Romance and Happy Ever After – A Cowboy This Christmas: A Sweet Romance Antholgy by Roxy Boroughs @RoxyBoroughs

Posted on November 6, 2023 by fundinmental

cowboy kissing beautiful woman at Christmas

MY REVIEW

The wonderful thing about anthologies is meeting so many new authors at once. Are you looking for some cowboy romance? Some good, clean, fun. holiday reading, sure to put a smile on your face and maybe find some new authors to add to your reading list.

I enjoyed meeting each and every character, spending time in their world in or near Alberta, Canada. Each story is a novella that ends in a happy ever after. There was sadness and tears, and love and laughter. Some I cared for more than others, but each gave me something to take with me when I finished the story.

The first story I started with was Lawna Mackie because she is the only author I was familiar with and have enjoyed reading her stories.

Silver Belle’s Christmas Cowboy

…life in Alaska was what she wanted. Right?

Silver Belle is an ecologist with a degree in Zoology, caring for nine reindeer in Alaska. She’s working on her thesis, studying the reindeer. Problems arise and she may need to steal the reindeer to keep her promise. Yes, we do have a blizzard. That always adds a little extra to the story, especially when Jace Newman comes to the rescue. She has a heart as big and wide as the countryside and will stop at nothing to make a little girl’s dream come true for Christmas. A wonderfully magical Christmas story.

Another story that stood out for me was:

All I Want For Christmas by Victoria Chatham

Luke Evans is a rancher and plans to spend his Christmas alone with his trusty sidekick, Chloe, a Golden Retriever. A snowstorm delivers Kate Cooper and her five year daughter, Alice Cooper to his doorstep. Alice Cooper does not take after her namesake, rock and roll legend, Alice Cooper. She is sweet as molasses.

‘Christmas is better with snow.”
“Like cake with icing, Alice chimed in, pushing her way between them, pressing her nose against the windowpane, then looking up at him. “Why haven’t you got decorations?”

There are many adorable moments, with the innocence of Alice taking center stage, and the cute dialogue that only children can supply.

"I love all my presents....But really, all I want for Christmas is a daddy."

The happy ever after brought a tear or two to my eye.

My overall rating is a solid four and I highly recommend A Cowboy This Christmas for some Christmas novellas that are sure to put a smile on your face.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos — 4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Limited time price offer!

At Christmas, even the loneliest cowboy can find true love, whether it arrives with the subtle fragrance of evergreen or the kick of a wild stallion. Celebrate the holiday season with these nine, short, sweet, and heartwarming contemporary romances.

The Cowboy’s Comeback Christmas – by Jan O’Hara, USA Today Bestselling Author
The woman formerly known as Shrinking Violet is back, bearing a new no-nonsense attitude and a deadline for leaving town. Five Christmases ago, Russ broke both their hearts. Can he prove he’s a changed man and convince her to stay?

Capturing the Christmas Cowboy – by Roxy Boroughs, Amazon Bestselling Author
To secure her job with an advertising company, an L.A. photographer travels to the wilds of Montana, searching for a rugged cowboy to peddle cheap cologne. There she meets a down-on-his-luck, camera-shy rancher, who wants to give his little brother a homespun Christmas – just like the ones they knew before they lost their parents.

A Rocking Horse Christmas – by Raine Hughes, Amazon Bestselling Author
Recovering from a life-changing injury, a bronc buster drives across Canada with his young sons to work as a ranch foreman. Heart-sore owner, Sally, hides a wariness of being touched with a warm, hopeful smile. Will the miracle of Christmas help them find true healing love?

Candy Cane Cowboy – by A.M. Westerling, Amazon Bestselling Author
Mandy Robinson, a server in a country diner is puzzled when her encounters with the new short order chef, injured bull rider, Chay Burton, seem to mirror events as chronicled over a hundred years ago in her great grandmother’s diary. Romance blossoms as Christmas approaches but should she trust the journal that hints of eventual heartbreak or a cowboy who only has his love to offer?

All I Want for Christmas – by Victoria Chatham, BWL Bestselling Author
Rancher Luke Evans expects to spend Christmas alone. When a snowstorm strands Kate Cooper and her five-year-old daughter Alice, that changes. While the child’s smile warms his heart, will widowed emergency nurse Kate dare to love again? Could she and Alice become the family Luke always wanted?

Silver Belle’s Christmas Cowboy – by Lawna Mackie
Being the caregiver to nine reindeer in Alaska has many challenges, including a promise Silver Belle Delaney intends to fulfill. Granted, there are a few hiccups. Steal her employer’s reindeer…oh, and his truck and trailer, drive through a blizzard, then hope and pray the handsome, wealthy rancher doesn’t throw her in jail on Christmas Eve.

My Cowboy, Until Christmas – by Shawna Mumert, Debut Author
Desperate to keep her ranch, Caroline Bailey, a young widow, hires Trace Morgan, a drifter, to help her until Christmas Eve, when the final ranch payment is due, but working together changes their dreams and their lives.

Come Home for Christmas, Cowboy – by Amy Jo Fleming
Jolene, a young widow, needs to sell the ranch that she loves. It’s the only home her son Cody has ever known. There’s a catch. Her late husband’s cousin owns half the property. Devon will be home for the holidays and Jolene needs to convince him to sell before Christmas. Will those old feelings that Jolene and Devon once shared ruin her plans?

A Heart Creek Christmas – by Joanie Wilde, Debut Author
A kind-hearted equine osteopath lands her dream job – and possibly the love of her life in a broken-down cowboy. Can they move past their personal barriers to find love in time for Christmas?

This anthology is the work of nine independent-minded women who live in or near cattle country, Alberta.

Genre: Anthology, Cowboys, Romance
560 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication November 2, 2023

Devour these 9 short, sweet romances along with your shortbread

Tropes include, but are not limited to:

second-chance romances
country Christmas and small town settings
important secrets
opposites attract
city versus country
forgiveness and redemption
wackadoodle BFFs
and of course, 9 happy endings!

MY LAWNA MACKIE REVIEWS

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Giveaway – RSVP To Murder by Carol Pouliot @partnersincr1me

Posted on November 6, 2023 by fundinmental

RSVP to Murder

by Carol Pouliot

November 6 – December 1, 2023 Virtual Book Tour

Synopsis:

A new twist on the 1930s English country house mystery.

Embarking on their most daring time-travel experiment to date, Depression-era cop Steven Blackwell and his 21st-century partner-in-crime Olivia Watson travel to the Adirondack Mountains for a Christmas party at one of the legendary Great Camps. Their host, a wealthy New York publisher, has planned a weekend filled with holiday activities, but, as the last guest arrives, temperatures plummet and a blizzard hits. Before long, the area is buried in snow, the roads are impassable, and the publisher is poisoned.

Unwilling to wait until the local police can arrive, the victim’s widow convinces Steven to launch an unofficial investigation. Soon, a family member goes missing and Steven and Olivia discover a second victim. Trapped with a killer, Steven and Olivia race against the clock before the murderer strikes again.

Praise for RSVP to Murder:

“A classic holiday movie and Agatha Christie novel mashup”
~ Shawn Reilly Simmons, author of the Red Carpet Catering Mystery Series

“RSVP to Murder is Agatha Christie with a time-travel twist. Pouliot supplies us with just what we crave in a great locked-room mystery: a blizzard, closed roads, dead phone lines, roaring fires, and lots of suspects and motives—all set in a luxurious Adirondack Great Camp in 1934. Snap on your seatbelt and travel with Steven and Olivia, you’ll be happy you did!”
~ Tina deBellegarde, Author of The Batavia-on-Hudson Mystery Series.

“A Great Camp in the Adirondacks serves up a sumptuous setting of plump armchairs, roaring fireplaces, and the heady scent of Christmas pines—all begging to be settled into with this thumping good vintage whodunit set in the 1930s. Cleverly plotted with plot-twists aplenty and some time-travel to boot, this immersive mystery is a gem.”
~ Laurie Loewenstein, Author of the Dust Bowl Mystery Series

“Readers are invited to the glamour of the Thirties, where the rich are putting on the Ritz, until there’s a murder to solve. Join time-travelers Blackwell and Watson in a race to the Racines’ Adirondack Great Camp to catch a killer. A clever…and a thoroughly unique must for fans of the paranormal and historical. RSVP today!”
~ Gabriel Valjan, Author of the Shane Cleary Mysteries series

“The Blackwell and Watson Time-Travel Mysteries’ latest installment, RSVP to Murder, combines the thrilling and “timeless” aspects of Jack Finney’s classic TIME AND AGAIN mixed with the wit and charm of a modern, puzzling mystery. Highly recommended for all lovers of time travel, history, romance and wily sleuths.”
~ L.A. Chandlar, Best-selling author of the Art Deco Mystery Series

Book Details:

Genre: Traditional mystery
Published by: Level Best Books
Publication Date: September 2023
Number of Pages: 305
ISBN: 9781685123857
Series: The Blackwell and Watson Time-Travel Mysteries, #4
Book Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BookShop.org | Goodreads

Read an excerpt:

Chapter 1

December 31, 1902
New York City, New York

She was marrying the wrong man.

With a silk-gloved hand, Margery Belleville lifted the bottom of her wedding gown and peeked around the heavy, carved doors into the nave of St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Several hundred guests—ladies in expensive finery, wool coats trimmed with ermine and fancy hats with brims reaching out over their shoulders, and tuxedoed men in black silk top hats—awaited the wedding of the decade. St. Patrick’s reminded Margery of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris with its Gothic-style pointed arches and rich stained-glass windows set in lacey webs. The soaring, vaulted ceiling, lit by crystal chandeliers suspended on long rope-like cables, rose hundreds of feet in the air. Light from the chandeliers reached into the far corners of the church and mingled with the glow of candles twinkling in wrought-iron stands. Inhaling the scent of balsam fir from the many holiday decorations, Margery gazed down the long center aisle, where she would soon walk with her father.

Margery stepped back into the vestibule, her pure-white gown rustling softly as she moved. She was, at least, happy her parents had allowed her the choice of her wedding dress, if not the groom. Margery and her mother had searched in several shops, nearly deciding to have the dress custom made when they came upon this elegant, sleek gown. The moment Margery laid eyes on it, she knew it was the one. The high neckline draped in soft folds beneath her chin, flattering her face. The form-fitting bodice hugged her curves, yet avoided the dreaded hourglass silhouette, with its yards of smooth satin skirt billowing around her. Margery’s unadorned veil revealed topaz eyes and soft lips, but covered her rich auburn hair and cascaded down her back. This was the gown of a modern, independent woman. If only her life matched the dress.

His conversation with the bishop finished, Anthony Belleville joined his daughter. “Are you ready, my dear?”

The organ began Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March,” and a rumble echoed throughout the nave as the guests stood and turned toward the back of the cathedral. Trembling, Margery took her father’s arm.

He must have felt her shaking because her father leaned over and, to Margery’s astonishment, whispered, “I know he’s not your first choice. But you will be well cared for and you know Gil adores you. I don’t know which man has captured your heart, but you won’t lack for anything with Gilbert Racine. The publishing empire he’s going to inherit will provide a comfortable, even pampered, life. He’s the best choice to keep you in the style your mother and I have provided. I can’t bear the thought that you would ever lack for anything, my dearest daughter.”

Margery was further shocked when her father wiped a tear from his eye.

It was at that moment when Margery Belleville, soon to be Margery Racine, accepted her fate. She would be a good wife for her successful businessman husband. She would provide him with children and a well-run home. She’d bury her feelings deep inside, lock them away in a cupboard, and throw away the key. She could not marry the man she loved. But she might grow to love the man she married.

Margery forced a smile and reached up to give her father a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll be alright, Papa. Gil will be a good husband.” She patted his hand. Straightening her spine, Margery gave a sharp nod of her head. “I’m ready.”

***

Author Bio:

A former language teacher and business owner, Carol Pouliot writes the acclaimed Blackwell and Watson Time-Travel Mysteries, traditional police procedurals with a seemingly impossible relationship between Depression-era cop Steven Blackwell and 21st-century journalist Olivia Watson. With their fast pace and unexpected twists and turns, the books have earned praise from readers and mystery authors alike.

Carol is a founding member of Sleuths and Sidekicks, Co-chair of the Murderous March Mystery Conference, and President of her Sisters in Crime chapter. When not writing, Carol can be found packing her suitcase and reaching for her passport for her next travel adventure.