Reading, Writing & Pondering

  Have you ever been in a friend relationship that turned into more? Her Pretend Holiday Beau by Susanne Dietz features this fun trope. Mick Larson and Sadie Dalton have been friends for years. Mick is the town veterinarian. Sadie is a florist. This year, Mick asks for Sadie's help in planning a town Christmas nativity event. She agrees--but she also needs a date for a wedding in return.  Mick agrees to be Sadie's Plus-One at a wedding where she will be seeing her ex-boyfriend who is engaged to someone else. That day, they are caught under some mistletoe and well-meaning matchmakers think they are a couple. Mick and Sadie agree to pretend to be a couple through the holidays to appease the matchmakers.  Her Pretend Holiday Beau is a quick read full of fun holiday events and family gatherings that Mick and Sadie attend. I enjoyed seeing the couple grow in who they were as individuals and as a couple. As the book went along, their communication got better too and I liked t...

  Every year I look forward to Melody Carlson's Christmas novella. Once Upon a Christmas Carol is her latest one and I found it to be another heartwarming book full of Christmas charm. Once Upon a Christmas starts out with Carol Langstrom heading to the Bahamas for the holidays. Carol shares her birthday with Jesus--and so do I, so I could relate to that aspect of the book with Carol's mixed feelings about the holiday and her birthday. Between her birthday and growing up in her dysfunctional family, as the book begins, she feels rather Scroogish about the holidays so she decides to escape on a vacation. However, due to some big storms, Carol gets detoured to Michigan from her home in Seattle. While stuck in Michigan, she meets her Aunt and spends time getting to know her--and some other local folks.  Victor is back at his parents' farm helping his mother take care of his father who has Alzheimer's disease. Victor is a wonderful cook and owned a flourishing restaurant ...