Competitive, work-obsessed Bella Simonetti has just been fired from her high-paying job at a Manhattan law firm. At an all-time low, she returns home and helps her parents at their small-town gift shop, but the business is failing and may not make it past the Christmas holidays. Successful landscape architect Dean Jackson is like a son to Bella’s parents. But he’s a persistent annoyance to her—he seems to have forgotten his unforgivable blunder thirteen years earlier. When Bella transforms her parents’ gift shop into a cookie cottage, Dean’s generosity and magnetic smile are hard to resist, and those feelings of unrequited adolescent love come rushing back. But can Bella let go of the past and accept Dean for the man he is today?

The Wild Rose Press

Amazon (Note: This is on sale here at $.99 for the month of December).

All these stories are available from The Wild Rose Press as well as other outlets.

Hannah loves her accounting job, the condo that she purchased herself, and her best friend Melinda. What she doesn’t love is baking. To be fair, she’s never tried. But when her cousin shames her into bringing homemade cookies to the family Christmas Eve celebration, she begins a quest to make the perfect holiday cookie. Paramedic Josh also occasionally teaches kids’ cookie baking classes at his family’s bakery. When a beautiful accountant mistakenly signs up for a children’s holiday baking class, he realizes immediately that she’s in the right place. Can this local hero help to save Hannah’s Christmas? Or will it all go up in smoke?

Harmony Stewart has the ingredients for a perfect life: a precocious daughter, substantial wealth, and a supportive family. The only potential improvement would be a second shot at love. Since she’s always had a thing for doctors, Harmony’s determined to meet Mr. Right at the hospital’s Holiday Cookie Bazaar and recruits cantankerous German baker Abelard Durchdenwald with a simple deal: his cookies for her assistance in landing him his dream job. Abel adds unexpected—and much-needed—spice to Harmony’s days, so when issues arise with Abel’s visa, she impulsively offers a fake engagement that stirs up trouble with her well-connected ex-husband, Chance. If her ex uncovers Abel and Harmony’s deception, the consequences could be catastrophic. She should scrap the plan and start from scratch, but that would mean letting go of the baker who’s turning out to be sweeter than his desserts.

Rona Murray, owner of Linn House Bakery, enters the town’s charity Christmas cookie auction, never expecting the evening to end in the death of last year’s winner. Had someone baked to kill Angela, or had she just been sick? Curious, Rona turns up the heat when questioning people with ties to Angela. It’s then she realizes her ex-husband, Johnny, is still in love with her. But will his love be enough to save her from a cookie crafter with a penchant for murder?

These books all contain three or more stories and are available as paperbacks. They can be found at The Wild Rose Press as well as other outlets.

These books are available as paperback books. Each contains at least three stories. All are available from The Wild Rose Press as well as other sellers.

The Wild Rose Press

Madelyn Sherman is looking for some direction—It’s just weeks before Christmas and her home went up in flames, her ex turned out to be a creep, and her safe job no longer excites her. On impulse she buys a food truck. It isn’t the bakery she dreams of, but it’s a start. Peyton Davis is proud of the Artisan Village he’s built. Home to vendors of all kinds, it offers a lifestyle that suits him, but he longs for someone to share his dream. When Madelyn arrives to take the last spot at the village, she crashes her bakery on wheels right into his prized vintage truck…and his heart. Can the magic of the season turn dented fenders to romance? Only time, and a signature cookie, will tell!

The Wild Rose Press

Caterer Lorelei Warner juggles her fledging Southern California business and raising young twins with the help of her mother and sister. Handling a three-day wedding event stretches her limits…and then her old beau walks in and threatens the delicate balance. Stained glass restorer Wynn Tatum hopes to cross paths with the woman he left behind to pursue his dreams. What he doesn’t expect is that seeing Lorelei again sparks the feelings from six years ago. Now that he’s held her in his arms again, and learned he’s the father to five-year-old twins, he will do anything to stay in touch. How can his family be whole if he and Lorelei live on two different continents?

The Wild Rose Press

Margot Beaufort is out of a job. Soon she’ll be out of a home. If she doesn’t find a place, she’ll be sharing a couch with a friend’s territorial cat. And it can’t be just anywhere, not if she wants to see her opinionated grandmother, Marguerite. But it’s the season for miracles, right? To save historic Renfrew House from demolition, Trent Talbot converted the property into apartments. But nobody stays in the “crazy” carriage house unit for long. If Trent can’t solve the problem, he’ll be back under Daddy dearest’s thumb. Then a chance encounter with a sweet redhead, plus an old book, inspire an insane idea… Margot quickly discovers why everyone flees the carriage house apartment. It’s haunted! With Marguerite’s help, Margot’s determined to free an unhappy spirit. But can she and Trent have a future that’s merry and bright?

The Wild Rose Press

First grade teacher Desiree Tucker is on the brink of winter holidays with her new, romantic boyfriend when danger encroaches on her joy. Ominous, untraceable texts buzz on her cell phone. Terrifying secret Santa gifts show up for her in the classroom. As the stalker moves closer to the prey, Desiree doesn’t know who she can trust. Her charming new man is a prime suspect. Is he a deadly stalker? If not him, who? What can she learn from the legend of the snow kiss cookie? Just when she’s starting to believe in magic again, she finds herself fighting for her life.

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Before she can let up and enjoy some holiday cheer, real estate agent Alana Drake has work to do. With Christmas moving in fast, she has clients to meet with, houses to show, and cookies to bake. Every open house deserves her special touch—homemade and hand-decorated sugar cookies for a warm welcome. And she needs several dozen for upcoming holiday events and open houses. But a poorly timed stop at the grocery store could upend more than her bag of groceries. Running into Doctor Justin Teague—literally—shakes up Alana’s tidy world. The chance encounter leaves her with a bum ankle, forces her to reconsider some dating ideals, and reveals new information about a longtime nemesis. When all she wanted was to bake some cookies…

TWRP

Widow Carol MacKenzie always felt an affinity for Christmas. During a casual internet search, she stumbles upon a Santa School website. Carol applies and is accepted into Santa School as a solo Mrs. Claus. Attending Snowflake Visions Santa school is life-changing. Carol learns how to wrangle reindeer, American sign language holiday greetings, and meets a worldwide community of like-minded people, including one beautiful bearded single Santa musician who lives one hour from her west Michigan home. Charlie Johnson has a decade-long resume of performing as Santa. A Mrs. Claus has never been part of his repertoire. Santa friends encourage Charlie to pursue Carol. Meanwhile, Carol’s sister-in-law Penny pushes Carol to try an online dating site. Which maneuver, if any, will succeed? Through a few unexpected twists and holiday surprises, a happy finale prevails.

TWRP

Jennifer Medina, successful romance writer, is suffering from writer’s block. Having divorced her critical husband, she is determined to avoid men and concentrate on career and volunteer work. Ray Trevino prefers working outside in the family’s construction business, so he has refused his dad’s offer of an office job to help run the company. Past experience taught him not to take risks in his personal or business life. When they meet, immediate attraction flares. Ray invites Jennifer out—not on a real date, but as research for her book. Yet despite their wariness about love and commitment, their relationship progresses until both realize they’ve crossed boundaries…and they go their separate ways. Can they somehow forget the past and make better memories this Christmas?

TWRP

Haley can’t face Christmas. Her super-critical family hate her presents and her life. It’s her turn to prepare the holiday diner, but her apartment kitchen is too small for anything but toast. Which is the only think she knows how to cook. When her cookie fortune turns out to be an ad–Madam Zelda, Fortune Teller—she makes a desperate decision. Zach is the mastermind behind the ad. He and Zelda show Haley that a fortune cookie can be full of surprises, solutions, and love.

TWRP

It’s been a difficult year in Lissi Johansen’s sixteenth-century Danish village. As Christmas approaches, she longs for holidays past when her parents visited their neighbors, distributing cookies and good wishes to all. She hopes to bake a single batch of her mama’s Snowdrop Cookies and tuck a gift of magic wishes inside. But she will need help to make the miracle come true.

Miller Ole Andersen is barely hanging on after the loss of his wife and child to the plague. When Lissi begs him for a measure of flour, he’s won over by her warmth and generous spirit. He never suspects the events that follow will teach him about the limitless capacity of the heart, or that wishes given away can sometimes be the most magical of all.

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Multi award-winning author Laura Strickland delights in time traveling to the past and searching out settings for her books, be they Historical Romance, Steampunk or something in between. Her first Scottish Historical hero, Devil Black, battled his way onto the publishing scene in 2013, and the author never looked back. Nor has she tapped the limits of her imagination. Venturing beyond Historical and Contemporary Romance, she created a new world with her ground-breaking Buffalo Steampunk Adventure series set in her native city, in Western New York. Married and the parent of one grown daughter, Laura has also been privileged to mother a number of very special rescue dogs, the latest being a little boy called Tinker, and is intensely interested in animal welfare. Her love of dogs, and her lifelong interest in Celtic history, magic and music, are all reflected in her writing. Laura’s mantra is Lore, Legend, Love, and she wouldn’t have it any other way.

Author Web site: www.laurastricklandbooks.com

Author Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000002632317

Author Amazon page:  http://www.amazon.com/Laura-Strickland/e/B001KHSACW/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

Author Goodreads page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/760146.Laura_Strickland

Author Twitter:

Laura Strickland Author @LauraSt05038951

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/laurastricklandauthor/Author Book Bub page: BookBub

NOTE:

See my 5+ Sparkler review on the holiday review page as well as Goodreads and other sites. You need to add this novella (it’s only 80 pages!) to your reading list and read it now. You won’t be sorry.

Birthdays: Thomas Carlyle (1795), Samuel Butler (1835), Rainer Maria Rilke (1875), Cornell Woolrich (1903), Munro Leaf (1905), Rhoda Blumberg (1917), William Diehl (1924), George Ancona (1929), A. Scott Berg (1949), Peter Godwin (1957), Plum Sykes (1969)

Scott Berg won the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for Biography for “Lindbergh”

Quotes: “What we become depends on what we read after all of the professors have finished with us. The greatest university of all is a collection of books.” – Thomas Carlyle

“What’s happening is that we’re living in a world full of people who want us to think the way they do and act the way they do and believe the way they do and if we don’t, if we don’t conform, they destroy us. And you know the irony? They’re always in the minority.” – William Diehl

“The Ancient Mariner would not have taken so well if it had been called The Old Sailor.” – Samuel Butler

“Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.” – Rainer Maria Rilke

Tip: You are the creator of your own world. Be sure to take care what you people it with and how you present it.

Jumpstart: She liked to burn things, but never big ones and never where she’d be found. Then…