Saturday, December 15, 2018

Christmas Countdown Blitz - Week 2 - Day 12






Eva Marie Everson is the bestselling, multiple award-winning author of both fiction and nonfiction. She is the president of Word Weavers International and the director of Florida Christian Writers Conference and the North Georgia Christian Writers Conference.

Eva Marie is a popular speaker at writers conferences and women's groups across the United States.
















Award-winning author Eva Marie Everson wraps up a Christmas story of hope, love, and forgiveness just in time for the holidays. 

The Ornament Keeper, a contemporary Christmas novella, features Felicia and Jackson Morgan who are spending their first Christmas apart after twenty years of marriage. But a lifetime of gifted ornaments helps Felicia piece together the story of their marriage and the one mistake of unforgiveness she made before they said, “I do.” 

Can these memory-filled ornaments reunite this family before Christmas? Only time will tell.












Snippet:

“I’ve decided,” I said, joining Sara, who hunched over a bowl of Cheerios, “to not put any Christmas decorations out this year.” I opened my eyes wide, daring her to object.
Her gaze met mine as a drop of milk escaped between her lips. She swallowed, wiped her mouth with a napkin she kept wadded in her left hand, and said, “Say that again.”
My coffee mug clunked on the old farmhouse table I’d restored when we’d purchased the rambling four-bedroom Victorian—the one with the mother-in-law suite located down a short hall from the kitchen. Just in case. “Swallow, Sara.”
Her head came up fully, thick blond tresses spilling over her shoulder as she did. California-sky blue eyes blinked at me in disbelief. “Because of Dad?”

I brought the coffee mug to my lips, blew, and took a tentative swallow while my eyes managed to find and travel along one of the scars within the table’s wood. “Yes.”








To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Part 2 Official Event page 









Friday, December 14, 2018

Christmas Countdown Blitz - Week 2 - Day 11





The Crazy Cady Sisters have known each other all their lives. With 179 years of accumulated life-experience, we are well versed in Cady-isms.

Between the four of us, we’ve experienced:
·        18 businesses ventures
·        22 children acquired in a variety of ways (marriage, birth, adoption, etc)
·        5 1/2 grandchildren
·        Lived in 5 different states
·        One of us went to college to be a concert pianist.
·        On of us thought about going to college to be a concert pianist.
·        One of us is an addictions counselor.
·        One of us is addicted to diet soda.
·        Volunteer for 8+ organizations
·        1 lived above a mortuary
·        1 was chased by a K-9 unit while toilet papering.
·        3 of us were homeless for 2.5 months while we toured the United States.
·        1 of us can say the Pledge of Allegiance in three different languages.
·        We sold rocks door to door.
·        1 used to transcribe the newspaper into the computer when she got bored.
·        Are joint owners of WhodunnitMysteries.com  

In March, 2017 we decided to band together to form Crazy Cady Sisters to co-author a hilariously heart-warming non-fiction story about parenting, child-rearing, and growing up in a family with ten children.




 ~ Website ~






It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! And in the Cady household that means kicking your creativity into high gear. 

What would you do if you had ten children and no money for Christmas? And what exactly does Christmas look like when ten sets of hands are poised, ready to rip open their Christmas gifts - is it chaos, or do Monte and Barbara make us sit quietly, tormenting us as we watch each and every present opened by our siblings? What about decorations? Traditions? Jokes? Christmas trees and more? The questions and possibilities are endless, and you never know what the answer may be in the Cady home.


Follow our family as we recount some of our favorite, least-favorite, and downright bizarre stories of parenting and growing up in a family with ten siblings! We'll add a touch of nostalgia by focusing entirely on our favorite holiday of the year: CHRISTMAS!





Snippet:

After a few minutes, Mom straightened in her chair and
got a horrified look on her face. I could hear whispers and chuckles from the
audience, and I looked around to see what was going on. Dad glanced around,
then searched the stage for his kids.

I was confused until I
saw Judy. She sat on the floor with all the other three-year-olds, but had
taken the bottom of her dress, pulled it up over her head, and created a tent.
She was rocking back and forth, and I could hear her singing to herself. It was
a good thing Mom had made sure she was wearing clean underwear because everyone
looking could now check this for themselves. At least she was wearing underwear
this time, I thought with a shrug.








To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Part 2 Official Event page









Thursday, December 13, 2018

Christmas Countdown Blitz - Week 2 - Day 10







Hannah Conway is a military wife, mother of two, middle school teacher, best-selling author, and popular speaker.

Her novels are a deployment experience of their own, threaded with faith, and filled with twists.

Hannah is a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, and My book Therapy. 

She and her family live in Tennessee.










Audria Rylatt is the school system’s liaison for homeless students. She strives to make Christmas bright for hundreds, while the season brings only heartache after her fiancé was killed in combat nearly two years ago. So when her family decides to play matchmaker, she is less than thrilled. To make matters worse, they’ve invited a soldier friend of her deceased fiancé to the family cabin for the holiday.

But she’s surprised to find this soldier, Quinton Nolan, standing at the door of heart. Faced with painful memories, the despair Christmas brings her, and the fear to love again, Audria is in desperate need of a Christmas miracle. Or at least some of the hope Christmas seems to offer so many. Can she embrace a new mission? If so, Christmas may stand to deliver a lifetime of magical memories.
  
“Christmas on a Mission” is a delightful story of hope, life, love, and second chances, filled with all the joy and cheer Christmas brings."





Snippet:

Oh. My. Gosh.
The message.
From him. The dude who thinks she likes him.
Maddox is so going to get it.
Her face warmed, and her foot hit the wrong pedal, sending her over the next speed bump with greater speed. More soup launched into the air, and Audria hit the brake, jolting the enormous tank of an RV to a halt. Angry horns sounded. She hunched her shoulders in multiple apologies and by the grace of God, was able to pull over without causing an accident.
She took in deep breaths, inhaling and exhaling through her nose, until her head felt light.
What is wrong with you? It's just a message.
But it wasn't just a message. It was the virtual rendition of a forced blind date. Some online, overseas version of matchmaking. An injustice. A violation of her natural rights. She rested her forehead to the steering wheel, eyes squeezed. The phone dinged again.
One peek. That's all.
She opened one eye at a time. Facebook Messenger proudly displayed his name: Quinton Nolan.
"Dear Ms. Rylatt, I hope this message finds you doing well. I'm writing because..." but that's all





















Facebook wouldn’t allow her to see without actually opening the message. Her finger hovered over the message bubble. One slide and she could see the rest. But then he'd know she'd seen it. Ugh. If there were some way to read it without him knowing--Facebook needed to get on that.








To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour 

visit our Part 2 Official Event page








Wednesday, December 12, 2018

Christmas Countdown Blitz - Week 2 - Day 9






Dividing my time between homes in South-West France and Abu Dhabi, I live with my husband and our beautiful Tonkinese cat. I spent 20 years as a teacher of French, Latin and Classical studies, before a change of career led me to writing books for children instead.
Shadows from the Past is series of time-travel adventures, featuring 3 children and a rather special Tonkinese cat by the name of Max. I'm currently working on the tenth book in the series, The Shadow of the Witchfinder. Max also has a few solo adventures of his own to accompany the series.

As I take my young readers on a magical mystery tour through the past, I'm hoping that my love of history, myth and legend will rub off on them too.







 ~ Website ~

  


MAX’S ADVENTURES are spin-offs
from my 
SHADOWS FROM THE PAST books.


A second solo adventure awaits Max the time-travelling Tonkinese cat in this Christmas short story. 

Invited to accompany a well-known figure on a whirlwind trip into the past, he sets off on a mission to search for something very precious to his owners Jemima and Joe Lancelot - their missing parents. 

The hunt reveals tantalising clues to this mystery and ends with a special surprise for the twins.



Max the talking Tonkinese cat has a third solo adventure in this seasonal short story.

What happens when the feline hero is trapped in the attic one night?

Will he escape the clutches of the Christmas fairy, a regiment of soldiers and three obstreperous French hens in time to enjoy a holiday with his family?

One thing’s for sure, the Twelve Days of Christmas will never seem quite the same again …









Snippet Book 2:

EXTRACT 1: Something heavy was being dragged across the tiles, and
what in heaven’s name was that? Horses’ hooves? On a rooftop? Max listened in
rapidly growing disbelief as another clang reverberated through the ceiling and
the muttering grew louder. Whoever could it be?


EXTRACT
2: The sleigh hurtled so fast through the night sky that Max felt his head
spin. Time-travel sickness wasn’t at all pleasant and the cat closed his eyes.
All of a sudden he heard a loud clatter as they bumped hard against something.







To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Part 1 Official Event page 

and

Part 2 Official Event page







Tuesday, December 11, 2018

Christmas Countdown Blitz - Week 2 - Day 8






Through a crazy twist of fate, Caroline Clemmons was not born on a Texas ranch. To compensate for this illogical error, she writes about handsome cowboys, feisty ranch women, and scheming villains in a small office her family calls her pink cave. 

She and her Hero live in North Central Texas cowboy country where they ride herd on their rescued cats and dogs. The books she creates there have made her an Amazon bestselling author and won several awards. 


Sign up for her newsletter subscription here and receive a FREE copy of HAPPY IS THE BRIDE, a western historical romance. 






~ Facebook ~ Website ~

~ Blog ~ Twitter ~

Google+ ~ Goodreads ~

Pinterest ~ Amazon ~ Newsletter ~



When a dot com billionaire crashes his sports car into a tree, he wakes up in heaven facing angels Gabriel and Michael. He’s given a chance to redeem his carefree ways by helping an orphanage avoid foreclosure and regain a sound financial picture by midnight on Christmas Eve—or else. To do so, he is sent back to earth as orphanage janitor, Jacob Porter.





After her father died four months ago, child psychologist Suzi Stephens was shocked to learn Serenity Springs Children’s Home and Elementary School faced foreclosure unless she met a balloon note due January 1. She can’t understand why her late father broke the trust her grandfather had carefully constructed to protect the private home. She is afraid the annual gala won’t raise enough money to pay the note much less the needed year’s operating funds. Trying to do her job plus step into her late father’s shoes has stretched her to her limits.

She’s suspicious of the handsome new janitor, who appears more like he’d be at home as a CEO. Could he be a spy for the developer who covets the children’s home property? Suzi overcomes her distrust enough to allow Jacob’s help raising funds. Working together, their attraction escalates but Jacob has nothing to offer the beautiful redhead. He is scheduled for earthly removal at midnight on December 24. 






Snippet:

Suzi Stephens stared at the computer monitor. “What can I do next, Valerie? I’m desperate.”
The middle-aged woman standing at her elbow gave Suzi’s back a couple of pats. “You’re bound to come up with something. The holiday gala sounds promising.”
Suzi gestured to the few R.S.V.P. cards she’d received. “Not unless more people say they’re attending. If we don’t have a better response soon, we’ll be lucky to break even on the catering. Oh, what possessed Dad to dabble in investing?”
“Your father was a good man, he… well, he wasn’t the best at business decisions. His heart was in the right place, though. He loved you and he loved the children’s home.”
Suzi didn’t correct the other woman, but her father had not loved the children’s home. To him it was an albatross around his neck. Had anyone but her realized that fact?







To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Part 1 Official Event page 

and

Part 2 Official Event page