5 days until Christmas
Melanie Bennett Jacobson is an avid reader, amateur cook, and champion shopper. She consumes astonishing amounts of chocolate, chick flicks, and romance novels. After meeting her husband online, she is now living happily married in Southern California with her growing family and a series of doomed houseplants. Melanie is a former English teacher who loves to laugh and make others laugh. In her down time (ha!), she writes romantic comedies for Covenant and maintains her humorous slice-of-life blog. Her fourth novel, Smart Move, hit shelves in October.
Visit Melanie: WEBSITE | BLOG | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS
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LDSWBR: Do you top your Christmas tree with a star, angel, or something else? Does it have special meaning to you?
MELANIE: We have an angel on top of our tree. I just couldn’t find a star that was simple enough, but now we have an angel I really love and the kids love seeing it up there.
LDSWBR: What is your favorite Christmas movie? Why is it your favorite?
MELANIE: Elf! We just have so much fun watching it as a family. It’s one of the few movies I don’t get sick of watching over and over, and we watch it the first Sunday after Thanksgiving so it kicks off our Christmas season.
LDSWBR: What Christmas gift have you been most excited to give?
MELANIE: I was really excited to give my husband a wood turning lathe. It’s turned into a passion for him over the last four yeas and now I have lots of beautiful wood bowls decorating my home.
LDSWBR: Thanks, Melanie!
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Purchase Smart Move:
AMAZON | KINDLE | DESERT BOOK | DB BOOKSHELF | SEAGULL BOOK
The spark was undeniable the night Sandy Burke met the devastatingly handsome Jake. Conversation had flowed easily, so after they’d parted, she’d waited eagerly for his call. It never came. A high-powered career woman at the ripe old age of twenty-seven, Sandy feels she has had her heart broken one too many times, and now the redheaded trendsetter is facing a major quarter-life crisis. After some introspection, Sandy determines that helping others may be the key to helping herself. When she’s presented with a job offer in Washington DC as the director of New Horizons, a nonprofit organization benefiting women in poverty, it seems providential.
But now that she’s moved, two major obstacles threaten the success of her first assignment. The first is her mother and her constant fog of less-than-helpful New-Age advice. Secondly, plans to build another New Horizons outreach center have come to a screeching halt, thanks to the interference of a pesky lawyer and his attempts to reverse zoning approval for the building project. After weeks of verbal sparring over the phone, Sandy is in for a shock when she comes face-to-face with her foe. The smooth voice at the other end of the line is a heart wrenching blast from the past.
In this twist of fate, Sandy sees the perfect opportunity to ensure the success of the outreach center—and to enact a little payback on this man she thought she’d left behind. And so the battle of wits begins. Will Sandy’s ‘flirt-to-convert’ plot sway her nemesis’s determination to block the center, or will his charming and undeniably attractive ways convince the sassy redhead to give love a second chance?
What homemade gift holds a special place in your heart?
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To enter the LDSWBR Countdown to Christmas 2012, leave a thoughtful comment below.
Be sure to comment on each Countdown to Christmas 2012 post for more chances to win. Please click through to the website as only comments submitted directly on this post will be accepted.
Prizes include a $50 Amazon gift card and the author-donated books listed below. This is raffle-style drawing where all entries throughout the contest period are entered into the same “hat” for all prizes. US only. 18 years and older please. See all contest rules and restrictions below.
If you don’t already follow LDSWBR through email, Facebook or Twitter (those cute little book buttons on the sidebar) you may want to consider doing so during the contest so you don’t miss any posts or chances to enter the drawing. Following LDSWBR is not required but it is nice to know that our book reviews are useful to other readers. 
If one of our LDSWBR reviews has ever helped you find a book you enjoyed, perhaps you would consider helping us spread the word about the LDSWBR Countdown to Christmas 2012. A link posted to your friends and family either in email or on your favorite social network would be so greatly appreciated. Thanks!
By leaving a comment and entering the Countdown to Christmas 2012, you agree to the contest rules below:
**NOTE: Deadline for commenting and entering has been extended to Midnight December 25, 2012 Mountain Time.**
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY; entrants must be 18 years or older; open to residents of continental US only; giveaway begins December 3, 2012 and all entries must be received by 12:00 Midnight December 25, 2012 Mountain Time; to enter, complete the required entry on each post and any additional entries of your choice if listed; LDS Women’s Book Review reserves the right to determine what is considered a thoughtful comment as per each posts required entry; giveaway prizes include a $50 Amazon gift card and a variety of book prizes donated by featured authors; the number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning; LDS Women’s Book Review is not liable for technical problems which may affect entry into the giveaway; winner identity will be verified by email address; winner will be selected December 27, 2012 by use of a sequence generator on random.org; winner will have until January 3, 2013 to claim their prize; if any prize winner forfeits or does not claim prize, prize will be re-awarded to next winner in sequence; all prizes will be awarded; limit of two prizes per entrant; this contest/giveaway is not associated with Facebook, Twitter or any other entity unless otherwise specified; by entering the giveaway you give LDS Women’s Book Review the right to publicize your name on the LDS Women’s Book Review blog; winner agrees to release LDS Women’s Book Review from any liability as a result of winning; email comments & questions to LDS Women’s Book Review – ldswbr (at) gmail (dot) com; giveaway subject to Utah regulations; VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
Book Prizes (as of December 20, 2012 – more to be added to this list!)
- Tres Leches Cupcakes by Josi S. Kilpack (signed paperback copy)
- Not Your Average Fairy Tale by Chantele Sedgwick (paperback or ebook)
- Deadly Undertakings by Gregg Luke (personalized paperback)
- Turning Pages by Tristi Pinkston (personalized paperback)
- Athena by Heather B. Moore (autographed paperback)
- The Kindling by Braden Bell (paperback, signed if desired)
- Sudden Darkness by Margot Hovley (personalized paperback)
- Code Word by Traci Hunter Abramson (paperback)
- The Reluctant Bachelorette by Rachael Anderson (ebook)
- The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back by Sariah Wilson (ebook- PDF/.mobi)
- Lady Outlaw by Stacy Henrie (signed paperback)
- A Note Worth Taking by Lu Ann Staheli (Kindle)
- When Hearts Conjoin by Lu Ann Staheli (paperback)
- Paige by Annette Lyon (signed paperback)
- All Fall Down by Julie Coulter Bellon (personalized paperback)
- Smart Move by Melanie Jacobson (signed & personalized paperback)
Previous Countdown to Christmas 2012 posts:
- 22 days until Christmas: Tres Leches Cupcakes by Josi S. Kilpack
- 21 days until Christmas: Not Your Average Fairy Tale by Chantele Sedgwick
- 20 days until Christmas: Deadly Undertakings by Gregg Luke
- 19 days until Christmas: Turning Pages by Tristi Pinkston
- 18 days until Christmas: Athena by Heather B. Moore
- 17 days until Christmas: The Kindling by Braden Bell
- 16 days until Christmas: Sunday – no post
- 15 days until Christmas: An Unlikely Match by Sarah M. Eden
- 14 days until Christmas: Sudden Darkness by Margot Hovley
- 13 days until Christmas: After Hello by Lisa Mangum
- 12 days until Christmas: Code Word by Traci Hunter Abramson
- 11 days until Christmas: The Reluctant Bachelorette by Rachael Anderson
- 10 days until Christmas: The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back by Sariah Wilson
- 9 days until Christmas: Lady Outlaw by Stacy Henrie
- 8 days until Christmas: A Note Worth Taking by Lu Ann Staheli
- 7 days until Christmas: Paige by Annette Lyon
- 6 days until Christmas: All Fall Down by Julie Coulter Bellon
22 Responses to “Smart Move by Melanie Jacobson – Countdown to Christmas 2012”
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I’ve been wanting to read this forever! I hope I win :)
Ha! Forgot the homemade gift part. My sister gave me a mirror with my name etched on it a few years ago.
When I was a kid my dad made a doll cradle for my doll that I was getting for Christmas. I still have it, and our kids use it as a doll cradle, even now.
I love homemade gifts including the food ones. I treasure my Dad’s paintings. I’ve done a few wall hangings for others over the years.
When i was in college, my father and brother made copper pipe hearts for all us girls for Valentine’s day. It’s simple, but i love it.
My husband & I received a Homemade Quilt, that my Grandma and Mom made for our Wedding. After 21 years, it’s been wearing out a bit, so I use at special occasions. We get it out and use it for our anniversary. It is red with white hearts, so it is perfect to use on Valentines Day too.
I love some homemade dried apple slices I was given last year. They were fantastic! This was such a GREAT book!
For Christmas one year, my Grandmother gave each of her grandchildren a large quilt. I still have it and enjoy snuggling up with it on cold winter nights :)
My Mom made a necklace out of lace and beads. It is a bib style necklace and striking in black and gold accents. I love that necklace and always get compliments on it.
My grandpa also liked working with wood, and I love the pot holders (is that the right word?) he made. I use them for every meal.
Hmm i haven’t got anything home made that I can think of. I just really like thoughtful gifts.
My grandpa made a doll crib for me when I was a girl that I absolutely loved. Wish I still had it!
Can’t think of any homemade gifts, but I still have all of my kids homemade Christmas ornaments. They grace our Christmas tree every year. We have a very eclectic, beautiful tree!
I love the tablecloths that my abuelita crocheted for me. :)
My Great Uncle made a toybox for my kids. It’s huge and very pretty. Perfect for our living room.
Last year I gave my mother-in-law a set of cross stitched stockings. It took a couple of years to finish, but she LOVED it!
The snowflake ornaments, made out of popsicle sticks and the kids school photo, that my children made in preschool.
Noodle angel ornaments from my mother-in-law. I look forward to seeing them again each year when we decorate.
I love Melonie Jacobsen and hope I win!
A blanket my husband made me. It was actually for Valentine’s Day, but it is used year-round to keep me from freezing!
And I, too, love Melanie Jacobson. :) And her books, of course. I’m only a SLIGHT stalker…
I absolutely love Melanie’s books! Smart Move has been on my to-read list. I’m hoping to get a chance to read it in the next few months.
The best homemade gifts I’ve received are the ones my kids bring home from school that are personalized. I love the fingerprint turkeys, ornaments with hand prints and calendars with their personal art for each month. I love it all!
Wow. I am having trouble thinking of one. When I was super young (like 2 years old) my dad built a play kitchen for me and my sister. My parents still have it in a playhouse for their grandkids.