Before he left for Afghanistan, Jake O'Reilly had everything - a beautiful wife, a baby on the way, a wonderful life. Three years later his wife is dead, and he is so haunted by his memories of war that he can't bring himself to go home. But when his wife's grandfather tracks him down and persuades him to come work on his ranch, where Jake's daughter is living, he agrees - even though he is reluctant to expose his little girl to the man he's become.

Growing up at the Shelter Inn hotel, Natalie Shepherd envied guests who could come and go as they pleased. So when it was time to finally leave for college and put the lush green mountains around Shelter Springs—along with the cloud of loss that seemed to follow her family—behind her, she swore she’d never come back. But now her sister McKenna needs a favor. On pregnancy bed rest at doctor’s orders, McKenna needs a helping hand with her two young daughters and someone to take over the inn during the hectic holiday season, and Nat can’t refuse.

Traveling writer and researcher, Stella Fisher, is working in London when she's called home to her family’s farmhouse in Leiper’s Fork, Tennessee to help her mother through the first Christmas without her father. Compounding the situation, her younger sister Lily has run off to get married without telling anyone.

Returning to Branding Iron, Texas, is Travis Morgan’s last resort, and the abandoned ranch he inherited isn’t much more welcoming than the prison cell where he spent the last three years doing time for a tragic accident. Completely without funds or family, Travis finds celebrating Christmas is the last thing on his mind, but there’s no escaping the holiday spirit in this close-knit little town - not with Branding Iron’s longtime Santa retiring, and sweetly stubborn Mayor Maggie Delaney determined to find a replacement.

For outsiders, Painted Canyon, Montana might simply be a picturesque western town, but for rancher and horse trainer Cord Hollister, it's meant salvation. That's why he recognizes in newcomer Shallie Fletcher another lost soul looking for a fresh start. But can he convince her that Painted Canyon is the perfect place to put down roots-and that love awaits if she'll just take a chance?

A cowboy through and through, ranch owner Mallory Kirk knows what it means to put in a full day’s work. But does his new cowgirl? He has his doubts that Morie Brannt will be able to pull her own weight, even if the petite young woman does seem to have a lot of spirit. As they spar over events at the ranch and a past that threatens their hopes for the future, sparks begin to fly, and Mallory can’t help but notice Morie in a new light. But is this tough Wyoming man ready to love?

When Meredith Collins was a child, the little beach town of Cape Sanctuary lived up to its name. Spending summers there with her grandmother, Meredith finally felt safe and loved. Now she’s returning in disgrace. Her late ex-husband swindled investors out of millions of dollars and made Meredith a figure of scorn—though she knew nothing about his scheme. But she still has the beach cottage she inherited from her grandmother and half ownership of the local café. It’s a place to work and earn a little money.

When Katelyn Loveland’s car veered off a winding Appalachian Mountain road, she thought she was done for. That is until Cooper Robinson, local sheriff’s deputy, came to her rescue. And though Katie narrowly escaped her brush with death, she still fell. Hard. She wasn’t the only one. But soon Cooper learns that the woman he’s more attracted to than any he’s ever met is his brother’s new girlfriend - and therefore unquestionably off limits. Yet, despite their best efforts, Cooper and Katie can’t seem to avoid running into each other.

For years, Penelope Mathews worshipped C.C. Tremayne from afar. But the gorgeous loner doesn’t want anything to do with her—or any woman—since his wife’s tragic death. Until one night, when trying to protect C.C. from landing in trouble, Pepi enters a wedding chapel and emerges as Mrs. Connal Cade Tremayne! When C.C. realizes what happened, he plans to end the marriage. Yet the more time he spends with Pepi, the more he realizes he doesn’t want to lose her…

After a night of champagne-fueled recklessness, Katie Crosby is secretly pregnant with the child of big-time businessman Peter Logan. And when their covert hookup becomes major tabloid fodder, Katie escapes to her family's remote Wyoming ranch, hoping the whole ordeal will blow over and Peter will never find her. Unfortunately, Peter shows up at the ranch anyway, not accepting Katie's silence…and a blizzard snows them both in, forcing Peter to stay.

Finley McGowan is determined that the niece she’s raising will always feel loved and wanted. Unlike how she felt after her mom left to pursue a dream of stardom, and when the grandfather who was left to raise them abandoned her and her sister, Sloane, when they needed him most. Finley reacted to her chaotic childhood by walking the straight and narrow—nose down, work hard, follow the rules.

Preston and Constance Whittier have built a happy life together, with a brood of six children raised in a beautiful historic Manhattan mansion. Now, with a nearly empty nest, it’s easier than ever for the Whittiers to maintain their tradition of a solo romantic “Wintermoon” ski trip. But with this year’s trip comes tragedy, and suddenly the Whittier’s adult children find themselves reuniting in the family home without their parents for the first time ever. The eldest four are forced to put aside their personal issues and their grief to keep the family together.

Joan Sample is not living the life she expected. Now a widow and an empty-nester, she has become by her own admission something of a recluse. But after another birthday spent alone, she is finally inclined to listen to her sister, who has been begging Joan to reengage with the world. With Emmie’s support, Joan gathers the courage to take some long-awaited steps: hiring someone to tame her overgrown garden, joining a grief support group, and even renting out a room to a local college student. Before long Joan is starting to feel a little like herself again.

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

Maddie Chester is determined to leave her hometown of Gansett Island, a place that has brought her only bad memories and ugly rumors. Then she’s knocked off her bike on the way to her housekeeping job at McCarthy’s Resort Hotel by Gansett’s “favorite son,” Mac McCarth himself. He’s back in town to help his father sell the family resort and has no intentions of staying long. But when he accidentally sends Maddie flying over the handlebars, he moves in to nurse her back to health and help care for her young son. Soon he realizes he just may be “maid” for love.