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December's delights are here! Thrilling tales, romance, and magic await you.

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Family secrets aren't just dangerous, they are deadly.


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A headstrong heiress and a noble gambler: wagers, intrigue, and irresistible romance.


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An immortal vampire, a relentless agent, and a past that refuses to stay buried.


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Three homeless puppies, two lonely hearts, and a massive snowstorm.


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Two restless souls, one wild Christmas on the ranch�where sparks fly, and dreams ride free.


Quilted by Christmas

Quilted by Christmas, November 2014
Quilts of Love
by Jodie Bailey

Abingdon Press
240 pages
ISBN: 1426773617
EAN: 9781426773617
Kindle: B00KIW0M2G
Paperback / e-Book
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"Can a returning soldier stitch back his life with the girl he left?"

Fresh Fiction Review

Quilted by Christmas
Jodie Bailey

Reviewed by Clare O'Beara
Posted December 28, 2014

Inspirational Romance | Inspirational | Holiday

Part of the Quilts of Love series, the story starts with the Christmas lights being switched on in Hollings, North Carolina. Taryn McKenna is shepherding young relatives. Later she brings them to warm up in the town hall where handcrafts are being sold to tourists; everyone wants to be QUILTED BY CHRISTMAS. Justin Callahan left town years ago for the Army, but now he drops back to blend with the crowd; as soon as Taryn spots him he knows this was a mistake. Her stricken eyes haunt him as he departs. Taryn believes that he's on leave but in fact he's coming home for good. To distract herself Taryn concentrates on helping her aged grandmother Jemma with quilt making. Her quilts for sale are sewn on a machine but family gifts are stitched by hand. A half-made wedding quilt in the Irish family tradition has been stored in the attic - Taryn has a sneaking suspicion that it was meant for her. She'd hoped to marry Justin, but she had such a row with him over his enlistment that there is no reconciliation possible. Strong issues are hidden by the deceptively gentle scenes of women sewing fabric, and by the references to pine tree scent and baking gingerbread. Taryn lost her mother early, and her father was determined that she was not going to tie down a young man the way that he felt he had been trapped and tied. Devoid of support, she saw the young man she cared about leave her life. Times were different then. Now she's got her own mortgage, and doesn't need a man. Grandmother Jemma takes a turn, and she's going to need good care as well as the community's prayers. Justin turns out to be refreshingly normal and doesn't mind saying that being able to sew hems earned him a lot of favour in the army. He never knew the pressures Taryn was under when he enlisted. Now all his memories of town are of eleven years ago, and recalling them makes him seem younger. I liked Justin a lot and was pleased that he was coming home to help his father, not to do gung-ho black ops or security work. Jodie Bailey's carefully pieced-together QUILTED BY CHRISTMAS is an inspirational romance with a hard edge of truths underlying the softness. Some readers may find the multilayered story sparks discussions of life choices which are better spoken about than hidden. I consider this writing to savour and will be looking for more from Jodie Bailey.

Learn more about Quilted by Christmas

SUMMARY

Taryn McKenna believes she’s easy to forget. Abandoned by her parents and left behind when her high school sweetheart joined the army, she vows to never love again and throws herself into her love for the outdoors and the pursuit of a college degree—something no one else in her family has ever accomplished. Her goal, as a young teacher in the hills of North Carolina, is to leave a legacy in the lives of the middle-schoolers she teaches.

When Taryn’s grandmother Jemma, the only other person who ever held her close, has a heart attack that reveals a fatal medical condition, Taryn is corralled into helping Grandma work on a final project—an Irish chain quilt that tells the story of her history and the love Jemma knows is out there for Taryn. As the pieces of the quilt come together, Taryn begins to see her value. Can she learn to believe that God will never leave her behind even though others have?


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