Tome Thursday: Merry Cherry Christmas

 

Hello everyone!

 

We made it.

 

Against practically all odds this 2020 year, we DEFINITELY made it through to the end. Some more, some less successfully, but at least it's now almost over and we can begin to look forward to 2021. I plan on watching The Lord of the Rings and just going to bed early, I think.

 

Hopefully you all stay safe and healthy and have a love-filled evening!

 

In the meantime, we are wrapping up this blog season with the last Christmas blog.

 

Luckily for me when it comes to these things, Keira Andrews has published a new Christmas romance practically every year for the last few years, which means there is always one to look forward to, and 2020 was no exception.

 

This one might have been even better because of the general situation, if you ask me.

 

But if you're looking for some wholesome, M/M romance with reasonable characters, cuteness overload, some steamy scenes and a happily ever after, then she's ABSOLUTELY the one to read.

 

Merry Cherry Christmas is just another in a long list that keeps on giving.

 

Talkie Tuesday: The Christmas Bow

 

"No matter what curve balls come at you - just keep swinging."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome to the last Christmas movie review of the season!

 

Whew.

 

It's been a doozy this year given everything, but then again I suppose we're all feeling the effects of it being 2020, right?

 

I've seen so many memes floating about that it's hard to say who's had more fun with them, the year itself or the people who made them, but all of them are so relatable, and honestly I can't WAIT for 2021. It's got to be better than what we've had so far, right?

 

Fingers crossed.

 

But for the time being we're taking a look at one last Christmas-y movie before starting something else next week, and in honour of that I've chosen one that I truly enjoyed yesterday while watching.

 

The Christmas Bow knew exactly what it wanted from audiences, and delivered.

 

Saturday Snippet: Valhalla Honest Trailer

 

 Enjoy the laughs!

 

xx

*video not mine

Tome Thursday: The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding

 

Hello everyone!

 

Hopefully you're all prepared for the holidays and don't need to go into any more stores, because even though we're in a rather dicey and unfortunate situation right now, somehow people STILL gather there en masse.

 

You would think, right?

 

But hopefully most of you are all done with every shopping expedition and you can enjoy the time at home now that the holidays are officially upon us.

 

As it so happens, the main focus of our little book review tonight could NOT stay at home despite the fact he wanted to. And isn't that just sat in the long run? Luckily for us though it does turn out quite funny along the way so it isn't as though we don't get any payoff from it.

 

If you're thinking that the title of this book is a bit weird in terms of what I've just said, you may even be right.

 

Then again, when it comes to Agatha Christie and her Hercule Poirot, it usually is.

 

The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding awaits!

 

Talkie Tuesday: A Glenbrooke Christmas

 

"Not everyone with money is a bad person."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Back with yet another Christmas movie, though this time I switched things around, as I will normally watch something and then end up waiting a bit before I work on a review of it, but yesterday as I was watching some evening entertainment (which these movies inevitably are) I couldn't not.

 

Every once in a while you run into something that either makes you really happy, makes you laugh a whole lot, or just makes you shake your head.

 

Depending on that criteria you can then decide just how good the whole she-bang was. 

 

For me, the movie started out a bit meh and I thought it would be just okay, but by the time the action started going I was beginning to think it might just be the funniest I've ever seen. Why? Well a lot of it has to do with how certain scenes were written, though I'll admit that most of it comes down to the two leading actors.

 

Though if you read reviews on IMDB they're all saying how the writing was meh, I kind of disagree. Was it cheesy? Sure thing. But was it meh? No, not really.

 

Let's check out A Glenbrooke Christmas.

Saturday Snippets: Peasants

 

 

Where's the lie though? 😅

 

xx

*image not mine

Tome Thursday: Tell Me Your Wish

 

Hello everyone!

 

Welcome back to yet another Christmas book review, and, again, to another Serenity Woods review. I feel like I repeat myself a lot in these blog post intros, but truth be told there are just certain topics, authors or genres I gravitate towards with ease, and this is one of them.

 

I discovered Ms Woods completely by accident when the first book of one of her series, Three Wise Men, was made available on Kobo, and I thought to myself, what the heck.

 

I could do with some Christmas fluff, right?

 

Well, I ended up getting so much more than that!

 

That was a few years ago, and I now have the honour and privilege of being part of Ms Woods' ARC team, which means I'm super lucky and get to check out some of her books in advance. Tonight's one is of that caliber, but let me tell you, it is also SO worth the wait to buy it!

 

If you've been paying attention, Ms Woods has spent most of this year writing as Hermione Moon (her cozy witch mysteries are worth the read too, by the way), but is now returning to the world of contemporary romance.

 

Tell Me Your Wish is a standalone in her Christmas-themed books, and you can bet you should be picking it up.

 

Talkie Tuesday: USS Christmas

 

"Heart and emotion. To the Navy!"

 

Hello everyone!

 

For this week's blog post I picked one from Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, given that both that AND regular Hallmark are doing their countdown before the 24th rolls around.

 

Though to be fair, I tend to just watch movies willy-nilly.

 

I'm one of those people who makes a list every December and then randomly picks and chooses what they're going to watch, but then again I also have the privilege to be able to do so, which is no small feat, I'll admit.

 

I have to give credit where credit is due, after all.

 

Besides, with our Hallmark subsidiary rolling out all the stops and making sure it follow the mother company's rules and regulations on this, it's safe to say we, also, get way too many Christmas movies, which is a far cry from how things used to be!

 

However, I'm dithering at this point.

 

Tonight, let's check out a more mysterious rote: USS Christmas!

 

Saturday Snippet: Return of the Witches

 

!!!!!

 

xx

*video not mine

Tome Thursday: Hercule Poirot's Christmas

 

Hello everyone!

 

This week's book is just a little bit different in the sense that it's not all happy-go-lucky, merry, or bright. Well, some of it certainly is, but for the most part ... not really.

 

Obviously you can have all the sweetness and Christmas-y adorable feelings whenever you pick a book up, but every once in a while there can also be another thing happening, and it's kind of fun to deviate a little.

 

Plus, I'm a huge Agatha Christie fan, so naturally I'll try and sneak in one of her books if I possibly can along the way.

It doesn't help that watching His Dark Materials and hearing David Suchet's voice as he portrays one of the daemons is one of the best things that's happened in a while, because honestly, I LOVE this man, and his portrayal of Hercule Poirot is probably one that will last for all time.

 

The fact remains there is only one REALLY good Belgian detective.

 

And he also had an interesting Christmas a couple of times.

 

Hercule Poirot's Christmas covers just one of those adventures.

 

Talkie Tuesday: Christmas with the Darlings

 

"You should do the right thing because it's the right thing to do, not to brag about it."

 

Hello everyone!

 

So I thought initially to swap between my blog posts and do one good Christmas movie review and one bad, but in the end decided, you know what? We kind of need more good than bad in the world right now, and I can keep the ones that weren't quite the way they could have been to myself.

 

Instead, I'll be doing all the goodies this month!

 

And boy, is Hallmark delivering.

 

True, there have definitely been a few misses, especially given the fact there have been an almost whooping 50 movies or so between their regular programming and Movies & Mysteries, but hey, it's enjoyable overall!

 

For tonight, I'm picking out one that's about as heartwarming as you can get, and then some.

Yeah sure, I can hear you saying on the other end, but EVERY movie is that, it's the point!

Okay yes, but Christmas with the Darlings adds just a little bit of extra sugar plum.

Saturday Snippet: Suggestion

 

Not Christmas-themed, but still a good book to read!

 

xx

*image not mine

Tome Thursday: My Christmas Fiancé

 

Hello everyone!

 

I am back and this time with an official excuse to actually start the Christmas books extravaganza. For the foreseeable future, you will be seeing only something and everything Christmas related on here even when it comes to books, so I hope you're prepared for it!

To be fair, I started last week already with Hermione Moon's book, but I feel like this week it's more official, you know?

After all, it IS December now!

So I was waffling between wanting to give you something sweet and a little steamy, and a murder mystery, because not even Christmas can escape that particular niche.

And in the end, I figured sweet and steamy might work a bit better, however there will definitely be some sleuthing going on here as well, just not this week.

For now we are returning to my first love when it comes to contemporary books, the work of Serenity Woods. This is one of her older ones, but she IS releasing a new Christmas-themed romance soon and you bet that I will be bringing you the scoop as soon as I can!

Right now, it's time to check My Christmas Fiancé first.

Talkie Tuesday: On the 12th Date of Christmas

 

"And a partridge in a pear tree ..."

 

Hello everyone!

 

Happy December!

 

Today being the first of the month, it marks the next four weeks or so of what the content of this blog is going to be. Christmas, Christmas and some more Christmas!

 

Mainly because of the fact that these COVID times have forced most of us to have to stay at home and deal with it from there, there's a lot of content to be had when it comes to the holiday season.

 

And I mean, A LOT.

 

Here's the thing: every channel and every entertainer knows that Christmas is when you can cash in the most. Also of note is the fact that people start feeling nostalgic or mellow because of the season, and sometimes all you need is to sit down and watch something cozy and happy.

 

Hallmark or Lifetime are the places to go, though I prefer Hallmark for its long-standing history.

 

This year is no different, with hits and misses all around! Tonight, we're taking a look at On the 12th Date of Christmas.