#GIVEAWAY Review A Wedding in December Interview with Sarah Morgan

I love Sarah Morgan and her latest women's fiction is her best yet. All about family, in-laws, sisters, mother and daughters and marriage! Sarah's publisher Harlequin is sponsoring a giveaway of a signed copy of Sarah's last book, One Summer in Paris,  details below
Enjoy!

ISBN-13:
 9781335147271

Publisher: Harlequin


Release Date: 9-24-2019


Length:
 384pp

Source:
 Publisher for review

Buy It: Amazon/B&N/Kobo/IndieBound/Audible

Overview:

This funny, charming and heartwarming new Christmas novel is USA TODAY bestselling author Sarah Morgan at her festive best!

In the snowy perfection of Aspen, the White family gathers for youngest daughter Rosie’s whirlwind Christmas wedding. First to arrive are the bride’s parents, Maggie and Nick. Their daughter’s marriage is a milestone they are determined to celebrate wholeheartedly, but they are hiding a huge secret of their own: they are on the brink of divorce. After living apart for the last six months, the last thing they need is to be trapped together in an irresistibly romantic winter wonderland.

Rosie’s older sister, Katie, is also dreading the wedding. Worried that impulsive, sweet-hearted Rosie is making a mistake, Katie is determined to save her sister from herself! If only the irritatingly good-looking best man, Jordan, would stop interfering with her plans…

Bride-to-be Rosie loves her fiancé but is having serious second thoughts. Except everyone has arrived—how can she tell them she’s not sure? As the big day gets closer, and emotions run even higher, this is one White family Christmas none of them will ever forget!

Giveaway is for one signed copy of
One Summer In Paris
US & Canada ONLY
Please use Rafflecopter to enter
Good Luck!

Read an excerpt:

Maggie

When her phone rang at three in the morning, ripping her from a desperately needed sleep, Maggie’s first thought was bad news.

Her mind raced through the possibilities, starting with the worst-case scenario. Death, or at least life-changing injury. Police. Ambulances.

Heart pounding, brain foggy, she grabbed her phone from the summit of her teetering pile of books. The name on the screen offered no reassurance.

Trouble stalked her youngest daughter.

“Rosie?” She fumbled for the light and sat up. The book she’d fallen asleep reading thudded to the floor, scattering the pile of Christmas cards she’d started to write the night before. She’d chosen a winter scene of snow-laden trees. They hadn’t had a flake of snow in the village on Christmas Day for close to a decade. They often joked that it was a good thing their last name was White because it was the only way they were ever going to have a White Christmas.

She snuggled under the blanket with the phone. “Has something happened?” The physical distance between her and Rosie made her feel frustrated and helpless.

Everyone said global travel made the world smaller, but it didn’t seem smaller to Maggie. Why couldn’t her daughter have continued her studies closer to home? Oxford, with its famous spires and ancient colleges, was only a few miles away. Rosie had done her undergraduate degree there, followed by a master’s. Maggie had loved having her close by. They’d taken sunlit strolls along cobbled streets, past ancient honey-colored buildings and through Christchurch Meadows, golden with daffodils. They’d followed the slow meander of the river and cheered on the rowing crews. Maggie had hoped, privately, that her daughter might stay close by, but after Rosie had graduated she’d been offered a place in a US doctoral program, complete with full funding.

Can you believe it, Mum? The day she’d had the news she’d danced across the living room, hair flying around her face, twirling until she was dizzy and Maggie was dizzy watching her. Are you proud of me?

Maggie had been proud and dismayed in equal measure, although she’d hidden the dismayed part of course. That was what you did when you were a parent.

Even she could see it was too good an opportunity to turn down, but still a small part of her had wished Rosie had turned it down. That transatlantic flight from the nest left Maggie with email, Skype and social media, none of which felt entirely satisfactory. Even less so in the middle of the night. Had Rosie only been gone for four months? It felt like a lifetime since they’d delivered her to the airport on that sweltering summer’s day.

“Is it your asthma? Are you in hospital?” What could she do if Rosie was in the hospital? Nothing. Anxiety was a constant companion, never more so than now.

If it had been her eldest daughter, Katie, who had moved to a different country she might have felt more relaxed. Katie was reliable and sensible, but Rosie? Rosie had always been impulsive and adventurous.

“I’m not in hospital. Don’t fuss!”

Only now did Maggie hear the noise in the background. Cheering, whooping.

“Do you have your inhaler with you? You sound breathless.” The sound woke the memories. Rosie, eyes bulging, lips stained blue. The whistling sound as air struggled to squeeze through narrowed airways. Maggie making emergency calls with hands that shook almost too hard to hold the phone, the terror raw and brutal although 

she kept that hidden from her child. Calm, she’d learned, was important even if it was faked.

Even when Rosie had moved from child to adult there had been no reprieve.

Some children grew out of asthma. Not Rosie.

There had been a couple of occasions when Rosie was in college when she’d gone to parties without her inhaler. A few hours of dancing later and she’d been rushed to the emergency department. That had been a 3:00 a.m. phone call, too, and Maggie had raced through the night to be by her side. Those were the episodes Maggie knew about. She was sure there were plenty more that Rosie had kept to herself.

“I’m breathless because I’m excited. I’m twenty-two, Mum. When are you going to stop worrying?”

“That would be never. Your child is always your child, no matter how many candles are on the birthday cake. Where are you?”

“I’m with Dan’s family in Aspen for Thanksgiving, and I have news.” She broke off and Maggie heard the clink of glasses and Rosie’s infectious laugh. It was impossible to hear that laugh and not want to smile, too. The sound contrasted with the silence of Maggie’s bedroom.

A waft of cold air chilled her skin and she stood up and grabbed her robe from the back of the chair. Honeysuckle Cottage looked 

idyllic from the outside, but it was impossibly drafty. The ventilation was a relief in August but froze you to the bone in November. She really needed to do something about the insulation before she even thought about selling the place. Historic charm, climbing roses and a view of the village green couldn’t compensate for frostbite.

Or maybe it wasn’t the house that was cold. Maybe it was her.

Knocked flat by a wave of sadness and she struggled to right herself.

“What’s happening? What news? It sounds like you’re having a party.”

“Dan proposed. Literally out of the blue. We were taking it in turns to say what we’re thankful for and when it was his turn he gave me a funny look and then he got down on one knee and—Mum, we’re getting married.”

Maggie sat down hard on the edge of the bed, the freezing air forgotten. “Married? But you and Dan have only been together for a few weeks—”

“Eleven weeks, four days, six hours and fifteen minutes—oh wait, now it’s sixteen, I mean seventeen—” She was laughing, and Maggie tried to laugh with her.

How should she handle this? “That’s not very long, sweetheart.” But completely in character for Rosie, who bounced from one impulse to another, powered by enthusiasm.

“It feels so right, I can’t even tell you. And you’ll understand because it was like that for you and Dad.”

Maggie stared at the damp patch on the wall.

Tell her the truth.

Her mouth moved but she couldn’t push the words out. This was the wrong time. She should have done it months ago, but she’d been too much of a coward.

And now it was too late. She didn’t want to be the slayer of happy moments.

She couldn’t even say you’re too young, because she’d been the same age when she’d had Katie. Which basically made her a hypocrite. Or did it make her someone with experience?

“You just started your postgrad—”

“I’m not giving it up. I can be married and study. Plenty do it.”

Maggie couldn’t argue with that. “I’m happy for you.” Did she sound happy? She tried harder. “Woohoo!”

She’d thought she’d white-knuckled her way through all the toughest parts of parenting, but it turned out there were still some surprises waiting for her. Rosie wasn’t a child anymore. She had to be allowed to make her own decisions. And her own mistakes.

Rosie was talking again. “I know it’s all a bit fast, but you’re going to love Dan as much as I do. You said you thought he was great when you spoke to him.”

But speaking to someone on a video call wasn’t the same as meeting them in person, was it?

Maggie swallowed down all the words of warning that rose up inside her. She was not going to turn into her own mother and send clouds to darken every bright moment. “He seemed charming, and I’m thrilled for you. If I don’t sound it, it’s because it’s the middle of the night here, and you know what I’m like when I’ve just woken up. When I saw your name pop up on the screen, I was worried it was your asthma.”

“Haven’t had an attack in ages. I’m sorry I woke you, but I wanted to share my news.”

“I’m glad you woke me. Tell me everything.” She closed her eyes and tried to pretend her daughter was in the room with her, and not thousands of miles away.

There was no reason to panic. It was an engagement, that was all. There was plenty of time for them to decide if this was the right thing for them. “We’ll have a big celebration when you and your sister are here for Christmas. Would Dan like to join us? I can’t wait to meet him. Maybe we’ll throw a party. Invite the Baxters, and all your friends from college and school.” Planning lifted Maggie’s mood. Christmas was her favorite time of year, the one occasion the whole family gathered together. Even Katie, with her busy life as a doctor, usually managed to beg and barter a few days at Christmas 

in exchange for covering the busy New Year shift. Maggie was looking forward to spending time with her. She had a niggling suspicion her eldest daughter was avoiding her. Every time Maggie suggested meeting up, Katie made an excuse, which was unlike her because she rarely refused a free lunch.

Christmas would give her a chance to dig a little deeper.

In her opinion, Oxford was the perfect place to spend the festive season. True, there was unlikely to be snow, but what was better than a postlunch walk listening to the peal of bells on a crisp, cold winter’s day?

It promised to be perfect, apart from one complication.

Nick.

Maggie still hadn’t figured out how she was going to handle that side of things.

Maybe an engagement was exactly what they needed to shift the focus of attention.

“Christmas is one of the things I need to talk to you about.” Rosie sounded hesitant. “I planned to come home, but since Dan proposed—well, we don’t see the point in waiting. We’ve chosen the day. We’re getting married on Christmas Eve.”

Maggie frowned. “You mean next year?”

“No, this year.”

She counted the days and her brain almost exploded. “You want to get married in less than four weeks? To a man you barely know?” Rosie had always been impulsive, but this wasn’t a soft toy that would be abandoned after a few days, or a dress that would turn out to be not quite the right color. Marriage wasn’t something that could be rectified with a refund. There was no reason for haste, unless—“Sweetie—”

“I know what you’re thinking, and it isn’t that. I’m not pregnant! We’re getting married because we’re in love. I adore him. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before.”

You barely know him.

Maggie shifted, uncomfortably aware that knowing someone well didn’t inoculate you against problems.

“I’m excited for you!” Turned out she could fake excitement as convincingly as she could fake calm. “But I could never arrange anything that quickly. Even a small wedding takes months of planning. When Jennifer Hill was married in the summer her mother told me they had to book the photographer more than a year in advance. And would everyone stay? It’s Christmas. Everywhere will already be booked, and even if we managed to find something it would cost a fortune at this time of year.”

How many could she accommodate in Honeysuckle Cottage? And what would Dan’s family think of Rosie’s home, with its 

slightly crooked walls and its antiquated heating system? Could English country charm compensate for frozen toes? In the summer the place was picture-perfect, with its walled garden and profusion of climbing roses, but living here in winter felt more like an exercise in survival. Still, Aspen was in the Rocky Mountains, and that had to be a pretty cold place in winter, too, surely?

Maybe she and Dan’s mother would bond over the challenges of heating a property in cold weather.

“You wouldn’t have to arrange anything,” Rosie said. “We’re getting married here, in Aspen. I feel terrible about not having our usual family gathering in the cottage but spending the holidays here will be magical. Remember all those years Katie and I used to stare out of the window hoping for snow? There’s more snow here than you could ever imagine. Christmas in Colorado is going to be heaven. The scenery is incredible, and it will be a White Christmas in every way possible.”

Christmas in Colorado.

Maggie stared at the dusky pink curtains that pooled on the dark oak floor. She’d made them during the long nights she’d spent watching over Rosie.

“You’re not coming home for Christmas?” Why had she said that? She was not going to turn into one of those mothers who buried their children in guilt. “You must get married where and 

when you want, but I don’t suppose Aspen will be any different from here in terms of arrangements. To arrange a wedding in under a month would take a miracle.”

“We have a miracle. Catherine, Dan’s mother, is a wedding planner. She’s amazing. This only happened an hour ago and she’s already made some calls and arranged the flowers and the cake. Usually she handles celebrities, so she has tons of contacts.”

“Oh, well—super.” Maggie felt as if she’d fallen in a river and was being swept along, helpless and flailing. “She doesn’t mind helping you?”

“She’s excited. And she has flawless taste. Everything will be perfect.”

Maggie thought of her own imperfect life and felt a rush of something she recognized as jealousy. How could she be jealous of someone she’d never met?

Maybe she was having a midlife crisis, but surely if that was the case then it should have happened years ago when Rosie had first left home? Why now? She was having delayed empty nest syndrome.

She blinked to clear her misty vision and wondered why she’d ever thought it would be easy to be a parent.

Focusing on the practical, she made a mental list of all the things she’d have to do to cancel Christmas. The cake would keep, as 

would the cranberry sauce, waiting in the freezer. She’d ordered a turkey from a local farmer, but maybe she could still cancel that.

The one thing not so easily canceled were her expectations.

The White family always gathered together at Christmas. They had their traditions, which probably would have seemed crazy to some, but Maggie cherished them. Decorating the tree, singing carols, doing a massive jigsaw, playing silly games. Being together. It didn’t happen often now that her daughters were grown, and she’d been looking forward to it.

“Have you told your sister yet?”

“She is my next call. Not that she’s likely to answer her phone. She’s always working. I want her to be my maid of honor.”

What would Katie’s reaction be? “Your sister doesn’t consider herself a romantic.”

Maggie sometimes wondered if working in the emergency department for so long had distorted her elder daughter’s view of humanity.

“I know,” Rosie said, “but this isn’t any old wedding. It’s mywedding, and I know she’ll do it for me.”

“You’re right, she will.” Katie had always been a protective and loving older sister.

Maggie glanced at the photograph she kept on the table next to her bed. The two girls standing side by side, arms wrapped around 

each other, their cheeks pressed together as they faced the camera, smiles merging. It was one of her favorite photos.

“I know you hate flying, Mum, but you will come, won’t you? I badly want you all to be there.”

Flying. Rosie was right that she hated it.

In company when conversation turned to travel, she pretended she was protecting the planet by avoiding flying, but in reality she was protecting herself. The idea of being propelled through the air in a tin can horrified her. It all seemed out of her control. What if the pilot had drunk too much the night before? What if they collided with another plane? Everyone knew that airspace was ridiculously overcrowded. What about drones? Bird strikes?

When the children were young she and Nick had bundled them into the car and taken them to the beach. Once, they’d taken the ferry across to France and driven as far as Italy (never again, Nick had said, as they’d been bombarded with a chorus of are we nearly thereall the way from Paris to Pisa).

And now she was expected to fly to the Rocky Mountains for Christmas.

And she would. Of course she would.

“We’ll be there. Nothing would keep us away.” Maggie waved goodbye to her dreams of a family Christmas at the cottage. “But 

what about a venue? Will you be able to find something at such short notice?”

“We’re going to have the wedding right here, at his home. Dan’s family own Snowfall Lodge. It’s this amazing boutique hotel just outside Aspen. I can’t wait for you to see it. There are views of the forest and the mountains, and outdoor hot tubs—it’s going to be the perfect place to spend Christmas. The perfect place to get married. I’m so excited!”

Honeysuckle Cottage was the perfect place to spend Christmas.

Maggie couldn’t imagine spending it in a place she didn’t know, with people she didn’t know. Not only that, but perfect people she didn’t know. Even the prospect of snow didn’t make her feel better.

“It sounds as if you have it all covered. All we need to do is think about what to wear.”

“Mm, I was going to mention that. It’s pretty cold at this time of year. You’re going to need to wear some serious layers.”

“I was talking about your clothes. Your wedding dress.”

“Catherine is taking me to her favorite boutique bridal store tomorrow. She’s booked an appointment and they’re closing the store for us and everything.”

On the few occasions Maggie had thought about Rosie getting married, she’d imagined planning it together, poring over photographs in magazines, trying on dresses.

Never once had she pictured the whole thing happening without her.

Now she thought about it, very little of her life had turned out the way she’d planned.

She stared at the empty expanse of bed next to her.

“That’s—kind of her.”

“She is kind. She says I’m the daughter she never had. She’s really spoiling me.”

But Rosie was her daughter, Maggie thought. She should be the one doing the spoiling.

No matter how hard she tried, it was impossible not to be hurt and a little resentful.

Already she felt more like a guest than the mother of the bride.

No! She wasn’t going to turn into that sort of mother. This was Rosie’s special day, not hers. Her feelings didn’t matter.

“What can I do to help?”

“Nothing. Get yourselves here. Catherine can’t wait to meet you. I know you’ll love her.”

Maggie wondered what Rosie had said about her. My mother works in academic publishing. She loves baking and gardening. To a high-flying celebrity wedding planner, she probably sounded as exciting as yesterday’s laundry.

“I’m looking forward to meeting her.”

“Can I speak to Dad? I want to hear his voice.”

Maggie gripped the phone. She hadn’t anticipated this. “I—um—he’s not here right now.”

“It’s the middle of the night. How can he not be there?”

Maggie searched frantically for a plausible explanation. She could hear Nick’s voice, for goodness’ sake, Mags, this is absurd. It’s time to tell the truth.

But the truth was the last thing Rosie needed to hear on the day of her engagement.

She would not spoil her daughter’s big moment.

“He’s gone for a walk.”

“A walk? At three in the morning? Have you guys finally bought a dog or something?”

“No. Your dad was working on a paper until late and couldn’t sleep. But he should be back any minute.” She was slightly shocked by her own creativity under pressure. She’d always raised the girls to tell the truth, and here she was lying like a pro.

“Get him to call me the moment he walks through the door.”

“Won’t you be asleep by then?”

There was a sound of glasses clinking together and Rosie giggled. “It’s only eight o’clock in the evening here. Will you get him to call me back?”

Unable to think of an excuse, Maggie promised that Nick would call as soon as he came in, and after a few more excited words she ended the call.

She sat for a moment, then walked to the window. It was dark outside, but the moon sent a ghostly glow across the village green.

In the summer it was the venue for cricket, and in the winter the trees were decked with tiny fairy lights paid for by the village council. There had been an outcry at proposals to divert traffic through the center of the village.

Maggie guessed they didn’t have those problems in Aspen. Nobody was likely to have to fight the demise of the local bus service, or the plan to only open the library two days a week.

Unable to see an alternative, she picked up the phone and dialed Nick’s number.

It rang and rang, but Maggie persevered. Nick’s ability to sleep through anything was something that she’d both resented and envied when the children were young. It had been Maggie who had dragged herself from the bed every half an hour when Rosie was tiny, and Maggie who had borne the brunt of the asthma attacks even when Nick was home between trips.

Eventually he picked up the phone with a grunt. “’Lo.”

“Nick?”

“Maggie?” His voice was rough with sleep and she could imagine him shaking himself awake like a bear waking from hibernation.

“You need to call Rosie.”

“Now? In the middle of the night? What’s wrong?” To give him his due, he was instantly concerned. “Is she in the hospital?”

“No. She has news.” Should she tell him or leave Rosie to tell him herself? In the end she decided to tell him. Nick tended to be blunt in his responses and she didn’t want him spoiling Rosie’s moment. “She and Dan are getting married.” She heard the tinkling of glass and Nick cursing fluently. “Are you all right?”

“Knocked a glass of water over.”

Nick was a professor of Egyptology, ridiculously intelligent and endearingly clumsy with everyday items. At least, Maggie had found it endearing in the beginning. It had become less endearing as the years had passed and he’d broken half her favorite china. She used to joke that he was so used to dealing with pottery fragments he didn’t know how to handle an entire piece.

“She and Dan are getting married in Colorado at Christmas.”

“This Christmas? The one happening next month?”

“That’s the one. Dan’s family own a luxury resort. I’ve forgotten what it’s called.”

“Snowfall Lodge.”

“How do you know that?”

“Rosie mentioned it when she told me about her plans for Thanksgiving. Goodness. Married. I didn’t see that one coming. Our little Rosie. Always doing the unexpected.” There was a pause and she heard rustling in the background and the click of a light switch. “How do you feel?”

Sad. Lost. Confused. Anxious.

She wasn’t sure how many of those feelings could be attributed to Rosie’s news.

“I feel fine.” That was as much of a lie as letting Rosie think Nick was in bed with her. “It’s Rosie’s life, and she should do what she wants to do.”

“What about Christmas? I know how important it is to you.”

“We’ll still be having Christmas, just not at Honeysuckle Cottage. The wedding is planned for Christmas Eve.” She didn’t quite manage to keep the wobble from her voice.

“Are you going to go?”

“What sort of a question is that? You seriously think I wouldn’t attend my daughter’s wedding?”

“I hadn’t given it any thought at all until two minutes ago when you first mentioned it. I know how you love Christmas at the cottage, and how much you hate flying. I know pretty much everything about you.”

She thought about the file she’d left open on the kitchen table.

He didn’t know everything.

“If my daughter is getting married in Aspen, then that’s where I’ll be, too.”

“How? I’ve never managed to get you on a plane. Not even for our honeymoon.”

“I’ll find a way.” She could do a fear of flying course, but that felt like a ridiculous waste of money. Alcohol would be cheaper. She didn’t often drink, so a couple of gin and tonics should do it. “We can sort out details later. She wants you to call her back so that she can tell you in person.”

There was a pause. “Where does she think I am? What did you tell her?”

“That you were out walking because you couldn’t sleep.”

His sigh echoed down the phone like an accusation. “This has gone on long enough. We should tell them, Mags.” He sounded tired. “They’re not children anymore. They deserve to know the truth.”

“We’ll tell them when the time is right, and that time isn’t when your youngest daughter calls all excited to tell you she’s getting married.”

“All right, but we tell her before we arrive in Colorado. We’ll call her together next week. We’ve been living apart for months now. It’s time to tell both girls that it’s over.”

Over.

Maggie felt her throat thicken and her chest hurt.

It was because it was the middle of the night. Things always seemed worse at three in the morning.

“I’d rather tell Katie in person, but she’s elusive at the moment. Have you heard from her lately?”

“No, but that isn’t unusual. You two have this mother-daughter thing going on. You’re the one she always calls.”

But Katie hadn’t called. She hadn’t called in a while.

Did that mean she was busy, or that something was wrong?

“I’ll try calling her again. She usually does nothing but sleep and eat over Christmas. Traveling to Aspen might be difficult for her.”

Difficult for all of them.

A sister who didn’t believe in marriage, and parents who were divorcing.

What sort of a wedding was this going to be?

My interview with Sarah:

Sarah I absolutely LOVED A Wedding in December.
Tell my readers just a bit about it please.

I’m delighted you loved the book! The book is about a whirlwind wedding (although whether or not the wedding actually happens I won’t reveal!), and the impact it has on the whole family. When Rosie White announces she is getting married, her parents are shocked. Not just because Rosie is known to be impulsive, but also because it puts them in a difficult position. They’re living separately and are planning to divorce, but haven’t yet found the right time to break the news to their two daughters. Deciding that a wedding definitely isn’t the right time for grim announcements, they agree that they’ll pretend to still be together for the duration of the wedding celebrations in snowy Aspen. Their older daughter Katie is convinced her impulsive sister is making a mistake and she intends to save her from herself. She plans to stop the wedding. Influenced by her family, the bride-to-be starts to have second thoughts and gradually everything unravels with emotional and hilarious consequences. The book is really a family drama, and the wedding announcement the catalyst for shifting dynamics between the characters. It was so much fun to write. I hope readers are going to love it as much as I do.

So this tale brings readers back to winter in a snowy US climate and a ski resort like we saw in your O’Neil brother’s trilogy only instead of Vermont you’ve taken us to Colorado.
Why there?

I wanted a perfect, snowy winter resort for this wedding and where better than Aspen? It makes the perfect backdrop to a winter romance (and there are three romances in this story), with just enough frosty magic to keep the characters trapped together while everything unfolds. For me, setting always becomes an integral part of the story.

I swear every novel you write becomes my next new favorite and it’s been my privilege to have experienced first hand your writing maturation. I loved your HQN series novellas that I use to review for RT magazine but Sarah each women’s fiction novel you write now is better than the last.
Looking back what was the catalyst that made you say I want to progress to full-length novels?

And staying on that subject what made you decide on women’s fiction instead of genre romance? 

Thank you for the compliment! I’ve been so fortunate to be able to write different things over the course of a twenty-year career. I’ve loved each stage of my writing, from Medical Romance, Harlequin Presents and novellas, single title romance and now women’s fiction. I’m not sure there was a catalyst – it was more that I was ready to write bigger stories, with more characters and extra layers of complexity. Although there is still romance in my books, I was excited to explore themes beyond romance and I’ve been able to do that with women’s fiction.

Now tell us about Maggie, I loved her, she is so personable and genuine. Is she based on anyone you know an amalgamation of acquaintances or simply straight from your head?

Writing Maggie felt so easy and natural to me, and I have no idea why! She isn’t based on anyone I know, although she is certainly someone I’d be happy to know in real life. I suppose she does have traits that many will identify with – she is trying to redesign her life after a big change (kids leaving home and problems in her marriage) but her role as a mother is still so important to her which is why she doesn’t hesitate to pretend to be married in order to make sure her daughter’s wedding celebrations are the happiest they can be.

The other matriarch in the novel Catherine is also a sweetie but it seems to me like she would be the type of character to have her own way.
Was she or did she behave herself during the process of writing the novel?

Catherine definitely has firm views on what she wants, but that comes from having been widowed a number of years before. She found her own way to survive that tragedy and move forward. That strength has helped her rebuild her life, so in that sense she is an inspiration to Maggie who is on the cusp of doing the same thing, even though their situations are different. Both of them are finding a way to respond to change. 

According to your bio (which I only now read) you worked in the ER like your character Katie.
Did you bring your own experience from that time in your life to her?

And also is that why you started out writing Medical Romance for Harlequin?

Yes, that’s why I started writing Medical Romance. I knew I wanted to write, and with my medical background it seemed like a logical place to start. I was working in the ER when I read my first medical romance, and I thought ‘I could write that’. So I did!  I wrote 35 Medical Romances, before I eventually stopped to focus on Harlequin Presents. I’ve written a number of medical characters in recent years, and yes I do use my own experience when I’m writing them. Not necessarily in the specific scenarios they encounter (although sometimes!), but in terms of capturing the emotion and tension that is often part of work in the ER and hospital life generally.

Sarah in today’s world of authors constantly switching publishers I noticed that you and a few of my other favorites have never strayed.
What is it about Harlequin that fits you as an author and businesswoman?

Being published by Harlequin (now part of HarperCollins) is a great fit for me. I have readers all around the world, and that’s because of Harlequin’s impressive global reach. I’ve met the teams from many of the European offices, as well as the UK and US and they’re all so enthusiastic, committed and supportive of my writing. Whenever I’ve wanted to make a change in my career my publisher has always been encouraging. I love working with them and I’m doing everything I want to do with my writing so right now I see no reason to move! Also, my editor is just the best there is. 

In your Acknowledgements in the back of the book you said you’ve been writing Christmas books since you were first published.
What is the most special part about writing a holiday themed novel?

I love writing cosy, snowy winter stories. Just as some readers can’t get enough of reading them, I can’t get enough of writing them! They’ve become part of my own Christmas tradition. I think with a good holiday book, you can have all the magic of a happy, snowy holiday without any of the reality! It’s the perfect escape, which is probably why Christmas movies are so popular. I usually start writing a new holiday book around October, and I’m well into it by the time the festive season starts. Of course I’ll still be editing in March when Christmas is long gone for most people, but I don’t mind that either. It brightens up the dark winter months!

Sarah thanks so much for taking the time to answer these questions. Good luck with A Wedding in December and I can’t wait to see where you take me next. Xo

Thank you so much, Debbie! It’s been so much fun answering your great questions.

xx

My Review:

A Wedding In December
Sarah Morgan

A Wedding in December, Sarah Morgan’s latest women’s fiction stand-alone is fabulous. A holiday themed tale about secrets second chances family bonds and the unconditional love of a mother. It takes place at a luxury resort in the shadows of the breathtaking Rocky Mountains all dressed up in winter finery with an unforgettable cast of characters who are equally endearing, irritating and entertaining plus giving fans not one, not two but three interconnecting stories featuring one fractured family who doesn’t even know they’re dysfunctional. Top it all off with Sarah’s mastery in storytelling putting all the plot pieces together and you’ve got a bestseller bound win-win-win!!!

If you love women’s fiction contemporary romance or just a great holiday love story Sarah Morgan’s A Wedding in December should be on your holiday must read list.

When Rosie White wakes up her family on Thanksgiving from the US half way around the world to across the pond in the UK informing them that she’s getting married at Christmas in Colorado, that the groom-to-be’s mother is handling all the preparations and that all they need to do is to get on a plane it causes quite a stir. How is her family supposed to drop everything and come to her winter Colorado wedding when her big sister an ER doctor is having a life/career crisis, her mom and dad have separated, are contemplating a divorce and don’t know how to tell the girls. Fa La La La La La La La La

About Sarah:

Sarah Morgan is a USA Today and Sunday Times bestselling author of contemporary romance and women's fiction. She has sold more than 18 million copies of her books and her trademark humour and warmth have gained her fans across the globe. Sarah lives with her family near London, England, where the rain frequently keeps her trapped in her office. Visit her at www.sarahmorgan.com

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