With her handler, Shiba patrols her territory for illicit magic. But Shiba has just lost her lifelong partner, and his replacement doesn’t trust her–and he doesn’t want to, for he’s just lost his own partner. With nasty illicit magic sneaking across the border, what’s a bitch to do? Of course, the real question is, will she do it in time…

[included in THE HEART OF DOG]

First Published: Berkley Prime Crime, 2007

Book #6 of P.B. Ryan’s critically acclaimed historical mystery series. Governess Nell Sweeney and wounded battle surgeon Will Hewitt reunite on Cape Cod to investigate the death of Nell’s long-lost brother.

“Summary: Nell has proven herself a model governess in the years she’s worked for the Hewitts. But now a terrible secret from her past—and the lurking suspicion that she might be carrying Will Hewitt’s child—threaten to rob her of everything for which she has worked so hard.

“Comments: Nell has a lot on her plate. Her only surviving sibling, Jamie, is dead. He was a fugitive, wanted for the murder of Susannah Cunningham. Also occupying her mind is that fact that she’s pregnant with Will’s baby and Will is in France. In the previous book, the American ambassador asked President Grant for an experienced battle surgeon, and Will was offered the job. Nell even begins to question whether Will—rootless vagabond, cardsharp, and recovering addict—can ever truly settle down. He didn’t take the teaching job, which he loved. Nell knows he went to France for her sake. However, with a child’s future in question, Nell can’t help but wonder. Regardless of what she thinks of Will, the fact she needs a divorce first, and soon, remains. With so much uncertainty in her future, it is a small relief to know that her mentor and former lover, Dr. Greaves is offering her so much support. He knows that Nell is pregnant and that her heart belongs to Will, even as she questions his reliability…

“Favorite Quotes:

“’The only reason you feel unworthy of that award is that you’re mired in your old notion of yourself as flawed and undeserving. Frankly, I’m beginning to find that refrain fairly tedious.’

“’I’ve never known you to be quite the pitiless shrew. I find it captivating.’

“—Nell, Will”

Babbling Book Reviews

“As always, the author excels at setting the scene, evoking the time and place by use of the day-to-day details as well as historical events… This has been a gorgeously written series, populated with unique and unforgettable characters. I’m truly sorry to see it end, and will, no doubt, be re-reading these keepers.” CA Reviews

“Ryan’s historical atmosphere is spot on. It’s a memorable look into the Gilded Age. I can’t help but recommend this series to those who enjoy cozy type historical mystery series.” MyShelf.com

“P.B. Ryan writes a heartwarming mystery that capture the ambivalence of the rich on the east coast five years after the Civil War ended.” Genre Go Round Reviews

First Released: Harlequin, 1996

Mansfield, New Jersey, is burning up building by building—each fire more devastating than the last—and it’s Detective Jamie Keegan’s job to bring the “Firefly,” as the arsonist has dubbed himself, to justice. He balks when his captain orders him to consult the beautiful and enigmatic India Cook, who claims to be a psychic, and who can’t bear to be touched. Convinced she’s a con artist, Jamie tries to deny the chemistry simmering between them as he and India work together to stop the Firefly before he can strike again. Original publication date: January 1996.

“Ever a master of characterization and sexual tension, Patricia Ryan creates a sizzling suspense about the thin line between passion and anguish sure to heat up our reading pleasure!” —RT Book Reviews

“A steamy, sizzling, and thoroughly entertaining novel that allows the audience to partake in the adventure romance of a lifetime. The pacing is swift and the unfolding storyline provides a fascinating glimpse into a world where psi comes together with arson to create a bonfire of passion. Way to go, Pat Ryan!” —Affaire de Coeur

“A tale so full of fiery emotions and blistering passion, not to mention the wonderful characters, I closed the last page with a huge smile on my lips.” —Rendezvous

“The most remarkable aspect of this novel is the author’s empathic treatment of India’s [psychic] condition. This situation creates some unique sexual tension, including the well-handled description of desire in a man’s mind. Women reading romances are occasionally treated to token narratives about passion and desire from a hero’s point of view. Author Patricia Ryan takes that point of view one step further, with fascinating results. Readers will not want to put this one down until they have reached the satisfying happy ending.” —Gothic Journal

First Released: St. Martin, 1998

From USA TODAY bestselling author Antoinette Stockenberg comes an original and wonderfully romantic story of star-crossed lovers who have been apart for twenty years and who rediscover one another in an idyllic coastal village on Cape Cod.

A SECOND CHANCE AT LOVE. It’s a deep, aching need for anyone whose heart has ever been broken. Maddie Regan and Dan Hawke were college lovers who were compelled to go separate ways after a horrific event for which Dan was blamed. She settled down and raised a family; he roamed the planet as a war correspondent. But a near death experience brings Dan in search of the only woman he has ever loved. His plan to win Maddie is simple: take up residence in a lighthouse just a stone’s throw from her family’s summer home, and then make her fall back in love with him. He knows her family will object and suspects that her daughter might; but he refuses to believe that Maddie herself — the woman who has haunted his dreams for two decades — can be any less in love with him than he is with her.

It’s not that simple for Maddie. She has a jealous ex-husband to deal with … a feisty, resentful teenager … a widowed mother unable to emerge from mourning … and the ongoing heartbreak of her father’s unsolved murder. Is it possible to throw all of that aside for the chance to be happy?

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“Antoinette Stockenberg is a fresh, exciting voice. Her writing is delicious!”–Jayne Ann Krentz

“[She's] destined to become a major voice in women’s fiction.”–Publishers Weekly

“A superb story.”
–Rendezvous Magazine

“This wonderful plot gives the reader a love story about two people who had lost each other for 20 years … and embroiders the tale with a mystery. What fun to read! Totally different, exciting, and new. Colorful and extremely visual descriptions make this book come to life; I could see the ocean and smell the salty sea air … the story flows and is hard to put down … it’s a keeper, readers!”
–Romance Communications online
(Winner, Romance Communications Reviewers Award)
(Nominated, Romance Communications Readers Award)

“Buy this book! A truly fantastic summer read!”
–Suzanne Barr, Gulf Coast Woman

“A CHARMED PLACE allows Stockenberg’s considerable talents to truly shine … almost perfect … a well-rounded, believable, entertaining and moving romance [with] an intellectually challenging mystery… a real story about real people whom readers will care deeply about.”
–Gothic Journal

“An absorbing, highly engaging read with dialogue [that is] clever and realistic. The Cape Cod setting is vividly evoked, and secondary characters add great color …. Ms. Stockenberg is a gifted prose stylist; she makes us care about the characters. The fairly explicit love scenes are not only passionate, but also tender. A truly charming contemporary romance with an uplifting theme that second chances at love are possible …. ”
–Regency World

–”A CHARMED PLACE is a captivating mixture of mystery and romance with characters that seem so real they jump off the pages. Stockenberg is adept at capturing family relationships and conveying a real sense of the characters’ feelings and motiviations. [This is] an intriguing and passionate tale that will have the reader longing to read her next novel.”
–Writers Write Website

“A glorious novel … Ms. Stockenberg takes her place alongside LaVyrle Spencer as a writer of depth and perception.” Very Highly Recommended
–Under the Covers Reviews

“Pure Stockenberg. The author captures the flavor of New England life along with great family dynamics. The love story between Dan and Maddie gives hope to anyone who dreams of their first love.”
–Interludes

“Passion, love, hatred and deceit all collide with unexpected force in the powerful and expressive A CHARMED PLACE.”
–Romantic Times Magazine

“Very witty writing … wonderfully drawn characters … [get] to know them and the obstacles they overcome.”
–Book Barn Gazette

British actress Jenny Lyme is having a pretty decent career. Though she may not have become an international movie star, she’s well loved in England for a role on British TV and continues to work regularly.

Now her hometown community center is in danger of being sold. The only hope for its salvation is if Jenny can film the Christmas Revels production she’s directing and sell it for television broadcasting. For that she needs a really good cameraman—and she just happens to know one….

Greg Marino has worked hard for his success as a Hollywood cinematographer, and he has an Oscar sitting by his coffee maker to prove it. But he still has fond memories of the fling he had with Jenny Lyme ten years earlier when they worked together on a disastrous movie. When she calls and asks if he’d film her community Christmas show, he decides it would be a fun break in his demanding life. And it would be really, really nice to see Jenny again.

The show is a delight, and Jenny and Greg find the old attraction is still there. But is it possible to build a life together when both have demanding careers thousands of miles apart?

Special Bonus Short Story!
Seduced by Sloth was written for an internet experiment that failed, but the theme of finding a balance in life and work echoes that of A Christmas Fling.
~~~~

(The following reviews are for the original collection, Christmas Revels. Three of the other four novellas have been e-released as Christmas Mischief.)

“A great collection for a cold winter’s evening with a hot cup of tea. Mary Jo Putney’s characters are memorable and their stories are heartwarming.”
–Cynthia Meidinger, The Best Reviews

“These five heart-tugging stories and their endearing characters celebrate the love, joy, and magic of the Christmas season. Highly recommended.”
–Susan Lantz, www.romrevtoday.com

“If you’ve never read Mary Jo Putney, this collection is a delightful introduction to her compelling characters and gifted storytelling. If you’re a fan already, then you know this book will make a great stocking stuffer for the readers on your list!”
–Lenore Howard, Old Book Barn Gazette

First Released: Kensington 2001

RWA Golden Heart Winner, Best Regency Romance

After breaking her heart years ago and ruining her future, Maeve Midden now only longs to find a permanent position as a governess. A place where she can belong, and forever hide herself. But she winds up making a deal with Lord Rothe, a former colonel in the King’s army–she’ll look after his sixteen-year-old niece until she can find a new position with younger girls. But she’s soon intertwined in the lives of this troubled girl, and this troubled lord. How can she leave this family that needs her so much? And how can she stay when she is falling in love with a man who is far above her lowly position?

Colonel Andrew Derhurst, Lord Rothe, never expected to inherit a title and his brother’s family. As a younger son, he was meant for a military career and he’s made himself into a hard army man. But now he has a title he never wanted, relatives who resent him, and a desperate need for Maeve’s help. But will he lose her due to her stubborn determination to keep her as his niece’s governess… and to a heart which has forgotten how to love?

ISBN: 978-0-9831423-3-1

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I can’t say enough good things about this book except BUY IT! I don’t care what type of book you usually like, good writing is good writing and this book is sure to find a permanent place on your keeper shelf. Bottom Line: Shannon Donnelly is a stunning new talent not to be missed. She rivals Carla Kelly in her uniqueness of plot and depth of characters. – Cybil Solen, Rakehell.net

Ms. Donnelly pens an amusing and heartwarming tale about these two lonely adults who struggle to overcome some imagined or real flaw, and who finally arrive at true happiness. – Teresa Roebuck, Romantic Times

First Published: Fawcett, 1996

Featuring a strong, determined woman sleuth in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Vandalism, threatening phone calls… The University of California students who share a big old house in Berkeley are under siege. Someone is stalking them. But who? And why?

Oakland PI searches for reasons as the unsettling threats escalate into frightening violence. No one has been killed yet. But murder could be next.

Or has it already happened?

“California PI Jeri Howard takes a deliciously suspicion-saturated interest in everyone around in her latest adventure.”

Publishers Weekly

“In Dawson’s capable hands, the characters are believable and the story moves forward in a lively fashion.”

-Roberta Alexander, Contra Costa Times

“A Jeri Howard mystery which slowly builds a chilling plot.”

- The Bookwatch, Midwest Review of Books

A Dance in the Dark is Karen Ranney’s novella first featured in the After Midnight anthology published in 1998.

Louisa is an heiress who is truly not beautiful. Douglas is a man who isn’t simply a recluse. When Louisa finds a friend in Douglas, he knows it’s the very worst thing that could happen to her.

In the darkness, however, almost anything is possible. An ugly woman can find beauty, and a vampire can live as a man.

First Released: Kensington, 2001

Award of Excellence Finalist
Holt Medallion Finalist
Laurel Wreath Finalist

Convinced by her godmother that reformed rakes make the best husbands, the beautiful and willful Clarissa Derhurst is on the hunt for just such a man. Only a rake can give her the passion she needs to keep from becoming a vain, unhappy woman like her mother. But finding the right rake is no easy task. When she meets Lord Wolviston, the ‘lone wolf’, she starts to believe he might be able to give her the passion she craves. No other man makes her heart beat so fast. But can she reform his wicked ways—and is she even certain he is all that wicked?

After his father’s crippling accident, Evan Fortesque became burdened by family responsibilities. Now that his father has passed on, and as the new Lord Wolviston, he’s come to London to sow a few belated wild oats. When he overhears that a spoilt beauty won’t look twice at a respectable gentleman such as himself, he decides she needs a lesson—and this is just the lark he wanted. He’ll pretend to be a rake she won’t be able to reform. But instead of finding a vain, silly girl, he starts to glimpse the passionate woman underneath Clarissa’s defenses. And then Clarissa attracts a real rake to her side. Now Wolviston must keep Clarissa from being compromised? But how can he do that when he’s starting to want to seduce her himself?

ISBN:  978-0-9831423-6-2

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“Delicious, delightful, and devilishly good reading…” — Emily Hendrickson, author of The Rake’s Revenge

Originally published by Berkley Prime Crime, 2007

3rd in the Collectibles Mystery series

Covering the famous Heart of Dixie antique show for Collector’s Weekly, amateur sleuth Molly Appleby gets an unwelcome scoop when she finds the dead body of an antiques dealer in her hotel’s lush conservatory.