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Snow So White (affiliate link)
Once upon a future-time, in a city of steel, concrete, and Magick, a wicked queen trapped a mighty warrior with a curse …
In the tiny village of Somer, far from the city, Cherie knows nothing of the evil spell. Her home is a safe, Magickal place. The Fae travel freely along its roads, Magickal humans and animals are welcome, and everyone is hidden from the Queen’s sight by Jack Frost, the local ghost, who blurs the Queen’s mirror with snow and ice.
But when Jack’s spell begins to crack, the Queen’s eyes fall on Somer. Nothing will keep her from abducting all of Somer’s Magickals, not even a war with the Fae.
To avert a war, save her village–and herself–Cherie strikes a perilous bargain. Aided only by Jack and her own small Magick, she’ll set off on a quest … If she fails, she’ll lose more than her life.
The Steel Queen (The Silk & Steel Saga Book 1) (affiliate link)
In a medieval world of forgotten magic, mortals are lured to the chessboard of the gods where an epic struggle of lives, loves and crowns hang in the balance, yet few understand the rules. In this game of power, the pawns of light and darkness will make the difference in the battle for the kingdoms of Erdhe: Katherine, ‘The Imp’: a young princess with the stout heart of a warrior will challenge the minions of a thousand-year-old evil. Liandra: The Spider Queen; who uses her beauty to beguile, her spies to foresee, and her gold to control, will need all of her skill and strength to fight a rebellion with her own blood at it’s heart. Steffan, the puppeteer, will corrupt the innocent and unwary with greed and desire, as he sets an entire kingdom ablaze.
Sweatpants and Spells (Midlife Magic in Marshmallow Book 1) (affiliate link)
I knew hot flashes were supposed to be hot, but I didn’t expect flames.
One day I’m in anger management, normalizing the cordial hate between me and my husband.
The next, we’re divorced and he has taken both our house and the business we built together. I’m forty years old and living above our empty restaurant, plotting my next move.
And then the world around starts lighting up—literally catching on fire. I’m starting to think my defining characteristic may not be my snark or my cupcake-baking prowess, but spontaneous combustion.
I’m done suppressing my anger. I’m done playing by other people’s rules. Ready to take the reins on my destiny, I’m making the choices I used to be too afraid to make. Like my favorite cast iron skillet, women get better with age. And at forty, I know exactly who I am and what I want.
A Heart to Call Home (Starting Over Book 1) (affiliate link)
After an indifferent divorce, Reed Peterson traded in her high-profile career in the city for an opportunity to try her hand at running a business of her own. She’s not sure if the small town life is for her, but since part of her new mission in life is to adopt the free-spiritedness her mother had once embodied, she knows she has to give it a try. She needs her freedom, and she needs it now. Even if the fresh air might suffocate her.
Rogan Douglas agrees to take on the job of getting Reed’s property up-to-snuff so she can re-open the once grand—now dilapidated—cottage motel in town. Struggling to raise his five kids on his own after the accidental death of his wife, Rogan didn’t realize the job would cost him so much. Like his sanity. And his heart.
Reed and Rogan are venturing down different paths in life, but can they resist the powerful attraction that threatens the way they see themselves? Their futures? And is it possible for two people with such different personalities and values to find a way to call each other’s heart their home?
Making Midlife Magic (Forty Is Fabulous Book 1) (affiliate link)
After catching my soon-to-be ex-husband shagging my soon-to-be ex-assistant, I realize his ‘for better or for worse’ conveniently forgot to mention my forties.
An escape to a remote Italian island seems like the perfect antidote to a midlife crisis—until I arrive. I’m expecting copious amounts of Chianti and pasta. Instead, I find a decrepit bed and breakfast with the oldest and most mysterious nonna in existence.
Yet there’s something peculiar about this island, like how everyone keeps calling me mamma or how I’m the first tourist in decades.
And that’s before I wake up to a talking chipmunk holding a glass of wine. He says I have something ancient in me, and for once, it’s not my creaking joints.
When I finally discover the island’s deepest secrets, I know my forties are about to be fabulous, if only I can survive long enough to enjoy them!
The Proud Duke: A Novel (affiliate link)
“Your dark secrets only made me love you more”
Lady Alicia’s privileged life has always felt empty, with her charitable work being the only source of true joy. But she begins to see the world in a different light when she meets Duke Stephen, a man haunted by a dark secret…
Stephen, known for his questionable reputation, returns from his travels to embrace his unwanted duties as the Duke. But when he learns of Lady Alicia’s family’s troubles, he cannot resist lending a hand, despite their initial strife…
As they toile side by side to aid Lady Alicia’s family, their hearts became intertwin with an ever-growing love. But when another man sees Stephen’s secret as a way to bring them down, how can a new love survive the danger that lies ahead…
Storm Over the Land: A Profile of the Civil War (affiliate link)
Writings on the American Civil War selected from the Pulitzer Prize–winning presidential biography Abraham Lincoln: The War Years, with illustrations and maps.
Drawn from Carl Sandburg’s magisterial biography of the sixteenth US president, this volume focuses in on the War Between the States, bringing the author’s trademark clarity and vivid style to this dark and dramatic period in the nation’s history. Moving from Sumter to Shiloh, Antietam to Gettysburg, Storm Over the Land is a classic chronicle of this bloody conflict, richly illustrated with halftones and drawings.
Never Caught, the Story of Ona Judge: George and Martha Washington’s Courageous Slave Who Dared to Run Away (affiliate link)
In this incredible narrative, Erica Armstrong Dunbar reveals a fascinating and heartbreaking behind-the-scenes look at the Washingtons when they were the First Family—and an in-depth look at their slave, Ona Judge, who dared to escape from one of the nation’s Founding Fathers.
Born into a life of slavery, Ona Judge eventually grew up to be George and Martha Washington’s “favored” dower slave. When she was told that she was going to be given as a wedding gift to Martha Washington’s granddaughter, Ona made the bold and brave decision to flee to the north, where she would be a fugitive.
From her childhood, to her time with the Washingtons and living in the slave quarters, to her escape to New Hampshire, Erica Armstrong Dunbar, along with Kathleen Van Cleve, shares an intimate glimpse into the life of a little-known, but powerful figure in history, and her brave journey as she fled the most powerful couple in the country.
Cooking for Friends (affiliate link)
Head-to-Toe Winter Knits: 100 Quick and Easy Accessories to Knit (affiliate link)
No matter your skill level, stay warm and stylish in cold weather with this simple guide to creating 100 wonderful, winter accessories.
This gorgeous book brings together 100 of the best winter knits from bestselling author and knitting designer, Monica Russel. Previously published in the 20 to Make series, these fabulous designs are quick and easy to make, and include scarves, wrist warmers, hats, boot cuffs, headbands and snoods. With designs for men, women and children in a range of colors and styles, there is something for everyone in this valuable knitting resource.
“These 100 patterns for winter accessories will satisfy beginning and experienced knitters alike . . . . Knitters will find the variety of patterns inspiring, and most will not be able to resist making pig boot cuffs for their wellies. The range of style and skill level represented in these patterns . . . make this a solid choice.” —Booklist
When Paula Wolfert’s The Cooking of Southwest France was first published in 1983, it became an instant classic. This award-winning book was praised by critics, chefs, and home cooks alike as the ultimate source of recipes and information about a legendary style of cooking. Wolfert’s recipes for cassoulet and confit literally changed the American culinary scene. Confit, now ubiquitous on restaurant menus, was rarely served in the United States before Wolfert presented it.
Now, Wolfert has completely revised her groundbreaking book. In this edition, you”ll find sixty additional recipes—thirty totally new recipes, along with thirty updated recipes from Wolfert’s other books. Recipes from the original edition have been revised to account for current tastes and newly available ingredients; some have been dropped.
You will find superb classic recipes for cassoulet, sauce perigueux, salmon rillettes, and beef daube; new and revised recipes for ragouts, soups, desserts, and more; and, of course, numerous recipes for the most exemplary of all southwest French ingredients—duck—including the traditional method for duck confit plus two new, easier variations.
Led Zeppelin: All the Albums, All the Songs (affiliate link)
Formed by the unlikely alliance of two ace London studio musicians and two bar-band bumpkins from the north, Led Zeppelin went on to create the template for the modern marauding rock ‘n’ roll band. Though Zeppelin is often described as “heavy,” any true fan will tell you that the band’s catalog is actually a complex amalgam of blues, psychedelia, rock, folk, and country that reflect the specific influences carried by each of Led Zeppelin’s four members.
Revised to include rarities, outtakes, and B-sides from their storied catalog, veteran music journalist Martin Popoff picks apart each of songs in exquisite detail, and, for the first time ever, he analyzes the circumstances that led to their creation, the recording processes, the historical contexts, and more.
… See the rest of today ‘s Book Picks here on page 2Page 2