Large Print Valentine Novels

 

Travel to the Scotland Highlands with this classic called Death of a Valentine: A Hamish Macbeth Mystery is by M.C. Beaton. "Amazing news has spread across the Scottish countryside. The most famous of highland bachelors, police sergeant Hamish Macbeth, will be married at last. Everyone in the village of Lochdubh adores Josie McSween, Macbeth's newest constable and blushing bride-to-be. While locals think Josie is quite a catch, Hamish has a case of prenuptial jitters. After all, if it weren't for the recent murder of a beautiful woman in a neighbouring village, there wouldn't be a wedding at all. For it was a mysterious Valentine's Day package--delivered to the victim before her death--that initially drew Hamish and Josie together on the investigation. As they work side by side, Hamish and Josie soon discover that the woman's list of admirers was endless, confirming Hamish's suspicion that love can be blind, deaf . . . and deadly." (from Amazon.com)

In A Catered Valentine's Day by Isis Crawford, "Bernie and Libby, owners of A Taste of Heaven, have plans to partner up with the Just Chocolate store for a taste-tempting Valentine's Day fundraiser featuring pairings of exotic chocolates, food, and wine, as well as a bachelor auction. And though Bernie isn't too happy about her boyfriend volunteering to be auctioned off, she's got too much on her plate to be jealous: one of the coolers is leaking; they need a new butter supplier, and the mother of a very good client has died. Putting their preparations on hold, Bernie and Libby attend the funeral, only to be recruited to help solve a mystery. In an old cemetery-turned-lover's-lane, the body of Ted Gorman has been found in someone else's grave. The same Ted Gorman who supposedly died in a fiery car crash weeks earlier. Ted was the owner–with his wife–of Just Chocolate. So now, as Bernie and Libby continue working with the grieving widow, they open up a mixed box of dark financial scandal, sticky family ties, bittersweet passion, and just desserts." (from Amazon.com)

It's the one day each year when being single is a sin . . .In The Trouble With Valentine's Day by Rachel Gibson, it just plain stinks! "Kate Hamilton should know. Dumped by her boyfriend, burnt out by her job, she's returned to Gospel, Idaho, where a Mountain Momma Crafters' original poetry reading is about as good as it gets on a Friday night. Then her first attempted seduction of a hunky stranger is completely rejected. So much for her self-esteem! It turns out that Rob Sutter, former ice hockey madman, owner of Sutter's Sports—and the hunky stranger who told her to get lost—has been more than burned by love and isn't looking for a relationship. But then he and Kate find themselves in an ultra-compromising position in the M&S Market after-hours, giving the phrase "clean up in aisle five" a whole new meaning, and causing a whole lot of gossip in Gospel . . ." (from Amazon.com)

Valentine Murder is by Leslie Meier. "It's Valentine's Day in Tinker's Cove. And while the cupcakes Lucy Stone is baking for her children will have pink frosting and candy hearts, Lucy's thoughts aren't centered on sugary sentiments. She's barely arrived at her first board meeting of the newly-renovated library when Bitsy Howell, the new librarian, is found dead in the basement, shot only minutes before story hour was to start. The agitated board members assume that Bitsy was killed by an outsider, until Detective Lt. Horowitz arrives on the scene and announces that the killer is among them. Lucy was already aware that Bitsy's uppity big city ways rubbed some people in Tinker's Cove the wrong way. But she has a hunch that motives for the librarian's violent death run a lot deeper. From Hayden Norcross's elegant antique shop to Corney Clark's chic kitchen, Lucy relentlessly snoops into the curious lifestyles and shocking secrets of Tinker's Cove's most solid citizens--secrets that will plunge her into a terrifying confrontation with a conniving killer. . ." (from Amazon.com)

Tracie Peterson has penned the historical romance My Valentine. "Enjoy two touching historical romances set in 1800s New York City. When Pierce and Darlene meet in her father’s tailor shop, their lives are on very different paths. But neither can forget the other. Also includes the bonus story, Little Shoes and Mistletoe by Sally Laiity, in which two orphans restore a woman’s capacity to love." (from Amazon.com)

 

Old Frontiers--Historical Fiction for Your Enjoyment

The Mannequin Makers is a novel by Craig Cliff. It's 1903 in the small town of Marumaru, New Zealand as the train pulls up and a young Maori man steps off and announces the imminent visit of a famous strongman. The entire town turns out to greet him, save one, Colton Kemp, a department store window dresser. Kemp is at home watching his beloved wife die during the premature birth of their twins. The grief torments Kemp and he often leaves the twins in the care of his wife's younger sister. As the grief he feels turns into an irrational obsession with thwarting his rival--the silent and gifted Carpenter--Colton Kemp allows his demons to spill out onto his family causing irreparable harm.

For something with a little more romance, why not try Out of the Ashes: The Heart of Alaska Book Two by Tracie Peterson and Kimberley Woodhouse? With the death of their father, Collette and Jean-Michel Langelier are no longer tied to post-war France. Collette is dreaming of adventure, but her brother just wishes he could forget the horror of the Great Syrian Revolt of 1925. An unexpected invitation to visit Alaska and the Curry Hotel located at the foot of Mt. Denali seems like the ideal opportunity for the siblings, so they make their way west. Katherine Demarchis has agreed to accompany her beloved grandmother on one last adventure into the Alaska wilderness. She is still nursing wounds from a painfully abusive forced marriage. When Katherine and Jean-Michel come face to face, their past together is revealed and their plans for the future are thrown into chaos.

Only Killers and Thieves is a novel of colonial Australia by Paul Howarth. In 1895 the McBride family is in danger of losing everything they hold dear. A crippling drought has their land parched and their cattle are starving, but the rains do come and things start to look up. After spending the afternoon swimming in a replenished water hole, fourteen-year-old Tommy and sixteen-year-old Billy return home to a shocking tragedy. As the thirst for vengeance falls upon the brothers, they turn to the ruthless and cunning John Sullivan--their father's former employer and the wealthiest landowner in the region. Sullivan gathers a posse to go after the man thought to have commited the horrific crime the boys came home to, however, the posse takes on a larger roll to "disperse" the Aboriginal people and "protect" the rights of the white settlers. The impact of these actions will haunt Tommy for the rest of his life and put a stain on the young country struggling to come into its own.

Many people are familiar with the tragic events that befell the Donner Party on their travel west in the late 1800s. Alma Katsu fictionalizes their story and gives it a supernatural twist in The Hunger. With their rations depleted and bitter quarrels breaking out between their members, the Donner Party is driven closer to the brink of madness by the mysterious death of a little boy. Even with the promise of what awaits them in the West, the long-buried secrets of these isolated travelers breeds dissent that leads to murder and chaos. Is it a curse from the beautiful Tamsen Donner who thinks she's a witch, their ill-advised choice of route, or just plain bad luck that plagues their adventure? Members of the group begin to disappear and survivors wonder if there really is something disturbing, and hungry, for them in the mountains.