HHH December Book Day

NEW YEAR, NEW BOOK!

THE QUILTING CIRCLE SERIES Boxed Set

Historical Romance Series

By Mary Davis

THE WIDOW’S PLIGHT (Book1) – Will a secret clouding a single mother’s past cost Lily her loved ones?

THE DAUGHTER’S PREDICAMENT (Book2) *SELAH & WRMA Finalist* – As Isabelle’s romance prospects turn in her favor, a family scandal derails her dreams.

THE DAMSEL’S INTENT (Book3) *SELAH Winner* – Nicole heads down the mountain to fetch herself a husband. Can she learn to be enough of a lady to snag the handsome rancher?

THE DÉBUTANTE’S SECRET (Book4) – Complications arise when a fancy French lady steps off the train and into Deputy Montana’s arms.

 

 

BRIDE BY BEGUILEMENT

By Debbie Lynne Costello

Kirsten father’s last will and testament stipulates that she must either marry, lead the plantation into a first year profit, or forfeit it to her uncle. Thefts are hurting the profit and marriage is proving no easy option. Every suitor seems more enamored with the land than with her. Silas’s last year at veterinary school ends abruptly when he is called home to care for his young orphaned sisters. Troubles compound when he finds an insurmountable lien on the family home and an unscrupulous banker is calling in the loan. How will the two overcome pride and distrust to find real happiness?

 

 

CRAZY ABOUT CAIT

By Nancy J. Farrier

Cait Sullivan can’t believe her father had the temerity to hire Jonas Hall to take over her job—training their famed horses. Cait understands the importance of selling their horses to offset the cattle loss during the drought, but to hire Jonas after the way he broke her sister’s heart? That’s wrong. Jonas has to hide the fact he’s always loved Cait, and that he’s asked her father’s permission to win her hand in marriage. Now he must convince the fiery-tempered lass he isn’t the villain she thinks he is, and she is the bride God has for him.

 

 

BENEATH A RARE BLUE MOON

By Johnnie Alexander

One rare night. One risky mission. A second chance at love. On a rare blue-moon night in 1944, homefront guard Kathleen Forrest apprehends a suspected saboteur at Tennessee’s top-secret “Secret City”—only to discover he’s Roger Craig, the Army Intelligence agent who once held her heart. Ordered into an uneasy alliance after a key informant’s death, Kathleen and Roger must expose a lurking spy ring before sabotage strikes at the war’s heart. As danger mounts and long-buried feelings resurface, they face a life-or-death choice: trust each other again—or lose far more than the mission.

 

 

A CHEERFUL HEART ANTHOLOGY: LEGACY OF LOVE

By Linda Shenton Matchett

After fleeing the vacuous life of her nouveau riche parents, Meg Underwood is informed by the pushy, yet handsome Pinkerton agent, Reuben Jessop, she has inherited her aunt’s significant estate, and she must return home to claim the bequest. Unwilling to fail at his mission, Reuben gives her until Christmas to prove why she should remain in Oregon and give up the opportunity to become a woman of means. When he seems to want more than friendship, she wonders if her new-found wealth is the basis of his attraction.

 

 

LOVE IN BLOOM

By Suzanne Norquist, Kathleen E. Kovach, Mary Davis et al.

Four Bachelors Find Their Happily Ever After With This Bouquet of Brides.

“A Song for Rose” (1882, Rockledge, Colorado) by Suzanne Norquist

Can a disillusioned tenor convince an aspiring soprano that there is more to music than fame?

“Periwinkle in the Park” (1910, Colorado) by Kathleen Kovach

A female hiking guide runs into conflict with a mountain man who is determined to keep the government off his land.

“Holly & Ivy” (1890, Washington State) by Mary Davis

A young woman accompanies her impetuous younger sister across the country to be a mail-order bride and loses her heart to a gallant stranger.

 

 

TITANIC: LEGACY OF BETRAYAL

A Time-Slip Novel

By Kathleen E. Kovach, et al.

A secret. A key. Much was buried on the Titanic, but now it's time for resurrection. Follow two intertwining stories a century apart. 1912 - Matriarch Olive Stanford protects a secret after boarding the Titanic that must go to her grave. 2012 - Portland real estate agent Ember Keaton-Jones receives the key that will unlock the mystery of her past... and her distrusting heart. Review: “I told my wife to move this book to the top of her reading list... This titanic story is more interesting than the one told in the Titanic movie... She will absolutely love it.”

 

 

IRISH ROSE ORPHANS’ CHRISTMAS

By Susan G Mathis

Fall in love with seven unforgettable girls as their touching story unfolds in this prequel to the Irish Rose Orphans: A Thousand Islands Gilded Age Series. At the Irish Rose Orphan Asylum, the girls face their final Christmas together before entering service in the Gilded Age. Bound as “forever sisters,” they confront old wounds and separation. Annie and Taryn struggle with a silent rift, Fiona wrestles with abandonment, Vivian masks her fears, while Cassie, Isabel, and Gloria battle uncertainty. Yet they discover that faith, hope, and sisterhood will follow them wherever life leads.

 

 

THE SONGBIRD AND THE SURVEYOR

By Denise Farnsworth

Genevieve Gillbard knows she's no longer safe in the rough-and-tumble gold rush town when she overhears her controlling guardian's plot to steal gold from a local mine owner. It takes every ounce of her courage to escape, and now she'll do anything to keep herself safe, even accept a temporary marriage of convenience from a man who clearly wants nothing more than his independence. Even then, she fears the sham marriage might not be enough to keep her safe from her guardian's long reach.

 

 

EVEN IF I PERISH

By Terrie Todd

Based on a miraculous true story of courage in the face of impossible odds.

“To say it was hard to put down really doesn’t do justice to how gripping a tale this is… aware that a ship carrying children to Canada had been torpedoed and sunk by a German vessel, I was completely unaware of the story of Lifeboat 12. The horrors they faced once the torpedo struck, the chaos that ensued as the scramble was on for the lifeboats and then the incredible story of Mary Cornish and all the others in Lifeboat 12 makes for a gripping story.” (From an Amazon review.)

 

 

MONTANA GOLD

By Janalyn Voigt

Strike it rich with Montana Gold! Escape into six heartfelt inspirational Western historical romances that will affirm your faith in love. Follow the lives and loves of an Irish family in the Wild West. Travel the Oregon Trail to Montana's gold camps and fledgling cattle ranches. Experience each vibrant story and revel in the beauty and resilience of the American West. Here's your chance to savor new love, rousing adventure, and spiritual renewal on every page. Read the Montana Gold series.

 

 

EL JIREH - THE GOD WHO PROVIDES

Compiled by Living Parables of Central Florida

Mary Dodge Allen, contributor

In A Mother’s Desperate Prayer, Mary Dodge Allen shares her struggle with guilt and despair after her son is badly burned in a kitchen accident. When we are at the end of all we have, El Jireh shows His hand. God doesn’t always give us what we want or when we want it, but He perfectly provides all we need at the right time. The stories, poems, devotions, and essays in this collection demonstrate the various and mysterious ways God is El Jireh—the God who provides—to His children.

 

 

LOVE AND ORDER: A THREE-PART OLD WEST ROMANTIC MYSTERY

By Jennifer Uhlarik

Separated as children when they were adopted out to different families from an orphan train, the Braddock siblings of Callie, Andie, and Rion have each grown up and taken on various jobs within law enforcement and criminal justice. When the hunt for a serial killer with a long history of murders reunites the brother and sisters in Cambria Springs, Colorado, they find themselves not only in a fight for justice, but also a fight to keep their newly reunited family intact. How will they navigate these challenges when further complicated by unexpected romances?

 

 

SOLVE BY CHRISTMAS

By Amber Schamel

When sabotage threatens the Rudin Sugar Factory, Detective Jasper Hollock believes this will be his first real case. But dear Mr. Rudin—the only father Jasper has ever known—holds a different assignment for his private investigator. Convince him life is worth living. As the incidents at the factory become life threatening, Jasper’s attempts at dissuading Mr. Rudin prove futile. Time is ticking. Jasper must solve both cases by Christmas before Mr. Rudin, the company, and Jasper’s faith, are dragged to perdition. Will this be the Christmas Jasper truly discovers what makes life worth living?

 

 

SECRETS OF EPHESUS SERIES

By Liisa Eyerly

Winner of the Eric Hoffer First Horizon Award, Obedient Unto Death launches a gripping historical mystery series set in the perilous world of first-century Rome. In Fortunes of Death, fearless Christian sleuth Sabina returns—risking everything to expose murder, magic, and corruption beneath the empire’s glittering surface. With rich historical detail and powerful spiritual themes, author Liisa Eyerly delivers intrigue, danger, and hope in equal measure. Reviewer Deborah Anne raves: “Murder mystery—Intrigue—Love—Fellowship through Christ. This series has it all! Eyerly is wonderful! If you’re tired of boring—read this series! I love a good mystery!” Prepare to be hooked!

 

 

TEXAS RECLAIMED

By Sherry Shindelar

Cora Scott used to dream of falling in love. But the frontier has scrubbed such notions out of her. She’s had enough of waiting on men who can’t be counted on. By the end of the war, she’s lost everyone except for her little brother. Determined to hold onto the family land, she returns to her abandoned ranch, only to realize they can’t survive there on their own. When the dark-haired Yankee with haunted eyes shows up offering to help, she’s slow to respond. He’s a troubled man, and she’s had enough trouble. But her heart isn’t listening.

 

 

Soda Fountains – An American Icon by Linda Hoover

                                                     

When you think of a soda fountain, you might also think of the TV show Happy Days. The fifties were actually the end of the soda fountain golden age. My novella, Heart of Grace, is set in 1890, which, according to one source I read, is considered the beginning of the golden age. At that time, you’d find them in drug stores because the pharmacists promoted the drinks as medicinal. I took a deep dive into the history to see when it became a good idea to drink carbonated water, and was surprised to learn that as far back as 43 AD, people were going to Bath in England to drink or immerse themselves in the mineral waters there.


Fast forward to 1621, and you learn that the British are credited with being the first to bottle water and sell it. A resurgence in visiting spas and undergoing water therapy emerged among Europeans and American colonists in the 17th and 18th centuries. As early as 1767, Americans could purchase bottled water at a spa in Boston. In 1807, Henry Thompson received a patent for a method of infusing water with carbon dioxide. It was commonly called soda water even though it had no sodium carbonate in it.

Soda fountains began in Europe but had their biggest success in the U.S., where a Yale chemistry professor, among others, introduced Americans to soda water. He did such a brisk business in New Haven, CT, that he made bigger fountains and hired help. It didn’t take long for more businessmen to open shops in cities like New York and Philadelphia. Over time, fountains improved, and flavor was added to the water. In the beginning, soda fountains were found primarily in drug stores because pharmacists promoted the drinks as a medicinal. Later, they could be found in ice cream parlors, candy stores, and other locations where people gathered.

Root beer was the first syrup-based soda invented by a pharmacist, with Coca-Cola, Dr. Pepper, and Pepsi coming along later. Different fruit syrups were added to the carbonated water, which made them more popular, but when chemists discovered that the addition of acid phosphates gave the drinks a tangy taste that was what people wanted. A few of the flavors they used were cherry, lemon, orange, pineapple, and chocolate. The drink was even better with a scoop of ice cream.

Even in the late 1800s and early 1900s, businessmen were keeping statistics and making marketing plans. They deduced that the phosphate drinks appealed more to the masculine population, while the feminine side preferred dairy-based drinks. My heroine in Heart of Grace introduces the hero to his first ice cream float, and he’s hooked. Something that appealed to both of them. An interesting side note is their take on a milkshake. To begin with, they put ice cream and milk in a container and shook it. That defines a milkshake, but I have to say I prefer the way it’s done now.

Linda lives in west central Ohio with her husband and grandson. She earned a degree in psychology from Anderson University, where she learned that the voices in her head were actually characters from stories waiting to be told.

Linda has been writing since childhood, but her publishing career started with writing columns and a middle-grade serial for the South Charleston Spectator. A retired librarian, she now enjoys being a full-time author in her home office. She writes not only to entertain but to encourage readers with God’s faithfulness.


Please visit her website, Linda Hoover Books, to learn more about her and her books. You can stay in touch when you subscribe to her newsletter, and as a thank you, you’ll receive a novella, Joel & Ella.

https://www.lindahooverbooks.com

This link will take you to all the places you can find Linda on the web: https://linktr.ee/lindahooverbooks

As children, Adam Johnson wanted nothing to do with Lydia Bailey. When they meet again as adults, Adam’s opinion hasn’t changed. In the years apart, circumstances have caused Lydia’s faith to waver. It will take a touch from God to heal their hearts and open their eyes to see each other for who they are.



Heart of Grace can be purchased here: http://amazon.com/dp/B0DDJ59BD8

 

On this Day…1895 Carol Ryrie Brink by Donna Schlachter

courtesy Wikipedia

Well, my year of blogging about writers in American history comes to a close with a more contemporary author, Carol Ryrie Brink. She wrote more than 30 juvenile and adult books, and her novel, Caddie Woodlawn, won the 1936 Newberry Medal and a Lewis Carroll Shelf Award in 1958, attesting to the longevity of her books’ appeal.

Carol was born in Moscow, Idaho as Caroline Sybil Ryrie, the only child of Alexandre Ryrie and Henrietta Watkins. Her Scottish-born father also served as mayor of Moscow from 1895-1897. He died in 1900, and her mother remarried. Her step-father, Elisha Nathaniel Brown, failed, and her mother took her own life in 1904 at the age of 29, leaving Caroline to be raised by her widowed grandmother, Caroline Woodhouse Watkins. Carol later used her as a model for her character Caddie Woodlawn. Carol was inspired by her grandmother’s life and storytelling abilities, setting the stage for her future career. 

Carol's signature -- courtesy Wikipedia

 

 

Carol began writing for her school newspapers, continuing in college, where she graduated from the Portland Academy in Oregon before attending the University of Idaho in Moscow from 1914-1917. She wrote for both the college newspaper and the yearbook. In 1917, she transferred to the University of California in Berkeley for her senior year, graduated the following year.

Right after graduation, she married Raymond Brink, a mathematics professor she’d met in Moscow. He now taught at the University of Minnesota, and so Carol moved to St. Paul, where they lived for 42 years, raising a son David and a daughter Nora. They loved spending summers in the Wisconsin backwoods, and traveled often to Scotland and France.

Carol’s first novel, Anything Can Happen on the River, released in 1934. She continued writing fiction, publishing more than 30 books and two plays. And she added poetry and painting to her endeavors.

She was awarded an honorary doctorate of letters from the University of Idaho in 1965, and Brink Hall, at that same university, contains the English department.

Raymond passed away in 1973 after 55 years of marriage, and Carol died eight years later in 1981 at the age of 85.

In 1995, on the centennial of her birth, the “Carol Ryrie Brink Nature Park” was dedicated. And, in the city’s north end, the refurbished Carnegie building of the city library contains the “Carol Ryrie Brink Reading Room” in the children’s area. Carol frequented that library as a child.

In her family, the oldest daughter has been named either Carol or Caroline for at least seven generations, continuing to the present.

Leaving a legacy to future generations is critical, and Carol surely has done her part.


Leave a comment about Carol Ryrie Brink and share your thoughts about her enduring legacy.




About Donna: 
A hybrid author, Donna writes squeaky clean historical and contemporary suspense. She has been published more than 60 times in books; is a member of several writers' groups; facilitates a critique group; teaches writing classes; and judges in writing contests. She loves history and research, traveling extensively for both, and is an avid oil painter. She is taking all the information she’s learned along the way about the writing and publishing process, and is coaching committed writers eager to tell their story.



www.DonnaSchlachter.com

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Resources: 
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The Victorian Christmas Pudding and the Twelfth Night

by Kimberly Keagan

When we picture a Victorian Christmas, many of us imagine a glossy Christmas pudding carried to the table, crowned with holly and glowing with blue brandy flames. It feels wonderfully nostalgic—but the pudding we know today has taken quite a journey to earn its place at the holiday feast.

Its earliest ancestor appeared in the Middle Ages as plum pottage, a savory mixture of meat, root vegetables, dried fruit, ale, and spices. “Plums” meant raisins or currants, not the fresh fruit. This early form wasn’t dessert at all—just a hearty winter meal.

Over time, the recipe shifted. By the seventeenth century, the meat had mostly disappeared, and the mixture thickened enough to be tied in a cloth and boiled into a round shape. Even this version caused a stir—the Puritans tried to ban it for being “too indulgent"!

 

 Picture downloaded from www.thebritishnewspaperarchive.co.uk

The pudding truly came into its own during the Victorian era. Christmas celebrations blossomed, Charles Dickens immortalized the dish in A Christmas Carol, and ingredients like citrus peel and raisins became easier to find. One of the most charming traditions around the pudding is Stir-Up Sunday, the last Sunday before Advent. The name comes from the opening words of that day’s Anglican prayer, but Victorian families took it as a reminder to stir up their pudding batter. Each person took a turn and made a wish as they stirred. The pudding was then wrapped and stored for weeks, deepening in flavor as Christmas approached. Steamed for hours and richly spiced, the Christmas pudding became the crowning jewel of the holiday meal.

The Stir Up 

Picture downloaded from www.thebritishnewspaperarchive.co.uk 

 

My Christmas Pudding

 

Christmas Pudding doused in brandy and lit on fire 

Depositphotos.com

But Christmas Day wasn’t the only time it appeared. For many families—especially in Britain—the pudding was served again on Twelfth Night, January 5th, the eve of Epiphany and the final night of the Twelve Days of Christmas. Long before Christmas Day became a marketing phenomenon, Twelfth Night had been one of the most festive celebrations of the season. Families sang, played games, and enjoyed a final holiday meal before returning to ordinary life. A well-aged pudding fit perfectly into this farewell celebration.

 
Serving the Pudd!

Picture downloaded from www.mumwhatelse.com

Twelfth Night also carried echoes of older customs, like hiding charms in cakes to predict the coming year. Some families transferred these traditions to their pudding, tucking in a coin for prosperity or a ring for marriage. Even as Twelfth Night gatherings faded in the late 1800s, old cookbooks and newspapers still mention serving pudding on Epiphany as a fitting close to the season.

Today, many of us have never tasted a steamed pudding, let alone saved part of it for Twelfth Night. Yet I find something meaningful in the tradition. Epiphany celebrates the moment Christ was revealed to the nations—the Magi following a light they didn’t fully understand, trusting it would lead to something wondrous. Christmas pudding, made early and quietly ripened over time, mirrors that rhythm of anticipation. Much of God’s work in our lives happens in the waiting, and the trusting in His grace.

As we close another Christmas season, may we notice the quiet ways the Lord is at work—and look forward with hope.

 

Kimberly Keagan is a former corporate financial writer (not very romantic) who now crafts historical romances filled with strong heroines, swoon-worthy heroes, faith, and a touch of humor. Her debut novel, Perfect, released in May 2025. Go to KimberlyKeagan.com and download her free Christmas novelette!

I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus by Cindy Regnier

Did anyone hang a sprig of mistletoe in a doorway this Christmas? We all know the tradition. A couple caught under the mistletoe must share a kiss. But what exactly is mistletoe and where did this tradition start?

Maybe you know that Mistletoe is actually a parasitic plant. In other words, it embeds itself into other plants (often trees) and steals its nutrients from the host. It can then multiply rapidly and infect surrounding trees, sometimes to the point of killing them. Because of its parasitic nature and the stories from Norse mythology, those in ancient times attributed mystical powers to mistletoe. Celtic Druids cut it from oak trees with golden sickles on the 6th night of the moon. They believed it to have life giving powers, bestow fertility, protect against poisons and ward off evil spirits. 

Mistletoe on a tree

The mythological story of mistletoe says the god of peace, Baldur, was killed by an arrow made of mistletoe but his parents Odin and Frigga restored his life and gave mistletoe to the goddess of love. Therefore, it was decreed that anyone who passed under mistletoe should receive a kiss.

Another story says that Baldur, grandson of Thor, was sure every plant and animal on earth wanted to kill him. His mother and wife asked for kindness from every living thing to leave Baldur in peace. Each agreed but just as Baldur was released from the torment, he felt a sharp pain in his chest and died. He had been stabbed by an arrow of mistletoe because his mother had neglected to ask the mistletoe for kindness. And so came the tradition “never forget the mistletoe!” We kiss beneath it to remember what Baldur’s mother forgot. 

Regardless where it started or why, early customs said men could steal a kiss from any woman caught standing under the mistletoe, and refusing was bad luck. Furthermore, a berry must be plucked from the sprig of mistletoe with each kiss, and the kissing stopped once they were all gone. It was very fortunate to find a sprig of mistletoe with many berries! 

In American culture we consider mistletoe a holiday decoration without realizing it dates back to ancient mythology. During the Christmas season we hang branches of mistletoe in homes and gathering places, inviting couples to share a kiss underneath. It has become a symbol of peace, love, and reconciliation during the Christmas season, not to mention adding a little fun and romance as well.

Scribbling in notebooks has been a habit of Cindy Regnier since she was old enough to hold a pencil. Born and raised in Kansas, she writes stories of historical Kansas, especially the Flint Hills area where she spent much of her childhood. Her experiences with the Flint Hills setting, her natural love for history, farming and animals, along with her interest in genealogical research give her the background and passion to write heart-fluttering historical romance.