The Christmas Promise by Donna VanLiere #review #Christmas

Leave the light on! This book is a beautiful story about hope and faith in life. It is told in first person by the character Gloria who lost her husband to cancer.

The cast of characters that encounter her are well thought out and believable. Their lives intertwine in such a way that you want to keep reading to the end. For the record, I read the book in one sitting.

A couple of interesting twist happen but I was only able to see it just before it did.

This book is a feel-good Christmas story you will want to read. 5 stars

Disclosure: I purchased a copy of this book for my own collections. The views here are 100% my own and may differ from yours.
-Michelle

A Little House Christmas: Holiday Stories form the Little House Books by Laura Ingalls Wilder #Christmas #Review

 

This book is a collection of Christmas stories gathered from the writings of Laura Ingalls Wilder. The stories begin when Laura is just 4 years old and progress as she gets older. The story is very as they move from place to place and tell of the dreams of two little girls who still believe in Santa. The biggest takeaway here for me was that life was simplistic and that even when it came to Christmas gifts were often had but they were still simplistic like a piece of candy or woolen mittens. Maybe this is something that we should return to. The girls were always grateful and Ma managed to introduce the girls to life's lessons. Christmas always came. Pa was always seen as the head of the household but also someone who worked hard and loved his family. These things about her family were sweet and I loved the family meant everything to them no matter what the circumstances. Overall, a sweet book that could be read year after year. 4 stars. Disclosure: I purchased a copy of this book for my own collections. The views here are 100% my own and may differ from yours. - Michelle

Just In Time for Christmas by Louise Borden #Christmas #holidays #review #family #traditions

Synopsis:

Based the author's story upon her 100-year-old family tradition. Lewin's beautifully painted illustrations evoke memories of wintery Christmas mornings and warm family gatherings.

My review:

This is the story of one family's traditional Christmas gathering on a farm in Kentucky. It is never said but the (spoiler) Grandma is suffering the beginning stages of dementia. They gather together each year to make their family taffy. 

The story is told from the point of view from a young man who looks to be middle school to young high school.  I loved the colors of blue and gold for his jacket. Ironically, it was the same as when I was in high school, even the design of it. He struggles are apparent throughout the book and makes him not want to enjoy the festivities.

This book is wrapped up in life's feelings, some sadness, and happiness as well. It gives the reader a sense of belonging and yet a longing for things to stay the same.

One absolute plus to this book is the illustrations. They are beautiful and so well done that the reader feels like you are there.

I recommend this book as a good Christmas read 5 stars.

Disclosure: I borrowed a copy of this book from my local library. The views expressed here are 100% my own and may differ from yours. ~Michelle

Who Was Rosa Parks? by Yona Zeldis McDonough #RosaParksDay #nonfiction #childrensbooks

"No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in." ~Rosa Parks

Synopsis: In 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give her bus seat to a white passenger in Montgomery, Alabama. This seemingly small act triggered civil rights protests across America and earned Rosa Parks the title "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement." 

My review:

I am old enough to know who Rosa Parks was and what she did for the civil rights movement. Admittedly, being of the white race, her contribution to the country would not affect me as it has others. Or has it?

Indeed, it has!

This book tells her story beginning from when she was a child living on a farm with her brother. She had been taught that even though she was black, she was somebody that deserved respect. She was mostly safe living there but not far from her lived racist people who wanted nothing but her and her family dead.

The book (spoiler) mentions a story, that she wrote about in her later memoir, about her walking on the sidewalk. A young white boy skated by and deliberately pushed her off the sidewalk. She pushed back!  His mother said she could get arrested for doing that. Rosa told the mother she did not deserve that as she was hurting nobody. Rosa stood up!

This was just an early mention of what Rosa would eventually be known for. However, she really never meant to be the icon she is today. She was only wanting equal rights among all people, something she had learned for herself and listening to other civil rights leaders that she has met with. The quote above is how the book ends because many, like me, thought she did it because she was tired from work. No, she was tired of being mistreated!

 

Did you know she was not the first to get arrested from sitting in the front of the bus? It's true, but she is the one that became the face for women and civil rights in general. The book highlights many civil rights actions and leaders who helped to gain many rights for black Americans. These are little side pages that further explains things for children. It is a nice plus to the book.

I liked that the book also told about her later life as she continued to fight for equal rights and especially for voting right to be better and easier. It tells of her awards and honors from colleges to American Presidents. The book also mentions her funeral, a surprise too.

She is quite the heroine in my mind! This book is a winner for me and yes, I learned things I did not know and all the better for it. Although I read this book celebrating Rosa Parks Day, I highly recommended for all children any day!

~Michelle

Disclosure: I borrowed a copy of this book from my local library. The views here are 100% my own and may differ from yours.

5 stars

A Murder Yule Regret by Winnie Archer #Recipe #giveaway #Spotlight #cozymysteries #Christmas

 

7th in Series
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Kensington Cozies (November 30, 2021)
Mass Market Paperback ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 149673355X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1496733559
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08Y69YZKB

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Freelance photographer and Yeast of Eden bakery assistant Ivy Culpepper has just scored the job of a lifetime shooting the Dickensian dress-up X-mas party thrown by It Girl film actress Eliza Fox . . . until an unwanted guest appears.

A holiday costume party in the sleepy coastal town of Santa Sofia could be just the boost Ivy needs for her fledgling photography business. At the party, Ivy enters a Victorian fantasy come to life, all courtesy of the fabulous Ms. Fox. Ivy gets to play shutterbug while hanging with Scrooge, Marley, the Cratchits, and more classic Dickens characters. But what begins as the best of times turns out to be the very worst for one of the party guests—a tabloid journalist with more enemies than Ebenezer himself.

When the man’s body is found sprawled across the jagged rocks below the house, the fingers begin pointing at Eliza. Meanwhile, Ivy gets roped into helping prove the starlet’s innocence. Her festive photos are now official evidence—and the Ghosts of Christmas Present could mean the party for Eliza is over, once and for all.

RECIPE:

My dear readers, I am pleased to offer a recipe that the author has provided. This is a recipe that can be read from the book. Enjoy!

CHRISTMAS PUNCH

 

Ingredients

 

• 5 cups 100 percent cranberry juice (cranberry juice cocktail)
• 2 bottles very dry sparkling wine (champagne, cava, or prosecco)
• 2 cups apple cider
• 11⁄2 cups diet ginger ale
• 11⁄2 cups dark rum or brandy
• 2 oranges, thinly sliced into rounds
• 1 cup fresh cranberries

 

Instructions

 

1. Chill all ingredients.

2. Fill a large punch bowl with ice. Top with the cranberry juice, sparkling wine, apple cider, ginger ale,

and rum.

3. Stir to combine. Garnish with the orange slices and fresh cranberries.

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Winnie Archer is the nationally bestselling author of the Bread Shop Mystery series, and the Magical Dressmaking Mystery series written as Melissa Bourbon. A former middle school English teacher, lives in North Carolina with her educator husband, Carlos, and the youngest of their five children. She can be found online at MelissaBourbon.com.

Purchase Links - Amazon 

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#Spotlight: The Girl in the Toile Wallpaper by Mary K. Savarese #FantasyAdventure

 

 

The Girl in the Toile Wallpaper

The StarWriters Trilogy Book 1

Genre: Fantasy Adventure, Romance  

Alice may have fallen through the looking glass and created a relationship with the Cheshire Cat but it's twelve-year-old Tyler who falls into the toile wallpaper and unwittingly bonds with thirteen cats.

Tyler must rescue the girl of his dreams or forever be imprisoned inside the wallpaper of time while running from an evil wizard.

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Mary K. Savarese is an award-winning author & speaker born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. She is known for her quirky titles. She earned a degree in accounting from City University, NY and worked within the insurance and financing world. Her debut novel, Tigers Love Bubble Baths & Obsession Perfume (who knew!) is a contemporary spiritual mystery that transcends three genres … mystery, spirituality, and romance, and won eight national book awards. Mary was a religious education teacher and is now a Eucharistic minister for the Catholic church. After raising a family in Connecticut, she moved to Florida with her husband and spends her time writing entertaining and unusual stories. Her latest release, The Girl In The Toile Wallpaper, is a fantasy adventure intertwined with romance. It is the first novel in The StarWriters Trilogy.

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#Spotlight: The Christine Stewart Time Travel Adventures by Christy Cooper-Burnett #giveaway #timetravel #scifi #historicalfantasy #bookseries

 

No Way Home

A Christine Stewart Time Travel Adventure Book 1

by Christy Cooper-Burnett

Genre: Time Travel, SciFi, Historical Fantasy 

2020 California Author Project Winner - Adult Fiction

2020 PenCraft Award Winner - Science Fiction

"An action-packed time-travel adventure that will leave you thirsting for the sequel." –Sublime Book Review

"A brilliant and thought-provoking book that readers who love tales of time travel will find fascinating." –Authors Reading

Christine Stewart is a regular woman just doing her job when she gets stranded in history. When she gets up for the day, her plan is simple: go to work, travel back in time to the year 1867 in Oklahoma to deport a cyber-criminal, then head back to her time in 2070 Los Angeles and get ready to go on vacation with her son, Michael.

Then the system goes down and she-and dozens of other transporters around the world-are stranded in the past with minimal training and no supplies.

Just when she thinks things can't get any more dangerous, she is cast further back in time and thousands of miles away.

As her goals shift from simply getting home to something much more dire to all of humanity, Christine must step outside of herself, work as part of a team, and ultimately make the choice between what it easy and what is right. Even if it costs her everything-including her one chance of ever getting home.

**Get it FREE Nov 18-22!!**

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Finding Home

A Christine Stewart Time Travel Adventure Book 2

An exiled prisoner. A desperate woman. A time travel agent willing to break the rules.

Malcolm Aldred is starting over in 1868, Oklahoma. There’s just one problem—he’s an exiled prisoner from 2070.

In 2071, Los Angeles, housewife Hannah Cole is desperate to escape her abusive husband, and begs Cyber Criminal Enforcement Agent Christine Stewart to send her somewhere, anywhere, in history. When Christine agrees to send Hannah to 1868, neither woman has any idea the events that sets in motion.

Malcolm and Hannah adapt to pioneer life in an untamed world full of danger and unimaginable hardships, but falling for each other was never part of the plan. When a deadly hunter tracks Hannah to 1868, fate intervenes and catapults her back to Colonial America, threatening to destroy their future before it ever begins.

Can Christine save Hannah in time or will they both be lost to history forever?

**Only .99cents Nov 18 – 22!!**

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Escaping Home

A Christine Stewart Time Travel Adventure Book 3

United States, 2072

With the country under the threat of war, a group of time-traveling government agents devise a risky plan to keep their families safe. But transporting hundreds of years to the past and blending in may prove much more dangerous than they expected.

Cyber Criminal Enforcement Agent Christine Stewart has been to the past before and thinks she knows what to expect. She couldn’t be more wrong.

Life in the eighteenth century is anything but ideal, especially when they learn a rogue agent with plans to strike it rich follows them back in time. Armed with a modern-day weapon, the agent may disrupt the timeline in the most disastrous way and alter history as they know it.

Now they’re refugees in their own homeland, and how they proceed will determine their fate. Will they crash and burn in their race to stop the defector before it’s too late?

**On Sale Nov 18-22!!**

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Christy Cooper-Burnett is an award-winning author based in California with a degree in Administration of Justice. After retiring early from the new home construction industry, she now divides her time between northern and southern California.

She has one grown son who inspired her to write her award-winning debut novel, No Way Home. She began her writing career later in life, but once she started she couldn't stop. Her work focuses on creating relatable stories and characters that transcend genres and encourage readers to imagine what they would do if thrown into the unique, imaginative situations her protagonists end up in.

Christy's debut novel, No Way Home, was the recipient of the 2020 California Author Project award in the Adult Fiction category, the 2020 PenCraft Award in the Science Fiction category, a 2021 Literary Titan Gold Medal Award and a finalist position in the 2021 International Book Awards, Science Fiction category. Her second novel, Finding Home released June 17, 2021, and early praise has already garnered several five-star reviews and her second Literary Titan Gold Medal Award. The third book in the Christine Stewart Time Travel Adventure series, Escaping Home, is an Indies Today recommended read and is set to launch on November 18, 2021.

You can learn more about Christy, subscribe to her mailing list for news and book deals or contact

her at www.christycooperburnett.com.

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Eating Well To Fight Arthritis by Holly Clegg #Giveaway #Cookbook PLUS $25 Amazon Gift Card @deliciouslysavv @HollyClegg

Welcome to the Holly Clegg Eating Well To Fight Arthritis Cookbook PLUS $25 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway!

1 Winner ($50 TRV)

This giveaway is part of our Holiday Gift Guide – Stop by to see all the giveaways and great products.

HOST IS:

DELICIOUSLY SAVVY

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This giveaway's Sponsor is:

WEBSITE ~ AMAZON

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1 Lucky Winner will win a copy of Holly Clegg's Eating Well To Fight Arthritis PLUS a $25 Amazon Gift Card from Deliciously Savvy!

Take a look at my review

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THE GIVEAWAY

This giveaway/sweepstakes is in no way endorsed, affiliated, or associated with Facebook, Twitter or any other Social Media Networking Site. This Giveaway is valid to continental United States residents only, Entrants must be 18+ years of age to enter. This giveaway event will end at 11:59 PM (EST) 12/24/2021. The winner will have 48 hours to email their information back to mcushing7 at hotmail dot com or a new winner will be drawn, you may want to put this email address as safe as it could go to spam. The giveaway is not valid where prohibited! By entering you are authorizing us to collect the information on the form below, this information is used only to contact the winner! No purchase necessary, Void where prohibited by law, and the number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Winners are chosen randomly by the Giveaway Tools program. The sponsors are each responsible for shipping of the above prizes. No blog associated with this contest are responsible for prize fulfillment. If you would like to be a sponsor in a giveaway like this please email nailamoon1968@gmail.com If you take an entry you must stay following for the entire contest or you will be disqualified.

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Judgement Town by Bryan W. Alaspa #giveaway #Thriller #mystery #spotlight #bookseries

 

 

Judgement Town

Deklan Falls Book 4

Genre: Mystery, Thriller 

The town of Redemption, NV, is a dirty, rotten, stinking little town. Not as famous as Vegas or Reno, it's a place where people come to gamble. They come to drink. They come to get into trouble. It's better known by another name - Judgement Town.

Redemption is also a place hiding big secrets. A town torn by two families vying for power and an old, brutal, murder, that threatens to tear lives apart if the secrets are revealed.

Into this firestorm steps private detective Deklan Falls. Hired to find out who murdered a young man years ago, he soon finds himself in the middle of a family struggle stretching back decades.

Who will survive? Who will manage to find that bit of redemption they seek? Who will be able to leave Judgement Town.

This is the fourth novel in the Deklan Falls series. A very different tale told in a unique way, this novel takes Falls out of Oldtowne for a novel about family, rivalries and murder.

From the author of The Man From Taured, Storyland, RIG, Totality and Deranged comes a tale of murder and mystery.

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Bryan Alaspa is an author from Chicago and has published more than 50 books and novels. He writes thrillers, horror, suspense and mystery novels as well as true crime and history books. He lives with his wife and two dogs and still hopes to someday write the definitive book about Chicago.

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Find Her by Chris Patchell #mystery #giveaway #spotlight #bookseries

 

 

Find Her

A Lacey James Mystery Book 1

Genre: Mystery, Thriller 

A simple heist at a hardware store uncovers a brutal crime spree leaving a police officer dead, several innocents murdered, and the small Oregon town of Sweet Home shaken to its core.

Veteran police officer Lacey James answers the call. The robbery suspect has fled, but the items she finds inside the car at the scene raise the hackles on the back of Lacey’s neck: a hammer, a tarp, zip ties, and a stolen gun. This discovery pushes her suspicions to an all-time high and has her questioning what dark and dangerous crimes this man may be involved in?

Eden Mills is smart, kind, and fun-loving. Not the kind to make enemies or run away. But Eden has a stalker, and when Lacey discovers that Eden is missing, possibly kidnapped, there is plenty of reason to fear the worst. As Lacey peels back the layers of the suspect’s crimes, her pursuit of the truth leads to unthinkable tragedy.

A colleague is dead. Her suspect isn’t talking. And time may be running out for Eden.

Can Lacey find her before one man’s obsession destroys more lives?

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Chris Patchell is the award-winning, USA Today Bestselling author of five novels. A former tech worker turned author, Chris Patchell pens suspense novels set in the Pacific Northwest.

Her novels have been praised by Kevin O’Brien and Robert Dugoni, and her rich complex plot lines and well-drawn characters will keep you turning pages well into the night. When she’s not writing books or watching football, Chris is hanging out with her husband, kids, and two crazy dogs.

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Light Magi by Joanna White #giveaway #bookseries #Fantasy

 

Light Magi

The Republic Chronicles Book 1

by Joanna White

Genre: Epic Fantasy Adventure 

For years, Castre has governed itself apart from the Republic. But Vaxon’s War has left the land and its people weakened and in desperate need of aid. Now, many people feel it’s too late and don’t want the Republic involved. Kyren’s lost everything, but he’ll have to push aside his grief to be the king Castre needs him to be. Kyren’s forced to make a decision that will change his life forever, but he’s been shoved into a corner with no other way to keep his daughter safe.

Meanwhile, the Republic and the Magi are spread all across the galaxy, protecting people from men who crave power, just like Vaxon did. They’re on the brink of war and on top of that, one of the Magi Order’s own guilds has betrayed them. They’re now a Dark Guild, doing assassination contracts to kill innocent people. One of their targets is Ayka, one of the few Diplomats left in the Republic who still believes in the Father and who helps people more than she wants political power. Ayka’s life is now in the hands of the Magi, who place her in the protection of one of the most skilled Metal Mages in the galaxy. Falling for him and trying to get him out of his shell is difficult enough without adding in surviving the attempts on her life. Not to mention the people on Castre want the Republic to stay out of their affairs, but it’s Ayka’s job to represent them in the Republic Court.

While the best Guild in the entire Magi Order investigate an underground slave market, putting Zei Lin and his brother’s lives at risk, the Republic tries to avoid going to war with a race who wants nothing more than to see the Republic fall. A dark power is growing in the distant corners of the galaxy… with enough power to change the fate of the Republic and the Magi Order forever.

***Immerse yourself into this epic fantasy adventure, perfect for fans of Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, and the Chronicles of Narnia.***

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Joanna White is a Christian Author and fangirl. Hunter and Shifter are the first two books in her debut series, called the Valiant Series. In December 2019, one of her short stories was featured in Once Upon A Yuletide, a Christmas fairy tale anthology by Divination Publishing. Dark Magi, Book One of the Republic Chronicles came out in November 2019. Glimpses of Time and Magic, a historical fantasy anthology, also featured one of her stories. The Crystal Heist is a standalone fantasy that came out in August of 2020. Princess of Beasts is Joanna's first Children of Chaos novel, released in January 2021. Volcano is Book One of the Calamity's Hope Series, released in March of 2021.

She graduated from Full Sail University with a BFA in Creative Writing For Entertainment. Ever since she was ten years old, she's been writing stories and has a deep passion for writing and creating stories, worlds, characters, and plots that readers can immerse themselves in. In 2020, she reached her personal goal of writing a million words in a year. Most of all, Joanna loves God, her family, staying at home, and being a total nerd. 

Website 

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