"An Angel on Main Street" by Kathi Oram Peterson

Every year we see a new crop of Christmas stories that warm the heart and remind us what the season is really about. Kathi Oram Peterson's newest book, An Angel on Main Street is one of those special holiday offerings.

Micah Connors, his mother, and little sister have only been living in Bolton, Idaho for a few weeks, but Christmas, 1953 is not looking to be a happy one. Micah's dad died in the recent war and his mom struggles just to put food on the table. Added to that, they moved to Bolton to get Micah away from some friends who were headed down the wrong road, and his little sister, Annie, is very sick. They've had to sell all of their nice furniture to pay for her medical bills and while Micah could seriously use a new coat and shoes, he's not complaining because he's trying to be the man of the house.

When the sheriff catches Micah in the wrong place at the wrong time, they makes a deal to keep it a secret from Micah's mom. Then a mysterious stable and nativity figures begin to appear in the island at the intersection in front of Micah's building, and he begins a quest to find out who's putting it there.

Through bad choices, bad timing, and a Christmas miracle or two, this book will touch your heart and make you yearn to bring the real reason for the season back into your home. At only 99 pages, this story is just the right length to curl up with for an hour or so of relaxation.

This is the second of Kathi Oram Peterson's books. You can learn more about the author at her website or her blog. Her books are available on Amazon, Seagull Book, Deseret Book, and many, many other stores. Check out one of her sites to see which stops are on her book tour this month!

Josi Kilpack's "English Trifle"

Josi has made a name for herself in her women's fiction that hit hard issues like internet predators, prescription drug abuse and identity theft, but earlier this year she launched a completely different kind of series with her culinary mystery Lemon Tart--which hit the Deseret Book's best seller's list. The second book in the series, English Trifle was released this summer and is also doing very well.

Here's the back liner:

Things to do in England:

• Visit Westminster Abbey, the Tower of London, and the London Zoo
• Take the Jack the Ripper tour — creepy!
• Sample authentic English scones and crumpets
• Discover a dead body

What begins as a holiday trip for amateur sleuth and cooking aficionado Sadie Hoffmiller and her daughter, Breanna, turns into a bizarre mystery. First comes the discovery of a dead body in the sitting room of an English manor belonging to the family of Breanna’s boyfriend, who is also heir to the family title. When the body comes up missing, Sadie and Breanna are stranded at the estate until the police can clear them to leave.

Armed with a jogging whistle, her personal recipe collection, and an unfailing sense of American justice, Sadie begins her own investigation to find the killer. But when she seems to encounter one dead end after another, Sadie wonders if anyone is telling the truth — or if the case is really as hopeless as it appears to be.

Layer by layer, Sadie uncovers a mouth- watering mystery with an English flair. Included are Sadie’s favorite new recipes for American English Trifle, High Tea Lemon Cookies, Coconut Macaroons, Wake ’Em Up Breakfast Casserole, Sausage Rolls, Crumpets, and Sadie’s Scrumptulicious Scones.

Josi is a very busy writer, mom, business owner, professional editor, and probably a dozen other hats. She has a great website with more information on all of her books, including a first chapter for this one, a blog, the blog she the other editors for Precision Editing Group maintain with great writing tips, and various other blogs.

She and Julie Wright are planning a western states book tour next month. To learn more abut her plans and see if they can fit your book group or other organization into their schedule, check out this page. Her book is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Deseret Book, Seagull Book and anywhere else LDS books are sold.

Ya read: "Eyes Like Mine" by Julie Wright

I thoroughly adore Julie Wright, her books, and her fun and funky style, so I was thrilled when she announced she had a new book coming out this summer. I haven't had a chance to read Eyes Like Mine yet, but look forward to it. First, the blurb:

A story of family that transcends time. William has been missing for two days. And even though the rest of the wagon company has decided they must continue on to Zion, Constance Brown refuses to go any further until she finds her husband. All she can think about is the last time she saw him-he lovingly touched her face and then sang their baby girl to sleep. Will that memory be all Constance has to hold on to? In a future time and place, Liz King is a teenager struggling with her identity in the modern world. The embarrassment she feels because of her parents' divorce and her family's newfound financial problems turns to bitterness. Through an inexplicable twist of fate, Constance and Liz are brought face to face. Liz recognizes Constance's name from her mother's endless lectures on their family history, and she also recognizes her eyes-they are exactly like her own. Were these distant relatives brought together in order to help each other? Will Constance be able to return to her own life and find William, and will Liz be able to keep from telling Constance how her story ends? In this irresistible novel filled with gripping adventure and heartfelt emotion, two young women from drastically different times and settings learn that the challenges life holds for them are not so different after all.

You can check up on Julie at her website, which also hosts her sporadic blogging (she's one of the busiest people I know so it's amazing she has time to breath, let alone blog, do signings, speak at conferences, and everything else on her list.) sample chapters of her writing, lists of reviews, and lots of other fun stuff about Julie. Besides co-writing a couple fo writing books (LDS Writing Secrets and LDS Publishing Secrets), Julie other published titles include To Catch a Falling Star, Loved Like That, and My Not-So-Fairytale Life.

Her books are available at Desert Book, Seagull Book, Amazon.com, and other stores.

She and Josi Kilpack are putting together a book tour covering Idaho Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona and Nevada in November. If you live in this area and you'd like them to come speak at your ward, stake, writing group, etc, contact her through her website and they'll see what they can do.