Amazon Series Link:
Title:(Book 1) All Hearts Come Home for Christmas
Author: Annalisa Russo
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb:
Tristán Solano, famous as Trystan Sol in the rock music world, grew up across the street from Jillian Magee, his first friend at five years old and the woman he left in order to grab the brass ring. After eight years with a popular group, earning more money than he can possibly spend in one lifetime, he longs for his old, uncomplicated life. As Christmas approaches, he leaves the band and heads home with his four-year-old daughter.
Will Jillian have her heart broken again, or can she and Tristán overcome the past and keep each other warm this Christmas?
Book Trailer:
Excerpt:
Jillian Magee had it with Christmas. This was the last straw. Traditional Christmas carols on the radio, a freshly cut balsam with popcorn garland, the warming scent of a crackling hickory log, and everything else that went along with the overall frivolity and joy of the season. Done. Period. End of story.
She stood at the threshold of her small living room in her dancing elves flannel PJ’s and seethed at the mess her inherited tabby cat had made during the night. And after she’d given him an early Christmas present—a guaranteed-to-work, genuine leather, scratching post. He’d been ungallant enough to leave several small packages of cat puke wound in the tinsel he’d eaten right off the tree. Broken antique Brite Lite ornaments littered the carpet, her grandmother’s treetop angel bent over drunkenly, and one strand of twinkle lights dragged along the floor.
“BUUUSSTER,” she hollered, drawing out the syllables as long as the breath in her lungs allowed. “Get. Over. Here. Now.” Her index finger punctuated the air four times. “You’re darn lucky the Nativity set is still in the box, and when I arrange it under the tree tonight, if you dare to touch it, I swear you’ll be toast.” Again, the finger.
Buster, known in some circles as Mr. McGillicutty, didn’t move. He eyed her with what appeared to be feline defiance, cocked up a leg, and washed his private parts. The look on his furry face inferred, “No big deal. So, I got a little hungry during the night. Get over it.”
Jillian slid down the door jamb, sat heavily on the wooden floor, and lowered her head into her hands. Christmas was supposed to be perfect. Weren’t there twelve dozen homemade Christmas cookies in her freezer waiting to be boxed up for friends and family? Wasn’t the outside of her house decorated like the best Chevy Chase Christmas ever? Wasn’t everything on her gift list checked off—well…almost everything. So, why had the season started off on the wrong foot and continued to go downhill?
For starters, no snow. No snow angels, no snow forts, no snowmen. No snow at all in her little town of Green Earth, Minnesota. Yep, frozen ground, but not one iota of snow. And, with less than two weeks until her Christmas break from school, temperatures in the fifties. If that wasn’t bad enough, her entire family had decided they had other plans this year and left her to fend for herself, over Christmas, for cryin’ out loud. And she didn’t care one patootie about their excuses. Well, okay…they had good ones, but still.
And last, but not least, no boyfriend. Gone. MIA. The inscrutable Brian decided he needed to think about their relationship—over the holiday, in St. Croix. By himself. Are you kidding me?
Buy Links:
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/all-hearts-come-home-for-christmas-annalisa-russo/1127159114
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Annalisa_Russo_All_Hearts_Come_Home_for_Christmas?id=UDc9DwAAQBAJ
Author Biography:
Annalisa Russo is a Midwest girl who grew up in an overpopulated first-generation Italian family in the burbs of Chicago. Along with a passion for reading and writing, Annalisa enjoys gardening, cooking for company, and frequently invents reasons for traveling. The mother of two grown children, she now shares her home with a narcissistic cat named Buster, who really runs the show.
Social Media Links:
Website: www.annalisarusso.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/russoauthor
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Title:(Book 2) When the Heart Finds Christmas
Author: Annalisa Russo
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb:
Isn’t it enough Cleora Butterfield has agreed to be her enormously pregnant BFF’s back-up birth coach? Does she really have to repeat last year’s disastrous New Year’s Eve blind date with Ross Hollister—one of said friend’s favorite people—even if the man is smokin’ hot? She has enough on her Christmas platter with planning and delivering the annual holiday pageant for her 5th and 6th graders.
Ross returns to the charming small town of Green Earth, Minnesota to get away from the rat race in New York City, where he babysits his celebrity clients. He longs for the peace and quiet the Christmas season can deliver here. So being Cleora Butterfield’s plus one isn’t in his plans—even if the woman is exquisitely tempting.
If Melah, a celestial messenger, doesn’t step in, Ross’s long-held secrets and Cleo’s badly broken heart might get in the way of any hope for a Christmas romance.
Book Trailer:
Excerpt:
Since Tristán was off to pick up Sadie, and Ross was on his own for a few hours, he had decided to check out a few of the stores on Main Street and take a meandering ride through the countryside. Last year, he arrived two days before New Year’s Eve, and then left a day later. Not much time to get a feel for the community.
He swiveled his head left and right as he came to each stop sign, not that there were very many of them. Green Earth sported a population of 4,361 if the city welcoming sign was accurate. The sign also announced Green Earth was “The City with a Smile.” He’d met a few of the residents at the New Year’s dance, but the one he remembered most was a certain independent, sassy, black-haired drama teacher.
She’d be leaving school about now, after entertaining her students with her off-kilter personality. The woman was good-looking enough to make a man want to overlook her caustic personality, but he’d had enough drama in his life to be reminded his life was better without it.
But he wondered if Tristán was right. Had he misjudged the woman? Cleo was one of Jillie’s best friend, and she seemed like the type of girl who chose her close friends carefully. It didn’t matter if he refused to be her escort, he’d be coerced into it anyway. Better to accept the inevitable gracefully than be labeled a jerk. He didn’t want to give Cleo anything else to hold over his head.
He parked and decided to start his tour of the downtown at Garbano’s Grocery. Probably a place where you could buy food stuffs, rent a movie, or drop off your dry cleaning. He strolled inside and went directly to the liquor aisle.
He heard her before he saw her. A lilting voice chirped out a greeting to the woman at the cashier, whom he figured for Mrs. Garbano when he’d walked in. Deciding he might as well bite the bullet and get it over with, he approached Cleo when she strolled toward him with her cart oblivious of his presence.
“Hello, Cleo,” he said in an even tone. “I see you survived your ordeal. Back into any more snowbanks lately? I haven’t gotten any 911s from you.”
She looked like the proverbial deer caught in the headlights.
“Ross! I didn’t see you there.”
She pushed her cart toward him, hips sashaying, eyebrows lifting, relishing the battle—not demure, not biddable, not simple.
“Having fun with Jillie and Tris?” She cocked a hip and set one hand on it. “Is Sadie still crazy about her ‘Unca Ross’ this year?” She grabbed the bottle of wine out of his hands and glanced at the label.
He grinned around his clenched teeth. “She seems to be. Of course, I’m crazy about her, too.”
“What’s not to like? The kid’s great. Tristán won the lottery with that one.”
Ross shuffled his feet. “No argument. Gee, Cleo, something we agree on. Go figure.”
She handed the bottle back to him. “Nice nose, bold, full-bodied, with a velvety finish—good choice.”
“Are we talking about the wine?” he questioned, raising one brow.
Then she smiled, and her face changed from alluring to softly beautiful. The effect was stunning—the flawless complexion plumped pink by the cold, her lips soft and inviting, her eyes as dark as obsidian and topped by the longest lashes he’d ever seen. A one-of-a kind face. A classically beautiful face. Why hadn’t he ever noticed the softness before?
Because she had never smiled at him.
Buy Links:
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/when-the-heart-finds-christmas-annalisa-russo/1129680232?ean=2940161569191
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Title:(Book 3) Snowflake Wishes, Christmas Kisses
Author: Annalisa Russo
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb:
Cyber security expert, Cord McQuada heads back to Green Earth, Minnesota with his twelve-year-old niece in tow. Not that he ever planned to return home after the community booted him out eight years ago, but his sister is in rehab, and he has inherited her problems. And since the only Christmas presents he ever received growing up came from the local gas station, he’d rather skip the town’s over-the-top annual festivities.
Heir to a famous French fashion line, Giselle Delacroix decides to jump ship and open a children’s clothing store in Green Earth where she and her college roommate enjoyed the town’s holiday merriments. But, busy and over-worked, the last thing Giselle wants, or needs, is a Christmas romance—even if the man involved is every woman’s pièce de résistance.
Melah, heaven’s unofficial matchmaker, plans to send in her new protégée to quell escalating problems, but can she help Cord and Giselle ignite some Christmas sparks?
Book Trailer:
Excerpt:
He shot a glance at his eleven-year-old niece whose face was turned to stare past the icy rivulets on the passenger side window to the barren landscape of one post-harvest corn and soybean field after another. Maybe if fat snowflakes replaced the icy drizzle as the morning weatherman had predicted—a treat for a girl who grew up in Georgia—Hanna’s mood would improve.
Or maybe not. She’d been selectively mute the last four days, talking politely to waitresses, motel clerks, and the occasional stranger.
But, to him? Not a word. Nothing. Nada. He’d have settled for a grunt.
Why had he ever thought he had the ability to take on a tweenie? But Hanna was family, which meant she was his responsibility.
“We’ll stop for lunch in a few. You didn’t eat much at breakfast. Are you hungry?” he asked, not really expecting a response. The question was meant to inform her of his intention to eat at one of the roadside truck stops and maybe quell the raw feeling in the pit of his stomach from too much coffee and not enough decent food.
He turned his attention back to the icy road. Small talk for the first hundred and fifty miles hadn’t worked, so he’d given up days ago. Maybe in time, Hanna would forgive him—or, maybe not. Why had he convinced himself he had the instincts to raise anyone, let alone an eleven-year-old who hated his guts? Moving to Green Earth, Minnesota had been the only answer. Not that he would have volunteered to come home. He had no interest in returning to the old homestead and the memories bottle up there, but he and Hanna would adjust—new home, new school for Hanna, new job for him. Hanna’s future had been at risk. One day she would realize he made the decision for her own good.
Besides, nobody else had stepped up.
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Giselle Delacroix rubbed a saturated paper towel over the filthy window so she could gaze out at Green Earth’s quaint town square—a painted, white gazebo, lovingly kept, an extensive playground for children, a VFW war memorial, and a rose garden she suspected would bloom profusely and gloriously come spring.
The old clapboard storefront stood proudly across from the town square, a definite plus in the location column for retail. Too bad the building was practically falling down. She turned in a tight circle to scrutinize the main room. Her business acumen screamed, “Run for your life,” but Giselle’s love of the small Minnesota town had developed over several years of visiting her college roommate’s family during summers and holidays. And while she and Melissa McQuada hadn’t seen each other since college, their reunion last week felt like they’d never lost touch.
With one hand on her hip, she eyed the space critically. Dirty windows, squeaky doors, broken wooden counters, and a leak in the roof—under which she’d stuck a rusted old bucket—were only several of the myriad problems. But when had she ever run from a challenge?
An hour later, Melissa arrived. “Holy cow, Gee,” she said, using Giselle’s old college nickname. “When I suggested the Old Sweet Shoppe as a possible location for your shop, I didn’t think it would be this bad. It’s only been closed for about a year. How could it have gotten into such bad shape?”
“Squirrels, a leaky roof, a window left open after the season ended, and I think a family of raccoons relocated to the attic.” Giselle’s laugh echoed in the empty space. “But you know what they say: location, location, location.”
Buy Links:
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/snowflake-wishes-christmas-kisses-annalisa-russo/1133931379?ean=2940160844268
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Annalisa_Russo_Snowflake_Wishes_Christmas_Kisses?id=A2e5DwAAQBAJ
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Title: (Book 4) Two Hearts for Christmas
Author: Annalisa Russo
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb:
Baker Maisie Quinn opens Blissful Bites and finally realizes her dream—a business she loves and life in a charming small town with her two children. And if she wins the Three-County Christmas Bake-Off, the generous prize money will be a godsend to her meager budget.
When Wade Bennett becomes the new sheriff in town, he plans to care for his widowed mother and put aside money for world travel. So romance isn’t on his mind, but seeing Maisie brings back memories of when he thought she might be the one.
As dreams confront reality, the holiday turns serious for the unwary couple, and heavenly helpers have only a few weeks to assist two determined souls get what they want for Christmas.
Excerpt:
She set the next bowl on the towel and picked up another. She shot him a small furtive glance. Sure, they’d had a few dates…last Christmas for the tree lighting, and once more after that, but then she got busy and so did he, and time went by. Now it was just awkward when they met or tried to have a conversation. “How’s your mom?”
Wade put his cup down and picked up one of the towels hung over the oven door handle. He started to wipe the first bowl.
“You don’t have to do that, Sheriff. I’m just waiting for my contest entry to finishing baking, then I’m headed upstairs. The kids are asleep.” She glanced at the bedroom monitor. “The rest can wait until Monday morning.”
“Wade.” he said.
“Huh?”
“Wade, not Sheriff.” He rubbed the towel over the bowl. “I’m used to doing dishes. The old homestead doesn’t have a dishwasher. My old man always said if a woman needed a dishwasher, she was lazy.”
Maisie hid her inclination to make a face. It was common knowledge Wade’s mother had a difficult marital situation. Not that his father had been an abuser, but he hadn’t been an easy man to live with. She remembered him from her teenage years and how the Sheriff Frank Bennett had taken a hard line on the young boys of Green Earth. When Wade took over after his father’s death, Maisie feared he would follow in his father’s footsteps. But he turned out to be completely different.
“Your mom?” Maisie asked again. Each week, she tried to make time to deliver Wade’s mother a few pastries at Equinox HealthCare. She didn’t know if Vera Bennett realized who left her the treats, but it didn’t matter. Her mother and Vera had been friends. She liked to think of them together up there somewhere.
Wade walked the heavy bowl over to its place on the open metal shelving. “She’s…good. The doc said she’s comfortable and…as good as she can be. Her sister is coming for the holiday from South Carolina. Aunt Amelia will stay with me at the house.”
The buzzer on the stove went off, and Maisie jumped. She quickly wiped off her hands and grabbed a couple of potholders. Her heart missed a few beats as she strode toward the oven to check out her contest entry. There wouldn’t be time to create another. Wade set down his towel and opened the oven door for her and stood back.
“Jeez that looks good,” he said over her shoulder when she placed her entry on the island. He leaned over to get a good sniff. “It smells even better. I think it’s a winner.”
The crust was browned perfectly, the sugar crystals sparkled, juicy raspberries oozed from the creases, and the whole thing looked like a beautiful snowflake wreath. Maisie felt a deep sense of satisfaction. It couldn’t have turned out any better. Now she could relax until next week when she’d need to come up with another recipe.
She elbowed him in the side. “You’re prejudice. You know the baker.” But she felt incredibly happy the way the festive pull-apart bread had turned out. Wade smiled broadly and a lone dimple on the corner popped out, highlighting the enticing mouth she’d yet to experience.
Buy Links:
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/two-hearts-for-christmas-annalisa-russo/1137565724?ean=2940162845249