Book picks similar to
A Texas Christmas Past by Julia Justiss


romance
historical-romance
historical
christmas

The Rancher's Second Chance


Maddie James - 2020
    Annie's domain was home and hearth, and her dying put a hole in his day-to-day rancher lifestyle--far beyond the one she left in his heart.But his heart is only one of his problems when ten-year-old Callie rebels. Missing her mom and unsure how her life is unfolding, Callie pushes back at every turn and John doesn't know how to help her. Then his friend, Buck McGinnis, introduces him to Abby Cooper. Buck thinks John should seek the counsel of a woman for advice dealing with a moody pre-teen female. Suddenly, life becomes even more complicated.The Parker Ranches, Inc. series launches with this short novella, The Rancher's Second Chance, establishing the patriarch of the family, John Rankin, and his second chance at love and healing his family. **** The Parker Ranches, Inc. series is a contemporary western romance series written by award-winning and bestselling romance author Maddie James.Linked by strong family relationships, these stories take place in multiple ranch settings across Montana, South Dakota, Texas, and Kentucky. The Parker and Rankin families--Montana ranchers for generations--anchor the series and provide the foundation for stories to come. As families grow, forming new ranch partnerships, you'll also meet the South Dakota MacKay and the Texas/Kentucky Remington families.Parker Ranches, Inc. books are first and foremost romance stories with happily-ever-after endings. Some are sweet, most are steamy, and a few are erotic. These novels and novellas always feature cowboy heroes and the women who love them--often with complicated relationships and external challenges that require time and attention to sort out.Welcome to Rankin's Rock Creek Ranch.

When Snowflakes Fall


Tara Wyatt - 2016
    Nope. Not at all what he’d planned on asking Santa for this year. Love is off the table for Luke and has been ever since he had his heart broken when the mother of his son walked out on him without a backward glance. Ignoring the hurt and the loneliness, he’s spent the past several years focused on providing a good, stable life for Ethan while growing his successful carpentry business. But then Dr. Christie Harmon moves to Cheyenne, Wyoming and has Luke wanting all kinds of things he shouldn’t want from the gorgeous pediatrician. Things like long nights, sweet mornings, and whispered promises. Soon, Luke finds himself only wanting Christie under his Christmas tree this year. But Christie’s running from a secret—one that could completely change how Luke sees her. This is a sexy Christmas romance with a guaranteed HEA. Whether you’ve been naughty or nice, Luke will steam up your e-reader this holiday season!

Time Warper: Fated


Peggy Martinez - 2015
    How hard can it be? All she has to do is: 1. Learn to use newly acquired warping skills to bend time to her will. 2. Take out a few rogue vampires. 3. Join an ancient secret society. 4. Figure out who is putting the time stream in jeopardy. 5. Find and maim whoever invented the corset. Sage never asked to be chosen by the Druid Priestess, Amerach, to become a Warper, and she never asked to have the future hanging on her shoulders or to warp a hundred years into the past. She certainly never asked to meet Dr. Aldwin Blake, who would make her question her desire to get back to her own time. But if she fails her mission, people will die, history will change, and the present she wishes to return to will be no more.

The Measure of Katie Calloway


Serena B. Miller - 2011
    To protect herself and her young brother from her violent and unstable husband, she flees north, finding anonymity and sanctuary as the cook in a Northwoods lumber camp. The camp owner, Robert Foster, wonders if the lovely woman he's hired has the grit to survive the never-ending work and harsh conditions of a remote pine forest in winter. Katie wonders if she can keep her past a secret from a man she is slowly growing to love.With grace and skill, Serena Miller brings to life a bygone era. From the ethereal, snowy forest and the warm cook-stove to the rowdy shanty boys and the jagged edges of the saw, every detail is perfectly rendered, transporting the reader back to the time when pine was king, men were made of iron, and rivers were choked with logs on the way to the sawmills. Readers will have a hard time leaving the Northwoods when they turn the last page.

The Reluctant Duke's Dilemma


Trisha Messmer - 2020
    She longed to be free. Pressured by forces beyond their control, will they give in to forbidden desire?England, 1823. After establishing a successful practice in America, Dr. Harry Radcliffe swore he wouldn’t set foot on British soil again. But when he’s named the Duke of Ashton after his callous brother’s sudden death, he begrudgingly returns to the pretentious world he detests. And his pledge to his dying mother to find a wife is thrown into chaos when he meets his stunning sister-in-law.Margaret Radcliffe finally escaped her abusive marriage. Yet her late husband’s final cruel act left her penniless, with her only option to remarry... the one thing she vowed she’d never do again. But the new duke’s startlingly familiar features awaken yearnings she thought long-forgotten, dangling the heartbreaking whisper of a passion impossible to fulfill.Although convinced the accusations that she murdered her husband are only salacious gossip, Harry's real torment comes when he wishes for a union that would make them outcasts. But even when they finally submit to their simmering attraction, Margaret’s dream of happily-ever-after may be derailed by society’s schemes.Can a scandalous affair turn into a lifetime of love?The Reluctant Duke's Dilemma is the suspenseful first book in The Hope Clinic Regency romance series. If you like swoon-worthy heroes, uplifting humor, and heroines beating the odds, then you’ll adore Trisha Messmer’s tale of tortured hearts.

Michaels Family Romance Box Set: Books 1-3


Toby Jane - 2020
    Thomas. Each young woman has a unique path to walk, and a powerful, thrilling love to discover--and they are as different as the gemstones they're named for. Somewhere on St. ThomasRuby Why him? Why now? What else could go wrong? Set in 1984, in a world before sexting and texting, this "lushly written and emotional" New Adult romance stars redheaded spelling champion Ruby Michaels, who meets the wrong kind of man on the eve of her departure from St. Thomas for college.♥♥WINNER: SILVER MEDAL, eLit AWARDS, 2016♥♥ Somewhere in the CityPearl It's a long way from sleepy St. Thomas to the big city. The year is 1989, and magnet-for-trouble Pearl Michaels leaves her childhood home, the tropical paradise of St. Thomas, to live with her sister in Boston. Discovered as a model, Pearl finds fame, fortune, and Magnus Thorne.Harley-riding, enigmatic Magnus Thorne is a man with a past and a hazardous, secret present. The last thing he needs or wants is an addiction to a woman so famous she's known simply as "Pearl," but he can't seem to let her go. Somewhere in California Jade Dancing is everything--until it leads to love. Jade Michaels runs away and risks everything to compete in the first-ever dance reality show in LA in 1992, and meets the perfect guy--until she finds out he's her sister's ex.Can Jade and Brandon navigate the past that separates them? "These books are a fun, guilty pleasure that will leave you wanting more from Toby Neal!" ~Author Noelle Pierce

Brides of Holland Springs Book Bundle


Marquita Valentine - 2014
    She’ll take a page right out of her favorite historical romance novel—with her own unique spin—and marry a man of her choosing before the public gets wind of how much money she actually inherited from her grandparents. And who fits the bill better than the sexy and charming American businessman, Noah Sawyer?After selling his share of the successful tech company, Noah Sawyer lost everything when an unscrupulous real estate lawyer stole the money he intended to use to purchase a huge swath of land worth millions. So, when a chance meeting with a hot brunette at a friend’s wedding turns into a mutually beneficial business arrangement, Noah jumps at the chance to salvage his business.However, the sexy land developer has no intention of his marriage to Kate being in name only…The Temporary BrideHaven Crawford needs a husband—but only temporarily—in order to keep her grandparents’ inn in the family. But, the last person she’d ask to help is her childhood enemy, Heath Ambrose. Unfortunately, he’s the only one she can trust to keep his promise to divorce her and not take the inn when he leaves.Star catcher, Heath Ambrose needs relief from his meddling mother and the jet-set lifestyle that accompanies his sudden rise to fame as the face of the newest national baseball team, the Greenville Pirates. As the last single Ambrose sibling, his mother is determined to marry Heath off, but he’s not ready to settle down. Especially not after watching the woman he loved run off to Scotland with another man. So when Haven proposes, Heath jumps at the chance for some peace in his life.Only a temporary marriage to Haven is anything but peaceful—not to mention that they can’t keep their hands off one another. But, when the will’s conditions have been fulfilled and baseball season starts up again, will Heath and Haven be able to say goodbye when hate turns to love?Or can temporary turn into forever?The Scottish BrideTired of waiting for her older brother’s best friend to come to his senses, Cadence Romanov travels to New York City in order to bring Maddox home. But seeing him again opens raw wounds of abandonment. Refusing to be easily led by him again, she runs away to Holland Springs, but not before leaving him a note as to where she’s going. This time, it’s all up to him to win her back.After one reckless night ends in tragedy, Scottish rugby player Maddox Stewart turned his back on his former life, leaving everything behind, including Cadence… until she tracks him down and demands answers. As soon as Maddox sees her, he knows nothing has changed between them and there isn’t anything he wouldn’t do to have her again. Forced to confront his demons, Maddox must find a way to forgive himself and win back his wife.

Paper Roses


Amanda Cabot - 2009
    Leaving the past behind in Philadelphia, mail-order bride Sarah arrives in San Antonio ready to greet her groom, Austin Canfield, a man she has never met but whose letters have won her heart from afar. But there is one problem--he has died. And Sarah cannot go back East.As Sarah tries to reconcile herself to a future that is drastically changed, Austin's brother, Clay, struggles with his own muddled plans. Though he dislikes working on the family ranch and longs for a different life, Clay is driven to avenge his brother's death. But something between them is growing and neither Clay nor Sarah is ready to admit it. Book 1 of the Texas Dreams series, Paper Roses will sweep readers into the Hill Country with a tale of love and loss, closed doors and beautiful possibilities that will leave them wanting more.

Feel The Heat


Kathryn Shay - 1999
    When white hot attraction kicks in, sparks fly! Francey Cordaro is a dedicated firefighter, devoted daughter and a loyal friend who has made her way in a man’s world. She rejects material goods, doesn’t give a whit about her striking looks and focuses on saving lives, spending time with her family and friends, working out and playing poker with the guys. Until she meets Alex Templeton. A wealthy businessman, Alex is the epitome of success in every area of his life. A decent man, he returns home to run the family company when his father takes ill and his brother loses his way. What he can’t control is his reaction to the sexy firefighter who dragged him from near death. She’s gorgeous, fun-loving and challenges him at every turn. But she refuses a relationship with him. With differences that rival champagne vs. beer, uptown galas vs. karaoke bars, and the world of high finance vs. the reality of walking into burning buildings, their relationship seems doomed. Or is it?

A Whisper of Hope


Julie Lessman - 2017
    He’s desperate for an empty nest. Love is desperate to surprise them both. With a husband dead set against adoption, Charity O’Connor Dennehy has barely a whisper of hope for more children, but if hope doesn’t disappoint … will it be enough to find a precious bundle under her tree?

Trying to Be Good


Weston Parker - 2018
     But a new beauty in my life threatens to wake up a hot passion deep inside of me. One I've stifled for years. She needs my help, so things start as they always do - innocent and simple. Unfortunately, it’s not that easy. Love has a way of bringing out the best and worst in people. Good or bad, a casual fling will never do. She'd be the one that got away, and I can't let that happen. It would haunt me forever. Being a bad boy is easy. This time I’m working hard on trying to be good. Every good girl deserves a bad boy. ~ Weston

Homecoming for the Cowboy


Nicole Helm - 2019
    But now that Fritz Martin has asked him a favor, he’s back in Last Stand facing the one temptation he can’t ever give into: his mentor’s middle daughter. Sadie Martin doesn’t like Colt Vance, or so she’s told herself for years. He’s far too charming and has her father wrapped around his finger. But Sadie doesn’t have a choice except to work with Colt to save her beloved goat farm. Working together tests Colt’s resolve when it comes to his attraction to Sadie, and Sadie comes to realize she doesn’t just enjoy Colt’s company, she craves it. But Colt can’t break the promise he made to Fritz years ago. Can one tenacious farm girl convince this stubborn cowboy love is always the answer to any problem?

Jaded: Part I


Ali Parker - 2015
    But one night at the club… her whole world changed. Heartbroken and willing to call off her wedding, she decides a change is in order and moves from NYC to a small town in Maine, where the average age of the residents there is sixty (or thereabouts). She works to fit in perfectly, and tries like hell not to let anyone find out just how very jaded she’s recently become over the lie called love. Jake Isaac left Texas quite a few years ago; his heart torn from his chest, and his mind set on being a bachelor forever. Maine would welcome him, give him land to explore and a community to belong to. Getting a job as the coach of the local junior high and serving on the fire department kept him busy — and labeled him a hometown hero — but the truth of his damaged heart was forever hidden. No one would ever know just how jaded he was about love. That is… until he meets Kari.

Where He Leads


Angela Castillo - 2019
     Compared to an arranged marriage to the odious Bernard Regent, a prairie schooner on the Oregon Trail doesn't seem like such a bad trade to Amethyst Kent. When desperate Martha Davis reveals her need for a mother's helper on the trail, Ami decides to up and leave the pampered life she's always known for a land of freedom. But trail life is hardly a tea party, and Ami must draw from the deepest wells of her faith to survive. With the sunset always before her, and Shiloh Talon, a handsome trail scout, guiding the way, she might just make it through.

Shades of Honor


Wendy Lindstrom - 2010
    Desperate for peace, Radford is ambushed by his unexpected and forbidden love for Evelyn—his brother's fiancée.