Publisher: William Morrow

The Great Christmas Knit-Off by Alexandra Brown ~ Review

19 Oct, 2015 by in Uncategorized Leave a comment

I received this book for free from William Morrow in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Great Christmas Knit-Off by Alexandra Brown ~ Review

The Great Christmas Knit-Off

by Alexandra Brown
Series: Tindledale #1
Published by William Morrow on Ocotber 13, 2015
Genres: Adult
Pages: 400
Format: Paperback
four-half-stars
Source: William Morrow
Buy the Book
In the tradition of Trisha Ashley and Jenny Colgan, this first book in a new series by Alexandra Brown—author of the popular Cupcakes at Carrington’s series—tells the hilarious, heartwarming story of a jilted bride who anticipates a lonely Christmas but instead finds herself in the tiny village of Tindledale, where the residents share her obsession with knitting.

When life unravels, it’s time to knit…

Sybil has always taken comfort in her passion for knitting, creating beautiful knits stitch by stitch. But her world suddenly unravels when her fiancé ditches her for her identical twin sister at her Star Wars-themed wedding, leaving her sporting a Princess Leia do. Then things go from bad to worse when an incident at work jeopardizes her job.

Hoping to escape her woes and forget that she’ll be alone for Christmas this year, she visits her friend in Tindledale—a winter wonderland of quaint shops and snowy rooftops. When she arrives in the idyllic town, she can’t help feeling like she’s in a Hallmark greeting card. She’s embraced by welcoming—if eccentric—locals wearing handmade knits that remind Sybil of her own creations as well as her unrealized ambitions of selling them. So when the vintage boutique asks her to make an assortment of knits for their display window, she’s thrilled. The hot town doctor has even taken an interest in Sybil, hoping to heal her broken heart.

But just when Sybil thinks she’s going to have her fairytale Christmas after all, an unexpected turn of events threatens to unspool her happily ever after.

What a fun book! I am so very excited to have found the Tindledale series. I cozied up with hot apple cider and a blanket this rainy weekend to finish off book one in under 24 hours. Sybil has been jilted at the alter by her Star Wars fanatic fiance, she’s walking around in a fog, making mistakes at work and having sad thoughts. It’s tome for a break. Off tot he cozy village of Tindledale where you can still find a butcher, a baker and perhaps a candlestick maker.

With amazing character that make the story come alive, a very slow and cozy romance, and laugh out loud moments, The Great Christmas Knit-Off warmed my heart.

Content: My only complaint is that the “f” word dropped in a few times seemed completely out of place and out of step with the old fashioned feel of the novel.

Overall: I had a smile on my face throughout the entire experience and would definitely recommend this series to lovers of cozy chic lit set in England. Can not wait for book two!

About the Author61O2fx1BgJL._UX250_

Alexandra Brown is the author of several bestselling warm and witty novels, including the Carrington’s series, The Great Christmas Knit Off and The Great Village Show.

Alex began her writing career as the City Girl columnist for The London Paper which she wrote for two years before giving it up to concentrate on writing novels.

Alex lives in a rural village on the Kent and Sussex border in England, with her husband, utterly adorable daughter (fondly known as QT) and one very shiny black Labrador called Puppy Oscar.

For more about Alex, please visit her website – www.alexandrabrown.co.uk or chat to her on Facebook.com/alexandrabrownauthor and Twitter @alexbrownbooks

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Hotel Moscow by Talia Carner Blog Tour and Giveaway

10 Jun, 2015 by in Uncategorized 2 comments

Hotel Moscow by Talia Carner Blog Tour and Giveaway

Hotel Moscow

by Talia Carner
Published by William Morrow on June 2, 2015
Pages: 464
Buy the BookGoodreads
From the author of Jerusalem Maiden comes a mesmerizing, thought-provoking novel that tells the riveting story of an American woman—the daughter of Holocaust survivors—who travels to Russia shortly after the fall of communism, and finds herself embroiled in a perilous mafia conspiracy that could irrevocably destroy her life.

Brooke Fielding, a thirty-eight year old New York investment manager and daughter of Jewish Holocaust survivors, finds her life suddenly upended in late September 1993 when her job is unexpectedly put in jeopardy. Brooke accepts an invitation to join a friend on a mission to Moscow to teach entrepreneurial skills to Russian business women, which will also give her a chance to gain expertise in the new, vast emerging Russian market. Though excited by the opportunity to save her job and be one of the first Americans to visit Russia after the fall of communism, she also wonders what awaits her in the country that persecuted her mother just a generation ago.

Inspired by the women she meets, Brooke becomes committed to helping them investigate the crime that threatens their businesses. But as the uprising of the Russian parliament against President Boris Yeltsin turns Moscow into a volatile war zone, Brooke will find that her involvement comes at a high cost. For in a city where “capitalism” is still a dirty word, where neighbors spy on neighbors and the new economy is in the hands of a few dangerous men, nothing Brooke does goes unnoticed—and a mistake in her past may now compromise her future.

A moving, poignant, and rich novel, Hotel Moscow is an eye-opening portrait of post-communist Russia and a profound exploration of faith, family, and heritage.

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Guest Post

Russia Then and Now . . .
By Talia Carner
www.TaliaCarner.com
This essay was written in December 2011, twenty years after the fall of communism.

When the Israelites fled Egypt, they wandered in the desert for forty years until the generation born into slavery had died. According to God, only a people who had known a life of freedom possessed the strength to overcome the hurdles of building a new nation in the Promised Land, and would enter it.
I understood that wisdom when I journeyed to Russia twice in 1993 to teach women entrepreneurial skills. And I am reminded of my impressions at that time today when Russians are supposed to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of democracy. Instead they are taking to the streets to protest the autocratic regime that is all too similar to the totalitarian Soviet rule it had replaced.
In late April 1993, merely sixteen months after the fall of communism, I joined a group of American businesswomen to meet courageous Russian women who traveled to Moscow and St. Petersburg from areas as far as the Ural Mountains and from far republics whose names I had never heard. Suddenly we were no longer The Enemy. They watched with awe how we walked tall, strutted about with confidence, and punctuated our talks with smiles. (They asked why so many of us were in mourning or else why would we wear black when all the colors of the rainbow were available to us?) At the edge of their seats, they clung to every bit of information we could dole out. As we spoke through interpreters to groups and individuals about business plans, marketing strategies, and pricing policies or as we lectured about advertising, promotions, and selling tactics, they took furious notes. In turn, they asked tough questions to which we had no simple answers: from how to export their homemade, poor-quality products “to America,” to how to launch a women’s political party or start a women’s bank

As hopeful and valiant as these women were, we hit a wall when we introduced the concept of networking. “Both of you. face the same problem motivating employees,” I said to two students who had found themselves running bed and beer barrel factories, respectively, after a lifetime of working on the conveyor belt sawing and gluing lumber. But the two women glared at each other with suspicion. “Look, you live over six hundred kilometers apart,” I explained. “There is no risk, and you can both benefit if you share ideas about ways to deal with business problems. You are not even selling to the same consumers!” But the women only shook their heads at my naïveté.
In a city that had never published a phone book, one’s Rolodex equivalent had become a cherished commodity. It meant survival in a country that had never had aspirin or toothbrushes in its few stores. We soon learned that expecting our students to share any information—from a reliable printing shop to the name of an English teacher—was doomed. They balked at the notion that they should help a friend, let alone a stranger. They also asked why Americans smiled so much, finding this basic human gesture incomprehensible. And the idea of attempting to connect with strangers was outright frightening. It involved eye contact! Who could imagine what disaster a stranger might bring upon you?

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About the Author

Traveling around the world has brought Talia Carner, former publisher of Savvy Woman magazine, a business consultant to Fortune 500 companies, and a speaker at international women’s economic forums, to find the stories right within herself. In her new novel, Hotel Moscow, she continues her mission to save and empower women. Carner hit the ground running with her first novel, Puppet Child (The Top 10 Favorite First Novels 2002,) followed by China Doll, (her platform for 2007 U.N. presentation against infanticide,) and Jerusalem Maiden (winner of Forward National Literature Award,) and now shares her passion for social justice and human rights domestically and globally. She explores the individual’s spirit as it clashes with the power of religion, social conformity, or political upheaval. She lives in New York with her husband. Please visit her at www.taliacarner.com .

Author Links

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