When he arrives and is ushered through the gate, he finds something far different from the typical vacation retreat. In fact, it seems he may have found the back door to heaven. The proprietor and people from his past welcome him with food, rest, and conversation until what started out as a little escape from everyday life turns into an experience he will never forget.

    Especially this year. No job. Flat broke. And an ex most definitely on the naughty list.But the unexpected inheritance of a Victorian cottage in the idyllic town of Poppy Creek may be the miracle Cassie needs. Except for one problem: a clause in the will. Cassie must complete a series of festive tasks for each day in December leading up to Christmas. Overseen by the disarmingly handsome, Christmas-loving lawyer, Luke Davis. Luke is as strong and steady as the bespoke furniture he crafts as a hobby. He has to be. Stepping into his late father's shoes as the town lawyer comes with a sleigh full of responsibilities. Which means the alluring stranger collecting her inheritance is a distraction he can't afford.As the unlikely pair works together to complete the daily tasks, fighting their attraction becomes more futile than putting good ol' St. Nick on a diet. But when Cassie's ex reappears with the offer of a lifetime, she'll have to choose between love and the life she always wanted. Curl up with a cup of hot chocolate and visit a town that feels like home. This endearing, sweet romance will warm your heart and fill you will hope. A "must-read" year after year.

    They've all come together to South Carolina to celebrate Christmas. But this Christmas looks nothing like the extravagant, homey Christmases Theodora grew up with. What happened to the days when the holiday spirit meant tables groaning with home cooked goodies, over–the–top decorations, and long chats in front of the fire with Pearl, her grandmother's housekeeper/manager/caterer/psychiatrist/best friend? Luckily someone hears Theodora's plea for help and Merle (possibly Pearl?) arrives, pockets filled with Gullah magic and common sense to straighten everyone out.

    Not long after, he began to notice uncanny similarities between the dream and real world events happening to Christians in the news as if the dream was giving predictions of the future. Grant felt led to turn the dream into a piece of Christian fiction that would grab people's attention, so they would understand the dire warning of coming persecution, before it's too late. That story is called The Glimpse, and its is for youth, young adults, parents,church leaders and the Christian Church at large. Its message is for you. Story SynopsisAustin Kelly is about to learn a lesson: Be careful when you pray for God to change you, because He answers prayer. Even though he's a Sunday School teacher, Austin's faith in Jesus Christ is no match for his fear of rejection from others. Lizzie Kelly has more courage than her husband, but struggles to find fulfillment and meaning in her job at their church. The couple's friends aren't faring much better. Computer tech Daniel Cabrera fights disappointment with the direction his career has taken, and even more frustration with the church youth he teaches. His wife, Jackie, strives to maintain a sense of control over her life, but it's quickly faltering. Faced with churches dying across New York City, the four Christian teachers have a cry in their hearts for their lives to make a difference. God answers their cry by throwing them into a world that looks like a nightmare version of the United States. Everything is so similar, yet totally different, starting with the fact that Christians are nearly extinct after decades of persecution. They soon discover it is a fascist nation, where anyone who professes faith in Christ risks their life. The four travelers encounter a group of teenagers that turn out to be one of the last surviving churches, led by their high school teacher, Eric Peterson. With no visible way to get home, Austin, Lizzie and their friends join the underground church in their fight to spread the Gospel while avoiding the National Police. Their task is made even more difficult when revival breaks out in the local high school and draws unwanted attention, but they know they can't stop until their work is complete and the Lord makes a way for them to go home...if there is one..

    His dream is to become the pastor of the church in their hometown, but the small-town congregation keeps balking over calling an unmarried minister. Since Daniel needs a wife and Jessica wants a husband and family, she proposes an arrangement that benefits both of them.They can get married. They can build a life together. They can celebrate Christmas as a couple. It's fine that he doesn't love her. And it's fine that she's not exactly suited to be a small-town pastor's wife. And it's fine that she's more attracted to her sexy, brooding husband every day.Jessica can be practical about this marriage. She knows what she's getting into, after all...This book includes fully-developed sex scenes between a husband and wife.

    But how did he get there? What was Job's life like before tragedy struck? What did he think as his world came crashing down around him? And what was life like after God restored his wealth, health, and family? Through painstaking research and a writer's creative mind, Mesu Andrews weaves an emotional and stirring account of this well-known story told through the eyes of the women who loved him. Drawing together the account of Job with those of Esau's tribe and Jacob's daughter Dinah, Love Amid the Ashes breathes life, romance, and passion into the classic biblical story of suffering and steadfast faith.

    Each one is discussed in a short inspirational essay then illustrated by four to five all-new heart-touching stories from Chicken Soup for the Soul, bringing the magic of the season to light. Each section ends with a one-page suggestion on how to start your own holiday tradition, from baking cookies to charity ideas that reflect the spirit of the virtue.Perfect for adults and children, this uplifting book is a wonderful celebration of the season.

     Sonny Dunes, a SoCal meteorologist who knows only sunshine and seventy-two-degree days, is being replaced by an AI meteorologist, which the youthful station manager reasons "will never age, gain weight or renegotiate its contract." The only station willing to give the fifty-year-old another shot is one in a famously nontropical place—her northern Michigan hometown. Unearthing her carefully laid California roots, Sonny returns home and reacclimates to the painfully long, dark winters dominated by a Michigan phenomenon known as lake-effect snow. But beyond the complete physical shock to her system, she's also forced to confront her past: her new boss, a former journalism classmate and mortal frenemy; more keenly, the death of a younger sister who loved the snow; and the mother who caused Sonny to leave. To distract herself from the unwelcome memories, Sonny decides to throw herself headfirst into all things winter to woo viewers and reclaim her success. From sledding and ice fishing to skiing and winter festivals, the merrymaking culminates with the town’s famed Winter Ice Sculpture Contest. Running the events is a widowed father and chamber of commerce director, whose genuine love of Michigan, winter and Sonny just might thaw her heart and restart her life in a way she never could have predicted.

    The end is near, but he won't accept it. The store is all he has left of his wife and he can't let it go. Failure and loss have led him to a dark place.After a chance encounter with a shoplifter, he stumbles upon the help of Amelia Cook, who is struggling with her own loss. Through one holiday season the two of them hatch a plan to save the store and in turn touch the lives of everyone they know. What follows is a wonderful, but tragic tale of love, loss and new beginnings.

     Widow Maddie McLendon has uprooted her life to move to Rustlers Gulch with her son and grandson. But as a brutal Montana winter looms on the horizon, contractors have yet to break ground on their new house, leaving them to live in a makeshift camp of trailers, tents, and sheds....Since his wife died six years earlier, millionaire rancher Sam Conacher has been content to wallow in his grief alone, while keeping a tight rein on his twenty-six-year-old daughter. But now the girl has gone and fallen in love with his foolish new neighbor’s no-good son....Maddie and Sam will never see eye to eye on anything, until a near-tragedy gives them a true glimpse into each other’s souls. And as the first snowflakes begin to fall, they’ll discover that an open heart is the biggest gift of all....

    . .Years of long workdays and little sleep as a political campaigner are about to pay off now that Lucy Toomey's boss is entering the White House. But when her estranged older sister, Alice, unexpectedly dies, Lucy is drawn back to Nilson's Bay, her small, close-knit, Wisconsin hometown. An accident in her teens left Alice mentally impaired, and she was content to stay in Nilson's Bay. Lucy, meanwhile, got out and never looked back. But now, to meet the terms of Alice's eccentric will, Lucy has taken up temporary residence in her sister's cottage--and begins to see the town, and Alice's life, anew. Alice's diverse group of friends appears to have little in common besides an interest in quilting. Yet deep affection for Alice united them and soon Lucy, too, is brought into the fold as they share problems and stories. And as she finds warmth and support in this new circle, Lucy begins to understand this will be her sister's enduring gift--a chance to move beyond her difficult past, and find what she has long been missing. . .

    What a charming way Stephen Mitchell has found to tell my favorite story of all, the Nativity, character by character (I love the donkey and the ox), with wise and thrilling interludes about God, reality, truth." -Anne LamottIn The First Christmas, Stephen Mitchell brings the Nativity story to vivid life as never before. A narrative that is only sketched out in two Gospels becomes fully realized here with nuanced characters and a setting that reflects the culture of the time. Mitchell has suffused the birth of Jesus with a sense of beauty that will delight and astonish readers.In this version, we see the world through the eyes of a Whitmanesque ox and a visionary donkey, starry-eyed shepherds and Zen-like wise men, each of them providing a unique perspective on a scene that is, in Western culture, the central symbol for good tidings of great joy. Rather than superimposing later Christian concepts onto the Annunciation and Nativity scenes, he imagines Mary and Joseph experiencing the angelic message as a young Jewish woman and man living in the year 4 bce might have experienced it, with terror, dismay, and ultimate acceptance. In this context, their yes becomes an act of great moral courage.Readers of every background will be enchanted by this startlingly beautiful reimagining of the Christmas tale.