Just what IS a Kissing Bough? Why do we love Santa Claus so much? Where do all those treasured customs and rituals come from? The Kissing Bough is a wonderful collection of stories that explore the meaning of the holiday season. Some of the stories remind us why the spirit of Christmas is so important to families. Other stories remind us that human nature is what it is, no matter what the holiday says it should be! Long buried secrets will out. Murder happens even during this time of good cheer. Envy, jealousy and loneliness will rub shoulders with seasonal feelings of good will and brotherly love. The Kissing Bough gives the reader insight into the ancient customs and traditions that make modern day Christmas what it is. For its annual publication, The Queens Writers Group has selected twelve of its most engaging and diverse stories. Coming from all walks of life, the group is centered in Charlotte, North Carolina.

One Christmas kiss, and Lucinda will never be the same. No one expects mere Miss Lucinda Demerham to refuse a proposal from Edward, Lord Beaufield, no matter how stuffy and puritanical he might be. His invitation to Lucinda and her parents to spend Christmas at Beaufield Hall is seen as a certain preamble to an engagement. But when Edward's younger brother James erupts onto the scene, the dreary Beaufield Christmas is suddenly alight with revelry. There are feasts, surprises and unexpected joy—and a Kissing Bough above the door.

Jane Ramsey was invited to her old and dear friend Nick’s homecoming. His relatives believed he would now settle down with her for his bride. But Nick arrived with his Incomparable fiancé and plans to be married early in the new year. Was it only Jane who could see how wrong Aurelia was for Nick? And why did Nick exhibit jealousy when his friend Pelham kissed Jane? Regency Romance by Joan Smith; originally published by Fawcett Crest

Four years ago, Jack Telford and Isabella Bruton made the mutual mistake of letting her contemptible brother come between them. Now that Jack has discovered her whereabouts, he’ll cross snowy hill and icy dale to be reunited with his heart’s desire. But his reception at Hope Cottage is lukewarm at best. No matter how much she might ache for Jack’s love, Isabella knows she can never be the wife a future prime minister needs. Besides, she’s forged a life and career of her own out from under the thumb of her brother. There is nothing for her in London. Until Jack catches her under the kissing bough and makes the proposal of a lifetime.

The sixth Auguste Didier mystery. At the exclusive Cranton's Hotel in London, master chef Auguste Didier is host to a varied party of guests intent on enjoying a real English Christmas, complete with boar's head, Christmas trees, kissing boughs, party games and ghost stories. But not all is as it seems beneath the happy veneer of festive pleasures, for a killer stalks the elegant corridors. How could a baroness from the Continent, three pretty wards of a Foreign Office official, a soldier on leave from the South African War, a rich industrialist, a maiden lady from the provinces, a young married couple, a French diplomat and his beautiful wife with a roving eye, or a crusty retired army officer be embroiled in murder - not to mention a plot to assassinate the Prince of Wales? Auguste Didier, while anxiously ensuring the hotel cuisine reaches his own high standards, works his way through the complex ingredients of murder to put an end to the mysterious and terrible deeds that have not only ruined his Christmas but also disrupted his kitchens.

Behind every Christmas tradition is a story — usually, a forgotten one. Each year, as we decorate a tree, build a gingerbread house, and get ready for a visit from St. Nicholas, we’re continuing generations-old narratives, while being largely unaware of their starting chapters. But knowing how these traditions began adds a new level of depth to our Christmas spirit, as well as an arsenal of anecdotes to share at Christmas parties. Christmas Past: The Fascinating Stories Behind Our Favorite Holiday’s Traditions reveals the surprising, quirky, mysterious, and sometimes horrifying stories behind the most wonderful time of the year. With 26 short chapters, it’s a festive, digestible Advent calendar of a book. Covering traditions ancient and modern, Christmas Past is filled with stories of happy accidents, cultural histories, criminal capers (including tomb raiders and con artists), and hidden connections between Christmas and broader social, economic, and technological influences. How did the invention of plate glass forever change the Christmas season? What common Christmas item helped introduce fine art to the masses? Why do Americans typically spike their eggnog with rum, rather than the traditional brandy? And speaking of booze, does using the phrase “Merry Christmas” mark you as a drunken reveler? Christmas Past answers all of those questions, and many more.

This book presents a comprehensive overview of global courtship and marriage customs, from ancient history to contemporary society, demonstrating the vast differences as well as the similarities across all of human culture. This second edition of Marriage Customs of the World examines historical context, social significance, and current trends and controversies of matrimony in the Western world as well as other cultures. Apart from detailing the ceremonies from specific countries, the book identifies specific elements of the wedding event and discusses them in a comparative manner, showcasing the similarities across cultures. The new content in this work includes additional information on courtship and how future spouses are found in other cultures; marriage in art, cinema, theater, and poetry; wedding bands; forced marriages and shotgun weddings; New Year's weddings; legislation regarding marriage; and engagement practices. Entries carried over from the first edition have been revised and updated as well. With its broad scope and consideration of contemporary issues alongside historical information, this work will be ideal for high school and undergraduate students; scholars of anthropology, social studies, and history; and general readers.

A babe in a manger once saved the world. Can this one save a failing marriage? Lydia Blakeburn, Baroness Lynham, wants nothing more than to present her husband with an heir, but after five years of marriage, she has all but given up on doing so. What started as a love match has since begun to sour, yet there is nothing Lydia can do to free Miles from a marriage she is certain he regrets. The future they had envisioned together is slipping farther and farther away. Miles Blakeburn is at his wit's end. Not only has he failed to produce an heir to the family's ancient title, his wife has withdrawn from him entirely. The one thing in the world she wants, he has thus far been unable to give her: a child. He is a failure in every regard. When they happen upon an abandoned baby at the Frost Fair, Miles simply can't resist the light he sees sparked in his wife's eyes as she holds the child. He agrees to take the foundling in until Christmastide is over, when they will find the babe a permanent home. But, for a couple who's been yearning for a baby for years, the infant can't help but expose all the feelings Lydia and Miles have long been trying to bury, feelings that have the power to bring them back together—or estrange them forever.

Harlequin® Historical brings you a collection of three new titles, available now! This box set includes: CHRISTMAS KISS FROM THE SHERIFF Heroes of San Diego by Kathryn Albright (Western) Schoolteacher Gemma Starling feels like she's been given a fresh start. So she must make sure Sheriff Craig Parker doesn't discover her dark secret… BOUND BY A SCANDALOUS SECRET The Scandalous Summerfields by Diane Gaston (Regency) The pleasure-seeking Marquess of Rossdale has a plan to survive the Season without a bride—a fake engagement to outspoken Genna Summerfield! THE GOVERNESS'S SECRET BABY The Governess Tales by Janice Preston (Regency) Governess Grace will do anything to get to know her daughter, even if that means working for the scarred Marquess of Ravenwell! Can this beauty tame the beast by Christmas?