The Christmas House
A verified Amazon review-The Christmas House is the embodiment of the Christmas Spirit. Magical, wondrous, full of the warmth generated by the company of family and friends during good times and hard. This book hits you with a healthy dose of reality, but it also takes you on a fantastical journey filled with hope and joy, grace and forgiveness. If you don't examine it too closely, but just let the words transport you on a trip that will engage your emotions and give you cause to ponder what can be real, what may be true - if "close your eyes" and open your heart, this book will bring it all to life and make you believe. I found this book engaging from the first chapter, it kept drawing me in, pulling me into the world of the house and those who live there, as well as those individuals who visit once every year at Christmas. This story is not without tragedy, but it is also infused with the glorious strength and bright light that the human spirit is capable of producing, with a little divine help and the steadfast support of the people who love you. I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning, wanting to see what happened next, anxious to find out what happened to the characters in the book I had grown to care about. The story surrounds your senses and brings the sights and smells, the many textures of Christmas to your heart, as it lifts your spirit up and makes you wonder...This podcast offers the first four chapters of the novel. The entire audio book will not be available on Amazon until Thanksgiving 2022. More episodes (chapters) will be added in the future.
The Christmas House
Chapter Twenty- A Critical Night for Michael
222 East Pleasant Street
Apartment 326
Evanston, IL
10:30 p.m.
Sharon slid her key into the lock of the eggshell-painted door with the number “326” displayed at eye level as Michael stood behind her.
“This is a pretty nice building for being so old. You can tell a lot of renovation work went into keeping it up to code. I like the ornate trim and cove molding at the ceilings. It’s very distinguished,” he said.
“Yes, I looked for an apartment in this area because I like older buildings. There are more problems to contend with, but you can’t beat the old-time construction quality for warmth and quiet,” Sharon replied.
As she opened the door to her apartment, she reached around the corner and flipped on the wall switch that lit a table lamp sitting nearby. The apartment was very nicely decorated, but that was expected, considering Sharon was a decorator. The door opened into the living room area, which boasted hardwood floors covered with custom-designed area rugs.
The walls were painted a light gray with dark and light beige accents ruled lines toward the top of the walls. The furniture featured a modern set of dark green leather pieces, including a couch, a love seat, and an oversized chair. Glass tables could be found throughout the area and very modernist works of art and oil paintings.
“Wow, you have very modern tastes for yourself. I can’t believe that you were able to suggest the Victorian-style furniture that you did for my house,” Michael said.
“Decorating is based on the person that lives in the environment, Michael. I have to judge the person and then make a recommendation. I have different tastes for different rooms. Excuse me. I need to use the bathroom. I will be right back. Make yourself at home,” she replied.