I've got to tell you, this woman gives good Christmas Story.
Andie Montgomery's goal is to give her two young children a wonderful to Christmas to make up for all the sadness they've experienced in the past two years. And Haven Point is just the place to do it. This small town full of friendly folk has made her feel at home. Especially her new best friend Wyn Montgomery befriended her and Andie considers her her savior. So when Wyn who is away at school asks Andie to look in on her brother Marshall after he's been the victim of a hit and run accident, how can she refuse.
After a rocky start, Marshall and Andie are reluctantly attracted to each other. But Marshall's got a secret and an enemy whose out to injure him. And Andie's determined not to give her heart to another lawman. But fate and small children and Christmas have other plans in store.
This heartwarming holiday romance is as good as a cup of rich hot chocolate on a snowy day. Bravo, Raeanne Thayne.
Blurb:
It's been two rough years since Andrea Montgomery lost her husband, and all she wants is for her children to enjoy their first Christmas in Haven Point. But then Andie's friend asks a favor--to keep an eye on her brother, Sheriff Marshall Bailey, who's recovering from a hit and run. Andie will do anything for Wyn, even park her own misgivings to check on her grouchy, wounded bear of a brother.
Marshall hates feeling defenseless and resents the protective impulses that Andie brings out in him. But when a blizzard forces them together for the holidays, something in Marshall begins to thaw. Andie's gentle nature is a salve, and her kids' excitement for the holidays makes him forget why he never wanted a family. If only he and Andie can admit what they really want--each other--their Christmas wishes might come true after all
What makes you laugh?
RaeAnne: My husband. Always. I was first attracted to his
sense of humor and twenty-nine years later, he can still make me laugh, even in
the most stressful of moments.
Where do you get your inspiration?
Where don’t I get inspiration? Magazine articles,
talking to friends, television, museums, walking in the mountains, listening to
my children play, seeing an elderly couple struggle hand in hand together
through the grocery store. Life is my inspiration.
What do you do when you get writer’s block?
Writer’s block to me usually means a scene isn’t working
right. I give myself permission to do something else for an hour — read a book
that moves me, listen to favorite music, take a walk or write something else —
but then I force myself to sit back down and figure out where the story has
gone off the rails.
Who is the one person who has influenced your personal
life the most and why?
I have three amazing children but I would have to
say my middle son has influenced me most. He is seventeen now and was born with
severe disabilities (cerebral palsy, global developmental delays). I am his
primary caregiver and every decision in our lives the last seventeen years —
from where we live to the car we drive to our vacation destinations — has
centered around the challenges (and privileges!) of caring for him. I am a much
different (better!) person than I would have been without him in our lives.
You’ve written over 40 books. How do you continue to keep
your ideas fresh?
My problem is not coming up with fresh ideas, it is
finding time to write them all! I do have consistent themes I tend to return to
— family, community, learning to reach out and help others — but since the
characters and the situations differ dramatically, the stories are different
too. I love discovering where my characters want to take me!
You keep a busy writing schedule in addition to having
three children! What do you like to do when you have some spare time? This is a rhetorical question since yousprobably can number your spare minutes using your fingers.
I love to hike and bike in the beautiful mountains
near my Utah home. I love to read (mostly romance, of course) and I am a
passionate beader, thanks mostly to the research I did for my Hope’s Crossing
series, which started in a bead store. I also love to travel — any time,
anywhere — and find it enriches my writing and my life. I would love to visit
every country in Europe, though to date, I have only hit Italy, Spain and
England (and Morocco in northern Africa!) so I have some work to do.
Your brand identity is that you write “Stories of Hope,
Healing, Heart”. Why is this important to you?
RaeAnne: During my years working as a journalist, I felt
surrounded by the inherent negativity all around as I sifted through the
world’s events of the day to decide what would run in my newspaper. There is so
much hatred, darkness, ugliness everywhere around us. Sometimes it seems those
clamoring voices drown out everything courageous and bright and good in the
world. I want to write stories that lift people, that show it is not only
possible to fight through the ugliness with dignity and strength but is
absolutely necessary in order to have a fulfilling, meaningful life.
You have said you find it inspiring to write about people
who have faced difficult times and overcome them. What do you hope your readers
take away from these kinds of storylines?
Nobody makes it through this life without
experiencing heartbreak or loss. It is as inescapable as the changing of the
seasons. I hope to show my readers through my characters’ struggles that even
after times of what might feel like unendurable sorrow, eventually the sun
always comes up again. My characters inevitably discover the world can still be
a bright and beautiful place filled with hope, joy, love. Perhaps as a reader
going through a tough time watches my characters soldier on through their
fictional problems, it might give her a little bit of strength to struggle
through another day. I have a sign in my office that says “I may not change the
world, but I can change someone’s afternoon.” That’s all I really want — to
make someone’s day a little brighter, their burdens feel a little easier, if
only for a moment.
Well I certainly fell brighter after reading Snowfall on Haven point. Actually after reading any of your books. Thank you for the interview. Beloved readers enter below for a chance to win the paperback. US only for this one. Happy Reading
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angel
ReplyDeleteMy favorite childhood ornament is a little santa ornament that we got on a little trip in 2nd grade. Several broke theirs on the way back to school, but 55 years later, I still have mine. It's not much but it's practically an antique like me. Ill be 62 on monday.
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