Sarah Strohmeyer

1. “Sometimes if you wait too long, it’s too late.”

2. “The power of women united, I am again reminded, is an invincible thing.”

3. “Life is a lease and God is the landlord.”

4. “Coeur qui soupire n’a pas ce qu’il desire. The heart that sighs does not have what it desires.”

5. “I think the only answer is to live life to the fullest while you can and collect memories like fools collect money. Because in the end, that’s all you have – happy memories.”

6. “If it’s true love, then it will abide. If it was a fleeting crush, then it will turn to dust. Either way, the truth will out.”

7. “A mother is a mother from the moment her baby is first placed in her arms until eternity. It didn’t matter if her child were three, thirteen, or thirty.”

8. “This is probably the advantage of being stupid. Stupid people just do. We tend to overthink. If we could eliminate the “over” and just think, then we could do, too. Only we’d be smarter doers because we’d be thinkers.”

9. “The imagination is a wonderful thing; it allows for all manner of undiscoverable sins.”

10. “That’s what dessert means to me: a dollop of sweet love in an otherwise cold world.”

11. “Without risk, we are automatons going through our days with no purpose or meaning. We are safer, perhaps, but we are also, ironically, closer to death.”

12. “Love doesn’t go anywhere when you die, you know. The person passes on, the body withers, but love, it survives.”

13. “It’s the closest I’ve come to touching immortality, by reading the words of dead people.”

14. “As my mother says, your forties are when you finally pay for your past mistakes, the cigarettes and sunburns, the Big Macs and smooth-talking men. She may be right.”

15. “See that’s what people don’t get about food. It’s never the food, it’s the love that goes into making it. That’s what’s important.”

16. “Because high school only comes around once, and I would hate to look back and think I didn’t make the most of every moment because I was scared of what other people thought. Other people never think that much about you anyway. Eleanor Roosevelt said that.”

17. “Risk is the universe’s way of pushing us to become more than what we are. Risk is faith at the edge. Risk is the pulsating nature of life.”

18. “If I can’t read, if I can’t make a simple Indian pudding, then I don’t see the point in living much more, really. Because aside from a good book, and perhaps, a fresh morning in a dew-covered garden, few things in life give me as much pleasure as magic of making a truly spectacular dessert.”

19. “It’s always so cool to think you are looking at today is something other people have been looking at for centuries. It’s the closest I’ve come to touching immortality, by reading the words of dead people.”

20. “He’s definitely one of those men you love before you get to know.”

21. “We may not get what we want, when we want. But with a bit of perseverance and a lot of patience, we can get what we need.”

22. “In fact, a case could be made that worrying about a problem actually prevents you from resolving it, because it deceives your mind into thinking that you’re doing something when really you’re not.”

23. “So all you can do is be your own beautiful self and let love win.”

24. “In Aunt Boo’s opinion, it was better to know how to avoid danger than to avoid dangerous places.”

25. “I believe that within every one of us is a woman of undiscovered beauty, a woman who is charming and talented and light of heart.”

Publication Order of Bubbles Yablonsky Books

1.Bubbles Unbound (1 March, 2001) : Against all odds, Bubbles Yablonsky has returned to school, but while on her way to journalism school, she happens upon a crime scene and finds herself drawn into a murder investigation. 

2.Bubbles In Trouble (1 July, 2002):  When her friend fails to show up for her own wedding just before her uncle turns up dead, the spandex-wearing Bubbles Yablonsky goes undercover in Whoopee, Pennsylvania, where she boards with a local Amish family, in a mystery complemented by Dutch country beauty recipes. 

3.Bubbles Ablaze (1 May, 2004):  Racing to an abandoned coal mine where she has been told she will find a big news story, Ms. Bubbles Yablonsky instead finds her boyfriend out cold and the body of a murdered man nearby, a situation that is further complicated by an explosion that traps her in the mine.

4.Bubbles A Broad (1 March, 2004): Armed with newly polished nails, spandex, and big hair, reporter and sleuth extraordinaire Bubbles Yablonsky investigates the murder of a local steel executive while dealing with her mother's crazy antics and a drop dead gorgeous photographer. 

5.Bubbles Betrothed (1 March, 2005): Inadvertently landing in jail on her first day as a full-time reporter, Bubbles is granted an exclusive interview with a fellow inmate who has been charged with murder, a situation that draws the attention of an obsessed police detective and a dentist foot fetishist.

6.Bubbles All The Way (7 November,   2006): Wise-cracking, big-haired reporter Bubbles Yablonsky, while dealing with her boyfriend, her persistent ex-husband, and a mysterious Santa Claus, must prove that Sandy, the owner of the House of Beauty, did not kill Debbie Shatsky, who met her demise at the hands of hair glue.

7.Bubbles Reboots (2018): BUBBLES IS BACK! And so is trouble in an all-new adventure featuring Lehigh, Pennsylvania's hairdresser/newspaper reporter Bubbles Yablonsky. Having survived a slip-and-fall on Payless heels, Bubbles catapults off a Caddy in the PolkaFest parade and into the arms of danger as she tracks down the whereabouts of two missing beauty queens while also keeping a mascaraed eye out for her hunka hunka burning love, Stiletto. On hand to help - or maybe hinder - are a couple of septuagenarian survivalists shilling their Die-O-Ramas, an office assistant obsessed with UPS drivers, a dude named Stinky and Josh Simon the billionaire casino owner who just might be the knight in shining armor to rescue Bubbles from an aluminum-sided world. Or maybe not. Homemade beauty treatments and recipes featuring authentic Pennsylvania cuisine complement the writing. (It sucks and there's not nearly enough!) The 7th installment in this award-winning (Agatha, Romantic Times) and bestselling series published in seven language will have you smiling with relief that you didn't pay more.

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

1.The Secret Lives of Fortunate Wives (6 June, 2005) : After a whirlwind overseas romance, down-home girl Claire Stark has moved to her new husband’s hometown, Hunting Hills, Ohio, where the men earn seven figures, the women wear size two, and if everything isn’t absolutely perfect, you’re expected to pretend it is.…

But Claire’s having trouble pretending. For one thing, John’s previous girlfriend still lives here—and with all the bed-hopping in Hunting Hills, she may not be Claire’s only potential rival. For another, Claire’s constantly hearing vicious gossip—including rumors about herself. And though she also misses her reporting career, John isn’t thrilled with the idea of her working at the local paper. She might just have to be satisfied mingling with the Hunting Hills moms, who like to borrow their daughters’ Seven jeans and their sons’ Ritalin.

That is, until scandal threatens to shatter the stylish facade of this exclusive gated community—and behind the salon highlights and sunlamp tans, true color, start shining through.…

2.The Cinderella Pact (5 June, 2006):  Soon to be a Lifetime movie called "Lying to be Perfect"

When Nola Devlin is turned down for her dream job because she's overweight, she decides to become thin-or, at least, pretend to be. The alter ego she creates-the thin, British, hip, and did we mention thin Belinda Apple-is a smashing success who is offered movie proposals, national television appearances and even dates...though no one's met her in person, of course.

Then Nola takes Belinda a bit too far, and is forced to join "The Cinderella Pact" and drop the pounds. As the weight comes off, however, Nola's problems begin to mount.

3.The Sleeping Beauty Proposal (3 June, 2007) : A wickedly funny fairytale for modern women from the 'laugh-out-loud funny' (Washington Post Book World) author of The Cinderella Pact.

Genie's commitment-phobic boyfriend is finally proposing-on national television. To the woman he's been seeing on the side. It's a major wake-up call for a girl who's hit the snooze button on her life a few too many times.

With no names mentioned on the broadcast, Genie finds herself flooded with presents and congratulations. It's up to her to explain the mistake, but sometimes waking up is hard to do.

When her parents start planning the reception, she can't help enjoying herself. Why call off the so-called engagement just yet? It's fun to play princess. But unless a prince shows up-and soon-this dream could start getting weird.

4.Sweet Love (2 June, 2008) : A delicious novel about the power of love-and dessert-by the national bestselling author.

Betty Mueller believed she did right by secretly ending her daughter Julie's relationship with Michael Slayton, a wild, older neighborhood heartthrob. Twenty years later, Betty has come to realize her mistake. Workaholic Julie is now the single mom of a teenager-and Michael, the one man who could make her happy, has been out of her life for the past two decades.

Determined to make amends, Betty schemes to reunite the couple in a dessert class. And with the love of her mother and daughter, her own determination, and lots of chocolate, Julie's chance for romance is all the higher...

5.The Penny Pinchers Club (6 July, 2009):  Living in suburban New Jersey, Kat has a pretty serious retail habit. Now it looks like her husband Griff is having an affair...and setting up a secret bank account in preparation for a divorce. Suspecting her spending habits may be driving him away, Kat's determined to save her marriage by saving some money. But when her rich ex-fiancé turns up with a tempting bargain, she'll have to decide whether love conquers mall...

6.Kindred Spirits (2011) 

7.Smart Girls Get What They Want (26 March, 2012):  Gigi, Bea, and Neerja are best friends and total overachievers. Even if they aren't the most popular girls in school, they aren't too worried. After all, real life will begin once they get to their Ivy League colleges. But when an unexpected event proves they're missing out on the full high-school experience, it's time to come out of the honors lounge and into the spotlight. The trio makes a pact: They will each take on their greatest challenge and totally rock it.

Gigi decides to run for student rep, but she'll have to get over her fear of public speaking—and go head-to-head with gorgeous California Will. Bea used to be one of the best skiers around, until she was derailed; it could be time for her to take the plunge again. And Neerja loves the drama club but has always stayed behind the scenes—until now.

These friends are determined to show the world that smart girls really can get what they want—but that might mean getting way more attention than they ever bargained for. . . .

8.How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True (23 April, 2013) : Like Meg Cabot, Sarah Strohmeyer has a gift for creating smart, funny girls teen readers love. She’s done it again with Zoe, heroine of her latest romcom.

 

In YA novel How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True, Zoe learns there is a dark core under the glittering façade of the fairy-tale themed amusement park (cough, Disneyland, cough) where she’s a summer intern. For starters, her boss has a blacker heart than Snow White’s stepmother, and the other interns are worse backstabbers than Cinderella’s step-sisters.

 

On the upside, she has the chance of romance with a real-life Prince Charming, and a shot at winning a big heap of cash. If she can just live through a summer in the Fairyland Kingdom.

9.The Secrets of Lily Graves (13 May, 2014) : Gone Girl meets Six Feet Under in bestselling author Sarah Strohmeyer's romantic YA mystery about a girl who must unravel a web of lies in her small town before it's too late.

Descended from a long line of female morticians, Lily Graves knows all about buried secrets. So after senior-class president Erin Donohue—perfect saint to the community—turns up dead, Lily believes it's her job to find the culprit. But Lily has feelings for Erin's ex-boyfriend, Matt, which makes both of them suspects and makes Lily's investigation . . . complicated. As her world crumbles around her, Lily must figure out the difference between truth and deception, between genuine love and a web of lies. And she must do it quickly, before the killer claims another victim.

Fans of Sara Shepard who enjoy realistic contemporary fiction with a dash of mystery will love the secrets, lies, and romance swirling in this sexy, intriguing novel.

10.This Is My Brain on Boys (10 May, 2016) : Jane Austen’s Emma meets The Rosie Project in this quirky, irresistible, romantic comedy from Sarah Strohmeyer, the author of Smart Girls Get What They Want.

Addie Emerson doesn’t believe in love. Not for herself anyway. With one year left of high school, she’s more interested in snagging a full scholarship to Harvard than a full-time boyfriend.

That doesn’t mean she’s oblivious to the ways of the heart. Or, rather, the head. Because after months of research, Addie has discovered how to make anyone fall in love. All you need is the secret formula.

But will her discovery be enough to win the coveted Athenian Award and all its perks? (See above, full scholarship to Harvard.) Or will she be undone by Dexter, her backstabbing lab partner, who is determined to deep-six her experiments at their exclusive private school?

Those are the least of her problems now that she’s survived a death-defying flight with a mysterious, dark-haired boy, who has delicious chocolate-brown eyes and a few secrets of his own.

With an experiment to mastermind, an infatuated exchange student on her hands, and at least one great white shark (more on that later), can Addie’s prefrontal cortex outwit her heart? Or will she have to give in to her amygdala and find out, once and for all, if this thing called love is more than just her brain on drugs?

11.Do I Know You? (30 November, 2021):   “A fabulous read packed with suspense, unexpected twists, glamour and humor. Prepare to be gripped from the first to the last page!” —Liane Moriarty 

For readers of Lisa Jewell, Liv Constantine, and Megan Miranda, a lightning-paced psychological thriller that the New York Times Book Review says "kept me reading, near breathless, until all assumptions were gloriously upended" about two women, a tragedy that connects them as teenagers, and the terrible reckoning that will decide their fates a decade later.

Jane Ellison is a “super recognizer” able to identify strangers by the slightest facial details—the curve of a head, the arch of an eyebrow. When she spies human rights activist and heiress Bella Valencia in a crowded Boston airport, Jane’s convinced she’s found the person responsible for her sister Kit’s disappearance and presumed death eleven years earlier. But her attempt to detain the suspect ends with Jane herself fired and humiliated. 

As Bella prepares to marry Will Pease, scion of the uber-wealthy, influential, and ruthless Pease family, famous for their wholesome wellness and lifestyle brand, on their private Cape Cod island, she grows increasingly anxious that her dire secret will be revealed and used against her by—of all people—the man she loves.

She has reason to fear: Jane is ready to risk everything for the chance to publicly expose Bella’s crimes at her upcoming celebrity wedding. But the more she digs into what happened that night, the more she questions her own assumptions. 

Combining magnetic, wise-cracking narration and a skillfully layered plot, Do I Know You? is a gripping psychological thriller and tale of redemption that reveals the power of a sister's love.

12.We Love to Entertain (25 April, 2023): “A diabolical and deliciously twisty romp through reality TV home renovations infused with humor and warmth. Sarah Strohmeyer does murder and suspense in all the best possible ways!” —Wanda M. Morris, award-winning author of All Her Little Secrets and Anywhere You Run

From the bestselling author of Do I Know You? comesa fast-paced, riveting psychological thriller that skewers our modern obsession with home renovation and fixer-uppers.

Holly and Robert Barron are attractive young real-estate investors and contestants in a competition run by To the Manor Build, the nation’s most popular home renovation app. With millions in product endorsements and online followers at stake, they’re rehabbing a Vermont home they scored at a bargain price into a chic hilltop estate ideal for entertaining.

It’s all camera-ready laughs and debates over herringbone tile until Holly and Robert go missing hours after their picture-perfect wedding—leaving behind a bloody trail.

Suspicion falls quickly on Erika Turnbull, the Barrons’ twenty-something assistant—eager, efficient, and secretly in love with Robert. Did Erika let her misguided passion turn her into a murderer? So claim the townsfolk of Snowden, Vermont, who still haven’t forgiven her for a tragic accident back in high school.

But Erika’s mother, Kim, is not about to let small-town gossip and a cop with an axe to grind destroy her daughter—again. With time running out and their own lives at risk, the mother-daughter duo set out to find what really happened to the Barrons. First, though, they’ll have to confront the vengeful former owner of Holly and Robert’s estate, ruthless reality-show producers, and a secret that might bring their own house down.

Fast-paced, full of humor, and undeniably twisty, We Love to Entertain is another winner from Sarah Strohmeyer.

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Barbie Unbound: A Parody of the Barbie Obsession (1st October, 1997): Satirically explores Barbie dolls in different guises and professions, including Grunge Barbie, PMS Barbie, Virginia Slims Barbie, Barbie

In this play guide spoof, Barbie is liberated from her pink plastic world of fashion modeling and Corvette driving to assume roles that real women have endured for years. Here readers will find Safe-Sex Barbie, Barbie Antoinette, Anita Hill Barbie, Marie Curie Barbie, and, in honor of her 40th anniversary, Hot Flash Barbie who comes complete with tiny estrogen supplements.

Who is Sarah Strohmeyer:

Sarah Strohmeyer is an American author. She is known for writing fiction novels in the chick lit and mystery genre as well as crime and nonfiction and books about men and women and human relations. She was born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, which is where she grew up. Strohmeyer got her degree from Tufts University in the field of International Relations in Boston, Massachusetts.

Once she graduated from Tufts, she found work in her chosen field as a journalist. She even transitioned at some point to writing novels. At the moment she resides in the quiet town of Middlesex, Vermont. Sarah Strohmeyer even works as the town clerk there and has plenty of time for writing when she isn’t getting ready for work and doing her job.

Strohmeyer is the author of the Bubbles Yablonsky series. She first became a published writer in the year 1997 with the release of her novel Barbie Unbound, a nonfiction novel. The Bubbles series would go on to have several more books, with the sixth being Bubbles All the Way and is followed by , the seventh book in the series.

She also became a published author in the fiction genre four years later in 2001 with the publication of Bubbles Unbound from her Bubbles Yablonsky series. This book actually won the Best First Novel Agatha Award. She is also the author of her 2005 novel The Secret Lives of Fortunate Wives. She followed that up with The Cinderella Pact, the similarly Disney princess-themed The Sleeping Beauty Proposal, Sweet Love in 2008, The Penny Pinchers Club, and several other novels, most recently with 2016’s This Is My Brain On Boys.

Bubbles Unbound is the first book in the Bubbles Yablonsky series. Bubbles is a bubbly hairdresser that is totally mistaken for someone else, like a dumb blonde or something. Sure, she has the body to go with that Barbie doll look and she really loves shopping and wearing hot pants, but she’s not dumb like a doll. Bubbles wants to turn her thirst for gossip and chit chat and propel it into journalism.

This may seem unlikely for a hairdresser, but Bubbles knows a secret that could just be her big break. She has managed to find out about some juicy and dark stuff, and this blonde wants to use that to propel herself into a different line of work. Bubbles really thinks that her penchant for gossip could help her in the journalism world– why not?

Bubbles has a big scoop on the death of Laura Buchman. No one else has this dirt and if she plays her cards right she just might use this to skyrocket herself into a career. She also isn’t minding getting the chance to work with Steve Stiletto, a photographer that is handsome and rugged. He’s a mysterious guy that really is just the type that her mother always said was the bad boy she should stay away from. But while she’s trying to turn a messed up secret into something that could work for her, her brazen actions could be exactly the type of thing that people take action on to keep quiet. Especially when they’re involved.

Check out the book that sparked more than one novel to follow it up in this funny series! This debut novel will have you laughing and turning the page to find out what happens next. Sparkle Hayter called this mystery ‘breezy and funny’ with a heroine that dresses up like a Barbie but kicks butt just like a Marine. Fay Weldon called this book ‘wonderfully energizing and skillful’ as well as labeling it a page-turner. Pick up Bubbles Unbound and see whether Bubbles can really break into the journalistic world, or is better off figuring out how she can get the best highlights possible.

Bubbles in Trouble is the second book in the series. This hilarious sequel to Bubbles Unbound is engaging right from the start. Fans of the first novel will be excited to see Bubbles the blonde hairdresser return in this funny follow-up. Bubbles Yablonsky has fallen hard for the gorgeous photographer Steve Stiletto, a rugged hunk who goes all over the world to shoot models, actors, and more. He’s finally gotten the newspaper reporter and the hairstylist from Pennsylvania to go back on her chastity vow and be open to love once more.

Things are back in full force again for Bubbles, the hairdresser that looks just like Barbie. Her adventure is back on when she shows up at her friend’s wedding. The Wonderbra reporter usually dons a red bra in the valentine shade and loves to wear leopard print as well as stilettos and hot pants whenever she can. She’s trying to make her friend Janice’s wedding, but once she gets there Bubbles is shocked to find out that even the bride has not yet shown up.

Bubbles is scared that it’s her fault so she does what she can to try and track down Janice and get her to the church. The bachelorette party had gotten a bit wild but did she really cause the bride to get that hungover that she really is not going to make it to her wedding? Janice has totally disappeared for good though, and Bubbles can’t find her. Even worse, it’s the day that she’s supposed to get married, and her uncle has found murdered.

Uncle Elwood lived in her home and he definitely isn’t going to be able to give up the answers when it comes to what happened to the missing bride. Who murdered him in the first place is also a question that Bubbles is asking herself. Now it’s up to this amateur journalist to find out what happened to the bride who has gone totally missing and also what’s gone on with the uncle– and could the two be related?

It’s up to Bubbles to go undercover and discover the truth. She naturally disguises herself as an Amish woman, and antics arise. Bubbles may not be the smartest girl on the block, but she’s got enough craftiness to get the job accomplished. If you love murder mysteries mixed in with a bit of comedy and romance thrown in, you’ll love this exciting sequel novel from Sarah Strohmeyer.