All I’d wanted was a girls’ weekend away from home, a sort of double bachelorette party for two of my friends who were both getting married soon. No guys, no kids, no restaurant.But right now, as I cataloged the bumps and bruises, I only knew two things for certain: First, we were no longer in Reno, and second, Hell had a new name — Assjacket.****When human psychic Sunny Trimmel and her three best friends decide to go on a weekend getaway, they get away all right — into an alternate reality where cats talk, her Shifter friends are stuck in their animal forms, and they’re dumped into a rural hell known as Assjacket, West Virginia.Thanks to a vengeful witch’s magic gone wrong, the girls are sucked into one of the most peculiar adventures they’ve ever had. People and landmarks are disappearing all over town. Sunny will have to rely on her faulty psychic visions, her friends, and the crazy townsfolk of Assjacket, West Virginia to solve the mystery — or they might never find their way home.Suck it, Dorothy. Tornadoes have nothing on this twister of a tale.Author Note: This is a Magic & Mayhem/Peculiar Mystery crossover. It can be read as a stand alone, and it does not effect the Peculiar Mysteries world timeline.

    They've been having some serious problems with the white stuff—not snow, but cocaine—and their highly-paid, isolated, somewhat stir-crazy employees have been overdosing at an alarming rate. Kate's job is to identify the dealer and staunch the flow before more people die. It's never that simple, of course.In Play with Fire, Kate and friends stumble across a naked, decaying corpse in the woods. Judged death by misadventure by the Troopers, Kate's sense of justice demands that she launch her own investigation, leading her to ask some very uncomfortable questions of a frontier faith community. Questions that might drive someone to kill…again.In Blood Will Tell, Kate is forced to involve herself in Native politics, attending the annual Federation convention in Anchorage and investigating the deaths of several board members. Opposition to a new development project seems to have been the link tying the victims together, but when Kate poses the question that all detective work begins with—cui bono?—she finds there are more suspects on the list than not.Also included: the two Kate Shugak short stories, "Wreck Rights" and "Cherchez la Femme."

    But one fateful night, she lets her guard down after meeting a handsome stranger—Navy Seal Colt Callaway—at a bar along the Virginia Beach boardwalk. And after a sexy one-night-stand, Colt resolves to penetrate the steep walls that protect Kate’s heart.A dead rat left on Kate’s front porch the next morning sends a clear message: the biker gang she ratted out years ago has finally found her.No matter how badly Colt believes he can save the troubled and beautiful woman he just met, Kate’s only choice is to grab her daughter and vanish under a fresh identity. But can she do it before someone close to her is killed? And can she truly say goodbye to Colt forever?

    A Virgin River Christmas Last Christmas Marcie Sullivan said a final goodbye to her husband, Bobby. This Christmas she wants to find the man who once saved his life and gave her three more years to love him. Bring Me Home for Christmas Becca Timm knows the number-one item on her Christmas wish list�getting over Denny Cutler. But, as the power of Christmas envelops the little town, Becca discovers that the boy she once loved has become a strong and confident man. And the most delicious Christmas present she can imagine. My Kind of Christmas Patrick and Angie thought they wanted to be left alone this Christmas�until they meet each other. Then they want to be left alone together. But their families have different plans for them�and for Christmas, Virgin River-style!

    A decision that jeopardizes her brother and their guests when a killer dressed like Santa opens fire at their annual Christmas Eve party. Lincoln Smith spent his life guarding his country, his clients, and his heart. He denied himself everything else – including Serra. He only wants a glimpse of her at the party. Nothing more. But when Santa tries to kill the only woman he ever loved, Lincoln does what he was trained to do. Seeking refuge in his cabin in the town of Winter, Lincoln vows to protect Serra even if it means dropping the shield around his heart. She had never wanted to see him again, but Serra can’t escape her true feelings. Just as passion finds a new path the killer finds them. With only hours to spare, Lincoln must forgive himself for past mistakes or he and Serra will lose their last chance for survival – and love.

    And certainly what Melville did for whaling Austen does for marriage--tracing the intricacies (not to mention the economics) of 19th-century British mating rituals with a sure hand and an unblinking eye. As usual, Austen trains her sights on a country village and a few families--in this case, the Bennets, the Philips, and the Lucases. Into their midst comes Mr. Bingley, a single man of good fortune, and his friend, Mr. Darcy, who is even richer. Mrs. Bennet, who married above her station, sees their arrival as an opportunity to marry off at least one of her five daughters. Bingley is complaisant and easily charmed by the eldest Bennet girl, Jane; Darcy, however, is harder to please. Put off by Mrs. Bennet's vulgarity and the untoward behavior of the three younger daughters, he is unable to see the true worth of the older girls, Jane and Elizabeth. His excessive pride offends Lizzy, who is more than willing to believe the worst that other people have to say of him; when George Wickham, a soldier stationed in the village, does indeed have a discreditable tale to tell, his words fall on fertile ground. Having set up the central misunderstanding of the novel, Austen then brings in her cast of fascinating secondary characters: Mr. Collins, the sycophantic clergyman who aspires to Lizzy's hand but settles for her best friend, Charlotte, instead; Lady Catherine de Bourgh, Mr. Darcy's insufferably snobbish aunt; and the Gardiners, Jane and Elizabeth's low-born but noble-hearted aunt and uncle. Some of Austen's best comedy comes from mixing and matching these representatives of different classes and economic strata, demonstrating the hypocrisy at the heart of so many social interactions. And though the novel is rife with romantic misunderstandings, rejected proposals, disastrous elopements, and a requisite happy ending for those who deserve one, Austen never gets so carried away with the romance that she loses sight of the hard economic realities of 19th-century matrimonial maneuvering. Good marriages for penniless girls such as the Bennets are hard to come by, and even Lizzy, who comes to sincerely value Mr. Darcy, remarks when asked when she first began to love him: "It has been coming on so gradually, that I hardly know when it began. But I believe I must date it from my first seeing his beautiful grounds at Pemberley." She may be joking, but there's more than a little truth to her sentiment, as well. Jane Austen considered Elizabeth Bennet "as delightful a creature as ever appeared in print". Readers of Pride and Prejudice would be hard-pressed to disagree. --Alix Wilber

    D. Robb Treachery in Death Eve Dallas and her partner, Peabody, are following up on a brutal, senseless crime—an elderly grocery owner killed by three stoned punks for nothing more than kicks and snacks. And for the first time, Peabody is primary detective on the case, which means she has to get used to a new level of authority and responsibility. Good thing she learned the ropes from a master like Eve.But after rounding up the perps, Peabody stumbles upon a much trickier situation. Determined to start working out as hard as she grills suspects, she chooses to do it at the old, rarely-used gym at Central. After a grueling workout, she squeezes into one of the narrow shower stalls, happy to have the place to herself. Just after she shuts the water off, the gym door clatters open—and while she cringes inside the stall, trying not to make a sound, Peabody overhears two fellow officers, Garnet and Oberman, arguing. References are made to delivering product, and a house in the islands, and someone named Keener who’s supposed to look like an OD. It doesn’t take long for a naked and vulnerable Peabody to realize that both officers are crooked—guilty not just of corruption but of murder as well. Fortunately, the two clear out of the locker room without realizing there was a witness.Eve Dallas may have trained Peabody well—but this is too dangerous for one person to take on alone. Now Peabody, Eve, and her husband, Roarke, must try to get the hard evidence they need to bring the dirty cops down—knowing all the while that the two have already killed to keep their secret, and are no doubt willing to do it again. New York to Dallas It was one of Eve Dallas’s earliest takedowns, back in her uniform days. A monster named Isaac McQueen had been abducting young victims and leaving them scarred in both mind and body. Thanks to Eve, he wound up where he belonged, removed from civilized society in Rikers. But he’s not behind bars anymore.After his escape, McQueen has two things in mind. One is to take up where he left off, preying on the young and innocent—when necessary, with the help of a female partner all too willing to be manipulated and to aid and abet his crimes. His other goal: to get revenge on the woman who stopped him all those years ago, now a high-profile lieutenant in the NYPSD and married to one of the city’s richest men.Commanding Eve’s attention with a chilling and brazen crime, McQueen sets off the chase—forcing Eve down a road marked with blood and tears, a road that eventually leads southwest to Dallas, Texas, the home Eve fled long ago. And each new twist brings her closer to the harrowing memory of when she wasn’t a hardened detective but a vulnerable girl just like McQueen’s innocent prey. As her husband, Roarke, tries to rescue her from the nightmares that claw at her mind, and her partner, Peabody, doggedly works to support her, Eve must confront—and call upon—the darkest parts of her own soul in order to survive.

    The dead have risen and constantly attack the living. The powerful Church of Real Truth, in charge since the government fell, has sworn to reimburse citizens being harassed by the deceased. Consequently, there are many claims of hauntings from those hoping to profit.Chess Putnam, witch and drug addict, investigates these claims as a debunker for the Church. However, Chess owes a murderous drug lord named Bump a lot of money. And Bump wants immediate payback. All Chess has to do is dispatch a very nasty species of undead from an old airport. But the job involves black magic, human sacrifice, a nefarious demonic creature, and crossing swords with enough wicked energy to wipe out a city of souls. Toss in lust with a rival gang leader and a dangerous attraction to Bump′s ruthless enforcer, and Chess begins to wonder if the rush is really worth it...

    L. Montgomery might be the perfect husband and father—if he loves her.Jared is used to getting what he wants, so he can't understand Paige's reluctance to marry him. Is she just a gold digger hoping to make him want her more by playing it cool? Or the most independent—and sexy—woman he's ever met?What will it take for Jared to see Paige as more than an acquisition, and for Paige to get her elevator cowboy back?The story concludes in Nine Months Part 3.

     Jolly, now an outdoor adventure guide, sets out in a trip with eleven passengers and his former SEAL brother. He meets a beautiful woman, Jeannie Jenkins, and a budding romance begins. On day two of the trip, an unknown assailant wounds two of the passengers, sinks their boats and cuts off their communication to the outside world, trapping them on a river bank miles from civilization. With his back against the wall, Jolly and Jeannie make a break for it, drawing the shooter's attention away from the rest of the group. They raft down Devil's Fork, a forbidden section of the river with ominous, unpassable rapids. Jolly must solve the mystery of the shooter, protect Jeannie and navigate the dangerous rapids, all with a skilled sniper in hot pursuit. Devil's Fork combines tender romance with nail-biting action.

    The day after the troupe arrives in tiny Morgan’s Crossing, the manager takes all the money and leaves town. By opening a dressmaker shop, Cinnia hopes to make the home she’s always wanted, but Nola, the older sister who has made the decisions for the orphaned sisters, disagrees. Leather worker Nicolai Andrusha is living in hiding as Nic Andrews until the patent on his family’s tanning process is approved. Although he’s under a mandate to keep a low profile, he’s intrigued by the red-haired performer. Controversy arises when miners claim they paid the manager for private appointments with the female performers. Will Nicolai defy his family obligation to help the stranded beauty who has caught his eye?

    His job now, that of a rehabilitation counselor at the Brighter Days Ranch outside of Eagle Rock, Montana, keeps him busy and is fulfilling his desire to be of service. He’s put his past behind him. Or so he thinks until Vanessa “Van” Hastings shows up at the ranch with PTSD and memory loss after being held hostage in the Middle East. As Cole tries to put his resentment of her role in his career-ending mistake on the back burner, Van’s beauty, bravery and vulnerability make him rethink this woman’s purpose, both in his life and for her own. As Van recovers her memory, the couple realize more may be at stake than their affection for each other. Can they stay alive long enough to find out if love is possible for them?

    To Kill a MockingbirdThe Shoes of the FishermanSeven Days in MayTo Catch an Angel

    And Paris Gibson, the mysterious host of the show in question, finds herself in the spotlight for the first time in years.Who has been abducted? And what is the identity of the caller, known only as "Valentino"? The clock is ticking and in the midst of the frenzy to track down the missing woman, Paris finds herself working alongside someone she's tried hard to forget...

    But once I saw her, I knew I'd do anything to keep her. Kidnapping her was easy. Now I must earn her love and keep her. She's his entire world I should hate Peter Sokolov. He's a criminal, a mercenary who killed my husband. So why am I falling for my tormentor? This convenient, discounted bundle contains the last two books of the Tormentor Mine series: Destiny Mine and Forever Mine.