Christmas Anthology Stories

Judging a chocolate-making competition for the women’s shelter’s annual fundraiser should be an easy, even pleasurable, assignment for Maise, new food critic for the Bloomingfield Daily Dispatch. Too bad just the smell of chocolate makes her stomach roil. By the time she reaches the last table, she hopes her face isn’t as green as her holiday sweater. But the tall, square-jawed man behind piles of fudge makes her want to linger, even savor the moment along with his chocolate-coffee-flavored confection.

Whether Christmas is a time of unbridled joy, a season of past reflections, or an ordeal to be endured until the return to normalcy after the New Year, its impact is pervasive in most of our lives. Everyone's feelings are super sensitized, every emotion is heightened. The happy become giddy, the sad become despondent, the lonely become lonelier – unless, yes unless – the magic of Christmas has its way. So it is for the characters in these stories.

A brand-new audiobook by the number one best-selling author Katie Fforde containing never before published Christmas short stories. Perfect for anyone who loves romance, humour and happy-ever-after endings.

In Aunt Cyrilla's Christmas Basket, Lucy Rose tries to talk her folksy Aunt Cyrilla out of bringing her big, bulgy, funny-looking basket to the city to deliver Christmas goodies to their relatives in the city. When their train is stranded during a snow storm, Aunt Cyrilla and her fellow passengers team up to provide a proper Christmas morning for the little ones in their care.

Seven contrasting short stories, all set at Christmastime: 'Mr. Huffam' by Hugh Walpole, 'A Strange Christmas Game' by J. H. Riddell, 'The Christmas Tree and the Wedding' by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, 'The Snow' by Hugh Walpole, 'The Gift of the Magi' by O. Henry, 'The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle' by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 'The Cop and the Anthem' by O. Henry.

Down at the Front, on a cold winter's night in 1914, amidst the worst war the world had ever seen, an inexplicable silence spread from man to man. Belief was in the air. Then the soldiers ceased fire and the magic of Christmas took hold....

In "A Country Christmas", Louisa May Alcott tells the story of Sophie, a debutante from the city who travels to rural Vermont to spend Christmas with her cousins Saul and Ruth. Though apprehensive at first, Sophie learns that the charms of celebrating Christmas in the country are many.

Charles Dickens created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime and, by the 20th century, critics and scholars had recognized him as a literary genius. After the success of A Christmas Carol in 1843 Dickens continued the series throughout the 1840s, maintaining what he called "the Carol philosophy" to "strike a sledgehammer blow" for the poor, uneducated, and repressed.

Christmas, the happiest time of year. Plum puddings, candy canes, carols by the fireside. But outside, the mist lies deep and still. Frost gnaws at your fingertips. Shadowy forms lurk in the evergreens. It’s the season for ghost stories.

Saundra Bailey's hopes for her first Christmas in Cadburn Township lose their shine, even as the town dresses up for the holidays. First, her aunt might not make it back from out of the country. Then, nasty relatives who made her childhood so miserable follow her to her new home. Kai, Eden and Troy want to trust Saundra, but her relatives pose a threat to their search for answers and identity. Can Kai move forward in pursuing her heart when she might be keeping secrets from them?

This Christmas, celebrate the joys of the season with a trio of exquisitely crafted, richly romantic tales by three of the brightest stars in contemporary fiction. Filled with passion, drama, and a touch of magic, this festive gathering of classic stories, available for the first time in 10 years, tells about the lives and loves of one unforgettable family and the enchanted heirloom that links one generation to the next.

With her husband, Ebenezer, now 'doornail dead', the coldest Christmas Eve on record finds Mrs Scrooge outside the supermarket, protesting against consumerism and waste. 'Spoilsport!' shout the passersby as they load up their shopping carts with Christmas goodies. Just as Ebenezer did, Mrs Scrooge keeps to her frugal ways...but with the current state of the world, perhaps Mrs Scrooge has the right idea.

Listeners are invited to sit back and enjoy this collection of classic Yuletide tales....

Decades after her divorce, a lady returns to the village of her tumultuous marriage. A railway carriage hosts a charged schoolboy encounter. A murder raises fears of blackmail. A woman waits anxiously in a café before eloping to Paris. Another steals a friend's kitchen knife. In these bittersweet tales, the author of Lolly Willowes reveals her mastery of the short story, celebrated by the New Yorker for decades. Sylvia Townsend Warner is a tragicomic chronicler of the heart's entanglements.

A collection of 29 of Enid Blyton's Christmas stories. Visit Santa's workshop, hang up your stocking and help two naughty goblins make a Christmas pudding in this magical collection from the classic children's author. Stories include 'Mr Icy-Cold', 'The Christmas Party' and 'Rescuing Santa Claus'. A wonderful selection to enjoy and share. Mystery and magic, laughter and mischief, the joy of shared times and plenty of delicious food....

Dancing With Bear Publishing is proud to announce their 2013 Christmas anthology! It is chock-full of stories that will bring a tear or two, either from laughing or crying, depending on the story! But no matter which one brings you to tears, you'll have a hard time choosing just one favorite!

In "A Christmas Dream, and How It Came True", 10-year-old Effie lives a comfortable life and experiences Christmases filled with delicious treats and wonderful toys. One night she has a dream that forever changes the meaning of Christmas for her. Encountering a group of underprivileged children, she is inspired to give them a Christmas they will never forget.

Maria has left everything she knows to travel to French Gulch, California, to find a husband, but none of the potential matches seem to work out. Adam is focused on his job and has no intentions of finding a wife among the women who traveled to French Gulch to find love. Together, they learn that the Christmas is full of surprises that can overcome personal intentions and rescue those in need.

A Cinnabar Moth Publishing anthology, A Cold Christmas and the Darkest of Winters is a collection of short stories with themes that range from sad to dark to horrifying. Each story is set during Christmas or in Winter. Many talented authors worked to create these short stories, and we are proud to present them to you in this anthology.

This is a Dickens Christmas story of remembrance, in the tradition of people remembering their past. In this case, the poor relation at a holiday feast given by a rich relation tells the story of his life, dominated by his being his own worst enemy through being soft and credulous as opposed to hard and sharp. The rich relation funds him in a meager amount and Michael, the poor relation, thinks he should not go first in anything, including telling stories around the Christmas fire, but is encouraged to do so.