Short Family

Question: What does a weathered old, buried chest, five scrapbooks, and a strange strawberry shortcake recipe have in common? Answer: Tabitha Clive! A weathered chest buried under a grove of oak trees on the Clive family farm holds the power to unravel the tightly woven fabric of Tabitha’s family’s past. The year is 2010 and Tabitha Clive, now in her eighties, begins to question everything she knew about her family. Was her family’s history a lie? As Tabitha begins to sort through the items concealed in the long-buried chest, she uncovers a tangled web of heartache that stretches ...

I’m the ex-SEAL with unfinished business. She’s the one I walked away from—and I’ve regretted it ever since. Back in college, Callie was the spark I never saw coming—fierce, stubborn, and impossible to ignore. But I had my future mapped out: follow in my family’s footsteps, become a Navy SEAL, and leave everything—and everyone—behind. So I walked away from her without looking back. Now, years later, I’ve traded combat zones for a co-ownership in The Kill Zone, where I can keep my life simple and my heart locked down. Or at least, I could—until Callie shows up, throwing ...

Hildie and Ben Woodman were not able to have children; however, they found an abandoned little girl on their way into town five years ago who has brought so much happiness into their lives. Prior to this happening, Hester Newson enjoyed gossiping about Hildie's inability to have children and seemed to draw quite the crowd when sharing her bits of gossip. Ironically, the Woodman's little angel, Joy, is also the same age as Hester's daughter, Darla. The community soon discovers what an amazing voice Joy has, and she is chosen over Darla to do the solos in the school programs and church ...

In 1956, Updike published a story, "Snowing in Greenwich Village," about a young couple, Joan and Richard Maple, at the beginning of their marriage. Over the next two decades, he returned to these characters again and again, tracing their years together raising children, finding moments of intermittent happiness, and facing the heartbreak of infidelity and estrangement.

This installment of Joe Wheeler’s Heart to Heart Stories for Sisters is a touching collection of classic short stories designed to tug at the heartstrings and become a family favorite. These stories explore what it means to be a sister—whether biological sisters, “surrogate sisters,” or “soul sisters.” From loving each other through difficult times, consistently lending a listening ear and guarding each other’s secrets, or providing advice and insight that no one else can, sisters have a special bond that binds them together in a unique and beautiful way. This books is perfect...

These interrelated stories are arranged in two sections, one devoted to virtues ("Bravery", "Loyalty", "Chastity", "Charity", and "Forbearance") and the other to vices ("Lust", "Sloth", "Avarice", "Gluttony", and "Vanity"). They are cast with characters who appear and reappear throughout the collection, their actions equally divided between the praiseworthy and the loathsome.

How quickly the ground shifts beneath our feet. We make choices—in the face of love, or violence, or necessity—and the effects ripple outward. In these moving short stories, acclaimed authors examine the foundations of the past, uncovering the irreversible decisions and life-changing encounters that mark the turning point between before and after.

Vanessa Reed had been at odds for years with Evelyn Underwood. Despite the woman's affair with her husband, Vanessa had moved on and forgiven Justice Reed. She's even accepted Jax Reed, the son born of the affair as if he were one of her own children. As Vanessa prepares to bring her family together for the holidays, she contemplates one of her greatest tests of faith and the consequences.

A chance encounter… a lingering glance… a King finds his queen. King: We wind up at The Ruby Palace for a bachelor party. That’s when I see her standing across the room. Dripping in red lace, luscious curves, and dark hair. I know the second I see her I have to have her. But the Angel on stage doesn’t want to be saved. She’s wild, free, and fierce. She just wants me to run alongside her. She will tame the beast inside of me. And I will become hers, instead. Willow: He looks at me like he wants to eat me. I’ve dealt with men like that before. But something about King is different...

Mia Russo spent 10 years working undercover, entrenched in the dregs of society, before handing in her shield. Opening her own pawnshop is a piece of cake in comparison. All she needs is the bad attitude she developed on the streets and the shotgun under her counter to keep law and order. Until the day Zeke McBride walks into her shop. Zeke knows Mia has every right not to trust him. He was the one who chose the next op instead of her.

This Christmas Eve, I had one simple plan: close up the family café and face another quiet night alone. But fate had other ideas when Trystan—the boy who was once my best friend and first love—walked back into my life, dusted with snow and wearing a Marine uniform that made my heart skip a beat. I never expected to see him again, let alone offer him a place to stay when a canceled flight leaves him stranded. Under the glow of twinkling Christmas lights and over cups of hot cocoa, old memories resurface and the sparks between us reignite. But letting him in means risking the walls I've ...

Marie Lane never asked to lead. She’s perfectly fine scribbling in the margins, thank you very much. But when she’s chosen to helm the school’s new “collaborative” book club, she’s dropped straight into the eye of a creative storm—where bold ideas crash, personalities clash, and nothing stays inside the lines. Max dreams in plot twists and mayhem. Lily paints worlds before the words exist. Jake demands structure, flowcharts, and logic. And Zoe? Zoe sees everything—and says just enough to keep Marie guessing. What starts as a chaotic collision of color, voice, and vision ...

Having doubted the existence of the others, at the same time, to their shock and terror, a Ghost, a Time Traveler, and an Extraterrestrial appear to a man, who’s not surprised at all.

Are generations of Snee-Kinsman women actually cursed, or is it just bad luck? A paranormal family saga beginning in 1860 following one family’s journey of tragedy, resiliency and triumph. Their stories are told in three short read books. Book 3 – Cracking the Curse – 1992 - to the present - picks up where Book 2 left off * Two spiteful and competitive witches place a curse on each other’s female children. * To punish his wayward daughter, an angry father casts the family curse in stone – an emerald stone. * The ring with the emerald stone is to be worn by the women of the Snee-...

Miriam was raised in a society without children. To offset the devastation of climate change, state-of-the-art birth control has made daycares and playgrounds things of the past. As tempting as the government inducements are to remain child-free, Miriam’s curiosity about the people who “drop out” of society to become parents grows. When she finds a like-minded partner, she must choose between the rewarding comforts she knows and the unknowable mysteries of being a mother.

If you loved HEARTSTOPPER and LOVE SIMON, then welcome to Boysenberry Valley High, an all-boys school where love is tenderly blossoming, romance is nervously finding its feet, and the students are feeling things they’ve never felt before. When Angus Jones finds out that the perfect, all-rounder Dean Davenport wants to try out for the debate team, Angus is determined to thwart his efforts. Everybody knows that Angus is king of the debate stage. Why could an overachiever like Dean possibly want to take his spotlight? Besides, if he did join the debate team, Dean might discover that Angus ...

How far will a mother go to turn Christmas joy into back-to-school readiness? And what happens when her solution risks taking away the very thing that makes her child feel special? Kemunto is no stranger to tough decisions. As a hardworking mother in a rural African village, she’s mastered the art of stretching every coin just to get by. But when her son Mogaka’s beloved gray Christmas shoes—his pride, his confidence, his magic—don’t meet the school’s strict uniform rules, Kemunto is faced with a new kind of dilemma. To Mogaka, those shoes help him run faster, dream bigger, and ...

Snuggle up around the fireplace with these three-feel good short holiday stories for the family. They show healing from the past, embracing the past while creating new memories for the future as well as teaching that not all fruits of betrayal are rotten. Some can grow into a love you never knew you needed. Enjoy the read and share it with the family!

In Meet Me at the Emotional Baggage Claim, the mother-daughter duo of Lisa Scottoline and Francesca Serritella continue the conversation with more hilarious and honest tales of life inside an ordinary, extraordinary family. These stories will make you laugh, cry, and call your mother, daughter, and all your girlfriends.

From matchmaking carolers to a festive lights competition, four best-selling authors explore the magic of the holidays in these heartwarming small towns.