Holiday World

Jack and Maggie Harris are adrift on ravaged streets during the London Blitz. Their home is gone. They have nowhere to go and nothing left to lose. With only the memories of their greatest loss - the death of their child during a Christmas years before - Jack and Maggie settle in a seemingly deserted mansion for the night.

Giovanni and Beatrice left vampire conspiracies and supernatural adventures for a peaceful family life. But peace only lasts so long for a vampire assassin and an undying scribe. The death of an old friend leaves Giovanni with a rare opportunity. He knows that Lady Penelope's library hides more than one rare book, but can he break into her family's ancestral home without raising alarms?

Christmas Past: The Fascinating Stories Behind Our Favorite Holiday’s Traditions reveals the surprising, quirky, mysterious, and sometimes horrifying stories behind the most wonderful time of the year.

After visiting Boston, Judy Moody's in the mood for liberty and freedom - freedom from her parents' rules and her pesky little brother, that is. But Judy's plans to declare independence, just like the Patriots did in 1776, wind up getting her into hot water. For sure and absolute positive, the founding fathers never had problems like hers! Will Judy be able to prove, once and for all, that she's ready for a bit more independence?

It’s the winter season of 1746, and the Highlands are snowy. In the village of Calvine, north of Tay Forest along a road that leads straight into Inverness, the only tavern in town is packed to the rafters with travelers. Eight months after the disastrous defeat at Culloden, the people haven’t recovered, nor has the land, and it’s a bad winter. When James de Lohr, Earl of Worcester, shows up looking for clues to his brother’s fate on the Culloden Moor, he gets more than he bargained for.

Toby’s journey into adulthood is loaded with risk, reward, and resilience. Book 5 in the hugely popular series on the thalidomide scandal. 100,000 copies sold! As the children affected by the drug thalidomide move into adulthood, 'Fear to Fearless' explores the impact on families and the unique challenges they faced. In the summer of 1977, Toby, now a 6th form student is on holiday in Jersey with his thalidomide friends when he finds himself thrust into the limelight during the nation’s celebration of the Queen’s Silver Jubilee. Amidst the fun and entertainment and stunning coastal ...

At thirty-three, nurse Heather is desperately waiting for her romantic life to begin. Then she meets handsome, strong Anthony and is sure she’s found the one. Brushing any doubts aside, she projects all her hopes for true love onto him. Meanwhile, at a yoga retreat in Spain, happy-go-lucky Joe can’t believe his luck when he meets vivacious, witty Amy. She’s the sharpest, most beautiful woman he has ever dated, and the fact that she’s interested in him feels like a dream come true.

Fantasy, mystery, and adventure collide in this exciting story that will leave you believing in the magic of Christmas! The perfect book for kids ages 8 to 12 this holiday season. Leo spends his time drinking hot cocoa, inventing new toys, and celebrating Christmas––but he is no ordinary elf! Leo is Santa’s guardian and sworn protector of the North Pole. Leo's life is pretty great, until the day Santa Claus tells him the world’s Christmas Spirit is in danger. With Christmas just around the corner, Santa Claus sends Leo on a mission to find the evil Sorrow King, a powerful wizard who...

Granny Weaver started a knitting circle believing women are stronger spun together, just like her wool. But she was young once with her own struggles. In 1963 Deborah Byler is twenty-one and has turned down seven marriage proposals from hopeful suitors in Millersburg, Ohio. At her parent's request, she goes to live with relatives in the new Amish settlement in Smicksburg, Pennsylvania, praying she'll find a match. Jeb Weaver lives in a strict Swartzentruber Amish settlement, and he can no longer abide under the rules of the Ordnung. His older brother left the family farm and settled in ...

It’s Christmas Eve 1944 and the Battle of the Bulge is raging across the snowy Ardennes Forest. Even in these bitter conditions, two soldiers manage to exchange gifts, but there is a bittersweet twist. Inspired by O. Henry’s classic short story, The Gift of the Magi. Important note: This story can be read at the author’s website

The author is terrified of flying so for a silver wedding anniversary treat took his wife on a one- off cruise of a lifetime in the year 2000. That 17-day cruise across the Mediterranean changed their holidays for ever, and like thousands of others George and Deb became addicted to cruising and especially on the ships of the P&O fleet. The author's first book ('A Cornishman goes Cruising') tells the story of that first cruise. After many years of happy cruise holidays, retirement beckoned and the couple needed another special treat. So on a cold January evening in 2012 they left Southampton...

Wealthy, New York City girl Claire Lindell wasn't looking for a Christmas miracle or happiness when she abruptly decided to hole up for the holiday at her godmother's cottage in a little Yorkshire village, and lick her wounds, from a near disastrous romantic decision. After her car skids into a snow bank, Claire may have accidently found her perfect Christmas and the family and love she's craved, when she offers Noah Bradford of Ayesgill Farm help to push the back end of one of his sheep out of the icy mud, even if she's going to ruin a brand new pair of Prada boots during the rescue.

Thanks to her thriving art career, Miriam Blum finally has her decoupaged glitter ducks in a row—until devastating news forces her to a very unwanted family reunion. Her beloved great-aunt Cass has passed and left Miriam part-owner of Carrigan’s, her (ironically) Jewish-run Christmas tree farm. But Miriam’s plans to sit shiva, avoid her parents, then put Carrigan’s in her rearview mirror are spoiled when she learns the business is at risk of going under.

Siblings forge new paths and find love in three stories filled with the wonder of Christmas. Turn back the clock to a different time and listen to Bing Crosby sing of sleigh bells in the snow as the realities of America’s involvement in the Second World War change the lives of the Turner family in Lafayette, Indiana. The Turner family believes in God’s providence during such a tumultuous time. Can they absorb the miracle of Christ’s birth and His plan for a future?

She just wants to be a freeuse toy for her first time, and he’s more than willing to use her. Willow I’m 25 and newly single and my only boyfriend and I never did the deed. It’s time to be a super slut, so someday I won’t regret not having a wild time in my 20s. And what better place than a freeuse party? I’m ready to be pounded hard and used all night long.... and I want to start with the sexy, older vampire I lock eyes with as soon as I enter the party. The vampire pushes all the right buttons and looks like he knows exactly how to please a woman. Lucky for me, while a bunch of ...

Gustavo is good at doing all sorts of ghostly things: walking through walls, making objects fly, and glowing in the dark. And he loves almost nothing more than playing beautiful music on his violin. But Gustavo is shy, and some things are harder for him to do, like getting in a line to buy eye scream or making friends with other monsters. Whenever he tries getting close to them, he realizes they just can’t see him. Now that the Day of the Dead is fast approaching, what can he do to make them notice him and to share with them something he loves?

Christmas in Copenhagen is a magical time of year but Darcy Cotterell isn’t feeling festive. Newly single, again, she's not even going home for Christmas. Instead she will be spending her holiday finishing her art history PhD. Her best friend, Freja, has other ideas. She signs Darcy up to a dating app, determined that she won't be lonely this Christmas.

Alice, Kate and Naomi want to keep the magic of Christmas alive in their village of Churchwood but a thief in the area and a new family that shuns the local community are only the first of the problems they face.

Life in a new country sounds enticing, but will the hopeful characters in these short stories end up with more or much, much less than they bargained for? Plenty More Where She Came From Whisked from an African village childhood to the scullery of a British brothel, Mary is tired of being a drudge. This story was first published in Writers’ News, having won first prize in its short story competition A Deal’s A Deal, Isn’t It? Aspiring writer Vivien dreams of moving to Key West. Only two things stand in her way; a sceptical husband and US immigration policy. Grandfather’s Dream Two ...

America's Favorite Holidays explores how five of America's culturally important holidays - Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter, Halloween, and Thanksgiving - came to be what they are today, seasonal and religious celebrations heavily influenced by modern popular culture.