Barbara Bretton

June 25, 1950

New York, United States

After living on Long Island, Bretton and her husband Roy moved to central New Jersey in the mid-1990s, and, according to Bretton’s first-person message on Booktalk, her surroundings have inspired her literary imagination. Although she took a job as a computer programmer at the organization the Cross Country in 1974 (she stayed there till 1982), Bretton continued to work toward a career as a writer, and during her twenties, she contributed short stories and articles—primarily “how-to” pieces—to various periodicals, including the New York Times and Seventeen. When she was twenty-nine, however, Bretton’s life changed: she underwent, and triumphed over, a bout with cancer. This profound experience apparently made Bretton more determined to follow her true path in life. She concentrated on fiction, and her first published novel, Love Changes, was released as a launch book in Harlequin’s American Romances line in 1983. This was followed by more than a dozen other Harlequin American Romances, several of which have been reprinted, occasionally under new titles. Her 1994 entry for Harlequin, The Invisible Groom, was a paranormal romance. By the mid-1990s Bretton had attained a wider realm of success with mainstream novels and historical romances. Crucial in this transition was 1994’s One and Only, which a Library Journal commentator referred to—in a review of Maybe This Time—as Bretton’s “breakout novel.” One and Only, which a Publishers Weekly critic compared favorably to the work of Judith Krantz, is set in the world of British royalty and its Kennedyesque American equivalents. Another well-regarded novel was 1995’s Maybe This Time, which a Library Journal reviewer called “similar in feel” to One and Only except for the absence of a mystery element. Another notable production from Bretton’s prolific output was the Time Travel Trilogy which she had published between 1992 and 1995. The concept has contemporary American women traveling back to the time of the American Revolution, and characters from that time traveling to the present; Bretton told Booktalk readers that the Time Travel Trilogy “was inspired by a runaway hot-air balloon that landed in front of [her] parents’ N[ew] J[ersey] condo” and that she “personally walked the same historical sites as [her] characters.” The trilogy’s first novel, Somewhere in Time, was issued in 1992 and was well-received; the second, Tomorrow and Always, was published in 1994. Bretton assessed her 1997 book, Sleeping Alone, which she said was inspired by her and her husband’s winter walks on the New Jersey shore, as “definitely a four-handkerchief read,” according to Booktalk.

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The Sugar Maple Chronicles: 4 Book Collection - Kindle edition by Barbara Bretton. Contemporary Romance Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

(Welcome to Sugar Maple . . . Sugar Maple may look like yo...)

Welcome to Sugar Maple . . . Sugar Maple may look like your postcard-perfect Vermont town but that’s where the similarity ends. Our librarian is a beautiful Norwegian troll. The funeral parlor is run by a family of vampires. The Sugar Maple Inn is owned by Fae while the werewolves keep our hardware store well-stocked. For centuries we have been home to house sprites, witches, selkies, spirits, shapeshifters, and elves. And who could forget Forbes, our lovable Mountain Giant? I’m Chloe Hobbs, the half-human/half-magick owner of Sticks & String, the most popular knit shop in New England, where your yarn never tangles, you always get gauge, and the knitter sitting next to you only comes out after dark. And did I mention that I’m almost thirty, single, and with no prospects in sight? My friends and neighbors have been casting spells to help me find Mr. Right but so far their efforts have been all wrong. Who'd have guessed I'd find my soulmate in Luke MacKenzie, a cop investigating Sugar Maple's very first murder? Bad news is he's 100% human which could spell disaster for a normal future with a paranormal woman like me--in love, in danger, and in way over my head. Casting Spells - Chloe falls in love and comes into her magick but can she trust the very human Luke MacKenzie to keep her secret? Laced with Magic - Chloe and Luke are determined to make their unlikely romance blossom but when Luke’s ex-wife shows up in town on a desperate mission to save their daughter’s soul, they find themselves in the fight of their lives. Spun by Sorcery - Sugar Maple has gone missing and Chloe travels to Salem where she battles the forces of evil to fulfill her destiny and save her beloved town from the clutches of a powerful Fae warrior. Charmed - Chloe has a secret that will change Sugar Maple forever. Spells & Stitches - Baby Laria is six pounds, eleven ounces of perfect, and Chloe and Luke are over the moon. But when they learn that Laria takes after her mom in the sorcery department, it becomes clear that their baby might have more power than even a pro like Chloe can handle... Praise for the Sugar Maple stories: Romantic Times Book Club – 4.5 stars – TOP PICK Bretton launches her new series of magic and murder with an enchanting, lyrical masterpiece that should make its way to the bestseller list in no time. Brilliantly weaving the town of Sugar Maple with that of its inhabitants into one living, breathing entity, this novel captivates readers from the first page. With vibrant, multidimensional characters, including the town itself, Bretton pens a memorable romance that combines knitting, love, magic, and self-discovery. Publishers Weekly Tongue-in-cheek humor lifts this weird but fun hybrid, part knitting cozy, part paranormal romance, from romance veteran Bretton (Just Desserts). After a classy female tourist drowns mysteriously in an icy lake in remote Sugar Maple, Vt., the Montpelier authorities ask Boston homicide cop Luke MacKenzie to investigate. As Sugar Maple's temporary police chief, Luke soon notices the village's odd ambience. Originally a haven for witches who fled the Salem witchcraft trials three centuries earlier, Sugar Maple is now home to witches, vampires, fairies and trolls. Luke is also attracted to Chloe Hobbs, the half-human owner of the knitting shop Sticks & Strings, who must find Mr. Right if she's to preserve the spell that sustains the town's unusual residents. As sparks literally fly between the two, Chloe's "magickal" side stirs into life. Bretton charmingly depicts how love empowers Chloe and awakens Luke to some major surprises. An imaginative and charming tale. --Shelley Mosley, Booklist (STARRED REVIEW) A sweet setting with the sparkle of magic and a bite of suspense makes CASTING SPELLS a standout. --Christie Ridgway, BookPage Don't miss this one! --Kay Quinton, Fresh Fiction

Entangled: The Homecoming: The Sugar Maple Chronicles - Book 6 - Kindle edition by Barbara Bretton. Paranormal Romance Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

(Welcome back to Sugar Maple When pregnant army wife Mallo...)

Now and Forever: The Complete Crosse Harbor Time Travel Trilogy - Kindle edition by Barbara Bretton. Romance Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

(Praise for Barbara Bretton's Crosse Harbor Time Travel tr...)

Chances Are : Paradise Point (Paradise Point NJ Book 2) - Kindle edition by Barbara Bretton. Literature & Fiction Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

(Who knew finding the love of your life would be the easy ...)

Casting Spells: The Sugar Maple Chronicles - Book 1

(Welcome to Sugar Maple Sugar Maple may look like your pos...)

Welcome to Sugar Maple Sugar Maple may look like your postcard-perfect Vermont town but that’s where the similarity ends. Our librarian is a beautiful Norwegian troll. The funeral parlor is run by a family of vampires. The Sugar Maple Inn is owned by Fae while the werewolves keep our hardware store well-stocked. For centuries we have been home to house sprites, witches, selkies, spirits, shapeshifters, and elves. And who could forget Forbes, our lovable Mountain Giant? I’m Chloe Hobbs, the half-human/half-magick owner of Sticks & String, the most popular knit shop in New England, where your yarn never tangles, you always get gauge, and the knitter sitting next to you only comes out after dark. And did I mention that I’m almost thirty, single, and with no prospects in sight? My friends and neighbors have been casting spells to help me find Mr. Right but so far their efforts have been all wrong. Who'd have guessed I'd find my soulmate in Luke MacKenzie, a cop investigating Sugar Maple's very first murder? Bad news is he's 100% human which could spell disaster for a normal future with a paranormal woman like me--in love, in danger, and in way over my head. Romantic Times Book Club – 4.5 stars – TOP PICK Bretton launches her new series of magic and murder with an enchanting, lyrical masterpiece that should make its way to the bestseller list in no time. Brilliantly weaving the town of Sugar Maple with that of its inhabitants into one living, breathing entity, this novel captivates readers from the first page. With vibrant, multidimensional characters, including the town itself, Bretton pens a memorable romance that combines knitting, love, magic, and self-discovery. Publishers Weekly Tongue-in-cheek humor lifts this weird but fun hybrid, part knitting cozy, part paranormal romance, from romance veteran Bretton (Just Desserts). After a classy female tourist drowns mysteriously in an icy lake in remote Sugar Maple, Vt., the Montpelier authorities ask Boston homicide cop Luke MacKenzie to investigate. As Sugar Maple's temporary police chief, Luke soon notices the village's odd ambience. Originally a haven for witches who fled the Salem witchcraft trials three centuries earlier, Sugar Maple is now home to witches, vampires, fairies and trolls. Luke is also attracted to Chloe Hobbs, the half-human owner of the knitting shop Sticks & Strings, who must find Mr. Right if she's to preserve the spell that sustains the town's unusual residents. As sparks literally fly between the two, Chloe's "magickal" side stirs into life. Bretton charmingly depicts how love empowers Chloe and awakens Luke to some major surprises.

The Day We Met (Jersey Strong Book 1) - Kindle edition by Barbara Bretton. Literature & Fiction Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

(Was it a fling . . . or was it forever? Another unforgett...)

Was it a fling . . . or was it forever? Another unforgettable love story from USA Today Bestselling Author Barbara Bretton It's 7:08 on the morning of Maggy O'Brien's thirty-fifth birthday and she's driving carpool in her pajamas and bunny slippers. She can't remember the last time she shaved her legs. She's hasn't slept past dawn since her kids were born and one of them is now a teenager. Can life possibly get any worse? The second she sees her sisters waiting impatiently at the foot of her driveway, she knows the answer to that question. Claire and Ellie are staging a makeover intervention and no amount of protest can save Maggy from being cut and colored and waxed to within an inch of her life. And as if that's not enough, they announce she's being banished to Atlantic City for an all-expenses-paid getaway weekend for one. Maggy isn't a sequins-and-stilettos kind of woman. She's a single mom who is more comfortable pushing a shopping cart through Stop & Shop than sipping champagne in the backseat of a stretch limo headed toward Vegas on the Jersey Shore. Still even Maggy isn't immune to playing Cinderella for a weekend, even if it only means room service lobster and trying her hand at the penny slots. But when she locks eyes a few hours later with ruggedly handsome police detective Conor Riley, she discovers there's more to Cinderella's story than dancing until midnight. They agree it's just a fling. A weekend of magic with no strings attached. They'd say goodbye on Sunday night and return to their everyday lives with sweet memories and no regrets. But Maggy and Conor are about to discover that maybe some flings are meant to last forever . . . ˃˃˃ 4.5 Stars - RT Top Pick! Bretton is a monumental talent who targets her audience with intelligence and inspiration. In her story you'll find no condescension or a stereotypical portrayal of a reluctant heroine forced into situations where she'd rather not be. This author respects her fans and deserves praise for never losing control of her characters just to keep the plot motivated. -- Affaire de Coeur Consistent winner Barbara Bretton returns with a powerhouse novel that is both touching and emotionally intense. Terrific reading! -- Jill M. Smith for Romantic Times - a 4 1/2 Star Romantic Times Top Pick THE DAY WE MET is a beautiful love story . . . an extraordinary novel. Highly Recommended. -- Under the Covers Buy your copy now!

Just Like Heaven (Jersey Strong Book 3) - Kindle edition by Barbara Bretton. Literature & Fiction Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

(Because love can happen anywhere . . . even in New Jersey...)

Because love can happen anywhere . . . even in New Jersey! A beautiful morning in early spring. What could possibly go wrong? Just returned from a buying trip in England, Kate French was jet-lagged and exhausted and running on fumes. She was already running late for an appointment but a wave of dizziness forces her to pull into the shopping mall parking lot in search of a quick fix of caffeine and protein. When the pain first hit, she ignored it and continued racing across the parking lot toward the food court. But within moments she realized something was terribly wrong as her wobbly legs gave out and she dropped to the ground. The last thing she remembered as she started to fade away was the guy in the Grateful Dead T-shirt who held her in his arms and promised he'd never let her go. Mark Kerry didn't think of himself as a hero but the story of a Good Samaritan who had saved a woman's life in the parking lot of the Princeton Promenade was attaining the status of suburban legend. Determined to return a stack of documents that had been left behind when the ambulance swept her away, he called in some favors and tracked her down at home one week later. The moment Kate saw him, the world and everyone in it disappeared. She knew his voice, the smell of his skin, the way his hands felt against her skin, the taste of his mouth, everything that mattered. All the things she would ever need to know about him. And then she took another look . . . ˃˃˃ Praise for JUST LIKE HEAVEN *TOP PICK!* Bretton's lyrical writing enthralls from the first page as she immerses readers in a tale of romance and new beginnings. --Romantic Times Bretton has few peers among contemporary romance novelists when it comes to combining escapist romance with everyday, messy reality. She’ll make you believe that love can happen anywhere ”" or make you grateful that you’ve been fortunate enough to find it. --Susan Scribner, The Romance Reader This one will keep you reading past your bedtime. --Elizabeth Darrach, BellaOnline *STARRED REVIEW* Very few romance writers create characters as well developed and realistic as Bretton's. Her books pull you in and don't let you leave until the last word is read. --Shelley Mosley, Booklist ˃˃˃ About the author Barbara Bretton is an award-winning, USA Today bestselling author of over fifty novels. She has been published in twelve languages in over twenty countries. She currently lives with her husband in central New Jersey. Buy your copy now!

Spun by Sorcery: The Sugar Maple Chronicles - Book 3

(Welcome back to Sugar Maple! Sugar Maple may look like yo...)

Welcome back to Sugar Maple! Sugar Maple may look like your postcard-perfect Vermont town but that’s where the similarity ends. Our librarian is a beautiful Norwegian troll. The funeral parlor is run by a family of vampires. The Sugar Maple Inn is owned by Fae while the werewolves keep our hardware store well-stocked. For centuries we have been home to house sprites, witches, selkies, spirits, shapeshifters, and elves. And who could forget Forbes, our lovable Mountain Giant? I’m Chloe Hobbs, the half-human/half-magick owner of Sticks & String, the most popular knit shop in New England, where your yarn never tangles, you always, get gauge, and the knitter sitting next to you only comes out after dark. Now that I'd found my soulmate in 100% human police chief Luke MacKenzie and come into my magick, I thought my life would get easier but I was wrong. The last thing I expected was to lose an entire town! Sugar Maple was gone, taken beyond the mist by my Fae enemies and it's up to me to rescue it or lose my birthright forever. Even the Book of Spells, my lifeline to magick, can't help me now. If I'm going to bring Sugar Maple back, I must return to Salem where my family's story began and face the secrets and centuries-old feuds that threaten the life of the man I love and the town where I belong. *Starred Review* While Chloe Hobbs, a half-human sorceress-in-training who owns the popular yarn shop, Sticks and Strings, and the love of her life, the all-too-human chief of police, Luke MacKenzie, are off fighting the forces of evil to protect his daughter’s soul, the unthinkable happens. The town of Sugar Maple, Vermont, disappears—animals, people, buildings, roads: everything. Not only do Chloe and Luke have to figure out how this could be. They also have to engage in another battle to the death with supernatural forces. And they have to face all of this when they haven’t even begun to recover from the previous clash. The third book, following Casting Spells (2008) and Laced with Magic (2009), in Bretton’s decidedly dark saga of Sugar Maple, a place where vampires, trolls, shapeshifters, and werewolves live in peace, is an exciting conclusion to her very clever trilogy. Readers will be on the edge of their seats as Chloe and Luke risk everything to protect the little town they love. --Shelley Mosley

Once Around (Jersey Strong Book 2) - Kindle edition by Barbara Bretton. Literature & Fiction Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

(A USA Today bestseller from award-winning author Barbara ...)

A USA Today bestseller from award-winning author Barbara Bretton Sometimes a woman has to lose everything she ever wanted before she discovers what she really needs. All Molly Chamberlain had ever wanted was a home of her own. Children to cherish. A man who would love her and be there for her through good times and bad. Ten years into her marriage she is finally pregnant with their first child, living in a beautiful home in Princeton, New Jersey and eager to embrace the wonderful future she'd always dreamed of. But it takes two to build a future and Molly's husband has his own dreams and they don't include Molly or their baby. When she comes home from a routine prenatal doctor's visit one sunny afternoon she discovers that her soon-to-be-ex has stripped the house to the bare walls, emptied their bank accounts and cancelled the credit cards. Molly is left with nothing but broken dreams and a shattered future . . . and a baby on the way. The last time Rafe Garrick had heard a sound like that was years ago on a Montana mountaintop. Sometimes late at night when the hours lay heavy against his mind he could still hear the wolf, hopelessly caught in a trap, keening in terror and pain. The sound of the woman's anguish rang out in the sweet, still air and he followed that sound to a sun-filled room that held more pain than a human heart could bear. She stood near the window, bent over at the waist, arms wrapped tightly around her middle, back curved in a graceful arc. A cascade of vibrant, sun-streaked auburn hair almost brushed the floor as she sobbed. He wanted to reach out and gather her into his arms and hold her while she cried, the same way he had wanted to ease the wolf's pain, but sometimes a man had to turn away or risk being hurt. And he knew in a moment that he would risk anything to spend one night with her. He wanted everything she had to give, including forever. ˃˃˃ Romantic Times Ms. Bretton expertly weaves together second chances and affairs of the heart to form this delightful book. As always, a wonderful reading experience.--Jill M. Smith ˃˃˃ Publishers Weekly The sex is steamy, the characters interesting. ˃˃˃ About the Author Barbara Bretton is the bestselling, award-winning author of over fifty novels. Buy your copy now!

Tomorrow And Always

(A USA Today Bestselling Author Beautiful, wealthy Shannon...)

Barbara Bretton Edit Profile

programmer writer

Background

Barbara Bretton was born on June 25, 1950, in New York, United States, to Melvin Cassen and Viola (McNaught) Fuller.

Education

Bretton attended Queens College, City University of New York.

Career

After living on Long Island, Bretton and her husband Roy moved to central New Jersey in the mid-1990s, and, according to Bretton’s first-person message on Booktalk, her surroundings have inspired her literary imagination.

Although she took a job as a computer programmer at the organization the Cross Country in 1974 (she stayed there till 1982), Bretton continued to work toward a career as a writer, and during her twenties, she contributed short stories and articles—primarily “how-to” pieces—to various periodicals, including the New York Times and Seventeen.

When she was twenty-nine, however, Bretton’s life changed: she underwent, and triumphed over, a bout with cancer. This profound experience apparently made Bretton more determined to follow her true path in life. She concentrated on fiction, and her first published novel, Love Changes, was released as a launch book in Harlequin’s American Romances line in 1983. This was followed by more than a dozen other Harlequin American Romances, several of which have been reprinted, occasionally under new titles. Her 1994 entry for Harlequin, The Invisible Groom, was a paranormal romance.

By the mid-1990s Bretton had attained a wider realm of success with mainstream novels and historical romances. Crucial in this transition was 1994’s One and Only, which a Library Journal commentator referred to—in a review of Maybe This Time—as Bretton’s “breakout novel.” One and Only, which a Publishers Weekly critic compared favorably to the work of Judith Krantz, is set in the world of British royalty and its Kennedyesque American equivalents.

Another well-regarded novel was 1995’s Maybe This Time, which a Library Journal reviewer called “similar in feel” to One and Only except for the absence of a mystery element.

Another notable production from Bretton’s prolific output was the Time Travel Trilogy which she had published between 1992 and 1995. The concept has contemporary American women traveling back to the time of the American Revolution, and characters from that time traveling to the present; Bretton told Booktalk readers that the Time Travel Trilogy “was inspired by a runaway hot-air balloon that landed in front of [her] parents’ N[ew] J[ersey] condo” and that she “personally walked the same historical sites as [her] characters.” The trilogy’s first novel, Somewhere in Time, was issued in 1992 and was well-received; the second, Tomorrow and Always, was published in 1994.

Bretton assessed her 1997 book, Sleeping Alone, which she said was inspired by her and her husband’s winter walks on the New Jersey shore, as “definitely a four-handkerchief read,” according to Booktalk.

Achievements

Barbara Bretton is the USA Today bestselling, award-winning author of more than 40 books. She currently has over ten million copies in print around the world. Her works have been translated into twelve languages in over twenty countries.

Bretton is a recipient of awards from Romantic Times, Affaire de Coeur, and New Jersey Romance Writers (N.J.R.W.), and bestseller awards from Book Rak.

Her awards include both Reviewer's Choice and Career Achievement Awards from Romantic Times; Gold and Silver certificates from Affaire de Coeur; the RWA Region 1 Golden Leaf; and several sales awards from Bookrak.