GENRE: Romance
Nickie Wright is ready to celebrate the big 5-0 for Christmas in July, but a hot flash leads her to a sobering revelation: her life has hit rock bottom. Her successes--the home and the car--feel empty. Her vision board has been a waste of time, her job is unfulfilling, and she's mulling over a proposal from Smith, who she's not sure she likes.
The best day of her life spirals into the worst. During a near-death experience, a meeting with her guardian angel presents Nickie with an ultimatum - either go to heaven or return to Earth and find her second act by Christmas Eve. If she fails, her future's bleak -- her life will be filled with days no better than her worst.
Her second act sets her on a collision path with Evan Goodman, the man who makes her content, and Jordan Devlin, the first love who drives her crazy. She's torn between two worlds--contentment and safety, passion and excitement.
Time is running out for Nickie.
She only has from Christmas in July until Christmas Eve to find her calling, follow her dreams, and figure out which romantic interest will help Nickie embrace the best of herself.
The voice and the name paralyzed her.
One person (in this world or any other) referred to her by that name.
It couldn’t be her.
“Nickie Boo?”
Her body stiffened. She was more shocked than afraid. Uncontrollable streams of tears flushed from her eyes. She glanced from side to side. No one. Nothing, but the faint hope of seeing her mother again after fate stole her only chance for goodbye. Nickie found out about her mother’s illness only six weeks before her death and thought she had more time.
“Mommy?”
Almost as soon as she called out to Nickie Boo once more, an angelic form descended from the sky in a dramatic drop; her arms were folded across her chest. Upon first look Nickie couldn’t discern the face, but her voice was exactly the same as she remembered.
The more the form came into view, the more visible the feathery wings appeared. But the face, she knew the face like her own. Same auburn skin, same bright eyes, same natural thick hair. Her mother’s eyes smiled but her lips didn’t, at least not at first.
“It’s me, Cupcake. Merry Birthday.”
An inexplicable calm washed over her…on the outside. Inside she was scared crapless. Nickie reached for the angel’s arm and pinched her, gently. “Are you real, or am I crazy?”
“Yes,” her mother replied, “and yes.”
Mom angel?
Nickie laughed. No one else could make her chuckle in the middle of paralyzing panic and fear.
Women from Madeleine Albright to , “You can have it all, just not all at once.”
For years, a lot of Generation Xers like me thought we could have it all—and thought we did have it all until we realized we didn’t.
The “just not all at once” part had been excluded from the discussion. At the age of 40 (I’m not 50ish), I realize I’d spent my life pursuing the “American dream” at the expense of following my calling. Can anyone relate? I had the colonial, the car, a little bit of financial security, and a 9 to 5 job I’d achieved a lot of success—experienced high from upward mobility. But was I happy? Truly happy? That kind of happy where wise folks say (and I’ll paraphrase), “You never work a day in your life if you love what you do”? Nope. I was not living that life.
Enter the second act.
At the age of 39 ½, I wrote my first book, The Bum Magnet. The venture was as cathartic as it was entertaining and funny. I invested long days and longer hours, completely engrossed in drafting the story of Charisse. But writing it helped me realize what “You’ll never work in a day if you love what you do” really meant. I’ve been writing ever since. I didn’t quit my day job because I love to pay my mortgage and eat, but there is a fulfillment and joy that I get from every word I type that I never get from any other endeavor.
The Nick Before Christmas, at its core, is a story about a woman who hit the big 5-0 and is, frankly, threatened (by her deceased mother in Angel form) into pursuing her second act—and she’s got to do it by Christmas Eve. She can either discover her true calling or spend the rest of her life in a Groundhog Day repeat of really crappy days. But in discovering her true calling, in following the path laid out for her through her blessings and gifts she hadn’t explored, she opens herself up to a new world of joy, fulfillment, and “the one” that got away. Through this quest, she realizes what’s truly valuable to her.
I found my second act, just not fully in the way I imagined it. I’d love to quit my job and write fulltime, but I like to eat…and so I haven’t quit my 9 to 5 job. So, I’ve learned, for some, if you embrace imbalance and patience, you can have it all…and at the same time…sort of. Ultimately, the point is, happiness may await you in your second act. Don’t be afraid to discover it—no matter how old you are.
USA Today Bestselling author K. L. Brady is a D.C. native and award-winning author of 20 novels. She self-published her first book, THE BUM MAGNET, after an Oprah "live your best life" moment, which was picked up by Simon & Schuster in a two-book deal. She’s been publishing romantic comedies ever since.
K.L. is a Washington football fan and professed nerd-girl who loves all things Star Trek, Star Wars, and Big Bang Theory. She lives to write stories involving hilarious quirky characters looking for love. She's hard at work on her next several projects, including Sincerely, Santa, a heartfelt romantic comedy that also celebrates the special friendship between her late mother and grandmother.
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The book will be on sale for $0.99.
K.L. Brady will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC o a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
Thank you for hosting!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a good read.
ReplyDeleteHow do you begin writing a new story?
ReplyDeleteThis looks really good. Thanks for hosting this tour.
ReplyDeleteI really like the cover and the excerpt.
ReplyDeleteThank You for Posting! —KLBrady
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good read.
ReplyDeleteDo you have a favorite holiday?
ReplyDeleteThis should be a great novel. Thanks for hosting this tour.
ReplyDeleteHave the luckiest day!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a good book.
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