2022 Carol Award Winner From the talented pen of bestselling author Karen Witemeyer comes a charming Christmas novella inspired by the holiday classic The Christmas Carol. After the Panic of 1873 ruined his father and impoverished his family, Evan Beazer set a single life goal for himself--security. He would never allow joviality and dreams to send him to the poorhouse. Now a successful businessman, Evan runs a dozen inns throughout Texas from the privacy of his home, keeping locals away with the perpetual scowl and gruff manner that have become his natural disposition. Felicity Wiggins is in charge of distributing church Christmas baskets to the less fortunate, and she is determined help as many families as possible. In an attempt to gather more donations than past years, she must convince the wealthiest man in town to participate and sets forth on a campaign to pester him into cooperation. As Felicity tries to bring Evan out of seclusion--and he does everything in his power to avoid her--can she convince him that true riches lie not in bank accounts but in bringing joy to others?

Three Charming and Festive Holiday Novellas Spiced with Humor, Frontier Action, and Sweet Romance In this 3-in-1 novella collection, bestselling author Karen Witemeyer presents the new story "A Texas Christmas Carol," in which a town's wealthy, Scrooge-like bachelor finds his world invaded by a woman set on earning his donation for helping the local poor, and by the penetrating questions of three mysterious visitors. It also includes, for the first time in print, "An Archer Family Christmas." When the Archer clan gathers for the Christmas holiday, an unexpected request for help leaves Cassandra Archer directly in the path of a dangerous outlaw. Desperate to protect the woman he loves, Jim Archer races to the rescue, only to find that Cassie's life is not the only one in peril. It will take a Christmas miracle--and the entire Archer clan--to keep a second Archer Christmas from ending in disaster. In previously published "Gift of the Heart," a widow and her young daughter move to Hope Springs for a fresh start. But with no money to secure a home, Ruth must convince a wealthy resort owner to accept her heirloom brooch as collateral. Will the pin that brought love to three generations soften the heart of a wounded recluse and give Ruth a second chance at love as the holidays draw near? Sprinkled throughout the collection, you'll find a hope-filled Christmas devotion, Witemeyer holiday recipes, and fun facts about nineteenth-century Christmas celebrations!

A collection of Courtney's columns from the Texas Monthly, curing the curious, exorcizing bedevilment, and orienting the disoriented, advising "on such things as: Is it wrong to wear your football team's jersey to church? When out at a dancehall, do you need to stick with the one that brung ya? Is it real Tex-Mex if it's served with a side of black beans? Can one have too many Texas-themed tattoos?"--Amazon.com.

In this clever reimagining of Charles Dickens’s life, he and fiancée Kate Hogarth must solve the murder of an old miser, just before Christmas . . . London, December 1835: Charles and Kate are out with friends and family for a chilly night of caroling and good cheer. But their blood truly runs cold when their singing is interrupted by a body plummeting from an upper window of a house. They soon learn the dead man, his neck strangely wrapped in chains, is Jacob Harley, the business partner of the resident of the house, an unpleasant codger who owns a counting house, one Emmanuel Screws. Ever the journalist, Charles dedicates himself to discovering who's behind the diabolical defenestration. But before he can investigate further, Harley's corpse is stolen. Following that, Charles is visited in his quarters by what appears to be Harley's ghost—or is it merely Charles’s overwrought imagination? He continues to suspect Emmanuel, the same penurious penny pincher who denied his father a loan years ago, but Kate insists the old man is too weak to heave a body out a window. Their mutual affection and admiration can accommodate a difference of opinion, but matters are complicated by the unexpected arrival of an infant orphan. Charles must find the child a home while solving a murder, to ensure that the next one in chains is the guilty party . . . Praise for the Dickens of a Crime Mysteries! “Mystery fans and history buffs alike should cheer.” —KirkusSTARRED Review “Sharp, incisive, and delightfully twisty. I’m sure I won't be the only reader exclaiming, ‘What the Dickens?!’” —Anna Lee Huber, bestselling author. “As easy to read as one of Mr. Dickens’ actual novels and as entertaining.” —New York Journal of Books “Fans of Anne Perry will love this one.” —Dianne Freeman, award–winning author

In this 2-in-1 novella collection, Gift of the Heart tells the tale of a widow whose heirloom brooch brings her in contact--and conflict--with the local banker and might bring her a second chance at love. In An Archer Family Christmas, gathered together for the holidays, some of the Archers see long-held dreams fulfilled by an unexpected request for help.

"Joyfully riffing on a holiday classic, Tom Averill's A Carol Dickens Christmas is a moving and contemporary tale that, like the work of that other Dickens, focuses on what affects us deeply: judgment and compassion, grief and hope, cruelty and kindness. With a warm and realistic cast of characters, this is a story for people who believe in the magic of the season and--more to the point--in simply caring for each other."--Laura Moriarty, author of The Chaperone

Even the youngest readers can enjoy Charles Dickens’s classic Christmas tale in this beautifully illustrated picture-book version of the holiday favorite, simple to read but with all the magic of Dickens’s voice preserved. Follow miserly Scrooge as he is whisked through the night by the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Yet to Come in order to face his selfish treatment of Jacob Marley, Bob Cratchit, and Tiny Tim. Families will enjoy reading this shortened version of Dickens’s story together, with its warm illustrations that capture every twist and turn.