It’s November already, can you believe it? Less than two months for Christmas! Which means lots and lots of Festive reads coming out this month. Actually, this month there are so many amazing books out that I don’t know how I am going to keep up with them. Here are the titles I am most excited about:
Breakout by Aven Ellis – November 4th
Blurb: While Texas is known for loving football, Lexi Stewart has always been drawn to the ice. Hockey is her passion, and she wants nothing more than to pursue a career in video editing for the home network of the Dallas Demons hockey team.
Lexi has an editing job for a corporate account, but it’s not fulfilling. Nor is her dating life, despite having the so-called help of The One Online Dating Service. Lexi knows there has to be more for her—on both fronts. She’s ready to take the next step, but it doesn't seem like it’s going to happen anytime soon.
Until a flying puck changes everything.
Niko Xenakis is the new Dallas Demons TV producer, and he’s looking to make his mark in his new role and hopefully work his way back to his hometown of Baltimore. But once he meets Lexi, he might just change his mind on what he wants for his future . . .
But the road to love is never easy, complicated by the fact that they both carry emotional baggage from the past in their hearts. Can these two “breakout”of the past to find love in the present?
Why so excited: Aven Ellis is back with her Dallas Demons Series, how could I not be excited?
A Christmas Tail by Cressida McLaughlin – November 5th
Blurb: This book was first published as an e-serial Primrose Terrace Parts 1-4. Perfect for fans of Cathy Bramley, Lucy Dillon and Debbie Johnson.
A Christmas Tail was first published as a four-part serial set in Primrose Terrace.
Catherine ‘Cat’ Palmer realizes that bringing an adorable puppy into work is a bad idea, especially when it gets her the sack. Deciding it’s the perfect opportunity to launch her dog-walking business, Cat enlists the help of flatmates Polly and Joe. After all Primrose Terrace, the street where they live, is full of home-alone hounds.
Getting to know the owners and their precious pooches isn’t all plain sailing, but soon Cat is making friends, particularly with sexy Mark and his Collie, Chips. But is he the right man for her?
With her talent for misadventure, Cat’s new life starts to show some cracks, and when one of the street’s loveable schnauzers gets ill, it looks like this Christmas could be turning into a dog’s dinner. But Cat has never given up on anything in her life – and this is one Christmas that’s definitely worth saving…
Why so excited: After realising her debut in 4 short stories over the year, Cressida is finally releasing the complete novel in this beautiful paperback. I’m definitely not missing it.
How to Stuff Up Christmas by Rosie Blake – November 5th
Blurb: 'Tis the season to be jolly. Unless you've found an intimate picture of another woman on your fiance's phone...
Eve is heartbroken after discovering her fiance is cheating on her. Being surrounded by the joys of Christmas is more than Eve can bear, so she chooses to avoid the festivities by spending Christmas alone on a houseboat in Pangbourne. Eve gets gets an unexpected seasonal surprise when handsome local vet Greg comes to her rescue one day, and continues to visit Eve's boat on a mission to transform her from Kitchen Disaster Zone to Culinary Queen.
But where does Greg keep disappearing to? What does Eve's best friend Daisy know that she isn't telling? And why is there an angry goose stalking Eve's boat?
A hilarious and heart-warming novel about Christmas, catastrophes and cooking, containing exclusive Christmas recipes, from the talented Rosie Blake.
Why so excited: I loved Rosie’s hilarious debut, How to Get a (Love) Life and her second book looks and sounds fantastic.
The Winter Wedding by Abby Clements – November 5th
Blurb: Hazel never set out to be a wedding planner. She was just helping her stressed sister Lila with cakes and décor for her big day. But when Lila and Ollie's summer ceremony is a runaway success, with guests raving about the food and styling at the pretty venue, word about Hazel's expertise soon spreads.
But Hazel's clients expect the very best - she's promised lawyers Gemma and Eliot a snow-covered castle in the Scottish Highlands, and laidback couple Josh and Sarah a bohemian beach wedding in a Caribbean paradise. But as weather, in-laws and wilful brides conspire against her, can Hazel get two very different couples to walk up two very different aisles to say 'I do'? And will she find her own happy ending if she does?
Why so excited: I love Abby’s stories but surprisingly, I have never read her festive stories. I am sure that they are just as specials.
A Girl's Best Friend by Lindsey Kelk - November 5th
Blurb: First Tess was a girl with a plan.
Then she was a girl with a dream.
Now she’s a girl who’s come back to earth with a bump.
When the opportunity arises to join her best friend, Amy, in New York for Christmas, Tess jumps at the chance. The only fly in ointment is that Nick, the man who broke her heart, lives there. And Charlie, the man she turned down, has just started talking to her again. And she has just four days to take a photo for a competition that could save her career.
But aside from that, everything is going to be great: it’ll be the best Christmas ever. Won’t it?
Why so excited: Tess is back! Finally! I so want to know what happens next!
The Marble Collector by Cecelia Ahern – November 5th
Blurb: A forgotten childhood. A discovered life.
What if you only had one day to find out who you really were?
When Sabrina Boggs stumbles upon a mysterious collection of her father’s possessions, she discovers a truth where she never knew there was a lie. The familiar man she grew up with is suddenly a stranger to her.
An unexpected break in her monotonous daily routine leaves her just one day to unlock the secrets of the man she thought she knew. A day that unearths memories, stories and people she never knew existed. A day that changes her and those around her forever.
The Marble Collector is a thought-provoking novel about how the most ordinary decisions we make can have the most extraordinary consequences for how we live our lives. And how sometimes it’s only by shining on a light on someone else, that you can truly understand yourself.
Why so excited: I had fallen a bit out of love with Cecelia’s stories but last year I picked The Year I Met You and absolutely loved it. Plus, I’ve heard The Marble Collector is completely different to anything she has written so far, definitely on my wish list.
The Mince Pie Mix-Up by Jennifer Joyce – November 6th
Blurb: “I wish I could live your life. I’d happily swap lives with you.”
’Tis the season to be jolly but for Calvin and Judy the usual festive bickering has already begun! Judy’s convinced that her husband has it easy – no glittery wrapping paper, no playground gossip and absolutely no Christmas baking.
Calvin wishes he could trade in his obnoxious boss and dull nine-to-five job to spend more time kicking back with his kids – how hard can Judy’s life really be?
But after a magical mince pie mix-up, one thing’s for certain – by Christmas Day, life for Judy and Calvin will never be the same again. Perhaps the grass isn’t always greener after all…
Why so excited: After self publishing her first two novels, Jennifer has signed a book deal with Carina UK and I looking forward to finding out what she has come out with.
Lost Girls by Angela Marsons – November 6h
Blurb: Two girls go missing. Only one will return.
The couple that offers the highest amount will see their daughter again. The losing couple will not. Make no mistake. One child will die.
When nine-year-old best friends Charlie and Amy disappear, two families are plunged into a living nightmare. A text message confirms the unthinkable; that the girls are the victims of a terrifying kidnapping.
And when a second text message pits the two families against each other for the life of their children, the clock starts ticking for D.I. Kim Stone and the squad.
Seemingly outwitted at every turn, as they uncover a trail of bodies, Stone realises that these ruthless killers might be the most deadly she has ever faced. And that their chances of bringing the girls home alive, are getting smaller by the hour…
Untangling a dark web of secrets from the families’ past might hold the key to solving this case. But can Kim stay alive long enough to do so? Or will someone’s child pay the ultimate price?
Why so excited: Angela has already published two amazing and unsettling thrillers this year and I loved them both. She is back with more Kim Stone, what more could we ask for?
Why are all the books in the world out the 5th of November? I might die of excitement this Thursday!
