Happy Holidays

Ashleigh's YA Reads           Ashleigh's Romance Reads          Ashleigh's Whodunits
This week's newsletter contains the following features:
(Feel free to skip ahead to what you want to read)

• What's new with Ashleigh?
• Hartfield Chronicles
• Reviews from Ashleigh's Bookshelf
• Free Books
• Other Books on Sale
• Join My Newsletters

What's new with Ashleigh?

Like many families, we are getting in the middle of our holiday season. Half the presents have been wraps. The Christmas cards have been ordered (though not sent). The children are diligently counting down until Santa arrives. Many holiday crafts have been made. All that's missing is the snow.

That's right. The last time I sent you a newsletter, it was getting ready to snow. The occasional flurry here and there. Well, in the past two weeks, we have had one snowfall. A light dusting that didn't even affect the roads. Sure, the kids went sledding and made snow angels in the morning, but after five minutes, they had used up all the snow and they are eager for more.

I am as well. There is just something about curling up with a hot drink in my hand while watching the snow falling outside the window. It makes me want to curl up with a good book. Or read one.

The past few weeks, I have been doing a lot of reading. I started with some fun books, but then switched to my own projects. I have been rereading Hartfield Chronicles, hoping to get inspired to draft book nine while I finish preparing book one for publication. During the last week of December, I plan on rereading Mooncrossed, hoping to get inspired to draft its spinoff series this winter. I have been reading many cozy mysteries, hoping to be inspired to continue working on my standalone project.

The next few weeks promise to be busy. Christmas, New Years, and lots of family time in between. But, I'm hoping to have many new projects in the new year.

What about you? How are you spending the last week of December?

Hartfield Chronicles

Melinda and Pat are both happy to celebrate Thanksgiving with their families. But when rumors of Pat and another girl appear in the celebrity gossip columns, his relationship with Melinda is tested. Hartfield Chronicles follows the lives of Melinda, Pat, and their friends as they navigate their way through boarding school life. Each episode features two stories, one from Melinda's point of view and one from Pat's, along with an excerpt from Melinda's writing journal. New episodes are published every ​Friday.

Here's what you've missed

• Episode 63: Melinda confronts Pat about the Poppy rumors
• Episode 64: Melinda spends the day at her friends' mansion

Reviews from Ashleigh's Bookshelf

	For Young Adult readers Let It Snow John Green, Maureen Johnson, & Lauren Myracle This book is a compilation of three intertwined novellas. Though they do all work well together, they can also each be read individually. Story #1: The Jubilee Express It's Christmas Eve and sixteen-year-old Jubilee is looking forward to celebrating her one-year anniversary with Noah. Unfortunately, when her parents get arrested, she is sent to spend the holiday with her grandparents instead. What starts as an irritating inconvenience turns into a major problem when the worst storm in fifty years hits. Determined not to let fourteen rowdy cheerleaders ruin her holiday, Jubilee sets off to make the best of the worst holiday of her life. Story #2: A Cheertastic Christmas Miracle When Tobin and his friends learn that Waffle house has been invaded by fourteen cheerleaders, they decide to brave the worst storm in fifty years to be the first to bring the girls a game of Twister. What ensues is a hilarious set of mishaps as they try to beat the two other teams braving the storm. Story #3: The Patron Saint of Pigs Addie screwed up. She had a fantastic boyfriend and threw away her relationship with a drunken kiss with the sketchiest kid in school. Instead of spending Christmas with her boyfriend, she's now moping in her room. But when her friend suggests that maybe she's a little too self-absorbed, Addie sets out to prove her wrong, and maybe find a little happiness in the process.		For children To Ride a Unicorn Vanessa Westgate A delightful step-by-step guide to catching a wild unicorn.

Free Books

	In the Shadow of the Cities For fans of The Hunger Games, get the guard's perspective Scarlett would never kill her best friend, no matter what the strange individual predicts. Scarlett would never kill her best friend, perhaps a Citizen if the situation called for it, but never Rhys. There are quite a few rules in the training center, but a few are the kind that are never broken. 1. Greens are not sent into Cities without officially being promoted to Blue. 2. Blues don’t kill each other. So why is Scarlett being sent into a City without the proper training? And why does a bizarre, elderly male say Scarlett will kill Rhys? In the Shadow of the Cities details Scarlett’s life in the training center before she is pulled unexpectedly into City life. Without the proper training, she is confused about these things called “families” and why the Citizens aren’t grateful that she is keeping them safe. In this dystopian novel, In the Shadow of the Cities, the story is told not from a Citizen’s point of view but from a Guard’s. Why do the guards seem to tirelessly obey the government? How can they gun down Citizens mercilessly? Find out as you follow Scarlett on her journey into the Cities.
	Corfu Capers Sublime Retreats Romance Series Five people, three secrets, a luxury holiday in Corfu. What can possibly go wrong? For divorcée Kate Delaney, it’s time to show the world that she can get along just fine without a man. Embracing her son’s desire to propose to his girlfriend with her usual overzealous planning, she organizes a vacation to Corfu and plots the ‘big moment’. But when her plans start to fall apart, she is thrown together with the dashing Pericles and is surprised to find herself relaxing into the Greek way of life. Can this holiday really be about to change her future, and offer her a second chance of love?
	Attics A Suspense Short Story Who is that hiding in the attic? A patient goes missing from the St. Louis Psychiatric Rehabilitation Center. A psychiatrist and his wife are murdered. Detective Michael Ray must solve the murder and find the escaped patient, while battling demons of his own housed inside the facility.

Want more free books? Check out these giveaways!

Other Books on Sale

	Complex Solutions A young adult coming of age thriller Math is easy for Lexi, but complex emotions are difficult, and A.P. Calculus won’t help her overcome guilt, fear, or self-destructive behavior. Sixteen-year old Lexi Thompson believes she should’ve died in the car accident that took her parents. Now she slices her guilt into her skin, aggravating an already dangerous cutting habit. When Lexi is contacted about her parents’ lost proof of a famous math theorem, her guilt over her parents’ deaths intensifies. Math was her parents’ passion as well as her own. Lexi enlists her friend and fellow math whiz, Joe, to help find the proof. As their relationship deepens, Lexi struggles to keep her self-harm secret. Further, she realizes she’s not the only one interested in her parents’ proof. A mysterious man hangs around her family’s vacant home and lurks in the woods where she runs with her dog. The stalker's presence exacerbates her anxiety, along with the frequency and severity of her cutting. The more she tries to conceal her self-harm, the more she pulls away from Joe and from finding the proof. If she can’t let go of her fear and open up to Joe, she may lose him as well as the proof to a man who’s intent on stealing her parents’ legacy.
	2nd Chance Ranch Wounded Warrior, Chance Gordon, had abandoned the woman he loves for her sake and devotes himself to armed service. Dory Farmer rejects a life of luxury and her father’s wishes in order to keep her son. She dedicates herself to improving lives of injured soldiers. Worlds collide. Chance's future depends on Dory.
	The Princess of Escondida The Treasure of Escondida Book 5 Escondida’s elite all-female spy team is ready to take down El Orden and secure the Treasure of Escondida, but first Princess Liliana must attend to her royal duties. Liliana (Lily), Princess of Escondida and secretly trained spy, is tasked with meeting the Crown Prince of Creador in the hopes their families can form an alliance. Having been on many of these dates in the past, Lily relies on her training as a spy to get her through the evening but finds herself pleasantly surprised with the prince. Lucas, Crown Prince of Creador, is nervous and excited about going on a date with Princess Liliana. Having pushed off pursuing her many times, he is now ready to do what his father has been urging for years after briefly meeting her last year at an official royal function. During their date he finds himself smitten and hopes that they can continue to get to know each other. Is this a match made in heaven or does Lucas know more about the plot against Escondida then he is letting on? Join the team in this final showdown against El Orden and find out who the mastermind really is. Grab your copy today for one last thrilling adventure full of espionage, romance, and suspense.

You may also like these books

Join My Newsletters

Welcome December

Ashleigh's YA Reads           Ashleigh's Romance Reads          Ashleigh's Whodunits
This week's newsletter contains the following features:
(Feel free to skip ahead to what you want to read)

• What's new with Ashleigh?
• Hartfield Chronicles
• Reviews from Ashleigh's Bookshelf
• Free Books
• Other Books on Sale
• Join My Newsletters

What's new with Ashleigh?

I can't believe it is already December. Where has this year gone?

Like many families, Thanksgiving marks the beginning of our holiday season. Last weekend, we put up the Christmas lights and decorated our Christmas tree. This weekend, we hope to finish raking leaves so we can prepare for the upcoming snow. (We've already had some flurries!)

We have so many holiday traditions, it's difficult to list them all. We have several drive-through light displays we enjoy, as well as a local amusement park that has a walk-through display. There's also those neighborhood houses we just have to drive by each year because of their fantastic displays.

And then there's the food. Apple pies. Pumpkin pies. Chocolate ginger snaps. This year, I plan on trying a few new recipes. If they work, maybe I'll feature them in one of my books.

Speaking of books, I want to tell you about this year's NaNo experience. I had a fantastic time getting better acquainted with my main character, but I have to admit writing was a struggle. Illness in the middle of the month kept me from writing for nearly two weeks. After Thanskgiving, I was so far behind on my goal, I had little hope of reaching that 50,000 word goal.

But, I persevered. I spent those last three days focusing on my writing, reaching some new personal words per minute records. Drafting nearly 18K on November 30th, I managed to hit 50,000 words at 11:58 pm.

As you can probably tell, I am very excited about this progress. In addition to reaching the 50K mark, I also finished the draft. However, I am not very pleased with it. My plan is to let it sit for a while before polishing it.

That gives me a chance to work on so many other new projects. Like what? Well, I'm hoping to publish two young adult books at the beginning of the year, including the first season of Hartfield Chronicles. I'm still drafting a cozy mystery. And for my romance readers? I'm not sure. I have so many projects, I'm not sure which will come next.

Hartfield Chronicles

Melinda and Pat are both happy to celebrate Thanksgiving with their families. But when rumors of Pat and another girl appear in the celebrity gossip columns, his relationship with Melinda is tested. Hartfield Chronicles follows the lives of Melinda, Pat, and their friends as they navigate their way through boarding school life. Each episode features two stories, one from Melinda's point of view and one from Pat's, along with an excerpt from Melinda's writing journal. New episodes are published every ​Friday.

Here's what you've missed

• Episode 61: Melinda's night of Christmas caroling is tainted by a rumor about Pat and another girl.
• Episode 62: Melinda and Pat have an awkward conversation with their mothers

Reviews from Ashleigh's Bookshelf

	For Young Adult readers The Amateurs Sara Shepard One minute, Helena Kelly is celebrating the first snowfall of the year with her younger sister, Aerin. The next minute, she has completely disappeared from their sleepy little Connecticut town. Still searching for answers five years later, Aerin seeks assistance from a cold-case message board. Enter Seneca, a college freshman who has been following the Kelly case religiously from the beginning. When her friend Maddie invites her to spend spring break investigating the case, how can Seneca refuse? But, someone seems determined to keep this case cold.		For adult readers Odyssey: The Reboot Keith Tokash According to Homer's cousin, the original Odyssey was severely over embellished and this is the real story about the ancient king of Ithaca.

Free Books

	Reprise A sweet young adult romance short story Can their tragic love song be rewritten? Erika isn't ready to see Zach again. He'd abandoned their friendship years ago for his rock star career. Now he is coming home after that career ended in scandal. Now he'd be her next door neighbor again. But things could never be the same between them. Zach is ready to see Erika. Ashamed of the way he'd neglected her, he's back to make amends. And to prove she's always meant more to him than just a friend.
	The Homecoming A Small Town Clean Sweet Romance Is this the price she is willing to pay for anonymity? Is there anything her parents and Seb can do to make her change her mind? Small town life. Where everyone knows your business, chatter spreads like wildfire, and the upper class looks down on all others less fortunate than they are. This was what Penny left years ago. Graduating from high school and escaping to the city, she had walked away from all that. However, much to her dismay, she was back. And some things never change. A chance meeting late at night brings back memories and feelings for the boy she once pined for. Once bitten, twice shy, Penny has reservations around Seb’s intentions now, after all these years. While she starts to let her guard down and believe in him once again, a wealthy socialite, who hasn’t changed much since school, brings forth some malicious knowledge back from the past. Something that Penny didn’t know that hurts her greatly. She should have known better than to move back; she should have known that nothing ever changes; she knew better than to trust him and let him back into her life. Penny finds a job elsewhere and leaves town. Her parents are devastated; they were apart far too long. Besides, she had just received a promotion, and the career she was moving for was not as promising as she thought.
	Forgotten Homeland A Lorne Turner Mystery Novella The Whispering of Exmoor's Dead Lorne Turner, a broken soldier, arrives home for the first time in twenty years to an empty, lonely farmhouse on Exmoor. The coming days reveal the despair of a farm drowning in debt. The coming nights reveal something far worse. Lorne doesn’t know if the noises, the crack, crack, crack, are the wind ravaging the moor, memories savaging his mind or the ghosts tearing the veil, begging for help.

Want more free books? Check out these giveaways!

Other Books on Sale

	A Merry Bookish Christmas The Life of Avery Bloom Avery Bloom, a brainy seventh-grader from a boring town filled with people she wants to cheer up, gets an idea with the help of a friend, finds a secret journal along the way, and winds up inspiring others to go after what seems impossible.
	Secret Santa A Limited Edition Christmas Romance Collection Meet me under the mistletoe... In this limited edition Christmas romance collection love blooms underneath the mistletoe as secret admirers finally confess their love and secret santas make holiday wishes of the heart come true. Get into the Christmas spirit by diving into these stories where anything can happen through the magic of Christmas—and love. Authors in this collection are: USA Today Bestselling Authors Mandy Melanson & Elle Ryan, International Bestselling Authors Crimson Syn & Nikki Landis, Award Winning Author Merrie Destefano, Stacey Wallace, Ivy Hunt, Sofia Aves, Angela Scavone, Caitlyn Coakley, MaryAnn Clarke, Amber Ghe, Katherine Moore, Marianne Petit, Jeanine Lauren, Ainsley Jaymes, Diane Kessner, J. Shanee Byers, Kyrii Rayne, Arietta Richmond, Dawn Luedecke, Beth Fred, Amy Stephens, Maci Dillon, Di Jones, Lisa Wood, Jennifer Bonds, Lesley Ann, Margaret Madigan, Lissa Lynn Thomas, Aubrey Wynne, K.L. Humphreys, Chelsea McDonald, Sunny Abernathy, A.M. Daniels, Emmanuelle Snow, Tienna Wilde, Katy Rose, Rachel A Smith, Adina D. Grey, Mia Kingsley, Irene Micheals, Zoey Drake, Stacey Jaine McIntosh, Colleen Key, Leann Castellanos, A.L. Morrow, C.N. Marie, Lizzie James, Nova Edwins, J.A. Roles, Jennifer M. Miller, Amy C. Beckinsale, Gabbi Grey, Danika Bloom, Thea Dane, Nikki Kimberly, R.J. Murray, Lark Anderson, Jo Bradley, Zelda Knight, Mira Kane, Rayne Elizabeth, Naomi Panthera, Valkyrie Luna, Stormy Winds, Sara Cunningham, Susan Horsnell, Danika Bloom, and Zaria Knight
	The Princess of Escondida The Treasure of Escondida Book 5 Escondida’s elite all-female spy team is ready to take down El Orden and secure the Treasure of Escondida, but first Princess Liliana must attend to her royal duties. Liliana (Lily), Princess of Escondida and secretly trained spy, is tasked with meeting the Crown Prince of Creador in the hopes their families can form an alliance. Having been on many of these dates in the past, Lily relies on her training as a spy to get her through the evening but finds herself pleasantly surprised with the prince. Lucas, Crown Prince of Creador, is nervous and excited about going on a date with Princess Liliana. Having pushed off pursuing her many times, he is now ready to do what his father has been urging for years after briefly meeting her last year at an official royal function. During their date he finds himself smitten and hopes that they can continue to get to know each other. Is this a match made in heaven or does Lucas know more about the plot against Escondida then he is letting on? Join the team in this final showdown against El Orden and find out who the mastermind really is. Grab your copy today for one last thrilling adventure full of espionage, romance, and suspense.

You may also like these books

Join My Newsletters

Hartfield Chronicles Episode 62 Now Available