Author: Reluctant Retiree

Living in FL and enjoying life.
Posted in Cozy Small Town Romance

The Next Chapter Bookshop: A heartwarming cozy small town romance with a touch of magic!

Posted on by Reluctant Retiree

A heartwarming cozy small town romance with a touch of magic!

What happens when a high-powered attorney inherits a small-town bookshop that seems to have a mind of its own?

Charlie Whitmore has her life perfectly planned out. As a rising star at a prestigious Manhattan law firm, she’s on the fast track to partnership, with spreadsheets for everything and a five-year plan that doesn’t include any surprises.

Until her beloved Aunt Beth dies and leaves her a small-town bookshop in Vermont.

Oak & Ink Bookshop has stood in the heart of Leafwood Falls for nearly a century, beloved by locals for its uncanny ability to match readers with exactly the right book at exactly the right time. Charlie’s plan is simple: assess the shop’s value, list it for sale, and return to Manhattan before her corporate career derails.

But Leafwood Falls has other ideas.

Between a cantankerous orange cat named Hemingway with very specific literary opinions, a shop assistant whose organizational system defies all logic, and a community that instantly adopts her as one of their own, Charlie’s quick business trip stretches into weeks. And then there’s the bookshop itself—with its creaky floors, mysteriously moving books, and secrets hidden within its walls.

As Charlie dives deeper into her aunt’s legacy, she finds herself torn between two worlds and two men: Lawrence, a sophisticated developer with plans to transform the town while preserving its charm, and Ethan, the rugged local contractor whose quiet demeanor hides unexpected depths. One represents the safe, successful future she’s always worked toward; the other embodies the authentic connection she didn’t know she was missing.

With her carefully constructed life unraveling, Charlie must decide whether she’s just passing through—or finally finding her way home. Because in a bookshop where stories have a habit of finding the readers who need them most, perhaps the most surprising story of all is her own.

Perfect for readers who loved THE BOOKSHOP ON THE CORNER, THE LOST AND FOUND BOOKSHOP, and THE STORIED LIFE OF A.J. FIKRY. A heartwarming story about second chances, finding your authentic self, and the magic that happens when you open yourself to possibility

Posted in From My Kitchen

Feeding the Frasers: Family Favorite Recipes Made to Feed the Five-Time CrossFit Games Champion, Mat Fraser

Posted on by Reluctant Retiree

Based on Sammy Moniz’s popular Instagram page, Feeding the Frasers is a book that any CrossFit aficionado—or just someone curious about how to cook with whole foods without sacrificing the world—will want to get their hands on.
Filled with 100 terrific recipes of high quality delicious food that promote balance, togetherness, indulgence, and athletic recovery.
Sammy Moniz is well known in the CrossFit community as an activist, and she is also the wife of five time champion Mat Fraser, the winningest athlete in CrossFit history and one of the most beloved.
This is her cookbook where she shares the secrets behind feeding the greatest champion of the sport.

Posted in From My Kitchen

Maple Cookies

Posted on by Reluctant Retiree

I love oatmeal raisin cookies and gingersnaps as much as the next gal, but I like to look for cookie recipes that are a bit out of the ordinary too. Show up at a party with a batch of maple-glazed maple cookies and you’ll put smiles on a lot of faces! Plus, they’re a gorgeous bake. The maple glaze—made with a combo of butter, confectioners’ sugar and maple syrup—helps set the cookies apart, both visually and in terms of flavor.

Maple Cookie Ingredients

  • Butter: Either salted or unsalted butter will work in this maple cookie recipe. Use a brand with a nice, rich dairy flavor. To add an extra Vermont-y touch, use the butter that Ina Garten loves.
  • Sugars: This recipe calls for three types of sugar: granulated sugar, brown sugar and confectioners’ sugar. Granulated sugar is the standby for use in baked goods, brown sugar adds a delicious molasses flavor, and confectioners’ sugar is perfect for smooth homemade frosting and icing.
  • Eggs: If you have access to local or free-range eggs, those are always a good bet for baking.
  • Maple flavoring: For the best flavor, seek out natural rather than imitation maple flavoring. If you can’t find maple flavoring, real vanilla is a fine substitute, although you could also use real maple syrup.
  • Flour: There are many different types of flour, and for this maple cookie recipe, you’ll need regular old all-purpose.
  • Baking soda: Baking soda is often included in cookie recipes because it promotes browning.
  • Salt: In desserts, adding enough salt is crucial to achieving a balanced flavor, so don’t be shy.
  • White baking chips: White chocolate chips are creamy and mild, pairing well with lots of different flavors. Check out the maple cookie recipe variations below for other baking chips that are a great match for this treat.
  • Pecans: South meets north when you mix pecans and maple syrup, and the results are delicious.
  • Maple syrup: Maple syrup is made by simmering sap from sugar maple trees until it has reduced and caramelized. The flavor is unlike any of the imitation maple pancake syrups, so make sure you’re buying the real thing.

Taste of Home

Find more recipes like this on my companion blog, “Good Food, Good Meat, Good God, Let’s Eat!”

Posted in #BookTours

Once Upon a Midnight Dreary

Posted on by Reluctant Retiree

A beautiful heiress seeking solace.

A brooding mysterious caretaker burdened by shadows.

And a forbidden love haunted by the echoes of the past.


Once Upon a Midnight Dreary

A Poe’s “The Raven” Retelling

Enchanted Realms Book 5

by Michelle Miles

Genre: Gothic Paranormal Romance



A beautiful heiress seeking solace. A mysterious caretaker burdened by shadows. And a forbidden love haunted by the echoes of the past.

When tragedy shatters her family, Victoria Ravenwood inherits the crumbling estate of Ravenfell Manor, a place she once called home but no longer recognizes. Hoping to escape her grief, she returns to its ivy-choked walls and forgotten rooms, determined to start anew. But Ravenfell is no sanctuary–it is a house of sorrow, steeped in secrets, and alive with something that should be dead.

Gabriel Allward, the manor’s reclusive caretaker, has remained at Ravenfell for years, his presence as rooted as the ancient stones. Cold and mysterious, he keeps to the shadows, guarding a truth he dares not reveal. Yet Victoria is drawn to him and to the darkness that clings to him like a second skin.

As their fragile bond deepens, something awakens in the manor. A raven watches from the garden. Whispers echo through the halls. And a long-buried secret claws its way to the surface. One that binds Gabriel’s soul to the estate…and could drag Victoria into the same eternal night.

Can they uncover the truth behind Ravenfell’s curse before it claims them both? Or will their love become just another tragic tale whispered within its walls?

If you love heiresses reclaiming their haunted legacies, brooding caretakers bound by dark secrets, and crumbling manors where love must outlast restless ghosts—you’ll love this gothic reimagining inspired by Poe’s The Raven.

 

Amazon * Apple * B&N * Kobo *Universal Link * Bookbub * Goodreads

 



MICHELLE MILES believes in fairy tales, true love, and a little bit of magic in every story. She writes fantasy, paranormal, and young adult books packed with adventure, action, and swoon-worthy romance—because what’s a story without a bit of danger and a whole lot of heart? From angels and demons to dragons, elves, and time travelers, her books are filled with epic quests, fierce heroines, and the kind of heroes worth falling for.

When she’s not crafting new adventures, she brings stories to life as a narrator and hosts Miles Beyond the Page, a podcast where she chats with authors about their writing journeys. A Texas girl through and through, she loves getting lost in a good book, binge-watching movies, hiking the trails, and sipping a glass of wine. Come hang out with her on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and more!

 

Website * Newsletter * Facebook * X * Instagram * Bluesky

YouTube * TikTok * Bookbub * Amazon * Goodreads



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Posted in Cozy Mysteries

The Inn at Holiday Bay: Blizzard in the Bay

Posted on by Reluctant Retiree

A heartwarming cozy mystery series about losing everything, taking a chance, and starting again.

After suffering a personal tragedy Abby Sullivan buys a huge old seaside mansion she has never even seen, packs up her life in San Francisco, and moves to Holiday Bay Maine, where she is adopted, quite against her will, by a huge Maine Coon Cat named Rufus, a drifter with her own tragic past named Georgia, and a giant dog with an inferiority complex named Ramos. What Abby thought she needed was alone time to heal. What she ended up with was, an inn she never knew she wanted, a cat she couldn’t seem to convince to leave, and a new family she’d never be able to live without.

In book 8 in the series, Abby’s agent asks for help when the house she was going to rent to host a writers retreat becomes unavailable. After a bit of discussion, Abby agrees to have the retreat at the inn. The seven writers who will be staying at the inn for the week long event are new to publishing and Kate hopes the mentor she has hired to run things will be able to provide the valuable tips these new authors need. Of course what she doesn’t know is that Abby has a past with this particular mentor, and when all is said and done, fireworks of one sort or another are likely.

Meanwhile, Georgia has started taping her new cooking show, Abby is worried about the approaching blizzard, and Colt has a murder to solve, after six men get together for a friendly poker game but only five of the six men make it to the end of the night alive.