Roxanne Rustand

Happy holidays!

In whatever way you celebrate your faith’s traditions at this time of year, I wish you my very best for peace, good health, and happiness.

A white Christmas seems a bit doubtful this year here in the Midwest, but dusk is already falling at 4:30 pm and a cold wind is blowing today. It’s a perfect time of year to curl up with a quilt, a wonderful cup of hot chocolate (look below for a great recipe), and a good book. At the end of this message you’ll find lots of bargains for those! 

Do you enjoy Christmas fiction? I had a great time writing my six-title Coupled by Christmas series, and they are just $.99 each! Here are the titles, with links to check them out. They can be read in any order.

To see all of the covers at once, scroll down my homepage at www.roxannerustand.com.

The Mistletoe Puppy
A London Christmas
A Montana Christmas
A Scottish Christmas
An Irish Christmas Blessing
Christmas in Paris

I’d also like to share a link to the book I released in November.
FINAL CHANCE is the second of five novels in my Montana Secrets series, which will all be released by early spring. They can be read in any order. CLICK HERE for the Amazon link. Here’s a quick blurb:

Arson. Attempted murder. And Kris Donaldson is the prime suspect. Why won’t anyone believe she’s innocent?

After years on the run from an abusive ex, Kris receives an unexpected inheritance, an acreage in the Rockies near a small, quaint mountain town. It’s her dream come true–a chance to establish an animal rescue and finally lead a peaceful life. Perhaps there’s even a chance of forever-after with the intriguing rancher next door.

But her dreams might just prove fatal.

Here are the contest winners from my late November newsletter & blog post:
The questions were about Thanksgiving foods and memories. Here are the winners. To claim your prize, an e-copy of ONE MORE KISS, click Contact Me at my website: www.roxannerustand.com.

1. Sunnymay
My favorite food at Thanksgiving is leftovers. I like to make a turkey sandwich using bread, turkey, a thin layer of mayo and lettuce on one side, on the other side is jellied cranberry sauce. Growing up, Mom always dropped the turkey trying to get it out of the oven and out of the pan, so it pretty started carving itself. The dog and cat were very interested.

2. Madie
While I enjoy several of the foods, Thanksgiving is often the only time of the year we have stuffing, so I pretty much eat as much as I can. My favorite Thanksgiving memory is our first one after we adopted 2 cats. We figured out quickly how to keep our cat who couldn’t jump from getting on the table, but we all spent the entire meal keeping our athletic cat from getting at the dinner.

3. Michelle
My favorite Thanksgiving foods are my Auntie Marg’s Cranberry Relish, Baba’s Kolache and Grandma’s Pink Delight Desert. My favorite memory is when we would gather at Grandpa and Grandma’s house with aunts, uncles and cousins galore. (Mom had 4 brothers and a sister). There would be tables set up in the living room even.

THE NEW QUESTIONS IN THIS DECEMBER, 2021 NEWSLETTER:

What are your favorite foods at Christmas, and do you have a favorite memory from Christmases past?

To write a comment or answer,  scroll down  to the Comment section.

The winners will receive a free copy of one of my Christmas novellas, winner’s choice. See the titles and links above for more information on them.

**Note: if you send answers to my questions of the month, be sure to check the next month’s newsletter to see if you are a winner!

HERE IS AN EASY HOLIDAY RECIPE – FRENCH HOT CHOCOLATE!

In May of 2018, I took our daughter to Paris for two weeks. She’d been married six years, and though I’ve always taken her with me to author conferences, I thought this could be our last big adventure before she and her husband might want to start having a family. I told her that I would pay for the trip, but she needed to search for bargain flights, a bargain hotel, and come up with a detailed plan for how we could see and savor as much as possible during our stay.

She and I both love, love, love museums and all things related to history, so she came up with a wonderful day planner on an Excel spreadsheet including bargain museum passes that helped us avoid long lines. It was an incredible trip, and I would go back in a flash if I could!

One of our stops for a special treat was at Angelina’s, a completely charming café where we had yummy French pastries and small cups of le chocolat chaud (French hot chocolate.)

Oh, my, goodness. Thick and rich—it was nothing like the thin, milky hot chocolate we’d always had back in the USA. Since then, we’ve searched for a similar recipe and finally found several recipes that, when combined, tested, and tweaked, fit the bill. I think this nails it, and it is so simple! Enjoy!

Oh—and by the way, Emily’s dream of starting a family will be born any day. Gramma is excited!

FRENCH HOT CHOCOLATE

1 cup milk (1%, 2% or whole)

1 cup unwhipped whipping cream     (+ 1 cup more for whipped topping)

2 tsp. Splenda, other artificial sweetener, or sugar

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate bar chopped, or choc chips**

** Use the best quality bittersweet chocolate you can find, approximately 70%,for the most authentic flavor
Semi-sweet chocolate can be used (best quality =  best result)
Bar chocolate melts smoother and more easily than chips, though both will work.

Directions:

1. Over medium heat, blend the milk and cream in the tallest stainless steel saucepan until it just starts to simmer (not the short one or it goes over.) Do not let it boil.
2. Take pan off the stove and stir in the chocolate and sweetener until mixture is completely smooth, then return to stove over very low heat until it becomes a very silky, thickened consistency. 
3. Serve hot in small cups, as it is very rich, topped with mounds of sweetened whipped cream.

Cold, it firms up to a silky pot du crème that can be eaten with a spoon, but one made without the egg yolks. Yum!
Or, reheat for hot chocolate.  Keeps for days covered in the refrigerator.

Optional ingredients for the hot chocolate: ½ tsp of either mint flavoring, vanilla, or even expresso powder—which intensifies chocolate taste.

Optional toppings on the whipped cream: crushed candy canes, chocolate sprinkles

My experiment with almond milk for a lower carb version resulted in a thinner result, like American hot chocolate, that did not thicken and had an off-taste.

Look below for my gift to you—links to SIX ONLINE BOOK FAIRS!

I love sharing these opportunities with you every month.

Click on each link to find free and bargain books—some by me, and perhaps some by your favorite authors. Who knows? You might also find a new, all-time favorite author by clicking on these links!

Wishing you all a wonderful holiday season!
Roxanne Rustand

1. SWEET CHRISTMAS ROMANCE BOOKS

2. CLEAN CHRISTMAS SMALL-TOWN ROMANCES

3. DECEMBER CHRISTMAS ROMANCES

4. 99c FIRST IN CHRISTMAS SERIES – SQUEAKY CLEAN

5. CLEAN ROMANCE SALES PROMOTION

6. CUDDLE UP WITH A COWBOY: SWEET, CLEAN COWBOY ROMANCE READS

Happy November!

This was supposed to be my October blog post, but here we are in November already. How did the past month slip by so quickly?  I’m so happy to announce the October release of my romantic suspense:  FINAL REFUGE!

Here’s a quick preview:

Has the past caught up with her again?

Erin thought she’d found peace at last in this remote mountain town…until an intruder breaks in, but takes nothing.  Is this yet another warning?

Her high school friend’s killer taunted her for five long years with anonymous, untraceable threats on that terrible anniversary. DON’T TELL.  But then the messages stopped.  If he has found her again will he try to finally finish what he started so long ago?

And what’s with the handsome guy who moved into the cabin next door? He seems so kind to the young boy with him, but he’s also clearly edgy.  Is he the very threat she fears?

To find out more about FINAL REFUGE or to buy,  CLICK HERE.

FINAL REFUGE is the first in a five-novel inspirational romantic suspense series titled Montana Secrets.   The second book, FINAL CHANCE,  will be released through Amazon on November 18th, 2021

The rest, FINAL PURSUIT, FINAL ESCAPE, and FINAL WITNESS, will all be released by mid-spring of 2022. Each can be read as a stand-alone novel.

To receive brief notices announcing my future releases, follow me at Bookbub by clicking  HERE.

                                                                     * * *

Thank you to everyone who answered the September questions.  There were so many wonderful answers!

HERE ARE THE WINNERS of the drawings from those who responded to September’s question.  Winners, please click “Contact Me” (upper right corner of this page) to give me the proper email address for sending your prize. Please put “WINNER” in the subject line. Thanks!

1. Mary P: I can still clearly remember learning to ride a bicycle. It was a woman’s bike and I was about seven. I had to stand so that I could use the pedals. I hugged a fence and held on to the fence to steady myself. Surprisingly it did not take too long before I was in full flight. I did eventually grow into the bike. I love landscapes on covers and portraits. Paintings are a great favorite.

2. Kari B I have lots of great memories from my childhood, but I think one special one was when my sister and I rode in the back of a pickup truck (with a topper on) from Michigan to Texas to visit relatives. There may have been a lot of bickering, but there was also a lot of bonding and memories made during that long ride. My parents vowed never to take that long of a ride with kids ever again.

3. Jackie W: As a budding artist I won many art awards in school A special one was the Freshman Art award in high school…special because there were so many other students who qualified for the award. I prefer book covers with scenery and animals on them. Especially horses and dogs. My friends know I will read ANY book that has a horse on the cover. It does influence whether I read the back cover blurb.

                                                * * * 

THE QUESTIONS FOR THIS MONTH:  I’ve been writing sweet romance for quite a while, but with my October release I’m starting a five-book inspirational romantic suspense series. Choose at least one question to answer (to write your answer look below for the “Comments” section.)  Winners will receive a free copy of m September sweet romantic suspense “ONE MORE KISS.”

If you want to leave an answer for the questions in my Writerspace newsletter, you can do so here as well. Just preface it with “Newsletter.”

1. What are your favorite types of books? Romance, romantic suspense, romance with a mystery—or something else?

2. Do you prefer sweet (Clean & Wholesome, or PG-13 within the pages of an adult novel), inspirational, or more graphic, secular fiction?

 Drawing winners will receive a free e-copy of ONE MORE KISS, my September release.

* * *

Here’s a family favorite recipe, in celebration of the arrival of the fall colors here in our part of the Midwest. My mom made it often while I was growing up.

ARLINE’S AUTUMN SOUP

1 ½  pounds lean ground beef, browned and drained

1 large onion chopped and lightly browned with the ground beef

1 quart water

4 large carrots, sliced

3 stalks celery, sliced

1 cup cubed red potatoes

2 tsp salt (or to taste)

½ tsp pepper (or to taste)

1 or 2 tsp browning sauce

1 whole bay leaf

¼ to ½ tsp dried basil

28 oz can stewed tomatoes, broken up

Combine ingredients and bring to a boil, then simmer for 20 – 30 minutes

I hope you are enjoying beautiful weather wherever you are!

All the best,

Roxanne

CLICK HERE  for a link where you find out more or find the Buy Links.

How have you been spending your spring thus far?  Have you accomplished any long-delayed projects? With travel and dinner with friends still off the table for now, I’ve been going through our endless stuff, and have sent untold numbers of boxes and bags of it to Salvation Army and the Olivet Mission (where folks in need can pick up what they need for free.)  Strangely, the closets and cupboard still seem full. How can that be?!

Tired of that for now, I’ve now started to go through boxes and boxes and boxes of old photographs and correspondence from my parent’s generation. Oh, boy. I apparently come from a long line of savers!

My mom had three siblings in rural Kansas who never married, and neither the siblings nor my sweet little Swedish grandpa had a phone until around 1990. So everyone wrote letters. Long ones–whether the recipient was in the next town, or back in Sweden. And, they apparently saved every card, letter, and document they ever received, going back to at least 1923. Many, many boxes of it all. Annual teaching contracts for a one-room school, 1924. A bill for a five-day hospital stay, 1937: $33.00.

After the Kansas folks all passed on, Mom ended up with their boxes of saved correspondence. And since Mom had also saved every card and letter she received—even the Valentines exchanged during her elementary school years—I now have a treasure trove of family history. I’ve always wished that I’d kept a journal all my life. And now I essentially have one, via all of those exchanged letters.  I’ll never stop missing Mom, but now it’s so fascinating to read all about the events in her life (and mine) that she shared in her letters. I can imagine she’s still here, telling me those family stories.  But it also makes me wonder.  Texts, emails, and a cell phone always close at hand are convenient, but also so transient.  What will we leave behind to pass on to future generations about us?

Here is my question of the month:  All of us have been affected in many ways by the pandemic. Have you found any positives throughout this long experience? More time to tackle long-delayed projects, work through your to-be-read book stack, or resume some hobbies?

Or have you been even busier, with working from home and homeschooling to boot? Have you found new ways to stay in touch with loved ones? How has it all gone?

Prize drawings: To leave an answer or a comment click  at the bottom of this blog post and you’ll be entered in a drawing for a free e-copy of SAVE THE LAST DANCE (my March, 2021 release), THE MISTLETOE PUPPY, or a $10.00 Barnes & Noble gift card. Three separate winners.  Good luck!

Here are the winners from last month, who can click CONTACT  to receive their prizes. Be sure to put “WS newsletter winner” in the subject line. Thanks!

Rebecca H:  I like the cover to be about the book.
But if I had to choose, scenic pictures, mountains and farms. Don’t care for beach scenes.
People as long as it is the character of the book. A person with animals is good too.

Robin in NC:  I’m drawn to scenic covers. I don’t care for people on the cover, especially faces, because my imaginations idea of how a character looks never matches the cover characters.

Joy I:    I like a colorful cover with something on it that gives me a hint of what the story is about. Maybe a horse or a lighthouse. Does not need a person on the cover but it is helpful if we can see what they are wearing.

Here is my family recipe of the month. All of us love this, because it’s like eating at a popular Italian restaurant, but it’s very low carb!

LOW CARB ZUPPA TOSCANA

1# mild Italian sausage
1/2 #  ground beef
2 cups broth, made with Better Than Bouillon (Roasted Chicken Favor) *
4 cups water
4 garlic cloves minced
16 oz fresh, sliced mushrooms browned in butter**
1 large onion, diced, sautéed in bacon fat or pan after browning meat
5 strips bacon, crumbled

Add later:
2 cup fresh spinach leaves, coarsely chopped
1 cup heavy (whipping) cream

Brown the ground beef and ground sausage. Drain and crumble, add to slow cooker with everything except the cream and fresh spinach.  Slow cooker on Low, four hours. Adjust seasoning with salt & pepper. Stir in spinach and cream, and serve promptly.

* Note: I add in extra Better Than Bouillon paste for more flavor.  If you don’t have it, you can substitute a 16 oz can of chicken broth.
* You can substitute quartered small red potatoes if you don’t like mushrooms, but they are higher in  carbohydrates

FINALLY, HERE ARE LINKS FOR THREE NEW VIRTUAL BOOK FAIRS FEATURING BARGAIN PRICED BOOKS!

Kisses and Sweethearts (but hurry–ends today, April 30, 2021)
https://books.bookfunnel.com/kissesandsweethearts/4q69gdcof9

Craving Christmas
https://books.bookfunnel.com/cravingchristmas/6w9bmrl1z0

 Make Mom’s Day
https://books.bookfunnel.com/makemomsdaywithanebook/ykhb4rtme8