Guest Post By Celeste Fenton Author of Captive Heart at Brantmar Castle. (#contests- Enter to win a copy of the book and Amazon Gift Card. Contest ends 11/23)

    

 

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Captive Heart at Brantmar Castle

By Celeste Fenton

 Book Summary

Two mysteries. One fight for survival. And danger closing in from both sides of the sea.

Gabby Heart travels to a remote Scottish castle with her best friend, Abe—a bestselling children’s author—
expecting misty views, historic charm, and quiet time to plan their next book series. But Brantmar Castle holds more than ghosts of the past. When the women are taken hostage, Gabby must rely on her instincts, her resilience, and the help of men who may not deserve her trust to survive.

Meanwhile, on Dost Island, young residents are vanishing without a trace. As those left behind scramble for answers, unsettling clues emerge—leading to a dark motive no one could have predicted.

From the storm-swept highlands of Scotland to the rocky shores of New England, Captive Heart at Brantmar Castle blends mystery, emotional grit, simmering romance, and humor, in a story where secrets run deep... and time is running out.

Publisher: Independently Published (September 22, 2025)

ISBN: 979-8292238829

ASIN: B0FNLY4WXK

Print length:  389 pages (also available as ebook)

 

ENTER TO WIN A COPY OF THE BOOK AND VIEW THE TOUR STOPS PLEASE VISIT:

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GUEST POST 

Emotional Wildfires: Writing Through the Flames of Grief, Anger, and Longing

by Celeste Fenton

 

I didn’t start writing because life was peaceful. I started writing because everything I knew had caught fire.

Grief has a way of burning through your world—quietly at first, then suddenly, without mercy. In 2021, my life became a field of emotional wildfires. In a matter of months, I lost both of my dogs, a lifelong friend to cancer, and my beloved husband of nearly thirty years died unexpectedly of a heart attack. I sold the home where I thought we’d grow old together. Earlier, I stepped away from a long career in education—a role that had once given me purpose, direction, and identity.

In the aftermath, I was surrounded by ashes. The silence of an empty house was deafening. The days were shapeless, the nights endless. For so long, my roles had been clear: mother, wife, educator, mentor—a steady flame for others. Now, I didn’t know where to set my own light.

That’s when I turned to writing.

I’d always loved stories. As a child, they were escape routes; as an adult, they became bridges—to students, colleagues, communities. But in grief, writing became something else entirely. It became oxygen. A way to breathe through the smoke of everything I’d lost.

Out of those flames stepped Gabby Heart—the heroine of what became my Mysteries of a Heart series. She wasn’t created on purpose; she arrived. And although her story isn’t my story, she came out a smoldering place of loss, guilt, betrayal, and change. A mother. A widow. An artist. A teacher. Someone who has been burned but still sought warmth.

Her story gave me permission to work through my fear of rejection and that I wasn’t good enough to write. She offered an opportunity to explore what it means to rebuild, not by erasing the past, but by growing through it.

Writing through grief is messy work. There’s no map, no manual. You follow sparks—sometimes rage, sometimes sorrow, sometimes the faintest flicker of hope. For me, mystery was the perfect landscape for that journey. On the surface, a mystery is about solving puzzles, restoring order. It’s about understanding—watching, listening, waiting to see how the pieces fit together, or not.

That’s what grief asks of us, too.

In fiction, I discovered something that surprised me: the fire doesn’t just destroy—it reveals. It clears what no longer serves us, exposing tender ground where something unexpected can grow. Sometimes that’s healing. Sometimes it’s courage. Sometimes it’s a story that  whispers, you’re still here.

That whisper became my permission to grow

Through Gabby’s world, I could explore the contradictions of surviving—how we can ache and still laugh, fear and still love, feel broken and still choose beauty. Her world isn’t neat. It’s layered, imperfect, full of sarcasm and soft spots, much like the women I know and cherish. Women who, like me, have lived long enough to understand that the fire of hurt and loss changes you, but it doesn’t have to end you.

In our middle and later years, I think many of us carry hidden embers—quiet griefs, unspoken anger, the ache of what might have been. We’ve lost people, homes, roles, routines. But we’ve also gained clarity. Depth. A fierce kind of compassion.

Writing has become my way of tending those inner fires. It’s how I transform the flames of loss into light I can live by. I may no longer lead classrooms or faculty meetings, but I still teach—in a different way. Through story, I remind others, and myself, that it’s never too late to reinvent, to rise, to burn brightly in a new form.

We all face wildfires of one kind or another. They scorch, they scar, they change the landscape. But if we’re willing to walk through them—to write through them—we may just discover that beneath the ashes lies something beautiful: our self and the spark of who the self that is constantly learning and growing.

So now it’s your turn. I’d love for the readers and visitors to share in the comments. How have you navigated through grief? Was there a quote, book, poem, or song that helped you through? Contact me at https://celestefenton.com/contact or on social media.

 Purchase a copy of Captive Heart at Brantmar Castle

Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/Captive-Heart-Brantmar-Castle-Mysteries/dp/B0FNNF1N9L

Barnes & Noble:  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/captive-heart-at-brantmar-castle-celeste-fenton/1148429830

Books-a-Million: https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Captive-Heart-Brantmar-Castle/Celeste-Fenton/9798292238829

You can also add this to your GoodReads reading list

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/241919370-captive-heart-at-brantmar-castle?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=pApPHZoBlz&rank=8

 

About the Author, Celeste Fenton

 Celeste Fenton holds an M.Ed. and Ph.D. in education and has over thirty years’ experience in higher education. Her writing is fueled by a lifelong love of mystery, a fascination with the complexities of the human heart, and just enough real-world experience to keep things interesting. A widow, mother of adult twin sons, proud grandmother, dog lover, and semi-retired professor living in Florida, she weaves imagination with insight to create stories that are both emotionally rich and laced with suspense.

When she’s not writing, reading, or plotting her next twist, she’s often off exploring small towns across America—setting out solo for month-long adventures, much to the awe (and occasional alarm) of friends and family. Her latest obsessions include escape rooms, mastering the perfect miter cut for a DIY bathroom remodel, and making the impossible decision of where to travel next.

You can follow the author at:

Website: https://celestefenton.com/

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/people/Celeste-Fenton-Mysteries-of-a-Heart

IG: https://www.instagram.com/celestefentonwrites/

https://www.youtube.com/@CelesteFentonWrites

https://www.tiktok.com/@celestefenton 

https://www.bookbub.com/profile/1923908781 

https://bookshop.org/shop/celestefenton 

ENTER TO WIN A COPY OF THE BOOK AND VIEW THE TOUR STOPS PLEASE VISIT:

 https://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com/2025/11/captive-heart-at-brantmar-castle-by.html

#MysteriesOfAHeart 

Guest Post by Britt Lind Author of Deception(A Hollywood Mystery)(#Contests- Enter to win A Copy of The authors Memoir.)

 

Book Details:

Book Title:  DECEPTION (A Hollywood Mystery) by Britt Lind 
Category:  Adult Fiction (18 yrs +),  281 pages
Genre: Mystery / Thriller
Publisher:  Bublish
Release date:   May, 2020
Content Rating: PG: There is some bad language and sex scenes that are fit for teens

Book Description:

"Britt Lind has written an intriguing mystery filled with twists and turns that takes place in a world she knows well from every perspective." - Carlyne Grager - Talent Representative and Owner of Dramatic Artists Agency Los Angeles and Seattle.

The battle between good and evil is ill-defined in the land of Hollywood. Rarely do kind, compassionate souls win the spoils of war which makes their rare victories all the sweeter.

Josh Sibley, singer/songwriter, is handsome, talented, smart and headed for oblivion. Alcohol provides relief when his demons threaten to overwhelm his every effort to break free of his past. When his friend Jennie Seger arranges for him to write songs for a multi-million-dollar feature, all his doubts and fears fall away, and he embraces the opportunity like a starving man who has found a bounteous feast during a famine.

Lightning strikes his lonely heart in the form of singer/actress Lila Levy who is married to the producer of the movie and flaunts her sexuality at Josh knowing her breathtaking beauty more than makes up for her lack of talent. Knowing his love for Lila is doomed from the start, he overlooks her shortcomings and keeps his feelings under wraps as he teaches her to sing his songs.

But this is Hollywood, and nothing is as it seems. Lila has secrets that Josh cannot begin to fathom and doesn't want to know. When her husband Stan is murdered, Lila disappears and Josh is confronted by the woman determined to track her down - Sergeant Rosemaria Baker of the Beverly Hills Police Department. Rosemaria is the opposite of Lila; she hates show business and considers Josh a delusional loser. When the cops track down Lila and bring her in, Lila declares herself innocent and the fight for the soul of Josh Sibley begins.

 Buy the Book:
Amazon
B&N ~ BAM
add to Goodreads 

GUEST POST: 

I have always approached writing visually because that’s what screenplays are all about, that and interesting plots and characters. When I found out how difficult it is to sell my own screenplays and get them produced (connections don’t help much) I decided to turn my script Deception into a book. It went through a lot of changes because writing a book is much more involved, but being visual was always important to me. I wanted readers to see what I see but also use their own imaginations and not overwrite descriptions. And because, by the time I wrote the book, my character of Josh Sibley was so real to me and I knew him on such a deep level, his actions flowed and became absolutely organic. I think that is why a lot of people often remark after reading one of my Hollywood Mysteries, “This should be a movie.” I agree! And Deception was meant to be one. When the book was a script I was asked, “Who do you think should play Josh?” Then later, after the other Hollywood Mysteries were published, “Who do you think should play Rosemaria?” For Rosemaria, I vote for Jessica Chastain. I can see her playing that role but, unfortunately, writers don’t get to choose the actors in their movies. When I began writing Josh, I clearly saw in my mind a young Nick Nolte as he appeared in the movie 48 Hours. But now that Nick is older, someone in his 30s who looks and acts just like him is who I would want. It should only happen

---

Also Available for Review:

Book Details:

Book Title:  MALOVENCE (A Hollywood Mystery) by Britt Lind 
Category:  Adult Fiction (18 yrs +),  359 pages
Genre: Mystery / Thriller
Publisher:  Bublish
Release date:   May, 2022
Content Rating: PG: There is some bad language and very little sex

Book Description:

Rosemaria must solve the murder of a young girl in Malevolence-A Hollywood Mystery. Politics play a part, but who and why will keep readers up at night! Highly recommended!                                                                        --  Chanticleer Reviews


Rosemaria Baker, a cop whose blood runs true blue, has become a prosecutor who now gets to put the perpetrators in jail instead of just arresting them. She is blissfully happy living with the love of her life, Josh Sibley, who is about to make a major breakthrough in his career as a singer-songwriter. But real life interrupts their perfect world when two girls who Rosemaria rescued from the streets of Hollywood become the targets of ruthless assassins after a third girl is murdered. Rosemaria must arrange protection for the girls, continue working her caseload at the courthouse, investigate the murder, and deal with a coworker who seeks to destroy her career. Through it all, the love and support Rosemaria and Josh have for each other is unfailing. When it finally seems that some semblance of order is falling into place, Rosemaria faces an unexpected, terrifying threat, and she must depend on those who love her to rescue her from certain death.

Buy the Book:
Amazon
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add to Goodreads

Enter to Win a Kindle and 10 Kindle Books (US Residents Only #contest Ends 12/31/25)

 

Kindle & 10 Books Giveaway! (US Only)

To celebrate our wonderful community of readers, we’re hosting an exclusive giveaway:

One lucky winner will receive:

• A brand-new Kindle

• 10 Kindle books from our talented mystery, crime, thriller, and cozy authors

How to Enter:

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Open to US Residents Only.

Giveaway ends December 31, 2025. The winner will be selected at random and contacted directly.

Don’t miss your chance to cozy up with a new Kindle and ten exciting reads chosen just for mystery lovers like you!

Thank you for supporting our authors and sharing the love of great books!

2025 Celebration Giveaway - Kindle & 10 Kindle ebooks!

Book Blitz of Jingled by Evan J. Corbin. (#Contests- Enter to win an Amazon gift card)

Jingled
Evan J. Corbin
Publication date: November 7th 2025
Genres: LGBTQ+, Satire, Speculative Fiction

Matt Daughtry has always felt like he and his parents live in separate worlds—his shaped by the urbane, Northeastern liberal elite, theirs by Southern conservatism, homespun “common sense,” and talk show-fueled conspiracies. His homosexuality remains an open secret, something they sidestep rather than confront, much less accept. When he and his sister return for Christmas, the wrong sibling brings home a boyfriend for the first time.

What starts as a tense but routine holiday gathering takes a surreal turn the next morning. Flights are canceled, pilots and flight attendants mysteriously take time off, and by the following day, an estimated seventy-eight million Americans fail to return to work. Their explanation? They just want to spend more time with their families. Christmas can be every day when you’re with family.

His parents—and millions of Americans—are suffering from a bizarre condition, trapped in an endless holiday loop, determined to celebrate Christmas every day. They make choices that go against their self-interests. Blissfully unbothered by their accumulating debts, economic collapse, or even basic responsibilities, they live in a festive delusion seemingly fueled by an addictive algorithm used by an evangelical shopping app called MerryNet.

At first, Matt sees no reason to get involved. He’s never been able to reach his parents before—why would this be any different? But as the syndrome spreads, paralyzing the country, he stumbles upon evidence linking the outbreak to corporate actors intent on silencing their perceived right-wing enemies. Faced with a choice between complicity and action, Matt realizes that exposing the truth may come at the cost of his career, safety, and sanity. But the country may slide further into a dystopian nightmare if he doesn’t act.

With the help of his boyfriend and sister, Matt must not only uncover the syndrome’s cause and cure but also confront the deeper divisions tearing his family—and the nation—apart.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

His father stood at the head of the table, clearing his throat in a way that demanded reverence. “Let’s join hands and pray over the meal,” he said.

Matt hesitated, his fingers brushing Grant’s as they linked. He glanced at his boyfriend, who exuded detached curiosity, like Jane Goodall observing chimpanzees in a mealtime ritual. The faintest twitch of Grant’s lips hinted at a private joke, but he said nothing, playing the part of the respectful outsider with disarming ease.

“Thank you, dear Lord, for delivering this family together tonight,” his father said, his eyes closed. “Even though my children forsake you, please forgive them so that they may join their mother and me in heaven.”

Matt bit down on his lip and squeezed Grant’s hand tighter.

“Amen,” his mother said. “Matt, does your friend eat ham?”

“I do,” Grant said. “Even if I didn’t, I’d make an exception for this. It’s a honey ham?”

“Yes, it’s Matt’s favorite,” she said. “Isn’t it, Matt?”

Matt scowled at his empty plate. “I’m not as hungry as I thought.”

His father’s cheeks flushed. “Your mother spent all day making this meal. Don’t sulk. Eat.”

“I’m not hungry either,” Elise said as she twirled her origami-like napkin on the table.

Matt’s mother sucked in a choppy breath of air and turned her head, blotting her nose with her napkin.

“Kids,” his father said, “this is Christmas. Christmas is for family.”

“I just don’t understand,” his mother said, giving another sniffle.

A hush fell over the table. Silent night, indeed, Matt thought. A music box chimed in the distance under the tree. Matt could feel his pulse thudding in his neck.

Aunt Cathy refolded her napkin and tucked it under her plate. “Welcome to the family, Grant. Matt tells me you’re a psychologist. I suspect you already know we’re crazy.”

“Still a resident, technically,” Grant said. “I’m just happy to be here. It isn’t my place to say.”

“Maybe we do need professional help,” Matt’s mother said behind a smile Matt didn’t trust. “Do you know why my son and his sister hate his parents so much that they’d come here just to starve themselves at our table?”

Matt’s father didn’t look up from his plate. “Judy, let’s leave Matt’s guest alone.”

“No, I want to know,” she said, forgetting to hold her smile.

Grant took a sip of his wine. “It’s really quite simple, Mrs. Daughtry,” he said as if observing an early impressionist work at the art gallery. “Your children love you but feel the transaction is one-sided. Your love for them is perceived as conditional on their support for your values.”

“Excuse me,” Matt’s mother said as indignation dried her tears.

“You’re excused,” Grant said. “I’m a professional. And you did ask.”

“Grant,” Matt said, reaching for Grant’s knee and immediately regretting how his tone sounded like his father’s. His stomach churned as he saw his mother’s hand tremble over her napkin.

“Is this how you speak to your own family?” she shot back.

“Yes. They’ve come to appreciate my honesty.”

“Elise, do you hear this?”

“I don’t know, Mom,” Elise said. “He’s not wrong.”

“Elise!”

“What? We’re all thinking it.”

Matt’s father dropped his fork with a clatter. “If we didn’t love you, why would we invite you here? Wrap all these gifts?”

Elise rose from her chair. “I don’t think it’s faith or love when it just pushes people away while you cling to a piety that makes you think you’re better than anyone who doesn’t watch your news shows, read your websites, vote for your favorite fascists, wear your stupid dresses, or donate to your megachurch!”

His father huffed and stormed out. His mother turned toward the window, biting down on her knuckles. “This isn’t how Christmas should be,” she sobbed. “Christmas is for family.”

“I wouldn’t mind having one of those nutty brownies now,” Grant said.

Author Bio:

Evan resides in Philadelphia, PA. When he's not working or spending time with his friends, he writes a little.

 

 

 

 

Website

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Jingled Blitz

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Book Blitz of Have You Seen Him by Kimberly Lee (#contests- Enter to win An Amazon Gift Card.)

Have You Seen Him
Kimberly Lee
Publication date: July 1st 2025
Genres: Adult, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller

What if everything you believed about yourself was totally wrong?

For David Byrdsong, life is a series of daily obligations. An attorney, he lacks both ambition and the ability to commit to a long-term relationship with his girlfriend, Gayle. Abandoned by his family at an airport when he was eleven, he learned to blunt his feelings, despite his subsequent adoption by a loving couple.

Until one day, when David discovers his own face in a missing child ad. Suddenly driven to uncover the truth about his past, he is forced to tap into his inner strength as he encounters corporate conspiracies, murdered bystanders, and distressing suspicions about the only family he’s ever really trusted. David enlists Gayle’s help—and the help of an unlikely stranger with secrets of his own—as he attempts to find his true family, whoever they are.

Thrilling, exploratory, and propulsive, Have You Seen Him is a story of lost identity, dangerous secrets, and a deeply personal pursuit of the truth.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Bookshop

—

EXCERPT:

David looked around his apartment for a chore, a task, something to keep himself from thinking about facing his coworkers the next day. It was a tall order; he was a minimalist, freakishly neat. Everything was “in its place.” Sifting through junk mail was the thing he resented the most, so David forced himself to do it as penance for his milquetoast behavior in court.

Even though he knew recycling was the right thing to do—for the melting polar ice caps, the coral reef, all that—he hated the monotony of sorting through everything. He suppressed the urge to chuck it all into the same bin. Trash, like pretty much everything else these days, was unnecessarily complicated. Who knew for sure if the carefully categorized items ever even made it to the place where things could be salvaged and revived and turned into handbags made of candy wrappers, seatbelts, and pull-tabs. A documentary he’d watched had uncovered the fact that in at least one town, and probably many others, every single throwaway went to the landfill, whether the bin was blue, black, or green.

But he felt guilty when he didn’t do it, and he had enough things to feel guilty about. The incident at work, his useless behavior. Not picking Gayle up from the airport. He’d wanted to see her, especially after the upsetting day. On the brief phone call before her flight took off, he’d promised to meet her at LAX. But he knew he’d conjure up a reason not to be there. Airports were overripe with too much—too many people, too much movement, too many unknowns.

He rifled through the papers and envelopes. Deals on mattresses, Lay-Z-Boy recliners, chimney cleaning, and towards the bottom of one of the leaflets, the words “¿Me Has Visto?” He had taken Spanish from the voluptuous Mrs. Boyette in 10th grade, so the translation was easy. “Have You Seen Me?”

The pictures accompanying the plea were obscured by something from the Red Cross. He crushed all of the pages into a pointy, misshapen ball, then felt shame for not even glancing at the photo of the poor lost child. He opened the bundle back up and laid the paper on the table, smoothing the crinkled paper with his hands.

David focused in on the ad and saw his own face gazing back at him. He shook his head as if to shake the foolishness out.

“What the—?” His eyes locked on the image. “This. Can’t be real.” He leaned

further in and squinted. The technology had somehow managed to match his exact shade of brown. Although the nose in the picture was a bit too narrow, it was close enough. David had a full, close-cropped beard; the man in the picture barely had a mustache. Regardless, it was him, in a “computer-generated image of subject at thirty-six years old,” as stated by the printed words below the man’s, well, his, picture.

What the hell?

The photo on the left was a picture he’d never actually seen, but it was how he remembered himself at eleven years old, refusing to smile for the goofy school photographer. “Wuss happnen,” the photographer had said as David approached the stool, centered in front of a faded blue background. David frowned. The only people who spoke like that were characters on the old reruns his parents watched. But the photographer had kind eyes. After the photo, David smiled and held out his hand as he exited the bandroom-turned-photo studio. “Gimme five,” he offered, the way he’d seen it done on TV. It made the man’s day; he’d slapped David’s hand with enthusiasm. David was glad he had done it, this grand gesture. The photographer was married to Mrs. Dalton, the hard-faced 3rd grade teacher. He deserved a break.

But David was at a new school, living with his new family, by the time the batch of photos were developed and sent home in cellophane envelopes with his classmates. He’d never seen the pictures.

Until now.

Author Bio:

Kimberly Lee, JD, is a writer, workshop facilitator, and editor with a passion for nurturing the imaginative spirit and helping others reveal their creative gifts. She holds degrees from Stanford University and UC Davis School of Law. Kimberly lives in Southern California with her husband and three children.

Website / Instagram / Pinterest

 

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Have You Seen Him Blitz

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Book Blitz of Royally Off-Limits by Kate O'Keeffe. (#contests- Enter To Win An Amazon Gift Card.)

Royally Off-Limits
Kate O’Keeffe
(Royally Kissed, #4)
Publication date: November 6th 2025
Genres: Adult, Comedy, Contemporary, Romance

He needs a royal redemption arc. She needs to keep her distance. The public wants a story, preferably a romantic one.

I called him Ledonia’s most eligible man-child in a headline. Now I’m living at his palace.

After my no-holds-barred exposé on Prince Maximilien goes viral, the royal family doesn’t banish me—they hire me. Apparently, the King and Queen think damage control looks like me filming an exclusive behind-the-scenes series on their charming, cocky, scandal-prone son.

Prince Max isn’t thrilled. In fact, he downright despises me. Which is fine. Because the feeling? Entirely mutual.

But the thing is, I didn’t expect him to be smarter, deeper, and somehow even hotter in royal pajamas. And I definitely didn’t expect to start falling for a man I’ve built a career out of publicly roasting.

There’s just one problem: He has no idea who I really am.

He may be a real-life prince, but I’m royally off-limits.

Enemies to lovers

Hidden identity

Forced proximity

One bed

Slow burn, kissing only

And a Labrador puppy called Toffee

Romantic, fun, and swoon worthy, Royally Off-Limits is a laugh-out-loud romp about a prince who has lost his way and a woman with a hidden past who has everything to lose. It’s The Princess Diaries for grown-ups meets The Hating Game. If you love opposites attract, forced proximity, slow burns, snarky banter, and a royal who accidentally falls hard, this one’s for you.

All the titles in the Royally Kissed series can be read as standalone novels or as part of the series.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

Good people of Ledonia! Hold on to your fascinators because your ever-devoted royal correspondent is reporting on the most spectacular display of royal ridiculousness in recent memory!

I’m calling it The Scene of Aquatic Chaos, aka man-child Max getting up and personal with royal carp.

Every royal watcher’s favorite, Prince Maximilien, has provided us with enough entertainment to fuel my column for the next century. And trust me, darlings, this story is positively dripping with drama (quite literally, as you’ll soon discover).

It’s a perfectly civilized palace garden party. Cucumber sandwiches, pots of tea, children politely enjoying a slip ‘n slide, and our beloved royal family mingling with distinguished guests beneath the afternoon sun.

So far, so regal.

But then our himbo Max decided to transform this genteel gathering into something resembling a nature documentary gone spectacularly wrong.

After what sources describe as “a martini or two”, our Prince McHottie Junior apparently lost a bet with his friends. The stakes? A fully clothed journey down the children’s slip ‘n slide.

Now, one might think a twenty-seven-year-old prince would possess enough rudimentary knowledge of physics to calculate that about two hundred pounds of royal muscle hurtling down a children’s water slide might produce some unexpected results.

One would be mistaken.

What followed, according to multiple horrified witnesses, was nothing short of aquatic pandemonium. Our dear prince launched himself torpedo-style down the slide, landing in an 18th-century decorative fishpond, the very same pond that houses descendants of ceremonial carp gifted by the Thai King to the country of Ledonia over 200 years ago.

The result? Seven fish sent airborne in a spectacular display, captured in my trending TikTok (link below), featuring a child’s call of “Cannonball”. Because let’s face it, no quote says ‘dignified monarchy ’like a fully grown man in a pond.

Fear not, fish lovers among us. Every dislodged fish was scooped off the lawn and returned to the pond unscathed.

So, here’s to you, man-child Max, himbo extraordinaire, for reminding us that even princes are human, that aristocratic carp can fly, and even the most sophisticated garden parties can become disasters worthy of trending TikTok fame.

Your ever-devoted royal correspondent,

Fabiana Fontaine xx

#ManChildMax
#RoyalCannonball
#SpiceUpTheGardenParty

Author Bio:

Kate O’Keeffe is a USA Today bestselling author known for her fun, feel-good romantic comedies brimming with humor, heart, and happily ever afters. A native of New Zealand, Kate has crafted numerous popular series, garnering a devoted international readership.

With a flair for witty banter and irresistible heroines navigating the ups and downs of modern dating, Kate’s novels showcase strong friendships, comedic entanglements, and the of course sometimes bumpy but always hopeful road to love.

When she’s not writing, Kate can often be found reading romcoms, binging her favourite shows, or spending time with her friends and family in the beautiful Hawke’s Bay region of New Zealand.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Instagram / Bookbub

GIVEAWAY!

Royally Off-Limits Blitz

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Book Blitz of That Boy by Briar Black (#contests- Enter to win Swag

That Boy
Briar Black
(The Cheshire Set, #3)
Publication date: November 6th 2025
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Holiday, Romance, Suspense

Building an impossible tea farm in the Cheshire countryside was Sofia’s second chance. A way to prove herself. A fresh start. She knew it would be graft. She anticipated a degree of isolation. But with Christmas imminent and the farm failing, her thoughts have grown darker. She’s searching for something — an ineffable force to make this year the magical wonderland she always craves and never finds.

Yet with the farm failing there’s no time to fix her ailing social life. Sofia resigns herself to another lonely holiday.

Enter Matt.

Delaware Grange’s twenty-one-year-old assistant gamekeeper. Nice enough, a bit dopey.

As she hunkers down for winter, Sofia thinks she’s prepared for everything. Nothing could prepare her for Matt. For the abrupt awareness of him. For the way he’s far more capable than he seems. Thoughtful. Considerate. Quietly intelligent.

Way sexier than he appears.

Suddenly impossible to ignore.

But Matt isn’t what he seems. A darkness runs beneath Delaware Grange — insidious, creeping, buried deep.

Sofia was little more than a challenge, a box for Matt to check, an assignment to complete. Until he fell.

Hard.

Now all he sees is her. All he wants is her. And all he knows is she has no idea who he truly is. While Sofia fights her feelings in the face of forbidden fruit, and Matt wrestles with the reality of his true purpose on the estate, the pair fall into an intoxicating, passionate, volatile romance.

As winter deepens and Christmas closes in, two lonely souls struggle to find peace in each other, and trust becomes the most dangerous choice on the estate.

Falling for Matt threatens everything Sofia has worked so hard to build. Falling for Sofia might just be the making of Matt.

That Boy is a high-heat, secret-identity romance where desire, deception, and devotion collide in a snowy small-town Christmas.

While not required, it is highly suggested to read Nightshade before That Boy.

Author’s Note: Each novel in The Cheshire Set can be read as a standalone, but the following order avoids spoiling the reading experience of earlier books.

Recommended Reading Order for The Cheshire Set:

1. Bane
2. Nightshade
3. That Boy

Eve Was Framed, a prequel novella to Bane, isn’t strictly part of The Cheshire Set but is available for free download on the author’s website.

Goodreads / Amazon

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EXCERPT:

‘Twas The Gloam Before Christmas…

A quiet, introspective moment between Matt and Sofia after a near-disaster. As they talk about “The Gloaming”—that melancholy space between Halloween and Christmas—their chemistry deepens and the novel’s central themes of loneliness, yearning, and rediscovery of light emerge.

“What’s the Gloaming?”

“Oh. Right.” I shifted, trying to find a way to lean that didn’t hurt my shoulder. It was useless. Until someone could pop it back in, I was doomed to dull agony. “It’s that feeling that threatens to drown you…” I paused, swallowing hard and staring out the window.

The world nearly drowned me tonight.

“This time every year.” I finally managed. “You know?”

Keep talking. Stay conscious. Don’t toss your cookies into his lap.

“That…overwhelming urge to…cover everything in cheer. But…” I took a little more water. “…the more you try, the less cheerful you feel. So you just keep…adding more.”

He chuckled.

“Hoping the cheer finds you before you’re…” Another tiny sip of water. “…crushed by baubles and fake fir garlands.”

He stared at me.

Great. Now he thinks I’m a total weirdo.

“I get it.” A slow smile spread across his face. “You’re staring at all the decorations. Watching the snow fall. And somewhere inside you’re sure you love Christmas. But you never quite seem to feel it.”

“Yes!” I sat up, and momentarily thought I’d blackout from the effort.

He eased me back into the sofa.

“Nailed it.” I swallowed. Talking was so much effort. Thinking was weirdly worse. “It’s a coping mechanism, I guess.”

He nodded, but when I didn’t continue, he made a winding motion with his hands.

“Every year this…fog descends. When Halloween’s over. This looming sense of…dread.”

“And it’s right when everyone else is getting excited.”

I nodded. “Exactly. Not me.” The wind howled savagely by, rattling the window and making us both jump. I turned my face away from the glass, not wanting to think about the carnage outside. “I’m sat there like a…miserly Scrooge.”

“Scrooge was never that pretty.”

I shook my head. “Don’t flirt with me.”

“Keep talking then.”

I didn’t want to. I just wanted to sleep.

My eyes drifted, and he nudged my knee with his. “Sof?”

With gargantuan effort, I rallied. “Welcome to Gloamas!” I wheezed. “Not quite Christmas. Not quite apathy. Some…twisted netherworld.”

He permitted me another tiny sip of water for my effort.

I swallowed it and continued, “You’re stuck for weeks. Longing to be…joyful and merry. But…that ineffable light is…absent.”

Matt pursed his lips. “So…it’s not gloomy, it’s gloamy. You’re in the twilight. Daylight’s gone. You know it will be back at some point, but in the interim, you’re left with a hollow echo—”

“How you…loved Christmas…as a kid,” I managed. “Desperately wish to…feel it all.”

He grinned. “But for now, the light’s faded. Until the sun rises, you’re left wisting after a feeling.”

I stared at him. “And someone to share it with.”

Matty shifted a little closer. He was still soaking wet from the rain. Must have been freezing. Yet he hadn’t complained. Hadn’t even seemed to notice. I leant into him and shivered. More at the thought of how cold he must be than anything else. But he stripped off my blankets (now soaked) and wrapped me in two new dry ones.

The phone rang, and he shot up to grab it.

“She’s okay, I think. Conscious, talking, the bleeding’s stopped. Her shoulder’s bad, but—”

A pause as whoever was on the other end of the line spoke.

“Are you sure it’s safe?” He peered out of the window. “The rain’s still coming down hard.”

Another pause.

“Okay. We’ll be here.”

He hung up. “Sounds like the storm’s passing. It’s lightening up at the house, and the rain’s almost stopped down there. They’re on their way up. By the time they get here, it should have cleared.”

“The track will be murder.” I tried to sit up.

He moved and blocked me, forcing me to stay still. “Easy.”

“Give me the phone.”

“They’ve already left, Sof.”

I struggled some more.

“Stop!”

Calm. But firm. Commanding.

I’ve never heard him speak like that before.

“Stop.”

Softer. Eyes searching mine.

My heart fluttered.

“We’d all gladly risk a bit of fucking mud to get you safe. You must know that?”

My breath caught. My chest constricted painfully. His jaw was locked. The look in his eyes was…feral.

And so fucking hot.

There’s really something wrong with me.

Satisfied I wasn’t about to bolt for the door, he sat back down. Glanced around.

“Is that why all your decorations are so…weirdly depressing?”

“They’re not.” I sniffed.

“They really are, Sof. Like…they’re full of the festive spirit but don’t quite hit the mark.”

He glanced at my forlorn little tree. Which, in fairness, was at least standing vertically now. I’d come in one day to find him scrambling around on the floor, fiddling with the screws on the base to get it standing straight.

He was right. The baubles were desolate.

I loved them.

“I like them.” Matt wrapped the blankets tighter around me. “They’re comfortingly depressing. How Christmas should be. It always just…kind of reminds you of all you’re missing in life.”

Author Bio:

Briar has been a professional copywriter for many years (far more than she cares to admit). She began her career working for large companies and agencies before realising she could do it all for herself. Now, she happily writes for businesses and entrepreneurs she’s passionate about and dreams of the day her fiction becomes popular enough for her to retreat into fictional worlds full-time. Growing up in Cheshire and falling in love with its countryside, small towns, and villages, she’s enjoyed creating a fictional world that reflects her own.

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Book Blitz of A Wyoming Family Holiday by Virginia McCullough (#contests- Enter to Win and Amazon gift card)

A Wyoming Family Holiday: A Clean and Uplifting Romance
Virginia McCullough
(Back to Adelaide Creek, #5)
Published by: Harlequin Heartwarming
Publication date: October 28th 2025
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Holiday, Romance, Women’s Fiction

Can saving a town landmark…

Restore her faith in love?

When attorney Sloan Lancaster returns to Adelaide Creek to care for his father, he’s shocked at Winding Creek Rehab and Care Center’s run-down state. He considers moving his dad but is drawn to his high school crush Bethany, in charge of the facility’s restoration. Moved by Bethany’s community spirit and her adorable young daughter, Heidi, Sloan makes an anonymous donation to the center as the holidays bring them all closer. But when Sloan’s identity is revealed, Bethany pulls away, anxious about conflict of interest. Can she overcome her fears to embrace Sloan’s support—and build the loving family she’s always wanted?

From Harlequin Heartwarming: Wholesome stories of love, compassion and belonging.

Back to Adelaide Creek

Book 1: The Rancher’s Wyoming Twins
Book 2: The Doc’s Holiday Homecoming
Book 3: His Wyoming Surprise
Book 4: Finding His Wyoming Sweetheart
Book 5: A Wyoming Family Holiday

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Apple Books / Kobo

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EXCERPT:

Sloan Lancaster raised the hood of his jacket and raced through the downpour, skirting the water overflowing dips and deep potholes in the asphalt parking lot. This, plus the rundown brick and wood exterior, was all he needed to conclude that the Winding Creek Rehab and Care Center was past its prime. Especially dreary was the aging paint job, once white, but now a dull, dirty gray. Sloan summed up his first impression of this facility in one word: neglected.

As he ducked into the hands-free revolving door a commotion in the lobby caught his attention. Women and men in scrubs or lab coats were pushing and pulling furniture across the carpeted floor, while a couple of burly guys in maintenance uniforms dragged an oversized tarp into the far corner of the room where rainwater ran down the wall.

Two women a few feet in front of him struggled to pull a couch across the middle of the lobby. He approached from behind and called out, “Wait, let me help with that. Tell me where you want it.”

A woman spun around. “Thanks. We can use the help.” Her eyes opened wide in surprise. “Sloan?”

“Bethany?” He struggled to find his next words as he grasped the wooden armrest on one end. “I’d know you anywhere.” It was true. He hadn’t seen her since high school and she’d barely changed at all.

Not the time to ask a lot of questions. He made his early morning workouts pay off as he dragged the couch to the only empty spot on the other side of the lobby big enough to accommodate it. The space was already filled with a hodgepodge of tables and armchairs that had escaped the leaking roof and ceilings.

Bethany pushed the couch from the other end. Her expression turned serious as she straightened up and put her hands on her hips. “You’re here to see your dad, I assume. Medical transport brought him here a couple of hours ago.”

Her burgundy pantsuit and crisp tailored white shirt gave her a professional look in the style of the women lawyers at his firm. That led Sloan to guess that his old friend Bethany Hoover was an administrator in this place, where, for better or worse, his dad was now a patient. The worn out exterior and general disarray in the lobby weren’t filling him with positive feelings about that.

The opposite, in fact.

Author Bio:

A writer all her adult life, Virginia McCullough has had the opportunity to write the stories of her heart in her novels, including Girl in the Spotlight, the first book in her Two Moon Bay series for Harlequin Heartwarming. (Book 2 is scheduled for release in January 2018). Her award-winning romance and women’s fiction titles include The Jacks of Her Heart, Amber Light, Greta’s Grace, The Chapels on the Hill, and Island Healing.

Born and raised in Chicago, Virginia has been lucky enough to develop her writing career in many locations, including the coast of Maine, the mountains of North Carolina, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and currently, Northeast Wisconsin. She started her career in nonfiction, first writing articles and then books as a ghostwriter and coauthor. She’s written more than 100 books for physicians, business owners, professional speakers and many others with information to share or a story to tell.

Virginia’s books feature characters who could be your neighbors and friends. They come in all ages and struggle with everyday life issues in small-town environments that almost always include water—oceans, lakes, or rivers. The mother of two grown children, you’ll find Virginia with her nose a book, walking on trails or her neighborhood street, or she may be packing her bag to take off for her next adventure. And she’s always working on another story about hope, healing, and second chances.

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A Wyoming Family Holiday Blitz

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Cover Reveal of Selecting the Wrong Love by E. Masson & Julie G. Henry. (#Contests- Enteer to win an amazon gift card.)

Selecting The Wrong Love
E. Masson & Julie G. Henry
(The LoveWade Tale Series, #1)
Publication date: February 20th 2026
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Love can turn your life upside down.
Sometimes more than once…
Just ask Amber…..
Amber thought she knew exactly what she wanted.

She was wrong.

Medical school. Career. Success. Everything mapped out perfectly until three men walked into her life and turned her world upside down.

James crashed into her on campus and never really left. Sweet, steady, completely devoted. He became the friend she couldn’t live without, even though his eyes promised so much more. But Amber had bigger plans than falling for a business major student.

Then Levi appeared like a gift from the universe. Gorgeous, brilliant, medical school’s golden boy. When he chose her out of everyone else, Amber felt invincible. This was it. This was her perfect match.

One positive pregnancy test later, and Amber’s carefully constructed future crumbled. Medical school could wait. Dreams could be rebuilt later. She married her prince and prepared for happily ever after.

What she got instead was a nightmare in designer clothes.

Years of trying to save a marriage that was doomed from the start left Amber broken and questioning everything. While she was busy playing the perfect wife, the perfect man had been waiting in the wings. Still single. Still hopeful. Still completely in love with the woman who’d shattered his heart.

But some chances expire. And Amber’s running out of time to claim the love she was too blind to see.

Will she wake up before it’s too late?

Add to Goodreads / Pre-order

Author Bio:

Hello lovely readers! Welcome to my corner of the literary world, where fiction comes alive in all its glory! I am E. Masson, a captivating romance author with my pen dipped in dreams and a heart full of romance, I set my readers on the path of unforgettable journeys through the depths of the human heart. From whirlwind romances to slow-burning love stories, each page of my books are infused with warmth and emotion, leaving readers yearning for more.

I have a talent for creating characters you'll adore while feeling like old friends and settings that transport you to new worlds. I am here to sweep you off your feet with every word. So, get ready to rediscover the joy of falling in love with my enchanting romance novels. Welcome to the adventure!

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Selecting The Wrong Love Reveal

Book Blitz of The Mist and the Flame by Coral-Li St. Helen (#contests Enter to win an Amazon gift card.)

The Mist and the Flame
Coral-Li St. Helen
(The New Bardiverse, #1)
Publication date: September 15th 2025
Genres: Fantasy, Historical, Young Adult

What’s really behind the story of star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet?

Let’s start with the truth about Rosaline—Romeo’s actual first love. Rosaline scorns romance and instead craves magic. To free herself from Romeo’s amorous attention as well as her dull life in Verona, she uses her limited sorcery skills to bring him and Juliet together. Renaming herself Foschia Luminosa, she then gleefully runs off to join a school of magic.

Just when Lumi’s dreams are about to come true, disaster Syra, the intimidating witch who runs the school, denies her entry and demands she return to Verona. She must repair the damage done by her spell or the young couple is doomed and Lumi will be outcast forever.

As tragedy looms ever nearer, Lumi reluctantly teams up with a mysterious, sullen girl calling herself Fiamma Fredda, an orphan of unknown parentage. Freddi is an astonishingly skilled fighter, but who is she, and does she really want to help—or is she using Lumi for her own purposes?

Join Lumi and Freddi in their thrilling quest to save Romeo and Juliet, learn of Freddi’s origins, and grapple with Syra’s own dark past. They—and you—are in for a great many surprises along the way…

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Apple Books / Kobo

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EXCERPT:

On the particular day that started it all, our tutor, Grigio, gave me something to translate which turned out to be an old recipe for a potion to be used for suppressing painful memories. It called for various common herbs which I knew Friar Lawrence grew in his garden, so I ran to him the first chance I got to ask for the ingredients. That, I found out later, was how the school at La Fortezza became interested in me. Friar Lawrence and, incredibly, my tutor both looked out for potential candidates to recruit for this secret school. Most of the tutor’s pupils, my cousin Juliet included, merely did the translation (perfectly, in her case). The very few with the curiosity to see if it would work, those were the ones that interested them.

But I knew none of that at the time; I was only interested in making the potion work. Initially, it didn’t, and I figured out there had been an ingredient omitted—possibly deliberately, so Grigio’s students wouldn’t have the complete formula. That was laughable—and insulting. I immediately began experimenting on my own, trying to figure out the missing item. (This extra step, apparently, made La Fortezza very interested in me.) My creations, placed discretely in various rooms, made me sneeze (not magical), made the cook giggle (possibly magical, since she generally had a dour disposition), and made my parents look at each other in a way I hadn’t seen in years (which was uncomfortable to witness but also possibly magical). I noted these combinations of ingredients down and, not satisfied, kept trying.

When I couldn’t quite come up with the perfect formula on my own, I sought the friar again. If Grigio was a young man who seemed like an old one, Friar Lawrence was, if not old, then middle-aged at least, but cheerful, jovial, and youthful in every aspect of his demeanor. To put it another way, he was possibly the only priest that people my age actually liked, someone who talked to you like a person and not just a sinner. In his little garden behind the church he welcomed me with delight, a dirt-crusted trowel in one hand and some mysterious wrinkled root in the other, immediately asking how my potion had gone.

“Not well, thank you. It didn’t work, but I think I know how I can fix it—with your help, if you would.”

“I would be most delighted to help,” he said, eager curiosity shining in his eyes. He put down the trowel and root, dusted his cassock off (though his hands were dirty too and he really only ended up shifting the soiling of the garment to different sections), and gestured me toward a bench where we both sat. “Now, how did you know it didn’t work?”

“I tried. A lot. The closest I got was when I tried it on Bruno, but even then it still wasn’t right.”

“Bruno?”

“The old dog I found wandering around outside our gate. I named him Bruno. Poor thing. He had been treated very badly, we think by a man or several of them—he is afraid of men. I wanted to see if I could help him forget his suffering. He seemed to be calmer when I sprinkled one particular herbal powder mix around him, but he still growls and shrinks away when a man goes by, so he hasn’t completely forgotten.”

The friar smiled. “That was kind of you to try, though a human subject might have been more able to communicate what they were experiencing.”

I shrugged. I wanted to try it on the dog because I wanted to alleviate his suffering. His big brown eyes were deep with sorrow. How could I do otherwise? I went on impatiently, “I know why it didn’t work—there’s an ingredient missing, isn’t there?”

Friar Lawrence tilted his head. “Yes and no. Well, yes and yes, I suppose. The recipe as you received it is in fact missing an ingredient, but that ingredient alone—stridolo petals, I believe—will not make this work. The real missing ingredient is you. Bruno calmed down because you were calm. Bruno cannot forget whatever suffering he went through, no matter what herbs you use, because you can’t forget it—because you never remembered it in the first place.”

“Of course not. I wasn’t there.” Now I frowned. Did I, too, have to be beaten and starved by cruel men for both of us to forget? Wasn’t there an easier way to help my poor sad-eyed friend? There was a limit to what even I wished to experience. “How can I make these things work without, well, going through terrible things?”

“It is a long and difficult journey to take, Rosaline. But I can try to show you the first steps.” He shifted a little on the bench so that he was facing me. “Think of a happy memory from your childhood, but don’t tell me about it.”

His simple request startled me. Was he going to read my mind?

Author Bio:

Coral-Li St. Helen is the pen name of a writer who lived all over the United States before settling down roughly in the middle. She loves reading and writing, hiking and napping, coffee, noodles, her spouse and her dog.

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The Mist and the Flame Blitz

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Book Blitz of Boutique Hotel by Melissa D. MacKinnon. (#Contests- Enter to win a paperback copy of the book.)

The Boutique Hotel
Melissa D. MacKinnon
Publication date: July 29th 2025
Genres: Adult, Mystery

“The Boutique Hotel is a richly absorbing novel. From the opening pages, MacKinnon weaves multiple narrative threads…with nuance, compelling the reader ever forward through its layered and engaging plot.”
—The Seaboard Review of Books

What happened in the days leading to murder at a glamorous destination wedding?

The story is set against the sophisticated backdrop of Nice, France. Evie Hansen, a travel agent determined to prove her worth, attends a destination wedding at the luxurious Negresco Hotel while staying at The Boutique Hotel au Coeur de Nice. She has sworn off dating, having suddenly been dropped by her boyfriend. Enter lawyer Jacob Liszt who is recovering from a stormy relationship and reluctant to start a new one.

Evie’s professional goals are upended by her discovery of a body on the hotel’s terrace. The search for answers leads her to partner with Jacob. Their investigation into the murder reveals disturbing truths about The Boutique Hotel, drawing them into a dangerous web of secrets and lies. They dig deeper, facing mounting peril, while navigating their growing feelings for each other.

Evie is forced to confront not only the dark realities of the case but her own life choices and aspirations.

The book delivers a series of fast-paced twists, culminating in a dramatic resolution.

With its vivid setting, complex characters, and timely themes, the book offers a compelling exploration of justice, self-discovery, and the pursuit of truth in the face of adversity.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Apple Books / Kobo

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EXCERPT:

As I’m taking photos of the art on the walls of the huge Reception Room, as per Pinkie’s request, vases of exquisite flowers on pedestals draw my attention. The arrangements of lilies, hydrangeas, white roses and other blossoms beckon. I take in the fresh, sweet, bouquet, redolent of spring days under our magnolia tree. If only I could have taken that tree with me when I sold the house.

Jacob walks toward me. When our eyes meet, he curls his lip in that irresistible way of his. I smile back.

“You’re so lovely. A flower in full bloom. Can I take your picture?” “Yes, please,” I say. I position myself in front of the arrangements.
“I’ll send it to you.”
An older man nearby stops. “I’ll take your picture, if you like.”

Author Bio:

Melissa loves reading, writing and travelling. She holds bachelor’s degrees in English and Education. Her first book, The Remarkable Meadow Andrews, was published in 2024. Melissa lives with her husband in Ontario, Canada.

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The Boutique Hotel Blitz

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