Meet Carly Winter, USA’s best-selling and award-winning romance author. Carly is such a believer in Christmas, she boasts that she “wishes Christmas happened twice a year.” A lover of chocolate, wine, and dogs (a woman after my own heart!) Carly is one more of our talented authors in the Cozy Christmas Anthology.

Christmas is Canceled                                                             by Carly Winter

The day before her big Christmas party, Bernadette Maxwell discovers all her gifts have been stolen. With the help of her ghostly grandmother, Ruby, she’s determined to investigate who’s responsible… and why.

But when she discovers the perpetrator, will the Christmas spirit come alive in Bernie, or will Christmas be canceled?

What would be a great gift for your character?

Since Bernie runs a bed and breakfast is chronically worried about cleanliness, she’d be thrilled with a Roomba vacuum.

If you had to describe your character in three words, what would those three words be?

Loving, anxious, worrisome.

Where is your story set? Why?

My story is set in Sedona, Arizona, a lovely town that sits close to the Grand Canyon. The scenery there is breathtaking. It also has a “magical” side to it – vortexes (vortices is the proper grammar but is hardly ever used) that promote healing, self-awareness, and meditation. It’s a perfect place for a fictional character to own a fictional bed and breakfast that is haunted by her unruly, fun-loving grandmother’s ghost.

What is your favorite Christmas movie?

By far, my favorite Christmas movie is National Lampoons Christmas Vacation. We watch it every year. We actually have an Uncle Eddie in our family, which makes it even funnier for all of us. Thankfully, our Uncle Eddie hasn’t shown up on our doorstep in over a decade! I don’t think I could be as welcoming as they are in the movie!

How does this story connect with your other books in the series? Christmas is Canceled is a short story within the Sedona Spirit Cozy Mysteries and can be read alone. The other books in the series all have a murder to be solved. In Christmas is Canceled, a thief needs to be apprehended. It also focuses on what the true meaning of Christmas is and being kind to your fellow people. We all need to take care of each other, and that starts with our friends, family, and neighbors.