I'm pleased to welcome Lena Gregory back to Cozy Up With Kathy. Lena writes several series including the Coffee & Cream Café Mystery series. Lena has a short story with the characters from this series in the HOLIDAYS AND HOMICIDES anthology which was released last week.
Christmas Through the Years
By Lena Gregory
When I was young, Christmas was a magical time. I remember my mother bundling us all into the car with hot cocoa and driving around the neighborhood to look at all the decorations. My father baked tons of cookies with us each year. Every store we went into had Christmas music playing. And on the best years, it snowed! On Christmas Eve, my parents hosted a big party for all of our extended family, and we’d spend hours watching out the window to see who could spot Rudolph’s nose first. Then, when the house quieted down, I’d lay in bed listening for the sound of sleigh bells or Santa’s jolly laugh until I inevitably fell asleep before he arrived. Christmas morning would have me waking at the crack of dawn, or before, and listening for any sign that someone else was up, then throwing the covers back and bounding out of bed to run for the Christmas tree to see what Santa had brought and to pass out the trinkets I’d bought everyone at the school fair. Then, after all the presents were opened and the wrapping paper cleaned up, we’d sit down to a big family breakfast. Those memories have always stayed with me, and I’ve tried to recreate some of them for my own children.
Eventually, all four of us kids got married and had children of our own. And it was my turn to bundle my kids up and drive around town looking at decorations while Christmas music blared on the radio, though the hot cocoa mostly came from a McDonalds or Starbucks drive-thru rather than being homemade. On years that time allowed, I’d bake cookies with my kids and take them out to all the stores to shop, and Christmas tunes still filled the aisles (sometimes as early as Halloween) while we shopped for the party I’d taken over hosting. On Christmas Eve, all of our family would come over, and they’d bring friends, loved ones, often people I’d never met. And on the best years, it still snowed! I remember one year, all of us gathering outside as the snow fell, then entire neighborhood deserted, quiet, peaceful. Until my daughter and her friends came out, then not so much. But I loved every minute of it! On Christmas morning, my father would drop off a breakfast pie for us early, so once we finished opening gifts, we could all sit down and enjoy it together. And then we’d have a big Christmas dinner with family.
Since we moved to Florida, Christmas is quieter. Although last year we did have our Christmas Eve party, since we had family visiting from New York. And we still stick to some of our old traditions, like baking cookies and driving around admiring the Christmas decorations. My husband, my kids, and I all spend a special night decorating the tree with a big meal, usually pasta, and gingerbread cookies for dessert. We watch the same old Christmas movies—Year Without a Santa Claus is still my favorite! Christmas Eve is still a special night, which we all spend together, and Christmas morning is still met with anticipation and joy. Although, snow is off the table. Even though some things have changed over the years, many traditions have still passed down from one generation to the next. Now, though, the full meaning of Christmas is with me as I celebrate each year, and it’s even more joyful!
How about you? Do you have any special Christmas traditions? Have they changed over the years or do they stay the same?
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Review
HOLIDAYS & HOMICIDES
A Short Story Collection
Need a break amidst the hustle and bustle of the holiday season? Looking for a quick read to get you in the holiday spirit? This new anthology by Gemma Halliday Publishing is just the ticket. While the book itself is long, the stories contained are short and most can easily be read in a sitting or two. There's a nice variety of authors, some familiar to me and some not. I was especially thrilled to see that Lena Gregory had a story featuring the characters from her Coffee & Cream Café Mystery series, one of my favorites and probably my favorite story in the anthology. I was also pleased to see a Catherine Bruns tale and that Christine Knapp had a modern midwife story. I also discovered new to me authors whose books I need to check out, particularly Rosalie Spielman and Kelly Rey. I must admit I did skip reading one story. I can't abide present tense and could only manage a paragraph of that particular story. It should be noted that while the title of the anthology is HOLIDAYS & HOMICIDES not all of the stories included are murder mysteries. There are plenty of other crimes that provide good puzzles and several stories show that.
HOLIDAYS & HOMICIDES is a delightful collection of holiday mysteries to help you wind down and relax during this hectic time of year while bringing Yuletide cheer during any season!
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Holidays & Homicides: A Short Story Collection
by Rosalie Spielman, Catherine Bruns, Gin Jones, Annie McEwen, Lena Gregory, Jennifer Fischetto, Anne Marie Stoddard, Kelly Rey, Misty Simon, Christine Knapp, Jamie L. Adams, Erica Wynters
About Holidays & Homicides
From twelve USA Today bestselling and award winning authors, comes a short story collection stuffed full of mirthful mysteries, clever criminals, and holiday cheer! These short holiday bites are perfect for enjoying between rounds of wrapping or binge-reading over a cup of cocoa!
Stories include:
A Hometown Christmas Caper (Hometown Mysteries)
by Rosalie Spielman
Gossip, Guilt & Gingerbread (Coffee & Cream Café Mysteries)
by Lena Gregory
Larceny & Twinkle Lights (Jamie Winters Mysteries)
by Kelly Rey
Holidays & Heists (Aloha Lagoon Mysteries)
by Anne Marie Stoddard
Ornaments, Surprise & Dead Guys (Gianna Mancini Mysteries)
by Jennifer Fischetto
It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Mischief (Northwoods Mysteries)
by Annie McEwen
You Can't see the Forest for the Christmas Trees (Modern Midwife Mysteries)
by Christine Knapp
Jingle Bell Rocker (Sunny Side Up Mysteries)
by Misty Simon
Holly, Handcuffs, and Hearsay (Camelot Flowers Mysteries)
by Erica Wynters
Search for the Silent Santa (Ghost Town Mysteries)
by Jamie L. Adams
Nothing But Truffle (Cookies & Chance Mysteries)
by Catherine Bruns
A Heartland Homicide (Bourbon B&B Mysteries)
by Gin Jones
About the Authors
Catherine Bruns is the USA Today bestselling author of the Cookies & Chance mysteries. She lives in New York with her very patient husband, three sons, and several spoiled pets. Catherine has a B.A. in English and is a former newspaper reporter and press release writer. She also writes the Italian Chef mysteries, Cindy York real estate and Carrie Jorgenson (Aloha Lagoon) culinary series. Her book, For Sale by Killer, won the 2019 Daphne du Maurier award for Mainstream Mystery/Suspense.
Get a free ebook when you sign up for Catherine's newsletter at https://www.catherinebruns.net/contact
Please feel free to connect with her on social media as well:
facebook.com/Catherine-Bruns-
Lena Gregory is the author of the Bay Island Psychic Mysteries, which take place on a small island between the north and south forks of Long Island, New York, and the All-Day Breakfast Café Mysteries, which are set on the outskirts of Florida’s Ocala National Forest.
Lena grew up in a small town on the south shore of eastern Long Island. She recently relocated to Florida with her husband, three kids, son-in-law, and four dogs. Her hobbies include spending time with family, reading, jigsaw puzzles, and walking. Her love for writing developed when her youngest son was born and didn’t sleep through the night. She works full time as a writer and a freelance editor and is a member of Sisters in Crime.
To learn more about Lena and her latest writing endeavors, visit her Website: http://www.lenagregory.com/
Sign Up for her Newsletter: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/492177/95264614748521780/share
Rosalie Spielman is a mother, veteran, and retired military spouse. She was thrilled to discover that she could make other people laugh with her writing and finds joy in giving people a humorous escape from the real world. Her cozy mystery novels are set in locales that have chickens—such as sunny Kauai and rural Idaho—writing for the multi-author Aloha Lagoon mystery series and her own Hometown Mystery series.
She currently lives in Maryland with her husband in a rapidly emptying nest. For more information on her books or to subscribe to her newsletter, go to www.rosalie-spielman-author.com, follow her Facebook page (Rosalie Spielman author), or join her Facebook group (You Know The Spiel). Rosalie strives to provide you a cozy escape...one page at a time.
Website: www.Rosalie-Spielman-author.com
Bookshop storefront: https://bookshop.org/shop/YouKnowTheSpiel
Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Rosalie-Spielman/author/B09FP95WC8
Facebook author page: Rosalie Spielman author
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063501963689
Facebook readers group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/YouKnowTheSpiel
From her first discovery of Nancy Drew, USA Today bestselling author Kelly Rey has had a lifelong love for mystery and tales of things that go bump in the night, especially those with a twist of humor. Through many years of working in the court reporting and closed captioning fields, writing has remained a constant. If she's not in front of a keyboard, she can be found reading, working out or avoiding housework. She's a member of Sisters in Crime and lives in the Northeast with her husband and a menagerie of very spoiled pets.
Gin Jones is a retired lawyer who specialized in ghost-writing for other lawyers. She prefers to write her own books, though, since she doesn't have to worry that her sense of humor might get her thrown into jail for contempt of court. In her spare time, Gin makes quilts, grows garlic, and advocates for patients with rare disorders.
Website: https://www.ginjones.com/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/ginjones.bsky.social
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ginjonesmysteries/
Jamie L. Adams fell in love with books at an early age. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott opened her imagination and sparked a dream to be a writer. She wrote her first book as a school project in 6th grade.
A graduate of the Institute of Children's Literature as well as member of American Christian Fiction Writers, The Writing Desk and several critique groups, she spends most of her time writing, reading or learning more about the craft near to her heart.
The parents of three very active children, she and her husband live in the Ozarks surrounded by forest and wildlife.
Erica Wynters started as most authors do - as an avid reader. Cozy mysteries and romantic suspense offered her just the escape she was looking for! The combination of great love and great danger keeps her turning pages late into the night.
Now they keep her writing pages late into the night. Her goal is always two-fold: help you fall in love with love all over again and take you on an adventure that will keep you on the edge of your seat!
Falling in love has never been so fun...or so dangerous!
Misty Simon always wanted to be a storyteller…preferably behind a Muppet. Animal was number one, followed closely by Sherlock Hemlock… Since that dream didn’t come true, she began writing stories to share her world with readers, one laugh at a time.
Touching people’s hearts and funny bones are two of her favorite things, and she hopes everyone at least snickers in the right places when reading her books. She lives with her husband in Central Pennsylvania, where she is hard at work on her next novel or three.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/misty.simon.18
Instagram: @mistysimonwrites
Tiktok: @mistysimonwrites
Website: http://www.mistysimon.com
Christine Knapp practiced as a nurse-midwife for many years. A writer of texts and journal articles, she is now thrilled to combine her love of midwifery and mysteries as a fiction author. Christine currently narrates books for the visually impaired. A dog lover, she lives near Boston. Visit thoughtfulmidwife.com
Website https://www.thoughtfulmidwife.com/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/christine.w.knapp
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/maevecw/
X https://x.com/chriswknapp
Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/maevecwk.bsky.social
Annie McEwen is the author of the Northwoods Mysteries Series, set amongst the tall pines and sparkling lakes of northern Wisconsin where she spent vacations as a kid. Because of a sweet love story between her youngest sister and a local Wisconsin boy (storyline idea!), she’s still been able to keep on visiting the beautiful place that means so much to her.
Annie and her husband are empty nesters—their son is married to his high school sweetheart, and their daughter is married with two adorable toddler boys. Being grandparents is definitely the best gig ever! They also have four fur babies who just might make some special appearances in Annie's books.
When Annie isn’t writing, playing with her grandsons, or tackling trash-to-treasure projects, she works as a radiological technologist, aka, she takes pictures of bones...you can’t hide much from her! Writing, though, is her first love.
Jennifer Fischetto is the USA TODAY Bestselling author of the Gianna Mancini paranormal cozy mystery series, as well as a dozen other titles. She writes family-centric murder mysteries and things that go bump in the night.
A lover of rainstorms and snow, she prefers fiction over reality and longs to live in a world where French fries grow on trees, chocolate appears whenever desired, and every day is October. She watches too much television and movies, which fuel her never-ending supply of plot ideas, and is a rabid fan of suspense, horror, and everything supernatural.
You can learn about her next book by subscribing to her newsletter at https://jenniferfischetto.com/newsletter/
Visit Jennifer at:
Website: http://jenniferfischetto.com/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/jenniferfischetto.com
Anne Marie Stoddard is a USA TODAY bestselling author and former Amazon Mover & Shaker. She writes supernatural suspense and humorous cozy mysteries with an edge. Her Amelia Grace Mystery series, inspired by her years working in radio, and concert venues and music festivals across the U.S., has won several awards, including the 2012 AJC Decatur Book Festival Writing Contest, the 2013 Book Junkie's Choice Award for Best Debut Fiction Novel, and nominations for the 2014 & 2016 RONE Awards Best Mystery/Thriller Category.
Aside from writing, Anne Marie loves her husband and their dog, college football, hula hoops, music, coffee, and anything pumpkin-flavored.
For more details about Anne Marie's upcoming projects, giveaways, and more, visit her online and subscribe to her newsletter at http://www.amstoddardbooks.com/.
Connect with Anne Marie on social media!
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmStoddardBooks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AMStoddardBooks
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