Hope You Got What You Wanted

 
I'm writing this at 6:30 pm on Christmas Eve. Soon our annual viewing of  It's a Wonderful Life  will begin. My plan is to make a plate of charcuterie for dinner and enjoy the classic tale of one person realizing what a difference they can make. 

As the year ends, it's a great time to think about what you want from your life. My plans for 2026 are to seek more joy and less stress. A wise woman recently shared these words with me:

What you celebrate expands.

I love that. I hope you have a very Merry Christmas! I'll be back tomorrow to share my new book!  It's out tomorrow! 

My holiday pasta salad. Aldi's Christmas pasta with roasted garlic oil, white wine vinegar, grape tomatoes, salami, red onions, and green oilives. I was going for Christmas colors! It's very tasty--I'm super pleased with how it worked out! 

The Sunday Post: Christmas Week is Here

 

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.

Friday afternoon at 3:30pm Winter Break began!  I kicked off my break by getting into pajamas as fast as possible when I got home. Then on Saturday, I got a facial. This was my celebration for finishing not only the first semester of school, but also for finishing my latest book! Love and the Three of Cups is uploaded and will be published the day after Christmas! 

You can check it out here: https://a.co/d/89DCasv

I'm also doing a big release party celebration with fellow authors in the Fireside Book Cafe on Facebook. If you'd like to join the party, you'll have lot of chances to win books and bookish prizes during the day on December 30, 2025. 

Here is the group link: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1AWaNgk8kh/

Today my plan is to wrap up my present wrapping--LOL

What are your plans for today?

Readingwise, I'm still reading my way through my holiday book stack. I hope to finish three books this week and watch my favorite holiday movies before the big day.

And then once January rolls around...clean eating goals here I come!

The Sunday Post The Ho-Ho-Ho RAT Is Almost Over Already!

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.

It was a great day to bake some cookies! I have been doing a crummy job keeping up with my Christmas TBR. But I did have time to bake! I made peanut butter cookies, peanut butter chocolate chex bars, oatmeal scotchies, and a batch of brookies!

 Now I'll need to muster that much energy for the school week! Only 5 days til Winter Break!

How is the Ho-ho-ho Readathon for you? Share below! And here is the link to my cookie recipe exchange challenge!

https://victoria7401.blogspot.com/2025/11/ho-ho-ho-rat-holiday-cookie-recipe.html

Author Spotlight: Emma Wilde and The Second Chance Christmas

Emma Wilde writes heartfelt romances that follow characters discovering love at any age and finding the courage to begin again. Her stories capture the quiet magic of second chances and the tender emotions that rise when the heart is healing. She creates books that make readers laugh, cry, and believe in love with fresh hope.

Pick up her Christmas romance and block off a little time this weekend to read!

The Second Chance Christmas is a tender, small-town, later-in-life holiday romance filled with second chances, forced proximity, and healing love—and it’s short enough to read before bed or on your lunch break. When Maggie returns to Vermont heartbroken and unexpectedly runs into her high school sweetheart, Charlie—a widowed single dad—their old wounds and long-buried tenderness spark to life. A mix-up leaves them sharing a cozy guesthouse, a snowy night nudges them closer, and soon they’re wondering if this unexpected reunion might be the gentle Christmas miracle they both needed.

You can get your copy here: https://a.co/d/fDKi3s8

The best way to keep up with all Emma's books and bookish fun is on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/emmawildeauthor/

 

We had giant icicles on the roof, but it was warm enough today that they melted! I'm hoping we stil have a white Christmas--but the temperatures are going up! 

Black Friday, To Shop or Not To Shop?

 Because we are visiting my mom, we will be shopping at local stores in her small town. No massive big box shopping for us. I'm planning to pick up stone ground cornmeal, local honey, and some books. Hopefully some good loose leaf tea as well. For my daughter I'll pick up a jar of picked okra to give her on Christmas. 

Will you be doing any shopping? Maybe some new book purchases?

photo credit Simply Recipes/Shilpa Iyer

My daughter is a big fan of boiled peanuts, so we always have to stop at a rundown gas station to buy a cup of peanuts. A rundown gas station or a questionable roadside stand are the best places to get your boiled peanuts.

Today through Monday, I'm part of a giant 99-cent book event. For this event, you don't need to sign up for anyone's newsletter; it's just a ton of books on sale for 99-cents! My most recent book Your Mr. Brightside is part of the Black Friday sale! 

Looking to pick up some free books today? Here is a link to a book promo I am part of: https://books.bookfunnel.com/freesizzlinghearomancepromo/xw4qd7y2hk

Ho-Ho-Ho RAT Holiday Cookie Recipe Exchange! Share and be entered to win!

 

I'm super excited to be a blog challenge host this year! Have you signed up to be part of the 2025 Ho-Ho-Ho Readathon? If not, here is the link: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/2025/10/13th-annual-ho-ho-ho-readathon-sign-up.html 

I have a stack of Christmas-themed reads I'll be reading during the readathon. 

And when you're taking a little break from your reading, share a cookie recipe you love below, and you will be entered to win a $10 gift card! 

I've got my family's buy-in for a day of cookie baking this December, and I'd love to try some new cookie recipes. Please share a favorite below--and if you don't bake, just search for your favorite cookies to eat and then share that recipe!

Happy reading! I'm going to go make some cocoa now so I'll be ready for some cookies! 

A picture of Christmas past cookies!

The Sunday Post- Almost time for the mountains!

 

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.

I can stay up late tonight because tomorrow we have weird work hours. It's the parent-teacher conference time of year! I should still get up at the regular time because I need to make sure we are all packed to head down to the mountains for Thanksgiving. My goal is to get at least one book read while we are gone. 

Do you have any special plans this week?

I'm planning to get a Buc-ees Christmas shirt.

Ah sunset in the mountains

All the inclines you could ever want!

I'm taking my stack of reads for the Ho-Ho-Ho RAT! Have you signed up to join in the fun? Click here for the scoop! 

Looking for a Historical Romance set at Christmas? I got you!

Lady Jennet Gordon has led a charmed life until rumors about her father’s finances circulate, followed by a tragic but suspicious accident. Two years later, a distant cousin, knicknamed The Hangman, is set to assume the title. Will he throw them out at Christmastide? Barnabus Gordon is the grandson of a pirate and the son of a privateer. Using the cutthroat lessons learned in his childhood, he buys out shipowners in financial distress and accrues his own fleet. The gruff Gordon plans to settle the issue of his newly acquired English estate and return to the sea. Until one kiss ignites a Yule log of passion and holiday magic that refuses to be extinguished.

Add this one to your Chistmas list or pick it up today! https://books2read.com/merrymazes-magicmistletoe

USA Today Bestselling author Aubrey Wynne resides in the Midwest with her husband, dogs, horses, mule, and barn cats. Obsessions include wine, history, travel, trail riding, and all things Christmas. Her Chicago Christmas series and historical romances have received multiple awards and nominations as a Rone finalist by InD’tale Magazine. Aubrey’s first love is medieval romance but after dipping her toe in the Regency period in 2018 with the Wicked Earls’ Club, she was smitten. This inspired her sweet Regency spin-off series Once Upon a Widow, and a steamy Scottish Regency series, A MacNaughton Castle Romance. Her Regency detective series, Paddy’s Peelers, launched in 2025. Love’s Curiosities, her upcoming sweet Regency series with a touch of magic, launches in 2026.

 

The Sunday Post -- Mid November!

 

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.

Yesterday was my son's birthday, and once it's past, I'm ready for full-on holiday mode. I know, wait til after Thanksgiving and all that--but, I like to have the extra preparation time so I don't get so stressed out. And frankly, with this economy, I started shopping at the end of summer. I need to parcel out the cost of gifts over as many paychecks as possible. 

Speaking of the holiday season, this year I'm participating in the Ho-Ho-Ho Read-a-thon! I'm even hosting a challenge. My challenge is a Holiday Cookie (recipe) Exchange! The official post where you can add your recipe for a chance to win a $10 GC will be up on 11/26. 

But first you should join the Ho-Ho-Ho Read-a-thon here so you are eligible to participate and win prizes! Here is the link: https://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/2025/10/13th-annual-ho-ho-ho-readathon-sign-up.html

I'm currently finished revising my book and it will be ready for ARC readers by next weekend. Would you like an ARC copy of the book?  Fill out my form here: https://forms.gle/jxEp6PEVQ1x4d5Ut7

Last night we watched "A Merry Little Ex-Mas" starring Alicia Silverstone. It was cute. If you like Christmas movies, it's worth the watch! 

My son wanted to carve pumpkins for his birthday!

Have a great week! 

Author Spotlight! Freefalling in the Moonlight

What a beautiful cover! Audrey Lynden books always look so inviting! Read to learn more about it?

A daring love story … facing the past, finding a voice, and falling for the one who never let go. After a high-profile case goes awry, defense attorney Rob Reid escapes Chicago and drives to his easy-going hometown in Baileys Harbor, Wisconsin. Dog sitting for his famous brother and tinkering with his vintage sports car sound like the perfect reprieve…until he crosses paths with his one true love, Maddie Logerquist. Once inseparable, a fateful decision turned to tragedy and tore the two apart.

To safeguard her late mother’s legacy, Maddie has returned home to Baileys Harbor. A New York fashion stylist and influencer for the past decade, Maddie now must brave daddy long-legs, decrepit lighthouses and fundraising fiascos in the tiny lakeside town. Then while reconnecting to her roots, she trips into her first and only love, Rob Reid.

As Rob and Maddie navigate old wounds, fresh sparks fly. But when a high-profile scandal threatens Maddie’s safety and reputation, she must fight back to reclaim her voice. Without a doubt, Rob stands beside her. Except when justice is on the line and gossip battles with truth, a newly mended love might not survive.

Rob and Maddie have another chance… Will they dive in and hang tight or will their love go adrift again?

More about the author:

Tricia Quinnies writes contemporary women’s fiction under the pen name Audrey Lynden. Living in Wisconsin, she’s inspired by her home state’s charming small towns, celebrity residents, the beautiful beaches along Lake Michigan and quirky traditions. Her modern romances will make you laugh, cry and cheer. With her love of British mysteries, jaunty capers find their way into her stories. She favors writing—second chances, hope, empowerment, and satisfying endings. No cliffhangers. Audrey is a mom to three incredible sons and has a Hollywood crush on her husband. He was once told he looked like George Clooney and he’s never forgotten! As a journalism major, she’s inclined to keep up with news but has an affinity for celebrity gossip and pop culture. Every winter, she binges all seasons of Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

You can pick up a copy of Freefalling in the Moonlight: https://www.amazon.com/Freefalling-Moonlight-Brothers-Audrey-Lynden/dp/0997340053/