Multiple Listings by Tracy McMillan

Nicki Daniels is a thirty-something woman with her life together. She is a single mom to son Cody, works full time as a real estate appraiser, has a beautiful home, and has a sweet boyfriend whom she's looking to buy a house and restaurant with. While it may appear that she has everything she wants, Nicki isn't content or happy, so imagine the shock when Nicki's former-inmate father, Ronnie that she hasn't seen in 17 years, suddenly shows up on her doorstep, wanting a place to stay while he's on parole. Battling the feelings of neglect she faced during her childhood, Nicki reluctantly agrees to let Ronnie move in. Fearing his typical selfish behavior, Nicki is reluctant to open up to her father and doesn't want her son Cody becoming attached to Ronnie. When Nicki's life is all but falling apart, it very well might be the catalyst that the father and daughter duo needs to reconnect.

Inspired by the author's life, Multiple Listings is a witty, charming, and funny story filled with entertaining characters that are relatable to any family. However by the end of the book, it is clear to see what really matters...family. In the process you realize that a house is not a home without a family to live in it.

One Plus One by Jojo Moyes

Jess Thomas is a single mom, raising not only her math whiz daughter Tanzie, but her makeup wearing, bullied stepson Nicky. Oh, not to mention there's also the family's beloved, slobbery, often lazy dog Norman that Jess has to worry about. Life hasn't been easy for Jess since her husband Marty left two years ago. Since then, she's been working like crazy cleaning houses and bartending just to make ends meet. With money being tight and Jess needing to find a way to get Tanzie to the math Olympiad in the hopes of getting her into a great school, Jess winds up doing something she never thought she'd see herself doing.

Ed Nicholls is the head of a software development firm. Money has never been scarce for Ed, so much so that he owns a beachfront home in England (where Jess just so happens to be his cleaner), a flat in London, and far too many cars to count. Things are going well for Ed until he's investigated for insider trading. With his family constantly on his case to visit his dying father, Ed can't begin to bare letting them down with the news of the insider trading scandal.

In One Plus One, as only Jojo Moyes can do, Jess and Ed's stories end up being wound together with wit, charm, and romance. After a strange occurrence on the side of the road, Jess, Ed, Tanzie, Nicky, and even, slobbering Norman wind up spending lots of time together in the car in an attempt to get Tanzie to the math Olympiad on time. Disagreeing on eating out, renting hotel rooms, and pretty much anything else money related, Jess and Ed realize that although they come from completely different worlds, there's a spark that just can't be quelled. When things go awry, will Jess and Ed's love last?