Cinder Bella ('Tis the Season) by Kathleen Shoop (251 pages)
Always Noel ('Tis the Season) by Kathleen Shoop (64 pages)
Choice of one or both
Review Tour
Tuesday 6th September onwards
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Cinder Bella
She never had anything.
He lost everything.
Together they create a Christmas to remember.
December, 1893
Shadyside, Pennyslvania
Bella Darling lives in a cozy barn at Maple Grove, an estate owned by industrialist Archibald Westminster. The Westminster family is stranded overseas and have sent word to relieve all employees of their duties except Margaret the pregnant maid, James the butler, and Bella. Contented with a toasty home festooned with pine boughs and cinnamon sticks, she coaxes old hens to lay eggs—extraordinary eggs. Bella yearns for just one thing—someone to share her life with. Always inventive, she has a plan for that. She just needs to get the right egg into the hands of the right man.
Bartholomew Baines, a Harvard-educated banker, is reeling in the aftermath of his bank’s collapse. With his friends and fiancé ostracizing him for what he thought was an act of generosity, he is penniless and alone. A kind woman welcomes him into her boarding house under conditions that he reluctantly accepts. Completely undone by his current, lowly position, and by the motley crew of fellow boarders who view him as one of them, Bartholomew wrestles with how to rebuild.
With the special eggs as the impetus, the first meeting between Bella and Bartholomew gives each the wrong idea about the other. And when the boarding house burns down a week before Christmas it’s Bella who is there to lend a hand. She, Margaret, and James invite the homeless group to stay at the estate through the holidays. But as Christmas draws closer, eviction papers arrive. Maple Grove is being foreclosed upon. Can Bella work her magic and save their Christmas? Is the growing attraction between Bartholomew and Bella enough for them to see past their differences? Only time will tell and only if time doesn’t run out before they have the Christmas of their lives.
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Always Noel
Albany, Oregon
December, 1937
Despite the lingering Depression, Albany, Oregon is lit up for Christmas. The entire town is bright with hope ushered in with the holiday season. But Jane Scott’s dream for the perfect Christmas is ruined. She’s accepted to the University of Oregon, yet denied the scholarship that would allow her to attend. On top of that her boyfriend, Jack Arthur, stands her up just when she needs him most. Faced with not earning a teaching degree she wonders if she could be happy living life as her mother has—as a woman contented with all things domestic. As each day seems darker, Jane’s strength and faith is tested.
Feeling as though everything she had counted on is fading away, she flounders for an anchor. Little by little the Scott family Christmas traditions and a benefactor’s encouragement remind her of what the season is all about, what she is all about. Can plans for a new job pay enough for tuition? Does Jack’s mysterious absence mean the end of their future together? Is a Christmas miracle on the way?
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Sharon x
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Sharon Martin
Blogger & Promoter at Beck Valley Books          |
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