November 19, 2025
Hi there, Dear Readers:
Forty years ago this past weekend, my husband and I went on our first date.
November 15th comes and goes without much fanfare these days. Our family has grown as have the number of birthdays, holiday celebrations, work-related trips and other events that crowd together on the calendar squares. Sometimes we acknowledge our special day with a little reminiscing, but that's about it.
But hubby, who still has a few surprises tucked into his rolled up sleeves, whisked me away on a surprise two-day trip to a small town that I've wanted to visit for years. As I was already in travel mode since we were visiting our oldest son when hubby popped the surprise question--Are you up for a little road trip?--there wasn't anything holding me back. Everyone else in the family knew of his plan, a first since I'm hard to surprise.
The surprises didn't stop there.
I also learned he'd signed me up for a beginning mandolin class once we arrived at our destination. A one-hour mandolin class. Now, I took guitar lessons as a kid for nine years, hated it, and don't remember a thing. I hadn't picked up an instrument in almost 40 years!! But I had mentioned to him before that I love the mandolin's sound and IF I were to pick up another instrument, the mandolin might be it. He remembered. Maybe it was my mistake that I didn't think I'd be very proficient after plucking away after an hour. Mind over matter is a cliche for a reason, but it didn't help me this time.
So, there I was, sitting in the back room of an old school-turned-cultural center with eight other "beginners" who knew chords and scales and lingo like "chopping" and "jamming." My brain hurt after an hour of forcing my fingers against the frets while also trying to read the sheet music. Near the end, the teacher looked at me and said, "You need to practice when you get home." I might have snickered, mentioned that I hadn't known I'd be sitting in a mandolin class 48 hours prior, and that I needed to buy an instrument first.
In next week's newsletter, you can read about my second surprise class that day: Zen stone wrapping. I'm laughing as I type this...
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Eleven Days and Counting
Christmas in Port Chance is almost here!
Can Sadie and Hayes count on you to read their story?
Another treat I encountered as I researched this book was the passionate wildlife rehab community. I'm lucky enough to have one local lady who is a licensed rehabber right outside the town where I live. I've brought injured animals to her on a few occasions and she's a true gem. Following her on social media has populated my feed with more rehabbers in Illinois and across the country.
It's Sadie Wendell's work as a wildlife rehabber in Christmas in Port Chance that jumpstarts the romance between her and Hayes Kelley in their Meet Cute moment in Chapter 1. You'll get to read that opening scene on Monday when I share it in the next newsletter!
Preorder now so Christmas in Port Chance pops onto your Kindle the minute it's released.
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**ORDER PAPERBACKS FOR THE HOLIDAYS**
Give the gift of reading to yourself or someone you know with paperbacks of the Hearts in Hendricks, Blueberry Point Romances, or the Port Chance series! Place your order now to get ahead of holiday shopping. Paperbacks are $10 each which includes a bookmark, holiday book sticker and shipping costs. Check out the order form here. I'll also accept Venmo @dmalonebooks23. The last date I'm shipping books will be Friday, December 5th.
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LOCKED ON LOVE'S LANDING was nominated for a spot for this year's Swoony Awards, a reader-nominated list -- whoohooo! It could use a little more love to climb higher in the ranks (currently hanging around 50-ish), so if you wouldn't miiiind.....VOTE HERE on Goodreads, please. You can also vote for as many titles as you'd like while you're there. Voting ends November 30th!
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I have one more live event this year on Dec 13-14th which I'm soooo excited about! I'll be signing books at Duncan Manor in Towanda, IL that weekend so I'll share more details when the date draws closer. There will be other vendors as well as house tours too, so if you're near central Illinois and want to peek inside this historic beauty on the prairie, that will be the time to do it.
(Click on the image to go to the sales page)
Next Door Neighbors. A Blind Match. And a Kiss That Melts the Ice.
This was a perfect short and super sweet Christmas novella...I love these short and sweet ones to bring in the Christmas spirit. You'll love this one too! ~ Amazon review
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She came to sell a cabin. She found a home instead.
Seven days to remember who she was before ambition consumed her. Seven days to discover the community her aunt had loved. Seven days to fall for a man who made her question everything she thought she wanted.
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Port Chance Series (3 books)
New, small-town romance series! It's in Kindle Unlimited too.
That Woman on Thistledown Lane
Apple Blossom Dreams
Locked on Love's Landing (NEW BOOK!)
Hearts in Hendricks series (4 books):
Available on Amazon, and it just returned to Kindle Unlimited in September 2024 too! See the series page here.
Blueberry Point Romance series (7 books)
More small-town romance in Hendricks, MN with Darcy and Sean Stetman's romantic inn as the backdrop. Seven books plus a season-inspired, four-novella collection. Find the series here.
A Cafe Au Lait Kind of Love. Read this as a stand-alone romance or as part of the multi-author small-town Coffee Loft series featuring swoony romances set in charming coffee shop settings. They're in Kindle Unlimited, too!
Silver Leaf Falls series
Multi-author small-town romance series, all in Kindle Unlimited! Read my book as a stand alone or as part of the series. You can find A Forever Kiss in Silver Leaf Falls here as well as the rest of the Silver Leaf Falls books.
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