Christmas Countdown Blitz: Day Four: Christmas Romance by Debbie White

Debbie currently lives in northern California where the beautiful landscapes are often the settings in her books. The jagged coastline, the rolling hills with vineyards and the redwood forest make wonderful sceneries for her romance novellas.
When Debbie isn’t writing or traveling to a book signing, she’s visiting her family on the east coast, traveling to other places on her bucket list, enjoying her backyard, hiking with her husband and riding on the back of their motorcycle.
Although she currently writes romance and women’s fiction, Debbie’s book Ties That Bind is categorized as general literary fiction. Based on true events, Ties That Bind holds a special place in her heart.
As an avid animal lover and parent to two rescue dogs, Debbie donates a portion of her proceeds to animal rescue organizations. When you purchase one of her books, you’re also helping a furry pet with shelter, food and ultimately a new home!


Q & A with the Author:

1.       Describe yourself in 50 words or less.

I’m a very compassionate and kind person. Probably to a fault. I can’t say no hardly ever and then become stressed over too many things on my list to accomplish. I’m an avid animal lover and I donate a percentage of all book sales to animal rescue.

2.       What do you love most in the world?

My family – the humankind and my furbabies. 

Connect with the Author here: 

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Saving Peters Tree Farm

After the death of her father, Charlotte Peters makes the big decision to move back to Archer Lodge, North Carolina to help her mom and the family’s failing Christmas tree farm. After a quick stop into the local hardware store, Charlotte is confronted with a part of her past she’d nearly forgotten about. Or had she? Can Charlotte stay focused on why she came to Archer Lodge and let the past be the past, or will her heart be broken once again?

Say It Ain’t Snow!
Melissa Curry is desperately trying to save her family's ski resort. The drought has done everything it can to dry up their business. When she discovers the town council is planning a detour through the city that will likely chase the rest of the tourists away, Melissa jumps into action to save the day and the town.

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Snippet:

From Saving Peters Tree Farm

Charlotte called a team meeting to discuss final plans. Her team included her mom, Wiley, Ryan, and Neil. She wanted to make sure everyone had their part done and knew their role in the festival. Mrs. Peters had made snacks, and as everyone gathered around the huge oval dining table, the group discussed and munched away on Mrs. Peters’ delectable treats.

“Mom, how do you feel about helping with the roasting pit?”

“I definitely would love that, Charlotte,” her mom replied.

“You’d make sure supplies were available and help the little children skewer their marshmallows,” Charlotte said with a bit of a businesslike tone.

Charlotte’s mom nodded her head. “Understood,” she said as if she were in the military.

Charlotte smiled. “Wiley, you’re going to be in charge of the hayrides. You’ll make sure everyone is safely seated in the trailer before you start up that tractor. We don’t want any injuries,” Charlotte said.

Charlotte looked up from her paper and saw Wiley saluting her. Looking over her flock of helpers, she said laughing, “Okay. That’s twice I’ve been referred to as a military leader, in some form or fashion.”

“No, you’re doing a great job supervising this huge undertaking. We’re just trying to keep things happy around here,” Wiley interjected, looking around the group for moral support.

“He’s right, Charlotte. You’re doing a fantastic job. You know us. We’re troublemakers,” Neil said, playfully punching Ryan.

Wiley could sense they’d touched a nerve with Charlotte. The stress of pulling off such an event was overwhelming. “Yeah, Charlotte. We’re just giving you a hard time. We don’t mean anything by it,” he said, gently squeezing her arm.

Charlotte looked around at the group. All eyes were upon her. She cleared her throat and continued. “And just in case you’re wondering what I’ll be doing…I’ll be walking around handing out flyers and talking to people about what we’ll be doing here at Peters Tree Farm during the Christmas season. I want to make sure that everyone who walks through our little gate knows us as the fun Christmas tree farm with the best Christmas trees. Hopefully, we’ll have a win under our belt too. That would be an added bonus. We need to build repeat customers. I’ll also be pitching in wherever I’m needed,” Charlotte said, beaming.

“We have just a couple of days left, so please get the word out by telling all your friends and neighbors. And for all you Facebook and Twitter fanatics—hashtag petersfarm.” Charlotte giggled.

“Thank you all so much for your hard work. Mom and I both thank you,” Charlotte said, pulling her mom close for a hug.

Motioning for the group to join them, Charlotte called out, “Everyone in for a group huddle. On the count of three,” she yelled.

And then, the group high-fived each other.

A tear formed on Charlotte’s bottom eyelid. She was so happy with how things were shaping up. She knew her father would be proud.

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Book Blitz: A Rebel Among Us by J.D.R. Hawkins

J.D.R. Hawkins is an award-winning author who has written for newspapers, magazines, newsletters, e-zines, and blogs. She is one of a few female Civil War authors, uniquely describing the front lines from a Confederate perspective. Her "Renegade Series" includes "A Beautiful Glittering Lie," winner of the 2013 John Esten Cooke Fiction Award and the 2012 B.R.A.G. Medallion. The sequel, "A Beckoning Hellfire," is also an award winner. Both books tell the story of a family from north Alabama who experience immeasurable pain when their lives are dramatically changed by the war. Ms. Hawkins is a member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, the International Women's Writing Guild, the Mississippi Writers Guild, Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, and Pikes Peak Writers. She is also an artist and a singer/songwriter. She recently completed a nonfiction book about the War Between the States, as well as two more sequels for her "Renegade Series." Learn more about her at http://jdrhawkins.com.

Connect with the Author here: 

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After David Summers enlists with the Confederate cavalry, his delusion of chivalry is soon crushed when he witnesses the horrors of battle. Shot by a Union picket, he winds up at a stranger’s farm. Four girls compassionately nurse him back to health. David learns his comrades have deserted him in Pennsylvania following the Battle of Gettysburg, but his dilemma becomes much worse. He falls in love with the older sister, Anna, who entices him with a proposition. To his dismay, he must make a decision. Should he stay and help Anna with her underhanded plan, or return to the army and risk capture?

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Snippet:

Anna ascended the staircase to the bedroom at the top of the steps and cautiously opened the door. The hinges squeaked to remind her she needed to oil them. She walked toward the bed. The smell of death permeated the air. It was the same odor that had lingered in that room only a few short months ago. Her heart ached with the recollection of how she had tried so desperately to nurse her father back to health, but all her efforts had failed. Hopefully, they wouldn’t be in vain this time. Holding back tears, she prayed for the soldier’s survival, even though his existence could very well endanger herself and everyone around her. She didn’t want to have to bury him secretly out in the fields and have to live with that memory haunting her for the rest of her life. Nor did she desire writing home to his family to inform them of their son’s demise. Dread swept over her as she gazed down upon the young man’s face. Shuddering, she drew a heavy sigh and prepared herself for the worst.

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Christmas Countdown Blitze: Day Three: Color My Christmas by Natalie-Nicole Bates

Natalie-Nicole Bates is a book reviewer and author.
Her passions in life include books and hockey along with Victorian photography, Frozen Charlotte dolls, and antique poison bottles. Natalie contributes her uncharacteristic love of hockey to being born in Russia.
She currently resides in the UK where she is working on her next book and adding to her collection of 19th century post-mortem photos.


Q & A With The Author:

1.       Describe yourself in 50 words or less.

I like to think I constantly change and make myself better. I am what you see, I do not present false fronts or try to make myself better than anyone else. Like me, hate me or something in between, I am who I am.

2.       What do you love most in the world?

The family I made for myself.

Connect with the Author here: 

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After an unfortunate incident, Dr. Timothy Martin’s career as a surgeon is in tatters. Unable to cope with the changes in his life, his mother insists he visit Meggie Marie, a woman she says can perform miracles with her alternative therapy.

Timothy is reluctant, but maybe Meggie is his last chance to heal.

When he sees Meggie, he is intrigued by the eccentric woman with vibrant red hair, who wears tie-dye and flower headbands. When he gets to know her, she becomes something else to him – hope, joy, and maybe even love.

But is Meggie for real, or is she simply providing him with her special brand of therapy?

With Christmas just around the corner, has Timothy found his Christmas miracle, or is Meggie’s motive something darker waiting to be discovered?

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Christmas Countdown Blitz: Day Two: The Christmas Bike by Tara Mayoros

Tara Mayoros teaches guitar, paints, occasionally bakes, and loves working with plants. She's an avid collector of globes and maps, as they help with her incurable case of wanderlust. The Rocky Mountains are her home and they call to her whenever she is in need of inspiration. She explores them regularly with her husband and three children.

Connect with the Author here: 

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Christmas is already going to be tough for Marie and her family. When a series of events is set in motion long before a Christmas Eve tragedy, she is too occupied to notice God's grace. An emergency letter to Santa sets her on a quest for a Christmas miracle. With time running out, she prays for the first time in a long time. A miracle does happen, but it is not what she expected.

~ Amazon ~ Amazon UK ~ 

~ Amazon Canada ~

Q & A with the Author:

1.  Describe yourself in 50 words or less.

* As an author, artist, baker, music teacher, gardener, and nature lover – I the beauty in the process, and the miracle, of creation. The Rocky Mountains are my home and they call to me whenever I'm in need of inspiration.

The Christmas Bike is my third published novel. I have 10 other books I'm working on, and most of them have a fantasy element to them.

2. What do you love most in the world?

* My husband and kids. I love how supportive they are to me. I love to create - whichever way possible. It makes me feel like a Goddess.

3. What do you fear most?

* Scorpions - I hate them! They are the spawn of Satan. We killed over 50 one summer while living in Phoenix.

4. What is your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it?

* Travel - I want to see the world and do humanitarian work. My first novel was about cleft palates and orphanages in China. My dream is to start a Non-profit to help them.

5. What is the hardest thing you've ever done?

* Running half marathons are always hard, but I'm so happy to have done them. Also, publishing books have been pretty dang hard - but worth it :)

6. Now that we've gotten to know each other, tell me a story. It can be long or short. From your childhood or last week. Funny, sad, or somewhere in between. Just make sure it's yours. What's your story?

* I will tell a true story of when someone gifted me a guitar for no reason. I entered this story into a writing competition and it won an award! Here ya go:

MY BEST GUITAR LESSON EVER!

I can be cynical. Cynical: believing that people are motivated by self-interest; distrustful of human sincerity or integrity. A general distrust of others’ motives, believing that humans are selfish by nature, ruled by emotion, and heavily influenced by the same primitive instincts that helped humans survive in the wild.

I wasn’t always a cynic. It is a trait that has evolved over the past five years or so. Yes, I fight it. I take my thoughts to battle. But still, with all of the heartbreaking news and depressing social media feeds, it compounds the issue.

So, yesterday when I went to a local guitar shop, my mind was churning over a cynical situation that had been really bothering me. I grabbed my old guitar out of the trunk, walked into the store, and placed it down on the counter. I breathed deep, because this was hallowed ground. The smell of wood and lacquer and musicians reliving the good ‘ol days, rested my mind. I smiled as the shop owner stopped jamming with the only other customer in the store and then walked behind the register.

“What’s this?” he asked, eyeballing my ratty old guitar. His gaze skimmed over the not-so-sexy lines of my unusual guitar.

I pressed my lips, feeling a wave of protection flood over me. No one makes fun of my blue guitar. This instrument was bought in China for $5 US dollars. It had been my companion on the dirty, rancid forty hour train rides through rice fields and bread loaf mountains. I was stopped and searched at customs in Malaysia, Thailand, and Macau because I as too stubborn to leave this guitar.

I told him these things. He played it and confirmed what I already knew… My guitar had died, but I still clung to our memories in hopes that the shop owner could resurrect life into it again.

No, he couldn’t.

I stared down at it a long time, looking over the doodles and the collected stickers and stamps, which mirrored my old passport. What would I do with it now? I couldn’t just throw it away, or donate, or keep it as a decoration. Maybe I could just hang it on the wall for display, but I knew the o.c.d. decorator inside me would never let me do that. I had even written this guitar into one of my books and considered it a character. My heart clenched and I strolled over to the wall of guitars to hide the emotion on my face. Who cries over a buried guitar, one that would most likely end up collecting dust in the back of my closet?

The new guitars with their shiny wood and shimmering metal strings, sang to me, beckoning. Their voices rich and full. So much different than my humid warped, aged guitar. I caressed the lines of the beautiful instruments with jealousy and longing.

I stopped. There it hung. An acoustic electric that I had always wanted. Not so extravagant, and yet it would take me a while to save for. The shop owner pulled it down, selling me all the bells and whistles. Yet, I had already been sold. I just couldn’t get it yet… not for a while yet.

“Sit down and play. See how it sounds, how it feels,” he urged.

I pulled up a cushioned stool and sat down. It was like meeting a new friend. I’d like to imagine that my fingers flew up and down the frets with fluidity and grace, but I’m sure they weren’t, as I was still a bit frazzled. Picking and strumming, getting a feel for its song.

I began to tell the shop owner and other customer about an amp I had in the basement that wasn’t working anymore. We chatted. Small talk about how I was sad about my guitar and maybe someday I’ll buy this one. They were nice people. I’d hung around enough music shops to know that they are all generally nice people.

I continued to play. Time stalled as it usually does when I create music, or art, or novels. The walls faded away. I was falling in love.

A tap on my shoulder and a show of a receipt. “It’s yours.” He pointed. “The guitar.”

I stood, almost dropping the instrument. “What? No. I’ll have to come get it another time.”

“No really. He wanted you to have it.” He pointed to the only other customer who was getting ready to leave. The man was unassuming in his faded jeans and t-shirt.

I wondered why…

Right here… Here is where my cynicism makes an appearance. What did he want in return? What were his motivations? I looked down to see what I was wearing. Turtle-neck sweater, no make-up, and hair in a bun. I had my wedding ring on and I had talked briefly about my kids playing guitar earlier.

“Why?” I asked.

The customer paused, then said, “because I have money and it has caused me nothing but heartache. I want to do something nice with it.”

I refused — even went to hang the guitar back on the hook.

The kind man just shook his head. “It’s already been paid for. It’s done. Just be happy.”

I was happy. I was ecstatic!

Tears welled in my eyes. Nothing like this had ever happened to me before. “I don’t know how to thank you.” I struggled for words.

“You just did.”

I stopped him from leaving. “Well let me get a picture with you.”

He refused this time. He didn’t want any fan fare.

“Let me at least give you a hug.” So I did. It wasn’t strange or awkward. It was a meeting of similar hearts, bound by the innocent love of music.

Driving home, I felt both joyous and inadequate. What to do with such an unrequited show of generosity? People are good. He restored my faith in humanity. I thought of the many ways I could pay it forward because I knew I’d never see him again. And I also knew that’s the way he would want things to end.

I learned a lesson yesterday. Yes, there are tough things that we go through that can turn us cynical, doubtful, and hopeless. But little miracles happen everyday. It doesn’t have to be something as big as this to make you see the good in people. Look around. It seems everyone is in a funk. What can you do to brighten their day? I promise it will make your day better in return. It will make you feel rich with happiness. I think back to that man and how he said, “money gave him nothing but heartache.”

When I was leaving the guitar shop, with my old lifeless guitar in one hand and my new hope-filled guitar in the other, I looked back. The kind man had a huge smile on his face and I knew that the act of giving… is where the treasure truly lies.

Has there ever been a time when you were the recipient of unrequited generosity?

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Christmas Countdown Blitz: Day One : The Tree Keeper's Promise by Tamara Passey

Ne:

Tamara Passey was born and raised in Massachusetts around a large family, one that has served as inspiration for most of her writing. She was named Arizona Young Mother of the Year in 2013 and contributes marriage and family articles to FamilyShare.com. She loves most creative endeavors and when she isn't writing or re-writing, you can find her baking or cross-stitching or walking--though not all at the same time. She lives with her husband and three children in Arizona. Other titles by Tamara include The Christmas Tree Keeper: A Novel, and Mothering through the Whirlwind, a short memoir.

Connect with the Author here: 

~ Blog ~ Website ~ 

Four seasons. That’s how long Angela Donovan hoped to know Mark Shafer before they married. But less than a year later, she still fears that she’s repeating the mistake of a failed relationship. 

As Christmas approaches, she senses Mark’s plans for a proposal, and wonders if she can learn to trust again. Mark has learned all there is to know about the Shafer miracle trees—or so he thinks. 

Papa reveals secrets about the trees’ matchmaking power just as a highway expansion threatens to destroy the family legacy. Mark is determined to save the farm, and the promise of love stirring in the branches of the Shafer miracle trees. Heartwarming and engaging, 

The Tree Keeper’s Promise captures the warmth and wonder of the holiday season.

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~ Amazon Canada ~ Amazon Australia ~

Q & A with the Author:

1.  Describe yourself in 50 words or less.

I can write a novel, but ask me to describe myself, and I get writer’s block. I’ve lived as many years in the southwest as I have in the northeast. Both places are dear to me. Also, I love to be creative for the joy it brings.   

2. What do you love most in the world?

My family. 

3. What do you fear most?

Scorpions. 

4. What is your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it?

Finishing my degree. What am I doing to reach it? Deciding my major. 

5. What is the hardest thing you've ever done?

Motherhood (and still doing it). 

6. Now that we've gotten to know each other, tell me a story. It can be long or short. From your childhood or last week. Funny, sad, or somewhere in between. Just make sure it's yours. What's your story?

Once upon a time there was a little girl who wanted to write books so she could share stories with her friends. But every time she would visit the library, or read a great book, she would get the idea that she wasn’t smart enough to write her own. Until she was grown and became a mom and was taking care of her daughter who had been sick for several days—during a sleepless night, she had an idea—miracle Christmas trees. She was so excited about the story, she didn’t stop to doubt herself. And The Christmas Tree Keeper was born! 

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