About the Book
Dinah loves Christmas. She loves history, the old Wagner
House, and the elderly women working to preserve its heritage. She loves almost
everything except Mick Wagner, her childhood nemesis.
But if they want to save the Wagner House and solve a
mystery that's been hiding in the attic for almost eighty years, they'll have
to join forces. And they have to do it quickly, before one of them dies trying.
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A brief interview with the Author:
Introduce us to the Christmas holiday tradition/festival in
your book’s community.
The Wagner
House Winter Wonderland celebration is at the center of “Christmas Passed.” Meant
as a fundraiser for a neighborhood historical society in Milwaukee, the
extravaganza takes place in the Wagner House, a catalogue home built the early
20th century.
As Dinah,
our bookish heroine says, “Everyone does Victorian Christmas, but I’ve never
seen one decorated as it would have been in the thirties.”
The opening
night party features foods that would have been popular in those years just
before World War Two. Plum pudding and stuffed olives, sweet potato puffs and
spiced applesauce, marmalades and mince pies—does that make your mouth water? I’m
in the fence
Dinah has
grand ideas to pipe pre-war Christmas carols through the old kitchen radio, let
guests string popcorn and cranberries to decorate the enormously spindly tree,
and outfit the wait staff in serving uniforms from the 1930s.
Dinah’s
grand ideas don’t always turn out as she planned. Will the Winter Wonderland
celebration be another failure? Maybe…
My Review:
My Review:
The bane of Dinah Braun’s childhood holds the
keys-literally-to a fascinating neighborhood secret two generations old.
Combining two of her passions, Dinah agrees to photograph
her favorite local historic home being outfitted for a rare Christmas open
house fundraiser. Along the way, she and the grandson of the neighbors she
knew, now grown-up college professor Mickey Wagner, realize their teenage misconceptions
of each other and maybe themselves are easily overcome by simply taking a step
back and not jumping to outlandish convictions.
Mick is in for big surprises, both internal and familial, as
he reacquaints himself with his family heritage through the eyes of the girl he
once considered an annoying Miss Know-it-all. Realizing Dinah has some rather important
qualities he lacks is humbling.
This short, sweet holiday read has a lot of twists amid the
sweet sense of discovery. Fun especially for those who enjoy romances and
mystery and a little history, Christmas Passed is a single point-of-view tale
for the reader of quirky, believable Midwestern sensibilities.
About the Author
Anita
Klumpers is Midwest born and bred, except for a brief and exhilarating few
years in Denver when she was small. She received a teaching degree sometime in
the previous millennium and used it mostly to homeschool her three sons. These
days Anita chases her grandchildren around, waving books at them and suggesting
everyone cuddle up for a good story.
Good
stories are her passion, especially if they are well-written, have a dose of
humor, just a tickle of romance, and a decidedly non-gory mystery. On the other
hand, she lists “Frankenstein” and “Fahrenheit 451” as two of her favorite
books. Go figure.
Creating
skits was Anita’s first foray into writing. Always up for a challenge and a
reason to postpone defrosting the freezer, she tried her hand at a full-length
novel. It only took five years, but she did it!
Daily
(honestly) she marvels at how much she loves coffee and her husband; her
family, friends and church. Even more, she is astonished at how much she is
loved by her Lord and Savior.
Her blog is
“The Tuesday Prude” and she’s had two books published by
Pelican/Prism Books (“Winter Watch” and “Hounded.”)
“Christmas Passed” is due December 2018 and “Buttonholed” is
contracted with Pelican/Prism Books.
Nice to visit you, Lisa! Thank you much!
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