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Show ROMANCE FANTASY Home and family make every day a holiday a vi iiu- from his past invites renowned I Inllvwood cameraman Greg Marino film a to charity show in distant Lngland, more than Christmas festivities are in the air. In A Holiday I ling," a contemporary novella included in Mary Jo I'utneys charming Christmas anthology, Christinas Revels (Berkley, $13, 304 pages, ISBN 04251X6210), Greg's visit leads to a rekindling of his brief allair with actress enny I yme. But just as Jenny and Greg have each been their lives before their reunion, A spooky retelling of Bluebeard When their holiday fling proves to have a mind of its own. The entire community ol Upper Bassett rallies to the challenge of saving their beloved tithe barn, now used for performances and community events, from being sold. The holiday spirit works its own magic as Jenny and Greg rediscover each other. But even the magic of Christmas needs help sometimes, as Icnnv and Greg realie that building a relationship means coming to terms with careers that may take them to distant parts of the glolsc. Putney's charming Christmas store ably reminds us that home is wherever the lu art leads. Asa counterpoint to her delicious new contemporary tale, (.hrntmas Revels also includes four classic historical deliver the promise of Christmas joy stones that oiler-anin the eternal magic ol romance. Welcome treats for readers in snack sized morsels lor the hectic holiday season. Storm-tosse- d A divorced single lather with two daughters and an alcoholic mother should be the last romantic choice 1 ynette Graves would make after her own life is turned upside down hy a destructive hurricane. Vet from the moment she sees Foster Hamilton's loving care for his daughters, Lynette is drawn to the hardworking crime scene photographer in Leslie Esdailes Through the .Storm (BLT BooksArabosque, $6.99, 304 pages, ISBN I583I42H86). Burned by her own divorce, and exasperated by her mother's constant carping that she should be finding a new man, l ynette should be running for her life from all the well meaning advice. But in Foster she senses that she is running to her Isle, a life of hope, promise and second chances at getting marriage right, Fsdaile strikes just the right notes of gritty reality and budding dreams in this powerful paean to the belief that even when you're most battered by life and fate, taking risks is worthwhile for the chance to find a life and a lifemate worth clinging to forever. Valley girl Sometimes it's tragedy, not holiday celebration, that draws a person back to their roots. When Shelly Granger left her rural background behind, she never expected to Ik drawn back. Yet her brother Joshs bewildering suicide compels her to confront her past in Shirley Busbee's Return to Oak Volley, (Warner, $6.99, 416 pages, ISBN 044661 1891 ). Part of that past is Sloan Ballinger and the bitter family feud Itetween the Ballingers and Grangers that destroyed the relationship between Shelly and Sloan. Blend in Oak Valley gossip about the true relationship between Shelly and Nick, who she believes is Josh's son, and the heady mix of scandal and lovs brews up entirely unexpected new bonds for Shelly. No longer a girl, Shelly learns, with a woman's heart, the true significance of fantily and honor and enduring love. Sleeping beauty A murder mystery adds an intriguing element to Sherryl Woods' new romance Along Come Trouble (Mira, $6.5(1, 4K) pages, ISBN 1551669552), the third book in her Trimly I larbor trilogy. Finding his long-ag- o love asleep in his should Ik cause for celebration for small-tow- n sheriff Fucker Spencer . . . except for the trauma that brings Mary I halKth Swann back into his life. Tucker always believed he knew the heiress better than anyone, trusted her, until she married the politically ambitious high-tece I awiciicc Chandler. Now, Lurrys dead and his childhood sweetheart comes home to Tucker because shes the most likely suspect. But even as Tucker takes a leave so he can protect her, Mary FliulKihs return opens old questions: IXks he really know her, and can he trust her again? And most importantly lor both their futures, dKS he dare take the risk rtf los ing her again? Woods deftly draws in readers with a winning blend of suspense, romance and small town living in this climactic conclusion to the saga of the Spencer family. ' Somly lluseby writes and reviews from her homes in f orgo, North Dakota, and lakeside in northern Minnesota. 28 BOOKPAGE DECEMBER 2002 BY GAVIN GRANT contribution to editor Terri hitcher's Brides is Gregory Frosts a Talc Series, acclaimed project in which contempoFairy Windling's rary authors offer modern takes on the sometimes creepy classics that fascinated us as children. With Windling herself providing an introductory essay, Frost rewrites one of the darkest and bloodiest fairy tales, Bluebeard, setting it in a 19th century apocalyptic cult. In the original story, Bluebeard gives his wife a set of house keys and tells her she may go anywhere except one room. The young wife, of course, cannot resist the allure of the forbidden. In Frost's retelling, the Charter family sisters Verneliu (Vcrn), Amy and Kate, and their father and stepmother leave Boston in 1843 to follow Llais Fitcher, a preacher who has announced that the world is going to end. Fitcher is a highly charismatic preacher whose tours have brought thousands to Harbinger, the communal village his followers have built in upper New York State. One bridge connects Harbinger to the rest of the world, across Jekylls Gorge. The sisters don't have time to miss Boston. Their stepmother gives them the tasks of putting their new house in order and working the tollgate to the bridge. The girls quickly discover that no one knows what happened to the last tenants of their house; even stranger, the ghost of a young Shaker man starts communicating with them by rapping on the walls. When the Reverend Fitcher arrives unexpectedly one day, he brushes off Mr. Charters apologies about his familys lack of preparedness, Ho not worry about the niceties. . . , They are all of the corporeal sphere, little pleasures and temptations and comforts to make us forget who and what we truly are." The girls are fascinated; Vern, the eldest, is quickly wooed and wed by Fitcher. huher's Brides is divided into three sections, each narrated by a different sister. One by one they are drawn into I larbinger, and Pitchers clutches. The novel is spooky and hard to put down, especially as the sisters begin to uncover Fitchers secrets, and as Pitchers apocalypse approaches. Frosts finely detailed chiller will stay with the reader for a long time. H Gavin Grant reads, writes and publishes speculative fiction in Brooklyn, New York. spine-tinglin- g SUSPENSE Solving a backwoods murder BY IOI IN MESSER "Mr. Charles LeBlanc, and his companion, Ms. Mildred Spurlock, will be visiting friends and relatives in Cliffside during the coming weeks. During their visit, the couple will be staying with a family friend, Benjamin llenshaw." In author William Hoffmans new novel, this notice never actually appears in the social events column because the newspaper in tiny Cliffside, West Virginia, folded years ago when the coal ran out. laicals could tell you, however, that Charley LeBlanc is a convicted felon who received a bad conduct discharge after the Vietnam War. They could also point out that his girlfriend, Blackie Spurlock, just served seven years in prison for killing her husband. Charley and Blackie were camping on Montanas high plains when homesickness drew them back to what remains of Cliffside. Charley, the hlack sheep of a prominent Tidewater family, wants to visit Jessie Arbuckle, an elderly spinster he once befriended. On his return, he learns that Jessie has been murdered and that Esmeralda, a mysterious older woman, is the leading suspect. He is determined to find the true motive behind the to the scene killing and uncover what brought of the crime. Charley, who appeared in I oilman's previous thriller Tidewater Blood, shows the same tendency that has plagued him in the past; relationships with his brother and Blackie may Ik the price for nailing the killer. Sheriff Basil lister bars Charley from the crime scene and beats down on anyone who speaks with him. Still, Charleys search uncovers enough suspects to suggest a conspiracy that reaches the highest levels of GitTxides society. With its stunning ending and sobering lessons for Charley, Wild Thorn is representative of the suspense that has earned accolades and faithful readers for I loffman during his long career, John Messer writes from Ludwgton, Mu logon. award-winnin- d g |