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Southern Comfort, the first of three novels in the SOUTHERN SERIES, immerses the reader in the essence of southern Louisiana culture, history, voodoo and folklore. The supernatural story takes a back seat to the romance between the protagonist, Chandler Collins, and the handsome dark-haired Navy SEAL, Banton Gastaneau. When a car accident takes the lives of her parents, Chandler leaves the sheltered world of small-town Texas and moves to southern Louisiana. There she settles near her only remaining family - her aunt, uncle and cousins and plans to finish college at LSU. Through the purchase and renovation of an old antebellum house near campus, she meets two neighbors, ex-Navy SEALs Banton Gastaneau and John Calder, who appear to have a hidden agenda and seek much more than a casual friendship with Chandler. As Chandler works on a writing project and unlocks the secrets of the old house and local folklore, she is drawn into a world where blood-drinking Orcos, Sange-Mele half-breeds, Aldon protectors and spirits exist. As Banton's interest in Chandler moves from friend to protector to lover, the story moves from Chandler's spirit-filled house to the college campus in Baton Rouge, the French Quarter in New Orleans, and the underground sewers of the city where Orco terrorists plot to destroy the SEAL team now protecting Chandler, endangering Chandler's life.

Seven years ago Russell Champion was betrayed by the two most important women in his life. Now Russell returns home, but is it too late to make amends with his mother and find closure with his true love?

“You don’t have to be a fan of Southern fiction or historical fiction to appreciate and enjoy the fabulous storytelling in this collection.” —4½ stars, RT Book Reviews In the most turbulent decade of our nation's history, four Southern women—destinies forged by birth, hearts steeled by war—face near impossible choices on their journeys in life . . . and in love. To Mend a Dream by Tamera Alexander Savannah Darby would do almost anything to revisit her family home. So when new owner, Aidan Bedford, a Boston attorney and former Union soldier, seeks to redecorate the house for his fiancée, Savannah jumps at the opportunity. But the clock is ticking. Can she find the box her father supposedly hid there during the war before her assignment is completed? And before she sees yet another battle lost on the home front? This time, one of the heart. An Outlaw's Heart by Shelley Gray When Russell Stark returns to Fort Worth, he's determined to begin a new life. But when he arrives at his mother's homestead, he discovers she's very ill, and the woman he loved is still as beautiful and sweet as he remembered. With time running out, Russell must come to terms with both his future and his past. A Heart So True by Dorothy Love Abigail knows all too well what is expected of her: to marry her distant cousin Charles and take her place in society. But her heart belongs to another—and a terrible incident forces Abby to choose between love and duty. Love Beyond Limits by Elizabeth Musser Emily has a secret: She's in love with one of the freedmen on her family's plantation. Meanwhile, another man declares his love for her. Emily realizes some things are not as they seem and secrets must be kept in order to keep those she loves safe. “Four intriguing novellas rich in historical detail, with unique settings and surprising premises—each filled with romance and heartbreak, pain and redemption. This collection set in the nineteenth century took me home to times and places in the Deep South I’ve visited only in my dreams. An absolute pleasure to read.” —Cathy Gohlke, bestselling author of Secrets She Kept and Saving Amelie “Among the Fair Magnolias will sweep you into the past, carrying you into the beauty and battles of the Old South. You will love, laugh, and lament as your heart is inspired to face life with courage and live it more fully.” —Cindy Woodsmall, New York Times and CBA bestselling author

"Southern Spirits," the third and final book in the Southern Series, continues the spirit-filled romance between Chandler Collins and Banton Gastaneau. Chandler's perfect life is within her grasp. Pregnant with twins, she anxiously waits for Banton and the SEALs return from their last deployment. The ongoing battle between the SEALs, Aldon and Somali Orcos escalates with an urgency to finally end the conflict and stop Dante and Lucian. While the rest of the SEALs fight in Somalia, John is left behind to allow a period of mourning for Brie, and he watches over Chandler with Everett's help. As questions about the blood-thirsty Orcos and Everett's past are about to be answered, tragedy strikes. While Chandler tries to cope with her own grief, she fights a different kind of battle...her feelings for John and a quest to reunite him with a transformed Brie. With the help of the Southern Spirits and eternal love surrounding her, her life comes full-circle as she embraces the past and fights for her future and her family.

"Shelley Palmer Jamieson captures and shares the culture and life style of the mid-century South. She understands the nostalgia of the country church, the country store, the blizzard of '51, remembering the hard times of the South of post-depression austerity. Told from the unique interpretation of the daughter of a Baptist pastor, she lived the routine, ritual, and revival spirit of Southern religion that shaped her world." Bill Peach, author of South Side of Boston (Tennessee) and Random Thoughts Left and Right

A life-long resident of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Shelley S. Abbott shares memories of her adolescent and teen years living in Cambridge, and of her extended family who lived in South Dorchester County. Shelley's stories are lighthearted, descriptive, and easy-to-read. She will surely bring back pleasant memories to all who shared similar lifestyles and a smile to those who enjoy the simple things in life.Fireflies, summer thunderstorms, raindrops on tin roofs, periwinkles clinging to marshgrasses, and chicken-necking on rickety wooden bridges, decorate the walls of Shelley's memorythat she now shares in the pages of this first book of her Backwoods series

Focusing on Alabama's textile industry, this study looks at the complex motivations behind the "whites-only" route taken by the Progressive reform movement in the South. In the early 1900s, northern mill owners seeking cheaper labor and fewer regulations found the South's doors wide open. Children then comprised over 22 percent of the southern textile labor force, compared to 6 percent in New England. Shelley Sallee explains how northern and southern Progressives, who formed a transregional alliance to nudge the South toward minimal child welfare standards, had to mold their strategies around the racial and societal preoccupations of a crucial ally--white middle-class southerners. Southern whites of the "better sort" often regarded white mill workers as something of a race unto themselves--degenerate and just above blacks in station. To enlist white middle-class support, says Sallee, reformers had to address concerns about social chaos fueled by northern interference, the empowerment of "white trash," or the alliance of poor whites and blacks. The answer was to couch reform in terms of white racial uplift--and to persuade the white middle class that to demean white children through factory work was to undermine "whiteness" generally. The lingering effect of this "whites-only" strategy was to reinforce the idea of whiteness as essential to American identity and the politics of reform. Sallee's work is a compelling contribution to, and the only book-length treatment of, the study of child labor reform, racism, and political compromise in the Progressive-era South.

After so many requests to investigate the unexplainable, following their solution to the Ghost of Little Elm Lake mystery the previous summer, Paxton and Carter founded a ghost hunting society. Along with Carter's little brother, Dalton, the boys have been busy with new mysteries throughout the school year. Now that it's summer again, Paxton and Carter are into it neck deep. Dylan, Paxton's female cousin, still living in Texas, has called with news of a new ghost -- but it's not just a story. This particular ghost comes into Dylan's house and touches her cheek with his icy cold hand. He even walks the yard where her parents have seen him. The thing that really creeps Dylan out, and intrigues the boys, is that this particular ghost seems to be a little boy -- who has no head.Reading Level: 4th Grade+

Secrets will be revealed...hearts will be broken...lives will be lost. Southern Secrets, Book II in the Southern Series, continues the love story between Navy SEAL Banton Gastaneau and Chandler Collins. As Chandler and Banton get married and begin their life together, evil soon follows. Fighting an ongoing battle with the Orco terrorists, Banton, John and their secret team of Navy SEALs battle to eradicate the Orcos and protect Chandler. As Chandler's pregnancy advances, the Orcos step up their attacks. A murder during a Mardi gras celebration breaches the illusion of the Aldon and SEALs protection, and a secret threatens to tear Chandler and Banton apart. When the terrifying reason the leader of the Orcos is infatuated with Chandler, the babies, and Constance comes to light, the urgency to defeat the Orcos will put the SEALs to the ultimate test.

A mysterious letter is mistakenly delivered to the saloon owner, who now believes he may have a secret admirer. The whole town gets involved in matchmaking.