She was promptly sent away by her philandering father, the colliery owner Robert Harvey, to become an educated and accomplished young woman - and to escape the beatings at the cruel hand of her vengeful stepmother, Hannah. As Bess finishes boarding school, a tragic accident strikes Robert Harvey, almost killing him, and the decline of the family's fortunes means Bess and her siblings must find spouses to provide for them. After a series of doomed arranged encounters with potential suitors, Bess's stepmother is forced to take drastic action against her to protect herself and her family. Who is the mystery fiancé Hannah Harvey has in mind? And how will Bess feel knowing the decision means she will never be free to marry her childhood sweetheart?

    England rules the waves and Wellington is taking on the French in the Spanish Peninsula, but the French Navy yet remains a potent threat, especially their fast, well-armed frigates. Also, another threat is creeping Northward; slaver/pirates in fast galleys from the North African coast, are raiding North, taking advantage of the warring Navies preoccupation with each other, to capture for slavery the highly valuable women and children of Northern Europe. Into this, Captain Reuben Argent sails his first command, HMS Ariadne, a fast, 32 gun, Spanish built frigate. He has moulded both his ship and crew into a tight fighting unit, which he immediately uses to capture La Mouette, a French 42 gun frigate. A brilliant start, but all is not well at home. The Enclosures movement could force his family from their farm, and his Admiral is their immediate neighbour, who hates the Argent family and will use any means available to force them from their home and gain their land. On top is Argent’s rivalry with “Flogger Cheveley” the Captain of the Herodotus, who has a very different concept of how to run a ship of the Royal Navy. Also, as Captain, Argent has to contend with the machinations within the community that is his own crew. The day comes when Argent has to make a career threatening choice, either, as ordered, to take a vital despatch to Wellington at the fastest possible speed or to search for the slaver that has just captured Cornish women and children, including members of his own family. In the background is the smuggling of linen from Ireland to France and his relations with the feisty Sinead Malley and the society beauty Charlotte Willoughby

    Reacting instinctively to protect a stranger, Thomas becomes their target. When the bonemen come to inflict punishment he is forced kill one of their number.As he leaves London in the company of Arthur, Prince of Wales, heir to the English throne, Thomas expects no grave consequences for his actions. It’s a mistake that might get both him and his companions killed.Sent to England by the Spanish Queen to watch over Catherine of Aragon on her marriage to Arthur, Thomas intends the duty to be short-lived. But he hasn’t reckoned on the bonemen, who are spreading their influence ever wider. As danger mounts, Thomas is no longer sure he is the man for the task but has no option but to fight, as he always has. For the innocent, for justice, and for his life.Politics and crime collide in Tudor England in a new series of adventures for Thomas Berrington. Join Thomas on his latest journey. Order The Bone Men now.

    And is also one of the best African American Urban Fiction novellas available. And now it’s here for your reading satisfaction. In this short story you’ll take an unforgettable ride with the national bestselling author Tiece, another great storyteller under Cole Hart Signature. Her writing is smooth and she know's how to make her characters come to life. **Warning** This is not your typical Urban romance, dope boy, thug love, or kingpin savage book. Heart pounding. Edge of your seat. Women's Fiction. Street literature. Cosmetic surgeon, Dr. Jonas Garcia is living his best life. He’s one of the greatest in his field, along-side his first cousin Dr. Deshawn Diego. Unlike Deshawn who is a happily married man, Jonas is a certified bachelor with thoughts of never settling down. However, an unexpected incident causes him to pause for a moment when he comes face to face with the mysterious Peach Kingston. Will Cupid finally pierce one of his arrows through Jonas’s cold heart? Peach and Jonas have a lot in common, being that neither is willing to give their hearts to another. Peach has her own issues that she has managed to maintain, as much as possible. An unforeseen encounter with Jonas instantly touches something in her soul, which causes her to rethink everything she ever doubted about love. But, Peach has a huge secret that she’s trying to let go of. Will this be the one thing that Jonas isn’t prepared for? Deshawn has any and everything he wants and needs, including the love in his marriage. With a wife like KeeKee, he can’t go wrong. She’s everything he could possibly ever want in a woman, but when infidelity strikes in the worse way, will they be able to weather the storm? Find out if Love prevails or fails in this addictive short story that’s sure to have you all up in your feelings.

    Trying to flee from slavery and the terrible act, she heads into the forests of North Georgia, the trees hiding secrets and containing her destiny. Set in 1858, Oona tells the tale of a runaway slave. She meets Dorothy and Walter, a couple living in the wilderness. They offer her food and shelter. Wary of such acts of kindness, she considers their offer to stay.Meanwhile, her past will not releae its grip. She is tormented by it and there are those who would take her into custody in order to mete out a harsh justice. Will Oona find her freedom to be temporary or will she discover a new life of liberty? Discover her fate in this story of kindness, cruelty and hope. The majority of Edwin Page's books are available in Kindle and paperback formats. Mr Page is the author of numerous works of fiction and non-fiction, including the widely acclaimed books The Hanging Tree, Runaway and Where Seagulls Fly.

     Ari Thorgilsson builds a cargo ship, the Uxi, in a desperate attempt to save the family from poverty and ruin. Ari sails it out of his home in the fjords of Norway to the Orkney Islands and then into the Irish Sea, where a chance encounter makes an enemy of Ivar the Younger, a son of the Danish Viking Ivar the Boneless. While pursued by Ivar the Younger, a storm drives the ship onto the rocky coast of a hostile land, where the ship is wrecked he and the crew are captured by native Britons. Execution or enslavement seem to be their fate. But there is yet hope, for Artgal, king of the British kingdom of Alt Clut, is in need of warriors. He promises Ari a new ship if he and his companions garrison a fortress on the border with the Picts to the north, while he takes an army to fight the Angles in the east. Ari and his friends accept the offer, and plunge into a year of intrigue and battle in the depths of the land that one day will be known as Scotland, testing their mettle and their commitment to their honor. A Pictish invasion seems to spell the end of Ari’s dream of a new ship. And then a fleet of Danish Vikings sails into the River Clut to lay siege to Artgal’s fortress, thrusting that dream well beyond his grasp. Or does it?

    Over the years it was visited by a diverse hodge-podge of notables, including Davey Crockett and Charles Dickens, all who left aghast at the horrible living conditions, the poverty and the decadence of the people they found there. At their zenith, these vulgar, diseased and murderous streets housed 30,000 homeless children of all ages--the street urchins--who played, scavenged for food, fought the elements and each other, and tried to avoid the perpetual violence that routinely threatened their survival. Death was their constant competitor, and death often won. They were the discarded refuse of the great 19th century immigrant migrations to America, and they were an undesirable nuisance to the good citizens of New York. This is the story of two such children, Anna Murphy and Ben McDonald, abandoned to the streets and thrown together in a desperate attempt to achieve the impossible: to escape from Hell’s Kitchen in search of new beginnings in far and distant lands.

    Further political machinations have secured a command for this new officer. It is now up to the new Lieutenant Charles Mullins to make a success of his new command on his own.

    At its heart is a cast of characters who draw us into their lives from the defeat of Dunkirk to final victory:Tony, a young man barely in his twenties who experiences the horror of Britain’s first defeat and offers his unique talents to the war effort, only to find that his secret work threatens his relationships with those he loves. David, Tony’s elder brother, fighter pilot and hero of the Battle of Britain. Sarah, whose work with the VAD’s brings her into contact with so many, forcing her to choose between a man with loyalty and honour or another with all the characteristics of a coward. Bobby, a young American GI for whom a posting to England brings love and hope. And at the centre of it all, Heronfield, the manor house set amongst the gentle rolling downs of southern England, one time home for Tony and his family and now a war-time hospital.Heronfield, witness to six long years of loyalty and love, anger and hatred, loss and betrayal.

    Unmarried, he’s keen to settle and as he and Gerda spend more and more time onboard together they realise that each has found someone very special.But it’s the afternoon before they dock in Liverpool, and tragedy strikes. As the torpedoed ship lists to one side Jack and Gerda must make frightening decisions that become a matter of life or death …A beautiful, romantic and moving tale based on a true story.***This is a short story, which you can also buy as part of the Love…Maybe Eshort Collection***

    This is a companion series and can be read independently of the Chronicles. The year is 1731 and in a small village in Cheshire, England, the Reverend Browne has determined the future of his young daughter Sarah. Her life will be dedicated to caring for him and his household affairs while he, acting as one of God’s chosen few, saves souls from the devil. Sarah dreams of a different future, one in which she will be happy and independent. As she grows older she starts to see glimpses of a tantalising world beyond her reach and longs one day to escape the drudgery of her life, to become part of it all and maybe even have her own business. However, a chance meeting leads first to joy and blossoming and then to the destruction of her whole world. It changes her life forever, forcing her down a path which is the very opposite of the glittering one she had hoped for, one for which she has to pay a terrible price to survive.

    Lucy James, the daughter of Sherlock Holmes, and Dr. Watson are the co-narrators of the story. They hope this baffling mystery will bring Holmes out of his obsession with the killer who eluded capture in their previous case. But the cases are linked, and the danger to the Baker Street team is very real.The Sherlock and Lucy series combines a classic Holmes with gripping intrigue. For fans of cozy mysteries, historical mysteries, historical fiction. Get it now!

    He insists in sending Mark off in style...in the company of a hooker. It's supposed to be the last hoorah of a single man before being condemned to a life of marriage, but that all changes when the hooker scams them. Mark's world unravels and a dark side he never knew he possessed spills out.The REPREHENSIBLE ACTS series feature stories without heroes or happy endings in some cases. These stories feature characters that lose their way and may never find their way back. You can't condone their actions, but perhaps you can have sympathy for their damaged souls. You might find these stories unpalatable, but then again, you're meant to. Don't judge. No one is immune to committing a reprehensible act.

    It is not meaning that the individual searches for in their life, but at the ground level, what the person is seeking is hope, life-lessons, the truth and a dash of motivation every now and then. All this search makes one feel a sense of fulfilment in their life. Learning is a part of life and man’s quest for life-lessons will never cease until death. Presenting you a collection of short stories, which is an attempt to make you see life and its subtle messages through a different lens.