St. Martin's Press Holiday Romance Blitz

Like it or not, winter is coming.  While I hate shivering through a Chicago winter, I LOVE holiday romance.  I adore all the sappy holiday movies - Hallmark, Lifetime, ABCFamily - I will watch them all.  And the books, oh, the holiday romance books!  Don't get me started!  Those who know me find this especially hilarious - I'm not exactly prone to emotions and drama, but I love them in the holiday books and movies.  

This is why I am so excited about the St. Martin's Press holiday line-up all!  Check out the lovely, lovely books (and seriously, who doesn't want to read Big Package?)!  If you're a big holiday romance sap like me, check out the fantastic offerings SMP has in store for us!

I'm also thrilled that we got the SMP authors to give us a little Q&A about their favorite things, holiday style, combining three of the BiblioJunkies' favorite things!  There's a lot of info coming at you, but it will be worth it!  

Q&A

Our first question for the SMP authors - what is your favorite holiday book?  

Ruth Logan Herne

The Crippled Lamb by Max Lucado (I cry every time!!!)

Donna Alward

Twas the Night Before Christmas, because we still read it every year even though the kids are grown!

Laura Trentham

I've read Pete the Cat Saves Christmas about a hundred times since last Christmas to my daughter. I can recite the book, and I've even dreamed about it.

Nancy Naigle

I love all of those specialty shape hard cover Christmas books. I reread them every year. My favorite? Debbie Macomber's "There's Something About Christmas"  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXjcyCXUSnU

Margaret Brownley

The Night Before Christmas brings back happy memories of when the children were young and my husband read the story to us on Christmas Eve.

Tara Wyatt

The Christmas He Loved Her by Juliana Stone. Emotional, moving story, beautiful setting, steamy sex, all set against the perfect Christmas backdrop.

  

Opal Carew

Can I say my own? Big Package, although the title is tongue in cheek, is funny and heart-warming, and a very poignant love story, as well as being sizzling hot! The fact that it takes place in a Canadian blizzard while the hero and heroine are driving to Ottawa (my city!) makes it all that much more special to me.



Emily March

'Twas the Night Before Christmas was magical to me as a child. It still is.

Melissa Cutler

Impossible to pick just one

Next up - what is your favorite holiday movie?  

Ruth Logan Herne

It's a Wonderful Life

Donna Alward

White Christmas

Laura Trentham

I love Elf. It's hilarious and heartwarming. But the season can't pass with at least one family viewing of Christmas Vacation. Cousin Eddie is the best! Sometimes I'm in the mood for a classic like Miracle on 34th Street (with Maureen O'Hara, of course!) or It's a Wonderful Life.

Nancy Naigle

Oh gosh! My favorite Holiday Movie is pretty much the last Hallmark movie I just finished watching. I'm a Hallmark Movie junkie, and I'm proud of it! My favorite holiday show not including Hallmark is Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer. When the Abominable Snowman knocks poor Rudolph on the head and his eyes going rolling around .... you know the scene...I still cry. Poor Clarice.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AS6uJNvXfs

Margaret Brownley

This is a hard one since there are so many good ones.  The movie I wasn't prepared to like as much as I did was Elf.

Tara Wyatt

A Christmas Story. I'd never seen it growing up, and the first Christmas we were dating, my now husband introduced me to it. It had always been one of his favorites, and he was excited to watch it with me. We have a tradition of watching it together at least once in the days leading up to Christmas now.

Opal Carew

It's a tie between White Christmas and Holiday Inn. I know they’re really old, but I used to watch them with my mum when we wrapped Christmas presents together, so it keeps those wonderful childhood memories with me, which is so nice since neither of my parents are with us anymore.

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Emily March

It's a toss-up between It's a Wonderful Life and Christmas Vacation.

Melissa Cutler

Die Hard (hehe)

Mandy Baxter

The Holiday. I watch it whenever it's on. I'm obsessed with Jude Law in that movie!

And rounding out our BiblioJunkies obsessions - what is your favorite holiday food?  

Ruth Logan Herne

We've got a great eggnog pie recipe, it's positively decadent! Here's the link to our cooking with the authors website "The Yankee Belle Cafe".  http://yankeebellecafe.blogspot.com/search/label/Eggnog pie

Donna Alward

Savory or sweet? There's a Chocolate Chip Cheeseball recipe I got from Debbie Macomber's site that I've modified that I love (plus: cookies!), and for savory, I make sausage-stuffed mushrooms that are easy and so tasty!

Laura Trentham

Broccoli Salad
My go-to potluck take-along...plus I make it every holiday. Basically whenever I can get away with it, because it is SO good.

2 bunches of broccoli, chopped
1/2 lbs cooked bacon, crumbled (I use the pouches of bacon bit to avoid the mess of cooking bacon)
1/2 med red onion, diced
1/2 cup golden or brown raisins
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup Mozzarella cheese, grated
1 cup Mayo (Duke's, of course:)
2T white vinegar
1/4-1/2 cup white sugar

Mix together broccoli, onion, raisins, sunflower seeds. In a small bowl, whisk together mayo, vinegar, and sugar and pour over salad. Mix gently. Chill for several hours or overnight to blend flavors. (This isn't mandatory, but does improve the taste). Just before serving, add bacon and cheese.

Nancy Naigle

I did these videos last year while watching the Hallmark Movie~THE NOTE. Kelsey Browning and I co-author a fun southern cozy series called The Granny Series.   There is a clip of her and then one of me in each of these fine uncut - unedited raw videos.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBSJEi3ZQ3E  The recipe for FaLaLa-LaLa-La Bon Bons is available as a PDF on my website www.NancyNaigle.com.  I also have two recipe cards printed up for cookies from my book, CHRISTMAS JOY.  I can send those to you if you'd like! I'll be posting them on my website as a free download after the book releases.

Margaret Brownley

Our Christmas dinner is five star dining at its best. That's because my son-in-law is an executive chef and he treats us every year to prime rib with all the trimmings.  I never ask for recipes because then I might be tempted to try them. 

Tara Wyatt

My mom's shortbread. Hands down. It tastes like Christmas and home the way nothing else does.

Opal Carew

Turkey (dark meat) and stuffing. Mmm. Unfortunately, now that I’m following the Paleo diet, making a stuffing I can eat is a challenge!

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Emily March

I find a new favorite every year in the recipe exchange cookbook I put together from recipes sent in by my readers. Watch my Facebook page or join my mailing list for info on how to get your copy!

Melissa Cutler

My grandmother makes the best fruit cake from scratch, and that's no joke. I would share the recipe, but when I make it, it never turns out like Grandma's, because she must put some secret ingredients in hers.

Mandy Baxter

My all time favorite holiday food is stuffing at Thanksgiving. Carbs be damned!

Nancy Naigle – Christmas Joy

USA Today bestselling author NANCY NAIGLE whips up small-town love stories with a dash of suspense and a whole lot of heart. Now happily retired, she devotes her time to writing, antiquing, and the occasional spa day with friends. A native of Virginia Beach, she currently calls North Carolina home. Her books include Sweet Tea and Secrets, Mint Juleps and Justice, and Christmas Joy.

Website: www.nancynaigle.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/NancyNaigleAuthor

Twitter: @nancynaigle

Laura Trentham – Candy Cane Christmas

LAURA TRENTHAM is an award-winning author of contemporary and historical romance including Caught Up in the Touch, Kiss Me That Way, and others. She is a member of RWA, and has finaled multiple times in the Golden Heart competition. A chemical engineer by training and a lover of books by nature, she lives in South Carolina.

Website: www.lauratrentham.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/AuthorLauraTrentham

Twitter: @LauraTrentham

Margaret Brownley – Do You Hear What I Hear?

MARGARET BROWNLEY is a New York Times bestselling author and past Romance Writers of America RITA finalist with more than 30 novels to her credit. Not bad for someone who flunked 8th grade English. Just don't ask her to diagram a sentence. Margaret and her husband have three grown children and live in Southern California.

Website: margaret-brownley.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/MargaretBrownleyAuthor

Twitter: @margaretbrownly

Melissa Cutler – If Santa Were a Cowboy

Melissa Cutler is the author of The Mistletoe Effect and the One and Only Texas series. She knows she has the best job in the world writing sexy contemporary romances and romantic suspense. She was struck at an early age for an unrelenting travel bug and is probably planning her next vacation as you read this. When she's not globetrotting, she's enjoying Southern California's flip-flop wearing weather and wrangling two rambunctious kids.

Website: www.melissacutler.net

Facebook: www.facebook.com/MelissaCutlerBooks

Twitter: @m_cutler

Mandy Baxter – It Must Be Christmas

MANDY BAXTER lives in rural Idaho. She's a part-time pet wrangler, a full-time sun worshiper, and only goes out into the cold when coerced. She loves black clothes, pink appliances and thinks junk food should be a recognized food group. In the summer, she can be found sitting by the lake, enjoying the view from her dock.

Website: mandy-baxter.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/AuthorMandyBaxter

Twitter: @MandyJBaxter

Donna Alward – It Must Be Christmas

While bestselling author DONNA ALWARD was busy studying Austen, Eliot and Shakespeare, she was also losing herself in the breathtaking stories created by romance novelists like LaVyrle Spencer, Judith McNaught, and Nora Roberts. Several years after completing her degree she decided to write a romance of her own and it was true love! Five years and ten manuscripts later she sold her first book and launched a new career. While her heartwarming stories of love, hope, and homecoming have been translated into several languages, hit bestseller lists and won awards, her very favorite thing is when she hears from happy readers!

Website: www.donnaalward.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/DonnaAlwardAuthor

Emily March – Christmas in Eternity Springs

EMILY MARCH is the New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty novels, including the critically acclaimed Eternity Springs series. Publishers Weekly calls March a "master of delightful banter," and her heartwarming, emotionally charged stories have been named to Best of the Year lists by Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Romance Writers of America. A graduate of Texas A&M University, Emily is an avid fan of Aggie sports and her recipe for jalapeño relish has made her a tailgating legend.

Website: www.emilymarch.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/emilymarchbooks

Twitter: @emilymarchbooks

Tara Wyatt – When Snowflakes Fall & Like Fresh Fallen Snow

TARA WYATT is a contemporary romance and romantic suspense author. Known for her humor and steamy love scenes, Tara’s writing has won several awards, including the Unpublished Winter Rose, the Linda Howard Award of Excellence, and the Heart of the West. A librarian by day and romance writer by night, Tara lives in Hamilton, Ontario with the world's cutest dog and a husband who makes all of her heroes look like chumps. Find her on Twitter @taradwyatt. She'd love to hear from you!

Website: www.tara-wyatt.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/tarawyattauthor

Twitter: @taradwyatt

Mary Connealy – Room at the Inn for Christmas

MARY CONNEALY writes fun and lively "romantic comedy with cowboys" for the inspirational market. She is also a bestselling author of full-length book series including: Wild at Heart, Trouble in Texas, Kincaid Brides, Lassoed in Texas, Montana Marriages, and Sophie's Daughters. Mary is a Rita and Christy Award finalist and a two time winner of the Carol Award. Mary is the author of 17 novellas besides her 28 trade fiction books.

Website: hmaryconnealy.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/maryconnealy

Twitter: @MaryConnealy

Ruth Logan Herne – Silent Night, Star-Lit Night

Multi-published, best-selling author RUTH LOGAN HERNE likes nothing better than writing stories that warm the heart and ease the troubled soul. The author of more than fifteen Love Inspired contemporary novels, the “Double S Ranch” trilogy with PRH/Waterbrook and inspiring women’s fiction for Franciscan Media, Ruth has also become proficient in writing successful novellas for Zondervan, Summerside Press and several highly acclaimed novellas for the independent ebook market. Equally at home writing about small town folks or delving into the heart of big city neighborhoods, Ruthy lives on a farm in upstate New York, one of the snow-belt capitals of the world with her family, farm animals and pets.

Website: ruthloganherne.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/RuthLoganHerne

Twitter: @RuthLoganHerne

For more info, check out SMP's website @ http://us.macmillan.com/static/smp/holidaystories2016/index.html

I don't know about you, but my holiday TBR just got a whole lot bigger!  Happy reading!

~ Shel