Sleigh My Name

It's Christmas in July, and we're embracing the holiday spirit ... even if we're sweating through our Santa hats.

In this bonus episode, Meghan reviews It's a Fabulous Life by Kelly Farmer, a sapphic retelling of It's a Wonderful Life featuring a trio of drag queens instead of Clarence, a charming small-town holiday festival and a sweet second-chance romance.

Nicole then reviews White Wedding by Carla Luna, a contemporary romance set in the Blackwood Cellars series. A disastrous blackmail scheme, a surprise reunion and one unforgettable chef make this emotional holiday romance an easy five-star read. Nicole also gives a shoutout to audiobook narrator Vanessa Vasquez for bringing every character to life.

Of course, we also sip some festive cocktails. Meghan puts her own spin on an It's a Wonderful Life martini with Rumple Minze, Irish cream, coffee tequila liqueur and fresh coffee, while Nicole keeps things simple with a glass of wine inspired by her heroine's winery roots.

Plus, we chat about surviving Christmas books during a summer heat wave,  our excitement about becoming LoveLit Cruise representatives and a preview of our upcoming Arr-gust pirate romance month.

Book & Beverage Pairings

📚 Meghan: It's a Fabulous Life by Kelly Farmer
🍸 Beverage: Meghan's "It's a Fabulous Life" Martini

📚 Nicole: White Wedding by Carla Luna
🍷 Beverage: Bota Box Sauvignon Blanc

Libro.fm
Libro.fm is an audiobook platform that lets you support local bookstores & businesses.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Transcript

Hot-Day Holiday Podcast Kickoff

SPEAKER_01 0:08

Hello. I'm Nicole Danielle. And I'm Megan Lee. And this is Romance on the Rocks, where two bookish biddies read Christmas novels when they are sweating balls. It's so hot. It's so bad today.

SPEAKER_00 0:24

And I'm dreading tomorrow for the 4th of July because it's like blah.

SPEAKER_01 0:31

Yeah, we we are recording this right before the 4th of July. And I will tell you guys, I currently am in a red shirt and my green Christmas hat because I am trying to force this festive feeling. And uh the hot is just not helping. It's not not doing it.

SPEAKER_00 0:49

My my little Klawfis recording studio is a veritable sauna right now.

SPEAKER_01 0:56

Yeah. My fan is right behind me, but it is blocked by this background. So I can hear it running and I can feel none of it.

SPEAKER_00 1:04

Fun

Cocktails That Taste Like Christmas

SPEAKER_00 1:05

times. Well, what are you drinking this evening, Megan?

SPEAKER_01 1:09

So I did my own take on something that I found online called It's a Wonderful Life. And I'm saying my own take because I did not have creamed mince. So I substituted uh rumplemence because I did have that. And then I just, you know, added a few more things that it didn't call for. So it's not really that, but we're gonna say it is. Okay. It's basically one part rumplement, one part Irish cream, one part coffee tequila liqueur. And then the other thing that I added was a shot of actual coffee. And then shook, shook, shook, shook, shook it up. And now here it is in this martini glass. And actually it's pretty good. It looks delightful. Yeah. Even though I did some substitutions, I would say it's still a wonderful life. And because my book this time around is called It's a Fabulous Life, I'd say I just created that cocktail. So it my my take on It's a Wonderful Life is actually it's a fabulous life. I love it.

SPEAKER_00 2:13

Mm-hmm. Very nice. What do you got, girl? Well, Megan, my book had a lot of opportunities for a lot of great holiday cocktails. They did this whole thing where they were trying to set on cocktails for the wedding and come up with a cocktail wedding, cocktail menu, trying to come up with a cocktail menu for this holiday wedding. But Megan, I am nothing if not a creature of habit. And because the other part of this that was involved is the fact that the FMC, the female main character, comes from a family of winery people, but here's the old box of wine again. There you go. Nice. Because I already had it open from before I left two weeks ago to go to Wisconsin. I'm like, screw it, I gotta polish this off.

SPEAKER_01 2:57

So I actually looked tonight when I was out at the store trying to see like what might strike my fancy, something holiday-ish. There just wasn't anything there, which is why I came home and just made something up. I nothing was really inspiring today. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, you were up first. What did you read?

Meghan's Book: It's a Fabulous Life by Kelly Farmer

SPEAKER_01 3:15

So, like I mentioned earlier, I read a book called It's a Fabulous Life by Kelly Farmer. This is a book that I picked up when we were at, I can never remember the name of the event. Milwaukee with Love? Yeah, from Milwaukee with Love. Look at me, remembering from Milwaukee with Love, which was a weekend romance novel event. There was a really cool, I'd call it romance novel crawl down North Avenue. Yeah, bookwalk. Yeah. Yeah, book bookwalk. That sounds much better than crawl. Anyway, I picked this up, and the fact that it's a super hot day today actually is kind of on point because when I picked up this book from Kelly Farmer, she was in the hottest space that we went into. Oh, you had to leave because it was so bad. Hot. So picked it up from her on a very hot day, feeling like we're connected here. My book is basically a retelling of It's a Wonderful Life, except I've got two FMCs. I've got Bailey George instead of George Bailey, and I've got Maria Hatcher. I love that. Yeah, it was a lot of names like that throughout the book where you could absolutely figure out who these people were, like connected to the movie, which I thought was really fun. Not even sure where to start this one. So instead of an angel, Clarence, there was a trio of drag queens. And one of the drag queens was named Clara. So instead of Clarence, we had Clara, and she was trying to earn her wings, much like it in It's a Wonderful Life. And so in order to do that, she has to help Bailey. George find her spirit of Christmas whimsy and wonder again. Bailey basically has been sucked into being that linchpin for the town, which is exactly what happens to George Bailey in It's a Wonderful Life. Never gets to leave, never gets to follow the dreams, starts feeling very suffocated by the town. And when we open in this book, uh Bailey is about to go on her first real vacation. She is leaving their winter wonderfest behind. She is not in charge this year. She is thrilled to be getting away. She's got this whole holiday booked. She is in the grocery store picking up her travel snacks when she gets approached by the mayor and told that there's an emergency. And could she just like maybe not leave for her vacation quite, you know, tomorrow morning? Like maybe stick around an extra day. Because the person who had taken over, who had been doing a decent job organizing and whatever, emergency appendectomy out of the picture. They can't be there. The festival is starting soon. And Bailey's like, well, her committee should be able to pick it up for her. And the mayor's like, yeah, about that. She wasn't really very good at delegating, so she didn't like have a committee. So we've got a notebook. Bailey says, fine, she'll spend one extra day before she leaves for her trip, but she is leaving on her trip. Which, of course, then doesn't happen because people like you and me, when we get suckered into something and we feel responsible for it, we're gonna be there. So she cancels her trip, which is incredibly disappointing. She already hates this stupid Winter Wonderfest. She doesn't want to be there. Enter Maria Hatcher. Maria, I would say maybe like a high school crush. Maria was the younger sister of Bailey's best friend Dan, and they shared one kiss back in the day in like the mistletoe area of Winter Wonderfest. And that's kind of all they ever had. Bailey tried asking her to prom. Maria wasn't really feeling like she was out and ready to do stuff like that. So it just never materialized. Now she's back in town, she took a job with the library, and they start to kind of reconnect. Maria volunteers to help with Winter Wonderfest since Bailey's got all of this stuff that needs to, you know, be taken care of and there's no real committee. Several of her friends jump on board. And we start to see the relationship between Maria and Bailey get stronger and hint at what they could have had before and maybe what could be happening going forward. All of this culminates in Winter Wonderfest uh looking like it's gonna be great. And then, of course, like an it's a wonderful life, little disasters start to kind of pile up.

SPEAKER_00 7:40

I was gonna say, up until that point, it was sounding very like sapphic hallmarky, like it's total hallmarky sapphic vibes.

SPEAKER_01 7:48

100%. 100%. I would say absolutely. And as things start to fall apart, though, in in the end, here enter Clara, the drag queen, who's supposed to come in and rekindle that sense of of happiness and wonder surrounding not only just the Christmas and winter stuff, but also her hometown, because Bailey has just had it with being in Lanford Falls, not Bedford Falls, but you know, it all these cute little things. And that's where I'll leave it. It's just one of those where if you're looking for some kind of very sweet, easy holiday read with a theme that you're pretty familiar with already, so you know where it's going. This is a nice book. You know, this is a very nice, wholesome book that you can read for the holidays. You know, you you don't have to be embarrassed to show anybody the cover because there's no ebbs or anything gross. You can read this by the pool at the hotel. That is what I will say about that.

SPEAKER_00 8:51

On the spice level, Megan, where are you putting it?

SPEAKER_01 8:54

Green pepper. This is Hallmark all the way, baby. It is a couple little kisses. And there was one time when Bailey mentions feeling some heat down there. That's about all you get. I'm feeling heat everywhere right now, but I'm not. I am too. I am too. And this hat that I am wearing. Oh my god, polyester. I could not even right now. I love your commitment. It's holding all the heat. I'm gonna say there were no boob references. I didn't see one. I can't imagine that there actually were that I missed because it's it is just very sweet. It's like she put on her warm sweater and tied her scarf tighter around her turtleneck. It's just very wholesome. There's a lot of the two of them, Maria and Bailey, talking about their dogs that they've adopted and going to the dog park and visiting their friends at all the local restaurants and haunts like that. It just, yeah, sweet. We we could use more of that, I feel. Oh, I think so. I think so.

SPEAKER_00 9:56

It's it's a very sweet book. All right, and you. And me. Whoa. Okay.

Nicole's Book: White Wedding by Carla Luna

SPEAKER_00 10:03

My book was White Wedding by Carla Luna. It is part of the Blackwood Cellar series, which can be all read as standalones. Every single book in that series. I think there's three or four. So, yes, they all have ties together, but they're standalones. It's it's okay to not read the whole series. You're not gonna be jacked up or anything. About the author, Carla Luna. She writes books set in Maui, Italy and the Mediterranean. And I totally love that. As someone who grew up in Hawaii and also lived in Italy, and I love the Mediterranean. If I have a choice generally of where I want to go on vacation, it's the Mediterranean. She's from the West Coast originally, but Megan currently lives in Cedarburg, Wisconsin. Oh, hello. With her family and her Siberian cat, Allegro. So, Carla, if you're listening, I think we could be Kindred Spirits because I also have a fabulous and feisty Siberian cat, Andromeda. I also scored this one at From Milwaukee with Love, Megan. So I feel like we scored some good books last fall, and I'm excited to go again this year. This book was published in 2021. It is Contemporary Romance. Normally I talk about tropes. I'm gonna skip it for now because I didn't write down the tropes. Uh, audiobook notes. Megan, while I do have the physical copy, um I have double purchased this book now because I also purchased the audiobook. Because, as you know, I was driving back from Wisconsin down to North Carolina. I needed some audiobooks to fill that time. And as this was one I already knew I needed to read per the podcast, I was like, okay, I listened to the preview of the narrator. And normally, we talked about preferences just a moment ago. I normally prefer duet narration. I like to hear both the male and female voice. I will even settle for duels sometimes. In this particular instance, it was a solo narrator, Vanessa Vasquez. Chef's kiss. Very nicely done, Vanessa Vasquez. She did all the accents and the wording and all the characters, male and female, in a delightful way, where I wasn't like, ew, why is she sounding all weird as a dude? No, she had it down. She nailed everything. So I was glad I made that purchase choice and have now double supported Carla Ludabok twice. Uh, main characters: we have Victoria Blackwood, the youngest daughter of the Blackwood family, who are world-renowned winemakers. She is the events coordinator for Blackwood Estates. Then we have Rafael Sanchez. He is the youngest brother in the Sanchez family and a chef. The Sanchez uncles own Tres Hermanos Restaurant, and Rafael in his two older brothers handle the catering business associated with the restaurant. The plot line. No, that's not good. No. So I'm going to start at the actual timeline beginning, but not the beginning of the book. Victoria went to France during college for an international semester broad slash exchange thing. We totally have this through the University of Wisconsin system. While she was in France, she dated an older Frenchman named Henry, who was an artist. He wants her to pose naked so he can paint her, and she doesn't initially agree to do so because it makes her uncomfortable. Accuses her of being, you know, an immature bourgeois American and breaks things off with her. And Victoria decides to step out of her comfort zone and pose for him. Oh. Yeah. Henry takes some photos of her with an old school camera with film, saying he needs the pictures to work from when he's painting. Victoria reluctantly agrees, and she thinks that's that. And the end of things as she heads home to the U.S. after her semester abroad. Well, she gets home. Weeks later, Henry the douchebag sends the pics to Victoria's father at their place of work, at the one. Oh no, no, no, no, no. And blackmails the family. He says, unless her father pays him 150 grand, he's gonna take the pictures to the media. Victoria is like, fine, let him do it. I don't want to be blackmailed and I'll accept the consequences of my actions. I was young, naive. I can just state that if I'm questioned. Also, it's not the same as it used to be, like naked photos. Right. If you said, I thought I was posing for art, you were posing for art. You know? And the picture, he he really did paint a picture and it apparently is stunning. So I'm like, yeah. So Victoria's like, no, let's let's not fall for this. I don't want to be blackmailed. But Victoria's father is, no, we can't handle the scandal. And so I'm gonna pay Henry off. But uh, then you're gonna owe me the 150 grand. And I was like, absolutely not. That's my feeling. I'm like, yeah, she made the mistake, lesson learned, obviously, but she chose not to pay the blackmail price. And her father is the one who insists, dude, you want to pay it? That's on you. No, that's a big no for me. Exactly. Well, Victoria is super stressed out from all this, and a friend invites her to go to Cabo. God, I am sorry, Carla Luna. I don't remember where they went. I think it's Cabo. I don't know. I'm sorry, just don't remember. But Victoria goes to stay with her friend at a luxury resort, basically running away from her problems. Okay, I get it. I mean, if you got the opportunity, why not?

SPEAKER_01 15:54

You already owe $150,000. Why not go to it?

SPEAKER_00 15:58

Right? So Raphael is there at this resort as a bartender, and Victoria gets super trashed one night and really rip roaring, drunk and wasted, and almost assaulted on the beach by some college douchebags. And Raphael rescues her. After that, she goes to thank him, they hit it off and become friends, and then love us during her three weeks she's there. They have mind-numbingly good sex, the best both of them have ever had or will have. But Victoria lies about who she is to Raphael because after the whole thing in France with Henry, she doesn't want another repeat of that situation and she's afraid to trust any guy at that point. So she tells him her name is Tori Dubois, which I'm like, come on. You thought that was her real name, but okay. And then she's from LA. Victoria's father, though, tracks her down to the resort and tells her she needs to come home immediately, or he's cutting her off from the family and financial support. So she What financial support? Can I just quickly cutting her off from financial support?

SPEAKER_01 17:05

You're requiring her to pay you $150,000. You know what? That doesn't sound like financial support to me. That sounds like more extortion. So she's probably better off to be cut off. I don't like her dad. Right. Interesting.

SPEAKER_00 17:20

So she leaves a bag note for Rafael, thanking him for their time together and heads home. His heart is crushed because she didn't leave her phone number and just left without warning, basically. He tries to find her when he gets back to the States because he was just working at the resort for the summer. Um, for I think it was his uncle, but no one with that name, Torre Dubois, shocking, exists in the area, she told him. Now we're gonna fast forward five years later. Victoria's father is still lording over Victoria because of the money she owes him from the whole blackmailing thing. I know. Same response, Megan. She has tried to save up the money and saved up about 40,000 at one point, but then gave almost all of that money to one of her brothers so he could start his own winery and get out from under their father and oldest brother. So she's back at square one. Victoria's father tells her he'll forgive the entire amount of the debt if, and this kills me, she handles the event coordination for her ex-fiance's wedding to a girl he cheated on her with and got knocked up and is taking their original wedding date and venue.

SPEAKER_01 18:35

Her dad sounds like a narcissistic controlling nightmare. I hate him.

SPEAKER_00 18:43

Yeah, and let's just say things could not be more fucked up with that situation. The bride is a total bridezilla, and the caterer for the wedding ends up quitting. So Victoria has to scramble to find another one, and it's extremely difficult because it's the FN holidays, and the wedding is on December 22nd, my birthday, which is a good day for a wedding. She has a tasty meeting set up with tres hermanos, having no idea it's run by Rafael's family. Things get awkward when they recognize each other, and Rafael realizes she lied about who she was. But they decide they can both be professionals, and Rafael really wants the job because it would be huge media PR for their company. And because he wants to prove to his brothers that he can be taken seriously, because he's had a little history of his own where he made some immature decisions and mistakes. So he wants to be big and bold in his brother's eyes and branch out and do more things and be more creative, but he needs to prove himself with this event. But you know, Megan, when you have mind-blowing sex with someone for three weeks in the tropics, it can be kind of hard to forget that.

SPEAKER_01 19:53

Apparently.

SPEAKER_00 19:54

And that's where I'm gonna finally leave off. Spice level, Megan, this one's a jalapenio. There's some mentions of phone sex and sex, but the mentions are brief and often cut off or just vaguely remembered from the past for the most part. Things I loved, Raphael. Raphael is a solid guy. He can cook, he's nice, he's sweet, he's sexy, he sounds hot AF, he's ambitious, he has goals. Did I mention he can cook? I believe you did, yes. He loves his mama and is very family-oriented and has a pretty awesome family, even though his brothers and uncles sometimes give him a hard time, but he can cook. I I heard he can cook. He can cook. I enjoyed the mentions of all the muy delicioso foods and wines in the novel. So many yummy things were discussed from Torres Hermanos, and then lots of wine drinking for obvious reasons. I love me some wine. So yay! I loved the writing. I loved the audiobook narrator, Vanessa Vasquez. I thought she did a great job. My only challenge is, and I think you just hearing this synopsis can probably agree with me. My challenge is, and this is in no way a reflection of the writing or the story, because that was all very well done, but I hated Victoria's father. He sounds awful. He's a total effing asshole. I hated Victoria's ex-Ben because he's a disgusting, creepy asshole. And I get that Victoria is young and naive and sometimes immature because she's in her fucking 20s, and I get that. I think it's just shit-tastic how much these men, her father, her ex-fiance, and Henry the French artist trying to groom a young woman, are all total pigs who should rot in hell. But I mean, snaps to Carla Luna, the author, for creating these really mean, nasty villains, because it worked. Because wow, these guys are pretty fucking horrible people. So yeah. That was my only challenge. And that's not that, like, oh, I didn't want to read the book or I was gonna DNF it. No, these guys are fucking assholes, and I was getting so enraged on Victoria. Behalf, you know, like final thoughts. This was a great book. I enjoyed it, and I would totally read more from Carla Luna. And the audiobook narration was on point, even though I usually prefer duet style. I give it five out of five freaking stars. Look at you. Did you have scents in yours, Megan? Probably. Did I write them down? No. Okay. There were several mentions of Raphael's Citrusy Aftershave, which I need to know what exactly this is because that sounds freaking scrum diliumptious, and I would love to smell that on Bob. I would love me some citrus aftershave on my man. Carla Luna, what is this product? I need to know. Uh booby prize, you said no boobies in yours? Nope. Okay. I didn't hit until page 107. Talk about a slow burn. At the thought of his naked, muscular body, her nipples hardened into tight buds. Mine hit on no pages, so you win. I still don't win for this season. No. The ever-elusive one-page booby reference.

Booby Prize And Pirate Month Picks

SPEAKER_00 23:01

Next up is Pirate Month. Pirates. Pirates Argus. Yeah, what do you have coming up? I have Poppy and the Pirate by Elizabeth Cole. All right. Which I also scored last year during our extravaganza at From Milwaukee with Love. And I recently commented on this book on Elizabeth Cole's Insta because we met her in person and she was a delightful person to have a conversation with. Love you, Elizabeth Cole, fan curling. And I was like, I'm so excited to read this for Pirate Argus Month. And she's like, I will not be listening to that episode of the podcast. Because she's like, I don't like to hear any reviews of my books. And I was like, that's kind of sad.

SPEAKER_01 23:46

I get it though. I get it. Because it's your personal baby. I totally understand that.

SPEAKER_00 23:52

I get it. I think I'm gonna enjoy it. So I don't think Elizabeth has anything to worry about. The synopsis for Poppy and the Pirate on the Smuggler's Coast. Sparks will fly. Poppy St. George's sharp tongue has done nothing for her except find trouble. When her dearest friend and childhood companion marries, she is suddenly alone and adrift in a society that prefers ladies to be meek and mild. Poppy seizes a chance to escape her melancholy by summering on the Cornish coast, never dreaming she will come face to face with a particular gentleman from her past, a man she secretly loved before he broke her heart. Carlos de la Guerra is a man who has always chosen duty over desire. He always knew Poppy was special, but he lost his chance to court her when he had to defend his family's interests abroad. Now he has returned to England and Carlos is determined to correct his mistake, if only Poppy will let him. Just as the two are brought together again, they are drawn into an intriguing and dangerous mystery that threatens them both. Caught between smugglers and social climbers, Carlos and Poppy discover that the course of true love never runs smooth. That sounds very sweet. I know, right? I'm excited. What are you reading on the next episode and for the first pirate books?

SPEAKER_01 25:23

I am reading Sea of Ruin by Pam Godwin. I just I love this cover. It's stunning. It's stunning. It's beautiful. And this is again one that I picked up for Milwaukee with Love. I'm pretty sure I got this one at Thirst at the bookstore. Alright. Bennett Sharp is on the run. Wanted for piracy, she fears neither God nor death nor man. Except the priest feral. The unfaithful, stormy-eyed libertine hunts her with terrifying possessiveness. Nothing will stop him from coming for her. Not his unforgivable betrayal. Not when she's captured by the ice-cold pirate hunter Lord Ashley Cutler. She must escape Ashley's prison and priests of deceit. But can she walk away from their twisted desires? Two gorgeous captains stand on opposite sides of the law. But when they collide in a battle to protect her, the lines blur between enemies and lovers. Passion heats, secrets unravel, and the hearts entangle until they break. Can love prevail in the sea of ruin?

SPEAKER_00 26:39

I love it. I'm excited.

Love Lit Cruise News And Farewell

SPEAKER_00 26:41

I have some exciting news, Megan. What do you have exciting news for, Nicole? Well, it's for us in the podcast. We have been chosen as representatives for Love Lit Cruise.

SPEAKER_01 26:54

Oh my. Oh my. Look at us. That's kind of fancy. I'm kind of excited. You did Lovelit Cruise this past year and just really, really enjoyed it.

SPEAKER_00 27:06

I and you and I are going next year. I've already put down a deposit. I am so excited for us. Like, beyond excited. Of all the bookish events that are out in the world right now, which there are many great ones. And I know our experience is limited. We we are involved in a dumpster fire of an event last year that shall not be named. Yeah. It was right. But turned into a beautiful thing with From Milwaukee with Love, thanks to Natasha and her cohort Bert. Yes. At the Wellread Damsel. And now it's ongoing again this year, and we'll also be attending this year. Gotta gotta take the bookish bitties there again. But Lovelit Cruise, we are doing it. And I have to say, it is the most well-organized, friendliest, most fabulous book event I have experienced yet to date. So I'm excited for you to go with me next spring. And I'm excited that we're official reps.

SPEAKER_01 28:03

That's very cool. I know initially you were a little bit nervous because you grabbed that ticket last minute as a solo sailor, and I've never gone on a cruise by myself. Yeah, but almost immediately you were sending me messages with little updates talking about all the positive experiences you were having and the people you were running into and authors and the events.

SPEAKER_00 28:25

And the swag bag. That swag bag was next level. Chock full of books, candies, hair ties, koozies. Like, oh my! Like it was a lot. Best swag bag I've ever had from a hair show or anything.

SPEAKER_01 28:42

Well, thank you for joining us today for Romance on the Rocks. Please like, subscribe, and follow. And if you are a hopelessly romantic, bookish bitty like us, think about giving us a review on iTunes, Spotify, YouTube, all the places that I never think to write down and remember. But, you know, all the things, wherever you catch your podcasts. And until next time, just know that your support really means the world to us. Stay safe and know that you are loved.