He takes his freelance writing career seriously and his claim to fame happens to be de-bunking Christmas festivities in towns across America. When he lands in South Pole, Alaska, he has one plan in mind...to get to the bottom of the whole 'Backwards Christmas' idea and spoil the holiday for as many people as possible. Holly Howard knows there's more to life than leading Backwards Christmas tours in South Pole, but she's happy with her job, town, and friends. The only thing missing is someone to share it all with, but in a small town, it's hard to meet new people. When a handsome writer comes into town, she's intrigued, and hopeful that he could be that person. But she has no idea he's the famous "Jolly Robber." It's not just any Backwards Christmas in South Pole, Alaska as the backwards celebrations rage and the town comes together to show their spirit in full force!

    The story involves two warring factions that battle by using time travel to change the outcome of events throughout history. No Great Magic was originally published in Galaxy Science Fiction Magazine's December 1963 issue. To bring the dead to lifeIs no great magic.Few are wholly dead: Blow on a dead man's embersAnd a live flame will start. -GravesFritz Reuter Leiber, Jr was an American fantasy, horror and science fiction writer. He was an expert chess player and a champion fencer. He received the Gandalf award at the World Science Fiction Convention in 1975 and the Grand Master Award at the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 1981.

    As the owner of a candy shop in historic Biltmore Village and a well respected member of the Preservation Society, she was happy with her place in the world. Until a friend of a friend comments on one of her Facebook posts and they begin to talk. Nick charms her in a way that throws her off guard. Though the two have never met, they rely on their own form of companionship to get through the stresses of their day. For Alexis, part of this stress involves a jerk named Evan Monroe — an out of state guy trying to build a shopping center in her precious historic village. Something she will fight to see stopped. Evan is a dealmaker. He has helped develop real estate projects all over the country. But none has ever been as difficult as the one he’s trying to get off the ground in Asheville, NC. Who would have imagined that a young woman who owns a candy shop would be his biggest obstacle yet? There’s no doubt about the fact that Alexis is tough and sometimes Evan feels like battling her is going to do him in. Thankfully he has found companionship in a fun and friendly lady named Lexi. Sure, their relationship hasn’t extended beyond chatting online but, even so, there’s something about her that just calms him and helps him to feel a little less lonely. As the battle between Evan and Alexis rages on, they discover that they have more in common than the land over which they are fighting. What will happen when they realize that friend and foe are actually one and the same? Will the battle to win a piece of land destroy the bond between two lonely hearts? And, in the process, obliterate the chances for a happy future together?

    SHORT STORY ~ Carrie runs away from her wedding before saying "I do." She refuses to marry Andrew, but doesn't know what she will do as she tries to straighten out the disaster her life has become. She runs to Emerald Isle, NC where happier memories call to her and she hopes she can reclaim what she's lost.

    series) War was cruelty, cruelty was war. Sacrifices must be made by both sides. Rydere Dardanos was king of the Dardaptos people—the race of beings responsible for the ancient vampire legends. He’d do anything to protect his people in the war between the Dardaptoans and all those named Taniss. Emily Taniss was the new CEO of Taniss Industries, the company her grandfather started sixty years ago. The company responsible for so many horrific acts against the Dardaptoan people. Her grandfather’s actions held many repercussions for Emily and her cousins. It would take them years to straighten it all out. But Emily didn’t have years, she had only moments. Rydere saw the young woman’s death as a necessary sacrifice for his people. So many of his people had been lost at Taniss hands, her death was only fitting. Owed to his people. He didn’t have to like killing her, but he would do it. He held her small body clutched against him as he lowered his fangs toward her neck. He would make it easy on her, he would make it quick. Until his first taste of her blood made it clear to him she wasn’t just a sacrifice. She was his destined mate...and queen of his people. Now he would have to convince her of that...

    Reanimated ahead of schedule, Adam Hassler, former Delta Force officer and special agent, leads the first expedition out of David Pilcher's mountain superstructure. His mission is simple. Guide and protect a team of surveyors and scientists, while they study the landscape and collect data for the reconstruction of Wayward Pines. A few hours into the trek, Hassler suspects that the operation has been compromised--by the very people that ordered it.With daylight fading, Hassler's team faces an unknown threat, on unfamiliar ground--in front of an impatient audience.First Contact is Part One of The Genesis Series, a planned trilogy of novellas set in the early days of Blake Crouch's Wayward Pines. Part Two will be released during the summer of 2014, followed shortly by Part Three.

    She had a face of feral sweetness, its color yellow; her eyes were long and dark, her mouth a taut bow, her nostrils upturned as if she were scenting the wind."In "How Shall I Know You?," a melancholic and ailing writer reluctantly travels east of London to give a lecture before a literary society. Mr. Simister, the organization's secretary, lures the world-weary novelist turned biographer with promises of a modest stipend and lodging at a charming bed-and-breakfast for her trouble. Nevertheless, on that rainy day she meets Mr. Simister at the train station, she wonders why she ever agreed to come in the first place. Driving past steel-shuttered windows and Day-Glo banners, Mr. Simister takes the writer to her hotel for the evening, which turns out to be crumbling and isolated rather than picturesque. As she crosses the threshold into the dank stench of Eccles House she is faced with the feral porter, Louise, and suffers through an evening that may be more than she bargained for.From Hilary Mantel's brilliant and darkly comic collection of contemporary stories, The Assassination of Margaret Thatcher, comes a tale told with her distinctive blend of subversive wit and gimlet-eyed characterization. "How Shall I Know You?" showcases the extraordinary genius of Hilary Mantel, called one of our "greatest living novelists" (NPR).

    She was obsessed with meeting her own Prince Charming until she grew up and realized real life doesn’t work like that. Then she met Nick. A romantic hero straight from a fairytale, with a grand country estate and a family tree to match. They’ve been together four years now and Laura knows that what really matters is the two of them, not everything else around them. She can’t imagine ever loving anyone the way she loves Nick. Now, though, people are openly asking when they’ll hear wedding bells, and Nick is keeping secrets from Laura. She’s starting to feel she might not be ‘good enough’ for his family. Can an ordinary girl like Laura make it work with one of the most eligible men in the country?

    When one Striker falls in love and gets either married or engaged during the season, two more will fall for a total of three. And, whenever the curse is in play, the team suffers for it. More errors and injuries, lost pennant runs, you name it. No one wants to trigger the curse. Shortstop Rafe Wilson has his routines down to a science. How he ties his shoes, what shirt to wear under his jersey, which foot touches the field first, and how to enter the batter’s box. It works for him. The proof is in his stats. No question; the routine works. Until it doesn’t. When Rafe is left scrambling to figure out what went wrong, he quickly finds the newest addition to his pregame routine. A kiss. And, not just any kiss. Ashlyn Daniels’ kiss to be exact. But, can he convince Ashlyn to be part of his arsenal of “superstitions” that keep his game going? Or will the pregame kiss trigger an even worse superstition? The Triple Play Curse.

    Every few months, looking for “closure”, they fall into bed together. To keep his mind off of Becky and his foundering acting career, Kelly heads to Turtle Island, Georgia, to be a contestant in the Yummy Santa contest. But when Becky shows up, winning the title is suddenly the last the thing on his mind. Becky has arrived with more than hot ex-sex on the agenda. She’s got a big secret to get off her chest, if she can only get Kelly to listen. Will these two finally get the closure they need, or will their reunion spark a second chance at first love? All bets are off in this fun, sexy romance with Kim Law’s signature Southern charm.

     Picking on Katie has been the only way Cory could get her to notice him. Unfortunately, that combined with her first impression of him has put him firmly on her DO NOT DATE list. Disguised as Santa, Katie has no clue she's bidding on him, and Cory is all too excited because he's about to get a second chance with the one that got away. He's planning to tie her up and tie her down for life, but what happens when the beard comes off and Katie realizes her Santa, the one man that can satisfy her needs, is the one man that drives her crazy? **Warning, this book is a cliffhanger.**

    If it weren’t for my business partner hiring her to redecorate our new office, our paths would never cross.But she’s here now and we’re forced to work together. I just need to get through the next couple of weeks without losing my mind…or my heart.EXCERPT:“Honestly, I don’t think we need much,” I started, trying to assert myself again. “Maybe some wall art or something? Nothing too flashy.”Her tinkling laughter stopped short when she realized I was being serious. “Oh tasty gravy, no. This place needs an overhaul. I can see why your business partner wanted a professional.”An overhaul? “What do you mean?”“Well, this place feels like a tomb. A cement box where dreams go to die,” she answered with another of those smiles. “Probably not the message you want to send to potential clients, right?”I stared, incredulous, sputtering a little as I said, “I hardly think that’s how people feel when they walk into our office.”“It’s how I felt when I walked in,” Kitt admitted, gesturing to the gray walls and steel furnishings. “There’s nothing inviting about a giant, gray blob of space. I mean, prisons are giant gray blobs. Let that sink in for a minute and you’ll get where I’m coming from. But don’t worry, I can fix that for you.” She tapped her head. “I’ve already got some ideas percolating.”I couldn't help but bristle a little. "Well we're not trying to impress the Queen of England. We work with blue-collar people and they don't much care about the froufrou stuff. They just want to know that we can do the job for them so that they can do theirs."“Yeah, I get that but first impressions are everything and this place is depressing.” Something oldSomething newWill you say “I do”? Fourteen best-selling Flirt Club authors are headed down the aisle with a new collection of steamy, sweet stories!

    He has no manners and doesn’t think twice about the weight of his words. Why him? He must have slipped something in my chai tea. Nigel When I woke up this morning, I didn’t plan to meet the woman I wasn’t strong enough to walk away from. But she’s here. In this coffee shop. And she answers my questions with more questions. It should be irritating as hell, not sexy. Or maybe somebody slipped something in my coffee.

    He groped for the glass of water that wasn’t on his bedside table, shoved the whiskey bottle out of his bed, and closed his eyes against the blinding glare of the gorgeous genie in all her purple-haired, pink-sequined glory. And then he groaned. “Not again.” When Jake, brilliant scholar and full-fledged member of the crazy Cardinal Witches family, meets the djinn of his dreams, at first he doesn't even realize it. But after she punches him in the face, helps him survive the birth of his niece, and confides the deeply guarded secret of her true name, will Jake be the one to grant Donya's wish? A delightful short story in the world of the Cardinal Witches.

    When her best friend dares her to pick up a sexy stranger with panty-dropping dimples, she takes the dare and approaches Enrique. Sensing Vanessa’s uncertainty, Enrique gives her full control in the bedroom -- until he doesn’t.What started as an inconvenient dare turns into more than Vanessa ever expected, but when she learns the secret Enrique’s been keeping, will she be able to forgive him, or will she forgo her chance at happiness?