Small towns are a lot like snowflakes — no two are the same. But there is one thing they have in common. They all love their festivals! When I was growing up, our town’s fall festival was the highlight of the year, a time to celebrate the beauty of Western New York in autumn. My parents owned a furniture store that dominated one block of Main Street. In the days leading up to the festival my mother would decorate the store windows and make batches of homemade chili. Excitement hummed in the air as the town prepared for contests and parades and mapped out locations for the vendors and food trucks that would soon descend upon the village square. I have such fond memories of those days. I couldn’t get away from the idea of how fun it would be to set a story during a Christmas festival — the perfect backdrop for a holiday romance!

Christmas really is the most wonderful time of the year. Main Streets and homes come alive with decorations and twinkling Christmas lights. The sounds of carols fill the air. It is a time for family and traditions and giving as we celebrate the greatest gift ever given – God’s only Son. But for some, Christmas can be a lonely time. In The Key to Christmas, my heroine, Alexis, is still coming to terms with her divorce when her father unexpectedly passes away. She is facing her first Christmas alone and she’s dreading it. But things are about to change.

Divine providence causes her to cross paths with Jessie, a single dad with struggles of his own. A contest, a snowstorm, a bell choir concert, and an impromptu coffee date all contribute to helping Jessie and Alexis experience the beauty and meaning of Christmas.

The story is a celebration of love in its many forms– parents and children, men and women, God and humanity. It is a reminder that love changes everything. And sometimes it arrives when we least expect it!

The Key to Christmas

Christmas in the Village is the highlight of the year for the town of Charlee Falls, but this year Alexis Crossman is anything but inspired. Devastated by her father' s death, she can barely summon the energy to decorate the window of the furniture store she' s inherited, let alone officiate the store' s annual Christmas contest.

Jessie Wainright is struggling to navigate parenthood alone. Especially when it comes to his daughter' s first date. He attends the annual festival hoping to lighten his mood, and inadvertently wins a key to the contest. But can he find the key that will unlock lovely Alexis' s heart?

After a disastrous date Alexis has written Jessie off as cold. But when he invites her to join him for lattes, she discovers his pain goes as deep as hers. And his faith in God goes deeper. Can the wonder of Christmas help them discover the key to living and loving again?

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