Showing results by narrator "Hollis McCarthy" in All Categories

Jayne Frost and husband Sinclair Crowe are off on another adventure, this time to Nashville, a.k.a. Music City, to pay a royal visit to one of the Santa’s Workshops toy stores. Once that’s done, they’ll have a little time to sightsee and play tourist. Which they do. Until something rather peculiar happens in the Country Music Hall of Fame that leaves Sinclair feeling all shook up.

It is 1556 and the queen's astrologer, the prophet Nostradamus has uncovered a secret that could destroy the kingdom of France. The queen, Catherine de Medicis, a dabbler in black magic, has decided to get rid of the king's mistress by seeking out the legendary Undying Head of Menander the Magus, known as the Master of All Desires. But she does not know that evil befalls all those who wish upon this accursed object. And the head, in its coffer, has fallen into the possession of a charming, wryly perceptive but stubborn young woman: Sybille Artaud de la Roche.

Chestnuts are roasting. Jingle bells are rocking. The halls are about to be decked. In other words, Christmas is about to hit Hemlock Cove. Hard. There’s just one little problem…or maybe two. Okay, there are three big problems plaguing Bay Winchester, before she can enjoy the holidays. The first is that the warden, who lost his job thanks to a prison break weeks before, is determined to stalk Bay until she magically fixes his life. He keeps showing up in the oddest of places and making the sort of demands she can’t fulfill.

When single mother Annie Malone purchases a quirky Main Street café on Heron Island, she thinks she's finally turned her dream of opening her own restaurant into a reality. Hearing rumors that a developer is about to build a five-star resort on the sleepy Chesapeake Bay island, she plans to transform the café into a premier upscale bistro. But Annie's life is about to get a lot more complicated.

In this new Jayne Frost and Sinclair Crowe mystery, a royal road trip takes the Princess and Prince Consort of the North Pole all the way to Las Vegas. And even though they’re in Sin City on official business, it doesn’t take long for trouble to find them. Trouble that’s very close to home. In fact, Sinclair’s entire family is gambling on him and Jayne figuring out what’s gone dangerously wrong with the cool new magic trick at the end of his parents’ show.

It’s the annual Brooke Ridge Falls dog show, and Lexy is excited to cater the event. She’s not going to let the murder at the Doggy Diva pet salon put a damper on things for her. She’s also not going to get sidetracked by the robbery at Farradays Jewelers down the street. Lexy’s grandmother and her gang of senior citizen amateur sleuths, on the other hand, are excited to investigate all the above, even if it means shifting through a variety of suspects, including shady salon owners, jaded jewelers, and suspicious senior citizens.

Combined for the first time in one volume are the first three books of the internationally best-selling Ghost Exile saga - Ghost in the Cowl, Ghost in the Maze, Ghost in the Hunt, and the bonus short story "Ghost Relics". Caina Amalas was a nightfighter of the Ghosts, the spies and assassins of the emperor of Nighmar, and through her boldness and cunning, she saved the empire and the world from sorcerous annihilation. But the victory cost her everything.

Bookshop assistant Aurora "Rory" Hawthorn thinks reality will never be as interesting as fiction. It turns out her dad was keeping a secret or two...most importantly, that he was a wizard and that Rory has a hidden magical family she's never met. Juggling a new family and job would be enough of a challenge without also having to deal with a murder mystery, cranky familiars, and the attention of the local reaper - even if he is the hottest guy in town.

In less than 24 hours, Pepper Dunn loses her job, her boyfriend, and her home. It's the worst day of her life. But when Pepper discovers she’s a witch and has inherited the most important store in the magical town of Magnolia Cove, Alabama, she’s as happy as a pig in mud. Too bad the shop is a familiar pet store, and Pepper doesn’t like animals - not even a teensy bit. Determined to sell the shop and get the heck out of town, Pepper’s plans go haywire when a local store owner winds up dead and Pepper gets accused of murder.

The Brook Ridge Falls Retirement Center is still reeling over the death of one of their own, when Lexy and her senior detective friends are asked to investigate another murder. Muriel Maguire insists that her grandson Henry has been framed for the murder of his wife, but the clues all point to Henry, and the police already have him in custody.

Early in her life, Josephine Malone learned the hard way that there was only one person she could love and trust: her grandmother, Lydia Malone. Out of necessity, unconsciously and very successfully, Josephine donned a disguise to keep all others at bay. She led a globetrotting lifestyle on the fringes of the fashion and music elite, but she kept herself distant. While Josephine was trotting the globe, retired boxer Jake Spear was living in the same small town as Lydia.

When her ex took her family from California to live in the small town of Magdalene in Maine, Amelia decided it was time to sort herself out. In order to do that and win her children back, she moves to Cliff Blue, an architectural masterpiece on the rocky coast of Magdalene. Her boxes aren’t even unpacked when she meets Mickey Donovan, a man who lives across the street, a man so beautiful Amelia takes one look at him and knows she wants it all from him.

Jules Whittier is starting to regret the promise she made to her grandmother on her deathbed. The motel is even more dilapidated than it looked like in the pictures, and it turns out that renovating it includes working with her estranged cousins Maddie and Gina - the same cousins who caused her to fail at running the last motel. But there’s no getting around the stipulations in Gram’s will, and Jules needs to make a success of the Beachcomber, not only because of the promise she made, but also to prove to herself that she’s not a failure.

The Wicked Witches of the Midwest are back for three action-packed adventures. As usual, trouble is on the menu and family hijinks are around every corner. This omnibus includes three full novels, including: Murder Most Witchy, A Witch Before Dying, and A Breath of Witchy Air. Sit back, enjoy the ride, and be careful not to land on Aunt Tillie's list.

Bay Winchester is finally getting everything she’s always wanted … and maybe a little bit extra. With a wedding on the horizon, and her powers growing exponentially, she’s coming into her own. Come along for the ride with the Winchester witches as their story continues.

A gripping and empathetic work of reportage, Free reveals what awaits them and the hundreds of thousands of others who are released from prison every year: the first rush of freedom followed quickly by institutionalized obstacles and logistical roadblocks, grinding bureaucracies, lack of resources, societal stigmas and damning self-perceptions, and the sometimes overwhelming psychological challenges. Veteran reporter Lauren Kessler, both clear-eyed and compassionate, follows six people whose diverse stories paint an intimate portrait of struggle, persistence, and resilience.

Things have been quiet in Hemlock Cove. That means the Winchesters are due to find trouble. This time, the trouble comes in the form of a dead radio doctor who calls himself Dr. Lovelorn and fixes relationships in distress. Unfortunately for the Winchesters, if he can’t help his normal patients, he’s going to help them...whether they want it or not.

The past doesn’t always stay in the past. Deeds can come back to haunt us. That’s what happens to florist Peony Bellefleur’s protégé and young witch, Char, when her old boyfriend turns up out of the blue saying he wants another chance. Turns out he’s really on the run from crime.

London is never the same after the boisterous Farthingales move into their townhouse on Chipping Way. With five beautiful daughters in residence, the street soon becomes known as a deathtrap for bachelors. If the curse holds true, Dillie Farthingale might be doomed to marry the wretched Duke of Edgeware.

Caina Amalas is a ghost nightfighter, one of the Emperor's elite spies and assassins. And though she remains anonymous, already legends grow around her. Whispers speak of the ghost nightfighter who stopped the fire of the gods from consuming Rasadda, who defeated sorcerers of terrible power, who liberated slaves and threw down cruel lords. Yet now the storm is coming to claim her...