Modern

Heartwarming classic holiday novellas from two leading ladies of romantic fiction.
In Kay Hooper’s Holiday Spirit, a matchmaking grandmother and three Christmas ghosts arrange a sensuous reunion for a headstrong noblewoman and her seductive former fiance.
And in Surrender, Lisa Kleypas has a beautiful, aristocratic Bostonian discover the true meaning of giving when se falls tenderly and passionately in love with a troubled stranger, her husband

Readers who like their romances hot, hotter, and hottest will be happy to go off-road with the sexy bad boys in this anthology, who know just how to penetrate the defenses of even the most determined woman. Headhunter Jane Duvall gets much more than she bargained for in Shannon McKenna’s “Meltdown,” as she goes undercover to meet sexy hotel CEO Mac MacNamara. He knows she’s lying, but his tour of the hotel’s private suite is going to drive them both crazy. In “Exposed,” by Donna Kauffman, it’s Delilah Hudson, a woman intent on being alone, who is pursued by professional photographer Austin Morgan on a train stranded in a blizzard. Finally, in “Pure Ginger,” PR woman Ginger Cameron disguises herself in orthopedic shoes and sedate suits in order to get her life back under control, but not if Cal Beaumann has anything to say about it. Ginger Curwen

Fay Rae Lambers is caught between two men…
Dangerously appealing Simeon, who has awakened her long-dormant sexuality, and Michael, the brooding son of her late mentor. Rae and Michael have each inherited half of his father’s estate, and are sharing a large house as they renovate it.
Being around Michael has rekindled the torch Rae carried for him as a young girl-but when Rae is with Simeon, everyone and everything else fades into the background, including the creepy souvenir Rae brought back from her Egyptian vacation.
Rae was warned the deck of tarot cards was dangerous. She was told to throw the cards into the sea, to not look upon them lest she set free evil spirits. The psychic she consults insists that the dark spirit of the Tarot has taken form as one of the men in Rae’s life.
Rae must figure out whether the Dark Lord of the Forbidden Tarot is Simeon or Michael before she loses her heart… and possibly her life.

Min Dobbs knows that happily-ever-after is a fairy tale, especially with a man like Cal Morrisey, who asked her to dinner to win a bet. Cal Morrisey knows commitment is impossible, especially with a woman as cranky as Min Dobbs. When they say good-bye at the end of their evening, they cut their losses and agree never to see each other again.
But Fate has other plans, and it’s not long before Min and Cal are dealing with meddling friends, wedding cake, a jealous ex-boyfriend, Krispy Kremes, a determined psychologist, chaos theory, a frantic bride, Chicken Marsala, a mutant cat, snow globes, two Mothers-from-Hell, great shoes, and more risky propositions than either of them ever dreamed of including the biggest gamble of all–unconditional love.

Shy Crissy Gregory takes charge of her life by embarking on a month-long trans-Atlantic cruise. But with a blissful liberation from her inhibitions come threats of betrayal, a shocking international conspiracy, and cold-blooded murder. Now she’s sailing headlong into danger-and Judith Gould fans will find it all absolutely irresistible.

Laura Moreton has adored James Lovatt for years. James’s ex-girlfriend Cressy has invited him to a party. To avoid the attention of Cressy’s jealous husband, James begs Laura to masquerade as his girlfriend. But then Cressy does something stupid which forces them to continue their charade.

Cleopatra Robbins has imagined the moment when she’ll meet the man of her dreams. When Max Fortune strides into her life, she knows it’s him–even though he’s all wrong. Max is looking for five priceless paintings bequeathed to him by his mentor; when he takes one look at Cleo, however, he nearly forgets his mission. Soon the duo are swept up in suspense and desire.

Head of the giant Curzon Hotel chain, a cynical man with a passion for rare works of art, Max is looking for five priceless paintings left to him by his mentor, Jason Curzon. With one long look at Cleo Robbins, Max knows he’s gazing on a masterpiece…and for the first time in his life, the solitary and powerful executive is overcome with the strangest desire for that wonderful institution called home. But despite their mutual attraction, Max suspects Cleo of hiding something – and by the time he realizes her secrets have nothing to do with the lost treasures, it may be too late to save her from the danger rising out of her past.

Seeking refuge and determined to pull her life back together, Sabrina Swann returns to the sleepy Southern island of her childhood summers. The last person she expects to encounter there is Zach Tremayne, the boy who stole her heart when she was a girl. There’s a haunted look in his eyes that makes her wonder what kind of man he’s become.

Zach Tremayne can’t forget the horror he saw in his last battle in Afghanistan as a Navy SEAL. Now home on Swann Island, he’s surprised to realize he can feel anything again, never mind the sudden sure of desire for this woman from his past.

And when together they discover danger waiting in Swann’s shadows, the woman who is desperate for peace and the man who has sworn off war will realize they are willing to do anything, risk everything, to protect a love neither saw coming…

Shy, studious Irene Stenson and wild, privileged Pamela Webb had been the best of friends for one short high school summer. Their friendship ended the night Pamela dropped Irene off at home-and Irene walked in to discover her parents’ bodies on the kitchen floor. It was ruled a murder-suicide, and Irene fled the northern California town of Dunsley. But seventeen years later, when Pamela sends a cryptic e-mail asking for help, Irene returns to her hometown to find her old friend has died suddenly, leaving behind a lot of ugly, unanswered questions.

Caught up in a firestorm of desperate deceit and long-buried secrets, Irene knows it would probably be smarter to just pack up and leave Dunsley behind again, but her reporter’s instinct-and her own hunger to know the truth-compel her to extend her stay at the local lodge. Even more compelling is the man who runs the place-a hazel-eyed ex-Marine who’s as used to giving orders as Irene is to ignoring them. Luke Danner can see the terror beneath Irene Stenson’s confident exterior-and he is intent on protecting her. But he is also driven by passions of his own, and together they will risk far more than local gossip to sort out what happened to Pamela Webb, and what really happened on that long-ago summer night. . .

Gabriella Starr has silk suits, champagne tastes, a great new career…and a stranger following her. She’s definitely in danger, according to ex-cop and new D.A. Cam Yeager. But Gabriella bristles when Cam offers to help…maybe it’s because she’s incredibly attracted to him. It’s not like her to go for law-enforcement types. she’s far too independent, too naturally defiant. And she’s spent too many nights in jail…

Cam Yeager likes cold beer, his Bruins sweatshirt, and shaving every other day. He knows all about Gabriella Starr — her famous, eccentric father, and their years rescuing rare, endangered orchids. Something nasty is going on in Boston. And something explosive is hovering on the horizon as well: the wild fireworks of two intense opposites falling in love…