Most Popular Books by Jacquelyn Mitchard

Allie Kim suffers from Xeroderma Pigmentosum: a fatal allergy to sunlight that confines her and her two best friends, Rob and Juliet, to the night. When freewheeling Juliet takes up Parkour—the stunt-sport of scaling and leaping off tall buildings—Allie and Rob have no choice but to join her, if only to protect her. Though potentially deadly, Parkour after dark makes Allie feel truly alive, and for the first time equal to the “daytimers.”
 
On a random summer night, the trio catches a glimpse of what appears to be murder. Allie alone takes it upon herself to investigate, and the truth comes at an unthinkable price. Navigating the shadowy world of specialized XP care, extreme sports, and forbidden love, Allie ultimately uncovers a secret that upends everything she believes about the people she trusts the most.

New York Times bestselling author Jacquelyn Mitchard’s novels, with their riveting stories and unforgettable characters, have won the hearts of millions of readers. Now, from the author of The Deep End of the Ocean and No Time to Wave Goodbye, comes the fierce and moving tale of one woman’s fight for her identity and her life when fate holds out a second chance. Sicily Coyne was just thirteen when her father was killed in a school fire that left her face disfigured. Twelve years later, a young surgeon, Eliza Cappadora, offers hope in the form of a revolutionary new surgery that may give Sicily back the grace and function she lost. Raised by a dynamic, tenacious aunt who taught her to lead a normal life, and engaged to a wonderful man who knew her long before the accident, Sicily rejects the offer: She knows who she is, and so do the people who love her. But when a secret surfaces that shatters Sicily’s carefully constructed world, she calls off the wedding and agrees to the radical procedure in order to begin a new life. Her beauty restored virtually overnight, Sicily rushes toward life with open arms, seeking new experiences, adventures, and, most of all, love. But she soon discovers that her new face carries with it risks that no one could have imagined. Confronting a moral and medical crisis that quickly becomes a matter of life and death, Sicily is surrounded by experts and loving family, but the choice that will transform her future, for better or worse, is one she must make alone. An intense and moving story of courage, consequence, and possibility, Second Nature showcases the acclaimed storyteller at her very best.

A terrible accident has left little Keefer orphaned but not unwanted. Devastated by his beloved sister''s tragic death, twenty-four-year-old bachelor Gordon McKenna assumes that he will be entrusted with raising his niece, whom he has grown extremely close to over the few precious months of Keefer''s life. But the child''s paternal grandparents have different ideas—and a fierce legal battle ensues that will test the capacity and limitations of family love again and again . . . and no one will emerge from it unscathed or unchanged. Jacquelyn Mitchard, whose powerful, emotionally rich novels have won resounding critical acclaim and a wide, enthusiastic audience worldwide, brings us a soaring, heartbreaking, and unforgettable tale of love and the bonds that unite us all.

"Masterful...A big story about human connection and emotional survival" - Los Angeles Times The first book ever chosen by Oprah''s Book Club Few first novels receive the kind of attention and acclaim showered on this powerful story—a nationwide bestseller, a critical success, and the first title chosen for Oprah''s Book Club. Both highly suspenseful and deeply moving, The Deep End of the Ocean imagines every mother''s worst nightmare—the disappearance of a child—as it explores a family''s struggle to endure, even against extraordinary odds. Filled with compassion, humor, and brilliant observations about the texture of real life, here is a story of rare power, one that will touch readers'' hearts and make them celebrate the emotions that make us all one.

An advice columnist and mother searches for vanished husband in this dramatic novel by the New York Times–bestselling author of The Deep End of the Ocean. An advice columnist for a Wisconsin newspaper, Julieanne Gillis dispenses wisdom to her readers, but somehow missed the signs that something was amiss in her own home. Devoted to being a good mother and keeping her twenty-year marriage fresh and exciting, she is shocked by her husband''s surprise announcement that he needs a "sabbatical" from their life together—and devastated when he disappears, leaving Julie with no funds to raise two teenagers and a small daughter alone. But it is the discovery Julieanne suffers from a serious illness that truly crumbles her family''s foundation—setting her children on a dangerous, quixotic journey to locate their missing father before it''s too late. Praise for The Breakdown Lane "Rousing melodrama; fluid, often funny, dialogue; and the convincing portrayal of children involved in the collapse of a marriage add up to another page-turner from Mitchard." — Publishers Weekly "An astute observer of family dynamics, Mitchard renders her characters flawlessly, endowing them with a humanity that is both accessibly grounded and astonishingly deep." — Booklist "A compelling mix of suspense, humor, and abiding humanity." — Boston Globe "A novel you will read once, then again and again." — Tulsa World

A widowed mom takes a second chance on love with a sexy chef 10 years her junior in this novel of relationships by a New York Times–bestselling author. It is True Dickinson''s birthday and her best friends have gathered on this snowy night to celebrate—yet True has never felt more alone. Though her small business is thriving and her young son is happy, the death of her husband eight years ago has left an empty space in her life that friends and family cannot fill. Suddenly it seems that youth and beauty are slipping away while True is busily taking care of everyone else. But on this night, an accident on an icy road will offer True the golden opportunity to let love back into her life—if she can somehow conquer her fears. Twelve Times Blessed is a powerfully moving novel of the heart from one of our best-loved storytellers.

From Jacquelyn Mitchard, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Deep End of the Ocean, the “suspenseful, otherwordly, and nearly impossible to put down” (People) story about an unlikely hero whose life is transformed when he rescues a boy with an extraordinary gift. Just hours after his wife and her entire family perish in the Christmas Eve tsunami, former police officer Frank Mercy pulls a little boy from a submerged car. Not quite knowing why, Frank doesn’t turn Ian over to the Red Cross. Instead he makes up a story about where the boy came from and takes him home, where Frank realizes that Ian has an otherworldly gift—an extraordinary ability to transform lives beyond anything he’d ever imagined. Awed and confused, Frank confesses Ian’s secret to Claudia, a beautiful champion rider who is training for the Olympics. They join together to fight the sinister forces gathering to take Ian back. In a final confrontation, Frank and Claudia will risk everything—their love, their family, their very lives—to save this boy they now love as their own son.

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Jacquelyn Mitchard comes a page-turning family drama that explores the emotional consequences of loyalty, deception and jealousy. Stunned by her recently widowed father’s reckless behavior, a young woman must learn to navigate a new world—where the people she should trust the most have become strangers she cannot trust at all. Frankie Attleboro returns home to Cape Cod with thrilling news. She’s met the love of her life, and they’re getting married with a baby on the way. That’s the moment her father makes his own jaw-dropping announcement: at sixty, he’s getting married as well, to Frankie’s best friend, Ariel, who is also pregnant, and due soon. As Frankie and Ariel struggle to adjust to their new relationship, Ariel’s estranged mother, Carlotta, returns after a decade-long absence. She claims to be a changed woman—but is she really? And where has she been all these years? Frankie is suspicious, and as Carlotta’s unpredictable behavior intensifies, Frankie must untangle the threads of the past to protect Ariel’s future—and her own. "The characters and relationships are all smartly drawn, and the narrative is shot through with plenty of humor and scandal. Mitchard fans will lap this up."—Publishers Weekly

Arley Mowbray is young, smart, and lonely. Very lonely. And then she strikes up a correspondence with a prison inmate—and, under the spell of his poetic, seductive letters, falls helplessly, stubbornly in love. Annie Singer is a tough, dedicated Texas lawyer hired to help Arley unite with her beloved. She does so, but against her own better judgment—and soon she’s caught up in this disturbing and dangerous romance, and in her feelings for Arley, who’s become the daughter she never had. When Dillon LeGrande comes after the girl he loves, Arley finds herself both aching for his touch and fearing for her life. And Annie begins to question her own choices—and to wonder what price she would pay for passion.

"Rich and complex, The Good Son is a compelling novel about the aftermath of a crime in a small, close-knit community."--Kristin Hannah, New York Times bestselling author From #1 New York Times bestselling author Jacquelyn Mitchard comes the gripping, emotionally charged novel of a mother who must help her son after he is convicted of a devastating crime. What do you do when the person you love best becomes unrecognizable to you? For Thea Demetriou, the answer is both simple and agonizing: you keep loving him somehow. Stefan was just seventeen when he went to prison for the drug-fueled murder of his girlfriend, Belinda. Three years later, he''s released to a world that refuses to let him move on. Belinda''s mother, once Thea''s good friend, galvanizes the community to rally against him to protest in her daughter''s memory. The media paints Stefan as a symbol of white privilege and indifferent justice. Neighbors, employers, even some members of Thea''s own family turn away. Meanwhile Thea struggles to understand her son. At times, he is still the sweet boy he has always been; at others, he is a young man tormented by guilt and almost broken by his time in prison. But as his efforts to make amends meet escalating resistance and threats, Thea suspects more forces are at play than just community outrage. And if there is so much she never knew about her own son, what other secrets has she yet to uncover--especially about the night Belinda died?

The author of The Deep End of the Ocean delivers a compelling, emotionally charged tale of tragedy, revenge, and redemption. Twelve-year-old Veronica Swan''s idyllic life in a close-knit Mormon community is shattered when her two younger sisters are brutally murdered. Although her parents find the strength to forgive the deranged killer, Scott Early, Veronica cannot do the same. Years later, she sets out alone to avenge her sisters'' deaths, dropping her identity and severing ties in the process. As she closes in on Early, Veronica will discover the true meaning of sin and compassion, before she makes a decision that will change her and her family''s lives forever.

A Zibby''s Most Anticipated Book of Fall 2025! From New York Times bestselling author Jacquelyn Mitchard comes a page-turning drama that explores the beauty of female friendship; the relationship between money, power, and sex; and the very human desire to protect the ones we love most. When she is convicted of a double murder, Felicity Wild, a brilliant grad student turned high-priced escort, declares, “I may not be innocent, but I’m innocent of this.” Reenie Bigelow never doubted it. A jury may have given Felicity a life sentence, but Reenie knows that her childhood best friend is not capable of murder. And so Reenie, a journalist, decides to use her deep connections to Felicity’s past to unravel the truth. The more she uncovers, the more Reenie is convinced that the story the prosecution told is wrong, despite the puzzling fact that Felicity said not one single word in her own defense. But there''s one thing Reenie knows for certain: Felicity would never lie.

After Rory the raccoon conquers his fear of spending an entire night away from home, he is prepared to tackle the challenge of starting school just one week later, whether his parents are ready or not.

Twenty years ago they were high school royalty, the girls everyone envied. But life for Tracy and Holly has subsided into suburban contentment, husbands, homes and families. So when Olivia, the group''s glamorous leader, returns to America as a rich widow, they decide to celebrate their reunion onboard a luxurious sailing boat in the Caribbean. Accompanied by Tracy''s unruly teenage daughter and an attentive and experienced crew, the three friends set sail for the holiday of a lifetime. But what really awaits them in the sun-drenched Caribbean is more mysterious and terrifying than anything they could have imagine. As their dream trip turns into a desperate fight for survival, the women soon find themselves faced with dwindling supplies, modern-day piracy and, above all, the deep, lonely ocean. To survive, they must rely on the bonds that have held them close all these years, friend to friend, mother to daughter - even as old secrets, old alliances and new treacheries push them beyond endurance... In her breathtaking new novel of suspense, Jacquelyn Mitchard explores the limits of friendship and the truths that bind us to each other forever.

For Hope Shay the entire world is a stage. Really. Acting has been her dream for as long as she can remember. She will do anything, anything, to get a leading role. Okay, maybe faking her own abduction was extreme. But a true actress suffers for her art. And Hope is a born actress if ever there was one.

For ten years of Sunday mornings, readers of Jacquelyn Mitchard’s newspaper column, “The Rest of Us,” have been calling their mothers, boyfriends and sisters to say, “See? That’s exactly what I meant!” Mitchard’s clear-eyed takes on everyday life in process are described over and over as “a letter from home,” as “the best friend I can really count on,” and as “the kind of story you tell at the coffee machine—and keep under your pillow.” Jacquelyn Mitchard reaches for heart and mind simultaneously, with both wit and nostalgia but never with sentimentality. Whether writing of gun laws and garage sales, the loneliness of the long-haul single mother, fear of gardening, or the late great American game of baseball, Mitchard stresses the personal stake each of us has in the stand-up drama of daily life. The single mother of five children, she shares her own family’s dramas and epiphanies—her own mother’s tradition of optimism based on nothing, the early death of her husband, the adoption of her baby daughter, as well as the great wheeling issues that confound Americans every day.

Twenty-two years have passed since Beth Cappadora’s three-year-old son, Ben, was abducted. By some miracle he returned nine years later, and the family began to pick up the pieces of their lives. Now, in this sequel to Mitchard’s beloved bestseller The Deep End of the Ocean, the Cappadora children are grown: Ben is married and has a baby girl, Kerry is studying to be an opera singer, and ne’er-do-well older son Vincent is a fledgling filmmaker. His new documentary—focusing on five families caught in the torturous web of never knowing the fate of their abducted children—shakes his parents to the core. As Vincent’s film earns greater and greater acclaim and Beth tries to stave off a torrent of long-submerged emotions, the Cappadoras’ world is rocked as Beth’s greatest fear becomes reality. The family is soon drawn precipitously into the past, revisiting the worst moment of their lives—this time with only hours to find the truth that can save a life. A spellbinding novel about family loyalty and love pushed to the limits of endurance, No Time to Wave Goodbye is Jacquelyn Mitchard at her best.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Deep End of the Ocean comes this heartwarming Christmas story of a family who comes together during the holiday season as they learn a powerful lesson about love and to live each year of their lives as if it were their last. A fourteenth wedding anniversary is nothing to sneeze at, Elliott Banner knows, but it''s not exactly a landmark year—like fifteen, or twenty, when he plans to take his wife, Laura, to Paris. But when a headache on the drive home from their anniversary date—two days before Christmas—turns out to be more than a migraine, he wishes he had celebrated every year as though it were their last. In this poignant, touching, uplifting story, a woman calmly gathers her family around her during the Christmas holiday to celebrate their lives together—both past and future—and to truly count their blessings. A family history unfolds in a single night in this deeply affecting story that speaks volumes about love, trust, and letting go—a perfect holiday read that underscores the true meaning of the season. “Mitchard’s gift is her ability to present her characters in a compassionate light, even when revealing them at their weakest moments.”—Us Weekly

Psychic twins Mallory and Meredith try to figure out why their baby brother, who is being cared for by a number of babysitters while their mother attends medical school and works, keeps getting sick, while Meredith endures the pain and heartbreak of falling in love with a ghost who died in the Vietnam War.

In the second book of the Midnight Twins trilogy, Meredith and Mallory Brynn are finally coming to terms with their special gifts: Meredith to see into the past, Mallory to see into the future. But they never expect that their powers will reveal danger so close to home.Mallory must help her best friend, Eden, find the strength to defy her destiny as a shape-shifter, before Eden gets hurt—or hurts somebody else. And Merry has her own friends to worry about when her visions reveal trouble brewing on the cheerleading squad in the form of Kim Jellico.Both Mallory and Meredith must join together to rescue their friends before it's too late.