First Line Friday — Boo Humbug

18 Dec

Happy Friday! Only 7 more days until Christmas! It doesn’t seem real does it. I know a lot of your Christmas celebrations will be different this year. We are trying to protect my MIL by staggering family visits. We have friends grieving losses due to Covid and others who are fighting cancer and other chronic diseases. It seems too much somehow. I have been a bit emotional this week with all that is going on, and that leads to more distraction and less reading for me. After I hit publish, I am going to try to get my reading mojo back on and escape into a great book.

So do you read less or more during Christmas? Do you find relaxation in the pages of the book or do all the distractions of the season keep you from focusing? (I am not counting time with friends and family a distraction 😉 ). If you need a good escape, do I have a book for you! Actually, a whole series. You’re welcome! Rene Gutteridge is one of my favorite authors and her Boo series is so much fun. This week I am featuring the first sentence of Boo Humbug. It is such a fun Christmas novella. You need to read the whole series though. Again, you’re welcome. 😉

Here’s the first line:

“Think outside the box,” Mr. Watson implored as his gaze fell over his students, all clustered together on the stage floor, their backs erect with enthusiasm.

 

It’s Christmastime in Skary, Indiana, but the holiday season has been hijacked by maverick director Lois Stepaphanopolis as she attempts to bring her horror-ific vision of A Christmas Carol to life. But the holly-decked path from page to stage is a thorny one, as Lois attempts to rally her skeptical cast, including new father Wolfe Boone, and then she learns that her reluctant marketing director, Alfred Tennison, is truly a Christmas Scrooge.

Alfred’s grassroots marketing plan proves more than successful as the buzz builds that Skary should anticipate an overflowing audience for their opening night —  but a crucial miscommunication leaves the visiting theatergoers expecting of a very different Christmas production. As chaos ensues, can the actors pull off an improv miracle — and can the Skary community convince their own Scrooge to embrace the true meaning of Christmas?

Rene Gutteridge is the author of 24 novels, including Misery Loves Company, Possession, Listen, Never the Bride (2011 Carol Award Winner), The Boo Series, The Storm Series, The Occupational Hazards Series, My Life as a Doormat (now a Hallmark movie called Love’s Complicated) and Love’s a Stage. She has a degree in Mass Communications with an emphasis in screenwriting and twenty years of experience writing, directing and publishing comedy sketches. She writes in both comedy and suspense genres. She is also a full-time screenwriter for The Skit Guys.

 

7 Responses to “First Line Friday — Boo Humbug”

  1. Paula Shreckhise December 18, 2020 at 12:35 pm #

    I finally got this book today, I’ve been waiting all month:
    The Dress Shop on King Street by Ashley Clark,
    From the prologue:
    Charleston, South Carolina, 1860
    The candlelight sent a shadow of Rose up against the wooden wall. From the shadow, Rose looked taller. Stronger. Funny thing about shadows. They made even the smallest things into monsters or fairies or whatever folks wanted.
    Happy reading!

    • rbclibrary December 18, 2020 at 12:49 pm #

      I got it yesterday. Can’t wait to read it!

  2. Nicole Santana December 18, 2020 at 5:25 pm #

    Happy Friday!
    On my blog today I’m sharing the first few lines from Jody Hedlund’s A Cowboy for Keeps: https://christianfictiongirl.blog/2020/12/18/first-line-friday-166/. I’m currently on chapter 17 so I’ll share from there.
    “Greta hadn’t been ready for their kiss to end and wanted to press into Wyatt, showing him he didn’t have to stop, that he could go on kissing her for as long as he wanted.”
    Hope you have a wonderful weekend! 🙂❤📚

  3. sassybookishmama December 18, 2020 at 7:55 pm #

    Happy Friday!!

    Over on my blog I am sharing the first line from Runaway River by Kim D. Taylor
    “The children were finally asleep.All fifty six of them.”
    https://www.musingsofasassybookishmama.com/2020/12/first-line-friday-runaway-river.html

    Have an amazing weekend!📚

  4. Anneliese Dalaba December 18, 2020 at 9:01 pm #

    I read about the same amount of books during the Christmas Season as any other time of year. I understand so well the difficulties of celebrating Christmas this year. I’m one of the people who lost a loved one to cancer in 2020, my beloved husband of 33 years. So Christmas is bittersweet. But I will celebrate the birth of my Savior because He made a way for me to one day have a sweet reunion with my loving husband and forever friend.

    On my blog today, I’m sharing The Governess’ Debut by Wendy May Andrews. Here, I will share the first line from Chapter Four. “Felicia had to struggle to keep her attention on Penelope’s lessons.” Merry Christmas!

    • rbclibrary December 19, 2020 at 9:18 am #

      I am so very sorry for your loss. Thankful for a God who keeps His promises, including sending His Son, our Savior.

  5. Beauty In The Binding Blog (@BeautyInTheBind) December 19, 2020 at 8:10 pm #

    Today, I’m sharing the first line from The Right Kind of Fool by Sarah Loudin Thomas. “As the sun climbed above the horizon, strokes of lavender, orange, and pink painted the awakening sky.” Have a good rest of the weekend!

    https://moments-of-beauty.blogspot.com/2020/12/first-line-fridays-right-kind-of-fool.html

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