Really Not How You Want To Kick Off The New Year

 

Yes, I'm heading over to the funeral home with my husband today to go over a few details for his Mom's funeral. Hopefully, this will be the only funeral we will have occasion to attend this year. My mother-in-law was adamant that there be no wake. We will just have the funeral at the church and then a luncheon.

I didn't think too much of the no-wake situation at the time she decided it, but now that we are in the midst of the preparations, I'm grateful! She has made her send-off so much easier on everyone mourning her. While it is sad, I know that her family will have plenty of smiles and laughs when we celebrate her in a little over a week. We should all be lucky to live into our nineties without needing help until the very end. 

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This month I'm participating in a JaNoWriMo. (January Novel Writing Month) My goal is to write thirty thousand words. What they are going to be about is up in the air. I have some vague ideas about my next book, but I don't have an outline put together. I usually start my writing process by brainstorming ideas with someone, so this time I will start by brainstorming in a document. Wish me luck! 

I hope your year is off to a funeral-free start! 

It's Official I Have a Website!

 

Once we returned from our trip down South, the hubs made a spiral ham. We had leftovers and I decided to make a quiche. When pie crusts are on sale, buy some. They come two in a package so I keep one set in the freezer and I'm ready when the opportunity to turn leftovers into a fancy and easy to make quiche presents itself!

As you may have noticed today is the last day of 2024. It's been quite the year. I'm ending on a high note by having my author website up and running. Want to see it?  Here it is: https://victoriahamelauthor.com

As part of my new website, I have a blog. I don't know that I can integrate this blog there, but for now, I have my header from here on my website. My new website is built off WordPress, so I think if I want to put posts from here on it I'll have to cut and paste?  This is all above my paid grade and I'm the sole employee of my author business!

I'm cruising my way through The Beast Takes a Bride. It's so good! I'm a sucker for a Darcy-esque hero and Magnus is so Darcy! All his problems are the result of his wounded pride! 

I'm treating myself to a facial today. I'm terrible at rewarding myself for accomplishing goals--but past me prepaid for future me to get a facial once It App-ened One Night was revised! 

I hope you have a wonderful last day of this year! 

Looking Ahead to Next Weekend

 

On Saturday morning, I meet with the All Write Well group for a 2025 planning session. Hopefully, by the end of it, I'll have my writer's year more fully outlined. When will I be drafting my next book? Stay tuned and we will all find out. 

Then in the afternoon, I get to go to an in-person book club at Love's Sweet Arrow to talk about this book. It's the historical romance book of the month. I enjoyed it! One of the best parts for me was that it's about a duchess who is in half-mourning. I know what that is because I went to a talk all about Victorian mourning customs in October at my local library! I listened to the audio version of this book and the narrator was quite good. If you like historical books or if you enjoyed Bridgerton and don't usually read romance, give this a go anyway! 

This is another picture from our recent trip to Georgia. We really lucked out on the view. I wasn't expecting much of one based on our previous cabin rental experience and the pricing of this one. In hindsight, the cabin was a steal of a deal! 

I need to double check and make sure this post is my 70th post for the year. If not, I'm sure I can find enough to say in a another post tomorrow!

Do you have plans for NYE? My plan always involved tasty but not healthy food choices and being in my pajamas before the sun goes down. 

The Sunday Post How Many Times Did I Blog in 2024?

  

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

According to my blog, I've posted 68 times this year. That doesn't include this post. All I need to do to hit 70 is to blog on Monday or Tuesday. At the moment, I'm halfway through the audiobook The Duchess Takes It All so I think I can accomplish finishing the book and a blog post before the new year is here. 

Each year my goal is to post three times a week and I don't accomplish that goal each year. There is some saying about it being foolish to keep doing the same thing and failing, but I don't care. Once again, my goal for 2025 will be to blog three times a week. As I am sure many of you know, the key to consistent blogging is to work ahead so that if you have to take a break, you've already got posts lined up. Most years I manage to do that for January and by March I've fallen off. 

Are you looking forward to the new year? I am not looking forward to whatever the incoming administration will cook up. I plan to focus on what I can control and the things that make me happy. 

What makes you happy?

For me it's time with family and friends, preferably involving food and live music. Secondly, I enjoy reading a good book and discussing it with a book club or attending free library programs. Thirdly, being out in nature. 

Books I'm reading right now:

Not To Wish Away The Days, One Month from Tomorrow 5pm Sunset

The new year will be here shortly. Do you do resolutions or goals? I have some goals for the new year. My number one goal is to eat more tacos. We have lots of taco places around us, and we are not trying them. Additionally, I think tacos are a reasonably healthy option. This goal is also very fun and do-able. What I'd like to do in 2025 is to have more goals that are fun. Usually, I work hard, reach a goal, and do nothing fun to celebrate. But that changes now! Well, maybe, it changes. I'm terrible at celebrating.

How about you? Do you set goals? Do you celebrate your wins? What is something fun you are looking forward to in the new year? 

Bookwise I'm reading The Beast Takes a Bride which is a very good historical romance. On TV we are watching "Bad Sisters" on Apple TV. This show has an excellent depiction of a terrible villain. I don't know how anyone could watch it and have any sympathy for the fellow who dies. He's awful! 

 

That time of Year When It's Normal To Ask: What Day is It?

 Happy day after Christmas or Boxing Day to everyone who participates. Looking back, I've always had a fondness for now. The space between Christmas and New Year is still festive, gatherings and cookies are still widely available, and best of all, lots of downtime. 

Today we travel back home from Georgia. We had a good visit with family and our dog tolerated the trip. As far as we can tell, Bowie is very excited to get home since he thought we were going home every time he got in the car during the trip. He refused to get out of the car most of the time when we arrived back at the cabin. 

On Christmas Eve, I got to see my sunset. 

And on Christmas morning, I went for a walk on the hills surrounding our cabin with my daughter. You can't tell in the photo, but it was a steep incline.  She made it to the top of the mountain. I'm happy to report my legs are not super sore today! 

Kicking off 2025, I'm listening to The Beast Take a Bride by Julie Anne Long for book club on January fourth. What are you starting the year reading? 

Merry Christmas! A Two Month Wrap-up!

 It's Christmas Eve, and I'm sitting in a cabin in the Appalachian mountains. 

This is the view facing west. All I want this Christmas Eve, is to watch the sunset this afternoon. I know it will be glorious. We got lucky on this trip because it's going to be sunny each day and temps are in the 50s (low 10s Celcius). As always, this picture doesn't do justice to the view it'seven better than it looks here. 

I hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday. I just received my fourth book "It App-ened One Night" back from my proofreader and will revise it again next week. Then it will be time to send out some ARCs. I hope people enjoy it. It's about a single dad of a teenager and a recently unemployed woman taking care of her mom who broke her hip. It's all about making room for joy and love when you are caretaking! 

Over the last couple of months, when I wasn't working on my book, I did some fun things! My eldest kiddo and I went to see The Nutcracker Ballet, it's our new end of November tradition to kick off the holiday season. Working at the school was very busy, and I picked up a stomach bug--not fun! 

The sweet...

As you know, I love cozy mysteries and this year I was one of the guest bloggers for The Cozy Mystery Club's 12 Days of Cozies. Here is a link to my post: Sweet Holiday Treats. 

The spicy...

I was the guest co-host on the 5th day of Boobsmas episode of the romance podcast Boobies and Noobies. You can listen to me and Kelly Reynolds talk about the very spicy novella, Frosted, A Frosty the Snowman Parody Novella. We had a good time talking about this wild book! You can listen to this podcast on all the platforms 

After the sun sets, I'm looking forward to sharing a charcuterie board with my family and watching a Christmas Movie. I'd like to watch Christmas Vacation!

Enjoy your holiday!  

One Minute It's September, The Next Minute it's Mid October!

  

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

This month I have been trying better time management.  I'm getting up at 5:30 or 6:00 a.m. planning to get some motif writing done, however it's not happening. The time between when I get up and when I have to leave for work passes in the blink of an eye! I'm trying to tell myself to get up, make coffee, and write for 30 minutes. What happens is I get up, go downstairs to make coffee, unload the dishwasher, feed the dog, check work emails, etc etc. I bet you can relate. 

I went to a program at my local library this past week called Mourning and Spirituality in the Victorian Era. I took notes because it was very interesting and maybe someday I'll have a ghost character from the 1870s who spent most of her adulthood in full mourning. My take away about mourning in the Victorian Era is that is really sucked to be a woman. You had to be in mourning for so many people I don't know how anyone coped. 

I've started drafting my four small town romance book wish me luck! My biggest problem is I procrastinate my writing and get easily distracted. How was your week? Did you read anything good? I just got a refurbished MacBook and I am learning how to use it. 

When you were in full mourning you covered yourself head to toe in black and didn't wear any jewelry You had to wear a veil over your face when you were out in public and depending how you were related to the person who died you could be in mourning for 3 months to two years. Did you know people reenact this era and dress in mourning clothes? I did not. One last fact the fabric for full mourning was crepe and part of the process to dull crepe could involve dousing it with formaldehyde so these women were walking around breathing in some nasty chemicals on top of everything else! 

Homicide in Hardcover-- The Cozy Mystery Club September Book!

 

I listened to the audio version of this book. I couldn't find it via Libby so I used an Audible credit so I could listen to the book before the book club. The audio was good. I did get stuck when one character was in the scene.  He sounded so smarmy, I don't know if that was because of how he was voiced or written--but he is the love interest, so I am not sure about that!  

The main character Brooklyn grew up in a commune and is a book restorer.  Her mom and her best friend are quirky. The story has creative red herrings and will keep you guessing about who did it and why! 

One part at the end was in 'too dumb to live' territory, in my opinion. I will leave you to check out this quick cozy read and if you do, let me know what you think! As always with the first book in the series, the book can be a little shaking or have a lot of characters and then things really hit their stride as the series goes on, so if you enjoy the first book, more good stuff to come! 

Excellent Audio Reader and a Very Unique Thriller!

Add this book to your spooky season TBR!

Alyssa Cole is a writer I enjoy and if she has a book out, I'm going to read it. In this case, I read it with my ears. The narrator for this book is fantastic! This thriller is very unique. The heroine has disassociative identity disorder (known in the past as multiple personalities).  Because of the disorder, she isn't always the person who is in control. She slips in and out consciousness as her other head mates take over. The thriller takes place in a post-COVID world and it starts with the main head mate suddenly waking up in her body after being gone for several years. The next thing she knows she is on her way to start a new job as a castle caretaker on a mysterious island.

How can you not read this book, especially during the spooky season! The book has a low star rating on Goodreads, and I think this is sadly due to the concept of the main character not being in control of their own mind in a thriller is so unique it may have disappointed readers?  I give it five stars, the story really had me enthralled.

Our local grocery store had a great deal on squash this week, so I stocked up! I'll be roasting some very soon! 

 

The Sunday Post: Fall Has Arrived!

 

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

Fall has arrived. Yesterday it was 91 degrees (31 Celcius) and today we are supposed to have a high around 75 (23 Celcius) --plus it is supposed to rain!  We haven't had any rain in weeks and it it so dry. This is in part why my allergies have been terribly bad. I am really hoping we get some nice rain and I get allergy relief. 

I'm looking forward to chilly mornings!

I thought for sure I had posted a review of One of Us Knows by Alyssa Cole on Thursday, but when I came here today, I realized I didn't! It will be posted tomorrow. Then on Wednesday, I have a post scheduled for Homicide in Hardcover by Kate Carlisle.  Friday I will have The Location Shoot up.  Next weekend we have a wedding on Saturday and on Sunday I am participating in a handcrafted event at a local brewery. I'll be selling my book!  Wish me luck!

What do you have coming up? 

Could You Use A Few More Books? Or Funds For Bookish Merch?

 

Who doesn't need a little more romance in their life?  Right?  So to that end, I'm participating in a big romance giveaway.  You can enter it here: https://www.bookthrone.com/september-viral-romance-giveaway

I finished reading a book I got from the Amazon First Reads program the other day. It's called "Divorce Towers." This was my first experience reading Ellen Meister. I enjoyed the book. Instead of one POV, there are three POV characters. The first is Addison, our main character. The second is Addison's seventy-five-year-old uncle Arnie, and the third is Carly, who is a domestic abuse survivor. The multiple POVs and the three plots overlap and come to a conclusion at the end of the book. Don't worry, there is a HEA. The book is a quick read; in addition to romance, there are mysteries to solve. Ellen Meister does a nice job with the Beverly Hills setting. 

At a couple of points in the book, conversations or events were summarized instead of taking place on the page, and I would have enjoyed being there for those conversations. It would have made the book longer, but also more entertaining. Overall, this is a fun book, an easy relaxing read. 

4 Stars!

The Sunday Post! Sundays Are For Not Leaving The House

 

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

How was your week?  It's been too warm during the day around here and there's no end in sight for ragweed pollen. I am not going to be sad when the ground freezes and kills off the pollen! This upcoming Friday I'm going to a concert with my eldest. I am hoping for cooler temps and no rain. 

Since last week my middle kiddo moved to the middle of Illinois because he got a job at at TV station near the University of Illinois. It's his first ongoing job in his field. He found housing at the last moment, thankfully since he is in a college town, the place was furnished. He loaded his ancient car, drove down, and started his job the same day.  We will be going down to meet him for lunch soon. A long-ago picture of middle kiddo.

Readingwise, I need to stop adding more books to my TBR and read some of the books already on there. But that's not going to happen!

Quick plug: If you like to read cozy romance books with a hint of spice, my first book "No Gouda Without You" will be 99 cents on Kindle tomorrow (September 16th)! Here is the link: https://a.co/d/3fS0O4t

 I am finishing up these books and will be writing about them soon: 

Let the Spooky Season Begin, Haunted to Death by Frank Anthony Polito!

If you like a cozy mystery that doesn't take itself seriously, Haunted To Death is a book you should pick up this fall. You don't have to read the first two books to enjoy the fun of this one. If you watched Scooby Doo as a youth, or as an adult with your own kids, you'll enjoy the Scooby Doo vibes. 

I enjoy how this series is campy. If you don't enjoy any camp, this book might not be for you. For the pet lovers, this book has lots of cute doggy content. As I have mentioned many times on this blog. I am a mood reader, so this book coming out in time for me to enjoy it in September as I look forward to October, is perfect.

This book is also an advertisement for Southern Michigan.  I have now added: Visit the Detroit metro area to my ever-growing cozy mystery-inspired vacation wish list. 
 

Last but certainly not least, this book features the solving of cold case, which is not usually how cozies go.  It's almost extra cozy that way!.

I gave Haunted To Death five-stars on Amazon. I bumped it up 1/2 a star because a couple of the reviews I saw were negative on the book and I wanted to balance those out.  They were unnecessarily harsh!

The Sunday Post! It's The Cold or Allergies Time of Year!

 

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

The temperatures in my neck of the woods have been downright tolerable lately.  I often say that if you want to visit Chicago, September is the best weather time of year to do it. I forget each year that it's also ragweed season and that I am allergic to ragweed. This weekend I've been playing the is it a cold or allergies? I have all the miserable allergy symptoms: itchy eyes, itchy ears, runny nose., sneezing frequently, sinus congestion, and worst of all, the dreaded itchy throat. I slacked off earlier this week and didn't take my daily allergy pill for several days. I guess now I am paying the price. I used to be able to take Benadryl for allergies but now I can't take it. It causes me to have restless legs and that is even worse than allergy symptoms. Okay enough of me! Do you have allergies? 

This weekend I finished reading Haunted To Death by Frank Anthony Polito. I am about halfway through reading Payback is a Witch by Lana Harper (physical book), I have three hours left of One of Us Knows by Alyssa Cole on audio, and I"'m ten percent into Divorce Towers on Kindle. Divorce Towers was an Amazon First Reads. 

This is my 996th blog post. With only a few posts to go, I'll hit 1,000 posts! That's wild! I didn't imagine that when I started this blog way back when! 

The Search for a Proper Tagline and a New Release with Strong Sense of Place

This month I'm working on putting together my author website and getting a newsletter going. Did you know that many authors have taglines for their websites?  I didn't, but I do now, and let me tell you, authors are a creative bunch!  So many great taglines that nail their brand. 

I am in awe, and at the same time, I need to come up with my own gem! When I write the Marley Creek series my goal is to write a romance that gives the reader those Hallmark vibes along with some spice. Now the question is, will Hallmark appreciate me using them in my tagline? I'm just a teeny tiny writer in a sea of authors, so maybe it doesn't matter. I don't want to find out after I finish my website and get some fun merch made, so I need to go back to the drawing board.

Here are my rough drafts:

Cozy Romance With A Kick.

Cozy Romance Sprinkled with Some Spice.

Steamy Small Town Romances You'll Stay Home For.

Cozy Comfort Reads.

Cozy Vibes with a Dash Of Spice.

Please let me know your favorite! I need some feedback!

As I mentioned in The Sunday Post, I picked up a new release from Kindle Unlimited. This is the second book in this series. It's set in a town a few hours away from New Orleans and the book is filled with the sights, sounds, and tastes of Southern Louisiana.  Gelly the lead character in this book is a dancer so the book is also filled with many music references. Dance of Love has a HEA for the main characters in this book but has an overarching mystery so it's best read after the first book Learning to Love which is also on Kindle Unlimited. The third and fourth books in the series will be out before the end of the year!  

If you like books with an immersive setting, a light dusting of spice, and romantic suspense, check this series out! 

Here is a link to the book: https://a.co/d/9juFCZ5

Can We Start Fall Now Please? The Sunday Post!

   

The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. you can write about what is coming up on your blog for the week ahead. Join in weekly, bi-weekly, or for a monthly wrap-up. See rules here: Sunday Post Meme.

What I'm reading this weekend: 

I don't know about you, but I am excited to have Monday off! A three-day weekend after a couple of weeks of school!  I'd be more chill about everything, but it's been so hot we haven't even had outside recess. I am ready for sweater weather! I am also ready to break out my fall-themed shirts. Going through my closet I realized I've added four new fall t-shirts over the summer!  I'm going to kick off fall by wearing my Halloween Town shirt.  Do you enjoy the autumn season?

Yesterday I brainstormed with an editor for my upcoming book It App-ened One Night. The brainstorming session was very helpful; now I know I can make this book a satisfying story. I would love for you to join my newsletter. I'll share a prequel to the Marley Creek Series, doing cover and blurb reveals, and ARC sign-ups. Plus I'm commissioning some fun stickers to give to my subscribers! 

Thanks so much! 

The Marley Creek News!

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