Long Weekends & Martin Luther King Day

I'm back to the keyboard today--finally.  Life spun maniacally out of control after Christmas Break with our end of term at school, so I literally got next to no sleep for ten days.  I had 20 hours of sleep over six days, then crashed one day, went right back to four hours of sleep a night for one more week of school to start a new semester.  It wasn't just at school, but in my online job as well.  They had finals, so it was the mania of students who had procrastinated an entire semester and decided to do everything in two weeks.  As you can imagine, I'm happy to now collapse into a heap of fatigue over this three-day weekend and try to finally log back on! 

Today is a monumental holiday in terms of humanitarian work and giving back, as Martin Luther King Jr. was an amazing humanitarian, activist, and leader who heralded a change that called for the good in all of us to come forward.  I've thought a lot about his bravery today and ways that I can be brave in my personal and professional life.  I don't want to go off on a long, philosophical post, but I think we can agree that there is much that we can still do to achieve King's dream of equality for so many. 

Well, I hope that over the coming days and weeks I can find some balance and write a bit more.  I'm hoping to do some mini book reviews and even get onto some film reviews before the Oscars in March.  For tonight, I'm off to write a few posts and then escape into some more reading before this long weekend is over!

What have you been up to this weekend?

After Holiday Sunday Blatherings

What a Thanksgiving Break!  I can't believe it has come and gone, and I have so much and so LITTLE to show for it.  *sigh*  (Meaning, I still have an 8" stack of papers that I didn't touch...)

This week was amazing.  Sleep ruled the roost around here, which should always top the list over a holiday break.  I actually started my break a little early by taking my Pop. Lit. students to see Catching Fire on Tuesday, since we read it as a class this semester.  What a fun way to start the break!  I always stress myself out--unnecessarily--about all the little details that come with managing money, students, and lesson plans, but it turned out great and the movie was really good.  I have to say that although the movie left out some of the scenes that I thought were interesting in the story, that the movie was pretty true to the novel and well done.  I'm eager to see how they roll out the last two films in the franchise.

For the break, I had a major list of things I needed to take care of, so I spent much of Wednesday running errands and going to doctor appointments.  I only mention it because it has been something I've shared here before.  I went to see my doctor again about these crazy migraines I fight on a continued basis.  I started taking a new medication called Topomax that has had a pretty negative impact on my memory.  Listen, I don't have brain cells to sacrifice!  As far as headaches and migraines go, it's a miracle drug, but I find myself forgetting basic language, which is NOT okay.  I'm an English teacher, so not having access to basic language can be a huge issue.  It's not really forgetting things, it's having this strange lack of access to certain language.  Ugh.  Not a fun trade off.  I'm going to lower the dose a bit and see if that helps the big "dope" factor (as I call it), but hope that the crippling migraines don't come back.  I know that many of you who blog and are big readers also suffer from migraines.  Have any of you had this issue?

Anyway, the rest of the break has been really nice.  My mother has been under the weather off and on, but other than that, it has been pretty laid back and relaxing.  I've really only managed to get through a couple of novels, which is not great for me, but will work for now.  We also went to see About Time, which was by the creators of Love Actually.  I thought it was SO good and would recommend it to all of my friends, 100%.  If you want a feel-good movie that will have you thinking about what matters, day to day, this was that movie.  It is rated R, which I know matters to some of my readers, so you would want to keep that in mind.  I thought the story between the father and son was really touching and had me crying by the end of the film, which was pretty surprising.  Overall, it was a touching film about taking advantage of each and every day, which carried so much more depth than the romantic comedy that we thought we were walking into. 

Although my list of reading accomplished over the break was pretty small, I'm happy with what I got through.  Here's what I read:

What books or movies did you get through over the Thanksgiving Break?  Or, what are you finishing up that you got started?

Happy Independence Day!

Been kind of boring around here.  Nothing too flashy planned other than good food, some rest, and some reading.  I have to send a big shout out to our family and friends all over the country today.  We're missing all of you.  We have family in North Carolina, Michigan, Ohio, Iowa, Texas, Utah, Idaho, Oregon, and California (sorry if I've missed somebody who's traveling or moved).  We're missing every one of you today! 

Happy Independence Day wherever you're at on this beautiful July 4th holiday.

Sunday Blathering & Weekend Cooking: Mother's Day Edition

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there.  My own poor mother came down Friday and then got sick today. Thankfully, we got a chance to go to see The Great Gatsby and go out to dinner yesterday with some work friends before she got sick.  Today she has basically been on the couch, drinking tea and Sprite.  Sad! 

As mentioned in my last post, this last week we had our AP Literature test.  I swear I stopped sleeping, and in its place I had frantic dreams that I was teaching Elizabethan sonnets, lecturing on Oscar Wilde, and quizzing them on essay writing.  I'm glad the test is over now and I can look towards the end of the school year!  Can I believe it's almost here?  Yes.  I'm feeling it this year, more than ever before.

I'm starting to think about what I'd like to accomplish over the summer, which includes getting my health back on track and reading some more literary fiction.  I'm excited to tackle a different set of goals and focus on me.  I know that sounds selfish, but it's so necessary!

Well, I thought I'd share a family favorite today, which is a Texas Sheet Cake.  Growing up, I think it was the #1 food that my dad would make on a weekend.  We would eat a big Sunday lunch, and then we would just have cut up fruit, cheese slices, popcorn, and this Texas Sheet Cake.  In hindsight, I'm thinking that dinner wasn't so healthy or light, but for some reason it was our "light" supper.  Anyway, I whipped up a 1/2 recipe of this yummy chocolate cake and baked it in my small bundt pan for my mom for Mother's Day.  I thought I'd share the recipe.  We switched things up and put a chocolate glaze on it, but the frosting we usually put on it is yummy.  Enjoy!

Dad's Texas Sheet Cake
(Modified by my Dad, over 20 years ago...Thanks Dad! This is exactly as he wrote it.)
Yields:  One Large Sheet Cake Pan

Mix in a large bowl:  2 c. sugar and 2 c. flour.  Set aside.

Boil:  1 cube butter, 4 Tbsp cocoa powder, 1 c. water, and 1/2 c. oil.  Boil these together in the microwave for a minute.

Mix the hot cocoa mixture into the flour and sugar.  While still hot, add 1/2 c. buttermilk, 2 eggs, 1 tsp. soda, and 1 tsp. vanilla.  Mix well and pour into a well greased and floured cookie sheet pan.

Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes. 

Frosting:  Combine 1 cube of softened butter, 4 Tbsp. cocoa, 6 Tbsp. milk, 1 tsp. vanilla, and 2 c. powdered sugar

Weekend Cooking is a great, weekly post run by Beth Fish Reads.  There are some really great food-related posts there.  Stop by to check out other great posts from this weekend.

Sunday Blatherings: Happy Easter!

Happy Easter!  This year is pretty low key.  My mother is flying back from Ohio today, my best friend is in the Dominican Republic, and I went to have dinner and decorate eggs with family yesterday.  It was really nice to catch up with extended family and their kids.   

As a quick catch up, we're now on Spring Break.  I finished up end of term--yes, I magically finished all of those essays that had to be graded.  We're in full state-test-prep mode now, which I'm integrating into the unit I teach.  I try not to completely focus on teaching to the test, but the truth is that even a few focused lessons right before the test can help with test scores. 

Over the coming week, I'll be heading home to Idaho to help my mom wrap up a few things so she can sell and move.  The whole process has been pretty gut-wrenching, since that is where I grew up.  In fact, my family has lived in that part of Idaho for over 150 years, so it's pretty difficult to start to let go of places that have been in my family history for so long.  The truth is that most of our family now live elsewhere--actually within an hour of where I currently live.  This move isn't going to be easy, but it will be nice to have my mom closer, and memories are really about people, right?

Well, that's my little corner of the world.  I hope you have a great Easter and a great weekend!

Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to all!  It's been awhile and I have to start making a reappearance online soon.  What better time than on Christmas Eve?  I have nothing big to report this year, nor a real reason for disappearing on here for about a month.  Honestly, I'm in the midst of the biggest burn out of my entire career and just trying to refuel the batteries to make it another five months.  Christmas comes at a wonderful time so I can start to do just that.

I've actually been reading quite a bit, so I'll be back with reviews aplenty, as long as I can stave off the weary-drearies I've been having!  Here's hoping all of you have a wonderful holiday season and I'll be back soon!

 

*By the way, if you're interested, Jenn, Tasha, and I are going to be doing another New Year's readathon to ring in 2013.  It was fun to read, tweet, and socialize a bit, all while working our way through some great reads.  Join us for the fun! 

Holiday Reading Recommendations...

"Christmas Dreaming" painting done by one of my students. Love it!

I need help.  I'm starting to think ahead to the holidays and would really like to do a little holiday-themed reading.  After putting out a call on Twitter, Colleen @booksnyc came to my rescue with some great recommendations:  Comfort and Joy by India Knight, Over the Holidays by Sandra Harper, and Last Christmas by Julia Williams.  Thank you so much!

In the past, I've read a few holiday books:  Dating Mr. December by one of my faves--Phillipa Ashley, A Darcy Christmas by a collection of amazing authors, and a few by Marcia Evanick.  I'm just really in the mood to read a few great holiday reads, so I'm going to appeal to all of you.  Do you have books that you've read that feature holiday scenes in them?  Thanksgiving is an especially tricky one, but really I'm just looking for the holidays in general. 

Help a holiday-starved reader!

Happy Halloween!

First off, let me just add my best wishes, hopes, and prayers for everyone back east who has been affected by hurricane Sandy.  The news has just been so gut wrenching and my thoughts have definitely been with everyone back there. 

Lastly, since I'm actually not a Halloween lover (although I really love the fall), I thought I'd share just about the funniest haunted house visit from the Ellen show that I've ever seen.  This was from last year and always has me laughing to tears.  Enjoy!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy Independence Day to everyone here in the U.S.!  We skipped the parades this morning in exchange for sleeping in, which was a great decision, in my opinion.  Now we're heading off to a family BBQ and a bonfire later tonight.  It's going to be a great celebration that is as chilled out as possible. 

I don't know that I'll be sneaking in any reading today, which is fine with me.  I have family that will be moving to the Midwest soon, so we're just going to all hang out together, while we can.  It's going to be great, relaxing fun!  If you don't believe me, let me share the beautiful, sunset view from my mom's house.  This reminds me why the country is so darn relaxing.

Have a great day, wherever you're at!

Sunday Blatherings--Memorial Day Edition

Happy Memorial Day to those of you here in the U.S.  For some reason I woke up yesterday, feeling a bit nostalgic.  I have many happy memories of family get-togethers, barbecues, and cemetery visits.  We have several members of our family who have served in the military.  My mother's father--Grandpa "C"--served in WWII, landing on Normandy in the fourth wave, who is still alive and hanging in there to this day.  I love him desperately and am glad my mom got the chance to fly out to see him and the family in Ohio.  His conversations about WWII are very matter of fact, which is interesting when I consider all he probably saw.

My mom's brother--Uncle "C"-- then served in Vietnam, although his experience going to war was vastly different from my grandfather's honor-filled return.  My uncle came home to people disrespecting the servicemen for serving in a war they didn't believe in.  He told us once that he quickly removed his uniform in that long-forgotten San Francisco airport, put on his civilian clothes, and never looked back.  He has rarely talked about his service, and prefers we not ask too many questions.  The last time I went out to visit, he had a stack of slides and pictures from the war that he was sorting through.  We couldn't really ask him many questions, but the painful beauty of the country that he captured, left behind a gripping bitter-sweet testimony to what he must carry in his own memory.  We know that he saw things from his tank that he has never forgotten, since he had PTSD for decades after.  When I read the novel The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien, I have often thought of my amazing Uncle "C", who is such an intensely proud and hard-working man.

I know that neither my grandfather nor my uncle read my blog, but I wanted to give them a big thank you--along with all of our servicemen--for all they have done for our country and for me.

Well, on another note, I've made a goal to try to rejuvenate my blogging--writing and reading.  Things have been tough here and I've kept it quiet, for the most part.  I've had a bit of health news that has had me pretty down--nothing life-threatening, but definitely life-changing.  We're still in the middle of tests, and I'm dragging my feet out of some strange desire to keep my head in the sand a little longer.  On top of that, our school district is no longer going to pay all of our insurance premiums.  Now I know that they paid them all is almost of unheard of anymore, but for someone like myself who seems to repeatedly get kicked in the gut with health scares, it has been discouraging.  I'm not going to be stupid enough to not pay out for good insurance coverage, so I'm gearing up to pay top price to keep my current insurance!

Let me not end this blog's blathering (which I'm truly fulfilling today) without ending on a positive note!  My best friend made it here from Michigan and we've been having a great time together.  She loves to read every bit as much as I do, so we've spent some time curled up on opposite ends of my large sectional, reading on our iPads.  She's been reading Tom Clancy's latest novel while I've been trying to finish Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children.  I promised a group of students in my Popular Lit. class that I would try to finish it this weekend.  I'm getting close! 

Besides reading like crazy, we've been eating ourselves into a food coma and I'm going to have to redouble my efforts to diet away all of these extra calories!  It's been a super relaxing weekend though and I have many things to be thankful for.  My TBR and current reading list have once again grown too big to handle, so I'm hoping with school ending I can snatch a little extra time to read.  Yay for no more essays to grade for a couple of months! 

So, how is your weekend?  What are you reading or watching at the moment?

Happy Easter!

I hope you're all having a glorious Easter morning/day.  I'm in the process of making some desserts for a dinner I'm headed to, so I hope to be able to post some pictures later and share them for Weekend Cooking.  I've been waiting for this weekend to finally try out Apple Tart Tatin and Lemon Tart Broulee.  Yes, it will be quite a sugar high, but oh so good!

We finally limped our way through work and school this last week and have a glorious week off for Spring Break.  Since my car is having issues and I'm trying to save money and get the last of my debt paid off, I'm staying close to home this week.  I'll basically be reading, blogging, cleaning, and grading.  Honestly, it sounds like a bit of heaven to me.  I have to really gear up for the madness to come after as we head into the end of the school year.

Well, have a glorious day!  Hopefully I'll be able to post my food recipes later this evening.  Until next time--Happy Easter!

Ring in the New Year with a "12 to 2012" Read-a-Thon

Are you tired of ringing in the New Year at a big party or get-together?  Are you like I am and inevitably end up in a fight with someone (verbal--not fisty-cuffs) or end up pondering on all you failed to accomplish that year?  Whether you love or hate New Year's Eve, you could always give a good 1/2 marathon, ahem, I mean READ-a-thon a try. 

After a great conversation via Twitter, @heidenkind, @picky_girl, and myself (@mjmbecky) decided to switch up our New Year's Eve with a good read-a-thon that would run from 12 pm to midnight.  We're in the central and mountain time zones, but we're going to start at noon wherever we're at. No worries.  Just let me know if you'd like to join in, or you can stop by here on New Year's Eve or check into Twitter.  We'll be reading and tweeting all evening!  However you celebrate, have a great New Year!

Merry Christmas & a Giveaway Winner!!!

First off, Merry Christmas to one and all! I've been delightfully sidetracked and kept busy by family and friends.  I see salads and plenty of fruit and veg in my future to help me account for all of the goodies we've been eating, but it has felt pretty worth it for the moment!  We're staying in today, decked out in our pjs (even for Christmas dinner), and will be tucking into a stack a books later in the day.  That's my present to myself!

Also, I didn't get my Austen B-day Soiree winners posted on Friday, so I thought now would be a perfect gift to someone! 

The winner of a nice grab bag (drawn at random from Random.org) of Austen-related novels is: 

Heather M. 

Congrats!  I've sent you an email and will hope to hear from you some time after Christmas so I can get this little extra Christmas surprise off to you. 

Thanks to everyone who joined in on Jane Austen's Birthday this year and the great posts for the Austen Soiree.

Well, that's my hello on this Christmas Day.  However you spend this wonderful holiday, I hope you have a great one!

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

To all that celebrated Thanksgiving today, I hope you had a wonderful day!

Late Sunday Night Blatherings

What's up in my world?  Work is always a huge stress, so I won't bore you with those details, but I will mention that my AP students have moved on to our writing unit and my juniors are reading Oedipus.  We're hitting that, "Ew, gross!" moment in Oedipus, so I have a little laugh and then reinforce the bit about hubris, blindness, and friendships.  Despite their freaking out, they really do always end up loving this unit, so I feel somewhat successful in my various learning objectives.

A lot of other stuff is going on at work, but I'm trying to not let my job permeate every other aspect of my life.  That's easier said than done!  One big thing I did this past week was splurge on some big ticket items for my house.  I finally realized that the backaches were simply not worth it and went to buy a new bed, which I can't wait to be delivered!  I also picked up a treadmill, which I think is an essential at this point.  As our lives change, so do those habits we established earlier on in life.  A college student's lifestyle (at least for me), was much more conducive to fitting in a trip to the gym.  Now I'd rather die than come home late afternoon or early evening (forget early morning--that would be like 5 am and I'm NOT doing that) and put on gym clothes, brave the traffic and construction around my area to drive up to my gym.  In other words, I had to close the gap between my goal and my excuses!  :)  No more excuses.  Now I'll have a treadmill.  Although, I have to admit that I'm excited about the set up; I have a TV/DVD combo set up, with my Netflix live streaming ready to go.  Yep, no more sharing the televisions with about ten to twenty other people.  Who needs sharing at the gym?  Okay, so it's not that bad, but I am pretty excited about the new set up.

Now.  To read, or not to read.  I thought that Thanksgiving would be a great time to kick back and do some reading, but the way I see it now, I doubt that is going to happen.  Honestly, I'm okay with it.  We are having a great family holiday this year with a group of my extended family, just like when I was little.  Although not everyone will be there, it still has me so excited to hang out with everyone that I can hardly stand it!  Having said that, reading will have to wait.  I'm ready to play card games, sit around and chat, and eat our way to a food coma.  Can't.  Wait.  Although, I always forget the football games.  Maybe I'll take a book or two with me so I can read during the games? 

With all the Thanksgiving stuff this next week, do you think you'll be able to squeeze in some reading time? 

Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July!

After a crazy month of June, I'm looking forward to the month of July.  I have a stack of books I set aside for the summer and it's about ready to fall over!  It's time to enjoy some lazy days of summer and get some of those projects finished that I waited all year to work on.  For today, we'll be kicking back to enjoy a nice holiday.  My family is heading home this afternoon so they can be back to work and then tonight I'll be going to a professional soccer game and firework show.  It should be great fun.  Wherever you're at, or what you're doing, I hope you have a good one!

I'd love to hear from you too!  How was your 4th of July?

Sunday Blatherings--A Day Early

This week I've been off for Spring Break, and since I'm in Idaho for a quick visit to see my mom, I'll be traveling on Sunday and thought I'd post my Sunday chatter a day early!  I wish I could say I've been running around, having a good time this week, but I haven't.  Why?  It seems to me that being an adult means doing a lot of little things to prevent big things, right?  We change the oil in our car so it will run properly and so we can catch major problems before they get to that point.  We file bills and receipts so we can easily (ha, ha) file our taxes each year.  You get the idea.

This week I had doctor appointments galore, glasses to go order, prescription med forms to deliver, bills to file, bills to pay, rooms to clean, and so forth.  If this was a vacation, I don't know how many of them I'll be taking!  Thankfully, I was able to finish a lot of books that I'd been reading and rotating, and have about finished my ninth book for the week.  Now I'm off to grade the 52 essays that I procrastinated/didn't make time for earlier!  Thankfully I have a lovely drive home tomorrow where I'll get to listen to a couple of audio books.

I hope you've had a good week and are seeing the first signs of spring!

Three-Day Weekends

It seems that when I disappear for a few days, I can blame a busy work schedule and grading stacks of papers.  For once, I have to say that work hasn't been keeping me from writing; in all truth, the reading has kept me away!  Maybe because work has been so stressful over the past several weeks, I just hadn't had real down time to read, but I sure made up for it this weekend!  Every spare second I wasn't working on my taxes, cleaning house, or running errands, I was reading, and it was GLORIOUS.  Over the weekend I read four novels, which might not seem like a lot to some, but it was for me!  Having pushed everything aside for reading, I know I'll have a lot of writing to do. 

Also, as the weekend comes to a close, I'm reminded that the Oscars are in a week.  I like to make a big deal out of Oscar night, often having a nice dinner party or group of people over to watch them, but won't be doing that this year.  Strangely, I'm all right with not making a big deal out of it, but will definitely be watching.  My hopes are mainly for The King's Speech, and if you missed it, check out the following link to see the wonderful Colin Firth on 60 Minutes this weekend.

I hope that whatever you were doing this weekend, that it was a good one!

End of a Vacation and a Year

What's it all about?  This ending of a year, closing up of books and looking ahead to a new year, can be a little traumatic.  The phrase "quiet lives of desperation" keeps coming to mind, and yet, it might be because I ended my year reading V. S. Naipaul's Half a Life, which is filled with angst and desperation.  (I also followed it up this morning by reading about ten articles and biographies that have my head spinning a bit.)  Could my reading be seeping into my psyche and making me look at the world with a suspicious, critical eye, and therefore including my own life in that criticism?  Why yes, I think so.  I'm thinking I should have read something a bit more cheery to end my year so I could face 2011 with a bit of positive juju.

Hawaii has been pretty, interspersed with downpours that are actually more common to winter than the sunny paradise that all, locals and tourists alike, actually hope for.  We've had great moments of sunshine and beaches, and other moments trapped inside listening to the hammering of rain on the roof, hoping the power didn't go off.  Thankfully, we had stacks of good books for either occasion.  President Obama actually stays at a beach about 30 minutes from us, and according to all accounts, he is probably enjoying his read about President Reagan.  Not the light read I would want right now, but a very presidential pick.

Thanks to a new ban that has been passed here in Hawaii, last night was the last time that fireworks to the scale we've been accustomed to will be available, and from here on out be quite illegal.  We thought our neighborhood would go out with a bang, and although still a bigger affair than some hometown 4th of July celebrations I've seen, the rain and the new law seemed to put a damper on everything.  In short.  It was a mild celebration compared to last year.  No 16 men, piggybacked, twirling fire, or walking around with chains of firecrackers looped around their necks.  It was good, just much more subdued than normal.

Tonight I hop a plane back to the mainland.  Unlike my turbulence-filled flight coming over, I have high hopes that this flight will be nice and smooth, allowing me plenty of time for uninterrupted reading.  For the flight, I only plan on reading things that will put me into a happy frame of reference for the time being.  I'm not sure I want my mind to be whirling about with social upheavals and injustice at 30,000 feet.  Does this make me a shallow, uneducated reader?  Nah.  Like writing, you have to know your audience and purpose, so in my reading, I know my audience (me) and my purpose (light-hearted happiness to end my trip).

Whatever you're doing on this New Year's Day, I hope it's glorious and great!  Happy New Year!

Review: Dating Mr. December by Phillipa Ashley

Lifetime film based on Dating Mr. December

Christmas was really nice this year.  On Christmas Day we took it easy, slept in, and ate breakfast before tackling the presents.  We each seemed to get lots of DVD sets of TV series and movies, more so than books.  That was fine though, since my "To Be Read" pile is about to kill me!  I'm thinking that it's about time to challenge myself to only read what I already have.  That alone would take me half the year. 

Late in the afternoon, we headed to the beach to read and catch a cool breeze.  (Yes, while snow is falling on the mainland, we've been praying for a little wind!)  I finally had a chance to sit down with Phillipa Ashley's reprint by Sourcebooks, Dating Mr. December, which they sent me a couple of months ago.  The novel was made into a lifetime film last year called, "12 Men of Christmas" with Kristen Chenoweth, which I haven't seen, but remember seeing advertisements for on TV.  I usually pretty hesitant about Lifetime movies, but I'll have to check this out after reading the book!  The novel was a fun romance, that honestly wasn't all that "Christmas"-like.  Sure, there is a Mr. December, but not much else about Christmas pops up, so this is one of those books you could read at any time.

Synopsis:  From Goodreads, "Emma Tremayne leaves her high-powered PR job and moves to the Lake District looking for peace, quiet-and celibacy. So perhaps it's not the best idea when, in the spirit of "community-mindedness," she agrees to help the local mountain rescue team fund raise by putting together a "tasteful" nude calendar. Especially since quite a lot of the community seems to mind what she's up to-including the tall, dark and handsome Mr. December, Will Tennant, who appears to have gotten the wrong impression about Emma's intentions. So how does she convince him that he's more than just the flavor of the month?"

Review:  Although titled Dating Mr. December, this romantic story isn't really set in December or centered on Christmas at all.  In fact, as I was reading it, I hoped that readers wouldn't get caught up in the title and put off reading it until the holidays!  This is definitely a tense, sexy read. 

The initial lead in to Emma and Will (hunky Mr. December) meeting one another and becoming attracted was pretty short.  Those kinds of "I like you baby" leads sometimes have me rolling my eyes a bit, since I'm ever the pessimist about those kinds of love interests.  I'll be honest, I felt that way in this story as well, but thankfully the author created a palpable tension between these two characters that kept me flipping pages.  In pretty short order, they were snubbing one another and hiding past hurts and pain.  Will was said to be a real prig who had abandoned a fiance on their wedding day, while Emma had just found that her boyfriend was having an affair with her boss, causing her to move to Will's town and away from London.  Obviously, there was more to the story, which we as readers want to see them resolve.  

In the end, this romance was pretty good.  I liked the tension and misunderstandings between the two characters, so it wasn't all about the "come hither" of a classic romance.  Although it looks and sounds like a playful, fun read, it was much more serious and tense than it lets on.  Really, this is a romance you could read any time, even though the set up and cover scream Christmas.  Also, if you enjoy the added tension that inevitably pushes two people together (which I do), then this is a perfect romantic read.

*FTC Disclosure:  This review was based on a review copy provided by Sourcebooks.

Although I thought this romance turned out to not be much about Christmas or the holidays, I still think it counts as my second in "The Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge 2010".  The challenge is being hosted by The True Book Addict & The Christmas Spirit Blog.  The challenge started on Friday, November 26th and runs until January 6th, but you can still join in!  In fact, you can read as little as one book.  Even if you don't want to join the challenge, you can find out about other "seasonal" reads from other people participating (which is one reason I like joining these).  For more information or to sign up, visit their site today!  Who knows, you might be able to set up a Christmas wish list of reads for next year.