Once Upon A Winter

A boy learns that nature is full of stories to tell when he finds and follows a mouse's tracks in a wintery wood. Milo wants a story, but his mom is too busy to entertain him. Instead, she encourages him to go out and play in the snow. At first, Milo is disappointed - he doesn't want to play outside, he wants a story. But when he starts to follow a trail of mouse-prints, he discovers signs of activity all around, prompting him to ask, "What happened here?" Before long, he's using his imagination -- depicted in lush wordless spreads that capture the vividness of Milo's fantasies -- to fill in the gaps. By the time Milo comes home, he's the one with stories to tell. A must have for the winter season, Liza Woodruff's Once Upon a Winter Day is a fun read-aloud that shares details about animal behavior from a child's perspective.

Once upon a time stories travelled from place to place on the tongues of merchants and thieves and kings alike. Under the blanket of night they were exchanged between children, and passed on to their children, and their children after them. Details were altered from one generation to the next until thousands of tales existed where once there were few. In the spirit of these age-old stories comes Once Upon a Winter, a seasonal anthology of folk and fairy tales from 17 authors across the globe. It covers the Gothic, the romantic, the whimsical, the frightening and everything in-between, and features both intriguing twists on classic tales and exciting original stories.

Some wallflowers bloom at night… Violet is a quiet girl. She speaks six languages, but seldom raises her voice. The gentlemen aren’t beating down her door. Until the night of the Spindle Cove Christmas ball, when a mysterious stranger crashes into the ballroom and collapses at Violet’s feet. He’s wet, chilled, bleeding, and speaking in an unfamiliar tongue. Only Violet understands him. And she knows he’s not what he seems. She has one night to draw forth the secrets of this dangerously handsome rogue. Is he a smuggler? A fugitive? An enemy spy? She needs answers by sunrise, but her captive would rather seduce than confess. To learn his secrets, Violet must reveal hers—and open herself to adventure, passion, and the unthinkable… Love.

Wintertime at the orchard has Peter learning some important lessons about speaking up in this second novel of a sweet series about the bonds of friendship. Blanketed in snow, the orchard looks like a magical wonderland. But Peter is not so charmed by his new life. He just can’t ignore how he’s always ignored any longer. Sarah, Lizzie, and Olive are always talking over him and bossing him around. And on top of that, it’s really cold outside. One January day, Peter reluctantly agrees to join the girls on a carriage ride through the freshly fallen snow. But things go terribly wrong when a dog incident has the horses running away in fear, with Peter and the carriage trailing dangerously behind them. Then, Peter hits his head on a passing branch and is thrown to the ground. Woozy, Peter wakes up alone in the snow but he makes his way to a cozy cottage. Kai, the cool new kid, opens the door and welcomes Peter inside. Kai shows him a magical mirror that brings the two new friends to another world. A world where people listen to Peter and need his help to defeat dragons, warlocks, and other scary things. Then Peter wakes up in the hospital with a bandage around his head. Everyone is so happy to see him awake. Peter tries to tell them all about the mirror but they dismiss his experience as a wild dream. When Peter goes back to school, it seems like Kai knows what Peter’s talking about. Could the dream have been real? Is there really a magic portal deep in the woods behind the orchard? Even if everyone thinks he’s crazy, Peter is determined to find out.

The bestselling author of the Mithgar novels presents a new version of a fable that fires the imagination and touches the heart... Once upon a winter's night, a poor crofter trades his daughter Camille to wed Prince Alain of the Summerwood in exchange for a lifetime of riches. Though love blossoms between Camille and the prince, he is haunted by sadness and will not allow her to see his unmasked face. Believing she can lift whatever curse has been bestowed upon him, Camille acts on her own—with devastating results, as all she loves is swept away. Now, to regain what she has lost, she must embark on a desperate quest through the hinterlands of Faery, seeking a mysterious place lycing somewhere east of the sun and west of the moon...

Once Upon a Winter Solstice is an instant classic for a new generation of Earth Centered families and children longing to reconnect with the cycles of Life. It is a tale of Dark and Light, Day and Night, Death and Rebirth that teaches readers about the seasons, solstices and equinoxes. It reminds children that Life is a process and the process is the purpose. It helps all to remember to slow down and celebrate the sacredness of Earth's cycles through both the Darkness and the Light along the journey of becoming one's Self deeply connected to our Source, Mother Earth.

Hannah loves festive surprises. But the arrival of a handsome stranger on Christmas Day is much more than she bargained for… Snow is falling heavily on Holly Way. Inside her cottage, Hannah is trying to fake some holiday cheer. Freshly dumped, just in time for Christmas, her sister and niece have come to share the day with her and she owes it to them to put a brave face on things. But as they sit down to open their presents, they are interrupted by a knock at the door. On their doorstep is a handsome man with a nasty cut on his forehead, no coat, and no memory of who he is or how he came to be there. Once their unexpected guest is safe by the fire Hannah starts asking him questions to jog his memory. But although she learns nothing about his identity, Hannah can’t ignore the warm feeling she gets when he smiles at her. And it has nothing to do with the mulled wine. When the snow finally melts and spring flowers bloom, will the man who arrived at her door be just a funny story for Hannah to tell next Christmas? Or will he be the key to mending her broken heart? Let yourself be swept away on a snow flurry of romance, laughter and festive cheer with this delightful story from Tilly Tennant. Fans of Josie Silver, Heidi Swain and Holly Martin will be totally enchanted. Readers love Once Upon a Winter: ‘A heart-warming Christmas celebration.’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘My favourite type of easy read. Romance and laughter all rolled into one. An ideal curl up on the sofa with a cuppa and some chocolate kind of book. An easy 5 stars but I have never found a book of Tilly's that I don't like.’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Perfect for a lazy weekend. A super book to get you in the holiday spirit.’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘This book is a delight.’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘A lovely Christmas book that reaches beyond the season … I didn't want to put it down.’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘An uplifting book and really enjoyable at this time of the year… 5 stars from me.’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Nice easy read, great for holiday relaxation and before bed reading.’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Wow this book had so much going on in it from romance, teenage drama, infidelity… You name it, it's in this book!... An absolutely riveting story.’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Four friends live and work together on a New England apple orchard in this first novel of a brand-new series about the bonds of friendship. Welcome to the Orchard! Every summer the Garrison Family Apple Orchard opens its ice cream stand and lets two kids run the show. Now it’s best friends Lizzie and Sarah’s turn. Then new kids Olive and Peter join their ice cream team. Sarah had big plans and she’s not too happy about sharing the stand or her best friend. But a disaster at the grand opening results in a mysteriously empty cash register, these four kids have to become good friends—and expert detectives—before this Ice Cream Summer turns into the Worst Summer Ever.