Category: Blog Series Page 6 of 217

Saturday Miscellany—12/20/25

On December 20, 2025

In Books, News/Misc., Saturday Miscellany

The sheer number of basic html errors this week that I’ve made (and thankfully caught) is enough to make my head spin. Including in this largely copy-and-paste post. I figured by this point, I’d have come up with a punch-line or something to follow up that opening observation, but inspiration seems to be striking someone else. So, I’ll just leave this here as another sign that the ol’ gray matter isn’t quite 100% this week. Thankfully, here are a handful of examples of people that should be publicly posting:
Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
bullet “Reading is a subversive act”: Shenandoah interviews Virginia’s Lieutenant Governor–Elect Ghazala Hashmi—Shared for the ideas nothing else. Politics aside (I know nothing about hers), this is what I want in an office holder. As Sam Seaborn says, “I look for anything. I look for a mind at work.”
bullet Reintroduction of Federal Right to Read Act Aims to Bolster Literacy, School Libraries
bullet The New York Public Library’s Most Checked Out Books in 2025
bullet Why stay so narrowly focused, though? LibraryThing (and others) have a cool graphic showing The Most Popular Books in US Public Libraries for 2025.
bullet How Translation Works, Book Title Edition
bullet The Art of Buying Books for Other People
bullet Ways You Can Help Your Fellow Book Bloggers This Holiday Season—it would be classless of me to suggest that you can take care of #4 on Jo’s list by using the Bookshop.org button to the right. So I won’t.
bullet Where Do You Promote Your Book Blog in 2026?—This is something I’ve never worked that hard on (and it shows). Some of the comments to the post have inspired a thought or two. Will I take advantage of that? Who knows…but I should. (or, better, I should hire one of my underemployed kids to do it for me)
bullet Curating a Library for a Young One—good stuff here.
bullet Books that made a bigger impression over time—oooh, I like this idea. And a couple of these books have been on my “eh, maybe” list for a bit. Given their impact, I’m a little more inclined to get them.
bullet It’s time for a few more Best Of ’25 lists, so hold on to your wallets.
bullet CrimeReads gave us: The Best Books of 2025: Traditional Mysteries and The Best Books of 2025: Noir Fiction
bullet Public Books’ Public Picks 2025
bullet Tom Bookbeard’s Top Reads of 2025
bullet Favorite Books Read in 2025—from Pages Unbound’s Krysta
bullet C. J. Daley’s Top Reads of 2025
bullet 746 Books has three lists (it’s not just me that has to break them down!) My Favourite Books of the Year: Part One – The 746!. Part Two – The Irish!, and Part Three – New!
bullet and this only sorta fits here, like last week, The Hard Word’s Top Twenty-Five for First Twenty-Five Years (20-16)
bullet And then we have people looking ahead to 2026 (good grief, I’m barely planning the next 11 days! (yes, I’m jealous of their level of organization))
bullet Wolfmantula’s The Unofficial 2026 TBR—the amount of effort behind this post’s graphics alone…
bullet A Jam’s list to 2026 releases – Part 1
bullet Get Ready! Readers’ Most Anticipated Books of 2026—

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
bullet Book Berne-ing #22 Breaking Into Booktube!

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
bullet My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry by Fredrik Backman
bullet An Unwelcome Quest by Scott Meyer
bullet Indexing: Reflections, Episode Ten: Untold Truths by Seanan McGuire
bullet Santa 365 by Spencer Quinn
bullet Winter and Night by S. J. Rozan
bullet And I mentioned the release of Bryant & May and the Burning Man by Christopher Fowler

This Week’s New Release that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
bullet Dogged by Michael R. Fletcher—”In the final days of the Demon Empire a lone wardog goes in search of the answer to the only question she cares about: Who murdered her mate? Utterly unqualified to solve a mystery, Dogged Determination has but one advantage: She never, ever gives up.” The cover alone grabs my attention (it’s almost like that’s the point), the premise sounds cool, and the hype from early reviews around this is palpable. It’s the next novel I’m tackling.

Book Blogger Hop: Are You a Plot-Driven or a Character-Driven Reader?

By HCNewton

On December 19, 2025

In Book Blogger Hop, Books, News/Misc.

Book Blogger Hop

This prompt was submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer:

Are you more of a plot-driven reader or a character-driven reader?

That’s an interesting question. I’m not completely certain that it’s something I considered until I joined Storygraph and they started asking. I resist the distinction—it takes characters to drive a plot, and it takes a plot (or three) to drive characters.

And yet…

It’s Character-driven novels. By a mile. Yes, there are some books where the characters aren’t that important—just the machinations of the plot (I’d offer a couple of Reacher novels or other thrillers as nominees—but would we care as much without ol’ Jack at the center?). And sometimes, even books featuring characters one likes/loves will sacrifice them because of plot (there are dozen of examples on the metaphorical tip of my metaphorical tongue, but they’re not making it past that point). I’m not talking sacrifice in terms of death there, just “there’s no way that X would do something like Y in a million years.”

But I’m far more willing to put up with an aimless, unfocused, or otherwise meandering novel if I like the characters than I am putting up with an intricate and well-paced plot with dull, flat, or unlikeable characters. I’ve read them both, I’ve enjoyed both. But the former will get me to come back to the author more eagerly.

Do you have a preference for what drives a book?

WWW Wednesday—December 17, 2025

By HCNewton

On December 17, 2025

In Books, Currently Reading, News/Misc., WWW Wednesday

I attended a work-adjacent social activity yesterday* . I’ve got two social gatherings tomorrow** . And one the next day.*** I don’t know myself anymore. So I’m going to rush back to my comfort-space of books for a bit now.

* And enjoyed it.
** I’m anticipating enjoying both.
*** I’ll likely have fun here, too.

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Seems easy enough, right? Let’s take a peek at this week’s answers:

What are you currently reading?


The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis	Cold Days by Jim Butcher, read by James Marsters

Wow, you can remember the problems with the fifth Narnia novel, and then there’s re-reading it. I can appreciate it for what it is, but Lewis doesn’t make it easy, you know?

While I don’t love the plot developments that led to Cold Days (I don’t hate them either), I’m enjoying this more than I did Ghost Story (although I did like it more this time through).

What did you recently finish reading?


Zoe’s Tale by John Scalzi	Iron Lake by William Kent Krueger, read by David Chandler

Zoe’s Tale was so much more fun than I expected once I realized what I was going to be reading. It could be my favorite of the series (although I’ve said that with every book in the series, so take that with a grain of salt).

Iron Lake itself was fine. But I think I made a mistake by going with an audiobook. It’s a very Joe Pickett-ish kind of plot and setting, which is fine. But when you have Joe Pickett’s narrator reading that to you…the word “distracting” is an understatement.

What do you think you’ll read next?


The Christmas Tree Killer by Chris Frost	Son of a Liche by J. Zachary Pike, read by Doug Tisdale Jr.

This seems like a good time for Chris Frost’s latest.

I grabbed Son of a Liche right after I listened to Orconomics, but forgot that I had it, until one or more of the people on SFF Addicts Ep. 183: Our Favorite Reads of 2025 LIVE. Whoops.

Are you going through something seasonal now? Trying to finish challenges?

BBNYA SEMI-FINALIST SPOTLIGHT: A Lonely Broadcast: Book One by Kel Byron

By HCNewton

On December 15, 2025

In Book Tour, Fiction

I’m very pleased today to welcome The BBNYA Semi-Finalist Spotlight Tour for Kel Byron’s A Lonely Broadcast: Book One! This book has made it to the semi-finals, so you know there’s something good going on–but before getting to this Spotlight, let’s start with a word about BBNYA. A Lonely Broadcast is the last in this series of Semi-Finalists. I hope you’ve been taking notes (or you can just click that link there)–there’s been a lotta good-looking in this series the past few weeks.

BBNYA:

BBNYA is a yearly competition where book bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors, ending with 15 (17 in 2025) finalists and one overall winner.

If you want some more information about BBNYA, check out the BBNYA Website https://www.bbnya.com/ or take a peek over on Twitter @BBNYA_Official.

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Book Details:

Title: A Lonely Broadcast: Book One by Kel Byron
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Age Category: Adult
Format: Paperback/Ebook/Audiobook
Length: 318 Pages
Publication Date: June 2, 2023

About the Book:

If you find yourself driving down a winding mountain road near an endless stretch of pines, try tuning in to 104.6 the radio station that shouldn’t exist.

The village of Pinehaven has a secret of monstrous proportions. Evelyn McKinnon, a radio host falling on hard times, finds herself utterly unprepared when she learns that the radio station isn’t just for entertainment. It’s a watchtower.

She’s stalked by a bird with human eyes. Her new co-host won’t stop singing show tunes. And when the fog rolls in, the beasts of Pinehaven Forest begin their brutal hunt. Evelyn and her friends are suddenly face-to-face with something much scarier than ravenous flesh-giants and vengeful responsibility.

‘A Lonely Broadcast’ is a darkly comedic tale that mixes elements of cosmic horror, gruesome gore, and a touching story about friendship, grief, and finding hope when all seems lost. It’s also the story of an unhinged woman’s personal war with a goddamn bird.

Book Links:

Amazon Canada ~ Amazon US ~ Amazon UK ~ Goodreads ~ The Story Graph

About the Authors:

Kel is a horror author whose work focuses on rural terror, character-driven stories, and weaving gruesome imagery with touching narratives about human bonds. Her work was inspired by the lingering spookiness of growing up in an isolated rural area and the superstitions and folktales that surrounded her childhood in the wetlands of Michigan.

She began her writing career in college where she would disgust her classmates on purpose, writing short stories about body horror, monsters, and the fear of the unknowable. When she joined Reddit’s NoSleep forum under the username “Wendingus”, her gloomy yet comedic stories about the gruesome folk horrors surrounding a fictional Appalachian village quickly formed a humble yet loyal fanbase.

Kel’s online work has been narrated on YouTube by voice actors Autumn Ivy, MrCreepypasta, and others. After disappearing from the internet for several years to get treatment for multiple tumors, she returned in 2023 to completely re-write and re-imagine her previous work as a formal novel, beginning a trilogy that will continue in 2024. Kel’s work often focuses on themes such as queer identity, grief, mental health, trauma recovery, and platonic love. Although horror is her main genre of choice, she enjoys weaving in comedic moments of feral, chaotic dark humor.

Today, she lives in Saginaw, Michigan where she works as a graphic designer and neonatal kitten rescuer. She likes to lie face-down on the kitchen floor, perch like a gargoyle, and eat leaves that she finds on the ground.

Website ~ Twitter ~ Instagram

My thanks to The Book Bloggers’ Novel of the Year Award for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials they provided.

The Book Bloggers’ Novel of the Year Award 2025 Semi-Finalist badge

BBNYA SEMI-FINALIST SPOTLIGHT: Afterburn by D Andrews

By HCNewton

On December 15, 2025

In Book Tour, Fiction, Science Fiction

I’m very pleased today to welcome The BBNYA Semi-Finalist Spotlight Tour for D Andrews’s Afterburn! This book has made it to the semi-finals, so you know there’s something good going on–but before getting to this Spotlight, let’s start with a word about BBNYA.

BBNYA:

BBNYA is a yearly competition where book bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors, ending with 15 (17 in 2025) finalists and one overall winner.

If you want some more information about BBNYA, check out the BBNYA Website https://www.bbnya.com/ or take a peek over on Twitter @BBNYA_Official.

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Book Details:

Title: Afterburn by D Andrews
Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller
Age Category: Adult
Format: Paperback/Ebook
Length: 440 Pages
Publication Date: March 1, 2024

About the Book:

Kara is an outcast. A freak. A non-telepath. The only person to ever show her any kindness − Caethiid, is dead. Ever since the state informed her of Caethiid’s death, Kara’s life has been bleak, consisting of a tedious job, a small book collection and the painful memories of a love that never was. But Kara also harbours a dark secret. Within her is a terrible power, one that’s manifested in times of great danger, with devastating consequences.

When Caethiid miraculously reappears, Kara’s joy is short-lived. From across the galaxy, Caethiid has been listening to Kara’s thoughts. He knows her secret and he wants to use her power to overthrow the state. Kara finds herself trapped in his twisted game of psychological manipulation. As Caethiid’s ruthless nature is revealed, Kara realises the man she once knew may no longer exist. With Caethiid’s grip tightening, Kara begins to wonder whether she can trust her own mind, or whether everything she thought she knew was part of his plan all along.

Book Links:

Amazon Canada ~ Amazon US ~ Amazon UK ~ Goodreads ~ The Story Graph

About the Authors:

D. Andrews is an Irish author living in London. When she isn’t working at her day job, or writing, she’s usually dishing out dog treats or trying to coax a cat into giving some head boops.

Twitter ~ Instagram ~ Bluesky

My thanks to The Book Bloggers’ Novel of the Year Award for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials they provided.

The Book Bloggers’ Novel of the Year Award 2025 Semi-Finalist badge

Grandpappy’s Corner: Tiny Hands Hymns, Vol. II; Tiny Hands Psalms; and Tiny Hands Apostle’s Creed edited by Hannah Duguid Estes, illustrated by Jessica Hiatt: A Great Set of Starter Devotional Reads

By HCNewton

On December 14, 2025

In Grandpappy's Corner, Theology/Christian Living, YA/MG/Children's Books

Tiny Hands Hymns, Volume II

Tiny Hands Psalms

and

Tiny Hands Apostle’s Creed

edited by Hannah Duguid Estes, illustrated by Jessica Hiatt

DETAILS:
Publisher: P & R Publishing
Publication Date: October 29, 2025
Format: Board Book
Length: 16 pg. (each)
Read Date: November 29, 2025

What are the Tiny Hands About?

This is going to be remarkably like the post I did about the first 3 Tiny Hands books, because these new three are remarkably like them–consistency is good. These are little board books that serve as beginning devotional materials—training wheels for young worshipers, if you will.

Tiny Hands Hymns, Volume II

These are the first stanzas/verses of some of the best hymns around: “Abide with Me,” “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus,” “Fairest Lord Jesus,” “How Firm a Foundation,” “O Worship the King,” “Rock of Ages,” “Take My Life, and Let It Be,” and “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross.”

On the opposite pages are fitting illustrations, with some accent illustrations on the pages with text.

Tiny Hands Psalmss

These are a selection of psalms—translated by Iain Duguid (Professor of Old Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary)–either the complete psalm or a notable portion.

They include Psalms: 1, 18, 23,334, 51, 100, 121, and 139. The translations are clearly “kidified.” But I think they’re faithful.

Again, opposite each is an appropriate illustration, with some accent illustrations on the pages with text.

Tiny Hands Apostle’s Creed

This is a fairly standard translation of The Apostle’s Creed, split up segment by segment. Yet again, opposite each is an appropriate illustration, with some accent illustrations on the pages with text.

This is probably my favorite of the new bunch–if only because this’ll be one of the easiest for my grandcritters to put into use.

Let’s Talk about the Art for a Minute

Outside the previous Tiny Hands books, I’ve apparently appreciated Hiatt’s work as a cover designer on a few books (The Wonderful Works of God by Herman Bavinck, Things Unseen by J. Gresham Machen, and Struck Down but Not Destroyed by Pierce Taylor Hibbs), but illustrating board books calls for a slightly different skill set. Still, the illustrations remind me of those covers.

I think these are great. Bright and cheerful, without being cartoonish or silly (I have nothing against those kinds of illustrations, but they’re not fitting for the subjects).

How are they to Read Aloud?

They’re fine—although I can’t imagine that anyone, even those who can’t carry a tune, not singing the hymns instead of reading them. A lot of adults won’t need to actually read the Creed, we have it memorized (although, it’s good to pay attention so the pictures match up.

The translations (I’d be tempted to call them paraphrases, but the books say translations—and I don’t know enough to contradict that) are foreign-feeling for people who are familiar with/have memorized the relevant portions from the AV, ESV, NASB, etc. Once you get past that feeling, there’s nothing about the text that’s difficult or odd to read—and they seem easy enough for young children to comprehend (to some degree).

What did the Grandcritter think of Them?

I haven’t been able to read them to him–he sees this art/format and he assumes it’s the first volume of Hymns and demands to sing some of them–he won’t even give us a chance to go over the new ones, much less the other books. I’m sure I’ll get him to let us eventually. But for now, I can’t answer this.

So, what did I think about the Tiny Hands books?

I think they’re a great idea—and overall, I am pleased with the execution. I do recommend them without hesitation.

I have some questions about some of the technical bits of translation, verse choices, and whatnot—not so much that I have a problem with the books, I’d just like someone good with the original languages to sit down with me and walk through these.

But for a young child? I think they’re well done and would be great resources for regular use.

4 Stars

This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.
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Saturday Miscellany—12/13/25

By HCNewton

On December 13, 2025

In Books, News/Misc., Saturday Miscellany

Yeah, this is late. Was busy grandparenting, so I don’t feel too bad. Priorities for the day: Grandcritter #1. Several steps down: You, dear reader. One step lower: Reading something. (well…maybe a half-step, maybe a quarter-step…possibly the same step…somewhere in the general vicinity anyway). A few steps lower: everything else (Hi, wife and kids!)

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
bullet Sophie Kinsella, ‘Confessions of a Shopaholic’ Author, Dies at 55
bullet PW’s 2025 Person of the Year: Nihar Malaviya—for his efforts countering book-banning, censorship, etc., PW named Penguin Random House CEO, Nihar Malaviya, their Person of the Year.
bullet New Kindle Feature Uses AI to Answer Questions About Books—And Authors Can’t Opt Out—this is ridiculous (and more than a little maddening)
bullet The Empty Lab, in Science and in Fiction
bullet To New Beginnings: Growing Past Percy Jackson: On aging past our childhood heroes, and leaving room for the next generation of fans—(this can apply to other fandoms, too, not just Percy)
bullet FFA’s Most Anticipated Titles of 2026 (so far)—oh, 2026 is going to be a busy year for my TBR.
bullet 746 Books is 12 today!—heckuva landmark.
bullet Over on Bluesky, Adam Holcombe posted his 2025 Wrapped: Author Edition—a fun way to look at his year. By the way, if you haven’t checked out his Bounty, Inc., you really should.
bullet And now, it’s time for some more Best Of ’25s:
bullet The Best Debut Crime Novels of 2025—according to Crime Reads
bullet Reviewers’ Choice: The Best Books of 2025—Reactor’s Reviewers have a veritable cornucopia of books to tempt you with
bullet 20 Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Authors Pick Their Favorite Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Books of 2025—io9 got a bunch of authors to do the same
bullet The Hard Word is going for something a bit more ambitious, but I’ll lump them in with this anyway: Top Twenty-Five Crime Novels of the Last Twenty-Five Years (20-25)
bullet A.J.’s Completely Random Book Awards: 2025—I love these categories (and agree with several of the choices)
bullet Book’d Out brings us Five Books Best Nonfiction Books of 2025
bullet Best Books of 2025 TFF To-Read Festivus Guide—from The Forgotten Fiction
bullet Jo Linsdell compiled Book Bloggers’ Picks: One Must-Read Book We Loved This Year
bullet And with a few shopping days left before Giftmas/Santaween/whatever you call December 25th (or your gift-giving holiday of your choice), here’s a couple of more gift guides
bullet The 2025 CrimeReads Holiday Gift Guide
bullet Gifts for Readers: 50+ Ideas Book Lovers Actually Want —another great compilation from Jo Linsdell

A Book-ish Related Podcast episode (or two) you might want to give a listen to:
bullet The Four Beardsmen’s Big Fat Bookish Quiz of the year!—this looks like a blast.

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago This Week?
bullet Dry Bones by Craig Johnson
bullet The Case of the Missing Servant by Tarquin Hall—I’m kicking myself for not continuing with this series (didn’t realize it’d been this long since I’d dabbled)
bullet The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes—another series that I should’ve stuck with…
bullet Stepdog by Nicole Galland
bullet And I mentioned the release of The Relic Master by Christopher Buckley

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon (and one from last week that I forgot about):
bullet Lit by Tim Sandlin—a twisted-looking cozy mystery
bullet The Wizard’s Cat by Nathan Lowell—I had a lot of fun with the first in the series, looking forward to dive in.

BBNYA SEMI-FINALIST SPOTLIGHT: Another Kind of Thing by A P Pullan

By HCNewton

On December 12, 2025

In Book Tour, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

I’m very pleased today to welcome The BBNYA Semi-Finalist Spotlight Tour for A P Pullan’s Another Kind of Thing! This book has made it to the semi-finals, so you know there’s something good going on–but before getting to this Spotlight, let’s start with a word about BBNYA.

BBNYA:

BBNYA is a yearly competition where book bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors, ending with 15 (17 in 2025) finalists and one overall winner.

If you want some more information about BBNYA, check out the BBNYA Website https://www.bbnya.com/ or take a peek over on Twitter @BBNYA_Official.

Pilcrow

Book Details:

Title: Another Kind of Thing by A P Pullan
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Mystery
Age Category: Middle Grade
Format: Paperback/Ebook
Length: 216 Pages
Publication Date: November 28, 2024

About the Book:

Eleven-year-old, Aidan North, is new to the little village of Kirklinn in Scotland.

Being new is not easy as Aidan does not seem to fit in.

Why do people call him a “weirdo?” Why do people not understand his love of fossils? And why more name-calling because he finds maths so easy?

Izzy seems the only one who at least is willing to try and understand him.

Then there is the word, “autistic,” that the school want to give him. Does that mean he really is weird and so different from everyone else?

Yet the discovery of someone Aidan claims to live in a cave only seems to alienate him further.

Will his discovery lead to the truth of a secret held for over 20 years?

This is a story about a young boy trying to find his way in this complicated world.

So will uncovering the secret, help him on his journey to be accepted by others and, as importantly, himself?

Book Links:

Amazon Canada ~ Amazon US ~ Amazon UK ~ Goodreads ~ The Story Graph

About the Author:

Hi I am A P Pullan and I have been writing for quite some time now. I have taught primary aged pupils for over 25 years. Aidan is my main character in Another Kind of thing, my latest book. He is based on some of the children I have worked with over the years. Nothing motivates me more than doing creative writing or talking about books with children of all ages. I love visiting schools and if you visit my website you will see info and pictures about my visits @ https://theweepencil.wordpress.com/.

Am I writer? Well, I think I am more someone who just enjoys writing.

Website ~ Bluesky

My thanks to The Book Bloggers’ Novel of the Year Award for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials they provided.

The Book Bloggers’ Novel of the Year Award 2025 Semi-Finalist badge

Grandpappy’s Corner: That Christmas and Other Stories by Richard Curtis, Rebecca Cobb (Illustrator): Christmas is All Around It and So the Feeling Grows

By HCNewton

On December 11, 2025

In Fiction, Grandpappy's Corner, YA/MG/Children's Books

That Christmas and Other Stories

by Richard Curtis, Rebecca Cobb (Illustrator)

DETAILS:
Publisher: Puffin Books
Publication Date: August 5, 2025
Format: Hardcover
Length: 128 pg.
Read Date: November 28, 2025

What’s That Christmas and Other Stories About?

Richard Curtis wrote a children’s book, and had such a good time with it (and was inspired by Cobb’s illustrations) that he wrote a couple more. This book brings them all together in one—not unlike the movie Curtis wrote that was released last year called That Christmas. The books differ in important ways from the movie—but I’m not going to talk about that too much. It’s hard because I came to this collection because of it.

The important differences don’t eliminate the core of each story—whichever way you come to them first.

Curtis does write a little introduction for this book which contains a little insight into why he focuses on the holiday:

Quite why I’m so passionate about Christmas is a bit of a mystery to me; I’d already written the film Love Actually, with all its stories set at Christmas. I think the reason is because I’ve always loved Christmas in the simplest of ways — presents, Santa, family — but also it’s a kind of dramatic deadline. Have you been naughty or nice all year? Does the person you’re in love with love you? Are you a happy family or a family falling apart? Christmas is a sort of emotional magnifying glass: it can make sad and difficult times harder, but also make joyful and happy times even happier.

The Empty Stocking

This story focuses on two twin sisters, Charlie and Sam. Charlie is high on Santa’s naughty list, and Sam is very much not. Santa may know who does bad and good, but he apparently doesn’t know anything about context or motivation.

When Santa dis-proportionally distributes gifts to the twins—well, even he learns a little bit.

You just get a warm glow from most of this one.

Snow Day

On a Snow Day, one pupil and one teacher show up for school when no one else does. So they’re stuck together for the day. The student’s a frequent-flyer in detention, the teacher is the strictest in school—neither are looking forward to the day.

It starts out rough, and then ends up with the two finding a bond—one that benefits them both.

It’s silly, fun, and has a little bit of heart. It’s probably the most different from the film version—and I could argue for the superiority of both.

That Christmas

On a small island, the neighbors spend Christmases together in pretty much the same way every year. One year, the adults have to leave together on Christmas Eve, and leave the younger kids in the care of the older ones. Something goes wrong, and the parents can’t return. So the children celebrate Christmas in a very similar way to what they usually do—but with certain improvements (at least in their estimation).

There’s a very nice Linus-at-the-end-of-A-Charlie-Brown-Christmas-moment to this book—without actually quoting anything like Linus did.

Let’s Talk about the Art for a Minute

At the beginning, I wasn’t that impressed—I could see some children maybe enjoying it—but I couldn’t say the same. But before the end of the first book, I was on-board. By the end of the collection, I absolutely enjoyed it.

Along the lines of appearance—whoever was in charge of typography and layout did their job very well. Changes in type size and weight, as well as the placement of words on the pag,e were visually pleasing and did a lot to help out with the storytelling and tone.

How is it to Read Aloud?

There’s nothing exceptionally fun about the prose itself, like you often get, but the book is nothing but fun—and the typography I just talked about really helps the reader do that. Adults are going to have a blast with this.

So, what did I think about That Christmas and Other Stories?

It is charming. It’s sweet. There are laughs and “awww”s throughout. I don’t know what else to say—this is a winner, something great to pull out for the post-Thanksgiving through December 26 era annually.

I feel like I should say something more, but I just don’t have it in me. I heartily recommend it.

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.
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BBNYA SEMI-FINALIST SPOTLIGHT: Ariel: Dancing on TV by Ailish Sinclair

By HCNewton

On December 11, 2025

In Book Tour, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature

I’m very pleased today to welcome The BBNYA Semi-Finalist Spotlight Tour for Ailish Sinclair’s Ariel: Dancing on TV! This book has made it to the semi-finals, so you know there’s something good going on–but before getting to this Spotlight, let’s start with a word about BBNYA.

BBNYA:

BBNYA is a yearly competition where book bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors, ending with 15 (17 in 2025) finalists and one overall winner.

If you want some more information about BBNYA, check out the BBNYA Website https://www.bbnya.com/ or take a peek over on Twitter @BBNYA_Official.

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Book Details:

Title: Ariel: Dancing on TV by Ailish Sinclair
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Romance
Age Category: Young Adult
Format: Paperback/Ebook
Length: 266 Pages
Publication Date: January 1, 2025

About the Book:

The night before Ariel, a sixteen-year-old girl with a deformed hand, starts at the most prestigious dance school in Scotland, her mother tries to kill her.

Torn from a life where she never fitted in, Ariel quickly becomes the focus of a reality TV show. In the castle school, she forms deep friendships and meets Alexander, the best looking boy she’s ever seen. Together, they unravel the mysteries of the castle’s shadows and confront the demons of Ariel’s past.

Can she rise above a lifetime of pain and embrace the possibilities of fame and love that beckon to her?

‘Ariel: Dancing on TV’ is a mesmerising tale of resilience and the pursuit of a brighter future against all odds.

Book Links:

Amazon Canada ~ Amazon US ~ Amazon UK ~ Goodreads ~ The Story Graph

About the Authors:

JAilish Sinclair trained as a dancer and taught dance for many years, before working in schools to help children with special needs. A short stint as a housekeeper in a castle fired her already keen interest in untold stories of the past and she sat down to research and write.

She now lives beside a loch with her husband and two children where she writes and dances (yes still, chronic medical conditions allowing, pah!) and eats rather too much chocolate.

Website ~ Twitter ~ Instagram ~ TikTok ~ Facebook ~ Bluesky

My thanks to The Book Bloggers’ Novel of the Year Award for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials they provided.

The Book Bloggers’ Novel of the Year Award 2025 Semi-Finalist badge