Winter Blogfest: Marilyn Baron

December 30, 2021 By 15 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of the audiobook for The Romanov Legacy. .

Fascinated by Snow

“Round and round, like a dance of snow

In a dazzling drift, as its guardians, go

Floating the women faded for ages,

Sculpted in stone, on the poet’s pages.”

~Robert Browning, Women and Roses

“Melody Segal discovered the dazzling antique diamond-and-emerald-encrusted necklace nestled in a weathered, powder-blue velvet jewelry box not long after her grandmother’s murder. The treasure flashed bolts of light within the confines of Nana’s eerie bank vault. Wafts of scents, sounds, and sights drifted into Melody’s consciousness, conjuring enchanting visions of winter white, the icy feel of snowflakes, the jingle–jangle of sleigh bells, the woodsy smell of Siberian pines.

Why had she never seen this gleaming heirloom before? Or known about it? The attorney handling Nana’s estate had presented her with the key to the safe deposit box where the jewels had been stored for who knows how long. Not long enough to lose their luster.

The box yielded not only the necklace but an unfamiliar diary. She flipped through the book, written in Russian, and pulled out a translated copy in Nana’s hand. But Nana didn’t know Russian. In fact, she hated all things Russian. She once joked that the closest she ever got to Russia was St. Petersburg when she went to visit her best friend Bessie at her beach condo in

Florida.

What other secrets had her grandmother been hiding?”

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Growing up in Miami, Florida, I didn’t see much snow. But I was always fascinated by the idea of it and winter was one of my favorite times of year. As an author, I know it is important to communicate the five senses in our stories. That presented a major problem for me, since I was born without a sense of smell (inherited from my grandmother). To compensate, I have a very well-developed sense of hearing and a sixth sense.  

So when I went to write the first few paragraphs of my historical fiction novel, The Romanov Legacy, I had to dig deep for the right words. I relied on places I’d visited where the novel was set, including Downingtown, Pennsylvania, Zurich, Switzerland, and St. Petersburg, Russia.

Since I lived most of my early life in sunny Florida, I was happy to end up in Atlanta, Georgia, where we do have snow and the occasional ice storm. But even though my family celebrated Hanukkah, I do have fond memories of my parents taking my brother and sisters and I around the neighborhoods to see the Christmas lights during the holiday season.

I hope I communicated the sense of wonder of winter in my opening words.

Wishing everyone a very happy, healthy and safe holiday season.

Marilyn Baron

Melody, a young single mother, discovers she’s descended from the last Tsar, Nicholas II. She becomes the best hope of a secret global society, Guardians of the Romanov Legacy, dedicated to restoring a Romanov to the throne of a New Russia. A diary and an heirloom necklace inherited from her murdered grandmother hold the key to her identity and to the location of the Tsar’s lost shipment of gold.

She must accept the sacrifices her birth demands and trust the machinations of the estranged father of her child. To refuse means turning her back on her heritage, her daughter’s legacy, and the long line of her family’s women who were keepers of the secret. Will her longing for true love have world-changing consequences?

Marilyn Baron writes in a variety of genres from women’s fiction to historical romantic thrillers and romantic suspense to paranormal/fantasy. She’s received writing awards in Single Title, Suspense Romance, Novel with Strong Romantic Elements and Paranormal/Fantasy Romance. She was also The Finalist in the 2017 Georgia Author of the Year Awards (GAYA) in the Romance Category for her novel, Stumble Stones, and
The Finalist for the 2018 GAYA Awards in the Romance category for her novel, The Alibi. Her latest novel, The Romanov Legacy, released June 14, 2021, is her 27th work of fiction. Her new novel, The Case of the Missing Botticelli, a cozy mystery, will be released January 24, 2022. A public relations consultant in Atlanta, Marilyn is past chair of Roswell Reads and serves on the Atlanta Authors Series Committee. To find out more about what Marilyn writes, visit her website at: www.marilynbaron.com/

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Winter Blogfest: Laura M. Baird

December 30, 2021 By 11 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a $10- Amazon gift card to US/CA .

Finding Joy in the Little Things

Born in Virginia but having moved to Florida when I was three, I didn’t know what true seasons were. There was little changing of the foliage and there certainly wasn’t any snow, and I was okay with that. Simply because I didn’t know life any differently.

As Christmas approached and I’d see wintry landscapes and a white Christmas on TV shows, it always seemed special. And I think part of me always felt like, even though I hadn’t experienced a snowy holiday, I was missing out. Like Christmas wasn’t Christmas without snow. (The thoughts of a young girl.) So when my parents told us we were taking our first road trip from Florida back to Virginia and Ohio to visit family, I was thrilled!

First, just the prospect of riding and eating in the car, seeing new sights, and even staying in a motel was so different and exciting. (This was in the late 70s, early 80s) Second, the fact that we’d get to see snow and play in it was even more exciting. Bundling up in coats and hats and gloves just wasn’t done in Florida the way it was in Ohio.

Upon our arrival, the scene was bare, but we had high hopes. Spending time with family we seldom saw was fun. Going to a giant mall all decked out in holiday décor was splendid. Riding on an escalator for the first time was… intimidating. My aunt had to coax me onto it, and still, to this day it takes me a split-second to take that first step when the timing is just right.

A few days into our visit, the snow finally came, and boy were we ready for it! What seemed like a good deal to us was but a skiff, a dusting to Ohio natives. We made the most of it anyway. We went out tree hunting then returned to build our first snowman – albeit, a very teeny, tiny snowman. Didn’t matter to us Florida kids. (In the picture, I’m with my brothers. I have a younger sister but don’t remember why she wasn’t in the picture. Mom was the one taking the photo.)

My memories of the two or three trips north will always bring a smile to my face. Being treated to KFC on the road. Staying in a Howard Johnson and of course jumping on the hotel beds. Seeing Grandpa (who served in WWII) and being introduced to music from the 40s, such a Glenn Miller Orchestra, The Andrews Sisters, and more. Grandpa and mom teaching me the Charleston which I later performed in a grade school show. Mom even made my flapper dress. (Off on another tangent…)

My message is to take the time to enjoy the simple things that bring us joy. Make those unforgettable memories with your family. And may the Christmas spirit of love be with you all year long.

~

In my featured book, Forever Feral, my story revolves around found-family and the joyful memories they make. And for Leah, who grew up in Southern Arizona, snow for Christmas was the ultimate treat!

When invited to spend Christmas in Arizona with their friends they now consider family, Irena and Roberto don’t hesitate. The Arctic fox shifter and mountain lion shifter are right at home among the others—hawk shifters Mason and Brennon, wolf shifter Max, and their mates, Charity, Mikki, and Caterina. Not to mention the precocious and delightful Leah, Charity’s niece.

The holiday brings welcomed surprises such as proposals, babies, and snow in the desert. Brought together under dire circumstances and bonded by kinship, these shifters and their mates discover a love that will forever be feral and ever-lasting.

Laura’s living life in the Pacific Northwest, enjoying family and the chance to make her author career soar. A veteran and semi-retired dental hygienist, a wife, mother, and grandmother, as well as an experienced mover, having traversed the country from the East Coast to the West, she sprinkles her experiences into her writing. She also writes about adventures she may not otherwise experience herself. Her goal is to provide laughter and swoon-worthy moments, as well as captivating stories in which the reader can lose themselves.

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Winter Blogfest: Mariah Lynne

December 29, 2021 By 10 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win an e-book copy of SHADOWS ACROSS TIME.

A Bird in the Hand

Sam was the best dog anyone could ever want.  He was playful, got into harmless but often comical mischief, and was loyal beyond belief. We adopted him from the local shelter when he was just over a year old. The shelter rescued him after his former owners left him abandoned and tied to a fence on their farm. Big, he weighed ninety-six pounds and was part German shepherd, which gave him his smarts, and part Golden Lab, which gave him his charm.

At the time of this adventure, we lived up North on a beautiful crystal clear lake surrounded by homes with long grassy yards that sloped into that large lake. It was perfect for a dog like Sam who needed the extra open space to run. In the summer, Sam loved to jump into the lake while I fed the ducks bread. He would try to gulp down the wet soggy bread as fast as he could to prevent the ducks from getting any. No ducks were harmed in this process, but it always amazed me he didn’t fall over on his side when all that heavy wet bread finally settled in his stomach.

I’m sure that’s how he acquired his love for birds. During the winter months, Sam would stay on his runner in the snow near our back door and watch the frozen lake for skaters, other dogs, and the species of birds that did not head south. One day about a week before Christmas, it had just snowed a beautiful clean white snow. Our large kitchen window faced the lake and had just been cleaned. It was so clean, one had to look twice to make sure a window was there at all. A small bird, which must have spotted me inside, flew and circled around near the window. I guess he wanted a break from the cold because he flew full speed ahead and slammed himself head first into thatwindow. Eyes closed, he appeared to be unconscious as he felland landed flat on the ground near Sam. Sam who was outside on his runner witnessed the entire incident. His ears stoodstraight up as he walked over to the small bird and began to slurp his head, well really his entire body. Sam’s tongue was bigger than the little guy. He kept slurping which lifted the bird off the ground each time until the bird opened his eyes. When he saw my big Sam, his eyes opened extra wide. He chirped before he flew out of there and away from Sam as fast as he could. Sam was so sweet he just wagged his tail happy he could save that bird. That was just like my Sam. In my holiday contemporary romance, “Paws for Christmas,” the dog in the book also named Sam is based on my real life Sam. I hope everyone has a happy healthy holiday season!

It’s the Holidays and Jessica Munroe seems destined for misery. Nonetheless she is trying to make the best of it. Her fiancé Jake, an emergency room doctor, dumped her for his nurse and just two weeks prior, she had to put her dog, her best friend, Mazy to sleep.

The pain of losing both the man she loved and her best friend has taken her to a new low. Jessica, determined not to stay down, is now hard at work trying to push through the holiday season by doubling up on Christmas lights and decorations she’s putting up outside her residence.
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As Jessica works, a big brown scruffy dog appears in her yard and refuses to leave when she tries to shoo him away. He’s filthy, looks hungry, and seems like he needs help. A dog lover, Jessica takes him to her vet who discovers a metal bone shaped tag buried in his matted fur. The tag reveals his name, Sam, and a phone number to call if he is lost or injured.

Sam’s owner Trey Musgrove is in the hospital the victim of a head-on collision. Now Jessica’s life is about to change forever thanks to Sam, this big brown scruffy lovable dog.

Side effects of reading PAWS FOR CHRISTMAS are a happy heart, an uplifted spirit, new confidence in the future, and a smile on your face!

Mariah Lynne is a Florida Gulf Coast resident who loves where she lives. The Southwest Florida Gulf Coast is a featured backdrop for all of her stories while her heroines are fearless, strong-willed, independent women whose memorable tales are sure to entertain. Mariah’s books include PAWS for CHRISTMAS (2020- 5 stars), THE DUCHESS’ NECKLACE (2017- 5 five stars from The Paranormal Authors Guild)), SHADOWS ACROSS TIME (2014), and THE LOVE GYPSY (2012) also available as an audio book. CLAWS FOR JUSTICE (2021) is a one hour mystery e-book. Her first book SEABLISS will be re-released as an e-book this December.

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Winter Blogfest: Judy Ann Davis

December 28, 2021 By 5 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a digital copy of “JANE – The Pianist” via Amazon to the winner along with a $10.00 Amazon gift card.

Wreaths –  The Circle of Life

During the Christmas season, I enjoy looking at the many different wreaths hanging on the doors of homes and businesses. They are colorful, artistic and varied, and are often constructed with evergreens or holly and adorned with pine cones, ribbons, bells, berries, and bows. But where did the tradition of hanging a wreath on a door for Christmas originate? Although there are many theories, it’s believed the wreath came with the Irish when they immigrated to the United States.

The wreath itself can be traced back to ancient Rome when people used decorative wreaths as a sign of victory and celebration. The custom of hanging a Christmas wreath on the front door of the home probably came from this practice. They are also used in ceremonial events in many cultures around the world.

In English-speaking countries, wreaths are now used typically as household ornaments, mainly as an Advent and Christmas decoration. Wreaths have much history and symbolism associated with them. They are usually made from evergreens found in the local area and which symbolize the strength of life overcoming the forces of winter—since evergreens last even throughout the harshest elements. Bay laurel is also be used, and these wreaths are known as laurel wreaths.

I was raised on a dairy farm in northeastern Pennsylvania where crow’s feet ground cover was abundant in the wooded areas of our land. Before the holidays, we would gather a basket of it and tie it onto a wire coat hanger fashioned into a circle. Adorned with a red ribbon and hung on the front door, it was a warm holiday way to greet visitors.

The shape of a wreath is a circle which has no beginning and no ending. It is thought that this may represent the eternal nature of God’s love or the circle of life.

Do you hang a wreath on your door? If not, how do you decorate for the holiday season?

A sweet Christmas novella to warm your heart!

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Single parent and contractor, Leo Ciaffonni, enjoys restoring old buildings, and the A# Sharp Music Shop with its pretty new owner is no exception. When he’s injured, June finds herself caring for Leo and helping his little daughter bake cookies for her class.

As the holidays close in and the shop’s renovations continue, the problems June tries hard to solve only seem to become more chaotic. The music shop is broken into. A harvest recital for her new students requires multifaceted planning. And the perpetrator and the lost musical score have not been found.

Will she be able to find peace and order in her new life this Christmas—and the love she’s always dreamed of?

Multi-Award-Winning Author Judy Ann Davis began her career in writing as a copy and continuity writer for radio and television in Scranton, Pennsylvania. She holds a degree in Journalism and Communications and has written for industry and education throughout her career.

Over a dozen of her short stories have appeared in various literary and small magazines and anthologies, and have received numerous awards. Her contemporary romantic suspense and comedy, “Four White Roses,” was a finalist in the Book Excellence Awards, the Georgia Romance Writers’ Maggie Awards, and the American Fiction Awards. Her latest novel, “Willie, My Love,” was a finalist in the American Fiction Awards as well.

She writes both contemporary and historical fiction and is best known for “writing romance with a touch of mystery.” When Judy Ann is not behind a computer, you can find her looking for anything humorous to make her laugh or swinging a golf club where the chuckles are few.

She is a member of Pennwriters, Inc. and Romance Writers of America. She divides her time between Central Pennsylvania and New Smyrna Beach, Florida.

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Winter Blogfest: M Pepper Langlinais

December 28, 2021 By 3 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a signed copy of my YA novel THE GHOSTS OF MARSHLEY PARK (written under the pen name Amanda Innes). Shipping to US and Canada only.

Hum for the Holidays

 

A question for you, dear readers: When do you begin listening to holiday music?

I ask because I recently noticed, based on past blog posts and Facebook memories, that I almost always start in mid-November. It’s like I can’t quite wait until after Thanksgiving, but I still need that bit of padding between Halloween and winter holidays.

Maybe it’s because there’s no real “Thanksgiving” music to fill that space? I find myself starting to hum “Sleigh Ride” and “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” (two of my favorites), and then I realize I want to hear them, so I start adding Andy Williams and Bing Crosby to my Spotify.

Yes, I’m pretty old-fashioned in my holiday music choices, too. I don’t mind mixing in some of the pop covers of classic holiday hits, but I don’t much go in for the newer stuff. Though that Mariah Carey one is catchy.

We never used to start so early when I was a kid, so it’s not a tradition for me. When I was young, we would wait until after Thanksgiving—even if only the day after—to put up the decorations, and while we did that, we’d put on the Christmas albums. That was always the first time we’d listen to Christmas music for the year. Now that I have a family of my own, we do still wait until after Thanksgiving to decorate. But the music has crept forward in time, much to my oldest son’s chagrin, as his birthday almost always lands during the week of Thanksgiving, and he never wants Christmas music to happen before his birthday.
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Which leads me to the next question: When do you stop listening to holiday music? Right after Christmas? After New Year’s? I’m willing to tolerate it for just a wee bit past Christmas, but come January, I feel like it’s time to start fresh, which means being pretty much done with holiday music. But I’ll leave the lights up a little longer, enjoying the cozy glow through the dark days of winter.

 

In summary, my holiday music “season” seems to run mid-November to the end of December, while my holiday decorations run from early December through, oh, late January. What do your holiday seasons look—and sound—like?

Duncan Oliver was in every respect an unremarkable gentleman.

When mild-mannered Duncan Oliver is abducted by the Milne brothers and taken to their legendary home of Faebourne, his unexciting life becomes much more interesting. Adelia Milne has been cursed, and Duncan is her chosen champion to break the spell. Duncan may not be a hero, but he is a gentleman, and he refuses to leave a lady in distress. He becomes determined to take on the quest on Miss Milne’s behalf.

Meanwhile, an unlikely rescue team forms in the pairing of Duncan’s best friend George and valet Davies. As they set out for Faebourne–and also perchance to learn more about Davies’ obscured family history–what begins as an unequal partnership quickly blooms into friendship… and possibly something more.

M Pepper Langlinais is an award-winning screenwriter, produced playwright, and published author. She holds a Master of Arts in Writing, Literature and Publishing from Emerson College and a Bachelor of Science in Radio-Television-Film Communication from the University of Texas at Austin. M has interned on major Hollywood film sets and worked for Houghton Mifflin and Pearson before deciding to focus on her own writing. She lives in Livermore, California.

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Winter Blogfest: Barbara Baldwin

December 28, 2021 By 7 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a signed, print copy of “Christmas Quilt Anthology”, a book of ten original holiday short stories by author Barbara Baldwin. This needs to be mailed so is for US only.

Holiday Happenings

Ah, the holidays are here and even with all the craziness in the world, I hope you have the chance to enjoy the season. I recently wrote a holiday card for friends about the season and thought I would share a few parts with you. I’m sure you can relate to what I have experienced over the years.

DECORATING: We found the box of lights at the bottom of everything because we had moved last summer and when we got them out, they were all tangled up and half of them didn’t even work. After buying new lights and a new ladder because ours was run over by the moving truck, we strung the lights along the house, around the shrubs, in the trees and down the driveway.  Only to realize we needed five extension cords just to reach the closest outlet.

SHOPPING: I drove around for over fifteen minutes trying to find a parking place at the mall and when I finally spied one, a little red Beetle whipped into it before I could round the corner. After taking a whole day off to go Christmas shopping, things that were on the sale flyer weren’t in the store and what I had put on layaway three months ago was now on sale for half price.

And I couldn’t find the right size or the right color or something that matched the rest of what I had bought and if I couldn’t buy five of the same thing then I might as well not buy any because everyone had to have one or there would be crying.

COOKIE MAKING: It was time to bake and my daughter made the frosting and decided that army green was an appropriate Christmas color, so Santa, the reindeer and all the snowmen joined the service that year. I wanted to make trays for work and my husband’s office and for our friends so I had to bake for several days, hiding everything on the shelf in the office closet because no one ever goes in there. But they did.

SNOW: All the family was here to celebrate and just in time because it started to snow and the roads were closed. The kids all wanted to go sledding and build snowmen. We finally got everyone bundled up in snowsuits and boots and mittens and caps and then the littlest one said he had to go potty and so we had to undo the caps and mittens and boots and snowsuits.

Much later, the cold, red noses were wiped and the hands warmed and cocoa drank and cookies eaten. All the cousins played downstairs and nobody worried when they argued because all we had to say was, “If you’re not good, Santa won’t come and leave you any presents.”

CHRISTMAS EVE: The carolers are singing and we go out and join them before going to midnight service to hear the wonderful story about the birth of Christ. And when we come home, all the presents are wrapped and under the tree and the stockings are hung and the kids are too excited to go to sleep, but all we have to say is, “If you don’t go to sleep, Santa won’t come and leave you any presents.”

​Quiet descends and we sit and watch the lights wink on the tree and hope that on Christmas Day all the toys make noise and all the baby dolls bawl; that the bike and trike bells ring and the train whistle blows and the race cars speed around the track just like the instructions said they would.

onlyhave three hundred sixty-four shopping days until we get to do it all over again.

Welcome to Cherrywood — a small town where we celebrate the magic of Christmas all month long. Come enjoy holiday lights, dances and music; ice skating and snow sculptures; fellowship and generosity of spirit and above all – romance and family.

Erin Thomas, confidential investigator, uploads her latest case files to the Hartford DA and happily shuts down her computer, promising herself she won’t open it again until the New Year. Even though it’s December, she is ready for vacation and looks forward to visiting the small town of Cherrywood. She wants no more than to sleep late, wander the Christmas markets and catch up on reading the latest romance novel from her favorite author.

Remington Matthews enjoys his life in Cherrywood and his job as part time sheriff is enough to keep him busy but also allows him time to pursue other interests. He’s happy to help people he’s known all his life and even allows his quirky twin sister to pull him into her antics during the month long Winter Festival. Perhaps the only down side to the small town is the lack of romance, but that changes the day he meets Erin.

Erin’s encounter with Remington takes her by surprise. She certainly doesn’t intend to fall for his cover model smile and engaging personality. Yet because Cherrywood is a very small town, she keeps running into him and before long he completely occupies her time and her dreams. He pulls her into holiday activities she never took time to enjoy; introduces her to family and captivates her with fiery kisses and romantic adventures. In Cherrywood, it’s easy to believe in the magic of the holiday. For Erin, that magic and this particular man might change her life forever.

 

Barbara resides in the Midwest United States but she loves to travel and explore new places, which usually means each of her novels is set in a different locale. She has been published in formats from poetry and short stories to full-length fiction and was writer and co-producer for a documentary on state history that won state and national awards. She really loves writing romance, whether it is contemporary, historical or time travel. She has an MA in Communication and has taught every grade from Kindergarten to college. When not writing, she enjoys other creative activities such as making pottery, fused glass, quilts and basket weaving.

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Winter Blogfest: Dakota Issacs

December 27, 2021 By 6 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a $25 Amazon gift card, and five copies of Werewolves Prefer Shortbread .

Doing Less and Loving It

The older I get, the more my Christmas celebrations are getting smaller, and I love it.  My husband and I have developed tiny traditions that are ours alone.  They are tiny things, but they bring me a surprising amount of joy.

So, this Christmas season is going to be full of quiet moments.  Spiked hot chocolate with my friends.  Check.  Bumper cars on the ice at Bryant Park.  Double check.  (Don’t knock it till you try it!)  Long walks through the city we love.  Gifting some hats and coats and a hot meal to people who can use them, and then on Christmas day the tradition we started last year and loved.  Sleeping in followed by a pancake breakfast.  Then in the late afternoon we will take a walk through the brisk streets to our favorite restaurant in Chinatown.  The one where the waiters have known my husband since he was a boy.  We will walk down the stairs, with their peeling paint down to the restaurant hidden in the alley.  We will impressively over order, walk the steaming cartons back to our apartment, and then turn on Love Actually.  A quiet day, and one most people won’t get.  But it suits us.  And there is something about that.  Finding the things that suit you even if the rest of the world doesn’t understand.  Owning what makes you happy, finding what brings you joy and not what you think should bring you joy.

That’s what I want more of.  This year and in the years to come.

Here is hoping you find your joys too.

Wishing you a wonderful holiday season.

Dakota

Callum McAllister is not a bad guy. Not really. He doesn’t want to evict the nice old lady who lived on his property for the last forty years. But he has to. Trust me. He can’t explain his reasons because they involve things like Werewolves. And now everyone in town seems to hate him. Especially the beautiful young baker, who under any other circumstances, would be his kind of girl. Except now that’s never gonna happen because that ‘nice old lady’ he’s evicting…that’s her Grandma. He knows he’s not welcome but he’s finding it awfully hard to stay out of her kitchen.
The last thing Lily Harris wants for Christmas is a man who cares more about things than he does about people. But Santa has other ideas and Lily’s about to wind up with one very handsome, Scottish Werewolf under her tree. If she’s willing to risk her heart she may wind up with the best Christmas gift in the world: true love.

Dakota Issacs can be found wandering the streets of Manhattan, where she drinks too much coffee, browses record, and bookstores, and reads everything she can get her hands on.

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Winter Blogfest: Bailey Thomas

December 27, 2021 By 14 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a $25.00 Amazon egift card. You must provide your email address for delivery.

Holiday Traditions

I love the holiday season, starting with Halloween right through the New Year festivities. The smiles on people’s faces, the decorations, homemade treats, and you can feel the energy and excitement. It’s magical and contagious.

One of my favorite family Christmas traditions, and it’s one that I miss the most now, is togetherness. Family meals, playing games, singing carols, reading ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, and waking up on Christmas morning to see what Santa had delivered. There are only two words that come to mind to describe those times: laughter and love.

One appetizer that always reminds me of Thanksgiving or Christmas is my grandmother’s blue cheese stuffed celery sticks. Nothing fancy, but holy smokes, are they delicious! All you need is a brick of cream cheese (softened), blue cheese (whatever brand makes you smile), then crumble the blue cheese and combine it with the cream cheese. If you need a touch of liquid, add a splash of milk until it’s a creamy mixture. You want it thick enough to spread it on the celery. Wash and cut the celery into the sizes you want (we do 1.5-inch pieces) and spread the goodness. Arrange on a plate, cover, and refrigerate until you’re ready to serve. Yummy!!!!!!

My husband and I also look forward to New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day because it’s full of celebrations, parades, football, and puzzles. Of course, no holiday celebration would be complete without having our fur babies by our sides. Spoiled is an accurate description, but we wouldn’t have it any other way! (Wet noses, tail wags, and purrs)

This year was bittersweet for me, I lost my father, but I also had a dream come true by publishing my first book. If you find yourself looking for a new author and romantic suspense series to try, please consider Trent’s Redemption.

Find an adventure that makes you smile. I wish you and your family all the best during this holiday season.

Trent Jacobs had everything he wanted in life until the flash of a muzzle ripped his world apart. Now he only has guilt. Permanently removed from fieldwork due to questionable events, Trent retires from the FBI. He retreats to the small town of Mill Creek, Idaho, to become the town sheriff.

Margaret King knows what it’s like to be alone and isolated. Losing her parents as a child was impossible, but the death of her brother damn near killed her. When a strange van appears on her street and her apartment is broken into, she turns to Trent, the only man she knows she can trust.

After Maggie shows up terrified and haunted, Trent’s guilt explodes. She makes him want things he doesn’t deserve, including her. As their past collides with the present, Trent is forced to face his demons to protect her. Or risk losing her.

Bailey Thomas lives in the beautiful, but hot southwest with her husband and their adorable four-legged children. An only child, Bailey’s active imagination and adventurous nature always kept her busy. Now, she channels those creative powers into storytelling.

Her wonderful husband encouraged her to chase her dream of becoming an author and continues to be her greatest champion. Being able to write these stories has been a thrilling experience that is truly special to her.

When she’s not behind a computer working on her next deadline, she’s reading her favorite authors, playing with her fur-babies, and spending time with her husband. They love to watch movies, sports and play all types of games.

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Winter Blogfest: Becky Flade

December 24, 2021 By 6 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a $10 Amazon gift card.

Christmas Treats and Traditions

My all-time favorite Christmas treat – after books – is Chocolatey Stars. I don’t know why they aren’t sold all year. But they’re not. And I don’t know if these are sold nationwide, or globally, or if they are a local treat. Also, I don’t know why these shortbread cookies dipped in chocolate and sprinkled with nonpareils make me happy, but they do. They really, really do.

What I do know is my favorite holiday special is Christmas Eve on Sesame Street. It’s a treat for my heart every season. I saw it the very first time when it first aired in 1978. It was my third Christmas. I was two; and I sobbed because Big Bird got lost. It is still, forty-four Christmas’s later, my favorite. I have it on VHS tape and on DVD. Then my mom gifted it to me in hardback.

My bookish, nerdy heart soared. One thing you can’t deny – Jim Henson “…knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that be truly said of us, and all of us!”

On Christmas Eve, after mass, we bake cookies while listening to Bob Denver and the Muppets sing traditional carols, while tracking Santa’s flight around the world on the NORAD website. After we watch Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, A Muppet Christmas Carol, A Muppet Family Christmas, Emmet Otter’s Jugband Christmas, and The Polar Express (it’s my daughter’s favorite).

Share one of your family’s traditions in the comments below and a randomly chosen winner will get a $10 Amazon gift card.

Don’t forget to keep the spirit of Christmas with you all through the year!

– Becky

Detective Alexandra Danvers is determined to bring child killer, Arthur Book, to justice, no matter the cost. Detective Xavier Knight is asked to evaluate Lexi’s fitness for duty. He fears investigating Lexi could allow a monster to walk free. Holding onto their own secrets, they launch a covert investigation into Arthur Book who could cost Lexi and Xavier their careers, including their lives.

 

When I was little I thought everyone had stories in their head. When I found out that wasn’t true and that only special people had stories to tell, I wanted to be one of the people who shared their stories with the world. Here I am, making my own dreams come true, one happily ever after at a time.

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Winter Blogfest: J. S. Marlo

December 23, 2021 By 3 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win a digital copy of The Red Quilt TWO winners will be picked at random among the readers who visit and leave a comment on my post.

Santa’s Reindeer

‘Male reindeers lose their antlers in winter and females don’t, so Santa’s sleigh is actually pulled by a team of women…’

When I saw that quote on Facebook, it caught my attention. First, reindeer, like deer, don’t have an “s” in their plural forms. Second, it struck me as odd that the females didn’t lose their antlers, so I did some research.

Female reindeer can grow antlers, making them unique in the deer world. However, not all females have antlers since growing them costs lots of energy. In habitats where food is scarce or of poor quality, antlerless females dominate.

The female reindeer use their antlers to dig through the snow in search of food and to defend themselves. Those with the largest antlers tend to be socially dominant and in the best overall physical condition, but they still shed their antlers every year. Unlike male reindeer who lose them late autumn after the rut, female reindeer retain their antlers until spring because access to food is critical during their winter pregnancy.

Does that mean female reindeer are pulling Santa’s sleigh?  Not necessarily. Most of the reindeer used to pull sleds are castrated males because they are easier to handle than “full” males. Castrated reindeer have antler cycles similar to those of the females, only losing them in the spring.

Conclusion: Santa’s reindeer are either female or castrated male. 

Other interesting facts:

– There are more than 15 subspecies of reindeer, some of which are extinct. 
– Reindeer are domesticated or semi-domesticated caribou.
– They live primarily in the Arctic, where winter is drastically colder and darker than summer.
– Their hooves are soft during warmer months, but in winter, they become hard and sharp for breaking through the ice to forage vegetation.
– To adapt to seasonal changes in light levels, the part of their eye behind the iris changes color from gold in the summer to blue in the winter.
– They travel up to 3,000 miles and swim long distances.
– They have two layers of hair to keep warm: a dense woolly undercoat, and a top layer of hollow air-filled hairs which float. Their hair have been used to fill life jackets.


In my newest story, a Christmas mystery titled “The Red Quilt”, Grandpa Eli is marooned on a potato farm with his five-year-old granddaughter. On Christmas Eve, Eli ventures outside to draw reindeer hoof prints in the snow. Here’s an excerpt:

The two forward toes made prints resembling curly teardrops with the tip pointing ahead, toward the carrot underneath the branch. He added a dot behind each teardrop design to account for the two back toes.

A vehicle turning into Lana’s driveway diverted his attention from the second print he was drawing. When blue and red lights began to flash, Eli dropped the carrot and the branch, and raised his hands as he straightened to his full height beside the bush.

The door of the patrol car opened and a silhouette stood behind it. “Mr. Sterling?”

“Yes.” The female voice jogged his memory. “Fancy meeting you here tonight, Constable Davidson. May I lower my arms?”

“Yes, please. I didn’t mean to scare you.” The lights stopped flashing, but the door remained opened as she walked toward him. “The lights were on so I thought you might be up, but then I saw someone hunched by the bush, so I overreacted.”

“I’d rather you overreact than ignore a suspicious guy making reindeer hoof prints in the snow in the wee hours of the morning,” he teased.

A smile enlivened her face as she shone the beam of her flashlight in the snow. “It’s small for a reindeer, but otherwise, it’s pretty accurate.”

Stumped by the remark, he squatted the snow. “What do you mean by small? Do you masquerade as a biologist in your spare time?”

Her laughter rose in the crisp air. “No, but I have an older sister who’s a conservation officer in the north. She spent years following the caribou herd’s migration. I know more about caribou than I ever wanted to know. For accuracy’s sake, you want them to be about four inches long.”


Happy Holiday 2021!

J. S. Marlo

A last-minute Christmas trip goes horribly wrong for Eli and his five-year-old granddaughter, Ruby. On their way to a Bed and Breakfast on Prince Edward Island after a kitchen fire forced them out of their house, they get caught in a blizzard and end up in the ditch.

Retired Military Nurse, Lana, lives on a potato farm with the ghosts of her husband and son. She welcomes into her home the marooned Eli and the young child he raises alone. The storm outside rages on and problems arise as Eli faces the demons and mistakes of his past, Lana becomes entangled in her neighbors’ illegal activities, and Ruby wishes for something Santa cannot give her.

The resulting mix offers hope for a second chance even as it threatens their lives. Can Eli and Lana survive another storm to enjoy the love growing between them? And will Ruby’s wish be granted?

JS Marlo spent her childhood in a small French Canadian town, reading and daydreaming stories. One day, she met her hero, a dashing young officer, and followed him back and forth across the country.

The “memorable” adventures she experienced with her young family fueled her imagination and kindled the dream of one day becoming a published author. When her three spirited children left the nest in pursuit of their own adventures, she gave writing a chance.

JS lives in northern Alberta with her hubby, and when she’s not visiting her children or spoiling her gorgeous little granddaughter, she’s working on her next novel under the northern lights.

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