Veronica’s #WritersDiary, Mistletoe and Mayhem Makes a #BigTime Book List!

#HoHoHo, 2020 strikes again–this time in a ‘most excellent’ way! Last week had my crowns spinning in delight–as we basked in the Catalina island breezes, we found out that Mistletoe and Mayhem: Yuletide at Castlewood Manor had landed a spot on a bigtime book list (actually a few spots on a few lists)! I’m very honored to announce that Book Authority listed Mistletoe and Mayhem in their Best New Realistic Fiction Books to Read in 2020; Best New Mystery Books to Read in 2020; and in their Best Suspense Books of All Time lists!

BookAuthority uses a proprietary technology to identify and rate the best books, using dozens of different signals, including public mentions, recommendations, ratings, sentiment, popularity and sales history. This includes maintaining the most comprehensive collection of book recommendations from domain experts such as Elon Musk, Warren Buffett, Prof. Daniel Kahneman, Sheryl Sandberg, and David Allen.

Only the very best books are featured on BookAuthority. To keep our site objective and unbiased, ratings are calculated purely based on data. We do not accept requests to feature a book, nor are we doing business with publishers or authors.

I can tell you, I was more than blown away to receive this news (understatement of the year)—this literally came out of the internet blue! To be included on lists that feature NYT best sellers, Oprah and Reese Witherspoon book club selections and on a list that includes Dame Agatha’s books makes me swoon! Mistletoe and Mayhem will always have a special place in my heart–the Christmas setting sparkle, the romance between Gemma and Kyle blossoms, and even in the worst of times and most dastardly deeds, love of a family endures. I am so honored to have it receive these awards and be included with many other fine authors and their books. Special shoutout to Mark Schultz (@wordrefiner)–his #bookreview for Mistletoe and Mayhem is featured on the lists too, he’s a great influencer!

On a professional note, receiving this news made me realize how absolutely essential it is for writers to make sure their data is accurate and kept up to date in their websites, blogs, author pages, interviews, social media sites etc. As Book Authority states in their business statement–their book listings are based purely on data…There is no doubt in my mind that the technical work on my sites and links that has gone on for the past few months with Compass Bespoke Services (Bibiana Krall) greatly contributed to this honor being bestowed. Note to self, writers, messy data gets you nowhere–you never know who is watching and ranking!

Time to celebrate #bigtime, without further adieu, here are the award links that include Mistletoe and Mayhem and many other fine #reads:

https://bookauthority.org/books/new-mystery-books

https://bookauthority.org/books/new-realistic-fiction-books

https://bookauthority.org/books/best-suspense-books

2020 has certainly been a year of surprises, but this one I’ll take any day! It’s Wednesday, time for #DearDiary:

Hearth Fires has its first #BookReview!

This week keeps on giving! Bibiana and I are so grateful to Jena Henry for reading our manuscript in advance and bestowing such a wonderful 5 STAR book review on Goodreads! Our ARC readers are the best–we truly appreciate you taking your precious time to read and leave comments. Readers are the best♥–check out Jena’s review here:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3510649100

#AmReading #AmReviewing

Mystery on the shores of Cornwall this week from the writers of Twitter…

Author Rhys Bowen, The Last Mrs. Summers (Book 14 in Her Royal Spyness Mystery Series), 5 STARS

Lady Georgiana ‘Georgie’ Rannach aka Mrs. Darcy O’Mara and her friend Belinda Wharburton-Stoke are off to the Cornwall coast to check out a cottage Belinda recently inherited from her grandmother. The ladies reminisce on the drive to the coast as Belinda shares some of her childhood memories, including the tale of a ne’er-do-well uncle with groping hands and a dark side, and the accidental death of a boy. They get a harsh surprise when they find the cottage is in a state of disrepair, will it be worth it to fix it up?

On the hunt for a builder to plan renovations, Belinda and Georgie encounter a former friend, Rosie, the daughter of a cook who was part of her childhood clique. Rosie is now married to Tony Summers (a former beau of Belinda’s) and lady of the manor at Trewoma Hall. She invites Belinda and Georgie to stay at the hall for a few days–little do they know their journey will take a deadly twist that leads to Belinda becoming a prime suspect!

Dark secrets from childhood, deadly revenge, love triangles, and flirtatious encounters emerge during the ill-fated stay–will Georgie be able to piece together the scattered memories and events of the past and present in time to help out her friend? This is the 14th book in Author Bowen’s Royal Spyness Mystery series. I’m a huge fan and this tale does not disappoint!

 

Next up in the #reading queue:

 

Join us later today for our #BOOKEM YouTube chat!

Amy’s on deck this week chatting all things books, crafts and more books! Catch you later!

My new website is here!

Take a look–I’ll be posting this blog content from there too this week–so excited! If you’d like to receive a post notice please subscribe to my site. I will not spam you nor release any of your information (pinky swear). Thank you for your support!

https://www.veronicaclinebarton.com/

Welcome to my world. Enjoy the rest of your #week and #weekend friends!

Crowns and Kisses,

Veronica

P.S. Oh Baby! Fancy a bit of Double Trouble to spice up your reading life? Gemma and Rikkhe approve 🙂