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.
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.
Buy the book at Indie Bound.
In 1960’s London, British Intelligence agent Peter Stoller is next in line to run the Agency—until he falls in love with cab driver, Charles, and his life goes off the road. When Charles is accused of treason, Peter is guilty by association. Peter manages to extract them both, but the seeds of doubt have been planted, and Peter is compelled to find out whether his lover really is his enemy. Is ignorance truly bliss or merely deadly?
