oklahoma small town during the Great Depression, this launch of a promising new series is as vivid as the stark photographs of Dorothea Lange."--South Florida, One of Oline Cogdill's Best Mystery Novels of 2018"After a visiting con artist is murdered during a dust storm, a small-town sheriff and his wife pursue justice in 1930s Oklahoma. A vivid evocation of life during the Dust Bowl; you might need a glass of water at hand while reading Loewenstein's novel."--Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Editor's Pick"Laurie Loewenstein's new mystery novel...expertly evokes the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression...Loewenstein's novel sometimes reads like a combination of a Western and a mystery. But that genre mishmash works."--Washington City Paper"The plot is solid in Death of a Rainmaker, but what makes Loewenstein's novel so outstanding is the cast of characters she has assembled...Death of a Rainmaker is a suburb book, one that sets the reader right down amid some of the hardest times our country has faced, and lets us feel those hopeful farmers' despair as they witness their dreams turning to dust."--Mystery Scene MagazineWhen a rainmaker is bludgeoned to death in the pitch-blackness of a colossal dust storm, small-town sheriff Temple Jennings shoulders yet another burden in the hard times of the 1930s Dust Bowl. The killing only magnifies Temple's ongoing troubles: a formidable opponent in the upcoming election, the repugnant burden of enforcing farm foreclosures, and his wife's lingering grief over the loss of their eight-year-old son.As the sheriff and his young deputy investigate the murder, their suspicions focus on a teenager, Carmine, serving with the Civilian Conservation Corps. The deputy, himself a former CCCer, struggles with remaining loyal to the corps while pursuing his own aspirations as a lawman.When the investigation closes in on Carmine, Temple's wife, Etha, quickly becomes convinced of his innocence and sets out to prove it. But Etha's own probe soon reveals a darker web of secrets, which imperil Temple's chances of reelection and cause the husband and wife to confront their long-standing differences about the nature of grief.

"A hilarious book about the city vs. suburb divide."--New York Post, a Must-Read Book"City Mouse is a sharp and sophisticated novel of suburban life with a narrative voice that is equal parts witty, observant, and vulnerable. A wonderful debut!--Susan Isaacs, New York Times best-selling author"For every city mom who fears death by suburbia--and for every suburban mom who wonders if it's just her--this insightful, funny trip into the secrets behind those picket fences is required reading."--Maureen Sherry, author of Opening Belle"City Mouse reminds mothers of that priceless lesson: the grass is always greener...and maybe even alcohol-soaked Astroturf. I tore through this book like a bored, competitive housewife tears through her Xanax."--Faith Salie, author of Approval Junkie"Lender sharply portrays the corrupt privilege of upper-middle-class suburbanites, and with a twist of her pen, the Stepford Wives take the upper hand over their husbands...the climactic explosion takes everyone by surprise. A bracingly tart portrait of suburban hell."--Kirkus Reviews"Lender's enlightening, beautifully plotted novel dives deep into the notion of having it all while playing with the shallow notions of the American dream."--Publishers Weekly"This defines a beach read for me! So relatable to our own lives as it is all about mom trying to find out exactly where she fits in the in the scheme of suburbia--all that goes along with it. Plus, when a book is described as The Stepford Wives meets Bad Moms, how can you go wrong?"--Mom of the Year (blog), included in 20 Best Summer Books"It's not long before neighborhood secrets give away to scandal, proving the grass--and the Astroturf--isn't always greener on the other side of the white-picket fence."--Star Magazine"With real estate prices on the rise, Jessica, Aaron, and their kids are forced to ditch their chichi Manhattan digs for the suburbs. Though she had her worries, Jessica settles into her new normal with ease--but when she embarks on a moms-only trip with her new galpals, she ends up learning a few eye-opening lessons that spur her to reevaluate her life."--OK! Magazine"Lender's debut novel is positively irresistible. It's hilarious and insightful and just the type of book any city girl needs to tote to her vacation rental this summer...even with three kids in tow."--Daytime ConfidentialPriced out of their Manhattan neighborhood, Jessica and Aaron move with their young daughters to the one place Jessica swore she'd never go: the suburbs. But to Jessica's surprise, life in the commuter belt makes a great first impression. She quickly falls in with a clique of helpful mom friends who welcome her with pitchers of margaritas, neighborhood secrets, and a pair of hot jeans that actually fit.Still, it's hard to keep up in a crowd where everyone competes for the most perfectly manicured home and latest backyard gadgets. And what's worse, as the only working mom in her circle, Jessica sometimes feels disconnected and alone. So she's thrilled when she's invited to a moms-only weekend at the beach, which she assumes will mean new opportunities for real talk and bonding. Instead, the trip turns into a series of eye-opening lessons, and Jessica must decide if she's strong enough to be honest with herself about the sort of life she really wants.

“A touching novel that is Jodi Picoult’s My Sister’s Keeper mixed with Michael Ende’s The Neverending Story or Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland.”—School Library JournalThe Kaleidoscope Sisters is a debut novel hinging on the indomitable spirit of young women. It centers on fifteen-year-old Quinn and her younger sister, Riley, who is dying from a degenerative heart defect. As the novel opens, Riley is weeks away from her seventh birthday, and her decline is obvious. Years in and out of hospitals have left the family with no support system, but Quinn is determined to save her younger sister. In her quest, Quinn discovers a portal to another realm peppered with characters based in history, all of whom disappeared mysteriously. Aiding Quinn throughout her journey in the Other Realm is Meelie. Quinn learns that a new heart for Riley can be harvested in the Other Realm, but not without sacrifice. While Meelie helps Quinn come to terms with an impossible decision, Quinn uncovers the truth about Meelie’s disappearance and why she never returned home. The book chronicles Quinn’s journey, focusing on the inevitability of loss and the realization that no matter what Quinn decides, her mother must lose one of her daughters.“[An] affecting first novel about family, love, and sacrifice . . . Stephens’ poetic writing is beautiful . . . and deftly blends realism and fantasy.”—Booklist“Adorned with an array of unforgettable characters in a realm touched by magic and wonder.”―Morowa Yejidé, author of Time of the Locust “Simultaneously odd and intriguing.”—Kirkus Reviews

"A hilarious book about the city vs. suburb divide."--New York Post, a Must-Read Book"City Mouse is a sharp and sophisticated novel of suburban life with a narrative voice that is equal parts witty, observant, and vulnerable. A wonderful debut!--Susan Isaacs, New York Times best-selling author"For every city mom who fears death by suburbia--and for every suburban mom who wonders if it's just her--this insightful, funny trip into the secrets behind those picket fences is required reading."--Maureen Sherry, author of Opening Belle"City Mouse reminds mothers of that priceless lesson: the grass is always greener...and maybe even alcohol-soaked Astroturf. I tore through this book like a bored, competitive housewife tears through her Xanax."--Faith Salie, author of Approval Junkie"Lender sharply portrays the corrupt privilege of upper-middle-class suburbanites, and with a twist of her pen, the Stepford Wives take the upper hand over their husbands...the climactic explosion takes everyone by surprise. A bracingly tart portrait of suburban hell."--Kirkus Reviews"Lender's enlightening, beautifully plotted novel dives deep into the notion of having it all while playing with the shallow notions of the American dream."--Publishers Weekly"This defines a beach read for me! So relatable to our own lives as it is all about mom trying to find out exactly where she fits in the in the scheme of suburbia--all that goes along with it. Plus, when a book is described as The Stepford Wives meets Bad Moms, how can you go wrong?"--Mom of the Year (blog), included in 20 Best Summer Books"It's not long before neighborhood secrets give away to scandal, proving the grass--and the Astroturf--isn't always greener on the other side of the white-picket fence."--Star Magazine"With real estate prices on the rise, Jessica, Aaron, and their kids are forced to ditch their chichi Manhattan digs for the suburbs. Though she had her worries, Jessica settles into her new normal with ease--but when she embarks on a moms-only trip with her new galpals, she ends up learning a few eye-opening lessons that spur her to reevaluate her life."--OK! Magazine"Lender's debut novel is positively irresistible. It's hilarious and insightful and just the type of book any city girl needs to tote to her vacation rental this summer...even with three kids in tow."--Daytime ConfidentialPriced out of their Manhattan neighborhood, Jessica and Aaron move with their young daughters to the one place Jessica swore she'd never go: the suburbs. But to Jessica's surprise, life in the commuter belt makes a great first impression. She quickly falls in with a clique of helpful mom friends who welcome her with pitchers of margaritas, neighborhood secrets, and a pair of hot jeans that actually fit.Still, it's hard to keep up in a crowd where everyone competes for the most perfectly manicured home and latest backyard gadgets. And what's worse, as the only working mom in her circle, Jessica sometimes feels disconnected and alone. So she's thrilled when she's invited to a moms-only weekend at the beach, which she assumes will mean new opportunities for real talk and bonding. Instead, the trip turns into a series of eye-opening lessons, and Jessica must decide if she's strong enough to be honest with herself about the sort of life she really wants.

"[Protagonist] Peter...is appealing, and readers will applaud his small triumphs."--Booklist “A treasure for readers of any age, The Underdog Parade promises to be an instant classic reminiscent of works like To Kill a Mockingbird. Crack open this book, and you will not put it down!”--Gary R. Brown, author of The Coney Island Fakir“I fell in love with Michael Mihaley’s band of misfit characters. They show us anything is possible with a little bit of faith and a whole lotta heart.” --Barbara J. Taylor, author of All Waiting Is LongIt’s the summer of the drought, but thirteen-year-old Peter “Nemo” Grady has bigger problems on his mind than the weather. He hates his new home in the exclusive golf club community Willow Creek Landing. His parents are always fighting and he can’t escape the memory of his last seizure―when he flopped around the gymnasium floor like a fish out of water―earning him his dreaded nickname. To top it all off, Peter has no friends, but he receives plenty of unsolicited attention from Chipper, the boy scout super-bully who also happens to be a resident of Willow Creek. His only companion is his little sister, CJ, who thinks she is Wonder Woman. Peter is all too aware that you don’t need rain in the forecast to have dark clouds overhead. Things change when he meets his new neighbor, the mysterious Joshua, who predicts the drought will end with a storm of biblical proportions. Peter looks to his visiting, wheelchair-bound Uncle Herb, and his neighbors, Mr. James and Mr. Terry, for guidance as Josh prepares for imminent doom. With each passing day, Peter realizes that sooner or later he will have to rely on the strength of the lamest, most jelly-weak individual he knows―himself.

"[Protagonist] Peter...is appealing, and readers will applaud his small triumphs."--Booklist “A treasure for readers of any age, The Underdog Parade promises to be an instant classic reminiscent of works like To Kill a Mockingbird. Crack open this book, and you will not put it down!”--Gary R. Brown, author of The Coney Island Fakir“I fell in love with Michael Mihaley’s band of misfit characters. They show us anything is possible with a little bit of faith and a whole lotta heart.” --Barbara J. Taylor, author of All Waiting Is LongIt’s the summer of the drought, but thirteen-year-old Peter “Nemo” Grady has bigger problems on his mind than the weather. He hates his new home in the exclusive golf club community Willow Creek Landing. His parents are always fighting and he can’t escape the memory of his last seizure—when he flopped around the gymnasium floor like a fish out of water—earning him his dreaded nickname. To top it all off, Peter has no friends, but he receives plenty of unsolicited attention from Chipper, the boy scout super-bully who also happens to be a resident of Willow Creek. His only companion is his little sister, CJ, who thinks she is Wonder Woman. Peter is all too aware that you don’t need rain in the forecast to have dark clouds overhead. Things change when he meets his new neighbor, the mysterious Joshua, who predicts the drought will end with a storm of biblical proportions. Peter looks to his visiting, wheelchair-bound Uncle Herb, and his neighbors, Mr. James and Mr. Terry, for guidance as Josh prepares for imminent doom. With each passing day, Peter realizes that sooner or later he will have to rely on the strength of the lamest, most jelly-weak individual he knows—himself.

Finalist for the 2019 Oklahoma Book Awards, Fiction"The murder investigation allows Loewenstein to probe into the lives of proud people who would never expose their troubles to strangers. People like John Hodge, the town's most respected lawyer, who knocks his wife around, and kindhearted Etha Jennings, who surreptitiously delivers home-cooked meals to the hobo camp outside town because one of the young Civilian Conservation Corps workers reminds her of her dead son. Loewenstein's sensitive treatment of these dark days in the Dust Bowl era offers little humor but a whole lot of compassion."--New York Times Book Review"This striking historical mystery...is brooding and gritty and graced with authenticity."--NPR, A Best Book of 2018"The Depression and a 240-day-long dry spell drive the desperate townspeople of Vermillion, OK, to hire a rainmaker, but he's murdered, leaving sheriff Temple Jennings to investigate. Loewenstein's terrific historical mystery wears its history lightly and its humanity beautifully. The first in a series, it's a realistic, expertly drawn novel with characters you'll come to love."--Library Journal, A Best Book of 2018"The plot is compelling, the character development effective and the setting carefully and accurately designed...I have lived in the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma; I know about wind and dust...Combining a well created plot with an accurate, albeit imagined, setting and characters that 'speak' clearly off of the page make Death of a Rainmaker a pleasant adventure in reading."--The Oklahoman"Set in an Oklahoma small town during the Great Depression, this launch of a promising new series is as vivid as the stark photographs of Dorothea Lange."--South Florida, One of Oline Cogdill's Best Mystery Novels of 2018"After a visiting con artist is murdered during a dust storm, a small-town sheriff and his wife pursue justice in 1930s Oklahoma. A vivid evocation of life during the Dust Bowl; you might need a glass of water at hand while reading Loewenstein's novel."--Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Editor's Pick"Laurie Loewenstein's new mystery novel...expertly evokes the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression...Loewenstein's novel sometimes reads like a combination of a Western and a mystery. But that genre mishmash works."--Washington City Paper"The plot is solid in Death of a Rainmaker, but what makes Loewenstein's novel so outstanding is the cast of characters she has assembled...Death of a Rainmaker is a suburb book, one that sets the reader right down amid some of the hardest times our country has faced, and lets us feel those hopeful farmers' despair as they witness their dreams turning to dust."--Mystery Scene MagazineWhen a rainmaker is bludgeoned to death in the pitch-blackness of a colossal dust storm, small-town sheriff Temple Jennings shoulders yet another burden in the hard times of the 1930s Dust Bowl. The killing only magnifies Temple's ongoing troubles: a formidable opponent in the upcoming election, the repugnant burden of enforcing farm foreclosures, and his wife's lingering grief over the loss of their eight-year-old son.As the sheriff and his young deputy investigate the murder, their suspicions focus on a teenager, Carmine, serving with the Civilian Conservation Corps. The deputy, himself a former CCCer, struggles with remaining loyal to the corps while pursuing his own aspirations as a lawman.When the investigation closes in on Carmine, Temple's wife, Etha, quickly becomes convinced of his innocence and sets out to prove it. But Etha's own probe soon reveals a darker web of secrets, which imperil Temple's chances of reelection and cause the husband and wife to confront their long-standing differences about the nature of grief.

"In this affecting first novel about family, love, and sacrifice, 15-year-old Quinn discovers the lengths she will go to to save her sister, Riley...Stephens' poetic writing is beautiful...and deftly blends realism and fantasy."--Booklist"This novel is a heartrending story of the deep love of family and the hardships of terminal disease and loss. In his debut, Stephens has created a touching novel that is Jodi Picoult's My Sister's Keeper mixed with Michael Ende's The Neverending Story or Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. VERDICT A unique story for teens who enjoy fantasy and tragedy. Give this to fans of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak or If I Stay by Gayle Forman."--School Library Journal"Simultaneously odd and intriguing."--Kirkus ReviewsThe Kaleidoscope Sisters is a debut novel hinging on the indomitable spirit of young women. It centers on fifteen-year-old Quinn and her younger sister, Riley, who is dying from a degenerative heart defect. As the novel opens, Riley is weeks away from her seventh birthday, and her decline is obvious. Years in and out of hospitals have left the family with no support system, but Quinn is determined to save her younger sister. In her quest, Quinn discovers a portal to another realm peppered with characters based in history, all of whom disappeared mysteriously. Aiding Quinn throughout her journey in the Other Realm is Meelie. Quinn learns that a new heart for Riley can be harvested in the Other Realm, but not without sacrifice. While Meelie helps Quinn come to terms with an impossible decision, Quinn uncovers the truth about Meelie’s disappearance and why she never returned home. The book chronicles Quinn’s journey, focusing on the inevitability of loss and the realization that no matter what Quinn decides, her mother must lose one of her daughters.The Kaleidoscope Sisters is the second release in the Oddities Kaylie Jones Books series, an e-first line that focuses on unconventional, edgy, risk-taking novels that boldly defy the traditional forms and conventions of the literary novel, with a focus on YA, horror, and mystery.

"[Protagonist] Peter...is appealing, and readers will applaud his small triumphs."--Booklist “A treasure for readers of any age, The Underdog Parade promises to be an instant classic reminiscent of works like To Kill a Mockingbird. Crack open this book, and you will not put it down!”--Gary R. Brown, author of The Coney Island Fakir“I fell in love with Michael Mihaley’s band of misfit characters. They show us anything is possible with a little bit of faith and a whole lotta heart.” --Barbara J. Taylor, author of All Waiting Is LongIt’s the summer of the drought, but thirteen-year-old Peter “Nemo” Grady has bigger problems on his mind than the weather. He hates his new home in the exclusive golf club community Willow Creek Landing. His parents are always fighting and he can’t escape the memory of his last seizure―when he flopped around the gymnasium floor like a fish out of water―earning him his dreaded nickname. To top it all off, Peter has no friends, but he receives plenty of unsolicited attention from Chipper, the boy scout super-bully who also happens to be a resident of Willow Creek. His only companion is his little sister, CJ, who thinks she is Wonder Woman. Peter is all too aware that you don’t need rain in the forecast to have dark clouds overhead. Things change when he meets his new neighbor, the mysterious Joshua, who predicts the drought will end with a storm of biblical proportions. Peter looks to his visiting, wheelchair-bound Uncle Herb, and his neighbors, Mr. James and Mr. Terry, for guidance as Josh prepares for imminent doom. With each passing day, Peter realizes that sooner or later he will have to rely on the strength of the lamest, most jelly-weak individual he knows―himself.

"In this affecting first novel about family, love, and sacrifice, 15-year-old Quinn discovers the lengths she will go to to save her sister, Riley...Stephens' poetic writing is beautiful...and deftly blends realism and fantasy."--Booklist Online"This novel is a heartrending story of the deep love of family and the hardships of terminal disease and loss. In his debut, Stephens has created a touching novel that is Jodi Picoult's My Sister's Keeper mixed with Michael Ende's The Neverending Story or Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. VERDICT A unique story for teens who enjoy fantasy and tragedy. Give this to fans of The Book Thief by Markus Zusak or If I Stay by Gayle Forman."--School Library Journal"Simultaneously odd and intriguing."--Kirkus ReviewsThe Kaleidoscope Sisters is a debut novel hinging on the indomitable spirit of young women. It centers on fifteen-year-old Quinn and her younger sister, Riley, who is dying from a degenerative heart defect. As the novel opens, Riley is weeks away from her seventh birthday, and her decline is obvious. Years in and out of hospitals have left the family with no support system, but Quinn is determined to save her younger sister. In her quest, Quinn discovers a portal to another realm peppered with characters based in history, all of whom disappeared mysteriously. Aiding Quinn throughout her journey in the Other Realm is Meelie. Quinn learns that a new heart for Riley can be harvested in the Other Realm, but not without sacrifice. While Meelie helps Quinn come to terms with an impossible decision, Quinn uncovers the truth about Meelie’s disappearance and why she never returned home. The book chronicles Quinn’s journey, focusing on the inevitability of loss and the realization that no matter what Quinn decides, her mother must lose one of her daughters.The Kaleidoscope Sisters is the second release in the Oddities Kaylie Jones Books series, an e-first line that focuses on unconventional, edgy, risk-taking novels that boldly defy the traditional forms and conventions of the literary novel, with a focus on YA, horror, and mystery.