Sweetwater Springs Christmas Cover Reveal

It's a thrill to reveal the beautiful cover for Sweetwater Springs Christmas: A Montana Sky Short Story Anthology by Debra Holland and Friends. I'm proud to be one of her friends and author of one of the stories in the anthology.

The stories in Christmas in Sweetwater Springs: A Montana Sky Short Story Collection are:

E. AYERS - A CHRISTMAS FAR FROM HOME
Frank Coleman comes to Sweetwater Springs to ask Adie Reiner to be his wife, but things don't happen as planned. Frank has been devastated by the plight of the Crow Indians, and when he discovers the indifference and bigotry within the Reiner household towards the Indians, he leaves. But he doesn't leave alone. Adie and her sister come with him. Adie is determined to help those less fortunate.
http://www.ayersbooks.com

LINDA CARROLL-BRADD - WISHES ON A STAR
Free-spirit Richelle Quaid is outspoken, confident and a little bit spoiled. She sets tongues wagging with her bloomers and bicycle but also catches the eye of visiting rancher Landon Howard. An incident with her bicycle causes his prize colt to bolt into the cold Montana night. As Richelle and Landon track the animal together, they can’t fight their growing attraction. Will a wish made on a star foretell their future?
www.lindacarroll-bradd.com

MJ FREDRICK - ABIGAIL'S CHRISTMAS ANGEL
US Marshal Benedict Traylor has avoided Abigail Sinclair, his best friend's widow, since his friend's death in the spring. Part of his reason is guilt over his role in Marcus's death. A bigger part is his guilt over the tenderness he feels for Abigail. But it's winter, and he knows she needs his help. When he arrives and finds her unconscious on the floor of her barn, his plan to stay only a little while flees. As he nurses her back to health, his affection for her blossoms anew.
www.Mjfredrick.com

DEBRA HOLLAND – THE GIFT OF MUSIC
The holiday season brings renowned harpist Blythe Robbins to town to perform at the newly-opened hotel. Timid Blythe is drained from a grueling performance schedule and wants nothing more than to rest and do some soul-searching about her future. Peter Rockwell, shy scion of a prominent hotel family, seeks to gain his experience managing a hotel away from his overbearing family. Can two reserved people overcome their limitations and find love?
drdebraholland.com

DEBRA HOLLAND - A FAMILY FOR IKE
Elderly hermit Chappie Henderson rescues newly orphaned Ike Tannerson and takes him to town to find a home. As Ike struggles to fit in with his new family, Chappie worries for the boy. But to help Ike, Chappie will need to emerge from his long solitude, something that seems impossible.
drdebraholland.com

DEBRA HOLLAND - THE JOY OF CHRISTMAS
The town banker Caleb Livingston opens his new hotel, crowning the holidays with a lavish party for the whole town. Although his intention is to advertise his business, in the process, the banker learns that perhaps some things are more important than money.
drdebraholland.com

PATY JAGER – A CHRISTMAS TO REMEMBER
Dr. Carson Raines has one wish for this Christmas; to find his missing wife. He enlists the help of a married couple who are Pinkerton Agents. They find his wife, Ida, living in Sweetwater Springs as a spinster. Ida is pleasantly surprised to run into one of the new boarders at Mrs. Murphy’s boarding house. He’s a handsome doctor who might be able to help her discover her missing past.
www.patyjager.net

JILL MARIE LANDIS - UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR
Spinster Violet Winters is determined to make the best of spending her first Christmas alone in Sweetwater Springs. When she slips and falls one icy cold evening, not only does Rory Townsend, a drifter nicknamed "Tumbleweed" come to her rescue, but the townsfolk rally to help too. Violet quickly discovers what it means to live in a close knit community and that it's never too late to give up on love and the surprises life has in store.
www.jillmarielandis.com

TRISH MILBURN – A NEW HOME FOR CHRISTMAS
Grace Mayfield leaves behind betrayal and heartache in Kentucky for a new life in Montana. She'll be satisfied with a stable, happy new home on her cousin's ranch cooking for the ranch hands. What she doesn't expect is to find true love with cowboy Andrew Kingston, especially when she's been failed by love before.
www.trishmilburn.com
 
LINDA MCLAUGHLIN - THE BEST PRESENT
Ten-year-old Allison Harcourt's life has been turned upside down since her father lost his job and her beloved grandmother died. She's not looking forward to Christmas, especially since she can't figure out how to finish the scarf she's making for her mother. An unexpected stop in Sweetwater Springs brings her and her parents to the boarding house of the widow Murphy. Sometimes sweet things can be found in the most unexpected places.
www.lindamclaughlin.com

BEV PETTERSEN - THE CHRISTMAS CROSSING
Ellie would love to leave her father’s peddling wagon. But spending Christmas Eve locked in the Sweetwater jail is the bossy Cal Barrett's idea, not hers. How can she possibly sit behind bars when snow melt threatens to wash away her beloved animals, and her dream of finding a home? However, with a little Christmas magic, two searching hearts discover they can bridge much more than a raging river.
www.BevPettersen.com

TORI SCOTT – A PROMISE FOR CHRISTMAS
When Rachel Tanner loses her husband two months before Christmas, the holiday looks bleak for her and her young son, Cass. Then her husband's brother arrives in Sweetwater Springs to help Rachel make it through the winter, turning her life, and her heart, upside down.
http://toriscott.blogspot.com

CINDY WOOLF - SUGARPLUM DREAMS
Julia Bosworth is a woman scorned. Determined to follow her dreams and not those of her mother, she comes to Sweetwater Springs, Montana to open a sweet shop. Little does she know that in Sweetwater Springs dreams really do come true and Christmas miracles happen.
www.cynthiawoolf.com

Sweetwater Springs Christmas: A Montana Sky Short Story Anthology will go on sale on Nov. 18 at Amazon, but you can pre-order it now. Release date is November 18.


Linda

Ten Books One Low Price

The gang from Romance Super Bundle is celebrating the release of our boxed set of TEN romances on sale now for 99 cents!

On Monday, October 7th, we'll be giving away free books, swag, gift baskets and gift cards at our Facebook Launch Party. Please stop by and join the fun. We'll be there all day. Fun and games last until the next morning!

In the meantime,  here's a peak into the ten books in the Romance Super Bundle:

Touched by Death

by Dale Mayer

Death had touched anthropologist Jade Hansen in Haiti once before, costing her an unborn child and perhaps her very sanity. A year later, determined to face her own issues, she returns to Haiti with a mortuary team to recover the bodies of an American family from a mass grave–only to find the grave holds more than expected–and Jade finds herself confronting death and terror once again. And the man who unexpectedly awakens her heart is right in the middle of it all.

There’s Only Been You

by Donna Marie Rogers

Two weeks after Mike Andrews disappeared from her life, Sara Jamison discovered she was something she never expected to be–an unwed pregnant teenager. With the love and support of her annoyingly alpha-male family, she's made a good life for herself and her young son. Sure, she works too hard and her social life is nonexistent, but for the most part, she's content–until the day Mike walks into her bakery and back into her life.

Stardust Miracle

by Edie Ramer

Becky Diedrich is the cheesemaker's daughter, the minister's wife, the good sister. What she's not is her own woman, what she can't be is a mother. And then she catches her husband with another woman, and she moves in with her sister, and she starts to see sparkles. And this is just the beginning...

Meant for Her

by Amy Gamet

A fiery homicide leaves Navy investigator Hank Jared with just two clues: an encrypted message and a name, Julie X. Trueblood. Shadows from the past surround Julie, and Hank finds the perfect place to hide her, right by his side at his sister’s wedding. Now he just needs to remember their relationship is all an act, while she works to decode the message that could save both their lives or tear them apart forever.

Rogue’s Hostage

by Linda McLaughlin

Mara Dupre is taken captive by a French and Indian War party that killed her husband and destroyed her cabin. She longs for her freedom, but her captor has other ideas. Lt. Jacques Corbeau's desire for his hostage threatens what little honor he has left. When Mara offers her body in exchange for her freedom, it may be his undoing. Will Mara find her way home, or realize she is already there?

Sleight of Hand

by Kate Kelly

Suddenly suspected of stealing half a million dollars of original paintings, Chance Spencer can't afford to have the FBI delve too closely into his covert past. When one agent in particular endeavors to put him behind bars, Chance coerces the real thief's daughter, Sarah O'Sullivan, into helping him flush her wily father out of hiding. But his plan quickly deteriorates when the stakes for his freedom soar. How can he ruthlessly use the woman with whom he's falling in love?

August Unknown

by Pamela Fryer

She doesn’t know what happened the night of the storm, why she was walking along the highway without ID, or why she has a fading tan line on her wedding ring finger, but a dark and terrifying presence haunts the edge of her memory. Before she can start a new life with the wonderful man who came to her rescue, she must remember what in her past might take her away from him.

Love, Lies and a Double Shot of Deception

by Lois Winston

Life has delivered one sucker punch after another to Emma Wadsworth. The poor little rich girl is the ultimate poster child for "Money Can't Buy Happiness"–even if she's no longer a child. So when Philadelphia’s most beloved citizen becomes the city’s most notorious criminal, she needs to do a lot more than clear her name if she wants to save her budding romance with the billionaire hunk someone is willing to kill for.

Hard Target

by Barbara Phinney

Military policewoman Sgt. Dawna Atkinson has worked hard for her embassy posting, even while taking the blame for a shared indiscretion with her instructor, Tay Hastings. But when her embassy is bombed and Tay arrives to assist, she refuses to trust him again. Still, as the investigation and their growing attraction heat up, Dawna has the choice to trust Tay or risk the lives of everyone around them.

Jesse’s Brother

by Wendy Ely

One woman, two men: a single summer to choose between them. Sacrificing a summer to fix her relationship with her mother and find out what’s troubling her father isn’t so bad...right? Wrong. Or so Samantha learns upon her return to Portland. As if family drama wasn’t bad enough, first comes Noah. Then comes Jesse. Will Samantha be able to choose between the men before their secret crushes her?

Now on sale at Amazon, All Romance eBooks, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, iTunes and Smashwords for 99 cents!

Linda

October Book Review Club

The House of Velvet and Glass
Katherine Howe
Hyperion Books, 2012

This book caught my notice when it came out last year for the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, but I just now got around to reading it.

Two members of the Allston family of Boston went down with the Titanic, and the book focuses on the eldest daughter's struggles to come to terms with the loss of her mother Helen and younger sister Eulah. Every year on the anniversary of the disaster, Sibyl Allston goes to the house of Mrs. Dee, her mother's favorite medium, to see if she can contact her mother's spirit. Sibyl had resented Helen's decision to take only her younger daughter on tour in Europe, in hopes she would make a brilliant match. Now Sibyl, who badly wanted to join them, struggles with grief at their loss and guilt that she is glad to be alive. She manages the household and tries to mediate in the war between her father, Lan, and young brother Harlan, the scapegrace of the family. The return to Boston of old family friend, now widowed psychiatrist Benton Darby, brings more mixed feelings and conflict into her life.

The main story is interspersed with "Interludes" showing scenes of either Helen and Eulah on board the Titanic or Sybil's father Lan, who traveled to Shanghai as a young seaman, where he was introduced to opium, which plays a bigger part in the story than I had anticipated at the beginning.

I enjoyed this book a lot and became completely engrossed in it. Sybil is a sympathetic character, as is Benton, and the twists of the plot took unexpected turns. It's a mix of historical novel, character study and paranormal exploration, asking questions about destiny and whether and how much we should try to intervene. The spiritualist aspect is very interesting, and at first I thought the "House of Velvet and Glass" referred to the medium's home, but I was wrong. I don't want to say too more because it's best to peel the layers while reading the book. Excellent read.

Linda McLaughlin

And as always, click the graphic below to read more wonderful reviews in Barrie Summy's monthly Book Review Club.

Click icon for more
book review blogs
@Barrie Summy