After witnessing the love of his parents devolve into pain and anger, Anthony Basingstoke has vowed never to be swept away by passion, even if he finds himself taken by this wallflower in a way he’s never been before. Only a Christmas miracle will make true love a gift that will last forever.“Up on the Rooftops” by Elizabeth EssexMischievous widow Caledonia Bowmont longs for London’s Christmas cheer, but a string of jewel thefts has brought the festive season to a standstill—and Society accuses the Scottish Wraith, Tobias McTavish. Toby is determined to clear his name and reclaim the life he’s built, so with Cally’s help, he heads up on the rooftops to trap the thief. Will they stop the high-carat crime, or find the hidden gem of lasting love instead?“The Very Debonair Lady Claire” by Heather SnowWhen Claire Barton’s twin is murdered, she takes his place in the War Department to flush out his killer. Her ruse works perfectly—until the man who once broke her heart becomes her new spymaster. The worst mistake of Andrew Sedgewick’s life was walking away from Claire that Christmas six years ago. Now that he’s found her again, he doesn’t intend to let her go—if they both survive this holiday season.“A Liar Under the Mistletoe” by Celeste BradleyFearless Amie Jackham doesn't attend balls to dance, she's there for the thrill of robbing the lockboxes of the unscrupulous. With the notorious Vixen still at large, Liar's Club spy Lord Elliot Hughes is taking the opportunity to clean out a few lockboxes for the good of Crown and Country—and leaving the Vixen's trademark lacy handkerchief behind. Thief and spy can’t resist each other in this sexy, catch-me-if-you-can Liar’s Club holiday novella.

    Taming my Christmas Rogue by Tammy Andresen Miss Danielle Frazier is far too virtuous for his tastes… so why can’t he stop thinking about her? He must take drastic measures. His plan? Steal one kiss. Except for from the moment their lips touch, nothing goes the way it’s supposed to and kisses under the mistletoe rarely end romantic fantasy. Now Drew has a new problem entirely… for the first time in his life, he might be falling in love. His Lady Smuggler by Tamara Gill May Stanford, lady smuggler is forced to go up against the Earl of Grandison, her father’s guest for Christmas and a man who’s determined to see her and her merry bandits brought to justice. Christmas Seduction by Samantha Holt In a time when arranged marriages had little to do with love, Alexander never expected a love match. Neither did Emma--but she had hoped for more than being abandoned instantly! However, Alexander is back and if there is ever a time for romance and second chances, it's Christmas. Winter Wishes by Scarlett Scott A duke in need of a bride meets his match in a lady who has no intention of becoming his duchess. Will their hearts find love before Christmas? Devil at the Gates by Lauren Smith A duke with a dark past rescues a the daughter of a fencing master. What begins as a battle of wills becomes a battle of heart as Christmas works its magic. An Unwelcome Proposal by Bree Wolf A chance encounter. An unexpected proposal. And an undeniable love. All his life, WESLEY EVERETT has watched other men fall in love. Now, when he finally does find a woman who brings a flutter to his heart, she could not be less interested. Will Wesley take 'no' for an answer? Or will he be able to convince Christine that marriage is far from boring?

    2 The Pleasure of a Younger Lover by Vanessa Kelly - Clarissa Middleton and ardent Captain Christian Archer meet in secret or risk London society censure. 3 The Naked Prince by Sally MacKenzie - Demure Josephine Atworthy is shocked and beguiled by mysterious nobleman next door, who begs a kiss - then another. 4 A Summer Love Affair by Kaithlin O'Riley - Unwed, unconventional, unchaperoned Charlotte Wilson is free to do as she pleases at a secluded Spanish villa in summer with dashing Gavin Ellsworth.

    Kilpack, Carla Kelly, and Jennifer Moore. SAINTS AND SINNERS by Josi S. Kilpack. When Neville Franklin’s best friend Burke wants to wager who can kiss Eloise first, Neville puts a stop to it. Eloise has been his friend since childhood, and, well, she’s off-limits. Especially to Burke. As Burke pursues Eloise and claims that she has a tendre for him, Neville becomes more and more protective of the girl he grew up with. On the night of the Christmas ball when Eloise appears in a dress that clearly shows that she is no longer a girl, but a beautiful woman, Neville realizes that his protective feelings toward Eloise have turned into something greater. But now, Neville’s best friend stands in his way.THE CHRISTMAS ANGLE by Carla Kelly. The first story in the St. Brendan Series. Sailing Master Able Six is on half-pay with the British navy, biding his time during the uneasy Peace of Amiens and the resumption of war. Meanwhile, he’s invited to teach young pupils at the home of a vicar outside of Plymouth. There, he unexpectedly meets Meridee, the spinster sister-in-law of the vicar. From the moment Able sees Meridee, he’s entranced. When she asks him about his past and discovers his remarkable yet troublesome gift, he realizes he’s finally found someone who can care for all of him. Sadly, Able’s low station and half-pay gives him no way to provide for a wife. Meridee’s lack of dowry and dependence on relatives makes their union impossible at best. But isn’t Christmas a season of hope?THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS by Jennifer Moore. Archie Clawson wants nothing more than to give Jane the perfect Christmas. Since her troubled childhood, she’s not experienced a Christmas with all the trimmings. To top off the perfection, he also plans to ask her to marry him on Christmas Eve. But as he and his friends, including Jane, travel to his country home, they are caught in a snowstorm and discover that notice of their arrival did not get through to the house staff. Worried over the disappointment he must be causing Jane and the complete shift in their planned Christmas, Archie fears that he’s misinterpreted her kindness towards him and lost her favor forever.

    Alasdair Morley, the Marquess of Westcliffe, is in need of an heiress, but Lady Willow should be the last person he craves after she was persuaded to reject his offer of marriage when he was a mere third son. Passion reignites between them, and he makes an enticing offer she cannot resist, drawing them into a dance of lust and love despite the misgivings in his heart.MIDNIGHT WISHHeiress Jane Cartwright wants a suitor who likes her instead of her dowry. Her parents want a titled son-in-law. When a stranger falls out of a tree and lands at her feet at the Midsummer Ball, she's intrigued with this charmingly awkward, science-minded man. She thinks her deepest wish has been answered when she finds out he's titled. But Jane learns that wishes can be fickle, and her whirlwind romance might just be too good to be true...ONCE UPON A PROMISELong abandoned by her aristocratic soldier husband, Emma Montclair craves a formal separation. To forget the man who pulled her into his glittering, stifling world, introducedher to sizzling passion, then broke her heart. Home at last, Major Caleb Montclair offers the wife he never stopped loving a counter-bargain: Grant him the six weeks until Midsummer Night to win her back. But even as oldtenderness rekindles, lost time and shocking secrets threaten their second chance... AND THEN THE MOONAfter unexpectedly inheriting a viscountcy, Duncan Newfield must join society. He seems to be the only one not enjoying the Midsummer Night's Ball - until he discovers Lady Madalene Parish hiding in the garden. Her father, Lord Gilmanton, has ordered her to accept a marriage proposal, any marriage proposal, by the end of the season. A bargain is struck and they enter into a fake engagement, but once they realize they might be perfect for one another, unexpected complications arise that may prevent them from having a future together.

    For at the top of each guest’s wish list is a last chance to find true love before the New Year…A chance meeting beneath the mistletoe, a stolen glance across the dance floor—amid the sumptuous delicacies, glittering decorations, and swell of the orchestra, every duchess and debutante, lord and lackey has a hopeful heart. There's the headstrong heiress who must win back her beloved by midnight—or be wed to another....the spinster whose fateful choice to relinquish love may hold one more surprise for her...a widow yearning to glimpse her long-lost love for even one sweet, fleeting interlude...a charming rake who finds far more than he bargained for. And many other dazzling, romantic tales in this star-studded collection that will fill your heart and spice up your holidays...Contents:Prologue by Jo BeverleyMy True Love Hath My Heart by Joanna BourneA Scottish Carol by Susan KingChristmas Larks by Patricia RiceIn the Bleak Midwinter by Mary Jo PutneyOld Flames Dance by Cara ElliottA Season for Marriage by Nicola CornickMiss Finch and the Angel by Jo BeverleyMistletoe Kisses by Anne Gracie

    but its former occupant as well!Contains:One True Love by Suzanne EnochTwo Hearts by Karen KawkinsA Dozen Kisses by Mia RyanThirty-six Valentines by Julia Quinn*All Lady Whistledown columns written by Julia Quinn

    But that plan falls into tatters when his mother sponsors his sister's friend and enlists him to dance with her at Almack's. The beautiful vixen he meets that night bears little resemblance to the shy, gangly girl who used to follow him around. Now, instead of avoiding Charlotte, he finds himself frustrated when she seems to notice everyone but him.

    Enter Henry Ogden, mild-mannered village vicar. Hardly the stuff of heroes . . . until adversity brings out unexpected talents. A Christmas Equation – A chance meeting between a reluctant viscount and a self-effacing companion revives memories of their shared past—a time when they were very different people. With secrets to keep, Sarah Clendenin wishes Benjamin Radcliff gone . . . but he’s making calculations of his own. Crimson Snow – A trail of blood drops leads Jane Merrywether to a wounded stranger—the only person standing in the way of her wicked guardian becoming an earl. John Rexford, long-thought dead, has returned to claim his inheritance and his promised bride . . . if he can survive a murderous Christmas. A Perfectly Unregimented Christmas – After years at war, Viscount Pennyworth returns to his ancestral home to find some peace and quiet and to avoid the holiday he loathes. But four naughty boys, a bonnet-wearing goat, a one-eyed cat, a family secret, and one Annabelle Winters, governess, make this a Christmas he’ll never forget.

    An Unexpected Christmas Gift by Madeline HunterJenna Waverly has closed her inn, anticipating a blissfully quiet Christmas, until a snowstorm brings the first of several strangers to her property. Lucas Avonwood, as charming as he is secretive, is on a mission to track down a scoundrel, but the inn’s lovely owner is giving him a more compelling reason to stay... When We Finally Kiss Good-Night by Sabrina JeffriesWhen Flora Younger first met Konrad Juncker, she thought she’d found her match, only to have her hopes dashed. Konrad is now a famous playwright whose plays Flora has secretly panned in reviews. But a chance meeting in a secluded inn may help them rewrite this star-crossed romance... When Strangers Meet by Mary Jo PutneyKate McLeod is shocked to find that a fellow guest in the snowbound inn is the dashing sea captain who may or may not be her husband. Captain Ramesh Langdon barely remembers that night in Bombay, but the desire they discover now will be impossible to forget, or to ignore...

    . . that doctor could sit by my bedside if I ever got sick. And Ned Blydon in Splendid by Julia Quinn . . . he makes me want to learn to waltz! I never thought living in a drafty castle would be much fun until Simon of Ravenswood in Master of Desire by Kinley MacGregor came along.Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that these are my men—when do they get their stories?Sincerely,A Romance Fan___________________________________ Against All Odds by Lisa KleypasWhen eminently sensible Lydia Craven decides to marry for security rather than love, she doesn't calculate on the determination of devil-may-care doctor Jake Linley to rewrite the romantic formula. A Tale of Two Sisters by Julia QuinnDashing Ned Blydon is in a most unenviable predicament—he's engaged to one Thornton sister, while being secretly in love with the other. Midsummer's Knight by Kinley MacGregorWhen Simon of Ravenswood secretly answered Lady Kenna's letters in the name of a powerful earl, he was only being polite. Little did he know the lady would fall in love with the author and come between him, his best friend, and a solemn vow made long ago.

    Instead, Miss Celia Bromley faces the most heartbreaking dilemma of her life: she’s fallen in love with the man engaged to marry her scheming half sister. Worse, he might love Celia in return. But handsome, bookish Henry Saunders is a man of honor. He would never break his promise to his bride-to-be, no matter how horrid she may be.Celia’s despair hasn’t escaped the notice of keen-eyed Aunt Guinevere, who, along with her crafty friends, is determined to see true love triumph. Unraveling a wedding takes a delicate, subtle touch, and in the mad dash to break one engagement and encourage another, the ladies may well hear the whispers of scandal instead of the peal of wedding bells...

    The hero in all of her tales is one Nathan Carruthers, Earl of Basingstoke. The rumors surrounding his wicked assignations are beyond anything she could dream of, and once enhanced by her wild imaginings, she’s created a lover no man could live up to. Basingstoke has ignored the rumors about his romantic scandals for the most part, accepting them as part of being a single gentleman with a title. In one way, it’s kept the marriage-minded mothers from thrusting their daughters into his reach. Although a staunch member of the Wicked Earls’ Club and enjoying his carefree ways, he admits he’s reached an age when he would like to marry. Luckily, those supposed scandals aren’t keeping away the woman he’s grown to love--Lady Phoebe. When Basingstoke discovers Lady Phoebe’s diary, he blames her for creating the rumors. Hurt to the bone, he wants nothing more to do with her. Heartbroken, she goes in search of the real rumormonger. Can she prove her innocence and regain Basingstoke’s love?

    This is a collection of four sizzling historical stories, written by Virginia Henley, Sally MacKenzie, Victoria Dahl and Kristi Astor.

    But when her loving, but disapproving father threatens to have her declared unfit to force her home and back into a staid existence, she realizes she'll need her lost fortune back to flee the country. She proposes a wager to Hawk. Spend a month in her bed and if he ends up begging for more, she wins her money back. But Hawk wants more than a month, and he'll take Bianca to her breaking point in order to win her love, as well as her body.The Sweetest SinWhen their secret marriage was illegally annulled five years before, Landon Hawkins swore he would never love again and that he would never forgive Juliana Russell for her utter betrayal. But now she has turned to him, requesting that he help her recover her missing sister and the lust and pain he has hidden all this time come rushing back. He strikes a dangerous bargain with her. he'll search for her sister during the day, but at night Juliana belongs to him in every way. But Landon may not be able to purge his desire for Juliana as easily as he thinks. Not when the fire of the love they once shared begins to be rekindled with every touch.Sin's MistressRaphael Sinclair is the most debauched of rakes and rogues. When he wants something he takes it, whether it be revenge or a woman. And now he wants both. Evelyn Greville's father is Sin's worst enemy. And what better way to purge a stunning desire for the innocent miss and ruin her father than to have her in every wicked way his clever mind can imagine. But Evelyn is not as innocent as she seems... and he may be the one conquered by Sin's Mistress.