{"id":21244,"date":"2016-11-19T01:06:04","date_gmt":"2016-11-19T06:06:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/?p=21244"},"modified":"2016-11-19T10:53:53","modified_gmt":"2016-11-19T15:53:53","slug":"christmas-lights-by-vikki-kestell-cathe-swanson-april-hayman-and-chautona-havig","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/?p=21244","title":{"rendered":"Christmas Lights by Vikki Kestell, Cathe Swanson, April Hayman, and Chautona Havig"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"christmas-lights\"<\/p>\n

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MY REVIEW:<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Christmas Lights” was a delightful collection of Christmas stories. I really liked the variety of styles and settings between the stories while each kept to the meaning of Christmas. Each story was so unique and enjoyable that it would be difficult for me to choose a favorite. I actually have not read previous novels by any of these authors but I will definitely be keeping my eyes open for their books in the future.<\/p>\n

The Heart of Joy <\/strong><\/em>seems to be a follow-up to a previous novel and features Joy, a grieving widow and her late husband’s best friend. I enjoyed this historical Christmas romance, especially the happy ending. I do hope that there will be another companion story to clear up the one mystery that remained unsolved.<\/p>\n

Snow Angels <\/em><\/strong>was a more modern story that was rife with misunderstandings, especially concerning the true identity of one of the characters. What a fun but romantically sweet story! I felt like I got to know the characters quickly and would love to read more about them and their mission center.<\/p>\n

Trip the Light Fantastic<\/em><\/strong> was not what I would consider a romance but that didn’t stop it from being entertaining. I loved the good-hearted yet bumbling Trip and all his exploits. What fun! I loved him and the three elderly characters featured in this story and how they all discovered the true meaning of the season. Yes, I would love to read more stories about Trip. Maybe he too might discover love in the future!<\/p>\n

And then there was Christmas Stalkings<\/strong><\/em>! The crazy cat lady on steroids with a themed Christmas tree for each of her well-loved felines was another fun read. With an attractive but shy male neighbor on one side and a pretty grouchy single guy on the other, Wendy had hope that romance might develop between herself and the shy fellow but he ran every time she tried to strike up a conversation. On the other hand, cantankerous Neal always seemed to be underfoot and making Wendy feel inferior. As Christmas approached, it became evident that someone was entering her house while she was away but very little evidence was left behind. I enjoyed this one so much and although I had an inkling of how it would end, I still loved it.<\/p>\n

I am delighted that I agreed to review this Christmas collection. I discovered some new authors and had a good time reading while being reminded of the real reason for the season. This would be great for those long winter evenings leading up to Christmas after the shopping and baking are done and the gifts wrapped. Take a well deserved break and treat yourself to “Christmas Lights”.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book that was provided by Celebrate Lit Publicity Group. A favorable review was not required and all views expressed are my own.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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ABOUT THE BOOK:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Click<\/a><\/p>\n

Four novellas in a variety of genres\u2014that\u2019s all they are. Just four stories to quiet your heart and soul as you embrace the beauty of the Christmas season. Inside, you\u2019ll find\u00a0Vikki Kestell\u2019s<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0historical romance and a reminder that the Lord\u2019s plans are always just what we need. You\u2019ll be introduced to\u00a0Cathe Swanson\u2019s<\/strong>\u00a0<\/a>unlikely romance about a woman who sets out to do one good deed and is drawn into the lives of a cast of eccentric elderly people. You\u2019ll meet\u00a0April Hayman<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and her southern madcap mystery featuring an FBI agent, a con artist or two, and a few eccentric elderly people of her own. And you\u2019ll find Chautona Havig\u2019s<\/strong><\/a> Christian fiction novella that blends comedy, suspense, with a garnish of romance.<\/p>\n

In the hope that through these Christmas stories your heart will be lightened and brightened, we offer you this collection. Merry Christmas! And a happy, light read!<\/p>\n

To purchase your copy, click here.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
\"vikki-kestell\"<\/strong><\/a><\/td>\nVikki Kestell<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is the author of the acclaimed inspirational series,\u00a0A Prairie Heritage<\/strong>\u2014a compelling saga of family, faith, and great courage. Vikki\u2019s contribution to this collection,\u00a0The Heart of Joy<\/em>,\u00a0asks, \u201cCan true, enduring love happen twice in a lifetime?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\"cathe-swanson\"<\/strong><\/a><\/td>\nCathe Swanson:<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0Author of contemporary mystery and romantic suspense, Cathe brings us\u00a0Snow Angels<\/em>\u00a0\u2013 an entertaining companion novella and introduction to her upcoming\u00a0Great Lakes<\/em>\u00a0series.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u00a0\"april-hayman\"<\/td>\n\u00a0A<\/strong><\/a>pril Hayman:<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0Author of\u00a0Heirlooms of Deception<\/em>\u00a0series, debuts with a novella featuring mystery, humor, and \u201cdivine intervention.\u201d<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u00a0\"chautona-havig\"<\/td>\n\u00a0Chautona Havig:<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0Author of the Amazon bestselling\u00a0Aggie\u2019s Inheritance, Past Forward,<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0HearthLand<\/em>\u00a0series, Chautona brings humor, stalkings,\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>stockings to this collection.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

GUEST POSTS FROM THE AUTHORS:<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Christmas Lights Collection<\/em><\/strong><\/a> formed in the spring of 2016 with the idea of bringing four novellas together with one unifying theme: light. After all, each author in this collection has one primary focus in life: Jesus.\u00a0 And in the book of John, He is called the \u201cLight of Men.\u201d<\/p>\n

We thought we\u2019d share what inspired our novellas and pray that these books are a delight and encouragement to all.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Heart of Joy:\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong>This novella is a spin-off story from Vikki Kestell\u2019s Prairie Heritage<\/em><\/strong><\/a> series and features one of her most beloved characters, Joy Thoresen, from book three, Joy on This Mountain.<\/em> After three years of widowhood, Joy mourns not only the loss of her husband but the child someone has kidnapped as well.\u00a0 Only her faith sustains her through difficult days.<\/p>\n

Vikki\u2019s goal in writing is to provide FaithFilledFiction<\/strong><\/a> to Christians, and this novella is no exception. She worked to show that even amid our sorrow, the Lord brings good, hope-filled gifts to us even when we think we\u2019re not ready for them. She also desired to fill in small, time-veiled gaps in Joy\u2019s story.\u00a0 The Heart of Joy <\/em>puts the finishing touches on Joy\u2019s story.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Snow Angels:\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong>The idea for Snow Angels<\/em> came to Cathe in slow increments. The idea of using homeless veterans originally prompted research into homeless shelters and programs, but the scope of those became too much for a novella. Still, those characters had stories Cathe wanted to tell, so she continued her research and became increasingly concerned with the plight of homeless veterans\u2014particularly the women. For some reason, we often forget that women serve, get PTSD, and end up on the streets just like the men.<\/p>\n

Cathe wanted to combine those realities with other misconceptions that often blind us to the person behind the fa\u00e7ade. She wanted to demonstrate how people in otherwise normal lives also can be thrust into situations that trigger PTSD and how those people work through it. Of course, with such a heavy topic, Cathe chose to write the story with a liberal dusting of humor to lighten the mood as you read.<\/p>\n

As her debut novel, Cathe introduces readers to characters we\u2019ll see more of in her Great Lakes series and paves the way for her upcoming novel, Baggage Claim,<\/em><\/strong><\/a> releasing in early 2017.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Trip the Light Fantastic: <\/em><\/strong>April has been working on a mystery surrounding, of all things, Shakespeare\u2019s inkwell!\u00a0 So, when she was invited to be a part of the Christmas Lights Collection,<\/em><\/strong><\/a> April decided to do an introductory novel to her Heirlooms of Deception series and Lance \u201cTrip\u201d Devereaux was \u201cborn.\u201d<\/p>\n

April admits to loving another character, Landry, just a little bit more than the others. Yet, he could never be a main character. He\u2019s too much of a rascal and a mastermind, so he works best from the shadows. While this book wasn\u2019t about him directly, it could be about someone similar\u2014someone who works in the light but has lost his way and needs help from God and some new friends. Trip the Light Fantastic <\/em>is a sideways introduction into a character that April hopes will entertain readers for more books to come.<\/p>\n

April set her series in Mississippi where her grandparents lived, so the books are rich in southern manners, mannerisms, and manors!\u00a0 Well, there\u2019s one plantation belonging to her irascible but charming con-artist.\u00a0 Watch for a book set at the Crawford house in Spilled Ink, <\/em>releasing in December 2016.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Christmas Stalkings:<\/em><\/strong> A couple of years ago, Chautona was on a Facebook group and a young woman admitted to having seven Christmas trees.\u00a0 Intrigued, she named it the \u201cSeven Tree Obsession\u201d and wondered what kind of character would have seven trees\u2014and why.\u00a0 Well, the more she thought about it, the more interesting it became. After all, what would happen if ornaments got moved around when she wasn\u2019t looking?\u00a0 Who would do that?\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 And what could she add to complicate it?<\/p>\n

So, when the opportunity to do the Christmas Lights Collection<\/a> came, Chautona decided she wanted to do that story.\u00a0 It seemed easy enough to contain into forty-thousand words.\u00a0 HA!\u00a0 But she got in her car, turned on her trusty voice recorder, and in the three-hour trek to her ACFW meeting, she schemed, plotted, and laughed until her sides ached at the ideas she came up with.\u00a0 Half never made it into the book, of course, but that\u2019s okay. Chautona has a prequel\/sequel planned for it.\u00a0 Lord willing, New Year\u2019s Revolutions<\/em><\/strong><\/a> will release on December 31.\u00a0 It\u2019s the \u201cPaul Harvey\u201d version\u2014the \u201crest of the story.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Christmas Stalkings<\/em> does stand alone, Chautona wanted to explore Neal\u2019s side of things a bit.\u00a0 So she is. It\u2019ll be the fastest \u201cwrite-to-publication\u201d she\u2019s ever done, but she just had<\/em> to try.\u00a0 So, for NaNoWriMo,<\/a> Chautona is off to try to figure out what\u2019s up with Neal and why he\u2019s such a crusty curmudgeon.\u00a0 He\u2019s too young for that! \u00a0And maybe, just maybe, he\u2019ll embrace a \u201cnew life\u201d in the New Year.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"christmas-lights-banner\"<\/p>\n

BLOG STOPS:<\/strong><\/p>\n

November 15:\u00a0Bibliophile Reviews <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 16:\u00a0blogging it out<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 16:\u00a0God\u2019s Little Bookworm<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 17:\u00a0A Reader\u2019s Brain<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 17:\u00a0Blogging With Carol <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 18:\u00a0Reading Is My SuperPower<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 18: Proud to be an Autism Mom<\/a><\/p>\n

November 19:\u00a0Daysong Reflections<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 19:\u00a0Splashes of Joy<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 20:\u00a0D\u2019S QUILTS & BOOKS<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 20:\u00a0Christian Bookaholic<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 21:\u00a0Bigreadersite<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 22:\u00a0A Baker\u2019s Perspective<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 22:\u00a0A Greater Yes<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 23:\u00a0Back Porch Reads<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 24:\u00a0Blossoms and Blessings<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 25:\u00a0Reviewing Novels Online<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 25: A Path of Joy<\/a><\/p>\n

November 26:\u00a0Bukwurmzzz<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 27:\u00a0Raining Butterfly Kisses<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 27:\u00a0Debbie\u2019s Dusty Deliberations<\/a><\/p>\n

November 28:\u00a0Once upon a time<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

November 28:\u00a0Carpe Diem<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

GIVEAWAY:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"amazon_card\"<\/a>To celebrate their tour, the authors are giving away a $25 Amazon gift card! Click the link
\nbelow to enter. Be sure to comment on this blog post to claim nine extra entries in the giveaway!<\/p>\n

https:\/\/promosimple.com\/ps\/a8ae<\/a><\/p>\n

Save<\/span><\/p>\n

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Save<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MY REVIEW: “Christmas Lights” was a delightful collection of Christmas stories. I really liked the variety of styles and settings between the stories while each kept to the meaning of Christmas. Each story was so unique and enjoyable that it would be difficult for me to choose a favorite. I actually have not read previous […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[113,8,57,41],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21244","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-anthology","category-books","category-christmas","category-romance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21244"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=21244"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21244\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21263,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21244\/revisions\/21263"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=21244"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=21244"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daysongreflections.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=21244"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}