To celebrate the holiday season, FF & P is proud to showcase FF & P authors who have published holiday stories. Enjoy!

Author: KV Peck

Title: The Memories Between Us

K.V. Peck (she/her) is the author of The Memories Between Us, a speculative fiction romance set in contemporary New York City with a twist on time travel. Peck is a lifelong lover of science fiction and has a soft spot for romantic stories. She lives in Illinois with her husband.

Please describe your story in 75 words or less.

Joshua is haunted after his wife is killed in a car accident. The driver was never found. Obsessive, romantic, and determined to unravel the mystery, he designs a portal to his past to give him and Viv another chance at love. Truth leads him to despair. When a time traveler implores him to return to their beloveds together, Joshua must decide to trust a man who would do anything to find the women they love.

My inspiration comes from science and from what I love to read. I adore science fiction, romance, speculative stories, and the many tropes of time travel.

The Memories Between Us is a story of what ifs and alternative outcomes. What would you do to reunite with your deceased beloved? What would risk? Would you die for love? Would you kill? Would you defy the laws of time to reach her? I set out to explore grief, perception, memory, and the ability to heal after loss.

I enjoy romantic stories and happy endings. When storytelling can turn your perceptions upside down, the twists and surprises are so much fun. Exploring memory is to learn that our perceptions and realities don’t always jive. That makes for interesting fiction.

Do you have a favorite holiday romance author or book? (Short stories count too!)

I didn’t realize it until this question, but I don’t have any favorite literature that combines both the winter season and romance as a deliberate choice. Some of my favorite romances are The Time Traveler’s Wife, by Andrea Niffenegger, The Love Hypothesis, by Ali Hazelwood, and the short story Christmas, by Vladimir Nabokov. I do have a two favorite Christmas romance movies: the light-hearted Last Christmas (SPOILER: with a paranormal twist), and the darkly painted It’s a Wonderful Life, which I view as an alternative timeline love story.

How can readers find you online?

Bluesky | Instagram | TikTok | Facebook

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Author: Amanda Reid

Title: Murder Most Merry

Amanda Reid is the award-winning author of twelve action and romance packed books in the Enchanted Rock Immortals world, and nine cozy books in her Flannigan Sisters Psychic Mysteries series. She’s a retired Army brat and federal agent who loves traveling with her husband and pups.

Please describe your story in 75 words or less.

Instead of enjoying the Christmas season, Lacey Flannigan is working herself into a frazzle with extra vet-tech shifts, an animal shelter’s service project, and studying—leaving scant room for Walker, the dreamy firefighter who believes in her premonition powers. When the shelter director dies of a heart attack, the police claim she was murdered, and donor money is missing. Now, the prime suspect, Lacey herself, must find the culprit before she spends the holidays behind bars.

What winter holiday are you celebrating?

Though I celebrate Christmas, it’s more of a secular day for me—I look forward to spending time with my family and friends, sharing love and a filling meal, along with a present or two.

What was the inspiration of your story?

I’ve always enjoyed working with animals and wish I would have taken the path to veterinary school. While this was the genesis for my character, when I saw a television news channel featuring animals from shelters for adoption during the holidays, I knew I had found the inspiration for Murder Most Merry.

Do you have a favorite holiday romance author or book? (Short stories count too!)

I know this is strange, but I love A Christmas Carol, and though it’s not a genre romance, I always envisioned Ebenezer and Belle connecting at the later stage in their lives. Why? Because love isn’t a humbug.

How can readers find you online?

Website | Facebook | Instagram

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