For as long as Christmas has been celebrated, poets and writers have sought to explore every aspect of it, whether the story of the nativity, or the festive traditions that have grown up over the centuries. A Literary Christmas is a seasonal compendium that collects together poems, short stories, and prose extracts by some of the greatest poets and writers in the English language. Like Charles Dickens's ghosts of Christmas Past and Present, they are representative of times old and new—from John Donne's Elizabethan hymn over the baby Jesus to Benjamin Zephaniah's "Talking Turkeys," from Thomas Tusser counting the cost of a Tudor feast to P G Wodehouse's wry short story about Christmas on a diet. Enjoy a convivial Christmas Day as described by Samuel Pepys, Anthony Trollope, George Eliot, or Nancy Mitford. Venture out into the snow in the company of Jane Austen, Henry James, and Dickens's ever-popular Mr Pickwick. Entertain the children with the seasonal tales of Dylan Thomas, Kenneth Grahame, and Oscar Wilde. For any lover of great literature, A Literary Christmas is the perfect gift. As a companion to the book, A Literary Christmas is also being released as a 2CD set at the same time. The audio recordings on the two discs feature readings of many of the same poems and prose extracts from the book.

    Bigotry, poverty, social injustice, and sexual squalor in the Deep South—hallmarks of one of the most daring and phenomenally popular bestselling novelists of the twentieth-century. Here, in one volume, are three of his best-known works. “None of [his] characters would be caught dead in a novel by John Steinbeck, Carson McCullers, or Eudora Welty” (The Daily Beast).  Tobacco Road: The Great Depression compromises the morals of a poor farming family in Georgia. This classic, a Modern Library 100 Best Novels selection, was adapted for the stage in 1933 and made into a 1941 film directed by John Ford.  God’s Little Acre: Desperation takes its toll on a deluded Southern farmer obsessed with sex, violence, and the promise of gold. Banned in Boston, censored in Georgia, and prosecuted by the New York Society for the Suppression of Vice, this international bestseller was adapted into a film in 1958.  A Place Called Estherville: In the pre-civil-rights-era South, a biracial brother and sister move to a small segregated town to care for their aunt, only to be subjected to systematic racism, sexual violence, and prejudice.   “What William Faulkner implies, Erskine Caldwell records,” said the Chicago Tribune of the author who earned his reputation by writing about sex, racism, and religious hypocrisy when no one else was. Caldwell remains one of the most widely translated American authors of all time.  This ebook features an illustrated biography of Erskine Caldwell including rare photos and never-before-seen documents courtesy of the Dartmouth College Library.

    You can also read it for FREE in Kindle Unlimited! Reckless lovers, passionate Highlanders, and men who dare to forge kingdoms come together in this fabulous collection of romantic tales. This set includes: Virtue by Victoria Vane - Abandoned as a young child, Alexander serves two masters…and a woman who doesn’t know her own heart. Together, they will forge the future of a kingdom. Valor by Victoria Vane - A king’s grandson robbed of his rightful inheritance…a knight’s daughter who longs for justice…and her salvation will require his sacrifice. Kilted at the Altar by Anna Markland - A rip-roaring comedic romance set in the Highlands of Scotland, part of the bestselling "Clash of the Tartans" series. My Reckless Love by Melissa Limoges - Between meddlesome relatives and a series of misunderstandings, Arabella and Calum must decide if they can entrust their hearts to one another before the enemy robs them of their newfound happiness. My Steadfast Love by Melissa Limoges - Treachery, murder, passion, and warring clans encompass this tale set in the highlands of Scotland. My Passionate Love by Melissa Limoges - Mairi and Aaron are forced together by circumstances. Will their kindled passion thaw with the coming spring? Or will it burn eternal? Get this collection before it's gone!

    

    But, out of the blue, he is transferred without explanation to a temporary university teaching post. Shortly after, he is ordered to a prison-like correctional monastery deep in the Sonora Desert of Arizona. Murphy knows that he has been a devout priest and is puzzled and angry that he has been thrown in with the derelicts of the Catholic clergy. At the monastery, he finds that he has been cast among the pedophiles, alcoholics, embezzlers and other serious offenders who the church hierarchy is pressuring to resign or be defrocked. Convinced that God wants him to continue his ministry, he escapes. Murphy is now a fugitive, pursued by monks from the monastery who are little more than thugs with others to "do whatever it takes" to stop him and return him to the monastery, or even kill him, if necessary. Why, Steve Murphy asks himself, is his church doing this to him?

    We're just two women who know what it is to need one." Jane has problems, and this December, keeping her assassin best friend from actually killing somebody isn't the biggest one. Her songwriting muse keeps trying to rise from the dead, they have a new sidekick they can't seem to dislodge from the back seat, and it's that time of year when the ghosts of Christmas shake their chains and make an unbearable season even worse. Peace on Earth isn't what they're good at - but it's coming for them anyhow. Which isn't anything a couple of assassins want for Christmas. (Previously published as Lesbian Assassins, which was a nod to how the story got started, and a terrible description of its contents. Heavily revised to become the tale of holiday redemption Carly & Jane apparently always intended to become!)

    Not only that but she’s left trying to figure out her next move after a bomb is dropped on her. Trinity is trying to move on with her life after all the drama with Lucas but when his accident causes her to be by his side she sees moving on isn’t as easy as she thought. Now she has to try to maintain a new relationship while showing she’s still loyal to the ones that’s been there from the beginning. Will things work out in her favor? Brady and Trinity are getting ready for their new addition but when outside forces come in threatening to tear them apart they must show there love is strong enough to overcome them. Brady makes a decision that will not only affect him but his family as well, now he must deal with consequences, but will Renee be willing to stick by his side? Meanwhile, the DEA is still on the boys back, Trevor is still lurking in the shadows, and death is trying to knock on the crew's door. Will they be able to make it through this crazy ride or fall victim to the madness?

    Between taking care of the family farm and working at the diner to make ends meet, she has a lot on her plate. She has neither the time nor the interest to pursue a relationship. When a stranger shows up in town and happens to be around just at the moment she needs help the most, will she break her own rules and let him into her life?If only tragedy didn’t find a way to sneak into her life at every chance…After studying for six years in Chicago, Roger Lockett has returned to Texas to be a doctor. He and his father have never seen eye to eye about his future and what he should dedicate himself to. When his father makes him an offer that could put their differences to rest and bring him to a tiny town in need of a doctor, Roger jumps at the chance. What he never expected was to cross paths with the most beautiful and strong-willed woman he has ever met...Will he manage to break down the walls surrounding her wary heart though?As Roger and Eve grow closer together, disasters and difficulties seem to pile up for Eve and her family. With Christmas preparations in full swing, she struggles to hold everything together. Then an accident hits close to home and suddenly Eve isn’t sure there will be any Christmas this year… Will Roger and Eve brave these challenges together? Will they open their hearts to love and a Christmas miracle?"A Western Christmas Miracle" is a historical western romance novel of approximately 80,000 words. No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed happily ever after.

    The Dying Hour 2. Every Fear 3. A Perfect Grave. Meet Jason Wade, a rookie crime reporter with The Seattle Mirror, a loner who grew up in the shadow of a brewery in one of the city's blue-collar neighborhoods. BOOK 1 THE DYING HOUR: After its publication, the International Thriller Writers (ITW) selected The Dying Hour as a Finalist for a 2006 Thriller Award in the category of Best Paperback Original. The book introduces Jason Wade who is working at The Seattle Mirror, in a competition for the single full-time job being offered through the paper's intense intern program. But unlike the program's other young reporters, who attended big name schools and worked at big metro dailies, Wade put himself through community college, and lacked the same experience. Wade struggles with his troubled past as he pursues the story of Karen Harding, a college student whose car was found abandoned on a lonely stretch of highway in the Pacific Northwest. How could this beloved young woman with the altruistic nature simply vanish? Wade battles mounting odds and cut-throat competition to unearth the truth behind Karen Harding's disturbing case. Her disappearance is a story he cannot give up, never realizing the toll it could exact from him. The Dying Hour is a bone-chilling, mesmerizing page-turner that introduces readers to an all-too-human young hero who journeys into the darkest regions of the human heart to confront a nightmare. BOOK 2 EVERY FEAR: On an ordinary morning Maria Colson takes her baby son Dylan to the corner store. She turns her back for only a few seconds. When she looks again, she sees his empty stroller as Dylan is being abducted into a waiting van. Maria climbs into the van but is violently thrown to the road where she is left for dead as the vehicle vanishes without a trace. As Maria fights for her life and her anguished young husband keeps a beside vigil, the FBI and police across metro Sea-Tac and Washington State search for Dylan. Seattle Mirror reporter Jason Wade is under pressure to bring in a big story, and the Colson kidnapping could be it. It’s a bizarre case with pieces that just don’t add up: The Colsons are a hard-working couple. Former high school sweethearts. No problems. No enemies. Then Jason and his dad, a private detective haunted by his former life as a cop, discover a grisly murder of a young woman that is somehow connected to the Colsons. Now, in a dark Seattle underground of desperate dreamers and ex-convicts, Jason embarks on an investigation that parallels one led by Homicide Detective Grace Garner. They're both hunting for the one piece of the puzzle that connects the baby’s disappearance with a spine-tingling case of revenge. And time is running out, because whoever took little Dylan Colson is more dangerous than anyone could ever imagine. Every Fear takes suspense to a whole new level in a heart-pounding story that moves like a true crime case torn from today's headlines. BOOK 3 A PERFECT GRAVE: Rookie crime reporter Jason Wade, a loner from the wrong side of the tracks, pursues the story of a murdered Seattle nun. The case leads him to a hermit nun who founded a mysterious religious order; and ultimately to the dark secret that has tormented his ex-cop father for decades. It culminates in a life-and-death struggle against the clock. With time running out, Jason and his father battle the odds to confront a terrible truth.

    Nick Winters is dedicated to his job as a police officer … and hopelessly in love with Maddie. Together they make a terrifying crime-fighting twosome, and they’re always in search of a new adventure. This omnibus includes books ten through twelve in the Maddie Graves mystery series. Included titles are: Grave Haunting, Grave Paths and Grave Danger.

    She needs a lifetime... When Viscountess Kinsley’s father lost all but their home and then drank himself to death, creditors stood ready to seize what remained. Anne’s only hope of saving her family is to find a husband through Lady Peddington’s School for Young Ladies. Only, upon graduation, Anne finds herself the victim of jealous gossip that claims she seeks multiple lovers. Now, no respectable man will have her. RAKE RUINER Hatred is only a kiss away from love. When her husband dies in a duel over another woman, Charlotte Fairhaven sets childish notions of love aside in favor of something more reliable – pleasure. Unfortunately, the gentlemen of Scotland have little appreciation for her newfound freedom. Offers of marriage abound, driving her to a remote corner of the Highlands to evade her admirers. There, Charlotte discovers the most aggravating man she’s ever met, and the only one with any hope to mend her heart. THE WIDOW’S TREASURE Two years after her husband’s death, Lady Derwent is finally enjoying a life of freedom and delicious intrigue. She travels to the Scottish Highlands only to sell the estate of Ardbeag, but when Stirling James suggests Rob Ogilvy of Lochgarron as a possible buyer, her plans begin to unravel. Rob believes the scandalous English widow has set her wicked sights on his nephew. But after only one masked encounter with her, he determines to make her his own. MARRYING THE BELLE OF EDINBURGH A foul murder, a beautiful widow, and one man who will risk everything for love. Lord William Brandon has spent torturous days and desperate nights in love with his best friend’s wife. He resolves to marry another with the help of the Marriage Maker, but when the Belle of Edinburgh appears at a ball and asks for his help, he once again is powerless to resist her. A MATCH MADE IN THE HIGHLANDS Captain Logan Graham hoped to find peace and solitude at Blackstone Abbey, but painful memories from the battlefield, along with his lingering injuries, refuse to let him rest. He’s not fit for polite company let alone a wife, especially not one as beautiful as the lady who arrives at his door at the behest of the Marriage Maker. SEDUCTION OF A WIDOW She intends to win the race. He intends to win her heart... Evan MacLaren prefers to find his thrills on the high seas. Stormy waters might be fickle, but not as fickle as a woman—particularly a high-spirited widow. Yet Lady Carr’s adventurous spirit calls to him just as the sea does. Here is a woman who will never bore him. A woman who is as free and dangerous as any ocean. And he must have her. THE MARRIAGE OBLIGATION Confirmed spinster meets British spy. What could possibly go wrong? At eighteen years old, Cornelia Hardcastle discovered an ugly family secret that could ruin her family. There is only one way to ensure the world doesn’t learn the truth: never marry. Now that she's twenty-four, however, her parents have put their foot down. She must marry. THE MAID OF INVERNESS Despite Douglas Randolph’s attempt to avoid Society and his responsibility as the future Duke of Inverness, news he is has inherited the dukedom reaches him deep in the Scottish Highlands. That problem pales into comparison to the wager he makes with the man known as The Marriage Maker. Sir Stirling James swears he can find suitable husbands for four ladies directly descendant from Robert the Bruce. Little does Douglas know he is to be the first groom.

    There is only one person who can save the country, but she's not in authority - YET! It is clear that the Prime Minister, a pacifist at heart, cannot stop the carnage, but the tough-minded Anne Argento, a member of his government can. She needs to take control, and she can only do that if she is Prime Minister.The Prime Minister of Great Britain is to be assassinated – Frederick Vane and Andrew Martin, two government analysts, are sure of it. Do they allow the assassination to continue? Do they tell DCI Isaac Cook, a tall black man of Jamaican heritage? Do they inform Anne Argento? Can a policeman and a politician be trusted with the information?A nuclear-powered submarine has been lost. A cathedral prevented from destruction at the last minute. Shopping centres and churches throughout the length of England subjected to random attacks. Patrons at public houses enjoying a quiet night’s drink slaughtered.The Master, the head of the Islamic State in England is orchestrating the attacks. Durrani, the bomb maker, is giving him the weapons of destruction. Shafi, an unscrupulous drug dealer, is out on the street aiming to infiltrate the Islamic State, and the Master’s daughter, the beautiful Sara, seduces her future husband, a Naval officer, and forces him to sabotage his submarine after she has inadvertently fallen in love with him.The lead policeman, DCI Isaac Cook, and Anne Argento, the Deputy Prime Minister are heading towards a romantic entanglement where their professional proprieties conflict with their personal feelings.

    Keeping in mind the age of the young readers, larger fonts have been used which only makes reading easier and enjoyable.

    And so she answers an ad for a mail order bride, hoping to at least find some security for her small family. But is she really ready for a life on the frontier—and for a life with the cold and withdrawn Deputy Holden Smith? Still, Adaline has made a promise, and she does the best she can to make the marriage a happy one. But Holden has been broken by a terrible tragedy, and his heart seems closed to her efforts. And now, far from friends and home, and with Christmas coming soon, Adaline begins to fear she’s made a terrible mistake. Maybe Holden is not the miracle she’s hoped for. But hearts have a way of healing, and love can work miracles of its own!

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