Treasured Christmas Brides

Book excerpt: Six historical Christmas romances prove life’s most priceless gifts come not in the form of polished gold or silver—but from the vast riches of a loving heart. The Christmas Star Bride by Amanda Cabot Wyoming, 1885—Esther Hathaway lost her one true love at Gettysburg twenty years ago, but she is still willing to celebrate her niece’s wedding by commissioning Jeremy Snyder to paint her portrait. Will Esther’s prayers for God to ease her loneliness be answered by a wounded vet? A Token of Promise by Rebecca Germany Alaska, 1897—Promised in marriage to a man she has never met in exchange for a place to call home, Charlotte Vance is headed to the Klondike and struggling not to fall in love with the wrong man. Gabe Monroe has found a bride perfect for his brother. A wife will help his brother run his supply business and raise his daughter, and Gabe will be freed to seek riches in the Yukon rivers after the spring thaw. But what will become of Charlotte when both brothers refuse to marry her—even though one loves her? Band of Angel’s by Cathy Marie Hake Colorado, 1893—The first time Jarrod McLeod dips his pan in the river, he strikes gold—a wedding ring! Sure the woman who lost it must be beside herself, he goes upriver to return it. He meets laundress Angel Taylor. She did lose the ring; however, she refuses to take the ring back. Jarrod’s first impressions of Angel are scandalous, but he soon discovers the truth, bringing her a Christmas gift to span the perimeters of time. Winterlude by Colleen L. Reece Alaska, 1930s—A single out-of-place snowflake in San Diego lures Ariel Dixon home to Ketchikan, Alaska, despite her wealthy fiancé’s protests. When she encounters slim, handsome Jean Thoreau, a childhood friend presumed dead, a swift rush of events changes the course of Ariel’s life. Drawn back to the home she loves, Ariel finds peace in the arms of the man who would not break a promise made long ago. Christmas Bounty by MaryLu Tyndall California, 1855—Caroline is a widowed mother alone in a small California town that is suddenly exploding with gold fever. When she sees the ship’s captain who once saved her and her husband’s lives on a scaffold to be hung, she must do something—even propose marriage. Goldrush Christmas by Michele Ule Alaska, 1897—When Samantha and her twin Peter book passage to Alaska in search of their missionary-minded father, they never imagined getting caught up in the rush for gold or that their neighbor would follow them. Soon their youth and inexperience is challenged on all fronts.