Ever since we first met, I've imagined what it would be like to be in your arms, to feel your lips upon mine. I'm twenty-eight years old. A shy and oft-times awkward spinster with singular scientific interests, and I've...I've never been kissed. Not once. In fact, I never thought I would ever want to be kissed. But then I met you and...and I do want this. Very much." Miss Lucy Bertram is content to spend her days writing scientific articles or curling up with a Gothic romance novel. Indeed, she'd rather stick a hatpin in her eye than attend a ball. But when her father, the eccentric botanist Sir Oswald, insists she accept the suit of a wealthy but stiffer-than-a-poker industrialist to save the family from penury, Lucy decides to act. She's certain her disowned brother, Monty, will take her side. But first she must find him in St. Giles's cutthroat rookeries. A covert agent for the Crown, William Lockhart, the Earl of Kyle, is on the hunt for a ruthless killer determined to destroy the Linnean Society. Sir Oswald, a botanical poisons expert, is the prime suspect. Posing as a groom in the baronet's household, it shouldn't take Will long to unearth the evidence Scotland Yard needs. If only the beguiling Miss Bertram wasn't so damn distracting... As an unexpected but undeniable passion flares between Lucy and Will, confidences are exchanged and dark secrets come to light. But will a murderer, determined to stay hidden, destroy their chances of finding a happy-ever-after?
I can think of the perfect way to keep you occupied and your mind diverted," she murmured. "Come to my room. If you're not too tired..." Lust flashed in his gaze and then he caught her face between his hands and kissed her. "For you, my beautiful Artemis, I'd stay up all night." Artemis Jones—"respectable" finishing-school teacher by day and Gothic romance writer by night—has never lost sight of her real dream: to open her own academic ladies' college. When Artemis is unexpectedly called upon by a dear friend, a fellow Byronic Book Club member, to navigate her first London Season, she comes at once. Who knows, perhaps she can court the interest of a wealthy patron for her school. As long as she can avoid her high-handed aunt's schemes to marry her off. Dominic Winters, the widowed Duke of Dartmoor, needs a wife—someone who will provide him with an heir and help him to manage his spitfire adolescent daughter. The problem is, Society has dubbed him "The Dastardly Duke." Rumors are rife that he murdered his mad wife so his choices for a suitable bride are limited. But then he meets the ravishing and passionate Artemis Jones who might just be everything he needs. "The perfect blend of sexiness and humor... Amy Rose Bennett has created a lush, vibrant love story, her characters sharing a fabulous sensual chemistry that fairly scorches the page."—Christina Britton, award-winning author
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water . . . Second in the Black Horse Campground Mystery series from the author of End of the Road. Every year, Corrie Black ushers in the summer season by opening the campground’s pool and hosting a private party for employees and friends. This year is no different—except for the corpse found floating on the surface the next day . . . It turns out that a bunch of graduating high school seniors snuck onto the grounds late that night for a little private party of their own. After arguing with both her current and past boyfriends, Krista Otero never made it home. Suspicion falls on her bad-boy ex—especially when an autopsy shows that Krista was dead before she hit the water. With the Black Horse looking more like a crime scene than a campground, Sheriff Rick Sutton is up to his neck in suspects and motives. And it will take Corrie’s compassion and courage to stop an undertow of evil from claiming even more victims . . .
The time has come for a serial killer to strike—and they’re aiming for the Black Horse Campground—in the series from the author of At the Crossroad. With the campground already a crime-scene curiosity, Corrie takes a weekend break from the business just as J. D. Wilder makes his return to the village of Bonney from his home turf of Houston. With Corrie on vacation, he turns his attention to the cold cases they thought were long-solved. Something isn’t adding up. Even though his corrupt former partner is suspected to have killed three local women over the past fifteen years, J. D. can account for the man’s whereabouts during the third murder. And with a fourth grave already dug, he’s convinced that the real serial killer is still at large. A deep dive into Corrie’s and her friends pasts uncovers clues that point to a horrifying possibility: the danger isn’t coming from outside of Bonney, but straight from inside its dark and twisted heart . . .
Jealousy and greed spark a bittersweet end—and new beginning—in the final Black Horse Campground mystery from the author of On a Dark Deadly Highway. Running a campground has its ups and downs, and Corrie finds herself facing a cavernous financial hole. A severe drought has made the forest service put fire restrictions in place, meaning no campfires or grills can be enjoyed at the Black Horse. The drop in guests have Corrie worrying about the future—especially when it becomes clear that Sheriff Rick Sutton’s malicious ex-wife is frothing at the mouth to buy the Black Horse. Everything comes to a head when disaster strikes—and the Black Horse is engulfed in flames. What first seems to be an act of nature is quickly discovered to be arson, and after a dead body is found on site, officials suspect murder is at play. Clues arise from the ashes that reveal a long-running conspiracy and well-protected secrets that will change Corrie’s life forever . . .
A debutante with a scandalous past is whisked away from London only to create new headlines on the Continent. After being expelled from a young ladies’ academy, it seems Miss Arabella Jardine will never find a well-connected husband. Not that she minds. A bluestocking at heart, she’d rather bury her nose in a medical text than wed. When Arabella is forced to accompany her family on a Grand Tour in Switzerland, she unexpectedly encounters the irresistible rakehell-in-exile, Gabriel, the Earl of Langdale. Arabella soon realizes the only thing worse than getting married to a charismatic but unrepentant rake would be to fall in love with him. Dubbed the Errant Earl by the ton, Gabriel Holmes-Fitzgerald is no stranger to scandal. However, when Gabriel is caught in flagrante with the utterly delectable Arabella Jardine, he’s obliged to offer for her hand. He’ll endeavor to do the right thing even though he’s not a prize catch. He’ll certainly never let Arabella get close enough to discover the demons of his dark past. Indeed, there is one particular demon out to destroy Gabriel by exposing a long-buried family secret. Soon Gabriel and Arabella find they are not just battling overwhelming desire, but in a fight to save their future together.
This bluestocking would do almost anything to save her reputation and her grandfather's legacy...even marry a scandalous duke. No-nonsense Jane Delaney divides her time between her grandfather's beloved bookstore and writing newspaper columns, determined to overcome a past that's left her with scars on her face and in her heart. But when the store ends up in unexpected financial jeopardy and Jane's secrets are threatened by a mysterious blackmailer, she finds herself in desperate need of money. All seems lost until a temptation like no other presents itself... Christopher Marsden is the new rakish Duke of Roxby...and someone wants him dead. The problem is, he has no idea who or why. Following a vicious attack, he's acquired a rare affliction where he can no longer recognize faces. But when he catches Miss Delaney attempting to steal a priceless book from his library, Christopher can tell her apart from the rest. Her scarred beauty stands out like a beacon, and he doesn't want to let her go. So he offers her an outrageous proposal: the money she needs in exchange for a marriage of convenience and her help in catching his would-be killer. As passion flares between the two unlikely newlyweds, dangerous truths are exposed and hidden enemies poise to strike. Can these two damaged souls survive long enough to find love?
You can take the cop out of the big city, but you can’t take the big city out of the cop, in this fourth Black Horse Campground mystery. Just as Corrie is getting used to having former Houston, Texas, narcotics detective J. D. Wilder as a campground employee, he officially becomes a member of the Village of Bonney Police Department. Aside from a recent crime spree at the Black Horse, not much is going on in town, giving Wilder a chance to go over some cold cases. In the past fifteen years, three women have gone missing, exactly five years apart. What has amounted to nothing more than a local urban legend becomes Wilder’s new obsession—with Corrie offering some much-needed background information. As he’s digging into the neighborhood’s recent history, trouble from his own shows up, forcing the shadowy past into a deadly confrontation with a clear and present danger . . .
A young lady's tarnished reputation might cost her everything in this first book in the Disreputable Debutantes series. Shy, bookish Sophie Brightwell is expected to make an advantageous match to improve her family's fortunes. However, Sophie's plans to make a spectacular debut go horribly awry when she and her three closest friends are expelled from a young ladies' academy for unbecoming conduct. Since the ton will be sure to close their doors on these disgraced debutantes, they determine that unconventional means need to be employed in the husband-hunting market. Rakehells—the beau monde's wickedest members—might be the only men willing to overlook a young lady's besmirched reputation. But how does one catch a rake? Nate Hastings, the devil-may-care Viscount Malverne, is the older brother of Sophie’s best friend, fellow disgraced debutante Lady Charlotte. When a terribly foxed Nate accidentally compromises Sophie, Charlotte strikes a wicked bargain: in order to avoid a scandal and the parson's mousetrap, Nate must help Sophie snare a husband. But as Nate fulfills his obligation and begins to instruct the lovely Sophie in the art of luring rakes, he soon finds himself battling his own fierce attraction to her.
The murder of a conman turns Corrie Black from sleuth to suspect in this third Black Horse Campground mystery from the author of No Lifeguard on Duty. Corrie and her Black Horse employees are celebrating their first “No Vacancy” day of the summer, when an anonymous note arrives and puts a damper on the festivities. It warns Corrie that if she doesn’t close the campground on Saturday her life will be in danger. Though Sheriff Rick Sutton and former undercover narcotics detective J. D. Wilder begin an investigation, Corrie will do anything to protect her friends and livelihood. But when one of her guests is stabbed to death, his true identity makes her a suspect in his murder. Corrie never could have guessed that the victim was a former friend of her late father, a man known for his land-swindling schemes and string of wives across the southwest. His murder reveals decades-old secrets and lies that will make Corrie question everything she thought she knew about her parents and her past.
Thanksgiving brings family, friendship, and foul play to New Mexico in this seventh Black Horse Campground mystery from the author of Fiesta of Fear. An unseasonably warm November is a financial boon to Corrie Black’s campground, but her personal life has taken a hit. Her friend, recovering addict RaeLynn Shaffer, disappeared two months ago, after some funds from a church festival goes missing. Det. J. D. Wilder immediately suspects RaeLynn is behind the heist, creating a wall of tension between Corrie and the officer. Then, while jogging late one night, Wilder sees a body being dumped from a car. It’s RaeLynn—and she’s still alive. Drugged and beaten, she’s whisked away from the village of Bonney for her own protection, and Corrie is warned that the criminal Shaffer family may be coming after her for turning RaeLynn against her own kin. With everyone on edge and the Shaffers under surveillance, it becomes clear that the family who has terrorized Bonney for years may now have something to fear. And to draw out the villain, Corrie is willing to use herself as bait . . .
Do you ever feel like you're in your own personal hell or know someone who does? Have you ever had mood swings with severe ups and downs? Felt like you had no control? Have you ever felt alone and no one understands you? If you answered yes to some or all of these or know someone who does, please take a journey in Amy's Amusement Park. This is all personal and true, no PH.D, no assumptions. It's all real and raw from someone who lives it on a daily basis. This book will enlighten those who don't understand what goes on in the mind of someone with bipolar disorder. Amy's Amusement Park brings true thoughts, feelings, and emotions of what it's like to have a mental illness. In writing this book, I hope to bring awareness, knowledge, understanding, as well as inspiration.
A fall festival turns murderous in this haunting and wholly unforgettable sixth Black Horse Campground mystery from the author of A Summer to Remember. With a mix of Anglo, Native, and Hispanic cultures, the village of Bonney, New Mexico, has its share of folklore and legends, but no one has ever heard of the Ghost Girls before. Three high school girls have convinced their fellow students that they have powers, but now that they’re graduating, new recruits are needed to carry on the tradition. One night, the Ghost Girls take a hopeful prospect to the cemetery, where they discover a missing kid—and a recently-deceased man. The child is Mark Jr., the son of Corrie’s best friend. And the corpse? The high school principal. Mark had been causing so much trouble at school that he’d been suspended, but Corrie can’t believe he’s a killer. As the village of Bonney gathers for the annual San Ignacio Fall Festival at the Black Horse Campground, Sheriff Rick Sutton and Det. J. D. Wilder uncover a web of bullying, hatred, and revenge—in which nothing is sacred. Not the school. Not the church. And definitely not Corrie’s campground . . .
A reserved debutante and a former soldier make an unlikely but fated match as they hasten for the Isle of Skye. Orphaned heiress Olivia de Vere should have the world--or at least the men of the ton--at her feet. But when she's thrown out of a young ladies' academy, Olivia doubts she'll ever find someone who will love her, rather than her bank account. To make matters worse, her dissolute cousin Felix is determined to marry her against her wishes. A virtual prisoner in her guardians' London townhouse, Olivia can’t help but develop a tendre for her neighbor, a handsome Scottish marquess. Battle-scarred in more ways than one, Hamish MacQueen, Lord Sleat, has braved many dangers in life. But nothing has quite prepared him for the shock of having a young child dumped on his doorstep, with a note claiming she’s his daughter. Just in the nick of time his pretty neighbor appears, offering to act as a nursemaid for the young girl on their journey to his estate in Scotland. He suspects she has her own reasons for wanting to flee the country… The close traveling quarters leads to a fierce attraction between Olivia and Hamish that seems impossible to resist. But when ghosts from the past and monsters from the present threaten to tear them apart, will their unlikely love survive?
Is the American dream that exists for the middle class equally available to the working class? Using extensive interviews with parents and a variety of data sources, this book examines how social contexts and culture affect parenting decisions. By analyzing class differences in neighborhoods, schools, and networks, as well as their relationship to mobility-related parenting practices, the authors demonstrate that cultural differences are no match for economic inequalities. They show how middle-class parents have access to social contexts characterized by security, which gives rise to what the authors call “strategic parenting”—a set of practices that allow adolescents to develop the qualities and skills they will use to go off to college and, subsequently, achieve the American dream. Conversely, the contexts of working-class parents are characterized by precarity, giving rise to “defensive parenting”—an almost frantic use of harm-mitigating interventions to protect adolescents from threats to both their well-being and prospects for mobility. This important book calls for a shift in public policy away from trying to change working-class parents to improving the social contexts in which society asks them to raise the next generation. Book Features: An explanation for social class differences in educationally relevant, mobility-related parenting practices that contrasts with the dominant cultural explanation.Research findings that are informed by a variety of data sources, including interview data, survey data, social network data, census data, and crime statistics.Two new parenting concepts—strategic parenting and defensive parenting—that capture how middle-class and working-class parents pursue social mobility for their children.
Ever since The Event, Dr. Valentina Resnick-Baker attempted to move on with her life and find a sense of normalcy again. Normal was never fully achieved, but with the loss of her powers, Val thought she finally had a real chance. Until she learns the voice in her head is Jamila Parks, one of her teammates who was presumed dead. Now Val finds herself on the run from a new enemy, separated from her friends, and thrust into a full-on alien conspiracy.
***SPECIAL EDITION WITH FULL-COLOR INTERIOR*** Not only are the Oak Tree Press authors wonderful writers, they are also great cooks. Meals often appear in their books. This cookbook assembles the best of their recipes along with author profiles and a bit about their books. contributors include: Amy Bennett, Holli Castillo, Lorna Collins, Lesley A. Diehl, Michael Eldridge, Nicola Furlong, J.L. (Janet) Greger, Shirley Skufca Hickman, Ann K. Howley, Marilyn Levinson, J. R. (John) Lindermuth, Nancy LiPetri, F. M. (Marilyn) Meredith, Sharon Arthur Moore, Radine Trees Nehring, Carolyn Niethammer, Eileen Obser, Beryl Reichenberg, Tanis Rush, Ilene Schneider, Anne Schroeder, Mary Montague Sikes, Denise Weeks Robert Weibezahl, John M. Wills, and Jackie Taylor Zortman Special thanks to the owner of Oak Tree Press, Billie Johnson, for her support and encouragement.
Not only are the Oak Tree Press authors wonderful writers, they are also great cooks. Meals often appear in their books. This cookbook assembles the best of their recipes along with author profiles and a bit about their books. contributors include: Amy Bennett, Holli Castillo, Lorna Collins, Lesley A. Diehl, Michael Eldridge, Nicola Furlong, J.L. (Janet) Greger, Shirley Skufca Hickman, Ann K. Howley, Marilyn Levinson, J. R. (John) Lindermuth, Nancy LiPetri, F. M. (Marilyn) Meredith, Sharon Arthur Moore, Radine Trees Nehring, Carolyn Niethammer, Eileen Obser, Beryl Reichenberg, Tanis Rush, Ilene Schneider, Anne Schroeder, Mary Montague Sikes, Denise Weeks, Robert Weibezahl, John M. Wills, Jackie Taylor Zortman Special thanks to the owner of Oak Tree Press, Billie Johnson, for her support and encouragement.
Trouble often comes in threes. It's no different at the Black Horse Campground. On his first day as detective with the Bonney Police Department, J.D. Wilder finds three cold case files on his desk - three women who disappeared over a fifteen year period. It seems no one has ever properly investigated them. Then a woman from his past arrives to ask for his help. Again. The timing couldn't be worse, since he's finally about to ask Corrie on a date. ButCorrie also has a visitor from her past show up. And Sheriff Rick Sutton has his hands full dodging his ex-wife, Meghan, who insists on digging up a painful memory. When three bodies are discovered that prove the missing women were murdered, J.D.'s investigation reveals that all of their visitors have some connection to the victims. But which one of them killed three women? And will there be a fourth victim
Corrie Black, owner of the Black Horse Campground, hopes for a successful start to her summer season but the discovery of Marvin Landry, a long-time guest, shot dead in his own RV, along with $50,000 in cash missing, does not herald a good beginning... especially since the victim's handicapped wife and angry stepson seem to have little interest in discovering who murdered him. Was Marvin's murder planned or just convenient? And is the appearance of a mysterious biker with a shadowy past that includes a recently deceased wife merely a coincidence? Despite opposition from former flame, Sheriff Rick Sutton, Corrie is determined to find out who murdered her guest. But will she find out who is friend or foe before the murderer decides it's the end of the road for Corrie? About the Author: After her son was born in 1994, Amy Bennett stayed at home for two years (after having worked as a cake decorator, a clerk for a medical supply company, and retail sales clerk for her in-laws' religious gift shop) where she began to study the craft of writing fiction. When she first heard of National Novel Writing Month in 2004, she began writing in earnest. Currently, she works at Wal-Mart of Ruidoso Downs (not too far from her fictional Bonney County) as a cake decorator and at Noisy Water Winery (where you can find some of the best wines in the state of New Mexico, including Jo Mamma's White.) She and her family lives in a small town halfway between Alamogordo and Ruidoso.
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