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Christmas

Yuletide Eve Scene and a wish from us for you #Love #Peace #Hope

December 25, 2023 by Adriana Kraft

Both of us who write under this pen name honor all who celebrate turning towards the light, in whatever tradition has come to be meaningful for you. At the center of this turning is warmth, love, peace, light, and hope. This is what we wish for all of you, not just in this season, but year-round.

Sometimes our characters experience this as well. Here is Christmas Eve from A Reluctant Santa

Set Up: Cliff spent the middle of the day playing Santa to needy kids, hosted by a local golf course lodge, with Carol assisting him as his elf. Now it’s late evening.

Carol snuggled into Cliff with his arm around her waist as they leaned against the lodge balcony railing, both of them in awe of the star-studded sky forming a canopy overhead. “This is so spectacular. The stars seem so close. And so many more are visible up here than in the city.”

“For sure. Sometimes I feel like time stands still while the night sky does its nightly dance. You should be here sometime when the Northern Lights put on a show. Dazzling. It can be like sheets of color fading in and out, daring you to ignore them. The night sky up here is so vast, almost overwhelming.”

“The stars are so brilliant. Santa won’t have any trouble navigating his way tonight.”

Cliff squeezed her tighter. “Especially if his favorite elf serves as his navigator.”

“Thanks again for taking me to the Christmas Eve service. It was so special.”

“Sarah thought you would like it.”

“It was just right. I gave up long time ago trying to deal with Christmas intellectually. I’m not into debating whether this happened or that didn’t. It’s the feeling of Christmas that moves me. And those kids certainly did that tonight. I nearly lost it when they marched down the aisle to The Little Drummer Boy with coffee cans hanging around their necks, pounding those cans like they were the most sophisticated drums ever made.”

“They were happy and proud, from the oldest to the youngest.”

“That says a lot about the adults, including children in the service like that. Wonderful. The Christmas spirit was palpable.” Carol suddenly pointed toward the sky. “Did you see that?”

“A shooting star. I hoped if we stood out here long enough we’d see some. That was a long, bright one. Don’t see many of those.”

“So fitting for the night. For Santa.” Carol hesitated. “For Santa and his elf.”

 

 

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Filed Under: Blog, Erotic Romance, Excerpts Tagged With: Christmas, Holiday, hope, light, love, peace, Solstice, warmth, Yule

Christmas at Solace Lake by Jana Richards @JanaRichards_ #HolidayRomance #SmallTown

December 7, 2023 by Adriana Kraft


It’s Christmas time at Solace Lake Lodge,
but a series of thefts threatens everyone’s holiday spirit.

BOOK INFORMATION

Genre: Contemporary Romance, small town romance
Keywords: contemporary romance, small town romance, mystery, holiday romance, Christmas, interracial romance
ISBN: Ebook ISBN 978-0-9952791-8-6
Print ISBN 978-0-9952791-9-3
Length: Novel
Heat Level: Spicy
Release Date: Ebook, October 18, 2023
Cover Artist: 100 Covers
Publisher: Jana Richards Books

BUY LINKS

US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CH5DTYNS

UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CH5DTYNS

CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CH5DTYNS

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/198424344-christmas-at-solace-lake

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/christmas-at-solace-lake-a-love-at-solace-lake-romance-by-jana-richards

BLURB

An emergency brings Drew Barnes to Solace Lake Lodge, an inn deep in the Minnesota woods owned by his aunt and uncle. He’s sure desperation is the only reason they’d allow him to fill in as their bookkeeper. No one in his family has believed in him since his mistake got him fired from his previous job. Soon after he arrives, Drew is disheartened to discover thefts and financial irregularities. The last thing he wants is to be put in the middle of another crime.

Sous chef Celeste Bishop has made a good life for herself and her nine-year-old daughter in the three years she’s worked, and lived, at Solace Lake Lodge. After being unfairly fired, this was the only job she could get, and she’s grateful her gamble on the lodge paid off. The only sticking point is the isolation since she never learned to drive. How can she show her daughter independence when she’s always relying on others?

Drew sees Celeste’s frustration and offers to teach her to drive. A powerful attraction ignites between them, and soon deeper, stronger emotions blossom. Drew is all in, but Celeste resists her feelings. She’s nine years older than Drew. An interracial relationship didn’t work for her parents. And loving Drew feels like a betrayal of her deceased husband.

As Christmas approaches, the thefts escalate. Can Drew stop the thief and redeem himself in his family’s eyes—and his own? And can he convince Celeste they deserve the gift of a happily ever after this Christmas?

EXCERPT

He put his hand on her arm. “Celeste, whatever happened, it’s going to be all right. I promise you.”

She looked at him then, her eyes filling with tears. “I finished the exam before anyone else. I could see all the answers in my head like I was reading them from a screen. The person who gave the exam told me I got all the answers right, one hundred percent.” Tears streamed down her face as she pulled a crumpled piece of paper from her pocket. “I got my permit.”

The wonder in her eyes, the relief and joy, made him smile. Though he’d promised himself not to touch her today, he simply couldn’t resist. He pulled off his glove and, leaning across the console, laid his hand on her soft cheek. Drew stared into her beautiful dark eyes. The intoxicating combination of her warm, welcoming scent and the silky feel of her skin made his heart soar and his body catch fire. The need to kiss her nearly overpowered him, but he held back, knowing it wasn’t what she wanted.

She signaled her withdrawal with a soft sigh as she turned her head and leaned back against her seat, out of his reach. Drew let his hand drop and sat back in his seat as well. He stifled his own sigh as he pulled his glove back on.

Would she always be out of his reach?

Author Bio:

Jana Richards has tried her hand at many writing projects over the years, from magazine articles and short stories to full-length contemporary romance, paranormal suspense and romantic comedy. She loves to create characters with a sense of humor, but also a serious side. She believes there’s nothing more interesting then peeling back the layers of a character to see what makes them tick.

When not writing up a storm or dealing with dust bunnies, Jana can be found pursuing hobbies such as golf (which she plays very badly) or reading (which she does much better).

Jana lives in Western Canada with her husband Warren and two senior cats named Layla and Leelou. You can reach her through her website at http://www.janarichards.com

Social Media Links:

Website:  http://www.janarichards.com

Blog:  http://janarichards.blogspot.com

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/JanaRichardsAuthor

Twitter:  http://www.twitter.com/JanaRichards_

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/janarichards155/

Amazon Author Page:  http://www.amazon.com/author/janarichards

Amazon UK Author Page:  http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B002DEVWWG

Newsletter Signup: http://janarichards.com/contact.html#newsletter

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2892274Jana_Richards

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jana-richards

 

 

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Filed Under: Blog, Excerpts, Guest Bloggers Tagged With: Christmas, Contemporary Romance, Holiday Romance, interracial romance, Mystery, Small Town Romance

Yuletide Eve Scenes and a wish from us for you #Love #Peace #Hope

December 25, 2022 by Adriana Kraft

Both of us who write under this pen name honor all who celebrate turning towards the light, in whatever tradition has come to be meaningful for you. At the center of this turning is warmth, love, peace, light, and hope. This is what we wish for all of you, not just in this season, but year round.

Sometimes our characters experience this as well. Here is Christmas Eve from two of our books:

From A Reluctant Santa

Set Up: Cliff spent the middle of the day playing Santa to needy kids, hosted by a local golf course lodge, with Carol assisting him as his elf. Now it’s late evening.

Carol snuggled into Cliff with his arm around her waist as they leaned against the lodge balcony railing, both of them in awe of the star-studded sky forming a canopy overhead. “This is so spectacular. The stars seem so close. And so many more are visible up here than in the city.”

“For sure. Sometimes I feel like time stands still while the night sky does its nightly dance. You should be here sometime when the Northern Lights put on a show. Dazzling. It can be like sheets of color fading in and out, daring you to ignore them. The night sky up here is so vast, almost overwhelming.”

“The stars are so brilliant. Santa won’t have any trouble navigating his way tonight.”

Cliff squeezed her tighter. “Especially if his favorite elf serves as his navigator.”

“Thanks again for taking me to the Christmas Eve service. It was so special.”

“Sarah thought you would like it.”

“It was just right. I gave up long time ago trying to deal with Christmas intellectually. I’m not into debating whether this happened or that didn’t. It’s the feeling of Christmas that moves me. And those kids certainly did that tonight. I nearly lost it when they marched down the aisle to The Little Drummer Boy with coffee cans hanging around their necks, pounding those cans like they were the most sophisticated drums ever made.”

“They were happy and proud, from the oldest to the youngest.”

“That says a lot about the adults, including children in the service like that. Wonderful. The Christmas spirit was palpable.” Carol suddenly pointed toward the sky. “Did you see that?”

“A shooting star. I hoped if we stood out here long enough we’d see some. That was a long, bright one. Don’t see many of those.”

“So fitting for the night. For Santa.” Carol hesitated. “For Santa and his elf.”

 

From The Unmasking

Set up: Nancy and Matt are dating but unsure whether it may be just a fling. She’s invited him to Christmas with her family in their North Woods cabin, and it’s now Christmas Eve:

The evening meal was a buffet of cold cuts, cheeses, breads, veggies, nuts, and eggnog. Much of the evening was spent calming the children down or revving them up about Santa. Most of the adults and even the children, with the exception of the youngest, shared stories of special Christmas memories.

Matt enjoyed listening to the stories. He laughed when Nancy’s mother said that as a child, she once thought Santa was just leaving her coal when she mistook the delivery man – dressed in a red coat, no less – for Santa. Matt’s eyes misted when Nancy shared a story of her father bouncing her on one knee while reciting from memory “Twas the Night Before Christmas.”

He became anxious when he realized there were only three others remaining who had not yet shared a story. Nancy’s family was a fun family to observe, but he didn’t fit in with them. What could he offer for a story? He knew they’d expect one.

When it was his turn, the words came of their own volition. “One of my best gifts was a book called The Flight of Dragons. I was eight years old. It was a rich and wonderful book and had lots of detail about exactly how dragons fly – using the same gases that they use to breathe fire. It sure was high adventure for me – we hardly ever went to movies, and we had no TV.”

“No TV!” Michael said, aghast.

Matt smiled at the boy and continued, “That book was probably the seed that began my quest for more knowledge about ancient cultures and myths.”

“Without that book, you wouldn’t be sitting here with us tonight.” Nancy’s voice was unusually quiet, and he couldn’t read the soft expression on her face.

“I suppose you’re right. Every little step along the way shapes us in one way or another. But,” he turned to speak to the children, “I want you to know this was a fun book. I couldn’t stop reading, and I finished it by bedtime on Christmas night. Of course, I started rereading it the next morning.”

The children applauded and were joined by the adults. “I want to get that book, professor,” Michael said, coming to stand before Matt. “It sounds exciting. I especially like books about the Knights of the Round Table.”

“Me too,” Matt replied, absently brushing back a lock of hair from the boy’s forehead. “I expect in my library I have just about every book written on the subject that’s available to the public.”

“Really!” The boy’s eyes grew huge. “I’d sure like to see that library.”

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Filed Under: Blog, Erotic Romance, Excerpts Tagged With: Christmas, Holiday, hope, light, love, peace, Solstice, warmth, Yule

Wishing you joy and peace

December 25, 2021 by Adriana Kraft

Do you say Merry Christmas? Happy Holidays? Blessed Solstice? Happy Hanukkah?

If I know what you celebrate, I’ll respond accordingly. But out of respect for so many different approaches to faith, I’ve no wish to offend with an off-the-mark Merry Christmas.

Whatever you celebrate – or even if you don’t – Mr. Kraft and I are aware the holiday season can be a roller coaster of excitement, disappointment, joy, and for some, grief and loss.

I think both Mr. Kraft and I will be glad to put 2021 behind us. While we’ve remained healthy and experienced successes, we’ve also had to navigate many events that were deeply troubling to us.

A few mornings ago, my classical radio station was playing Christmas music. I’m not sure I’d ever paid full attention to the third verse of It Came Upon A Midnight Clear, but these words struck me as especially apt, coming at the end of a tumultuous 2021.

Penned in 1849 by Edmund Sears, pastor of the Unitarian Church in Wayland, Massachusetts.

We probably all need a rest.
Perhaps we’ll hear them singing.

In the words of our own tradition, we wish you glad tidings of comfort and joy.

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Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Christmas, Holiday, Season's Greetings, Solstice

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REVIEWS


Erotic Romance “Seducing Cat is a Must Read…Hot in all the right places!”


Love Bites and Silk Ties
Romantic Suspense: Mystery and Romance are woven well in The Painter is a Lady.


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Erotic Romance FFM Menage: “Edgy characters, inclusive sexuality…The Reunion is not for the faint of heart.”


Erotic Romance FFM Menage: “The intimacy is genuine and breathtaking”

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