Happy New Year from BWL Publishing Inc.

 Wishing all of you health, happiness and prosperity in 2023.

Our new releases for 2023 reflect the optimism we at BWL feel about a brand new year.

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A champion barrel racer disappears from her trailer on the eve of the Black Hills Roundup. Two hundred miles away, female remains are discovered at the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument. Doug and Jill Fletcher, assigned to investigate the crime at the national monument, quickly determine that the remains are the missing rodeo champion. Thrust into the unfamiliar world of calf ropers, bull riders, and barrel racers, they team up with the Belle Fourche police to investigate the murder.

A trucker reports seeing a ghost driving the victim’s pickup across Montana the night of the murder. Other witnesses report seeing a rodeo clown near her trailer. Fletchers locate the victim’s stolen pickup and horse trailer, but not her horse. The evidence seems to point to horse theft as the motive, but the complicated reports of ghosts and rodeo clowns leaves them feeling that there’s more to the crime than a simple horse theft.

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The North Country Series invites the reader into the wilds of Canada’s Yukon Territory, with its men and their loyal sled dogs, both as rugged as the mountains in which they live. Strong-willed women bring a softer touch to the long, snowy nights under the grandiose spectacular northern lights.

Brooke faces challenges every day as the only vet in a Yukon town, where sled dogs outnumber people. Life becomes even more complicated when her husband is murdered and she finds he has emptied her bank account and racked up a mountain of debt.

Veterinary medicine was not her first career choice. On the verge of her becoming a physician, a hospital tragedy derailed her plans. She turned to treating animals, her next love.

The loss of her husband uncovers a web of intrigue that she had no idea existed all around her. Her new neighbor, Dexter Weiman, appears to know more than he lets on. She is attracted to the handsome stranger, but she cannot trust him, especially when he appears unexpectedly on the Iditarod Race trail, where she is acting as a volunteer vet.

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Alone in Canada after her parents retire to Scotland, Sophie Grant is content to finish her degree without partaking in the rowdy university lifestyle. So it seems like Fate when at the single party her roommate Tessa forces her to attend, she meets the charming and chivalrous Brandon Chase. In a whirlwind, Sophie finds herself smitten and living with the man of her dreams.

Everything is perfect. Until Tessa is found dead.

Soon after, Sophie realizes her own studies have taken a backseat to Brandon’s strange lifestyle. She decides to escape from the web she’d not even noticed was entangling her. However, it isn’t until one horrific morning that she realizes how far he’d go to make her stay.

Our very best wishes for a wonderful 2023.

Party Time by Priscilla Brown

 

Australian journalist Jasmine, stuck on a small Scottish island after a difficult assignment, finds herself learning reel dances at the local  Hogmanay party.  New Year's Eve had never been...so, well...so sexy...and is this stylishly kilted guy really who he says he is?

 

Find this contemporary romance at

  https://books2read.com/Dancing-the-Reel 

💖

 As teenagers many years ago, my cousin Sally and I hated family parties. The worst were those at Christmas and New Year hosted alternately by my parents and by hers. Having survived the excesses of Christmas at one house, we metaphorically took deep breaths and braced the New Year scene at the other.

Our mothers would sit at the kitchen table, their gossiping accompanied by rapidly depleting bottles of white wine and quantities of strawberry jam tarts. If a reason had ever existed for these specific edibles, it was lost in the annals of long ago New Year's Eves. If we took our clothes off and danced on the table, we doubted they'd have noticed. Our fathers occupied the living room, hers thumping away on the piano and mine making excruciating noises on his violin. Lucky the houses in this street were detached, so unlikely the neighbours would have their ears assaulted, but even so, anyone outside would surely cringe at the volume of noise. But the 'oldies' were having fun. 

For our 'fun,' and I don't remember how old we were, one year at my house Sally and I took from the wine rack a bottle of red wine which the parents probably thought they had hidden in a shoe cupboard, two glasses, and the few leftover mince pies. In my bedroom, we sat on the bed, disappointed there were no more pies, testing the wine while wondering how people could drink this disgusting stuff but nevertheless sipping away, and giggling over stupid boys in our respective high school classes. Neither of us felt at our best the next morning.

Chatting with friends about previous New Year's celebrations, mid-summer here in Australia, one described how his parents had hired a jumping castle to be installed in their large backyard for their extended family of children. Aged about ten, he and his twin brother had a fight while jumping, both fell off and each broke an arm. Another recalled how when teenagers their family joined with two others for a picnic in a park. She and a boy from another family ran a contest to see who could catch the most cicadas in ten minutes. Children nil, cicadas safe.

May 2023 be kind to you, with lots of good books to read. Stay safe. Priscilla.

 https://bwlpublishing.ca

 

https://priscillabrownauthor.com 

Poodle Talk by Eden Monroe

 

For book details and purchase information visit Eden Monroe's BWL Author page.

The much-celebrated poodle is the beloved national dog of France, but that’s not where the breed originated. It all began in Germany, the name derived from the German word Pudel or Pudlen. Duck dog, or Caniche, is what the breed is called in France.

That’s right, despite their pampered, diva-like appearance, poodles were actually bred to be working dogs. They’re superbly suited for their job as waterfowl retrievers, and their famous puffball haircuts in fact serve a very important purpose for that type of work. Their tight curly hair is meant to insulate them in cold water, but to promote freedom of movement, the neck, legs and tail were shaved. Carefully crafted pompoms remained, designed to protect their joints and torso (vital organs) in often frigid water.

Nevertheless their iconic cutaway hairdos are perfect catwalk coiffures and have become synonymous with this handsome breed. There are three acceptable styles when appearing before discerning dog show judges: continental clip, modified continental clip and English saddle. There’s also the puppy clip for baby poodles debuting on the show circuit.

Snowflakes, the tiny star of the romantic suspense, Looking for Snowflakes, is a toy poodle who has a thing or two to say about the sturdy stuff that poodles are made of. She is a force to be reckoned with and her typically sweet personality not only touches lives, but makes the most of whatever situation she happens to find herself in:

“Just then the back door opened and Luke Barker snuck in. He slipped a small package onto the top shelf of the closet before announcing he was home early because the office had closed.

Snowflakes was the first one to the back door to greet him, her tiny pink tongue lolling in a dazzling smile. And since there was no food in the kitchen, maybe this good-looking young gentleman might have a treat or two up his sleeve. So she sat back on her paws and giving it everything she had, pranced with her front feet. To her bewilderment her performance didn’t seem to impress him, the man just stared at her as though he couldn’t believe his eyes.

Next to arrive was Sarah. ‘Daddy!’ she yelled as he picked her up and swung her around before setting her back on the floor. ‘Look at my new baby dog! Her name is Snowflakes.’

Danielle Barker had now come to the back door as well, walking into the unblinking stare of her husband, the look that said why is there a dog here? We didn’t discuss this!

He first stared at the dog and then at his daughter, before his gaze swung back to his wife. ‘Danielle, have you got a minute?’”

Soft, white and curly, Snowflakes is the star of the show although poodle lovers, unlike fanciers of most breeds, have four sizes to choose from: standard, miniature, toy and teacup, as well as a myriad of hypoallergenic coat colours.

Playful but dignified, these dogs are friendly, devoted and keenly protective of their people friends. Poodles of every size and colour have been the favourites of some very well known pet owners: Elvis Presley, Elizabeth Taylor, Jackie Kennedy, Lucille Ball, Marilyn Monroe, Katharine Hepburn, Walt Disney, Winston Churchill and more, and all knew the joys of friendship with these versatile animals.

Poodles are recognized as one of the most intelligent breeds in the world, and highly trainable. Just a few of their outstanding abilities include excelling at performance sports, working as guide and therapy dogs, and being natural entertainers are outstanding circus performers. Also adept at truffle foraging, they were often used together with Dachshunds who are low enough to the ground to easily dig out this prized edible fungus.

And they have proven themselves to have plenty of try too, a hallmark of their impressive ancestry over the roughly 400 years since the breed first appeared. Remarkably, a team that included standard poodles once competed in the grueling Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, an Alaskan event covering roughly 1,000 miles from Anchorage to Nome. The results were less than stellar for the poodles, but it was not the fault of those valiant animals. That annual competition now permits “only dogs suitable for arctic travel” (Alaskan Malamute, Siberian husky or a mixed breed like the Alaskan husky) to compete, because the icy climate can eventually overwhelm single-coated breeds like poodles who are not at all suited to such harsh northern conditions.

Poodles have distinguished themselves in other ways too, such as Montee from Idaho, the standard poodle who tipped the scales at an amazing one hundred pounds, and novelist John Steinbeck’s pal, Charles le Chien, was also a standard. Steinbeck and Charley were inseparable companions as they toured thirty-four states together in a pick-up truck on a 10,000 mile journey of discovery in 1960.

History also remembers outstanding poodles such as Sancho. Found on his master’s grave following the 1812 Battle of Salamanca in Spain (Peninsular war), he was adopted by Lord Worcester and taken to live in London. And Boye, also a standard poodle, was believed to belong to Prince Rupert of Rhine. During his Royalist master’s incarceration and later on the field of battle, Boye remained steadfast at Rupert’s side; a Royal mascot who held the honourary title of “Sergent-Major-General.”

There have also been famous miniature poodles: Aero, owned by Japanese figure skating star Mao Asada appeared in commercials with the popular Olympian, and Edward, a TV commercial celebrity and much-welcome fixture at A-list fashion shoots. Jinkee a toy poodle and red like Aero and Edward, is a social media magnet with more Instagram followers than her owner, food and travel journalist, Sofia Levin, according to knowyourdoodles.com.

Poodles have been featured on both the small and big screen; immortalized on canvas, and made their mark in cartoons, including Cleo Diller, Penelope Poodle and did you know the immortal Betty Boop was originally depicted as an anthropomorphic poodle?

And then of course little Snowflakes from Stoney Creek has also been blessed with a generous dusting of poodle magic in Looking for Snowflakes:

“It had been a long day for Bob and as he neared the end of his deliveries he was looking forward to his easy chair in the living room of the modest home he shared with Sue. A quiet Christmas Eve in front of their lovely decorated tree. However when he climbed in and pulled the last Christmas box toward him, he was dismayed to see that its corner was torn. The foil was partially ripped away, and some of the meal missing. He was perplexed. How on earth could such a thing have happened? He certainly couldn’t deliver it in its present condition. Had Sue dropped it by any chance when she was helping him carry their precious cargo out to the van this morning? No, she’d never allow it to be loaded in that condition.

He could see his easy chair getting a little further away because this meal would have to be replaced. He couldn’t disappoint the last senior on his list who was eagerly awaiting his arrival. Sue would have to make up a new plate, but she could easily do so because she’d simply take from their own Christmas dinner to replenish the one that had been damaged. Vandalized? Good lord, were their rats in here or something? And then he spied a little white curly leg protruding from the back of the passenger seat. A dog had to be stretched out in back of the seat, sleeping!

Climbing all the way inside was no easy feat considering his painful arthritic hip. He pushed the curtain that separated the cab from the cargo area, all the way to the side. Snowflakes raised her head lazily, her eyes winking as she tried to come awake from a most wonderful nap.

‘Well what do we have here?’ he asked kindly. ‘I do believe I’ve picked up a passenger somewhere along the line. Hungry were you girl?’

Snowflakes was fully awake now and she cocked her head sideways and smiled her adorable little smile. Her tiny pink tongue lolled as if to say I’m sorry I stole some of that meal, but I just couldn’t resist. It was really good too by the way, my compliments to the chef. You wouldn’t happen to have an extra sugar cookie would you?”

 

Fiat Lux - Carry the Light

 

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Fiat Lux was the motto of my ("high school," to Americans) Queen's College in Bridgetown, Barbados. I remembered this recently when, while attempting to dust, I pulled out an old copy of The Oxford Book of Verse from the bookshelf and saw the motto on the cover. It was a school prize, for "good work in Form VI b" of which I'd been rather proud. I was a lonely ex-pat in those days and something of a "swot." Studying was how I filled my time as a "stranger in a strange land," while others were spending their free time with family and friends. 

What is the definition of that "light"? I used to believe--this being a school gift, after all--that this "light" was knowledge, and while that's certainly a way of looking at this motto, I'm beginning to see that the "light" mentioned here is perhaps a much simpler concept. Maybe it's just as simple as one word--Hope.

Reading an article by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, Elizabeth Kolbert, I was struck by this sentence: "Despair is unproductive. It's also a sin." Those two short sentences got me pondering, especially as I am someone who finds themselves often stuck in "the slough of despond," expecially after looking at the news. 

Spalding Gray in his "Swimming to Cambodia" speaks of "the cloud of Evil" which continually circles the world, waiting for an opening in which to manifest This image struck me powerfully. When people give up, believing that reality is "hopeless" or "impossible" to change, that attitude simply throws the door open for the Darkness, destroying people, communities, societies--even planets.  

What's is the opposite of despair, then? Hope, of course. In the words of the familiar little song:

 "This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine..."

"Hope is being able to see that there is light, despite all the darkness."  

~Bishop Desmond Tutu

Maybe that particular light is the one we all carry, the ability to care for others, to share what we have. It can be as simple as a phone call to an aging relative or looking in on a elderly neighbor, or volunteering at a shelter, planting a tree or a garden.

"There is some good in this world, and it's worth fighting for." ~JRR Tolkien 

Sam Gamgee says these words to his comrade Frodo, whose heart is overflowing with terror and despair as he faces the completion of an apparently impossible task that will probably end his life--but may save to world.

Tolkien's fantasy is the old battle of Good & Evil, the central, familiar theme of all world religions.

"In a time of destruction, create something." ~ Maxine Hong Kingston

Despair can be cast off through action, perhaps something as simple as cleaning, decluttering, writing a blog or a letter to the editor. Even if you feel defeated before you start and believe you aren't going to be able to make anything in your future better, you did take an action that can improve your immediate surroundings, or, at least, your state of mind. 

If it's just seems too pointless to clean or cook or write another letter to your  newspapers/political leaders, sit down and write a gratitude list. At first I scoffed at this practice, but consider. Perhaps you can find three things you are thankful for. 

If you are in a house, under a roof, more or less warm and with internet access and time to read this--well there's three luxuries right there. On a more basic level, most of us also have friends or family, even if they are far away. Most of mine, especially since Covid, are far away and inaccessible for various reasons, except through the 'net. You might talk to a friend, neighbor, to your cat/dog/bird. Write a poem. Greet the sun, admire the clouds or the birds/squirrels at your feeder, the local Canada Geese who have never learned to migrate.

Or, as I'm speaking here to readers and writers, talk to yourself! Begin to tell yourself a story, which is what I have done ever since I was little and feeling sad and alone.  

  Happy New Year!  

 ~~Juliet Waldron

Books We Love

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How Cowboys say "I Love You" By Connie Vines #How Cowboys say I Love You, #Cowboy Romance, #Sexy Cowboys

For some, it's the cowboy hat and boots, a sexy smile, or how they look in tight jeans. Romance novels often portray them as mysterious and confident with a bad-boy streak. In movies, they are rugged, hard-working heroes who ride off into the sunset at the end of the day.

Who hasn’t done a little dream walking about the cowboys of yesteryear driving cattle across the plains, a lawman with a silver star pinned to his shirt, or today's rodeo cowboy, or the cattle rancher down the road and sighed? There’s something about a man in boots, denim, and a cowboy hat that makes a woman’s heart increase speed and her mouth dry, isn't there?

🤠  🐴

Is it their manners, sense of justice, or the fact they take off their hats and say, “Thank you, Ma’am”? 

Or is it the swagger of the rodeo cowboy after he picks himself up off the ground?  The easy way a rancher leans over the corral fence taking stock of his herd, with one foot resting on a rail.

There’s something about cowboys.

A cowboy doffs his hat and opens a door. They respect women. 

When I lived in the Texas panhandle, I often heard the old saying: "Texas is hell on women and horses."

Fathers still teach their sons the way of the old West and remind them there was a time when women were few and far between.  And it's still a privilege to have a female to cater to and cherish. 

🥰💕

So, how does a woman know if a Cowboy is in love?

• An invitation to a Barn Dance.
• He Cooks dinner.
• Buys you a pair of cowgirl boots. 
•  A gift of  Turquoise jewelry.
•  Or the old-fashioned way.  He gets down on one keen and proposes.

Why not snuggle under the covers with one of my Cowboys?

Lynx Maddox

Brede Kristsensen

With a dangerous reputation for taking chances and tempting fate, Lynx Maddox has one goal in life -- to win the coveted Sliver Buckle Rodeo Championship. 

But when he sets eyes on lovely Rachel Scott, he becomes determined to capture her heart as well.

"A worthy addition to anyone's book collection"  Under the Covers Book 

 

"A rare find. A must-read!" Book Museum

"Instant Action/Sizzling Attraction!  This book kept pages turning, and a box of tissues close at hand."

Trouble is something hard-edged rancher, Brede Kristensen, knows all about.  A widower with a rambunctious young daughter,  a ranch to run, and an ornery cook who has just run off. Yet, amid a violent storm, he finds an injured woman. 

A woman who can't recall her name or her past. But Brede vows to protect her from harm. 

What he hadn't bargained for was her laughter and gentleness finding a way into the lonely corners of his heart.

https://bookswelove.net/vines-connie/

LYNX

Brede

MY Website and social links

My Blog

Wishing you a holiday season filled with warmth,  joy, and gingerbread kisses!

(Remember, BWL ebooks are still on sale)

Connie

New-Year traditions around the world for good luck and prosperity - by Vijaya Schartz

Find Vijayas latest book
HERE

At the very end of December, after all the holiday parties, the family gatherings, the excessive eating, the drinking, and the sugar comas, we tend to reflect on why we gained five pounds… And new-year’s-eve is still ahead. But with the New Year comes new hope.

Also called St Sylvester’s night in Europe, New Year’s Eve, and New Year's day, include many traditions to ease the transition and generate good luck and prosperity.

In the US, whether you are, from the East to the West coast, you will probably have or attend a party, count the seconds to midnight, and watch the ball drop in Time Square. You will have a drink and sing Auld Lang Syne, and some will stand under the mistletoe, for a chance of a kiss at midnight.

In Canada the fireworks are magnificent. And some of the most popular New Year’s Day traditions are the Polar Bear Swim in Vancouver, and to go ice-fishing. Brrrr!

In Japan, December 31st is a national cleaning day. The houses are scrubbed from floor to ceiling and decluttered, to start the new year in a favorable setting. On New Year’s Eve, it is also the tradition to eat buckwheat noodles called Toshikoshi soba. Just before midnight, Buddhist temple bells ring out 108 times, representing the 108 earthly temptations a person must overcome to achieve nirvana and get rid of last year’s bad luck.

The enormous bell is rung with a strong pole, pulled by several people with ropes.

In Brazil, everyone wears white on New Year’s eve for good luck and peace. They also run to the beach and throw white flowers into the ocean. Of course, it’s summer and beach weather in Brazil that time of year.

In Mexico, at midnight, people drop a gold ring into their glass to bring good fortune in love and money. Then on January 1st, they go door to door, offering home-made tamales to friends and neighbors. I’ve also seen it done in Arizona as traditions migrate.

In Greece, onions are a symbol of good luck and fertility, so, on New Year's Eve, they hang bundles of onions above their doors to invite prosperity into the home. Then, on New Year's Day, parents wake up their children by gently knocking them on the head with the onions that were outside.

In Singapore, revelers let wishing spheres containing their hopes and dreams float down the river. Thousands of them on the Singapore River make for a magical sight.

In Puerto Rico, they dump a bucket of water from a window to ward off evil spirits. I hope it’s not on the pedestrians below. They also sprinkle sugar outside their houses for good luck.

In Russia, New Year's Eve revelers write a wish down on a piece of paper, burn it and add the ashes to their champagne or vodka glass. Then they drink the entire glass quickly at midnight, in less than a minute, to make their wish realize.

In France, Champagne is the drink de rigueur to ring the New Year, along with raw oysters on the shell, turkey, goose, and seafood, in an elaborate and abundant meal they call a reveillon. And in Paris, the Eiffel Tower lights up in a splendid show of lights for the occasion.

In Spain, to get good luck in the New Year, you must eat 12 grapes on the 12 rings of midnight, and keep the pace… no sweat, just don’t choke!

In Switzerland, they summon wealth, and abundance by dropping ice cream on the floor at midnight. Personally, I think it’s a waste of delicious ice-cream.

In Denmark, to celebrate the New Year, they smash old plates on the doors of family, friends, and neighbors, to ward off evil spirits. The more broken plates at your door in the morning, the more good luck in the New Year.

In India, they build an effigy of an old man and burn it at midnight, to symbolize the death of the old year with its struggles, to make room for the new and hopefully better year.

In China, they celebrate the New Year on a lunar cycle, in January or February, and the festivities last two weeks. Lots of dragons parading on the streets, food, fireworks, and the color red, for good luck.

I wish you all a fantastic New Year, with success and happiness all year long.

In the meantime, all my eBooks are discounted on Smashwords until New Year! Yay! Happy Reading!

Vijaya Schartz, award-winning author

Strong Heroines, Brave Heroes, cats

http://www.vijayaschartz.com

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Christmas past and present—Tricia McGill

 

Find all my books on my BWL author page.

As another year draws to a close, I have to admit that I will not be sad to see it go. It has not been one of the best for me personally, so I look forward to the new one in the hopes that it will be better. Yesterday as always this time of the year, I was reminiscing about Christmas’s past and thanking my stars that my childhood was one of the best, as I was surrounded by a family who, although not rich by any means, were intent on making Christmastime festive and fun.

One of my earliest and most vivid memories was waking up while it was still dark on Christmas Day, knowing that Santa had already been. Near my bed was a wooden cot for my doll—a replica of a real babe’s cot. I never did learn which one of my older brothers made it. The small covers atop the china doll who lay in it were likely the work of one or two of my sisters, or perhaps my mother. They were all seamstresses. At that time I was probably about four or five. All of us girls slept in the same cold and draughty old room and probably ice had formed on the inside of the window panes of our tenement house in North London.

More memories sprang to life then. I recall receiving a miniature cooker plus all the appropriate pots and pans, and I would spend hours in a corner of the living room preparing make-believe meals. Another of my favourite gifts were the paper doll books that I adored. In fact, I think they were the best gift ever. I guess it was inevitable that I ended up in the fashion industry, but sadly I never did particularly take to preparing meals and spend as little time in the kitchen as I possibly can.

Christmas Day was a rowdy affair in our home. One of my brothers dressed up as Santa Claus and would distribute the presents from around the tree. No mobiles, tablets or mechanised toys in those days, but along with the paper doll books there would be at least one picture book for me and perhaps a box of handkerchiefs. Like all good things of course those halcyon days had to pass as one by one the family began to go their separate ways. I often wonder how our mother coped with going from a large brood of ten to the two or three of us that remained at least until we were wed. Always she kept her emotions to herself. I only saw her shed tears once and that was on the day of our beloved Dad’s funeral. I guess that was what was expected of wives and mothers in those days—carry on as best one can and keep your feelings closely guarded.

Christmas Eve holds special memories also as it was on that evening many years ago that I met my husband to be. We danced the night away—rocking and rolling of course—and if my memory serves me well there was a tram strike that night so it was a long walk home from Tottenham to Highbury (Londoners will know what I mean).

As we move swiftly into 2023, I wish everyone the best of times. May the New Year bring you happiness and above all good health.