The Hotel Next Door — Elizabeth Cooke

Compelling intrigue and characters join Elizabeth, a New York City widow in her 60s, in "There's a Small Hotel," and its sequel, "Secrets of a Small Hotel." She returns to the small Hotel Marcel, in this, the third of the series. A new, five-star hotel, The Majestic, has been built directly next to the two-star Hotel Marcel, and an intense rivalry between the two explodes.

A Qatari sheikh, member of the conglomerate that owns The Majestic, arrives with entourage, including his beautiful daughter who is determined to shed her burka. She does so, much to the outrage of her father, who blames the small hotel next door for harboring her. More drama occurs with new love in the life of the narrator; an extremely merry widow resident of apartment 1 across the avenue; Christmas and New Year's in Paris; and the continuing duel between Hotel Marcel and The Majestic.

A fourth book, A Tale of Two Hotels, is in progress, to be released in the spring of 2015.