Now that Christmas is over, hopefully you have a few days to relax and read. (It isn’t just me who looks forward to this week between Christmas and New Year’s for lots of quality reading time, is it?) If you’re really lucky, you got some gift cards for your favorite book buying location in your stocking. (I always tell my in-laws that what I really want are Amazon gift cards. They don’t like this answer, because they are shoppers. But what they don’t seem to understand, no matter how I try to explain, is that a gift card to Amazon can see me through half a year of books, if I’m careful with it. And also, I have a fairly serious book habit.)
Anyway! To keep you from holding those gift cards in your hands, hunching over them, and whispering, “Preciousssss. My precioussss.” for too long, I thought I’d suggest a few books that I have read and enjoyed that I think you would also be well served to read and enjoy. So without further ado…
First up is A Semi-Precious Christmas, by Jan Elder. At $0.99, it’s a real bargain (note, it’s that price as of 12/12, when I’m writing this post. If it’s gone up in the meantime, I apologize!) I love Jan’s writing. She has a humorous, relatable voice and her characters ooze understated, yet snappy, wit. In Semi-Precious, we meet Peridot Keaton-Jones, manager of her uncle’s jewelry store (with a name like Peridot, where else would she work? And her sister? Named Amethyst (though she goes by Amy). ) Calamity strikes right on page one, however, when she walks in on a robbery in progress. Despite the robbery and ensuing quest for who done it, I wouldn’t classify this as romantic suspense (though there are a few tense moments). It’s a delightful romance with a hint of mystery, and I can pretty much guarantee you’ll fall in love with Peridot and Chris by page three.
I should probably go ahead and say, in the interest of full disclosure, that Jan is a friend of mine. But I promise you, if I didn’t love her book, I wouldn’t tell you about it.
Next up is an older book, but it was absolutely delightful and resulted in a new author for me to hunt down other books by. (I love it when that happens, don’t you?) See, as part of blogging here, it occurred to me that it would be a good idea to read at least one thing by everyone else who blogs here. And so, I tracked down a likely suspect from everyone and spent the better part of a very enjoyable couple months doing just that. I’ll just say I don’t think you can go wrong with any book by any one of the lovely ladies who blog at InspyRomance. Cause wow, we’ve got some talented authors here! Unfortunately, I don’t have room to highlight every single one of them in this post – so don’t think of this as choosing favorites. It’s more like…highlighting a random selection.
Anyway, the next book is Love is a Battlefield by Annalisa Daughtey. Oh. My. Goodness. If you like to laugh, you simply must read this. The rest of the series is on my to read list. Kristy (the heroine) is a hoot. I’m not sure she always intends to be, but she’s one of those people who ridiculous things just seem to happen to. And Ace…Ace is yummy.
This is a fast-paced, detail-rich book that, in addition to having a very satisfying romance, has lots of fun facts about Shiloh National Military Park. And I don’t know about you, but I always like to learn a thing or two when I read. Particularly when there’s not a quiz afterward. (And thankfully, Annalisa did NOT put a quiz at the back of her book. So we’re good there.)
Finally (because I could go on all day giving book recommendations. Seriously. Don’t ask me to recommend books because I’ll never stop talking.), Another Chance by Diane Adams is another that I read as part of my “read something by everyone at InspyRomance” campaign. I. Loved. It. I loved that the heroine is older and starting over after some major bumps in her life. I loved the attraction between the hero and heroine – it was rich and layered. And I loved the little details like the drama between the female faculty members and the idea behind the program that Anna is hired to head up.
So there you have three ideas for spending some of that new book-buying-gift-cash. And the best part? You could get all three and probably not make much of a dent in your gift card. The other great way to get good bang for your book buck? Boxed sets. I owe a lot of the success of my read the Inspy Authors program to boxed sets. So keep your eyes open for those — you never know how many new favorite authors you’ll find in a single purchase.
Elizabeth Maddrey is a semi-reformed computer geek and homeschooling mother of two who lives in the suburbs of Washington D.C. When she isn’t writing, Elizabeth is a voracious consumer of books. She loves to write about Christians who struggle through their lives, dealing with sin and receiving God’s grace on their way to their own romantic happily ever after.
Thank you for the suggestions, Elizabeth. I love a book that makes me laugh.
I received several gift cards for Amazon and Barnes and Noble…time to shop for books!
Happy New Year!
You’re welcome! Hope you enjoy any of the ones you pick up! :)
You are right, books are great for gifts. Gift cards are wonderful as we get to choose the exact books we would like to read. Hope you enjoyed a Merry Christmas! Have a wonderful day! :-)
We had a lovely Christmas – hope you did as well! :) And books are always the right size! Thanks for coming by. :)
I’ve read several of Annalisa’s and Diane’s, too, and haven’t failed to enjoy them! Jan is new to me. I’ll add her to my (not very short) list :)
My list keeps growing too! :)
Thanks for sharing these. Definitely some that I am adding to my reading list.
Wow! Thanks so much for mentioning Another Chance! It’s the first book I ever wrote, though it isn’t the same book it was then – about 30 years ago! Little did I know it would become the first book in a series. That’s one of the things I like about writing – the way the characters become real people and refuse to be silenced when we think we’re ready to move on. By the way, Another Chance is free through tomorrow.
I’ll be sure and check out the other books you mentioned. We’re having a big family party here tomorrow but after that, yes … sit and eat the leftovers and read, read, read!
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that Jan Elder’s book (which I just started reading last night, as a matter of fact) is part of Pelican Book Group’s Holiday Christmas Extravaganza. I believe there are 13 books in the collection this year and should all be priced at only 99 cents through the end of December (if not beyond, but that is not known as of this point). You can find them all on Amazon by searching under Kindle books for “Christmas Holiday Extravanga.” All of the past books in the Extravaganza are also listed there (and almost all are also 99 cents). Happy reading, and blessings to all for a happy and healthy New Year.
Um, that’s Christmas Holiday Extravaganza (not Extravanga–I made up a new word, it seems). LOL. I got it right by the second mention, anyway. Always editing… Sorry about that. I’m still recovering from Christmas. :)
THANK YOU, Elizabeth for mentioning A Semi-Precious Christmas (and thanks JoAnn for talking about Christmas Extravaganza books of which you have several!). I did get an Amazon gift card for Christmas (yayayay) so I picked up the other two books by Diane and Annalisa listed above. I understand that “serious habit” you talked about and I’m always looking for terrific books (the recommended ones are the best.) Can’t wait. And speaking of Christmas books, Operation Mistletoe is on my best of 2015 list. :)
Yay! Hope you like them.
Oh yay for it being free – I hope people click through and see that!!
Oooh, I hadn’t realized all the books in the extravaganza were only $0.99 — time to do some shopping! (I already grabbed yours, I just haven’t read it yet. But your books never disappoint either, JoAnn!
Aww, yay! I’m glad Operation Mistletoe made the list! :) And I think you’ll love the two you picked up–they’re delightful.
Oh I’d love to get Amazon gift cards too…..but nobody seems to believe me either when I tell them it’s what I want the most! And I do seem to hoard the money on it, carefully considering what book to purchase next….lol! Boxed sets are great, I’ve purchased my share of them. Great short stories that give you a taste of what the author has to offer, and if you like them enough, you’ll look for other books by them :-) I have quite a few on my Kindle to savor. Thanks for the suggestions, I have “Another Chance” but haven’t read it yet. Now I know I’ll love it just from you talking about it.
Oh I hope you do enjoy it! I squirrel my gift card money too, but it makes it even more fun to spread it out over the year.
Thanks for sharing your suggestions! It’s always fun to find new authors!! Happy New Year!!
Thanks! Happy New Year to you, too! :)
Thanks so much, Elizabeth! :)
Books are a great gift any time of the year as far as I’m concerned. If I received a book or books everyday I would not refuse.
Yesterday my husband and I walked into Barnes n Nobles and i’m so glad I was in front of my husband because then he couldn’t see me smiling like an idiot. :):):):)
Ha! I get that same idiotic smile when I walk into a bookstore. And probably even when I pull up Amazon in my browser :)
True! So very true! Smile away fellow book addicts!