Holiday movies and books are uplifting, heartwarming, and absolutely irresistible. Here are several of my favorites, so light a cozy fire, grab a large blanket for two, and snuggle up with one of these romantic holiday treats. Nancy Meyers’ romantic comedy The Holiday stars Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet. After romantic disappointments, Englishwoman Iris (Winslet) and Los Angeles woman Amanda (Diaz) meet on-line at a website that helps people exchange houses. They decide to switch homes for the holidays. Both women discover a fresh look at life and love in this fun and funny switcheroo. The Christmas Spirit by Elisabeth Fairchild is a perennial favorite of readers. I particularly enjoy getting lost in this story of holiday love. In Regency England, Lord Copeland’s Christmas invitations promise a frolicking fortnight imbued with Christmas spirits of every kind. Unfortunately, icy roads complicate the arrival of his guests, except the one person he did not invite. Miss Belinda Walcott, a music teaching spinster, lands on his doorstep with her own hidden reasons for weaving magic into the season to revive Lord Copeland’s flagging Christmas spirit. Christmas in Connecticut stars Barbara Stanwyck as a Martha-Stewart type who writes a column with delicious recipes about…

Kaegan glanced up when a cup of coffee and a basket of blueberries were placed in front of him. When his and Bryce’s eyes met, something stirred deep within his gut and he immediately resented the feeling. He also resented that he was noticing how pretty she looked this morning. Could it be the hint of blush she’d added to her cheeks? Or that her lashes seemed a little longer than usual? In the past, Bryce only put on makeup when it suited her. Was there a reason she was wearing some now? Was there a man coming into the café that she wanted to impress? “Will there be anything else?” she asked him. He hated that his thoughts had been on a past that could never be rekindled. She was glaring at him and he automatically glared back. “From you? No.” He saw her bite down on her bottom lip, probably tempted to tell him where he could take the coffee and muffins and shove them. Instead she turned and walked off. He watched her leave and figured that even if he no longer cared one iota for her, he could still appreciate a good-looking ass in jeans. He…

Instead of trying to find your perfect match in a dating app, we bring you the “Author-ReaderMatch” where we introduce you to authors as a reader you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present ELLIE RICE! Writes: I write contemporary romance with lots of LOL moments and a little angst, for good measure. My stories are full of steam and snarky banter. I want to get you hot, then make you snort-laugh. My newest novel, Keyed Up, releases 10/24. It’s about a spitfire if a redhead with a penchant for odd, made-up words and phrases and the hot as sin bike builder who tries to focus on opening his second bike shop. Neither wants a relationship, but you know what they say about best-laid plans. About: Mid-forties momma seeks readers who love movies and music and have a sense of humor of a fourteen-year-old boy. Readers should be well versed in recognizing quoted from all of the best movies from the 1980s to the present. The author has lived the quiet life, only discovering her inner vixen in the last eight years. What I’m Looking for in my Ideal Reader Match: – Someone who recognizes my…

You know how they say that preparing for something is almost more fun than actually doing it? All those hours spent to find the perfect holiday destination, crossing off the days until you’re leaving, the nerves in your stomach when the big day has arrived. . . It’s just like that with Christmas! No matter how many ornaments there are, neatly wrapped in tissue paper in the boxes in the attic, the cellar or the garage, it’s always a good idea to buy some more. Advent calendars are a fun way to count down to Christmas, and when certain smells invade the house – pine, cranberry, gingerbread – you know the time is coming near. . . I wanted to capture all that and more in my very first Christmas romance, A Family by Christmas, just released from Entangled Bliss. My heroine Emma is a bonbon maker whose agenda is over-full in the runup to Christmas. Her whole life seems to consist of work, really, as she’s an orphan with no siblings and not a lot of new friends yet in Wood Creek, the small New Hampshire town she moved to, to open up her very own chocolate-making business. But…

I watched a couple of construction workers come into the coffee shop. Followed by several other customers. I should be heading back to the office. The late-afternoon crowd is starting to come in. It wasn’t that I didn’t like swimming with the sharks in the corporate world, but I wasn’t used to a sedentary lifestyle cooped up in an office all day. I glanced at the grubby men in orange vests who were ordering their coffee, knowing I had more in common with them than I did with all the other suits I saw on a daily basis. But I wasn’t one of them anymore, the guys who busted their asses physically every single day to make a living. In some ways, I really missed the comradery I’d had in construction with all of my fellow builders. I’d been part of a team. Yeah, it had been tough, exhausting work sometimes, but I’d liked getting my hands dirty, and most of all, I’d loved being outdoors as much as possible. It was my restlessness in the office that had drawn me outdoors. The walk to the Coffee Shack had helped some. It usually did, which was why I was here…

With the success of binge-worthy content like To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, Dumplin’, Good Omens, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Anne with an E, streaming services are becoming the new go-to when you want to adapt a book. Now that Netflix has snatched up the rights to Leigh Bardugo’s Grishaverse, I’ve started thinking about what I’d like to see them tackle next. Here are five of my favorite books that I think Netflix could do justice. The Hearts We Sold by Emily Lloyd-Jones This is a melancholy urban fantasy about a girl who makes a pact with a demon for tuition money. (Honestly, if it were me… I’d consider it.) Agreeing to serve the demon for two years, Dee quickly finds herself in over her head, but at least she’s not alone – she’s also working among some other hapless teenagers who made similar deals. She finds herself falling in love with one of her fellow charges, but she’s determined to ignore it, especially considering there’s no guarantee she’ll survive the length of her contract. This book has become one of my all-time favorites, and I think a movie adaptation would give it some much-deserved spotlight. And who knows?…

Before I start writing a book, I do quite a bit of pre-writing. I try to figure out who my characters are and then I create a playlist. Once I have a playlist, I listen to it all the time. I listen to it so much that my kids complain because they get tired of the music. It becomes background noise that I use to draft the novel. One song that isn’t on my playlist, only because it wasn’t out when I made the playlist and wrote the book, is “Friends Don’t” by Maddie & Tae. The lyrics are a perfect representation of Owen and Evelyn’s relationship. “Friends don’t call you in the middle of the night Couldn’t even tell you why They just felt like saying “hi” Friends don’t stand around, playing with their keys Finding reasons not to leave Trying to hide the chemistry Drive a little too slow, take the long way home Get a little too close We do, but friends don’t” The actual playlist I used is pretty good, though. When I choose songs, I look for things that represent each character, the mood of the book, and their relationship. I don’t think I’ve ever…

Food and romance go hand in hand, like chips and dip or strawberries and cream. From a romantic dinner to a full-on food fight, sharing food is an intimacy that features in any budding relationship. Lila Ward and Blake Hanlon from OUT OF CONTROL are no different. When Blake has to prove to Lila that he’s serious about getting to know her, he takes her out for a meal at his favorite eatery, perhaps trying to show her a glimpse of his real self. Honest, down-to-earth and scrumptious, Blake’s food of choice is a well-cooked steak, thick-cut fries, and a damn good sauce. Later on in the story when Lila demands she becomes Blake’s breakfast, he gets creative with a little fruit and preserves, much to Lila’s bemusement. . . Excerpt from Blake. . . “I wiped a hand across my mouth. “I want a little extra with my breakfast,” I said, heading for the fruit bowl on the kitchen counter. There were fat, juicy plums, apples, and a pineapple. Not quite what I had in mind. But close. I opened the pantry and found what I was looking for. A jar of peaches. I gathered a few pieces of…

After breakfast RJ takes me for a ride in his boat. The only kind I’ve ever been in is a canoe, which tipped over, and yesterday I tried to put the one at my cabin into the water, but a family of squirrels was living in it, so that put an end to that. Being on open water makes me nervous, so RJ distracts me with more making out. My lips are probably going to be seriously chapped after today, so I’ll have to use some lip balm tonight to keep them from peeling. By the time we get back from our boating trip–I didn’t see one dolphin or whale, although I wasn’t paying much attention to anything besides RJ–it’s well past lunchtime. We make steak sandwiches with last night’s leftovers, and RJ suggests a trip into town. I have a list of things I need to pick up, like a new space heater, so I’m all for it. After a brief stop at my cabin so I can change into fresh clothes, we spend the afternoon shopping. We tour the quaint downtown and grab dinner at a pub. It’s after eight by the time we head back to his…

Welcome back to Fresh Fiction, Rhenna! Can you tell us about your new series, NOLA Knights, and the first book, HIS TO DEFEND? Absolutely! Sergei Petrovyh first appeared in the fourth book of my Men of Haven series, TEMPTED & TAKEN. I loved everything about him. His broodiness. The unmistakable danger and unapologetic approach he took to life. I was also fascinated with articles and stories I’d read of Russian culture and the highly Alpha aspect to dating. So, when my publisher asked me what I wanted to do after the last of the original Men of Haven got their stories, I knew I wanted to delve deeper into Sergei’s world. The result was a planned trio of three extremely Alpha males conquering not just one of my favorite cities in the world (New Orleans), but three bold and brave women who give their driven men a run for their money. Evette Labadie is a hardworking woman who will do anything for her son, Emerson. Although she was recently (wrongfully) fired from her job, she needs to find a way to send her son to an expensive private school so he can have the best future possible. Desperate and unsure…