Courting Trouble

Tired of Waiting for a Match-Made-in-Heaven, She'll Settle for One Made in Texas Whether it's riding bikes, catching snakes, or sliding down banisters, Essie Spreckelmeyer just can't quite make herself into the ideal woman her hometown--and her mother--expect her to be. It's going to take an extraordinary man to appreciate her joy and spontaneity--or so says her doting oil-man father. Unfortunately such a man doesn't appear to reside in Corsicana, Texas. It's 1894, the year of Essie's thirtieth birthday, and she decides the Lord has more important things to do than provide her a husband. If she wants one, she needs to catch him herself. So, she writes down the names of all the eligible bachelors in her small Texas town, makes a list of their attributes and drawbacks, closes her eyes, twirls her finger, and ... picks one. But convincing the lucky "husband-to-be" is going to a bit more of a problem. Join Deeanne Gist for another unforgettable tale and find out whether Essie's plan to catch a husband succeeds or if she's just Courting Trouble.

Anne Murphy is the redheaded rookie at the Philadelphia law firm of Rosato & Associates, and one morning she wakes up to front-page headlines proclaiming lawyer murdered -- above her own picture. If she wants to stay alive, she's got to play dead. She'll have to trust people she barely knows -- colleagues who hate her, homicide cops who want her out of the crime-fighting business, and a new love who inconveniently happens to be opposing counsel. But her knack for courting trouble makes it almost impossible for Anne to play well with others, and an unexpected event places her in lethal jeopardy and leaves her with everything to lose.

Tilly has the day from hell when she's sacked from her barristers' chambers in the morning, then finds her husband in bed with her former best friend in the afternoon. She escapes to her mother, Roxy – a sassy solicitor whose outrageous take on men, work and family life is the despair of her more conventional daughter. Roxy comes up with a radical plan for their future – they'll set up an all-female law firm which will only champion women who have been cheated, put upon, attacked, ripped off or ruined by the men in their lives. In court, Tilly finds herself up against Jack Cassidy, the smooth-talking, politically incorrect, legal love god who broke her heart at law school. Jack is fluent in three languages – English, sarcasm and flirtation... but if he's so loathsome, then why is she committing Acute Lust in the 3rd degree? When a case lands on the doorstep that threatens to change all their lives, Tilly finds herself dangerously close to taking the law into her own hands... Will Jack's cunning ways and expertise in emotional break and enter derail her quest for justice? Or will the women take on the boys... and win? Praise for Kathy Lette: 'Fabulous, fast-paced, funny & unapologetically female. Nobody does it better.' DEBORAH FRANCES-WHITE, THE GUILTY FEMINIST 'Deliciously rude and darkly funny, but with compassion and humanity at its heart. Read with relish.' NICOLE KIDMAN 'Kathy Lette can turn from raunchy farce to the most tender emotion in a trice.' STEPHEN FRY

"If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun." --Katharine Hepburn In her bewitching novels of female friendship, fun, and delicious mischief, Dolores Stewart Riccio has charmed readers who want to know more about marvelous Cass, sweet Heather, wickedly witty Phillipa, eccentric mom Deidre, and whip-smart Fiona--five deeply committed sisters-in-arms with a little something extra on their side. Now, in Ladies Courting Trouble, the most fascinating women in Plymouth, Massachusetts, are back in the thick of the action, which suits them just fine. . . October in New England is a grand time--great for carving pumpkins, throwing Halloween parties, baking and eating brownies, and. . .dropping dead? When a helmlock-laced brownie at the church hospitality hour spells the end for an elderly townswoman, Cass Shipton and her circle of fabulous friends get to work using their very special brand of detective skills to ferret out the culprit. After all, their unorthodox recipe of magic, clairvoyance, and good old-fashioned common sense hasn't let them down yet. . . Praise for Dolores Stewart Riccio and Circle of Five "A bewitching tale."--Midwest Book Review "This story has everything from suspense to laughter. Delicious. . .with a magic all its own." --Rendezvous "Humorous moments are deftly intertwined with truly creepy ones." --Booklist "Delicious. . .filled with magic. . .and delight."--Phyllis Curott "Witty and fast-paced. . .charming. . .a fun read and food for thought." --Joe Haldeman Dolores Stewart Riccio is the author of three previous Cass Shipton novels, The Divine Circle of Ladies Making Mischief, Circle of Five, and Charmed Circle, as well as numerous highly acclaimed nonfiction books on the subjects of health and cooking. She lives in Rhode Island and is currently at work on her next novel.

A cynical duke determined to marry only for money finds himself competing for the heart of a wealthy woman who's holding out for true love. Original.

A collection of three bestselling historical novels; independent, feisty women find love and God's plan for them in these humorous romances.

A brand-new deliciously wicked romance series from USA Today Bestselling Author Kerrigan Byrne. The Goode Girls are aren't simply good, they're stunning. Doctor Titus Conleith emerged from his time as a battlefield surgeon with a mysterious fortune, a lethal secret, and a demon on his back. Ruthlessly intelligent, he was able to lift himself from his beginnings as coal-stained bastard through merciless discipline and inexhaustible skill. Alone by choice, he swore never to open his heart to another. Not after Honoria Goode. The heiress who shattered his hopes and then tread upon the shards of his heart with her bejeweled slippers. The beauty with whom he shared his first taste of passion, before she gave her hand to another. The woman whose life he just saved from bleeding out on his table... Honoria's life as a Viscountess has been nothing but a misery she'd brought upon herself with her own cowardice. Trapped for years in a loveless marriage to a cruel rake, she has been widowed by the consequences of his villainy. Now, she must face the man with the blazing golden eyes of the boy she once worshiped, and the dark past they both share. As their passion reignites with the same fervor of their youth, Honoria can't help but begin to wonder... Will he allow her the second chance she doesn't deserve?

Swan River Colony, Australia, 1895 All suffragette Esme Smith wants is respect. Her beau, American inventor Jed Reeve, may be more enlightened than most men, but lately his need to protect her is at odds with her need for independence. Esme begins to wonder if a modern woman can share her life with a man without losing some of herself. With his courtship of Esme stalled, the last thing Jed needs is the pressure of saving the Prince of Wales. But when blueprints for a sonic destroyer fall into his hands, he uncovers an anarchist plot that could have deadly consequences. While investigating the threats, Jed is determined to keep Esme out of harm's way, despite her protests. But when the terrorists capture Jed and demand a priceless emerald in exchange for his life, it's Esme who must draw on all her strength to save the day. 34,000 words