🎅 Christmas Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo ~ Louise Marley

On this quiet December Sunday morning why don't you put the kettle on, make your favourite breakfast and settle down for a Festive Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo

🎅 I'm delighted to welcome author, Louise Marley to our Christmas Sunday Brunch today 🎅

🎅Welcome Louise, what favourite food are you bringing to this Christmas Sunday brunch?

Mince pies! I hope that doesn’t sound boring but I do make them myself—including the mincemeat! They are high in fruit and low in sugar—practically no calories at all! 

🎅Would you like a pot of English breakfast tea, a strong Americano, or a celebratory glass of Bucks Fizz?

I would love an Americano, thank you! 

🎅Where shall we eat brunch—around the kitchen table, in the formal dining room, or outside on the patio? 

The patio might be a little cold and possibly wet! How about around the kitchen table? 

🎅Shall we have festive music playing in the background? And if so will you share with us a favourite Christmas song or piece of Christmas music that makes you happy? 

I love Christmas music, which is fortunate because I’ve just spent two years listening to it while I wrote and edited You Make It Feel Like Christmas! I always have music playing while I work and create playlists for each book. 

For a long time my favourite song was All I Want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey but listening to Christmas music for two years forced me to find new tracks! It’s hard to pick just one, so I’ll say When the Snow Falls Down by Amy Stroup, The Christmas Song by The Raveonettes, and You Make It Feel Like Christmas by Gwen Stefani & Blake Shelton. 

🎅Which of your literary heroes (dead or alive) are joining us for Sunday Brunch today? 

I have lots of literary heroes but I don’t want to crowd your kitchen! Could I bring Terry Pratchett and Jilly Cooper, for their sense of humour? And perhaps squeeze in Shirley Jackson? She would have been a fascinating person to meet. I’d have lots of questions! 

🎅Which favourite Christmas book will you bring to Sunday Brunch? 

I love reading Christmas books, particularly romantic comedy and cosy crime. However, my favourite was written by Enid Blyton in 1944 and belonged to my mother. It’s called The Christmas Book and explains all the familiar Christmas traditions. When I was a child I would re-read it every year. 

🎅When you are writing do you still find time to read for pleasure? And is there a book you would like to read but haven’t had time for …yet! 

I read two books a week and still have a huge ‘to be read’ list because I can’t stop buying more! I loved Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials and bought the first one in his Book of Dust series, La Belle Sauvage, some time ago. I still haven’t had the chance to read it. Maybe this Christmas! 

Penguin Children's and
David Fickling Books
2017

🎅What’s the oldest book on your book shelf? 

Coincidentally, it’s A Visit from St Nicholas (also known as The Night Before Christmas) by Clement Clarke Moore, published in 1919. 

🎅Where do you find the inspiration for your novels? 

I tend to have several different ideas that all come together like a jigsaw puzzle. In You Make It Feel Like Christmas I wanted to write about Christmas because I love it so much. I wanted a heroine who loved Christmas too—so much so that she has very definite ideas about how Christmas should be celebrated—and that’s where her trouble begins! I also wanted to write about a house—and a family!—that weren’t perfect. And I wanted to explore what—when it comes right down to it—Christmas is really about. 

🎅Have you a favourite place to settle down to write and do you find it easier to write in winter or summer?

I am very lucky in that I have my own study! It is a tiny room, with just about room for my desk and a couple of bookcases. I love it. It doesn’t matter what the season is, it has no effect on my writing. Although if I’m too hot or too cold it can interfere with my thought process. 

🎅When writing to a deadline are you easily distracted and if so how do you bring back focus on your writing? 

My problem is not lack of focus, it’s lack of time! I’m not sure whether I need a Harry Potter style Time Turner or the ability to freeze time completely. If I didn’t have to go to sleep, I’d get so much more done! 

🎅Give us four essential items that a writer absolutely needs? 

Basically just a pen and paper, but four less tangible things would be: A good imagination (obviously!), patience, a determination to work hard, and an ability to be able to switch off from any distractions—including the Internet! 

🎅What can you tell us about your latest novel or your current work in progress? 

Television presenter Agatha Holly has built her career on telling viewers how to have the perfect Christmas. 'A Holly Jolly Christmas' has been screened every December for twenty years and her entire family are involved, including her daughter Beth—the unwilling star of a thousand memes and gifs. But Beth has finally had enough of public ridicule. All she’s ever wanted is a traditional family Christmas away from the television cameras. If she can’t persuade her family to change, should she consider celebrating Christmas without them? 

🎅Louise, where can we follow you on social media? 🎅

Twitter @LouiseMarley 

Facebook

Instagram

Website

Blog

Amazon UK

Louise,t hank you for taking part in Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo. 

Thank you very much for inviting me! Can I tempt you with another mince pie? I think I’ve made too many… 

🎅Louise's Latest Novel🎅

The only thing preventing Beth’s perfect family Christmas? Her family!

Television presenter Agatha Holly has built her career on telling viewers how to have the perfect Christmas. 'A Holly Jolly Christmas' has been screened every December for twenty years and her entire family are involved, including her daughter Beth—the unwilling star of a thousand memes and gifs. But Beth has finally had enough of public ridicule. All she’s ever wanted is a traditional family Christmas away from the television cameras. If she can’t persuade her family to change, should she consider celebrating Christmas without them? 

🎅More about Louise🎅 

Louise Marley writes murder mysteries and romantic comedies. She is lucky enough to live in a village where there is a famous library and two ruined castles. (Her husband still thinks they moved there by accident). 

Her first published novel was Smoke Gets in Your Eyes, which was a finalist in Poolbeg's 'Write a Bestseller' competition. She has also written articles for the Irish press and short stories for women's magazines such as Take a Break and My Weekly. Previously, Louise worked as a civilian administrative officer for the police.

 🎅Thank you for taking part in Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo 🎅

🎅Thank you for inviting me!🎅

Follow us on Twitter @jaffareadstoo #SundayBrunchwithJaffareadstoo

🎅 Christmas Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo ~ Katie Ginger

 

On this quiet December Sunday morning why don't you put the kettle on, make your favourite breakfast and settle down for a Festive Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo

🎅I'm delighted to welcome, author, Katie Ginger to our Christmas Sunday Brunch today🎅

🎅Merry Christmas Katie, what favourite food are you bringing to this Christmas Sunday brunch? 

I found this amazing recipe for a Brussel sprout gratin and I make it every year. I know most people hate them, but, sorry, I love them. It’s really creamy and cheesy and just makes them delicious. I also have this fabulous Christmas tree shaped cake mould, so I’ll make a big cake in the shape of a tree and decorate it. This year though, I won’t make it green because we all thought we were ill with something terrible when our poo was green the next day! Sorry if that’s TMI! 

🎅Would you like a pot of English breakfast tea, a strong Americano, or a celebratory glass of Bucks Fizz? 

Definitely Bucks Fizz! I’m a sucker for bubbles no matter how early in the morning it is! 

🎅Where shall we eat brunch – around the kitchen table, in the formal dining room, or outside on the patio? 

Definitely in the dining room, though mine’s not very formal! Half of it is covered in the kids’ stuff they’ve dumped, and the other half is reserved for boardgames! We’ll clean it off for guests and for special occasions but most of the time you have to eat with your elbows in so you don’t knock anything off! 

🎅Shall we have festive music playing in the background? And if so will you share with us a favourite Christmas song or piece of Christmas music that makes you happy? 

There has to be festive music playing! To be honest, I start playing festive music as soon as December 1st comes along! My favourite song is The Fairytale of New York by the Pogues and Kirsty McCall. That line, ‘I built my dreams around you’ gets me every time! 

🎅Which of your literary heroes (dead or alive) are joining us for Christmas Sunday Brunch today? 

I’d love a natter with Jane Austen. There’d be so much to ask her and learn from her it would be an amazing conversation. 

🎅Which favourite Christmas book will you bring to Sunday Brunch? 

It has to be A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens and we always watch the Muppet version every Christmas. That’s just a must in our house! And there has to be Christmassy nibbles and a hot chocolate too. 

Penguin
2012

🎅When you are writing do you still find time to read for pleasure? And is there a book you would like to read but haven’t had time for …yet! 

Oh my gosh, my Kindle is full of reads I want to get round too and haven’t yet. I’ve been a bit addicted to buying books when they’re 99p and there’s been a lot lately. I’ve got a bit of a backlog but I’m sure I’ll catch up eventually. I do read for pleasure and it really is the best way for me to relax. I love my own genre of romance, but I also really love reading cozy mysteries so I alternate between the two. 

🎅What’s the oldest book on your book shelf? 

The oldest book on my bookshelf is a copy of Winnie the Pooh and the House at Pooh Corner that I’ve had since I was very, very little. It’s falling apart so no one’s allowed to touch it, but I love knowing it’s there. 

🎅Where do you find the inspiration for your novels? 

Weirdly, it can come from anywhere – an overheard conversation, a place, a character trait I’ve seen in someone, a building or a feeling or experience. Sometimes, especially when writing a series, I have to think about how the characters can be different and that starts me off building a plot. For example, Hetty in Summer Strawberries at Swallowtail Bay is a real go-getter while Nell in Winter Wishes at Swallowtail Bay is a real dreamer. I need to make them different so the reader doesn’t get bored. 

🎅Have you a favourite place to settle down to write and do you find it easier to write in winter or summer? 

I have a little desk in the corner of the dining room and that’s where I write all year round. I sometimes edit from my armchair in the living room if I’m working on paper, but mostly I sit in the corner and get on with it. I love writing in both seasons: summer because I can have the back door open and listen to the birds, winter because I can have sparkly lights and Christmas music on! 

🎅When writing to a deadline are you easily distracted and if so how do you bring back focus on your writing? 

Not to toot my own horn, but I am pretty focussed. I did my Masters distance learning from home and learned then how to structure my time and focus on the task at hand. It helps that my kids are at school so I can work when they’re there and the house is quiet. It does get a little harder when it’s busier, but somehow, I’ve managed to make it through. 

🎅Give us four essential items that a writer absolutely needs? 

Tea/Coffee 

Fancy pens 

Notebooks 

Time to write! 

🎅My latest novel is a fabulous festive read called Winter Wishes at Swallowtail Bay! 

It’s all about Nell who is dreamy and loves a romcom but has to fight to save her hotel from going out of business. Our hero is Tom who is going through some pretty serious stuff of his own, but has been in love with Nell for years. Will Nell be able to find the love that has been right in front her the whole time? 

HQ Digital
October 2020

Grab your cosiest jumper and escape to the beautiful Swallowtail Bay!

Winter has arrived in Swallowtail Bay and Christmas and romance are in the air. But can two old friends discover a love that was always there, the whole time?

🎅Katie, where can we follow you on social media? 🎅

Twitter

Facebook 

Instagram: @KatieGAuthor

Website

Amazon UK

🎅More about Katie🎅

KATIE GINGER lives by the sea in the south-east of England, and apart from holidays to very hot places where you can sit by a pool and drink cocktails as big as your head, she wouldn’t really want to be anywhere else. Winter Wishes at Swallowtail Bay is her sixth novel. She is also the author of Spring Tides at Swallowtail Bay, Summer Strawberries at Swallowtail Bay, Snowflakes at Mistletoe Cottage and the Seafront series – The Little Theatre on the Seafront, shortlisted for the Katie Fforde Debut Novel of the Year award, and Summer Season on the Seafront. 

When she’s not writing, Katie spends her time with her husband and two kids, and their dogs: Wotsit, the King Charles spaniel, and Skips, the three-legged rescue dog. (And yes, they are both named after crisps!) 

🎅Thank you for taking part in Christmas Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo🎅

Follow us on Twitter @jaffareadstoo #SundayBrunchwithJaffareadstoo

🎅 Christmas Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo ~ Nancy Revell

 

On this quiet December Sunday morning why don't you put the kettle on, make your favourite breakfast and settle down for a Festive Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo

🎅 I'm delighted to welcome author, Nancy Revell to our Christmas Sunday Brunch today 🎅

🎅Welcome, Nancy what favourite food are you bringing to this Christmas Sunday brunch? 

Mmm, I think I would have to bring lots of seafood – lobster, smoked salmon and perhaps a few oysters! Crisps and olives too! I could go on….. 

🎅Would you like a pot of English breakfast tea, a strong Americano, or a celebratory glass of Bucks Fizz? 

I think I’d have a strong Americano followed by a celebratory glass of Bucks Fizz! But if I had to pick one – then I’d ditch the coffee and go straight for the champs – this is Christmas after all! 

🎅Where shall we eat brunch – around the kitchen table, in the formal dining room, or outside on the patio? 

I’m chuckling to myself thinking of us all out on the patio! We’d get blown away! I live in the north-east of England – just a short walk away from the North Sea – so much as I’d love to be on the patio, we’d have to stay indoors. Definitely dining room – makes it more of an occasion, I think. 

🎅Shall we have festive music playing in the background? And if so will you share with us a favourite Christmas song or piece of Christmas music that makes you happy? 

Oh, definitely music in the background. I love Christmas carols, but I think I’d also like to put on ‘A Holly Dolly Christmas’. I’m a huge Dolly fan all year round – and on this CD she does some great duets with Michael Bublé, Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley Cyrus, Jimmy Fallon and Willie Nelson. 

🎅Which of your literary heroes (dead or alive) are joining us for Sunday Brunch today? 

How about Jackie Collins, Armistead Maupin and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie? I love their books, but I also think they’d be really fun, down-to-earth and interesting company! 

🎅Which favourite Christmas book will you bring to Sunday Brunch? 

It would have to be ‘A Christmas Carol’. 

Oxford World Classics
2006

🎅When you are writing do you still find time to read for pleasure? And is there a book you would like to read but haven’t had time for …yet! 

Yes! And yes again! The next on my TBR pile is Sarah Waters ‘The Paying Guests’. One of my lovely readers sent it to me as a present. 

🎅What’s the oldest book on your bookshelf? 

The Bible. I also have an incredibly old copy of Rudyard Kipling’s ‘Kim’ which was gifted to me by an old sub-editor I used to work with. 

🎅Where do you find the inspiration for your novels? 

All around me. Life. People. In particular what motivates people and their psychology. I also get ideas when I do research and will often set a scene around an actual WW2 event. 

🎅Have you a favourite place to settle down to write and do you find it easier to write in winter or summer? 

In my office. It’s the only place I can concentrate and shut off from the world. I don’t think it really matters to me which season. 

🎅When writing to a deadline are you easily distracted and if so how do you bring back focus on your writing? 

No, not at all. I have a schedule and I try my utmost to stick to it. Probably because of my former life as a freelance journalist. 

🎅Give us four essential items that a writer absolutely needs? 

I suppose you just really need something to write on – whether that’s paper or a screen … everything else is in your head. 

🎅What can you tell us about your latest novel or your current work in progress? 

‘Shipyard Girls Under the Mistletoe’. It’s due out on 31st September 2021. And it’s the eleventh book in the Shipyard Girl series. 

Nancy's Latest Novel

Arrow
October 2020

Sunderland, 1943: As Christmas approaches in the shipyards, everyone is hoping for a little magic…

Helen would love to find the courage to tell the dashing Dr Parker of her true feelings for him. But how can she when he clearly has eyes for someone else?

More than a year has passed since Bel’s wedding to sweetheart Joe. She knows she has much to feel thankful for and yet there is still one burning desire which she cannot ignore.

And as Polly grows with child, she hopes against hope for a safe delivery – and that her husband Tommy can soon return from the front line to meet their new arrival.

There will be storms to weather, but guided by their strength and friendship there is still hope for each of the shipyard girls that their Christmas wishes will come true. 

🎅Nancy, where can we follow you on social media? 🎅

Twitter: @arevellwalton 

Facebook page: Amanda Revell Walton

@arrowpublishing

Amazon UK

More about Nancy Revell

Nancy Revell is the author of the bestselling Shipyard Girls series, a heart-warming saga series set in the north-east of England during World War II. Her books have featured on the Sunday Times bestseller list multiple times, and she is also a former journalist who worked for all the national newspapers, providing them with hard-hitting news stories and in-depth features. Nancy also wrote amazing and inspirational true life stories for just about every woman’s magazine in the country. When she first started writing the Shipyard Girls series, Nancy relocated back to her hometown of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, along with her husband, Paul, and their English bull mastiff, Rosie. They now live just a short walk away from the beautiful award-winning beaches of Roker and Seaburn, within a mile of where the books are set. The subject is particularly close to Nancy’s heart as she comes from a long line of shipbuilders, who were well known in the area.

🎅Nancy, thank you for taking part in Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo 🎅

Thank you for inviting me!

Follow us on Twitter @jaffareadstoo #SundayBrunchwithJaffareadstoo

🎅 Christmas Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo ~ Louise Allen

 

On this quiet December Sunday morning why don't you put the kettle on, make your favourite breakfast and settle down for a Festive Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo

🎅 I'm delighted to welcome author, Louise Allen to our Christmas Sunday Brunch today 🎅

🎅Merry Christmas, Louise. What favourite food are you bringing to this Christmas Sunday brunch? 

Smoked salmon from our local smokehouse. 

🎅Would you like a pot of English breakfast tea, a strong Americano, or a celebratory glass of Bucks Fizz? 

Definitely the Bucks Fizz! I might need a cup of tea afterwards to recover. 

🎅Where shall we eat brunch – around the kitchen table, in the formal dining room, or outside on the patio? 

Around the kitchen table, please –friendly and informal 

Shall we have festive music playing in the background? And if so will you share with us a favourite Christmas song or piece of Christmas music that makes you happy? 

I’m a bit of a grouch about Christmas songs because I feel sorry for staff in shops where they get played over and over again, but Silent Night gets me every time and, for a smile – who can’t resist Jingle Bells? 

🎅Which of your literary heroes (dead or alive) are joining us for Sunday Brunch today? 

The truly wonderful Terry Pratchett and Chaucer for their sense of humour, M.R. James to tell us ghostly tales afterwards and Mary Stewart who would spin wonderful stories of romance and mystery. 

🎅Which favourite Christmas book will you bring to Sunday Brunch?

I would actually bring a puzzle and hope someone knows which book it is, because I’d love to read it again and can’t recall author or title! It is a 12 days of Christmas tale, set in old Amsterdam and the family home gradually becomes overrun with all the gifts the eldest daughter’s true love sends her. 

🎅When you are writing do you still find time to read for pleasure? And is there a book you would like to read but haven’t had time for …yet! 

I read in the morning in bed with a cup of tea and I read at night when I go to bed. What will go to the top of the TBR pile when arrives (due today!) is Scoff: A history of food and class by Pen Vogler. It sounds quite serious, but judging by the reviews, it is actually very entertaining. 

🎅What’s the oldest book on your book shelf? 

Because I write about the late Georgian period I have a lot of original cookery books, London guidebooks and so forth on the shelves. But the oldest is nothing to do with that and I inherited it from my father. It is dated 1676 and it is Natural and Political observations… made upon the Bills of Mortality by John Graunt. Gruesomely interesting! 

🎅Where do you find the inspiration for your novels? 

I honestly have no idea about most of them. C S Forester said that he was convinced that his writer’s brain was like a swamp and things fell in, decayed, sank to the bottom and then occasional bubbles of gas rose to the surface and that was his inspiration. I have a horrible feeling that exactly describes my brain too. Occasionally I can pin it down – reading that women with debts would marry condemned men, which transferred the debt so it would die with them inspired The Marriage Debt and the sight of the fabulous castle in Luxembourg in the first Daniel Craig Bond film eventually led to The Dangerous Mr Ryder – but those are exceptions. 

🎅Have you a favourite place to settle down to write and do you find it easier to write in winter or summer?

 If I have to, I can write anywhere (I once wrote a Christmas novella on the deck of a small boat going down the Brahmaputra River in the heat of an India summer) but I prefer to work at my desk with a view of the back garden and across the fields. I’m a very disciplined writer, so I’ll do the day’s words regardless. When things get difficult it is more likely to be because of an issue with the book rather than the time of year. 

🎅When writing to a deadline are you easily distracted and if so how do you bring back focus on your writing? 

I much prefer working to a deadline – that keeps me focussed. If I don’t have one, or it is right at the beginning of the time available, then I am more likely to be distracted. 

🎅Give us four essential items that a writer absolutely needs? 

Physical objects? A chair that is good for the back; dedicated writing space, however small; a comfortable bed for a good night’s sleep; access to the kettle for endless tea or coffee. 

Intangible things? A support network, whether that’s family, Significant Other or friends; other writers, whether in person or via social media, Zoom etc; the willingness to listen to constructive criticism; the ability to ignore unhelpful or destructive remarks. 

🎅What can you tell us about your latest novel or your current work in progress? 

I have just started work on the fifth in my time travel/Regency/ romantic mystery series, Time Into Time. My 21st century heroine Cassie finds herself back in 1807 again with her lover Luc, the Earl of Radcliffe, and they need to solve the mystery of the murder of a politician while trying to negotiate their own across-rime romance. 

Louise's latest novel

Mills & Boon
26 November 2020

Ross Vincent, Marquis of Cranford, with his scarred face and formidable disposition knows he’s hardly a catch. But he needs a wife to take care of his motherless son. Shy, scholarly Prudence Scott seems ideal: she has no expectation of love or passion. She’ll care for his baby in return for the protection of his name. Yet seeing Prudence on their wedding day tests Ross’s willpower to not take his new wife to bed…

🎅 Louise, where can we follow you on social media? 🎅

Twitter: @LouiseRegency 

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/louise.allen.549

Website: www.louiseallenregency.com & https://janeaustenslondon.com

🎅More about Louise🎅

I was born and brought up in Hertfordshire and now live on the North Norfolk coast with my husband and a garden full of bossy wildlife. I’m the author of over seventy books – historical romance for Harlequin Mills & Boon, indie-published time travel romance mysteries and historical non-fiction. Virtually all my books are set in the ‘long Regency’ and I’m a keen collector of original fashion plates of the period and anything to do with the history of London.

 🎅Thank you for taking part in Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo 🎅

Thank you for inviting me!

Follow us on Twitter @jaffareadstoo #SundayBrunchwithJaffareadstoo

🎄 Fabulously Festive with Patricia Furstenberg 🎄

In the run up to Christmas, I have wonderful author interviews to help get you into the festive spirit

Here's the fabulous, Patricia Furstenberg

A very festive welcome to you, Patricia and thank you for spending time with us today

🎄What’s your earliest Christmas Memory? 

Lighting up the candles in the Christmas tree and singing carols with my parents, feeling so peaceful and secure. The tree looked soooo tall! 

🎄Do you have any special Christmas Traditions? 

We bake cookies (Santa loves handmade cookies!) and sing carols by the tree. We always open the presents on the Christmas morning! 

🎄What’s your favourite festive carol or song? 

“We Wish You a Merry Christmas” and “O Brad Frumos” (the Romanian version of “O Tannenbaum”) 

🎄Do you have a favourite festive film? 

“Love, Actually” but as a family we still enjoy “Home Alone” 

🎄What’s your favourite festive read? 

Agatha Christie’s “Hercule Poirot’s Christmas” 

🎄Are you organised or do you leave everything until the last minute? 

We start early; tree is up at the beginning of December, menu sorted, but I do tend to end up out of breath on a last minute gift shopping! 

🎄Christmas tree – real or artificial? 

Christmas time is summer time in the southern hemisphere so we have a few J artificial trees. When we’re lucky enough to celebrate Christmas in Romania, buying a real tree at the market is such a joy! 

🎄Tinsel or Glitter? 

 Tinsel! 

🎄Christmas cracker or party popper? 

Christmas cracker. 

🎄Mince Pie or Yule Log? 

Mince Pies, yum! 

🎄Christmas Dinner – Traditional Turkey, Nut Roast Veggie or something a bit different?

The South African tradition asks for a “braai” – that’s a barbeque. I add a few Romanian dishes: boeuf salad, eggplant salad, sweet bread baked with nuts and Turkish delight. The Romanian tradition would ask for lots of meats, especially mince with rice and herbs cooked in cabbage leafs and pickles. 

🎄Christmas Tipple – Bucks Fizz, Mulled Wine... or something stronger? 

A cold apple cider beer, please, if I’m to celebrate Christmas at 30 degrees C. Otherwise mulled wine 😊 

🎄A fun game of after dinner charades or more chocolates and the television? 

As a family we do enjoy a board game and singing carols by the Christmas tree. Always leaving milk and cookies for Santa!

About the Author

With a medical degree behind her, Patricia is passionate about mind, brain, education and the psychology behind it. Using her knowledge she crafts stories and poems that are great fun, as well as teaching empathy. What fuels her is her fascination for writing and… coffee.

She is the author of the beloved Joyful Trouble, The Cheetah and the Dog, Puppy, 12 Months of Rhymes and Smiles and many more, all available through Amazon. She has personal work and educational articles published on Huffington Post SA, MyPuppyClub.net and ITSI_SA. She blogs extensively at http://alluringcreations.co.za/wp/

She now works on a novel about the lives of military working dogs in Afghanistan as well as three more poetry books about Africa’s bravest creatures. Patricia lives with her husband, children and their dogs in sunny South Africa.

Website

Twitter @PatFurstenberg #AsGoodAsGold

Amazon UK

🎅 Happy Christmas 😊

🎄 Fabulously Festive with Catherine Tinley 🎄

In the run up to Christmas, I have wonderful author interviews to help get you into the festive spirit

Here's the fabulous, Catherine Tinley

A warm festive welcome, Catherine and thank you so much for being our guest today

🎅What’s your earliest Christmas Memory?

Getting a doll called Wanda. She was supposed to walk when you touched her with a wand but never really worked.

🎅Do you have any special Christmas Traditions?

Yes, lots! Our Christmas starts on Christmas Eve in the afternoon, when the whole family goes for a walk at a local beauty spot, the Fairy Glen. There are almost thirty of us now – my parents, brothers, sisters, their husbands and wives, and all the grandchildren. We meet again that evening at Christmas Eve Mass, then on Christmas morning we all go to my parents’ house for gift swapping and bacon sandwiches. We all cook dinner in our own houses though.

🎅What’s your favourite festive carol or song?

O Holy Night. It gives me goosebumps.

Do you have a favourite festive film?

I do like the Santa Clause trilogy. And It’s a Wonderful Life. And Scrooged. And – I seem to like lots of them!

🎅What’s your favourite festive read?

I like finding new romances set at Christmas, so I’ll be indulging in a few of those over the holidays.

🎅Are you organised or do you leave everything until the last minute?

A bit of both. I’m generally fairly well organised, but there are always those last minute extras, aren’t there?

🎅Christmas tree – real or artificial?

Both! We have an artificial tree that we put up in our front room every year, but we always get a real tree for the sitting room. I love the real tree.

🎅Tinsel or Glitter?

Tinsel, definitely. I drape it over picture frames as well as on the trees.

🎅Christmas cracker or party popper?

Crackers. Every year we have them on the table on both Christmas Day and St Stephen’s Day.

🎅Mince Pie or Yule Log?

Yule Log – definitely! I’m not a fan of dried fruit, so no pudding, Christmas Cake, or mince pies for me. I love chocolate, so we always get a Yule Log. But my favourite traditional Christmas dessert is trifle and custard.

🎅Christmas Dinner – Traditional Turkey, Nut Roast Veggie or something a bit different?

Turkey and ham is the tradition in Ireland. We have it with sage & onion stuffing, cocktail sausages, at least three types of potato (creamed, roast, garlic), and lots of vegetables.

🎅Christmas Tipple – Bucks Fizz/Mulled Wine or something stronger?

Whatever’s going, really!

🎅A fun game of after dinner charades or more chocolates and the television?

Both. We do play games as a family, and eat lots of chocolate. We also have a food-coma nap at various points. In terms of TV, we watch the Dr Who and Call the Midwife Christmas specials, but not much else.

About the Author

Catherine Tinley writes heartwarming Regency love stories for Harlequin Mills & Boon. She has loved reading and writing since childhood, and has a particular fondness for love, romance, and happy endings. After a career encompassing speech & language therapy, NHS management, maternity campaigning and being President of a charity, she now works in Sure Start. She lives in Ireland with her husband, children, cat, and dog.

Catherine's novel The Makings of a Lady is out now and The Earl's Runaway Governess is due out in March 2019.

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🎄Happy Christmas 😊