A holiday romance set in 1854 Columbia, California.
Too Old for Christmas, by Zina Abbott.
About the Book:
Irishman Sean Flood
survived the potato famine, crossing the Atlantic, the Mexican-American War,
and wandering the Western wilderness with his mules and freight wagon. But, due
to poor diet and deprivation, his teeth did not fare well. It’s November of
1854 in Columbia, California, Queen of the Southern Mines, a city Sean is
helping to rebuild after the disastrous fire the previous summer. Intense
stabbing tooth pain drives him to see Doc Massey, the local dentist. He first stops
by the mercantile to pick up a bottle of whiskey—for medicinal purposes—and food
he’ll be able to eat when it’s all over. If only the beautiful but aggravating
woman ahead of him who keeps her face half hidden and insists she won’t accept
charity would finish up with her purchase so he can get his supplies, his tooth
pulled and return home to his mules and half-built cabin….
That night, Sean
meets the woman’s two sons, Jesse and Benjy McNair, and learns her secret. He
decides with only three teeth left in his head, he needs widow Ona McNair’s
charity—and he’s willing to pay for it. Sean won’t accept nine year-old Jesse’s
declaration his family’s poverty means the boy is too old for Christmas that
year. Sean is a full-grown man and he’s not too old for Christmas. He not only
plans to come bearing gifts to Christmas Eve dinner with the McNairs, but he
knows exactly what gift he wants for himself.
*Sweet Romance
Author Interview
- Q&A with S.E. Daley:
S.E.
Daley: What inspired you to write in the
first place?
Zina: I have always loved to read and write. I was
sort of a day-dreamy child who made up stories in my head. I naturally progressed
to writing my stories down so others could read them.
S.E.
Daley: What inspired this particular
book/series?
Zina: This past year my husband and I made several
trips to Columbia State Park, a
preserved Gold Mining town in California’s
southern Mother Lode region. I took scads of pictures of the place this year,
bought books, and researched its history, learning to love it even more than in
past years. My writing focus had been on my Eastern Sierra Brides 1884 series,
but I missed a publishing deadline. Since my next book in the series will not
be published until next year, that meant my Christmas story in the series will not
be published until next year, either.
 |
| Eagle Cotage & Fallon House Theater - Columbia State Park, CA |
I have no idea where I saw it, but an
old photograph of a very lovely woman who obviously had lost all her teeth
caught my attention and stayed in my memory. As soon as I decided I wanted to
write a Christmas novella for this year, the idea for the plot for Too
Old for Christmas, complete with title, inspired by that picture popped
into my head. I quickly decided chose to set it in one of my favorite places
to visit. In no time at all, I had the outline for an entirely new series
organized on my computer: Too Old in
Columbia.
S.E.
Daley: How do you spend your free time?
Zina: I love to read
and quilt. I also love to take road trips to the mountains and other scenic
localities. I love exploring the West.
S.E.
Daley: What is the thing you struggle
most with when you are writing and how do you defeat it?
Zina: The more I
publish, the more time I spend marketing my books: blogs – including on group
blogs –Facebook, Twitter, blog tours, making promotional hand-outs – all the
things needed to get my name and the name of my books out there so people know
what I have to offer. I defeat it by keeping on top of my calendaring, making
templates for visuals to use and reuse on Twitter and Facebook, and keeping an
organized filing system on my computer not only of my research and other
resources, but also of my promotional and publishing deadlines.
S.E.
Daley: If you could spend a day inside
one book, what book would it be and why?
Zina: I try to spend
a little bit of every day inside one book or another, whatever I’m reading at the time. The book I most like to get into
is the one I’m writing at the moment.
S.E.
Daley: Do you listen to music while you
write? If so what kind?
Zina: No. I prefer
to write in dead silence. I have learned to write while the news is on, but I
don’t listen to music often.
Zina: Unfortunately, I think Sean got a healthy
dose of my orneriness. I’m not Irish, but I do have that redhead trait. As for
Ona, I think I wrote into her personality a sense of caution when dealing with
unfamiliar people and situations. She is not quick to reveal her feelings, even
though they run deep.
Too Old for Christmas is now available on pre-order at Amazon. You may purchase it by clicking HERE. It will be available on Nook soon.
About the Author:
Zina Abbott is the pen name used by Robyn Echols for her historical novels.
The author currently lives with her husband in California near the “Gateway to Yosemite.” She is a member of Women Writing the West, American Night Writers Association, and Modesto Writers Meet Up. She currently lives with her husband in California near the “Gateway to Yosemite.” She enjoys any kind of history including family history. When she is not piecing together novel plots, she pieces together quilt blocks.
Zina Abbott Links:
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