Popular Fiction - Let it Snow!
-
You're a Mean One, Matthew Prince
Matthew Prince is young, rich, and thoroughly spoiled. So what if his parents barely remember he exists and the press is totally obsessed with him? He's on top of the world. But one major PR misstep later, and Matthew is cut off and shipped away to spend the holidays in his grandparents' charming small town hellscape. Population: who cares?
It's bad enough he's stuck in some festive winter wonderland - it's even worse that he has to share space with Hector Martinez, an obnoxiously attractive local who's unimpressed with anything and everything Matthew does.
Just when it looks like the holiday season is bringing nothing but heated squabbles, the charity gala loses its coordinator and Matthew steps in as a saintly act to get home early on good behavior...with Hector as his maddening plus-one. But even a Grinch can't resist the unexpected joy of found family, and in the end, the forced proximity and infectious holiday cheer might be enough to make a lonely Prince's heart grow three sizes this year.
-
The Book Club Hotel
With its historic charm and picture-perfect library, the Maple Sugar Inn is considered the winter destination. As the holidays approach, the inn is fully booked with guests looking for their dream vacation. But widowed far too young, and exhausted from juggling the hotel with being a dedicated single mom, Hattie Coleman dreams only of making it through the festive season.
But when Erica, Claudia and Anna - lifelong friends who seem to have it all - check in for a girlfriends' book club holiday, it changes everything. Their close friendship and shared love of books have carried them through life's ups and downs. But Hattie can see they're also packing some major emotional baggage, and nothing prepares her for how deeply her own story is about to become entwined in theirs.
In the span of a week over the most enchanting time of the year, can these four women come together to improve each other's lives and make this the start of a whole new chapter?
-
In the Event of Love
With her career as a Los Angeles event planner imploding after a tabloid blowup, Morgan Ross isn't headed home for the holidays so much as in strategic retreat. Breathtaking mountain vistas, quirky townsfolk, and charming small businesses aside, her hometown of Fern Falls is built of one heartbreak on top of another...
Take her one-time best friend turned crush, Rachel Reed. The memory of their perfect, doomed first kiss is still fresh as new-fallen snow. Way fresher than the freezing mud Morgan ends up sprawled in on her very first day back, only to be hauled out via Rachel's sexy new lumberjane muscles acquired from running her family tree farm.
When Morgan discovers that the Reeds' struggling tree farm is the only thing standing between Fern Falls and corporate greed destroying the whole town's livelihood, she decides she can put heartbreak aside to save the farm by planning her best fundraiser yet. She has all the inspiration for a spectacular event: delicious vanilla lattes, acoustic guitars under majestic pines, a cozy barn surrounded by brilliant stars. But she and Rachel will ABSOLUTELY NOT have a heartwarming holiday happy ending. That would be as unprofessional as it is unlikely. Right?
-
A Cat Cafe Christmas
Veterinarian and animal lover Kara Ingalls needs a Christmas miracle. Opening the Meow and Furrever Cat Café to find loving homes for adorable, adoptable cats was a dream come true - but with more cats than customers, it's quickly turning into a nightmare. If Kara can't figure out some way to get the café out of the red, it won't last past the holidays.
Marketing guru Ben Reese may be annoyingly smart and frustratingly bossy, but when he hatches a plan to put the café in the "green" by Christmas, Kara realizes that she'd be a fool to turn down his help. And so what if he turns out to be an excellent problem solver and nerdy-hot - he can't even handle fostering one little kitten. She needs to keep their relationship professional and focus on saving the cafe.
But if Ben and Kara can set aside their differences - and find homes for all the cats by Christmas - they might discover that, by risking their hearts, they'll have their own purr-fect holiday... together.
-
A Wish for Winter
Despite losing her parents in a tragic accident just before her fourteenth Christmas, Susan Norcross has had it better than most, with loving grandparents to raise her and a gang of quirky, devoted friends to support her. Now a successful bookstore owner in a tight-knit Michigan lakeside community, Susan is facing down forty - the same age as her mother when she died - and she can't help but see everything she hasn't achieved, including finding a love match of her own. To add to the pressure, everyone in her small town believes it's Susan's destiny to meet and marry a man dressed as Santa, just like her mother and grandmother before her. So it seems cosmically unfair that the man she makes an instant connection with at an annual Santa Run is lost in the crowd before she can get his name.
What follows is Susan and her friends' hilarious and heartwarming search for the mystery Santa - covering twelve months of social media snafus, authors behaving badly and dating fails - as well as a poignant look at family, friendship and what defines a well-lived and well-loved life.
-
A Winter Grave
It is the year 2051. Warnings of climate catastrophe have been ignored, and vast areas of the planet are under water, or uninhabitably hot. A quarter of the world's population has been displaced by hunger and flooding, and immigration wars are breaking out around the globe as refugees pour into neighboring countries.
By contrast, melting ice sheets have brought the Gulf Stream to a halt and northern latitudes, including Scotland, are being hit by snow and ice storms. It is against this backdrop that Addie, a young meteorologist checking a mountain top weather station, discovers the body of a man entombed in ice.
The dead man is investigative reporter, George Younger, missing for three months after vanishing during what he claimed was a hill-walking holiday. But Younger was no hill walker, and his discovery on a mountain-top near the Highland village of Kinlochleven is inexplicable.
-
The Snow Hare
Is it possible to fall in love at the edge of life?
Lena has lived a long, quiet life on her farm in Wales, alongside her husband and child. But as her end approaches, buried memories begin to return. Of her childhood in Poland, and her passion for science. Of the early days of her marriage, reluctant wife to an army officer. Of the birth of her daughter, whose arrival changed everything.
Memories less welcome return, too. Her Polish village, transformed overnight by the Soviets, and the war that doomed her entire family to the frigid work camps of the Siberian tundra. And buried in that blinding snow, amongst the darkness of survival, the most haunting memory of all: that of an extraordinary new love.
-
Once Upon a December
With a name like Astra Noel Snow, holiday spirit isn’t just a seasonal specialty - it’s a way of life. But after a stinging divorce, Astra’s yearly trip to the Milwaukee Christmas market takes on a whole new meaning. She’s ready to eat, drink, and be merry, especially with the handsome stranger who saves the best kringle for her at his family bakery.
For Jack Clausen, the Julemarked with its snowy lights and charming shops stays the same, while the world outside the joyful street changes, magically leaping from one December to the next every four weeks. He’s never minded living this charmed existence until Astra shows him the life he’s been missing outside of the festive red brick alley.
After a swoon-worthy series of dates, some Yuletide magic, and the unexpected glow of new love, Astra and Jack must decide whether this relationship can weather all seasons, or if what they’re feeling is as ephemeral as marshmallows in a mug of hot cocoa.
-
Midnight at the Christmas Bookshop
Christmas comes early - far too early - to McCredie's little Old Town bookshop in Edinburgh. It's summer, but an American production company has decided that McCredie's is the perfect location to film a very cheesy Christmas movie. After all, who can resist the charmingly narrow historic street with its Victorian grey stone buildings and warmly lit shop windows?
Carmen Hogan, the bookshop's manager, is amused and a bit horrified by the goings-on, but the money the studio is paying is too good to pass up. She uses the little windfall from filming to create new displays and fend off a buyout offer from an obnoxious millionaire who wants to turn McCredie's into a souvenir shop selling kilts made in China and plastic Nessies. Still reeling slightly from a breakup, Carmen's not particularly looking forward to the holidays. But just as snow begins to fall and the lights of Christmas blink on, all sorts of lovely new possibilities present themselves...for McCredie's bookstore, and for Carmen herself.
-
Bones Under the Ice
Two days after a blizzard hits Field' s Crossing, Indiana, Sheriff Jhonni Laurent discovers the frozen body of a high school senior under a fifteen-foot pile of snow and ice. Murder is rare in farm country, and this death marks the beginning of Jhonni' s first homicide case.
Just as the investigation gets underway, Jhonni' s opponent for sheriff from four years ago wages a bitter reelection battle to oust her. Then, Jhonni finds another body, and further complications arise when a century-old feud between two families reaches its breaking point.
Soon, a slew of newspaper articles causes the Indiana State Election Board to doubt her credibility. Jhonni must fight to maintain her reputation, keep the small farming community together, and find the murderer at large - all while demons from her own past threaten to crush her. Can she find the killer and mend her battered spirit before it's too late?
-
Let It Snow
Christina Antonioni is preparing for the holidays at her Nantucket toy shop, unpacking last-minute shipments and decorating for her loyal Christmas shoppers. But when her Scrooge of a landlord, Oscar Bittlesman, raises her rent, it seems nearly impossible for Christina to continue business on the wharf.
Even so, Christina hopes there is a warm heart underneath Oscar’s steely exterior. When she bonds with Wink, his sweet, young granddaughter who frequents the shop, it becomes clear that perhaps he isn’t so cold after all. And with the help of Wink’s uncle, who happens to be a charming and very handsome bachelor, this may be the best Christmas any of them could have ever imagined.
-
A Lot Like Christmas
For Jessica Connolly, there is no better place than her coastal hometown of Blue Moon Bay. She has a wonderful family, supportive best friends, and a successful bakery on Main Street. Unfortunately, every time she designs one of her ex-boyfriends' wedding cakes, she's reminded just how unlucky she is with love...and that she's a good luck charm for men to find their happily ever after. With someone else. The minute they break up. So she's done with love.
Dr. Mitch Jameson is more comfortable traveling the world with Doctors Without Borders than staying in one place. He just needs to survive the holidays in his small hometown before he can leave again. The beautiful, intriguing bakery owner with an aversion to dating might be just who he needs to occupy his restless heart.
From sipping hot chocolates at the local festival of lights to early morning dessert deliveries, Jessica and Mitch rediscover the spirit of the holidays. But when the 25 days of Christmas are over, will their romance be over, too?
-
Snow
Detective Inspector St. John Strafford has been summoned to County Wexford to investigate a murder. A parish priest has been found dead in Ballyglass House, the family seat of the aristocratic, secretive Osborne family.
The year is 1957 and the Catholic Church rules Ireland with an iron fist. Strafford - flinty, visibly Protestant and determined to identify the murderer - faces obstruction at every turn, from the heavily accumulating snow to the culture of silence in the tight-knit community he begins to investigate.
As he delves further, he learns the Osbornes are not at all what they seem. And when his own deputy goes missing, Strafford must work to unravel the ever-expanding mystery before the community's secrets, like the snowfall itself, threaten to obliterate everything.
-
Best in Snow
Christmas has come early to the town of Paterson, New Jersey, in the form of a snowstorm that dumps two feet of snow on the ground. Lawyer Andy Carpenter likes snow - white Christmas and all that - but it can cause problems for the walks he takes his dogs on every day.
When Andy’s golden retriever, Tara, goes to play in the snow and instead discovers a body, Andy ends up on the phone with the local newspaper editor. The murder victim is Mayor Alex Oliva, who had an infamous relationship with the newspaper. Last year a young reporter published an expose, and Oliva had him fired for libel. Now, the young reporter - and prime suspect - is in need of a lawyer. Andy agrees to take the case, though it’s not looking good this holiday season.
-
The Snow Child
Alaska, 1920: a brutal place to homestead, and especially tough for recent arrivals Jack and Mabel. Childless, they are drifting apart - he breaking under the weight of the work of the farm; she crumbling from loneliness and despair. In a moment of levity during the season's first snowfall, they build a child out of snow. The next morning the snow child is gone - but they glimpse a young, blonde-haired girl running through the trees.
This little girl, who calls herself Faina, seems to be a child of the woods. She hunts with a red fox at her side, skims lightly across the snow, and somehow survives alone in the Alaskan wilderness. As Jack and Mabel struggle to understand this child who could have stepped from the pages of a fairy tale, they come to love her as their own daughter. But in this beautiful, violent place things are rarely as they appear, and what they eventually learn about Faina will transform all of them.
Popular Nonfiction - Holiday Crafting
-
Christmas Ornaments
Making your own Christmas decorations is a truly thoughtful way to celebrate the holiday. By creating your own unique decorations, you will have a store of happy memories to bring out each year. It's also good for you - crafting has been shown to reduce stress - and good for the planet, reusing and recycling materials you have around the home and not buying environmentally harmful products such as glitter and plastic.
The 27 projects in Christmas Ornaments are divided into Tree Decorations, Wreaths and Garlands, and Table Decorations, covering every aspect of decorating your home for this special time of year. With an emphasis on simple Scandinavian style and easy techniques, these are quick makes with no special skills required, just basic sewing, cutting, sticking, and arranging.
-
Classic Christmas Crochet
New from Scandinavian knit designers Heidi and Pia Johannesen, this classic selection of holiday designs evokes the spirit of the season with compelling simplicity: red and green, black and white, plus a touch of gold and glitter to bring the magic of Christmas to life. From bells and hearts to elves and stockings, everything you need to crochet yourself a quintessential Christmas is right here at the end of your hook.
This volume includes patterns at every level of difficulty, so beginners can keep it small and straightforward, and seasoned crocheters can craft toy soldiers, friendly elves, and more; full-color photographs, including ideas for arranging and placing decorations, inside and outside the house; and a coordinated color palette for a time-honored Christmas look that works for every home.
-
Half Yard Winter Collection
Sew your own winter wonderland with just half a yard of fabric! Debbie has chosen her favorite winter designs from her much-loved Half Yard series, including five brand-new projects for you to sink your needles into.
Whether you're decorating the house for the holidays, looking for crafts to keep the little ones occupied or searching for gift inspiration, you'll find a gorgeous collection of items to make: from classics such as stockings, advent calendars, and fabric baubles to snugly slippers, gorgeous gift bags, and cheeky Christmas gnomes!
Each item requires no more than half a yard of outer fabric, plus all the necessary hardware, trimmings, and lining. As always, every project features Debbie's friendly, easy-to-follow instructions and a beautiful photograph of the finished make.
-
Lovely Little Hand Embroidery
Capture the magic of holidays (and every day!) with 30 hand-embroidery projects. Starting with simple stitches, you'll add sweet sayings and motifs to home decor and gifts. Sew up country-cute pincushions, modern mug rugs, vintage-inspired pillows, and more! Whether you're refreshing your home decor or sharing meaningful handmade gifts with a friend, you'll love how quick and easy it is to sew up seasonal designs for each month of the year.
-
Christmas Craft Book
Keeping young children occupied and entertained can be tricky, even at the best of times. But when they are super excited about Christmas it can be even more of a challenge. This book channels all that Santa-fuelled energy into making fun festive projects for everyone to enjoy. While making decorations, toys and gifts children will learn crafting skills. This book features simple projects that are suitable for parents with little or no crafting experience. Most of the items can be made using items already in the house or things that would be thrown away.
A selection of the 30 boredom-busting projects include pompom stockings, festive hand warmers, Santa skittles, Christmas wreaths, tree toppers, paper lanterns, candy cane biscuits, and sock snowmen.
-
Handmade Houseplants
In Handmade Houseplants, expert crafter and tastemaker Corrie Beth Hogg offers a no-water option for your urban jungle: plants made from paper! This stylish guide includes step-by-step instructions and templates for making 30 of the most popular houseplants, from monstera and peperomia to fiddle leaf fig and philodendron. Additional projects show how to use paper plants for home décor, wall art, holiday decorations, gift giving, and more. The projects are simple enough to be made in few hours and the materials are affordable and easy to find. Packed with colorful photos and filled with inspiration, Handmade Houseplants shows how paper plants can provide a modern, light-hearted touch to a well-designed home.
-
Decorating Cookies
Let cookie guru Bridget Edwards guide you through more than 60 delicious cookie-decorating designs for every occasion and holiday, from luscious springtime daisies to spooky spider webs to personalized birthdays. Cookie dough and royal icing recipes are included, and every iced design features easy-to-follow instructions and step-by-step photos.
-
The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Official Cookbook & Entertaining Guide
Brimming with scary good fun, Disney Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Official Cookbook & Entertaining Guide has everything you need to plan the perfect party. Is it Halloween? Christmas? Your birthday? No matter the occasion, this book will help you take your next dinner or event from routine to inspired - with a little help from Jack Skellington, Sally, Sandy Claws, and all their friends in Halloween Town.
Discover over fifty mouthwatering recipes for appetizers, entrees, desserts, and drinks inspired by the movie, as well as detailed instructions for four complete The Nightmare Before Christmas-themed parties. Each party includes creative crafts for DIY decorations, amusing activities, frightful favors, and more. Bursting with vibrant photography and free downloadable templates for invitations, decorations, and games and crafts, this book will make every party frighteningly fun.
-
A Partridge in a Pear Tree
For this cheerful collection of projects, Kerry Lord takes inspiration from beloved Christmas carol "The Twelve Days of Christmas." You'll crochet your way through each verse to create a flock of feathered friends, including a hen, a goose, and of course, a partridge. Beginner-friendly tutorials will help you pick up the essential techniques in a snap, while whimsical character bios for each personality-packed bird will make you chuckle. Your finished creations will be a winning addition to any Christmas tree and are sure to delight anyone who finds them in a stocking. All patterns are written with US crochet terms.
-
DIY Watercolor Christmas
Learn the materials and equipment you need for watercolor painting and how to create both traditional and contemporary color palettes for Christmas, and then learn a range of watercolor techniques including washes, blending and gradation, plus experimental ideas to try such as using salt, bleach and masking fluid in your work.
Twelve creative projects follow, with step-by-step tutorials so that even beginners to watercolor can jump right in. Learn how to paint your own Christmas cards, gift tags and gift boxes, create seasonal table settings, hand painted Christmas crackers and garlands.
-
Making Christmas Bright With Papercrafts
Christmas is an ideal time to get in the spirit of the season by creating festive decorations and gifts with a personal touch. This delightful collection of 43 unique papercraft projects will get everyone in a festive mood with its decorative suggestions for the home and the holiday table, Christmas tree ornaments, handmade gifts, and much more. This volume abounds in photos, templates, and easy-to-follow instructions for everything from a beautiful origami wreath to cut-out snowflakes, place-setting accessories, gift-wrapping accents, and an Advent candle holder. Each project is accompanied by helpful tips as well as a list of materials and measurements. The splendid variety of options make this the perfect guide and resource for papercrafters at every level of experience.
-
Sewing Cozy Craft Projects
A completely one-of-a-kind project guide to creating charming handmade gifts and keepsakes made from fabric! Sewing Cozy Craft Projects features 3 adorable bear designs to create a collection of unique projects, including patchwork quilt blocks, ornaments, treat bags, gift tags, mini boxes, and more. Using various techniques - from embroidery, felting, and sewing to applique, patchwork, and more - this must-have guide is the perfect way to learn and build new crafting skills while making fabric postcards and gifts like you've never seen before! Fun to make and simple to send, try new quilting and sewing techniques, then mail your loved ones what you make!
-
Country Living Christmas at Home
Country Living knows how to make Christmas memorable, and that's why this spectacular book will become your new go-to resource every year. It's filled with more than 200 beautiful decorating ideas, recipes, and crafts, plus tips galore. Stunning photos show festive table settings; splendidly decorated trees; fun and easy Christmas projects, from wreaths to no-sew stockings; gifts from the kitchen; and gourmet-worthy recipes like Turkey Roulade with Sausage-Cornbread Filling, Brown Butter Mashed Potatoes, Slow-Cooker Apple Cider, and sweet treats like Red Velvet Snowballs and Chocolate & Cranberry Fudge.
-
Handknit Holidays
This volume presents top knitwear designers from the United States, Canada, Belgium, and Australia sharing their unique Christmas, Hanukah, and winter solstice gift-giving, decorating, dress-up projects, and a few favorite holiday traditions. This book provides a collection of a range of super-quick projects for the last-minute holiday rush.
-
Country Living Christmas Joys
Make this Christmas the best and brightest yet, with hundreds of gorgeous decorating ideas and delicious recipes. From holiday house tours and ways to deck the halls to handmade gifts and festive feasts, this beautiful book will help you celebrate Christmas in Country Living style. Create stunning wreaths, turn saltshakers into sparkling snow globes, craft Advent calendars from tiny envelopes, bake gourmet-store-worthy cookies, and more to make a truly happy holiday.