Natalie Damschroder shares her holiday reading list
Natalie Damschroder, author of If You Believe in Me (an Entangled Flirt), enjoys the Christmas parts of books over and over again. While some of us might revisit the, ahem, naughty parts (not that I would do that!), Natalie returns to the joyful parts. And that's a wonderful plan right now. Here, Natalie shares her holiday reading list.
Natalie: Thanks so much to Joyce and HEA for allowing me to be a guest today. I'm honored to be a part of the holiday celebrations here!
When I was younger, before I became a writer/wife/mother/full-time employee/volunteer, before I had so little time to read so many fantastic books, I re-read my favorites more than once. The books I read the most were the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. But I didn't always read the series, or even each book, from start to finish.
Countless times I picked up one of the books at random and flipped to the Christmas chapter. I guess it's logical that a kid would love the descriptions of the gifts and decorations and games, but the books were, at their heart, about family, and Christmas epitomized what that meant.
All year long, I gravitate toward paranormal romances, romantic adventure and romantic suspense, with a few scattered other types of books here and there. But always, at Christmastime, I devour the books with simpler, more direct romance plots centered around the holiday.
I say "simpler," but of course I only mean plot-wise. They're never simple emotionally. Take Miracle Under the Mistletoe by Tracy Madison. This book, about a couple finding each other again after the death of their toddler son, was about all I can take in the tear-jerking genre. But it's a romance, so after Grady and Olivia fight through all the pain and regret and fear, the happy ending was all the more satisfying (and then I cried happy tears). I just bought her newest release, Cole's Christmas Wish, which features one of my favorite romance tropes — best friends falling in love!
That one has to wait, though. I usually have more than one book going, thanks to an old Kindle, a new Kindle, an iPod and print books scattered around my house. I just finished Ros Clarke's All I Want for Christmas. Anna's resistance to the near-perfect Hugh is baffling until she lets us in on her heartbreak. How can any new relationship endure the challenges of caring for a parent with Alzheimer's?
Holly's First Noel by Faye Robertson has humor in common with All I Want for Christmas, despite the opening breakup scene and the grieving hero. Both authors have a talent for blending laughter and pain. Hm. I think that's a trend in my holiday reading choices this year. I started my marathon with The Lola Cruz Christmas Story by Melissa Bourbon, a funny introduction to the mystery series that hints at dark complications.
Not all my holiday favorites have dark underpinnings, though. Claustrophobic Christmas by Ellie Marvel is pretty much all laughter, with a heroine I could (as always) identify with just a little too much and a hero I'd kill for, if I hadn't already been lucky enough to find my perfect partner in real life. : )
I have at least three more books, novellas, or short stories in my "to read" piles and folders, plus more coming out that I plan to snap up on release day. My holiday season and beyond will be jam-packed with emotional enhancements to the most emotional time of year.
What's on YOUR holiday reading list?
If you like reunion romances, small-town heroines and intense, determined (yet vulnerable!) military men, I invite you to check out my new Flirt from Entangled Publishing, If You Believe in Me. The traditions of the holiday season — similar in spirit to the things that kept bringing me back to the Little House books — are pretty much all that are keeping Amber Benedict sane as Christmas draws ever closer … and Kale Riker's homecoming seems ever further away.
Here's the blurb for If You Believe in Me (courtesy of Entangled):
Three years ago, Amber Benedict fell in love with Kale Riker and pledged to wait for him to return from military service. Even though she rarely hears from him, she's steadfast in her belief: he's coming home to her, and soon. Then the government tells
Kale's family that he's missing in action, and the Rikers have given him up for dead. Now the entire town is set on convincing Amber to let go of a dead man and move on.
Amber is certain Kale is still alive and on his way home, but can she hold out against an entire town pushing her to give up on love?
To find out more about Natalie and her books, you can visit her website, NatalieDamschroder.com. You can also connect with her on Facebook and Twitter (@NJDamschroder).