I had the most wonderful surprise waiting for me when I got back from two weeks in the UK. Well, we had random patches of cat vomit spread around the flat as a loving Christmas gift from our two cats, who we callously abandoned to be fed and looked after by various friends and family members, but I also had a package waiting for me on the living room table. So after feeding the demanding furry dictators we pretend are our pets and cleaning up the vomit, I got to sit down and open my presents. Two promisingly shaped rectangular presents in black and white wrapping paper, two sachets of delicious looking hot chocolate and a lovely card from Beth Ellen.
Having torn the paper off (I am not one of these people who gently peel off the paper to save it for re-use), I discovered that my book bounty was The Martian by Andy Weir, one of the books I’m most excited about reading this year, after hearing so many different people with usually such different tastes in books raving enthusiastically about it, and Wicked Intentions, the first book in Elizabeth Hoyt’s Maiden Lane series, a great favourite of many a romance blogger out there. As my laptop died completely just before Christmas (luckily AFTER I was able to read the warning signs and back everything vital onto an external hard drive) and I was struck down by a particularly heavy and unpleasant cold on Christmas Day, which still has me sniffling, getting new books really cheered me up. Thank you so much, Beth Ellen!