Books published by BelleBooks

"Hire me a moving van. It's the kind of town where everyone wishes they could live." -Debbie MacomberThe friendly folks in Mossy Creek are back for a Christmas filled with love, laughter, holiday cheer, and zany antics.From a wild & wooly parade debacle in Town Square to the quiet tears of a surprise homecoming, from the tinsel-lined streets of archrival Bigelow to the lofty spires of Colchik Mountain, Creekites celebrate the season as only Creekites can.Your favorite Mossy Creek citizens are back with their own stories of Christmas gifts and decorations, of community spirit, of sacrifices and lessons learned. Merry and Louise struggle to make the annual parade a success. Inez and Lucy Belle keep the feud with Bigelow alive. Jayne receives a blessed gift from the new Santa in town. Pearl and Spiva give Mossy Creek Books and Whatnots-and their sisterly relationship-a needed makeover. Tag and Maggie struggle with the importance of career vs. family. Join us for these stories plus much more fun and Christmas joy in Mossy Creek.

Welcome to Mossy Creek, your home town. You'll find a friendly face at every window, and a story behind every door.We've got a mayor who cleans her own gun, and a Police Chief who doesn't need one. We've got scandal at the coffee shop and battles on the ballfield, a cantankerous Santa and a flying Chihuahua. You'll want to meet Rainey, the hairdresser with a tendency toward hysteria, and Hank, who takes care of our animals like they were his children. Don't forget to stop in for a bite at Mama's All You Can Eat Cafe, and while you're there say hello to our local celebrity, Sue Ora. Like as not, she'll sit you right down and tell you a story. People are like that in Mossy Creek.Award winning authors Debra Dixon, Donna Ball, Sandra Chastain, Virginia Ellis, Nancy Knight, and Deborah Smith (Sweet Tea and Jesus Shoes) come together once again to blend their unique southern voices into a collection of tales about the South, this time focusing their talents on the fictional town of Mossy Creek, Georgia. Chances are, you'll recognize it. But even if you don't, you'll want to come back, again and again.So welcome to Mossy Creek, the town that ain't going nowhere and don't want to.

Famous southern carriage-horse trainer Hiram Lackland, a handsome widower, dies mysteriously after retiring to a farm outside Mossy Creek. His estranged daughter, Merry Abbott, also a horse trainer, arrives to settle his estate. But Merry quickly plunges into bit-chomping dilemmas when her father's friend and landlord, mystery-novel maven Peggy Caldwell, insists he was murdered. Before Merry can so much as snap a buggy rein, a handsome and annoying GBI investigator, Geoff Madison, is on her case. Then there's the troublesome donkey: Don Qui. Short for Don Quixote. And the fact that Hiram was teaching all of Mossy Creek's lonely women how to--ahem--drive his carriage. Can Merry rein in the truth? What kind of horse play was her rakish dad involved in, and why would someone want to giddy-yup him into an early grave?

"e;Diana Pharaoh Francis delivers a downright terrific read."e; -Devon Monk, nationally Bestselling Author of Hell Bent on Trace of Magic"e;A vividly written world of magic and kick-ass action."e; -D. B. Reynolds, author of the Vampires in America SeriesThe road to hell is paved with good intentions.And a pound of flesh.Magical tracking expert Riley Hollis is on a mission to save five teenagers lost inside a mountain. But nothing is what it seems, and soon Riley finds herself bruised, bloodied, and embroiled in a battle to bring down a sadistic criminal dealing in human souls and the darkest of magics.Her only hope may be to swallow her pride and ask for help from her not-quite-ex-boyfriend and his notorious brother-Tyet criminal boss, Gregg Touray. Even that may not be enough to protect her. Something has gone very wrong in the trace dimension and in Riley's head.If she doesn't figure out how to handle the past, the present, the trace, and the bad guys, the road to hell is going to look like a great alternative.Diana Pharaoh Francis is the acclaimed author of a dozen novels of fantasy and urban fantasy. Her books have been nominated for the Mary Roberts Rinehart Award and RT's Best Urban Fantasy. Edge of Dreams is the second in her exciting new urban fantasy series-The Diamond City Magic novels. Visit her at dianapfrancis.com and find her on Facebook.

Kara Whittenbrook is an unlikely heiress. Down-to-earth and lovably quirky, she's never fit in with the stogy Whittenbrook clan of Connecticut. Growing up at her parents' rainforest preserve in Brazil, she has a quaintly off-beat view of life. Now her beloved parents have died in a plane crash, and Kara's learned a stunning truth. She was adopted. Her birth parents are Mac and Lily Tolbert. They live and work on a backwoods cattle ranch in northern Florida. Ranch owner Ben Thocco is running out of time and money. He's going to need a miracle in order to save the ranch and care for the likable crew of unusual hands he employs, including Kara's parents and his own fragile brother Joey. Kara, using a fake identity on the advice of her lawyer, gets a job at Ben's ranch in Fountain Springs, Florida, where her adventures include entering an unpredictable mare in a local horse show.

When it comes to family, love, tradition and pride are a powerful brew . . .The fourth of the Sweet Tea story collections treats readers to a panorama of Southern life, both then and now. Family dramas, comic mishaps, sentimental remembrances and poignant choices illuminate these thirteen stories by new and established authors. There's something for every reader: The gritty realism of a hunt for wild boars, the gentle grieving for a home now filled only with memories, the funny battle between a woman and her recipe for deviled eggs, and much more.Come sit a spell on the front porch. Prop your feet up, sip a cold glass of sweet iced tea, and lose yourself in a way of life that's as irresistible as pecan pie and as unforgettable as a chilled slice of watermelon on a hot summer day. Welcome to a place that exists between the pages of How It Was and How It Might Have Been-just a little bit south of the long path home.Sweet Tea Collection: Sweet Tea & Jesus Shoes, On Grandma's Porch, and More Sweet Tea

Once again, Merry Abbott has to catch a killer in the high-stakes world of carriage-horse competitions.Nothing ruins an elegant Southern horse show like finding a murdered man with a tent spike through his neck. Merry's at the top of a long list of suspects who have plenty of reason to want the victim dead. But soon it becomes obvious that she's also at the top of the real murderer's next-to-die list. Climb into the carriage seat for a wild ride as Merry hunts for clues, teaches her first (and maybe last) driving clinic, tries to rein in her attraction for a handsome GBI agent, and dodges a killer. Merry Abbott's taking a new mystery out for a spin.

The eighth novel in the acclaimed Mossy Creek Hometown Series continues the warm, witty and wise doings in a small Southern village you'll want to call home. It's been over twenty years since Mossy Creek experienced Homecoming, and they're determined to do it right! And you know Creekites...if there's something interesting going on, they won't rest until they know about it. So when a letter shows up at the Police Station with a warning about ugly secrets hidden in the time capsule buried twenty years ago, the whole town is abuzz with the possibilities. Amos, Ida & Win put Peggy Caldwell and Louise Sawyer on its trail, hoping the sleuth-loving ladies can find it before the week ends at the Homecoming Dance. Meanwhile, Amos & Ida tangle in a deserted Haunted House. Ardaleen & Inez scrimmage at the Bake Sale. Pearl & Spiva spar as they volunteer at the Booster Club Canteen. All of your favorite characters are back as Mossy Creek celebrates Homecoming with festivities that make Southerners cheer. Football. Homecoming Queens. Parades. Plays. It's all happening during Homecoming in Mossy Creek! Including stories from: Carolyn McSparren, Sandra Chastain, Martha Crockett, Debra Dixon, Nancy Knight, Brenna Crowder, Darcy Crowder, Susan Goggins, Maureen Hardegree, and Berta Platas.