Happy Holidays!
Let it snow, let it snow, oh, no.
Greetings, Gentle Beings!
I hope you are having the happiest of holidays, no matter which ones you celebrate! With so much tragedy in the world, the rest of us need to spread joy where and when we can. Since we’re all readers, enjoying and sharing great books is a wonderful way to do just that!
I hope you’ve picked up the Countdown to 2026 books—I’ve posted a book everyday on social media, and will continue to do so. Or you can go here:
https://heathertexle.com/CountdownTo2026.html
Also, don’t forget about Kobo Plus! All of my books are in Kobo Plus.
Kobo Plus is a subscription service for ebooks and audiobooks. It works much like Kindle Unlimited, but has a whole list of other books available. You can read (or listen to) as many books as you’d like every month for one low price. Check out what they have available and try out your first month for free. The Kobo app is available on Google Play and the Apple App Store, as well as on their dedicated Kobo ereaders, which even come in colour! Find out more at https://www.kobo.com/
The End of Year Sale is on at Smashwords, too! Find your next favorite book this month at http://smashwords.com/sale
In other writing news, work proceeds on Time Guild 2. Here’s a short snippet for you!
Gently manipulating his hardsuit antigravity field, Rugher remained upright, following Sinfi through the mothballed folder’s corridor. Their passage stirred dust and other small particles, but not enough to obscure his sight or sensors.
“Engine room bulkhead hatches are open,” Chief said. “Hold here; sending remotes.”
Ruhger stopped, remaining watchful. Even with care, they could trigger a pre-programmed response. Blowing every hatch on a folder at the same time required an excellent grasp of command and control; somehow, multiple safety measures had been negated. There could be any number of traps ahead.
“Engine room appears clear,” Chief reported. “Entering.”
Ruhger watched in his rear vid, then brought up Chief’s helmet view, too. He added Sinfi’s as well; he should have had all of them ready when they entered. He’d gotten soft and forgotten the usual infiltration procedures.
After Sinfi followed Chief inside, Ruhger remained just outside the engine room hatch. Guarding them would be easier if the other hatches were secured, but having them open allowed multiple egress points.
“Engines one, two and four intact,” Chief said. “Three’s damage appears external. Manually disconnecting fuel lines for safety. Check required after energization.”
“Chief, we’ve got a problem.” Sinfi’s voice was grim. “The fuel lines are sabotaged.”
In other news, The Amazing Sleeping Man’s trip to and from Florida went very smoothly, with minimal delays. He had a great visit with his mom and other relatives, and will go back in the spring, after ski season.
Which got off to a late start. We’ve had wild weather here in Montana. Unseasonably warm, with lots of rain, and very high winds. My Team Rubicon friends are monitoring the Montana emergency management meetings closely—we may end up running muckouts in NW Montana around Libby, and/or a sawyer operation elsewhere in the state.
I’m thrilled that others are keeping track, because unfortunately, I developed a terrible cold. We finally got out to ski last Thursday—in blizzard conditions—and the next morning, I was sick. I’m very grateful for Nyquil! Between lots of tea, water, soup and zinc, I hope to get over this quickly. Then I’ll be ready to help spin up an operation, or join one in Western Washington—terrible flooding—or a wildfire mitigation in California.
I hope that you are healthy, happy and safe this holiday season, and enjoying lots of great reading! I also hope that 2026 is a better year for everyone!
Cheers, AM