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To Sir Phillip, With Love

Sir Phillip knew from his correspondence with his dead wife's distant cousin that Eloise Bridgerton was a spinster, and so he'd proposed, figuring that she'd be homely and unassuming, and more than a little desperate for an offer of marriage. Except . . . she wasn't. The beautiful woman on his doorstep was anything but quiet, and when she stopped talking long enough to close her mouth, all he wanted to do was kiss her... Eloise Bridgerton couldn't marry a man she had never met! But then she started thinking... and wondering... and before she knew it, she was in a hired carriage in the middle of the night, on her way to meet the man she hoped might be her perfect match. Except... he wasn't. Her perfect husband wouldn't be so moody and ill-mannered. And he certainly should have mentioned that he had two young - and decidedly unruly - children, as much in need of a mother as Phillip is in need of a wife.
Views: 510

The Kiss of Love (The Book of Love 6)

The Kiss of Love (Book of Love, Book Six)
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Mila's Tale

“Mila’s Tale” is midrash—the retelling of a Biblical passage. Half of it is a new Laurie King short story; the other half is the author’s commentary on the text (“Jephthah’s Daughter” of Judges 11) and her suggestions for further reading. This is the first in Laurie King’s proposed Ladies of Spirit project, a collection of Modern Midrashes accompanied by her analysis and reflections.
Views: 510

Independence Day

'The distinction between the past, present and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.' Einstein. What does it take to change history and destroy our reality? Change events on the same date, 4 July, in six different years. The Time Patrol must send an agent back to each day, with just 24 hours for each to defeat the Shadow's plan to disrupt our time-line, creating a time tsunami and wiping our present out. Doc travels to the 4th of July, 1776, one of the most important dates in American history where forces are at work in Philadelphia to add a Declaration of Emancipation to the Declaration of Independence. Moms goes to Monticello exactly 50 years later, in 1826. The day on which two of the architects of that document and the country, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, die within hours of each other. What secrets do they hold close on their deathbeds? And who else might know about them? Roland is at Gettysburg, the day after the Confederacy reaches its 'high water mark' with Pickett's charge on the 3rd of July 1863. But on the 4th, both armies stare at each other on a rainy day, waiting for the other to make a move. What if the Union attacks? Ivar is in the same war, in the same year, at a victory that is over-shadowed by Gettysburg in terms of publicity, but of more value strategically, when Grant takes Vicksburg on the 4th of July, 1863. But what if this great victory turns into the Union's greatest shame? On the 4th of July 1976, before there was a 'War on Terror', the Israelis launch a daring raid to free hostages at Entebbe. There is only one casualty in their force, the older brother of the current Prime Minister; what if that had turned out differently? Eagle is there to make sure it doesn't. Scout travels furthest back, to the 4th of July 362 B.C. to the Battle of Mantinea in Greece, in which Sparta is defeated by Thebes in a Pyrrhic victory, leading to a third party uniting Greece: Philip II, father of a man who would change history: Alexander The Great. But what if Sparta wins the battle? The Shadow's plan is to disrupt our time-line, creating a time tsunami and wiping our present out. It is up to the Time Patrol to make sure that doesn
Views: 510

Faro's Daughter

THE HIGH STAKES OF LOVE Skilled in the art of card playing, Deborah Grantham, a gambler's daughter, uses that skill as her sole means of support as mistress of her aunt's elegant and exclusive gaming club in 18th-century London. The beautiful young mis must find a way to restore herself and her aunt to respectability, preferably without accepting either of two repugnant offers. One is from an older, very rich and rather corpulent lord whose reputation for licentious behavior disgusts her; the other from the young, puppyish scion of a noble family whose relatives are convinced she is a fortune hunter. Lady Mablethorpe was aghast. Her young son Adrian was marrying Miss Deborah Grantham--a gambling-club wench! Thus she sent her trusted nephew, the vastly wealthy, clever, and imperturbable Max Ravenscar, speeding to the faro tables to buy the hussy off. To Ravenscar's surprise, Deborah turned out to be remarkably handsome, witty, and--he could scarcely believe it--well-bred. Nevertheless, he expected she'd be grateful for the price he offered to give up her young suitor. Arrogant Ravenscar comes to buy her off, an insult so scathing that it leads to a volley of passionate reprisals, escalating between them to a level of flair and fury that can only have one conclusion....
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The Long Road Home

"She can't be dead!" the young pastor cried as he looked down at the still, white face of his new bride. Blinded by bitterness, Paul Cameron leaves his church and flees to a logging camp deep in the north woods of Wisconsin. There he wrestles with his loss-unable to get Corrine out of his mind and unwilling to make peace with God. When a falling tree crushes his legs, Paul can run no further. Broken now in body as well as spirit, he must face his own heart as he encounters the love of God in the patient care of his nurse, Abigail Finlayson. The Long Road Home touches shattered dreams with God's faithfulness and the possibility of new love in this turn-of-the-century romance.
Views: 510

Standard Bearer

Britain, 55 BC. Julius Caesar’s invasion of the wild and mineral-rich land is becalmed, a stalemate exists between the forces of Rome and Britain. But the standard bearer of the Tenth Legion, Lucius Oppius, is about to display a depth of courage that will change the course of the invasion – and history. Encamped upon the south coast Caesar, admiring the courage and skill of his standard bearer, orders Oppius to accompany a native British archer and go behind enemy lines. His mission is to hunt down a treacherous Roman agent, who is recruiting Britons to fight against the armies of Rome in Gaul. Yet not all is what it seems and Oppius will fight for his life, as well as for Caesar and the glory of Rome, to complete his mission and find his way back home.
Views: 509

When You Are Near

In 1900s Montana, Lizzy Brookstone's role as star of an all-female Wild West show is rewarding but difficult. However, trials of the heart and a mystery to be solved prove more daunting. As Lizzy and her two friends, runaway Ella and sharpshooter Mary, try to discover how Mary's brother died, all three seek freedom in a world run by men.
Views: 509

Heartwood

A brilliantly layered novel of crime, character, and place from the two-time Edgar Award winner, Gold Dagger Award winner, and New York Times bestselling author of  Sunset Limited. Few writers in America today combine James Lee Burke's lush prose, crackling story lines, and tremendous sense of history and landscape.  In Cimmaron Rose, longtime fans of the Dave Robicheaux series found that the struggles of Texas defense attorney Billy Bob Holland show Burke at his best in exploring classic American themes--the sometimes subtle, often violent strains between the haves and the have-nots; the collision of past and present; the inequities in the criminal justice system. Heartwood is a kind of tree that grows in layers. And as Billy Bob's grandfather once told him, you do well in life by keeping the roots in a clear stream and not letting anyone taint the water for you. But in Holland's dusty little hometown of Deaf Smith, in the hill country north of Austin, local kingpin Earl Deitrich has made a fortune running roughshod and tainting anyone who stands in his way. Billy Bob has problems with Deitrich and his shamelessly callous demeanor, but can't shake the legacy of his passion for Deitrich's "heartbreak-beautiful" wife, Peggy Jean. When Holland takes on the defense of Wilbur Pickett--a man accused of stealing an heirloom and three hundred thousand dollars in bonds from Deitrich's office--he finds himself up against not only Earl's power and influence, but also a past Billy Bob can't will away.  A wonderfully realized novel, rich in Texas atmosphere and lore, and a dazzling portrait of the deadly consequences of self-delusion, Heartwood could only have been written by James Lee Burke, a writer in expert command of his craft.
Views: 509