Just Another Week

 

Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

Well, the day job kicked my butt this past week (and I get to do it all over again next week). My fire extinguisher just wasn’t big enough to put out all the fires! My brain hurts! Retirement can’t come soon enough!

Anyway…despite the dumpster fire, the writing seems to be going well. And that’s a good thing. I think, at this point, if I didn’t have the writing, I’d be stark raving mad, you know? My stories are the only place I have control.

Hahahahahaha! Oh my gosh! I just read what I wrote and the statement that I have control in my writing is pure and utter nonsense.

I do not have control. At all.

I have barely begun Wife Unexpected and already, my hero Tysen, is upset with me. He’s telling me that I’m wrong. The way I’m writing him is not who he is at all. Why did I make him a bad guy? He’s telling me he’s not. He has a heart and a soul and he’s just looking for someone to love him for who he is, that he just sorta fell into being a hired gun.

What?

How does one fall into being a hired gun? Isn’t that a choice?

He’s telling me he didn’t have a choice. Not then, but he’s walking away from that life. No, not walking. Running. He doesn’t even want to think about his life before he met Faith.

Ah, is that why he’s upset? He thinks I’m going to make him confess to Faith. Will she reject him once she finds out what he is? Or was? 

Hmmm, I think I understand but sometimes, we gotta go through the bad to find the good. Trust me, Ty, it’ll all turn out right in the end and you’ll find that person who loves you despite everything.

Now, just let me write you the way I see you. I’ll be kind. You’ll see.

And since I just made that promise to him, I should go do it. Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

A Copenhagen Snowmance by Pernille Hughes

 Always check the weather before traveling, especially if your destination is undesirable during December.

A short flight from London to Copenhagen shouldn't be a problem.  Anna Lundhom figures a couple hours to pick up an eighteen month delayed project in Copenhagen is a doable plan.  The snowstorm chasing her plane into the airport proves otherwise.  All flights are cancelled.

Sure that the airport will be functioning in a few hours, Anna sets out to accomplish her mission.  

Hour after hour, the airport reports no progress on opening.  Hotels are already full.  She has friends, she has an apartment, and she has a former fiancé.  Although, she hasn't contacted her friends in the eighteen months, her apartment is rented to a man, and her fiancé is getting married to a former best friend.  

Jamie is wary when she knocks on his door.  He never met his landlord, and he wasn't looking for a roommate even for a short time.  With an uncomfortable beginning, Anna and Jamie spend time together during the storm along with repeated delays of planes.

In payment, Anna shows Jamie highlights of Copenhagen during this snowy and festive season.  She gives the reader a grand tour, also, of the customs, food and drink, and activities.  It's a magical arena, and the goodwill gets absorbed in romantic ways.

Happy reading,

Dawn

Happy 2026

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Happy New Year! I am hoping that 2026 will be a good year, and I seem to have started it off with a bang (a muted bang…the dogs and I are tired of the fireworks they’re shooting off around here. They’re still doing it although New Year’s Eve is long over).

        Why do I say I started off with a (muted) bang? Because I finished the first draft of The Madam and Mr. MacLean! Yay! That was a goal I set for myself at the beginning of 2025 (I’m a slow but steady writer with limited time so I’m pretty pleased with myself). It’s almost ready for my edit (it’s still going through critique) then off to my beta readers.

        The other thing that made this New Years great? I signed a contract with my publisher (LOVE my publisher) for four more books – two more in the Wives of Bravado County series and two more in the Matchmaker Mischief series. I’m excited and so happy and yes, I have started all four stories because that’s just how I roll.

        It’s my favorite part, actually. I love the start of a new story (the middle is where I run into problems, but the beginning? It’s totally fun). I love creating the setting, and the plot points and most especially, my characters. If I’m really lucky, my characters will tell me who they are, what they stand for (i.e., what they will or will not do), and what their goals are. Sometimes, they talk to me. No, I’m not crazy but I do have voices in my head…such is the life of a writer! I kinda consider it crazy if I don’t have voices or scenes or dialogue running through my head.

        Speaking of scenes, I just got an inkling of a new one so I’m gonna go write.

        Stay well! Stay safe! Have a beautiful 2026 and remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie

The Christmas Tree Farm by Laurie Gilmore

Hating Christmas is the best reason to read this story right now.  

Kira North hates Christmas and unbelievably buys a Christmas tree farm with a quaint farmhouse that needs a lot of work including heat.  It's a few weeks before the hated holiday, and people in Dream Harbor think she's open for business.

Her new house is falling apart, and she has no clue on how to cut and sell the fields of growing pine trees.  The townsfolk stop by to greet her without an invitation.  Bennett Ellis has the audacity to walk his (adorable) dogs in her fields.  If it weren't for the dogs sniffing, licking, and being cute, she probably would've shot him.

She doesn't have a gun, and her hands are too cold to aim anything, so a severe ousting is what Ben gets.  Pleasant and good looking isn't a pass to walk on her land.  

Ben is visiting his sister and looking for something to do or something to fix.  Sitting idle sends him outdoors where he meets Kira and soon realizes she needs heating, plumbing, and several other extreme fixes to live in her house in the winter.  

As Ben eases his way into her home and heart with acts of kindness along with the townspeople, Kira finds her icy heart thawing.  Her home becomes livable, her trees get cut, and people talk to her.  

Having a few friends could be nice.  Enjoying the hot cocoa, twinkly lights, farm fresh trees, and a spicy relationship may change Kira's mind on a lot of things.  Ben's invitation may not be written, but it certainly is open.

Happy reading,  

Dawn

Merry Christmas! Happy New Year!

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Merry Christmas! Happy New Year!

        It’s that time of year when we are inundated with holiday commercials and movies, particularly those Hallmark Christmas movies, which I am totally addicted to. I will admit that I’ve watched quite a few, when I’m not busy doing the hundreds of other things that must be done. And it’s all good. I’m one of those romantics who gets tears in their eyes with that happily-ever-after (and I hope you feel that way when you read one of my stories).

        I have taken another week off (I have a lot of PTO that I need to burn before I lose it and yes, I’m going to pay for it when I get back to the office but that’s okay, too) so this week is perfect for catching up on things I haven’t had time to do. I don’t have much planned for the holiday. It’s just the DH and myself (and the dogs, of course), but that’s okay and with the time off, I’m hoping to finish the first draft of The Madam & Mr. MacLean. That’s my goal and I’m so close, I can taste it.

        I’m also going to make a big batch of spaghetti sauce with meatballs and sausage then make lasagna (yum) and baked ziti and of course, cheesecake, because that’s what I do for the holidays, whether I have company or not.

        That aside, there’s a new year headed our way, a new beginning so to speak. I have a few goals. They’re not resolutions as I find I fail at those, but goals, things I know I can achieve with hard work…and a little time. One of those goals is to write another story in the Wives of Bravado County series. We’ll be going back to the little town of Possibility, Texas, where everything is possible, even second chances. I have my characters all lined up as well as several plot points and I’ve already written the opening scene (hahahaha, it came to me out of the blue…I hadn’t even been thinking about this story when the heroine spoke to me while I was doing dishes). Of course, I had to write down her idea right away and those dishes had to wait.  

        Anyway, 2026 is right around the corner so….my wish for you: I hope you find peace. I hope you find joy. Most of all, I hope you find love (if you haven’t already). What kind of romance writer would I be if I didn’t wish that for you? May your days be merry and bright (yes, I stole that from the famous song) and may all your New Years’ wishes come true.

        Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go! 

Marie

SCOTTISH SPIRITS OF CHRISTMAS boxed set by Lexi Post has Released!

Scottish Spirits of Christmas boxed set 

by Lexi Post 

has Released!

Love in the afterlife never felt so good…nor so dangerous.

Amazon | AppleBooks  | Barnes& Noble | Kobo | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Amazon CA

When Cameron Douglass dies chasing yet another adrenaline rush, he leaves his young widow, Holly, devastated. Luckily, he's put in charge of the Scottish Spirits of Christmas, and assigns two spirits of the past, present, and future to show Holly a way forward, helping these spirits learn something for themselves. He's not surprised that they don't get along very well, but he is surprised to find that when it's finally time to let Holly go, it's not as easy as he'd hoped. Can he bend the rules one more time, or is it finally time to pay the piper? 

Pleasures of Christmas Past - Though Jessica Thomas is thrilled to land the job of novice Spirit Guide, she’s been assigned a hot, arrogant Scottish mentor who confuses her heart. But what should concern her more, is will he protect her soul?

Desires of Christmas Present - Kentucky born and bred Coco Baker has just been given the assignment of her spirit guide career, but she’s forced to partner with a Scottish upper class snob. Despite him, she’s determined to do well on this case and find out what the arrogant man is hiding. Unfortunately, she discovers that sometimes not knowing is better…for everyone.

Temptations of Christmas Future - He set out to prove the future was far worse than she imagined. Now he wished it wasn’t. Joy is paired with a problem Spirit Guide who tests her positive outlook beyond its limits. Will she persevere, or cave to her weakness for him?

One of a Kind Christmas - To reach her heart, he must face a spirit, an angel…and himself. Though Ethan Stewart loved his best friend like a brother and will do anything for his widow, as he’s pulled into the spirit world, he discovers not all is as it seems. If he doesn’t figure it out soon, none of them will have a Merry Christmas…ever.

About Lexi

Lexi Post is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of romance inspired by the classics. She spent years in higher education taking and teaching courses about the classical literature she loved. From Edgar Allan Poe's short story “The Masque of the Red Death” to Tolstoy’s War and Peace, she's read, studied, and taught wonderful classics.

But Lexi's first love is romance novels so she married her two first loves, romance and the classics. Whether it’s sizzling cowboys, dashing dukes, hot immortals, or hunks from out of this world, Lexi provides a sensuous experience with a “whole lotta story.”

Lexi is living her own happily ever after with her husband and her two cats in Florida. She makes her own ice cream every weekend, loves bright colors, and you’ll never see her without a hat.

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A Very Irish Christmas by Debbie Johnson

 Cassie O' Hara is in a rut.  Keep lamenting the lost groom-to-be, as she is doing, or move on.  So far, this Christmas season she's chosen to keep reminding herself of her loss by watching her almost wedding video.  Right up to when her fiancé, at the altar of course, said he couldn't finish the nuptials.  

Worthless, that's how she feels.  Her sister and her mom aren't any help with their constant reminders of her uselessness.  Cassie comes up with a great idea, egged on by her BFF, and decides to skip the Manhattan Christmas.

With a small inheritance from her grandmother, Nora, she books a trip to England for a month with hopes of a vintage and magical Christmas.  Her reservation at Whimsy Cottage should do it.

Whimsy cottage is cold, dusty, and with sheets over the sparse furniture.  Now what?

The nearest pub should be warm and offer food.  If the dog stalking her on her trek down the street signifies the coming month in England, she might be in trouble.

A tall, gregarious, and handsome Irish man, Ryan, takes Cassie under his wing, advising her to contact Charles, Lord Bancroft, about a suitable room until the Whimsy Cottage is prepped.

Ryan is the local handyman, and Charles is the local lord.  They both have Cassie's well-being in hand.  She helps Ryan clean the cottage along with deep discussions over a pint or two of Guiness.  Charles offers his mansion during cleanup time including deep discussions and plentiful warmth and food.

Cassie hasn't had a legitimate date in three years, and now two eligible and fine men want her attention.  Who wins her heart and how does he triumph over the other?  Not to mention the country she must choose!  

Love is a wonderful experience surrounded by snow, lights, and decorations of an English Christmas.

Happy reading,

Dawn