Guest Post: Winter Favorites Tour with Authors Tracy Brogan, Jamie Beck, and Cindy Kirk
With winter quickly approaching, romance novels are turning to holiday stories. Readers get heroes and heroines finding their happy-ever-afters during the Christmas season. In anticipation of the celebrations, we asked authors Tracy Brogan, Jamie Beck, and Cindy Kirk the favorite Christmas gift they have ever received. They also reveal what present their hero is planning on getting their heroine this year.
Tracy Brogan, author of Jingle Bell Harbor
My birthday is on Christmas so I get double the goodies!! And it’s all been lovely, but I think my favorite memory is from when I was about eight years old. I unwrapped a little pink and purple suitcase and thought it was so cute! Then my mom told me to open it. So I did, and discovered it was full of handmade doll clothes that my mother had made. I had the best dressed dolls in the whole neighborhood.
My hero gives the heroine a homemade gift, too. But it’s pivotal to the plot of the story so I’m not going to tell you what it is!! I will tell you that she’s expecting an engagement ring but that’s not what she gets.
Jamie Beck, author of Accidentally Hers
I’m at a bit of a loss with this question because I have a notoriously terrible memory, and I’d hate to offend anyone who has given me a lovely gift at Christmas! That said, one gift stands out as being both gorgeous and sentimental. By way of background, I was very close to my stepfather, and his death hit me rather hard. On the Christmas immediately following that sad event, my husband (who is typically frugal), bought me a very extravagant diamond and sapphire bracelet. Although the bracelet held no direct correlation to my relationship with my stepfather, I know my husband made the grand gesture in an attempt to cheer me up with a big surprise that holiday. Now, whenever I wear it, I’m reminded of my husband’s generosity, and of my beloved stepfather.
Grey, my hero, is also frugal—largely out of necessity because his new business is still struggling to find its legs—and the final outcome of his injury may not yet be known by Christmas. He is, however, an extremely sentimental and romantic man, who also happens to be musical. He knows Avery loves when he plays his keyboard, so I think we can count on him to compose a song for her in the vein of Billy Joel’s And So it Goes.
I must add here that, as much as I love my bracelet, I’d probably pick a personalized love song if offered the choice!
Cindy Kirk, author of Christmas in Good Hope
One of my favorite Christmas gifts was a gift I received from my husband several years ago. I had been working a lot of hours, and he knew how much I needed to unwind. He presented me with a day of relaxation. He had taken care of everything, and planned a massage, facial, manicure and pedicure for me. All I had to do was show up and relax. We ended the day with a romantic dinner at one of my favorite restaurants. His gift was not only relaxing, but also showed me how much he paid attention, and knew exactly what I needed in the middle of a busy holiday season.
Beck and Ami are very excited for their first Christmas together. Beck has taken the time to plan a gift for Ami that that comes straight from his heart. Beck is planning to give Ami an engagement ring that will show her how much he loves her and wants to spend the rest of his life with her.
About The Books
Jingle Bell Harbor by Tracy Brogan
As assistant buyer for the world’s second-largest Christmas store, Kelsey Parker feels like a holiday harlot. She’s contractually obligated to promote the yuletide season. All. Year. Long. And it’s taking a toll on her spirit. But when her clueless, self-absorbed boyfriend goes on their long-anticipated romantic vacation—without her!—Kelsey is beyond disappointed to find herself tromping through the Bell Harbor snow instead of lounging on a tropical beach.
Drew Hampton is considered quite a catch among the Bell Harbor bachelorettes, but when his high school dream girl, Kelsey Parker, shows up at his grandfather’s Christmas tree lot complaining about her love life, he decides it’s long past time to get her under the mistletoe himself.
As things heat up between the two, a surprise visitor arrives, making Kelsey an offer she can’t quite believe. Now she must decide what matters most, and she just may discover the key to her happiness.
Christmas in Good Hope by Cindy Kirk
Amaryllis “Ami” Bloom’s cheerful smile greets everyone in Good Hope, Wisconsin. But her merry facade hides a dark secret she won’t ever forget. Still, she throws herself into celebrating Christmas—and convinces her handsome, and stubborn, new neighbor to join her.
Beckett Cross, however, is determined not to celebrate the holidays. He moved to Good Hope to leave behind reminders of how he’d had it all…and lost everything. But it’s hard to resist adorable Ami, the designated keeper of the small town’s holiday traditions, when she asks for help with the Twelve Nights celebrations. And Ami has a hard time resisting Beck’s soft Southern drawl and gentle eyes. Will a Christmas miracle give them a second chance at love and the hope to heal both of their hearts for good?
Accidentally Hers by Jamie Beck
When ruggedly sexy backcountry guide Grey Lowell moves to Sterling Canyon, Colorado, after buying the ski-expedition company Backtrax, his plans don’t include romance. Still, it’s fun to look—especially across a crowded restaurant at a beauty he dubs “Bambi.” But all his plans change later that night when he’s injured by a drunk driver.
Physical therapist Avery Randall is shocked to learn that Grey’s the man her brother struck with his car, and even more stunned when he arrives at the clinic expecting her help. Despite her reservations and Grey’s silly new nickname for her, Avery agrees to work with him, and passion begins to simmer. Yet with his livelihood at stake, Grey must make tough decisions that could hurt Avery and her family. Before long, Avery’s loyalties are tested, and the choices she and Grey each make may cost them their chance at lasting love.
