This was kind of a big week for me in the “marginally competent indie author” category: I sent out my first -ever newsletter. This site host, it turns out, has built-in newsletter tools and because I already have a full-time job (I may have mentioned this before … ) I needed something simple, and this was about as simple as it could get. Though it did take me a couple of tries to determine exactly which fields were optional and which were not! Anyway, that got done, and the plan is to do a monthly newsletter about what’s new and what’s next. I have installed a new SUBSCRIBE button on the home page, if you should be so inclined.
In other news, I have a new MM novelette releasing December 13 as part of the JMS Books Advent Calendar - bookmark ADVENT to check for a new FREE story daily through December 24! Below is the cover image for my story, which is a later-in-life love-after-loss low-conflict comfort read inspired by the January 2025 wildfires in Los Angeles.
Now, on to the week’s reading recap!
1. [re-read] My own MM novella ‘Third Time Lucky.’
2. ‘A Loser by Christmas’ by Con Riley, her new release, featuring a hockey star with a secret (there’s, like, no hockey on the page except brief scenes of him coaching kids) and a younger filmmaker. Low conflict, father/son reconciliation, a major problem solved by teamwork, unintrusive cameos from other characters in series. Liked this a lot. Author site HERE.
3. ‘A Holiday Secret’ by Suzanne Brockmann, F/M novella feat. an incognito princess who takes a job as a nanny to a very rich dude purportedly to see if dude’s mysterious partner is her long-lost brother. That plot line goes completely unsolved, by the way. Several tropes I don’t care for here, but I did read the whole thing, so … .
4. ‘Animated’ by Kim Fielding, a new novelette set in 1952 starring a Hollywood animation artist and the movie star voicing his character. Destined to be a holiday re-read. Author site HERE.
5. ‘Regency Glad Tidings’ by Carla Kelly, three newish F/M novellas (I wishlisted this book last year), reliable Kelly settings and themes. One hero is an Army surgeon post Waterloo; the second is an American merchant sea captain; the third is a shipbuilder. Some sketchy editing, and the last story features a crofter’s daughter whom I found it impossible to believe; literacy, yes. Drawing, yes. Knowing about Raphael and Jonathan Swift? Doubt it. Still my favorite Regency author, though. Author site HERE.
6. ‘Deck the Palms’ by Annabeth Albert, Honolulu-set MM coworkers-to-lovers. No surprises here and the Black Moment was both predictable and required MC2 to jettison several weeks of character development, but enjoyable and I did buy the HEA. Author site HERE.
7. ‘Ginger Snapped’ by Sarah Honey, a short novel, MM set in Vermont feat. a socially awkward librarian who’s the 4x champion of local gingerbread house contest, and the new guy in town who’s a former NYC celebrity baker. No big surprises here, plenty of baking, good character development. Author site HERE.
8. ‘Thawed Out’ by Jodi Payne & BA Tortuga, MM set in the mountain west and feat. a married couple clawing their way back from the brink of divorce. This book starts off with a bang and I had high hopes. It’s worth reading, because this much Real World Problem-Solving and on-the-page attempts to improve communication are unusual. But … about halfway through it started getting hard to tell which POV was which, and become quite episodic, with each episode being another major stress event and its resolution. I would have liked having the renewed-love-story arc strengthened by regrouping scenes, in between stress scenes, which were about that communication rather than always being sex.
Note, as someone guilty of occasional head-hopping and episodic storytelling, I give these authors some grace and appreciate them taking on tough subject matter.
9. A batch of holiday shorts:
[re-read] ‘Hot Toy’ by Jennifer Crusie.
‘Mugged by an Angel’ by M. Ruth Meyers, a mystery story set during WWII starring PI Maggie Sullivan.
[re-read] ‘Masters in This Hall’ by KJ Charles
[re-read] ‘Yuletide Treasure’ by Eliot Grayson
Generally speaking, if something’s a re-read, it’s a work I have rated 5 stars (or else one of my own things, which are so numerous now that I re-read to keep my stories straight as well as when I just need to occupy my eyeballs with something very familiar).
More holiday books to report next week!