Is there a War on Christmas? This book surveys the history of the world's most popular festival and the never-ending battles it has engendered ever since its hotly-contested invention in the Roman Empire.

It's Christmastime and love is in the air. But when these three Elite Guardians walk into the crosshairs of trouble, they find themselves fighting not just for justice, but for the lives of the men they love in this riveting thriller collection! Deadly Holiday Hijack by Kate Angelo "Come out to Savannah, she says. It'll be fun, she says. Boss can be in the nativity pageant, she says," Yeah. Great idea. Bodyguard Christina Sherman and her fiancé, former spec ops air commando Grey Parker just want to sneak away to beautiful Savannah, attend a Nativity Pageant, maybe set a wedding date. But when a group of terrorists take over the church and the whole thing is live streamed, they find themselves in a hometown version of a Die Hard Christmas movie. But will they make it to the happy ending? Silent Night Siege by Kelly Underwood Billionaire Preston Whittaker and bodyguard Laila Rabbinowitz just can't get a break. Not only are their schedules so crazy they've put their relationship on simmer, but on their way to the mountains for much-needed togetherness...yep, their plane crashes. Suddenly they're stranded on a remote mountainside in freezing temperatures, minimal food, wildlife, and no hope of rescue. And then, the real danger starts. Someone deliberately caused the wreck, and that person is hunting them through the wilderness. Now, it'll take more than togetherness to survive... Christmas Snowstorm Standoff by Sami A. Abrams It's finally time for bodyguard Lizzie Tremaine to tie the knot with the man she's loved for years-fellow bodyguard Charlie Lee. But maybe fate is still against them, because on the eve of their big day, a snowstorm hits. And, while it's kept the guests away, it's brought trouble in the form of a woman from Charlie's past. More, she's on the run from a killer... A man who will stop at nothing to make sure Charlie and Lizzie never make it to the altar. Now Lizzie and Charlie must battle the storm, stop the killer, and defeat the doubts that suddenly have them wondering if they are truly meant to be. Three epic love stories. Three edge-of-your-seat thrillers. Three Christmases caught in the Crosshairs inspired by best-selling author Lynette Eason's Elite Guardian series. Want more Elite Guardians? Elite Guardians Collection Book 1: Driving Force Book 2: Impending Strike Book 3: Defending Honor Book 4: Christmas in the Crosshairs Elite Guardians series by Lynette Eason Book 1: Always Watching Book 2: Without Warning Book 3: Moving Target Book 4: Chasing Secrets

At last, a truly comprehensive look at Christmas and all of its customs with its long history around the world. The World Encyclopedia of Christmas contains articles on the history of Christmas baking, drinking, and merrymaking, and Christmas dramas, music, literature, art, and films. It includes entries on the evolution of the Christmas tree and the Christmas card, gift-giving, and decoration of church and home. There are profiles of the many gift-bringers, from Santa Claus to Babouschka, and miraculous tales of the numerous saints associated with the season. And there are histories of seasonal celebrations and folk customs around the world, from the United States to Japan, from Egypt to Iceland. Who, for example, knew the links between the Punch and Judy show and Christmas? That the medieval Paradise tree hung with tempting apples was the forerunner of the Christmas tree? About the Peerie Guizers, who terrorized the Shetland Islands, going door-to-door for Christmas charity? Or what Freudians make of our interest in Christmas stockings and Santa’s entrance through the chimney? There are detailed accounts of Wren Boys and Star Boys, mumming and wassailing, the Feast of Fools and the origins of eggnog. And of course stories of the Nativity and legends of the Magi. With beautifully illustrated accounts ranging from the pagan roots of Yuletide, through the birth of Christ, and the long and fascinating history of the festival ever since, The World Encyclopedia of Christmas, is a rich and continually surprising array of religious and secular history, trivia, literature, and art. This wonderful book deserves to find a home with every family that celebrates Christmas.

It’s Christmastime and love is in the air. But when these three Elite Guardians walk into the crosshairs of trouble, they find themselves fighting not just for justice, but for the lives of the men they love in this riveting thriller collection! Deadly Holiday Hijack by Kate Angelo “Come out to Savannah, she says. It’ll be fun, she says. Boss can be in the nativity pageant, she says,” Yeah. Great idea. Bodyguard Christina Sherman and her fiancé, former spec ops air commando Grey Parker just want to sneak away to beautiful Savannah, attend a Nativity Pageant, maybe set a wedding date. But when a group of terrorists take over the church and the whole thing is live streamed, they find themselves in a hometown version of a Die Hard Christmas movie. But will they make it to the happy ending? Silent Night Siege by Kelly Underwood Billionaire Preston Whittaker and bodyguard Laila Rabbinowitz just can’t get a break. Not only are their schedules so crazy they’ve put their relationship on simmer, but on their way to the mountains for much-needed togetherness…yep, their plane crashes. Suddenly they’re stranded on a remote mountainside in freezing temperatures, minimal food, wildlife, and no hope of rescue. And then, the real danger starts. Someone deliberately caused the wreck, and that person is hunting them through the wilderness. Now, it’ll take more than togetherness to survive… Christmas Snowstorm Standoff by Sami A. Abrams It’s finally time for bodyguard Lizzie Tremaine to tie the knot with the man she’s loved for years—fellow bodyguard Charlie Lee. But maybe fate is still against them, because on the eve of their big day, a snowstorm hits. And, while it’s kept the guests away, it’s brought trouble in the form of a woman from Charlie’s past. More, she’s on the run from a killer… A man who will stop at nothing to make sure Charlie and Lizzie never make it to the altar. Now Lizzie and Charlie must battle the storm, stop the killer, and defeat the doubts that suddenly have them wondering if they are truly meant to be. Three epic love stories. Three edge-of-your-seat thrillers. Three Christmases caught in the Crosshairs inspired by best-selling author Lynette Eason’s Elite Guardian series. Want more Elite Guardians? Elite Guardians Collection Book 1: Driving Force Book 2: Impending Strike Book 3: Defending Honor Book 4: Christmas in the Crosshairs Elite Guardians series by Lynette Eason Book 1: Always Watching Book 2: Without Warning Book 3: Moving Target Book 4: Chasing Secrets

An entertaining, often surprising look at the life of the world’s most influential fictional character. He is the embodiment of charity and generosity, a creation of mythology, a tool of clever capitalists. The very idea of him is enduring and powerful. Santa Claus was born in early-nineteenth-century America, but his family tree goes back seven hundred years to Saint Nicholas, patron saint of children. Intervening generations were shaggy and strange — whip-wielding menaces to naughty boys and girls. Yet as the raucous, outdoor, alcohol-fuelled holiday gave way to a more domestic, sentimental model, a new kind of gift-bringer was called for — a loveable elf, still judgmental but far less threatening. In this engaging social and cultural history, Gerry Bowler examines the place of Santa Claus in history, literature, advertising, and art. He traces his metamorphosis from a beardless youth into a red-suited peddler. He reveals the lesser-known aspects of the gift-bringer’s life — Santa’s involvement with social and political causes of all stripes (he enlisted on the Union side in the American Civil War), his starring role in the movies and as adman for gun-makers and insurance companies. And he demolishes the myths surrounding Santa Claus and Coca-Cola. Santa Claus: A Biography will stand as the classic work on the long-lived and multifarious Mr. Claus.

Georgie is back and hanging the stockings with care when a murder interrupts her Christmas cheer in this all-new installment in the New York Times bestselling Royal Spyness series from Rhys Bowen. Georgie is excited for her first Christmas as a married woman in her lovely new home. She suggests to her dashing husband, Darcy, that they have a little house party, but when Darcy receives a letter from his aunt Ermintrude, there is an abrupt change in plans. She has moved to a house on the edge of the Sandringham estate, near the royal family, and wants to invite Darcy and his new bride for Christmas. Aunt Ermintrude hints that the queen would like Georgie nearby. Georgie had not known that Aunt Ermintrude was a former lady-in-waiting and close confidante of her royal highness. The letter is therefore almost a royal request, so Georgie, Darcy, and their Christmas guests: Mummy, Grandad, Fig, and Binky all head to Sandringham. Georgie soon learns that the notorious Mrs. Simpson, mistress to the Prince of Wales, will also be in attendance. It is now crystal clear to Georgie that the Queen expects her to do a bit of spying. There is tension in the air from the get-go, and when Georgie pays a visit to the queen, she learns that there is more to her request than just some simple eavesdropping. There have been a couple of strange accidents at the estate recently. Two gentlemen of the royal household have died in mysterious circumstances and another has been shot by mistake during a hunt. Georgie begins to suspect that a member of the royal family is the real target but her investigation will put her new husband and love of her life, Darcy, in the crosshairs of a killer.

First published: Great Britain: Picador, 2017.

Christmas is not a holiday just for Christians anymore, if it ever was. Embedded in calendars around the world and long a lucrative merchandising opportunity, Christmas enters multicultural, multi-religious public spaces, provoking both festivity and controversy, hospitality and hostility. The Public Work of Christmas provides a comparative historical and ethnographic perspective on the politics of Christmas in multicultural contexts ranging from a Jewish museum in Berlin to a shopping boulevard in Singapore. A seasonal celebration that is at once inclusive and assimilatory, Christmas offers a clarifying lens for considering the historical and ongoing intersections of multiculturalism, Christianity, and the nationalizing and racializing of religion. The essays gathered here examine how cathedrals, banquets, and carols serve as infrastructures of memory that hold up Christmas as a civic, yet unavoidably Christian holiday. At the same time, the authors show how the public work of Christmas depends on cultural forms that mark, mask, and resist the ongoing power of Christianity in the lives of Christians and non-Christians alike. Legislated into paid holidays and commodified into marketplaces, Christmas has arguably become more cultural than religious, making ever wider both its audience and the pool of workers who make it happen every year. The Public Work of Christmas articulates a fresh reading of Christmas – as fantasy, ethos, consumable product, site of memory, and terrain for the revival of exclusionary visions of nation and whiteness – at a time of renewed attention to the fragility of belonging in diverse societies. Contributors include Herman Bausinger (Tübingen), Marion Bowman (Open), Juliane Brauer (MPI Berlin), Simon Coleman (Toronto), Yaniv Feller (Wesleyan), Christian Marchetti (Tübingen), Helen Mo (Toronto), Katja Rakow (Utrecht), Sophie Reimers (Berlin), Tiina Sepp (Tartu), and Isaac Weiner (Ohio State).

This is a comprehensive history of the world's midwinter gift-givers, showcasing the extreme diversity in their depictions as well as the many traits and functions these characters share. It tracks the evolution of these figures from the tribal priests who presided over winter solstice celebrations thousands of years before the birth of Christ, to Christian notables like St. Martin and St. Nicholas, to a variety of secular figures who emerged throughout Europe following the Protestant Reformation. Finally, it explains how the popularity of a poem about a "miniature sleigh" and "eight tiny reindeer" helped consolidate the diverse European gift-givers into an enduring tradition in which American children awake early on Christmas morning to see what Santa brought. Although the names, appearance, attire and gift-giving practices of the world's winter solstice gift-givers differ greatly, they are all recognizable as Santa, the personification of the Christmas and Midwinter festivals. Despite efforts to eliminate him by groups as diverse as the Puritans of seventeenth century New England, the Communist Party of the twentieth century Soviet Union and the government of Nazi Germany, Santa has survived and prospered, becoming one of the best known and most beloved figures in the world.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Proposal and a “rising star in the romance genre” (Entertainment Weekly) comes a dazzling novel about a spontaneous holiday vacation that turns into an unforgettable romance. Vivian Forest has been out of the country a grand total of one time, so when she gets the chance to tag along on her daughter Maddie’s work trip to England to style a royal family member, she can’t refuse. She’s excited to spend the holidays taking in the magnificent British sights, but what she doesn’t expect is to become instantly attracted to a certain private secretary, his charming accent, and unyielding formality. Malcolm Hudson has worked for the Queen for years and has never given a personal, private tour—until now. He is intrigued by Vivian the moment he meets her and finds himself making excuses just to spend time with her. When flirtatious banter turns into a kiss under the mistletoe, things snowball into a full-on fling. Despite a ticking timer on their holiday romance, they are completely fine with ending their short, steamy affair come New Year’s Day...or are they?