Notebook Mysteries: Murderous Christmas Mischief (Notebook Mysteries Series) by Kimberly Mullins

 

Notebook Mysteries Murderous Christmas Mischief by Kimberly Mullins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I look forward to these Christmas novellas in this series! Set in Chicago in the 1880's, Emma, Jeremy, their family and friends are all ready to celebrate a quiet, no frills Christmas. It's been awhile since they could just enjoy the company of each other without some sort of crime taking place. Dora, who's battling a fever, happens to look up and is convinced that she sees someone sinister outside the window. So much for a non-working Christmas! It takes her a bit to convince the team that they should look into this and eventually, they do.

It's a quick, exciting read that will have you wanting more!

View all my reviews

Fluffy's First Christmas by Mrs. Ani

 

Fluffy's First Christmas by Mrs. Ani
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It's Fluffy's first Christmas and like anyone, he's excited! All the colors are intriguing to him and he goes around the house looking to see what each color represents. All of a sudden, he sees black boots and decides he better get back to sleep before Santa sees him.

This is a great story for young readers who are also learning their colors. This would make a great addition to any library, whether personal or public!

View all my reviews

Christmas at Carnton by Tamera Alexander

Christmas at Carnton by Tamera Alexander
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This novella held my attention from word one!! Aletta and her son are really struggling with the news of the recent passing of their husband/father in the war. The entire community is reeling from the losses due to casualties of war. At risk of being evicted from her home, Aletta does all she can to save her home and make life as comfortable as she can for her son and the child she is expecting. When an opportunity at the Carnton estate comes about, Aletta doesn't hesitate to apply for the job.

Jake is a sharpshooter and finds himself injured to the point that the doctors are telling him he can't go back into the war. Jake finds himself being sent to Carnton to deal with all the local bittys and their charity Christmas auction. There are far too many frills and grins for poor Jake and he strongly desires to head back to his buddies in combat. Little does he know, that he still can serve a great purpose at Carnton.

This novella is the intro to a full series that will begin to release in 2018. I can't wait to read more about the owners of Carnton, along with their friends. I am hoping to be able to stop and view this land in Tennessee one day when I'm travelling through!


View all my reviews

COTT: Plundered Christmas--Pirates, Storms, Murder!

Pirate legends, unexpected storms, murder.

Will Jeanine discover the truth before someone else winds up dead?

About Plundered Christmas:
Compelled to spend Christmas on a private island with her father’s future bride and family, Jeanine learns that Margo Banet is descended from a pirate queen.
Relatives and friends all have their reasons for attending the festivities—including the legendary treasure. But when Margo’s nephew winds up dead and a violent storm cuts them off mainland, Jeanine has to wonder if they will solve the mystery before someone else dies trying.

PURCHASE ON AMAZON

About the author:

Susan A. J. Lyttek, author of kids’ comedy, "Guzzy Goofball" and the "Homeschool Play from Outer Space" and the cozy mystery trilogy by Harbourlight Books which includes the recent Plundered Christmas, is a wife and homeschool mother who writes early mornings in the shadow of our nation’s capital. She also enjoys training up the next generation of writers online through Write At Home, and by teaching middle and high school co-op classes. Learn more about her and her projects at sajlyttek.com.




What COTT Voters Had to Say:

--Susan Lyttek, you are an amazing and talented writer.
--Susan, I can't wait to read your new book!
--Looking forward to reading Plundered Christmas!
--Love Plundered Christmas.
--Susan, your work continues to thrive, all for the Glory of God! I'm proud to know you, and can't  wait to read this one! A. Montgomery.
--Susan Lyttek, enjoy reading your books.
--I really enjoyed Plundered Christmas--between the character dynamics and the plot twist I never saw coming--well done!
--Great series by Susan Lyttek!

Chat with Susan:

Why do you write the kind of books you do? I homeschooled and am homeschooling. These are the people I’ve been around for the last seventeen years. That’s also why I weave history in. Every homeschool resource I know targets multiple subjects and levels of learning.

Besides when you came to know the Lord, what is the happiest day in your life? My goal is for today, whatever day that is, to be the happiest. It doesn’t always work, especially when I get a piece of bad news or insufficient sleep, but it’s my goal. I want to live contentedly in what my Lord hands me each day.

What is your favorite season of the year? Christmas. Hands down. What’s special about it for you?? I love my heritage and the special traditions that we have. Every Christmas creates new memories that adds to the woven tapestry of what it is. I also love celebrating the arrival of the son of God in human form!

What is something that very few people know about you? I like to read my Bible in French. C’est vraiment la belle langue!

What three things about you would surprise readers? I have a second degree black belt in tae kwon do. I like LOUD music. (I’m a quiet person, so the music thing surprises most people.) I earned a marksman ribbon with the M-16 when I was in the Air Force.

What can you tell us about your current project? I assume you mean Plundered Christmas. In this mystery, we need to figure out why the Banet family has hidden their heritage all these years, in addition to learning who killed Margo’s nephew. Secrets can poison a family and damage relationships. As the Talbotts uncover the truth about Anne Bonny/Banet, it leads to healing for those who accept it.

Find more great reads at Clash of the Titles!

COTT: Merry Humbug Christmas by Sandra Bricker

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Merry Humbug Christmas B&H Books (October 15, 2013) by Sandra D. Bricker

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

For more than a decade, Sandra D. Bricker lived in Los Angeles. While honing her chosen craft of screenwriting in every spare moment, she worked as a personal assistant and publicist to some of daytime television's hottest stars. When her mother became ill in Florida, she walked away from that segment of her life and moved across the country to take on a new role: Caregiver.

The author says that it was her 8th novel that opened the door to finding her way as a writer. "I'm a Christian woman, first and foremost," she says. "So it was a bit of a dream-come-true when Summerside Press chose me as one of two authors to launch the Love Finds You line."

Sandie's real-life role as cancer survivor has parlayed into her steadfast commitment to raising awareness and funds for ovarian cancer research. Spearheading a series of devotionals for Summerside Press (such as the popular His Grace is Sufficient...Decaf is Not), the author has stipulated that a portion of each contributor's proceeds will go to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund.


"Being allowed to combine my faith and my humor with raising funds for my pet projects ... and still pursue my writing dream," says Bricker, "well, that's the best of all worlds, as far as I'm concerned!"

And one of the author's pet projects is animal rescue, evidenced by the special bond she has created with one particular formerly-abandoned puppy -- a red-haired collie with "killer brown eyes and the heart of the class clown."

ABOUT THE BOOK

A Merry Humbug Christmas features two holiday romance novellas from hilarious and heartwarming author Sandra D. Bricker. -- the perfect gift to yourself or someone else at this most wonderfully stressful time of year.

 In "Once Upon a Jingle Bell," A Bah! Humbug cruise to the Mexican Riviera is Joss Snow’s answer to this year’s quest to avoid the holidays completely; at least until she’s rebooked on a different kind of cruise altogether. Candy canes, holly wreaths, reindeer and ornaments seem to be stalking her on the 12 Days of Christmas holiday cruise extravaganza. An escape back to land is her only goal . . . until she meets a kindred spirit in rugged Irishman Patrick Brenneman, and then the game is on! Avoid Christmas festivities at all costs . . . except maybe for that one stop under the mistletoe.

In "It Came Upon a Midnight Deer," Reese’s guilt over abandoning best friend Joss on their holiday tradition of avoiding all things Christmas is trumped by the joy of her recent engagement. Meeting Damian’s family for the first time on idyllic Sugarloaf Mountain is about as far from that Bah! Humbug cruise as she can get, and Reese can hardly wait to get there. But from the moment they hit that deer in the road just two miles from the cabin, everything seems to go wrong. There are no drummers drumming or pipers piping this particular year! And once she sets her future in-laws’ family cabin ablaze, she’s pretty sure there won’t be even ONE golden ring in her future.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Merry Humbug Christmas, go HERE.

This is such a super cute little collection of novellas!! There is nothing like reading a holiday book during this time! Sandra Bricker is a fabulous and witty author who will keep you interested in her stories!!

I love Joss's character in "Once Upon a Jingle Bell." She's the perfect Grinch and someone after my own heart!! LOL Patrick is an adorable bloke who makes Joss go crazy about his thoughts about the holidays. Joss's way of dealing with the holidays is humerous!!

In "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear,", the extension of Joss's story entertwined with her friend Reese's story is quite joyful as well. Poor Reese has the kind of luck that only someone on Friday the 13th would!! 

Read these cute novellas to get you more in the holiday spirit! These books were fast reads for me and something I would read again! :) 

Happy Holidays to you and yours!

November's Newest! Last Clash of 2012

Clash of the Titles makes things easy for book lovers everywhere--including Christmas shopping! This week, they present five of Christian fiction's hottest new titles. Surely, one of them will be the perfect gift for Grandma or Auntie Martha. Or maybe even... for yourself!

Introducing, November's New Releases clashing novels...

Don't forget to vote for the one that most catches your interest!

Former army communications specialist Maddie Jerrard may not remember the details of the deadly mission on the Texas-Mexico border, but she knows she's not the one responsible for betraying her unit to the massive ambush that left only her and investigative journalist Chris Mason alive. Logic says the culprit must be the only other survivor—Chris—but with a killer targeting them both, taking a chance on trusting each other may be the only way to make it through alive.

The Colorado Rockies have always been home to journalist Kelly Shepherd, but after the death of her father, and facing her first Christmas alone, she accepts an assignment that leads her deep into Louisiana’s Cajun country.

Since his wife’s death, Denny Labouve has focused his attention on his ten-year-old daughter and the family business, but Kelly sparks the dying embers of his heart even as a Christmas cold front moves through his beloved Cajun country.

Every year Amber Weathersby loans the Bloomfield Garden Club her garden gnome to display their prized trophy in the contest winner's garden. When Gnorman is gnomenapped, Amber chases the gnome around town trying to win the trophy, while Stan chases Amber, trying to win her heart.

The world plunges into chaos when an ancient manuscript is discovered that reveals the Gospels were an orchestrated fiction. When a retired Dead Sea Scrolls expert gets in over his head investigating the scroll, his agnostic son continues the quest for the truth and uncovers evidence of a grand plot that will tip the balance of world power.

As Harvey Girl Meghan Thorson waits on doughboys at the El Garces Hotel in Needles, California, she meets Caleb McBride, a local horse breeder whom the townsfolk have branded a coward and profiteer. Will threads of love unite this couple, or will pride keep them forever apart?

Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world's leading questionnaire tool.