Deal Sharing Aunt: Christmas Bridge by Elyse Douglas Giveaway & Guest Post

Christmas Bridge by Elyse Douglas:

Publisher: Elyse Douglas (September 15, 2015) Category: Contemporary Fiction, Women’s Fiction, Holiday Romance, Christmas novel Tour Date: Oct & Nov, 2015 ASIN: B0141RDSCE Available in: ebook, 183 Pages A First Love. A Second Chance. A young widow travels to New York on business a few days before Christmas. She has reluctantly made a date with a lover she hasn’t seen in 20 years, and she is nervous and apprehensive. Twenty years before, she made a difficult decision that has both troubled and haunted her ever since. She knows she’s about to come face-to-face with her past and she’s hoping for some redemption and resolution. She also wonders if she can somehow pick up where she left off 20 years ago and start again. An exciting chance encounter changes everything. Now, not only will she face the past with hope to rekindle an old romance, but there is the possibility that this chance meeting will bring her love and happiness she never thought possible. Once again, she will have to choose. She will have to make the right decision. She will have to believe that Christmas miracles can still happen.

Praise for Christmas Diary by Elyse Douglas:

"The Christmas Diary is a tender hearted story of one woman's journey of self-discovery and finding true love that will pull at your emotional heartstrings. The authors weave an inspirational tale written in the third person narrative, that draws the reader into Alice and Jack's lives, and the issues that they've faced: love and loss, questioning one's life choices, and the decision of which road/path is best to take in one's life. This is a wonderful story that has a meaningful message within the storyline that will touch your heart. The authors' descriptive writing style is phenomenal: the characters are realistic and down-to-earth people whose emotions, dialogue and interactions are palpable, you can feel the range of highs and lows that they endure. The reader is transported to the picturesque holiday setting of the Pennsylvania towns of Eden Grove and Meadow Green. This captivating story has a mixture of mystery, tender romance, and a supernatural twist that makes The Christmas Diary a compelling and entertaining story that will warm your heart."- Kathleen, Jersey Girl Book Review "If you are a fan of Richard Paul Evans novels then you definitely want to grab The Christmas Diary. This is a super quick read that you pick up on a Saturday afternoon and devour in one sitting. One glorious afternoon sitting. It is a story of love and changes with a paranormal twist. I adored this book. It was quick and simple and really perfect. I loved how everything was tied together through a ghost. A quick holiday read that makes me think of Lifetime and Hallmark channel movies.”- Andrea Guy, A Chick Who Reads " The Christmas Diary" is a nice smooth read filled with emotions and a touch of the paranormal world. Elyse pens her characters well developed, believable and lovable in this Christmas romance story. Highly recommended for all who love a nice enjoyable romance tale."- Susan Peck, My Cozie Corner

About Elyse Douglas:

Elyse Douglas is the pen name for the husband and wife writing team of Elyse Parmentier and Douglas Pennington. Elyse's mother was a painter and her father a textile consultant. Elyse began writing poems and short stories at an early age, and graduated with a degree in English Literature. Douglas grew up in a family of musicians, astrologers and avid readers. His great grandfather lived to be a 134 years old, and was the oldest man in the world when he died in 1922. Some of Elyse Douglas' novels include: The Other Side of Summer, Christmas for Juliet, Wanting Rita, The Christmas Diary, The Christmas Bridge and The Summer Diary. They live in New York City.

Guest Post:

The Christmas Gap Jackpot by Elyse Douglas

For most men, shopping is a trial—in fact, most men I know would rather stand trial for some felony, than to shop. Men will wait until their pants are shiny and frayed, their shirts are faded and dingy, their socks mismatched from neglect and holier than the local clergyman, before finally working themselves up into a lather of resolve and slouching off to the nearest men’s store. Part of the problem: there are just too many choices for men to make.

Sadly, when men go off looking for clothes, they encounter many choices and obstacles. The first—pants sizes: slim fit, skinny fit, straight fit, relaxed fit, standard fit, classic relaxed fit, vintage standard fit, washed slim fit, tailored slim fit, tailored relaxed fit, tailored straight fit, and the ever-present single pleat trouser pant (no fit of any kind, except the silent screaming fit they’re having as they navigate the aisles and racks and shelves, lost in a blizzard of choices and curses).

They stumble in a kind of heat-stroke stupor to the shirt shelves. They encounter more dizzying choices: non-iron stripe shirt, non-iron gingham shirt (what’s gingham?) slim convertible sleeve shirt, slim mini gingham shirt, non-iron tailored Bengal-striped shirt and stretch slim fitted shirt.

Deflated, like an old balloon, they stumble out of the shop gasping for air. The choice for that day: go get a beer, recover and try again in a week or a month. They justify their escape.

“My pants and shirts and socks still have some wear in them. Well, I mean, no one has said anything bad about them, have they? The guy at the Chinese laundry gave me a sort of pitying look as he handed over my stuff the other day... but other than that...”

Sadly, this is a fairly typical story—if only slightly exaggerated.

Recently, my husband, Douglas, had an altogether different experience. He called it a triumphant and life altering shopping experience and one he’d like to repeat.

All the pants in his closet were begging to be retired. They had labored for years, like good citizens, having gone through many years of hard wear. They were faded, and frayed: frankly, they were at their butt-shiny end. He needed—no—he had to buy at least two pairs of pants.

So on one snowy December morning, I pushed him outside with clear directions to the closest Gap.

As he related later, he entered the Gap feeling the heat of purpose and brow-sweating determination. He heard Christmas carols coming from the overhead speakers, as he stepped gingerly to the freshly stocked shelves. He prowled the aisles, moving like a turtle trapped in a big box. He examined all those colors and sizes. Growing weary by the second.

Finally, he found his size, waist and inseam. Victory! First milestone reached! Nervous now, heart pumping, he made his way into the out-house-like changing room. He stripped off his old pants and took a deep breath to cool the agitation of his mind. He pulled on first the right leg, then the left. He buttoned the pants at the waist. Seemed comfortable. Could it be!? Could it possibly be that he’d struck pay dirt on the first try!?

“Don’t get cocky,” he said aloud.

And then the miraculous happened. He slid his right hand into the pocket to pose in the mirror. He felt...something. A piece of paper. Why a piece of paper? There shouldn’t be anything in the pockets—the pants were brand new!

Doug slowly drew out the paper. To his surprise, there were actually two pieces of paper. The papers were greenish. He held the papers up and stared, entranced. In the harsh, artificial light he saw two crisp $100 bills! He blinked, closed his eyes and reopened them, taking in the reality of Ben Franklin staring smugly back at him. Yep, 200 bucks, as new, clean and pristine as the new Gap pants he had just pulled on! Huh!?

Doug did not hesitate. He redressed and hurried to the counter. He bought two pairs of pants—they were on sale. The salesperson, a 30’s something woman with big careless blonde and blue hair, slanted a look of speculation at him. Did she know? Had he broken some law? Doug did not loiter.

He exited the Gap, stepping into a romance of a gentle snowfall. His mind was quiet, image-free, like a blank Etch-a-Sketch.

He’s still wearing those pants and I check the pockets, occasionally, searching for any stray bills. I once found five dollars. Drat! That’s all.

Incidentally, if anyone has any clue or opinion as to how two crisp $100 bills were embedded deep in the pocket of a brand new pair of pants, I’d love to hear from you.

Website: http://www.elysedouglas.com/ Blog: http://www.elysedouglas.com/blog-index/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elyse.authorsdouglas Twitter: https://twitter.com/douglaselyse

Buy Christmas Bridge by Elyse Douglas:

Amazon

Giveaway of Christmas Bridge:

This giveaway is for one ebook and is open to the U.S. only. It ends on December 1, 2015. Entries are accepted via Rafflecopter only. a Rafflecopter giveaway