Stuck On You


Portia MacIntosh - 2020
    She's too busy as PA for famous artist Damian Banks. When she's not arranging exhibitions, she's organising his dry cleaning or dumping his never ending stream of girlfriends.But when she strikes up an unusual friendship with her desk share buddy, she finds a confidante and a new potential love interest. Problem is, they've never actually met...With Christmas just around the corner, can Sadie put herself first for a change and find what she's been looking for all along?The brand new romantic comedy from top 10 bestseller Portia MacIntosh. Perfect for fans of Sophie Ranald, Mhairi McFarlane and Zara Stoneley.

Manchester Christmas


John Gray - 2020
    Soon, she encounters kindness, romance, and is pulled into a mystery centered on an old, abandoned church and the death of a special girl. Are the images that only she can see in the church's stained-glass windows a warning, or is someone trying to reach her, to help heal this broken community? Manchester Christmas illustrates how God often uses the most unlikely among us to spread grace and healing in a wounded world. Full of love, hope, and forgiveness, this debut novel from an Emmy-winning writer will touch your heart and have you longing for Christmas in Manchester.

12 Dog Days of Christmas


Paula Munier - 2020
    With Zach's mom in Bali and the woman of his dreams gone AWOL, he's facing a Christmas alone with Ringo—until Tessa the cute veterinarian appears at his door with an offer he and Ringo can't refuse.It's a Christmas he'll never forget....

Twas the Night


Sandra Hill - 2001
    All too soon, these men will have met their matches in three special women: a woman from their past, a forest ranger so hot she ought to be declared a fire hazard, and a woman on the run.Ho, ho, OH!While serving up holiday cheer with the Santa Brigade, the guys will discover 'tis the season for good will and folly. Wise men or not, they are well and truly caught, which means these roguish St. Nicks are willing to jingle a few bells along the way if that's what it takes to find what they truly want for Christmas nestled in their beds after the stockings are stuffed and the gifts placed under the tree.

An Offer You Can't Refuse


Jill Mansell - 2008
    Then she discovers a secret that makes her think again. Dougie would probably have broken up with her in the long run, and this way she can help one of the people she loves most in the world. Ten years later, though, when Lola meets Dougie again, her feelings for him are as strong as ever. But she broke Dougie’s heart and he’s about to discover that she was paid to do it. She can never tell him the truth, so can she get him back? Well, Lola’s very attractive and very persuasive. But even she’s got her work cut out this time…

Ridiculous!


D.L. Carter - 2012
    Funny. Sexy. Cross Dressing. Not your mother's Regency Romance.After the death of her miserly cousin, Anthony North, Millicent Boarder is determined her family should never be poor or vulnerable again. To protect them she conceals her cousin's death and assumes his identity. Now she must face the Ton and the world as Mr. North and accept the price she must pay for her family's safety -- she will never be loved.Which means, of course, at this point she will meet the perfect man.

SantaLand Diaries


David Sedaris - 1998
    'Santaland Diaries' contains six of David Sedaris' most profound Christmas stories, from Dinah, the Christmas Whore to Season's Greetings to our Friends and Family.

The Sisters Café


Carolyn Brown - 2013
    She's taken step one and gotten engaged to a reliable man, but she's beginning to question their relationship. Does he really love her, or is she just arm candy for his political career? Why is her future mother-in-law getting increasingly hostile? Worse, why does he stand up for his mother when she says those awful things, instead of protecting her? Cathy is full of self-doubt. Both of her options—going through with the wedding or breaking off her engagement—are beginning to look like a nightmare either way. She knows her friends will back her up, but she's the one who has to make a decision that's going to tear her apart.

Ruby Slips and Poker Chips: A Modern Day Wizard of Oz Romantic Comedy


Heather Kindt - 2017
    . . until Dottie’s given a free trip to Las Vegas. Second-grade teacher Dottie Gale lives in the tiny town of Quandary, Kansas, which is pretty much smack dab in the middle of nowhere. No mountains. No ocean. No life. Her ex-boyfriend and current school board member, Corbin Lane, cheated on her, making school functions more than a little awkward. But worst of all, a tornado named Maxine Westward rips through Dottie’s school as the new principal and has made her life at work a living hell. When Dottie is chosen to go to a teacher’s conference in Las Vegas, she knows her life is going to change. Driving from Quandary to Vegas, three strangers enter her life. Through a string of situations involving poppies, flying monkeys, and a life-size sculpture of an iconic rock star the four soon become inseparable. So, when Westward arrives on her broom in Vegas, Dottie is ready for battle. Her boss black mails her with stories of incarceration, thievery, and a steamy relationship with her travel companion, but Dottie knows that those who hurl insults shouldn’t hold secrets of their own. Editorial Reviews "I had so much fun reading this and spotting all the clever twists, it was very entertaining. In fact I’m tempted to re-read it, to find more of the subtle hints. I’ve also been to a few of the places mentioned in the book which meant an extra thumbs up for me. I would definitely recommend to readers who enjoy a modern take on a good original oldie." Roses are Amber

Books by Stephen Fry: The Stars' Tennis Balls, Making History, the Liar, the Ode Less Travelled: Unlocking the Poet Within, Moab Is My Washpot (Study Guide)


Books LLC - 2010
    Chapters: The Stars' Tennis Balls, Making History, the Liar, the Ode Less Travelled: Unlocking the Poet Within, Moab Is My Washpot, the Hippopotamus, Paperweight, Stephen Fry's Incomplete and Utter History of Classical Music. Source: Wikipedia. Free updates online. Not illustrated. Excerpt: The Stars' Tennis Balls is a psychological thriller novel by Stephen Fry, first published in 2000. In the United States, the title was changed to Revenge. In the Afterword to the 2003 American edition, Fry admits that the story "is a straight steal, virtually identical in all but period and style to Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo" but denies plagiarism, since Dumas also admits that the plot was taken from a contemporary urban legend. The main character, Edward (Ted/Tedward) Maddstone, is a seventeen year old schoolboy who appears to be the sort of person for whom everything goes right. He is captain of school, talented at sports and following in the footsteps of his father towards Oxford University, then a career in politics. He is happy and has fallen in love with a girl called Portia. But a few bizarre twists and turns of fate ensure that his life is turned upside down. As mentioned above, the plot is extremely similar to the story of The Count of Monte Cristo. The original title comes from a quotation taken from John Webster's The Duchess of Malfi. In full it reads: "We are merely the stars' tennis balls, struck and banded which way please them." The novel's dedication reads simply "To M'Colleague" - "M'Colleague" being the name by which Fry and Hugh Laurie referred to each other in their TV sketch show A Bit of Fry and Laurie.

Friends Like These


Hannah Ellis - 2015
    With her sights set on the flamboyant Sebastian and his sophisticated group, Marie is sure that things are about to change for the better. But when a chance encounter brings some unlikely characters into her life, things start to veer off course. Marie would never normally be seen with this bunch of misfits but to her annoyance they just keep turning up. As lives quickly become entwined and unusual friendships form, Marie realises that we don't always get to choose our friends; sometimes they choose us. Buoyed by her newfound friendships, Marie might even take another chance at love.

Snowflakes at the Little Christmas Tree Farm


Jaimie Admans - 2019
    All she wants for Christmas…Leah Griffiths has woken up after a few too many glasses of Prosecco with a hangover – and discovers she’s accidentally bought a little Christmas tree farm in Scotland!At first she’s horrified, but perhaps it’s the perfect way to forget all about her cheating ex.And when she meets grumpy (but ridiculously gorgeous) pumpkin farmer Noel underneath the mistletoe, Leah begins to believe that at Christmas time, anything can happen…

18 Days of Christmas (A Caden Christmas)


Audrey Bodine - 2019
    He was praying for an actual merry Christmas for his daughter.Beckett Caden has one wish this year: that his daughter’s Christmas would be as magical as childrens' holidays were supposed to be. After two bittersweet December twenty-fifths without his wife, Beckett knows he needs to do something different this year, for his daughter. Listening to his parents’ advice, he takes a break from his executive position at their family-run bookstore chain and books a trip for Holly and himself. Beckett hopes that a few weeks in a charming lodge, with a laundry list of fun activities, will help to restore the smile that used to light up his little girl's eyes.Through snowman building, city sightseeing, and a constant theme of Christ in the season, Beckett begins to think this was the right decision. The only downside? The sarcastic and irritating elf of a woman with hair as boisterous as Santa Claus, himself.When an unexpected snowstorm traps them all inside, it’s either work alongside The Elf or watch chaos overtake the understaffed inn. Surviving on the aid of caffeine and prayer, Beckett has a feeling this Christmas will turn out to be one of the most memorable he's had.Elise McKenzie needs a social life. At least, that's been the constant mantra from her family for the past, oh, all her adult years.With her freelancing graphic design work and the volunteering she does at her grandparents’ lodge, Elise seems to be the only one happy with her life. Even if the male she most frequently has deep conversations with is her cat.For Elise, this Christmastime brings a flurry of unsanctioned blind dates, questions about the future, and a snowfall that will keep her toe-to-toe with the single father whose dimples remind her of the infuriating enjoyment he receives from pushing her buttons.Elise’s Christmas wish? Survive this season and try not to bonk the obnoxious guest over the head with a gingerbread house.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel


Deborah Moggach - 2004
    Several retirees are enticed by the promise of indulgent living at a bargain price, but upon arriving, they are dismayed to find that restoration of the once sophisiticated hotel has stalled, and that such amenities as water and electricity are . . . infrequent. But what their new life lacks in luxury, they come to find, it’s plentiful in adventure, stunning beauty, and unexpected love.--penguinrandomhouse.com

The Great Christmas Knit Off


Alex Brown - 2014
    For fans of Trisha Ashley and Jenny Colgan.Heartbroken after being jilted at the altar, Sybil has been saved from despair by her knitting obsession and now her home is filled to bursting with tea cosies, bobble hats, and jumpers. But, after discovering that she may have perpetrated the cock-up of the century at work, Sybil decides to make a hasty exit and, just weeks before Christmas, runs away to the picturesque village of Tindledale.There, Sybil discovers Hettie’s House of Haberdashery, an emporium dedicated to the world of knitting and needle craft. But Hettie, the outspoken octogenarian owner, is struggling and now the shop is due for closure. And when Hettie decides that Sybil’s wonderfully wacky Christmas jumpers are just the thing to add a bit of excitement to her window display, something miraculous starts to happen…