A recipe for mulled wine

A pot of mulled wine simmering on our wood stove is such a treat!

Our wood stove came in handy this past weekend when a nor’easter hit Vermont hard with extensive power outages. We were out from Friday to Sunday evening. Other people are still without power but we see hardworking crews out there and appreciate their efforts. It was quite a storm.

Back to mulled wine…

Below is the recipe included in my Swift River Valley novella, “Christmas at Carriage Hill.” By the way, it’s just $1.99 in digital and now available in audio. And A Knights Bridge Christmas is on sale t… Read More

Read More >

Homemade hot chocolate

We’re expecting snow this week. No better time to repost my recipe for hot chocolate! It appears in my Swift River Valley Christmas novel, A Knights Bridge Christmas, which happens to be on sale in eBook for just $1.99.

HOT CHOCOLATE

Ingredients

1 cup cocoa (I use Dutch-processed Droste)
1/2 cup sugar (or to taste)
1/3 cup hot water
4 cups whole milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

Preparation

Combine cocoa and sugar a medium saucepan. Blend in water. Stirring constantly, cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Let boil, continuing to stir, for two minutes. Add milk, heat t… Read More

Read More >

Christmas in…August!

≠Summer is flying by here. The holidays will be upon us before we know it.

Well, before I know it. This year I mean to break my habit of waiting until the last minute to shop for Christmas presents. I won’t buy everything because I love to shop when everything’s decorated and feeling festive, especially on Wassail Weekend here in Woodstock, Vermont.

For shoppers early and late, a fun gift for audio lovers (yourself included!) would be Christmas at Carriage Hill, a Swift River Valley romance novella. I’m delighted that it’s now available in audio. Reader-favorite Sus… Read More

Read More >

A recipe for hot chocolate

When we were growing up in small-town New England, my six brothers and sisters and I would spend hours sledding on the hills behind our 18th-century house (a work-in-progress!). We’d come in pink-cheeked, usually with snow in our boots and cold, and inevitably our mother had a big pot of hot chocolate simmering on the wood stove. What a way to warm up!

I’ve made lots of hot chocolate since then, for adults as well as children. I’ve used mixes but prefer to make it from scratch. Since my father was Dutch, I’ve tended to use Droste cocoa. King Arthur Baking Company, its head… Read More

Read More >

BOOK NEWS: First in two series now on sale

Do you like to read a series in order? I don’t always start a series at the beginning, but once I’m into the characters and their stories, I love going back and reading the books in order, especially starting with the first one. Now the first books in my Sharpe & Donovan suspense series and my Swift River Valley contemporary romance series are on sale for just $1.99.

Saint’s Gate

Two people, isolated by their pasts. An obsessive killer who will force them together. Welcome to the Sharpe & Donovan Series!

Secrets of the Lost Summer

Beneath the surface lie the greatest tr… Read More

Read More >

Summer in Boston

Does summer in the city appeal to you? I spent my first summer in Boston after my junior year in college and had a great time. Long walks in the evening, 4th of July fireworks, ice cream shops, harbor dinner cruises (well, one), Beacon Hill window boxes and countless other bonuses of a city summer. We love our hilltop house in Vermont and our excursions to Ireland and Maine, but our July, August and September visits to Boston are special, and not just because our grandchildren live there! Not something I thought much about that first summer in the city…

Some of my books set entirely or partiall… Read More

Read More >

Special April Giveaway to Celebrate STONE BRIDGES

We’re celebrating spring, the release of Stone Bridges and my love of stationery and pens with this month’s special giveaway. We curated the goodies at the iconic Bob Slate Stationer in Harvard Square and didn’t hold back!

Enter the April Giveaway Now! 

Here are some photos of our temptations. Check out the giveaway for what we selected to give away. Plus…books, and a limited-editing Swift River Valley mug. Thanks, and enjoy.

 … Read More

Read More >

STONE BRIDGES is a USA Today and Publishers Weekly Bestseller

In “monk mode” writing here on my hilltop and getting back to normal after my nasty neck and shoulder injury, and what a treat to have fun news to celebrate! Stone Bridges popped onto the USA Today and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists its first week on sale. Many thanks to all the readers who pre-ordered and stopped at their favorite place that sells books, whether online, an independent, a box store or a spin-rack at the grocery. Best of all are the comments from readers who enjoyed this uplifting story set in picturesque small-town New England. Thank you!

 … Read More

Read More >

STONE BRIDGES in two weeks!

Time’s been slipping away as I recover from my shoulder injury, and I just realized Stone Bridges will be in stores in two weeks. I’m so excited! It’s the latest standalone installment in my Swift River Valley small-town New England series. Pre-order your copy from your favorite bookseller today! Click here for handy links.

Be sure to let me know what you think when you’ve had a chance to read Adrienne and Adam’s story. I had a great time writing it, mostly here on my New England hilltop. Check back for more info. I’m running behind with everything given … Read More

Read More >

November contest!

November is flying by! Be sure to check out this month’s contest. We’re celebrating the start of the holiday season with a special giveaway inspired by readers. TEN lucky readers will receive a signed copy of the paperback edition of A Knights Bridge Christmas. ONE grand prize winner will also receive a limited-edition Swift River Valley mug.

This is the only place you can find Christmas at Carriage Hill” in print (it’s available on its own digitally). In this fun novella, Dylan McCaffrey’s long-lost English cousin and the RAF pilot she’s trying to get over arrive in little … Read More

Read More >