In this new novel by New York Times bestselling author Fern Michaels, the holidays are also the time to discover a future that, like the perfect gift, is as satisfying as it is surprising . . .   Joy Preston misses her beloved late grandmother dearly. But when she learns the terms of Nana’s will, she’s shocked—and more than a little irked. Joy moved to Colorado years ago and is now CEO of a successful nail polish company. Her life and career are in Denver. How can Nana have expected her to give that up, even temporarily, to take over a bed and breakfast in North Carolina for six months?   Yet there’s no denying Heart and Soul’s charm, especially at holiday time. The B&B is always elaborately decorated for the season, with themed guest rooms and dazzling lawn displays created for the annual Parade of Homes competition. The entire town takes part in the festivities, and soon Joy, too, is joining in the gingerbread house contest and letting her reservations melt away.   There’s another special reason for Heart and Soul’s popularity. Rumor has it that, during holiday season, guests can be reunited with the spirit of a loved one who’s passed on. Joy’s skeptical, yet she feels her beloved Nana’s influence all around her . . . perhaps even indulging in a little matchmaking between Joy and handsome estate attorney Will Drake.   A special homecoming and the glow of new beginnings will combine to make the holiday magical . . .

    In this unique collection of nine Christmas romances, readers will relive a prairie Christmas with all its challenges and delights as penned by multi-published authors, including Tracie Peterson and Deborah Raney.Take Me Home by Tracey BatemanOne Wintry Night by Pamela GriffinImage of Love by JoAnn A. GroteThe Christmas Necklace by Maryn LangerA Christmas Gift of Love by Darlene MindrupGod Jul by Tracie PetersonCircle of Blessings by Deborah RaneyChristmas Cake by Janet SpaethColder Than Ice by Jill StenglThe warmth of Christmas will radiate in new love from the high plains of Minnesota and Dakota Territory, across the rolling hills of Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois, and down into the flats of Kansas. Filled with inspiration and faith, each story will become a treasure to be enjoyed again next year

    A time for fellowship, family, and love. Enjoy two novellas from beloved Amish authors and fill your heart with the wonder of the Christmas season. Winter's Treasure Paris and Quil have sparks from the beginning, especially since his appearance causes a vicious rivalry between friends. But who can resist when a chance meeting beginning with donuts and coffee ends with a missing person, puppies, a skunk, and a sleigh ride—not to mention a trip the Amish young people plan to Niagara Falls. Could it also involve falling in love? Mistletoe and Miracles An exhausted son, Daniel, and a recent widow, Fern, join forces to brighten a grumpy old man’s day and cheer up a shy, displaced little girl. However, things take a serious turn when Fern’s daughter goes missing on a school field trip. With a little help from Daniel, Fern discovers more than just her daughter’s whereabouts. Will four lonely hearts create special bonds to make it a Christmas to remember?

    Favorite holiday recipes from the authors are included with each story.

    Since her husband died three years ago, Gaby's four children have drifted apart, each consumed by the turbulence of their own lives. They haven't celebrated Christmas together since their father's death, but when Gaby announces that she's getting married--and that the groom will remain a secret until the wedding day--she may finally be able to bring them home for the holidays.But the wedding isn't Gaby's only surprise--she has one more gift for her children, and it could change all their lives forever. With deeply affecting characters and the emotional twists of a James Patterson thriller, The Christmas Wedding is a fresh look at family and the magic of the season.

    In stories ranging from 1820s Regency England to present-day Washington state, readers will be treated to Christmas tales of an heirloom brooch passed from mother to daughter for almost two hundred years. Will the family legend claiming the brooch brings love to its recipient hold true for these women separated by the years but bonded together by the ties of family?In Kristi Ann Hunter's "Legacy of Love," Sarah Gooding never suspected returning a brooch to an elderly woman would lead to a job . . . and introduce her to the woman's grandson. While he may be far above her station, she can't help but notice that his desire to make this Christmas special for his grandmother matches her own.In Karen Witemeyer's "Gift of the Heart," widow Ruth Albright uses the family brooch as collateral for a loan from the local banker. But the more she comes to know the man behind the stern businessman, the more she hopes for a second chance at love as the holidays draw near.In Sarah Loudin Thomas's "A Shot at Love," Fleeta Brady's rough-and-tumble childhood means she prefers hunting to more feminine activities. She never expected her mother's brooch might be how a fellow hunter turns her attention from competition to romance one December.In Becky Wade's "Because of You," Maddie Winslow has spent years in love with a man whose heart was already spoken for. When a church Christmas project brings them together and she stumbles upon an old family brooch, might it finally be her turn for love?

    Fans of the series will enjoy this chance to briefly revisit Pebble Creek, and new readers will be introduced to an Amish community that is more deeply explored in the three full novels, A Promise for Miriam, A Home for Lydia, and A Wedding for Julia. As a bonus, this eBook also includes Amish homestyle recipes for chicken and dumplings, green beans, and fresh bread. Heavy snow blankets the southwestern Wisconsin Amish community as nineteen-year-old Grace Miller closes the schoolhouse for Christmas break. She’s looking forward to having extra time to help the family prepare for the holiday, and she is hoping to get a few more drawings in of the beautiful, snowy Pebble Creek landscape. Her courtship with Adam Lapp is going on six months, and Grace can’t wait to give him his present: a blue-and-brown buggy blanket she crocheted for him. Yes, this Christmas is going to be especially joyful. Yet, amid the cheer of snowshoe outings, church potlucks, and holiday festivities, Grace is given a bittersweet reminder of the Christmas story. Grief is present with celebration, and though the future is rarely certain, she is given a heartwarming glimpse that God knows our needs before we do and will provide.

    When they first decided to do this, Jayne Barncastle is determined to prove to her parents it will work. Will she overlook her own chance for romance in the process? Will a World War II era “White Christmas” recreate a scene of forgiveness for an embittered couple? Can a pirate’s lair be the place of fun-filled reunion for old lovers? When coworkers assist in recreating the first Christmas for the inn, will they discover romance?

    A New England inn seems like the picture-perfect place to spend the holidays. But when a snowstorm shuts the roads and keeps them all inside, the guests find themselves worrying that this Christmas may not be exactly what they dreamed of. Molly just needs to keep her head down and finish her latest book, but her writer’s block is crippling. The arrival of Marcus, a handsome widower with two young girls, is exactly the distraction she doesn't need. Hannah was hoping for a picturesque winter wedding, but her plans come crashing down when her fiancé calls everything off. She reconnects with her childhood friend, Luke, when he comes to check on his grandmother before the storm. Jeanne and Tim don't know how they're going to keep the inn open another year—or how to bridge the distance between them in their marriage. With a flurry of unexpected guests, they'll have to work together to fix all the problems that crop up. But will it be enough to rekindle their relationship? As the characters’ stories intertwine, they start to find hope where they thought it had been lost. With faith, and a little bit of Christmas magic, the inn—and its inhabitants—might just make it through the holidays after all.

    We never wanted for anything, except maybe more time together....When Eddie was twelve years old, all he wanted for Christmas was a bike. Although his life had gotten harder -- and money tighter -- since his father died and the family bakery closed...Eddie dreamed that somehow his mother would find a way to have his dream bike gleaming beside their modest Christmas tree that magical morning.What he got from her instead was a sweater. "A stupid, handmade, ugly sweater" that young Eddie left in a crumpled ball in the corner of his room.Scarred deeply by the realization that kids don't always get what they want, and too young to understand that he already owned life's most valuable treasures, that Christmas morning was the beginning of Eddie's dark and painful journey on the road to manhood. It will take wrestling with himself, his faith, and his family -- and the guidance of a mysterious neighbor named Russell -- to help Eddie find his path through the storm clouds of life and finally see the real significance of that simple gift his mother had crafted by hand with love in her heart.Based on a deeply personal true story, The Christmas Sweater is a warm and poignant tale of family, faith and forgiveness that offers us a glimpse of our own lives -- while also making us question if we really know what's most important in them.

    Although she has tried to forget her past, it has not forgotten her, and in the days leading up to Christmas, an unforgiving blizzard traps her in her home with two unlikely roommates who bring her face to face with the hurts of her past-and the hope of a happier future.Will she let go of the past and grad hold of a future full of love and forgiveness? Or will she continue to be haunted by her pain as the snow storm of the century brings with it the hope of lasting joy?

    What happened all those years ago, and what is it she so desperately needs him to find? The old villa in Sonoma holds the answers, but it is now owned by a young woman who neither knows nor cares about his mission. But Rese Barret is a force to contend with, and her own impending storm could sweep him up as their sparring creates a fierce and uncomfortable attraction. From bestselling author Kristen Heitzmann.

    Now the battle-scarred soldier is back in Snowglobe. Amy Caldwell tries to keep her distance, but the holidays, family and a sweet stray dog keep bringing her and Rafe together…maybe this time, forever.A Family's Christmas Wish by Lissa ManleyAbandoned by her husband when she was eight months pregnant, single mother Sara Kincaid vowed to rely only on herself. But then she makes a deal with handsome widowed father Owen Larsen to provide babysitting services in exchange for his carpentry work on her inn. Can two pint-size matchmakers help them see beyond the past in time for Christmas?

    But can love also be stitched into their lives?  A SEAMLESS LOVE by Judith Miller 1894 – Pullman, Illinois Hannah Cushman possesses a special talent for embroidered fancywork and design which secures her a position in the Dressmaking and Millinery Shop in the Pullman Arcade near Chicago where she encounters childhood friend Daniel Price. Daniel is disappointed to learn Hannah is being courted by a detective with the Pinkerton Detective Agency. With two men vying for her attention, will Hannah seek God’s direction or ignore the warning signs He sets before her?  MENDING HEARTS by Stephanie Grace Whitson 1899 – Nebraska Rachel Ellsworth expects her stay with two maiden aunts in a conservative Mennonite village to be temporary—until a letter breaks her heart. Raised Methodist and encouraged to pursue fashion, design, and watercolor painting, Rachel finds temporary solace in quilting and in helping care for two motherless children. But when she and the children’s widowed father begin to notice one another, Rachel must face the idea that giving her heart to Levi Herr will mean giving up the arty things that have always defined her.  PIN’S PROMISE by Nancy Moser 1900/1906 – Summerfield, England Penelope (Pin) Billings and Jonathan Evers have loved each other since they were children, promising to one day get officially engaged. Both have distinct talents: Pin for sewing dresses and teaching others to sew and Jonathan—a doctor right out of school—in helping the people of the village. As adulthood nears and the time to fulfill their promise seems right, a tragic event pulls them apart, making both question their future. Will they discover they are stronger together than apart?

    Best-selling authors Gary Chapman and Catherine Palmer team up to show how four married couples, all in different stages in life, experience the joys and hardships of marriage as examined in Gary Chapman's "The Four Seasons of Marriage." In book one, Steve and Brenda face a common problem among middle-age couples: empty nest syndrome. Steve works too much, and with their two children out of the house, Brenda feels lonely and unfulfilled. In order to save their marriage, the two must learn to reconnect. Readers are also introduced to many charming characters, like Cody, the mentally challenged homeless man that shows up on Steve and Brenda's porch; Pete, who owns the Rods 'N' Ends tackle shop; and Patsy Pringle, who owns the Just As I Am beauty parlor, where much of the action takes place.The series is based on the marriage principles found in Gary Chapman's non-fiction book "The Four Seasons of Marriage." Similar in tone and light-hearted, quirky humor as Jan Karon's Mitford series, Fannie Flagg's books or "Steel Magnolias." Each book has a study guide that talks about the four seasons of marriage and the healing strategies depicted in that volume's story.