All is Bright

Four of your favorite contemporary romance authors join festive forces to bring you the fourth-annual Christmas Lights Collection.
Kari Trumbo- Merry and Dashing: Merry hates Christmas corporate greed. Jacob loves finding the perfect gift for everyone. When Scrooge and Santa volunteer at a local thrift store together, will the mix be Holly Jolly?
Toni Shiloh- I’ll Be Home: What could be worse than being laid off right before the holidays? For Starr Lewis that would include returning home jobless, single, and, oh yeah, just in time to attend her sister’s wedding on Christmas Eve… to Starr’s ex-boyfriend. In the midst of it all, her brother’s best friend soon has her wondering if she can take another chance on love.
Cathe Swanson- Season of Change: Charlea’s ready to sell Serenity Hill, but Drew is back in town, 15 years after their dream date ended in disaster, helping her mother and daughter turn the old commune into a commercial Christmas wonderland. Between poinsettias and sleigh rides, angst and romance collide in this Christmas second-chance romance!
Chautona Havig- The 12 Dates of Christmas : When Reagan runs into Alex, her high school nemesis, he is stunned to discover that’s how she saw him. It’ll take twelve dates and a lot of forgiveness on both sides to even hope for a Christmassy-ever-after.
Brighten your day with these four heart-warming novellas today!

My thoughts: I loved getting to know Merry and Jordan in the first story, since they were such a contrasting pair! I can relate to Merry, in some ways, since Christmas has become so commercialized (it seems like it is even worse this year! Black Friday deals starting way before Black Friday. And, I never even heard of Green Monday until this year! But, I digress). I loved how Jordan chooses to look past that and focus on the true meaning of Christmas, and how he helps Merry come around.
Poor Starr in I'll Be Home for Christmas! Things have not gone her way, though she tries to keep her unemployment under wraps with the merriment of Christmas and a wedding. I love how Waylon seeks to encourage her and bring her around to giving him a chance.
In Season of Change, Charlea has to move back home, which puts her in the path of an old flame. This is a delightful story of second chances with some fun twists to it!
I really enjoyed the message of The 12 Dates of Christmas, since I know that I have been guilty of misperceiving someone and taking something to heart that wasn't meant to be a slight. I like how Alex persists and the fun holiday dates they go on!
All of the stories are enjoyable and will put readers in the holiday mood!
I received this book from Celebrate Lit. This is my honest review and is in no way influenced by receiving a complimentary copy.

Purchase a copy here:

This post contains affiliate links.

About the Authors:
Kari Trumbo: Kari Trumbo writes swoony heroes and places that become characters with detail and heart. Kari loves reading, listening to music, singing when no one’s listening, and curling up with a fuzzy blanket, a book, and a hot cup of tea by the wood stove. She loves her make-believe people almost as much as the real thing. You can find out more about her and her worlds at karitrumbo.com




Toni Shiloh: Toni Shiloh writes ethnically diverse characters that could be your best friend. She writes to understand the Lord more and shares her lessons with her readers. Visit her at www.tonishiloh.com.




Cathe Swanson: Cathe Swanson, the author of the Great Lakes and Glory Quilts series, enjoys gardening, sewing, papercrafting, and kayaking on the beautiful Wisconsin rivers. As a child of the 60’s, she’s having fun writing about hippies and the Jesus People movement in her new Serenity Hill series.





Chautona Havig: Chautona Havig lives in an oxymoron, escapes into imaginary worlds that look startlingly similar to ours and writes the stories that emerge. An irrepressible optimist, Chautona sees everything through a kaleidoscope of It’s a Wonderful Life sprinkled with fairy tales. Find her at chautona.com

More from Chautona:
Christmas in “The Christmas City”

I wrote most of 12 Dates of Christmas in Noel, Missouri, otherwise known as “The Christmas City.” That’s kind of funny, because Noel isn’t pronounced No-ell. It’s “Nole”—rhymes with pole. As in North.
By the time I’d finished, it was almost time to leave the little town and head home after nearly six weeks with old and new friends. I had to say goodbye to memories I might never visit in person again, and it was difficult to imagine.
So, I did the only thing I knew to do. I wrote a super-short story. It’s just over seven thousand words (including a bit of history behind different people, places, and things in the story), but it captured things near and dear to my heart—my mother’s house, the church I’ve loved for so many years, town traditions, and now characters I’m not sure I can let go of.
In fact, I am considering writing a full-length novella next year for the fifth-annual Christmas Lights Collection next year! I think Rob and Lissa deserve to have their full story told.
As my thanks to readers who purchase or read the collection on Kindle Unlimited, I’m offering this short story, “A Noel Christmas,” FREE. Just send me your receipt or a screenshot showing you’ve completed the collection and it’s yours. Visit https://chautona.com/bonus for more information or just zip an email to any of the authors in the collection. We’re all happy to send it on.
We all hope you have a very meaningful Christmas this year—one that offers bright spots in your days. May God richly bless you now and in the new year.
Kari Trumbo, Toni Shiloh, Cathe Swanson, and Chautona Havig

P.S. If you read the short story, do let me know if you think I should turn it into a full-length novella/novel. I’d love to know your opinion.

For a complete list of blog stops, go here!

Giveaway!
To celebrate their tour, The Christmas Lights Authors are giving away the grand prize of a six-month Kindle Unlimited Subscription!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link here to enter!