A DUKE FOR ALL SEASONS! What's better than a dashing duke? A dozen of them! In this case, a baker's dozen—thirteen of your favorite historical romance authors have come together to bring you more than a dozen tantalizing novellas, with one per month, for a year's worth of never-before-released romances. January – Duke in Winter by Alyssa Alexander — When the highwayman demanded that the Duke of Highrow stand and deliver, he didn't know she would steal his heart. February – The Difference One Duke Makes by Elizabeth Essex — All it takes is one frosty night for two imperfect people, former naval commander Marcus Beecham and ruined Penelope Pease, to meet and make the perfect February Valentine. March – Discovering the Duke by Madeline Martin — Reunited at a house party after a lackluster start to their marriage, the Duke of Stedton attempts to win his Duchess' heart.... Views: 247
The time is the present.
The place, the rugged coast of Northern California. A bluff high above the Pacific. A grand mansion full of beauty and tantalizing history set against a towering redwood forest.
A young reporter on assignment from the San Francisco Observer . . . An older woman welcoming him into her magnificent family home that he has been sent to write about and that she must sell with some urgency . . . A chance encounter between two unlikely people . . . An idyllic night—shattered by horrific unimaginable violence, the young man inexplicably attacked—bitten—by a beast he cannot see in the rural darkness . . . A violent episode that sets in motion a terrifying yet seductive transformation, as the young man, caught between ecstasy and horror, between embracing who he is evolving into and fearing what he will become, soon experiences the thrill of the wolf gift.
As he resists the paradoxical pleasure and enthrallment of his wolfen savagery and delights in the power and (surprising) capacity for good, he is caught up in a strange and dangerous rescue and is desperately hunted as “the Man Wolf” by authorities, the media, and scientists (evidence of DNA threatens to reveal his dual existence) . . . As a new and profound love enfolds him, questions emerge that propel him deeper into his mysterious new world: questions of why and how he has been given this gift; of its true nature and the curious but satisfying pull towards goodness; of the profound realization that there may be others like him who are watching—guardian creatures who have existed throughout time who possess ancient secrets and alchemical knowledge. And throughout it all, the search for salvation for a soul tormented by a new realm of temptations, and the fraught, exhilarating journey, still to come, of being and becoming, fully, both wolf and man. Views: 246
Alex and Will have spent months keeping their relationship hidden from their families. Getting caught prematurely causes them to admit their love for each other to their parents.
One decision made by Alex's father changes her entire world, shattering her plans for the future. Alex always thought Will was the very air she breathed, but life has a way of causing doubts for the one thing she thought was absolute…their love.
Can Will's promise to Alex be enough for her to hold on to or will she find herself moving down a different path that she never imagined for herself?
Without You is book one in the Love Wanted in Texas series. Views: 246
CHAPTER I. HOW LODBROK THE DANE CAME TO REEDHAM. Elfric, my father, and I stood on our little watch tower at Reedham, and looked out over the wide sea mouth of Yare and Waveney, to the old gray walls of the Roman Burgh on the further shore, and the white gulls cried round us, and the water sparkled in the fresh sea breeze from the north and east, and the bright May-time sun shone warmly on us, and our hearts went out to the sea and its freedom, so that my father said: "Once again is the spirit of Hengist stirring in me, and needs must that you and I take ship, and go on the swan\'s path even as our forefathers went; let us take the good ship somewhere--anywhere to be on the sea again. What say you, son Wulfric?" And at that I was very glad, for I had longed for that word of his. For never, since I could remember, was a time when I knew not all that a boy might learn, for his years, of sea and the seaman\'s craft; and the sea drew me, calling me as it were with its many voices, even as it drew my father. Yet, all unlike Hengist and his men, we sailed but for peaceful gain, and very rich grew Elfric, the thane of Reedham; for ours was the only ship owned by English folk on all our East Anglian shores, and she brought us wealth year by year, as we sailed to Humber and Wash northwards, and Orwell and Thames to the south, as seemed best for what merchandise we had for sale or would buy. But, more than all, my father and I alike sailed for the love of ship and sea, caring little for the gain that came, so long as the salt spray was over us, and we might hear the hum of the wind in the canvas, or the steady roll and click of the long oars in the ship\'s rowlocks, and take our chance of long fights with wind and wave on our stormy North Sea coasts. So we went down to the shipyard, under the lee of Reedham Hill, and found old Kenulf our pilot, and with him went round our stout Frisian ship that my father had bought long ago, and at once bade him get ready for sailing as soon as might be. And that was a welcome order to Kenulf and our crew also; for well do the North Folk of East Anglia love the sea, if our Saxon kin of the other kingdoms have forgotten for a while the ways of their forbears. Not so welcome was our sailing to my mother, who must sit at home listening to the song of the breezes and the roll of breakers, with her heart stirred to fear for us at every shift of wind and change of tide. And fair Eadgyth, my sister, beautiful with the clear beauty of a fair-haired Saxon lady, shared in her fears also, though I think that she believed that no storm could rage more fiercely than her father and brother and their crew could ride through in safety. Once she had sailed with us in high summer time to London, and so she held that she knew well all the ways of the ship and sea; fearing them a little, maybe. Yet there was another dread in the heart of my mother, for this is what she said: "What of the Danes, Elfric, my husband? Surely there is risk--aye, and great risk--of falling into their hands." Thereat my father laughed easily, and answered: "Not to an East Anglian ship now; for they have kept the pact we have made with them.... Views: 246
Sean Linehan brings over his dead boss to Hong Kong to open Asia’s finest sports venue. Captivated by the alluring Hypatia, Sean gets kidnapped by Maoist guerrillas. His government will not pay a ransom. Can he stay alive long enough to fulfil his quest to become good? Dark humour and subtle satire enrich this tale of our all-too-near future.The third story in the Sean Linehan series, set in the year 2021. Linehan brings over his dead boss to Hong Kong to open Asia’s finest sports venue, the SplattaDome. Captivated by the alluring Hypatia, Sean gets kidnapped by Maoist guerrillas and help prisoner in a safe house. His government will not pay a ransom. Can he stay alive long enough to fulfil his quest to give up the perks of his job – money, girls and dodgy antiques - and become good? Or even long enough to see Hypatia again? Will his policeman friend, Wayne, rescue him? Dark humour and subtle satire enrich this short tale of our all-too-near future. Views: 246
Brides of Ireland (High Warrior, Black Sword, The Darkland, Sea Wolfe) Views: 246
The era of glorious captains, glorious attacks, and glorious booty was now long past, and the conflict had become a kind of long and tedious chess game in which strongholds were besieged, changed hands, and were besieged again, bravery often counting for less than patience.
So begins The Sun Over Breda, a gloriously dramatic novel of war and honor that marks the return of international bestseller Arturo Péerez-Reverte's most beloved character, Captan Diego Alatriste, the seventeenth-century sword-for-hire who leads his formidable band of soldiers in the name of King Philip IV of Spain against the Dutch in the battle for Flanders.
Narrated by young Íñigo Balboa, Alatriste's faithful, soulful mochilero, The Sun Over Breda follows the throbbing pulse of combat fought on increasingly uncertain terms by an army growing more and more disenchanted with its king, and therefore less and less willing to risk life and limb for the cause. As Spanish blood spills into the Flemish canals, and the lethal flash of swordplay drains the men of their thirst for victory, unrest grows among the troops. With no promise of payment from the king, Alatriste is caught in the impassioned throes of mutiny, torn between fealty to the material needs of his men and his pledge to a crown for which he holds no love.
The Sun Over Breda is both a literary feast and a swashbuckling adventure that captures the tumultuous descent from the Spanish Golden Age, the bedlam of the Thirty Years' War, and the passion and valor of Captain Alatriste, a hero for the ages. Views: 246
Leopold Classic Library is delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive collection. As part of our on-going commitment to delivering value to the reader, we have also provided you with a link to a website, where you may download a digital version of this work for free. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. Whilst the books in this collection have not been hand curated, an aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature. As a result of this book being first published many decades ago, it may have occasional imperfections. These imperfections may include poor picture quality, blurred or missing text. While some of these imperfections may have appeared in the original work, others may have resulted from the scanning process that has been applied. However, our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. While some publishers have applied optical character recognition (OCR), this approach has its own drawbacks, which include formatting errors, misspelt words, or the presence of inappropriate characters. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with an experience that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic book, and that the occasional imperfection that it might contain will not detract from the experience. Views: 246
She never wanted to come back. He never wants to leave. The town of Maple Falls has plans for them both.Riley McAllister is living the dream in New York City . . . if the dream means being a struggling mixed-media artist, part-time food delivery driver, and having a carefully curated social media to hide all of the above. She refuses to admit defeat and move back to small-town Maple Falls, but when her grandmother breaks her leg sliding into third base during a softball game (she was safe, by the way), Riley reluctantly agrees to go home and help the woman who raised her—while secretly hoping she can convince Mimi to sell her house and yarn shop and move in with a good friend. Then Riley can return to her new life in NYC, on her own and for good.But Mimi has her own plans, which include setting Riley up with local baseball star Hayden Price, who returned to Maple Falls after an injury ended his major league career.... Views: 246
To afford the food and medicine her ailing mother needs, the beautiful Honourable Olinda Selwyn, daughter of the late Lord Selwyn, former Lord Chief Justice of England, is obliged to conceal her background to take employment with the Dowager Countess of Kelvedon as an expert embroiderer at the family stately home in Derbyshire. Taken aback to find that the ageing but still beautiful Countess is having a love affair with a dissolute young rake, Olinda sympathises with her estranged son, the Earl, who despises his mother for her loose morals. Drawn reluctantly into the Kelvedon family's tangle of bitterness and resentment, Olinda finds herself gently advising the Earl – or as he puts it, inspiring him. But just as the love she has only ever dreamt of seems almost within her grasp, Kelvedon is rocked by a sudden and suspicious death – and, incredibly, the man she loves with all her heart stands accused. Views: 245
