Read an exclusive excerpt from A Nutcracker Christmas by Laurie Winter

Welcome to the book tour for A Nutcracker Christmas by Laurie Winter! Today I have an exclusive excerpt for you to enjoy. Later in the tour, I’ll be reviewing over at Andi’s Book Reviews. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for even more! Best of luck in the giveaway!

Suddenly let go from her news anchor position, Aria Roberts heads north to stay at her late Great-Aunt Clara’s house. She has many good memories there and wishes to give Clara’s Christmas Shoppe, which is located on the first floor of the Victorian mansion, one final holiday season. When Aria arrives, she finds the special gift Clara left for her—an antique nutcracker with a poem hidden under the back lever. Aria reads the poem out loud. At sundown that night, those words magically bring the nutcracker to life. 

Kort Zellner awakes inside the familiar surroundings of Clara’s house but learns she has passed away and now her great-niece resides there. The curse placed on him three hundred years ago traps him in the form of a nutcracker but allows him to return every December 1st through midnight on Christmas Day—only between sundown and sunrise. 

After some convincing, Aria believes Kort’s strange story. She helps him experience life as he is gifted so few hours alive and in doing so, falls in love. He knows his curse makes it impossible to give her the constant relationship she deserves. His plan to leave her forever on Christmas Day collides with Aria’s desire to build a future together, even if for only twenty-five nights a year.

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Read an exclusive excerpt:

A lump formed in Aria’s throat. In the cold light of winter, Clara’s home and shop appeared dispirited. Missing were the evergreen garlands tipped with red bows that normally swaged across the front porch. Every window in each of the three stories mirrored flat darkness without the glow of a single candle. The sign hanging over the stairway leading up onto the porch and front door drooped.

“I see a house…a beautiful house, but I don’t see joy or happiness.” Emotions that had bonded her to the structure. She missed Clara and the love she brought to everything she did.

“Look closer.” Ginger nudged her with an elbow. “Not with your eyes. With your heart.”

Aria closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. Snippets of her life flashed behind her dark eyelids—the day her husband told her he loved another woman and wanted a divorce, moving Ella into her college apartment then driving home to her quiet house.

Sadness swirled around Aria like snowflakes in the wind. She opened her eyes and glanced once again at Aunt Clara’s house across the street. The yellow painted wooden siding and white gingerbread trim seemed as enchanted as in an illustrated storybook. A turret rose tall on the right side of the mansion, and its top floor windows glimmered in invitation. Up there, would she still find the cozy reading nook filled with throw pillow she’d enjoyed as a child?

A beam of sunlight hit the shop sign, and warmth expanded in her chest. Aria saw herself as a young girl, hopping up those front steps two at a time, and Aunt Clara waiting up on the porch with widely spread arms. She’d be quickly ushered inside and allowed to explore the store, then sip hot chocolate while Aunt Clara waited on customers.

Did Aria have enough Christmas spirit left to restore the magic?

Excerpted from A Nutcracker Christmas by Laurie Winter, Copyright © 2021 by Laurie Winter. Published by Champagne Book Group.

Multi-award winning author Laurie Winter is a true warrior of the heart. Inspired by her dreams, she creates authentic characters who overcome the odds and find true love. She keeps her life balanced with regular yoga practice and running with her dog, Shadow. When not pounding the pavement or the keyboard, she’s likely fueling up on wine, cheese curds, and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.

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Tour Schedule

Tour Giveaway

One winner will receive a print copy of A NUTCRACKER CHRISTMAS or ONCE UPON A PRINCE by Laurie Winter, $25 Amazon gift card, and a nutcracker Christmas ornament (US only)

Ends December 8, 2021

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