War rages, but the women and children of Liverpool's Dr Barnado's Home cannot give up hope. An Orphan in the Snow is the perfect heartwarming saga for Christmas.

The death of her beloved father, has left artistic and idealistic Tempera and her stunning, scatterbrained stepmother Lady Rothley bereft not only of love but also of money. So when Lady Rothley's womanly wiles attract an invitation from none other than the Duke of Chevingham to join him in the South of France, it's a Godsend. At last – the prospect of a handsome, aristocratic suitor for Tempera's Belle-mère who would keep them both in the style to which they would dearly love to be re-acquainted! To arrive without a lady's maid is inconceivable – to afford one impossible. So Tempera escorts her Belle-mère in the guise of a servant andattempts to coach her in fine art, the Duke's consuming passion.While her stepmother flirts with Côte D'Azur society Tempera contents herself with capturing the local flora's beauty on canvas. And when the flair she inherited from her father captivates and mystifies the magnificent Duke, something stirs in Tempera that she has...

The stunning conclusion to the Portal Wars trilogy… Jake Taylor and his cyborg soldiers have fought their way from one Portal planet to another, moving steadily homeward with one thought in mind. The utter destruction of the corrupt rulers who sent them to hell to fight and die as pawns in a dishonest war, one started not by the alien enemy, but by Earth’s own UNGov, as a tool in it plot to seize total power. And now, after the fighting, the suffering, the bitter losses…finally, it is time. Time for the final invasion of Earth. Time to liberate their homeland from the totalitarian government that controls it utterly, to find those responsible for all that has happened…and to kill them all. Jake and his warriors are hopelessly outnumbered, but they are determined to battle to the last, to sacrifice all for any hope of victory, however small. But Taylor and his soldiers are not alone in their fight, for in Earth’s shadows, in the rotting slums and the remote countryside, in dark corners and crumbling cellars, a spark of defiance has survived and grown, men and women who remember liberty, and are willing to die for the chance to regain what they lost a generation before. They are preparing…and waiting. Waiting for the chance to strike a blow for freedom. But those who cling to power will not give it up easily. Indeed, the politicians who run UNGov will see Earth a charred ruin, the dead lying in unburied heaps before they will yield their positions. The battle is about to begin…and it cannot end until only one side remains. Is Jake Taylor willing to go all the way, to fight to the end, do what he must...to accept nothing less than death or victory, whatever the cost? Also By Jay Allan The Far Stars Series Shadow of Empire (Far Stars I – Nov 3, 2015) Enemy in the Dark (Far Stars II – Dec 1, 2015) Funeral Games (Far Stars III – Jan 19, 2016) All Far Stars books are available for preorder. Crimson Worlds Series Marines (Crimson Worlds I) The Cost of Victory (Crimson Worlds II) A Little Rebellion (Crimson Worlds III) The First Imperium (Crimson Worlds IV) The Line Must Hold (Crimson Worlds V) To Hell’s Heart (Crimson Worlds VI) The Shadow Legions (Crimson Worlds VII) Even Legends Die (Crimson Worlds VIII) The Fall (Crimson Worlds IX) Crimson Worlds War Stories (Crimson Worlds Prequels) Crimson Worlds Successors Series MERCS (Successors I) The Prisoner of Eldaron (Successors II) The Black Flag (Successors III - Coming 2016) Crimson Worlds Refugees Series Into the Darkness (Refugees I) Shadows of the Gods (Refugees II) Revenge of the Ancients (Refugees III – Coming 2016) Portal Wars Series Gehenna Dawn (Portal Wars I) The Ten Thousand (Portal Wars II) Homefront (Portal Wars III – Coming Feb 2016) **

Kisses and sparks fly equally fast in this fast-paced romp featuring second Impossible Bachelor Nicholas Staunton and Lady Poppy Smith-Barnes, a member of the Spinsters Club. Poppy won't marry unless it's for love, so she fobs off all her suitors with the story that she's on the verge of an engagement to the fierce and frightening Duke of Drummond, a product of her Cook's vivid imagination. Or so Poppy thinks, until she's trapped in an unwanted engagement with Nicholas, the real Duke of Drummond, who's just as mysterious as his fictitious counterpart and a true danger to even the most fortified Spinster heart.

From Robert Silverberg’s, “Earthmen and Strangers” anthology, 1966: Earthly life has developed many methods of reproducing itself. The amoeba is content to split in half; the hydra produces a bud that develops into a new hydra; the small crustacean known as daphnia lays eggs that do not need to be fertilized in order to bring forth young daphnias. Most animals, though, rely on two sexes, female and male, one to produce eggs and the other to fertilize them. The variations within this scheme are great—take, for example, the case of the oyster, which is male at one time of the year and female at another. Given such biological variations, it was inevitable that science-fiction writers would begin to speculate about the unearthly aspects reproduction might take among alien beings. Poul Anderson, a lanky chap of Viking descent who lives in California, is better qualified to make scientific speculations than most of his colleagues. He took a degree in physics at the University of Minnesota before turning to science fiction, and keeps abreast of the latest technical developments in a way that gives his stories the solid ring of authenticity. In this example, he provides a convincing blend of science and imagination that yields insight into a wholly alien race. But because recent scientific research has given us a view of conditions on Mercury different from the one that was accepted in 1957, when this story was written, Anderson has added his own introduction to the story in the interest of maintaining accuracy.

The FIFTH book in The 2nd Chance Diner Mysteries! Rosemary Baldwin is happier than she's ever been. She never expected to find love and such good friends when she decided to pursue her dream of owning a diner. But she's got both. Her romance is flourishing. Her friends are great. Her diner is all that she wants it to be. She doesn't even blink when a new diner opens and every review seems to compare The 2nd Chance Diner to Spencer's. She slaps a smile on her face and affirms that there's room enough for two places that sell pancakes and meatloaf. But then her rival is found dead and her recipe for cinnamon rolls is laying on his chest. Will they be able to find the real killer before The 2nd Chance Diner and her dream life is ruined?

Enjoy Kathleen Fuller's Hearts of Middlefield novels as an e-book collection! A Man of His Word Moriah's heart will only be safe with a man of his word. An Honest Love Anna must find the courage to tell Lukas the truth. Will he find the courage to forgive her? A Hand to Hold Ruth's a good girl, a born schoolteacher. Zach's been in trouble most of his life. Both have a lot to learn about love.