Holiday laughs meld with family drama when a librarian is threatened with an early retirement just in time for Christmas. When Shirley receives the news that she’s being both honored and retired at the city’s annual tree lighting ceremony, her quiet and peaceful life gets flipped upside down. A fall on slippery ice and a trip to the hospital add to the drama when they bring the arrival of her daughter Brandy, with husband Ryan and their three small children in tow. For the first time since her husband’s passing, Shirley’s house is bustling with activity, but between Brandy’s overbearing nature and an embarrassing photo of Ryan going viral, a calm and serene holiday is not in the forecast.
To top things off, the tree lighting ceremony becomes a ‘shocking’ experience for Shirley – one that spawns national media coverage and another day in the hospital. Can Shirley utilize her newfound spotlight to save her closing library? Will Brandy relent on her plans to convince her mother to move closer and sell the house that she and her beloved husband built? Will a charming old friend be just the thing she needs to survive this chaotic and disastrous Christmas? Settle back for a fun, sweet contemporary holiday romance unlike any other with this tender and lighthearted Christmas offering from the author of ‘Restless’ and ‘Beauty Within.’
On Amazon, it did okay but the timing of release was bad. This year, sales should dramatically improve. On Smashwords, it did much better and showed decent sales through most of their distribution outlets. The audiobook for it is scheduled to come out this year, and that will also aid in sales. I'm a huge promotor and utilize as many outlets as I can, so I ensure to promote the foreign language versions of this novel with great drive.
It was five-fifteen when Shirley, Brandy, Ryan and the children gathered around the grand table in the dining room. Soft and peaceful Christmas carols played from the stereo. Currently, Noel wafted through their ears.
“Roast duck!” Shirley exclaimed as Ryan carved the bird. “I’m impressed.”
“Thank you,” he replied with a smile. “If you think this is something, wait until you try my honey-glazed ham tomorrow!”
“You’re really outdoing yourself, young man,” she chided. “You’re spoiling me.”
“I sure hope so,” he added.
When supper was done, the adults sat up in the living room with the children. Shirley removed her bandage from her healing hand and once again served as pianist so that they could all sing carols together. She’d offered to take them all out caroling after supper, but everyone claimed that they were full and lacked the energy required. Shirley didn’t mind though. This was a lot more fun and intimate, she thought as her fingers struck the keys to the melody of Santa Claus is Coming to Town. Here, there was warmth from the fireplace, eggnog and cookies, and nothing but good tidings.
In the middle of singing Jingle Bells, the front door rang – ironically. Shirley kept playing and Ryan and the kids kept singing as Brandy answered the visitor’s call. When the door opened, a loud and raucous ‘ho, ho, ho’ bellowed into the house. Brandy cupped her hands over her mouth as she held back a laugh, but she was smiling ear to ear. Shirley wondered who in the world was there.
| Language | Status |
|---|---|
|
Portuguese
|
Already translated.
Translated by André Weber
|
