I am thrilled to share an extract today ~ thanks to Rachel’s Random Resources for organizing.
Genre ~ Womenâs Fiction, Family Life (soap-opera style)
Series ~ Christmas on the Close #5
Est page count ~ 108
Extract:
Veronica has too many things on her mind to think about planning for Christmas, but fate has stepped in to put her right at the heart of it and maybe she is beginning to come roundâŠ
âBlimey, your face is nearly as red as Santaâs jacket!â Veronicaâs colleague laughed.
âThe pump isnât working,â she gasped in reply, before taking a break from blowing up the inflatable Father Christmas.
The group of cleaners at the council offices had been instructed to give the area a thorough scrub and polish and then to tittivate the space with Christmas decorations. Theyâd cleaned the place to within an inch of its life and then taken the opportunity to remove their protective uniforms and adorn themselves with Christmassy trimmings. Some had tinsel draped around their necks, some had garlands around their waists and Veronica was sporting some glittery deely-boppers to get in the mood. As she wasnât great up a ladder, sheâd volunteered to organise the inflatables, but then sheâd discovered the faulty pump and was now feeling dizzy from the exertion of doing it manually.
âDonât try to do it yourself, youâll have a coronary!â
âBut they want them all inflated and Iâm running out of puff,â she panted.
âGo and find the handyman to help us out.â
âWhat, old Joe? Heâll never be able to blow these up.â
âNo, Joe only works in the daytime. After hours theyâve got some security agency taking care of things and they should know where we can get an extra pump or two.â
âOh, OK. That would definitely help. Iâll go down to the office and see if thereâs someone around.â
Veronica took the end windowed staircase down to the ground floor and noticed the other offices nearby which were lighting up the night sky with illuminated signs for a âMerry Christmasâ and a âHappy New Yearâ which seemed optimistic and slightly premature, since it was still November.
She wasnât usually in the city in the evening as she always worked a morning shift and did any shopping she needed after that, so it was quite a treat to see the place after the hustle and bustle of the day, when the buildings seemed to take on a life of their own.
She noticed one of the clothesâ shops had a lovely string of purple lights trailing across the front awning and one of them was flickering slightly to its own rhythm. It seemed odd and coincidental that it happened to be over the small letter âiâ in the brand name, but gave the perfect effect and she mused that if she had been one of those mass-produced lights in another life, she would have taken the opportunity to flash for all she was worth, as brightly as she possibly could.
Book blurb:
You are invited to spend CHRISTMAS ON THE CLOSE where each of the neighbours are celebrating in their own special way.
Veronica and Owen are looking forward to a happy Christmas on The Close with their friends and neighbours.
Their son, Travis, is due to take some important exams, but will he be able to concentrate when a serious crush derails his schedule?
As their fortieth birthdays approach, some significant celebration will be required, but how can Veronica agree to Owenâs life-changing request?
The fifth standalone episode of âChristmas on The Closeâ shows how sharing a treasured life with someone does not necessarily result in sharing the same treasured dreams.
Purchase Links
Author Bio
I write contemporary fiction in the form of novels, novellas and short stories.
I have two series of linked standalone stories; one is a collection of Greek holiday reads called Aegean Sun and the other is Christmas on the Close which is set in a suburban cul-de-sac and reveals what is happening in each of the neighboursâ houses over the festive period.
I live in Lancashire where I have a large garden which takes a lot of maintenance, but I also enjoy reading lots of different genres and watching the soaps Emmerdale and Neighbours because I love character-based stories.
Social Media Links â
Website: www.stephaniewood.co.uk
Twitter: https://twitter.com/stephaniewooduk & https://twitter.com/TheCloseSeries
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StephanieWoodAuthor/
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