Wednesday 4 December 2013

Countdown to Christmas Day 4: Festive Fun Q&A with Zoe Miller plus giveaway


Today's it's the turn of Irish author Zoe Miller to take part in my Countdown to Christmas feature by doing the festive fun Q&A so here's what Zoe had to say...

What’s your earliest or favourite Christmas memory?
My earliest and favourite memories are of my lovely dad calling me and my younger siblings to look out the kitchen window on Christmas Eve, just in time to see Santa’s sleigh shooting through the dark night skies. Sometimes we thought we actually saw it, and we even heard the tinkling sleigh bells. A lifetime later, I still look out the kitchen window on Christmas Eve and smile…

What are you looking forward to most this Christmas?
The warm glow of the family being together on the day, sitting around the candlelit table, relaxing after the dinner.

Do you have any family traditions that you always follow? 
I have a medley of precious Christmas decorations handed down from my parents’ tree, and some rather tattered treasures going back to my own children’s childhoods, which are always hung on my tree. 

Do you do the whole traditional Christmas dinner or have alternative? 
It has to be traditional: turkey, ham, stuffing, crispy roast potatoes, brussels sprouts, carrots, 
cauliflower cheese, cranberry sauce, lots of gravy … my mouth is watering already!

What’s your favourite Christmas song or carol?
My favourite song is ‘Let it Snow’, it never fails to make me feel cosy, cheerful, and Christmassy. And ‘When a Child is Born’ - heart-tugging and moving.

What film do you hope to curl up and watch on Christmas afternoon? 
I’m a Home Alone fan, and while I might be too busy to watch television on Christmas afternoon, I’ll definitely put my feet up and have a laugh with those films sometime during the festivities.

Which singer/band would you like to turn up carol singing at your door?
I wouldn’t mind opening the door to find Alfie Boe singing in my porch. Although I might be so carried away I’d burn the turkey! 

Which celebrity would you like to snog under the mistletoe.
Santa Claus, of course!! ;)

If you could spend Christmas anywhere in the world, where would it be?
My own home is the place where I most want to wake up on Christmas morning. In the days after that, a trip to Salzburg or Vienna would be a wonderful mid-winter beak.

What’s top of your wishlist this Christmas? 
What I most hope and wish for is that the family have a joyful and peaceful time and that the dinner cooking is successful and stress free! I’m putting book tokens, Max Benjamin scented candles, and Estee Lauder treats on my Christmas stocking list.

If you could do one good deed for someone less fortunate than yourself this Christmas, what would it be?
I’d like to make sure they have a warm house, a full fridge, and that Santa comes to their children.

Now a few quickfire questions to finish...

Tree: real or artificial? Artificial, after a couple of real trees that wilted before the big day!

Fairy Lights: White or Multi-Coloured? The brighter and more multi-coloured the better.

Drink: Mulled Wine or Bucks Fizz? Chilled Bucks Fizz - yum!

Food: Mince Pies or Xmas Pud? Warmed Mince pies (topped with lashings of cream / ice cream)

Games: Monolopy, Trivial Pursuit or something else? The Wii – great fun, it gets everyone laughing and up on their feet.

You can connect with Zoe via: 

Website:http://www.zoemillerauthor.com
Facebook: Zoe Miller Author
Twitter: @zoemillerauthor

Zoe Miller is the bestselling author of 5 books including her latest The Compromise which is one of the books in my sadly neglected TBR pile which I'm hoping to read over Christmas. 

Childhood friends Juliet, Rebecca, Rose and Matthew grew up in a small village outside Dublin. Now privileged, wealthy and powerful, they appear to have it all. But when Juliet is involved in a suspicious accident and lies trapped between life and death at the bottom of a cliff, a secret that has been hidden for years threatens the seemingly perfect lives of the close-knit group.

For the beautiful, fragile Rose, Juliet's accident brings unwanted attention on the sins of the past. For her husband, the ruthlessly ambitious Matthew, it removes a critical obstacle from the path of his political career. As Rebecca discovers more about what happened to her friend, she begins to wonder if she ever knew the real Juliet Jordan.

Rebecca's troubled young daughter Danielle, hiding out in Rome, knows a truth that can shed light on what happened. But as secrets are revealed, the childhood friends are about to discover that, sometimes, old friends are the ones you know the least.

And Zoe has very generously offered a copy of The Compromise as a giveaway prize.  Open internationally, enter via the the Rafflecopter form below. 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

22 comments:

  1. Getting in the Christmas spirit with this blog!

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  2. The Compromise sounds right up my street! :)

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  3. Great interview and making me feel all Chritmassy now

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  4. Looking forward to curling up Christmas Day evening with a good book a mug of hot chocolate

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  5. Intriguing storyline from an author I haven't read before .... so keeping my fingers crossed ..

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  6. This sounds like a fab read, many thanks to you and the author for opening it internationally:)

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  7. I want this book, just intrigued by the front cover, where is she going?

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  8. Great post and thank you for this lovely give-away.

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  9. Sounds lovely, Carmel harrington shared with me :) happy christmas.

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  10. You have made me feel all Christmassy too! Love the cover of the book. Kim x

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  11. Looks like a great read! Lovely (INT!) giveaway! Fingers crossed ;-) Happy reading, M. x

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  12. Thanks for the giveaway and for letting us international readers check it out! Looks like a great read!

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  13. A lovely post and thank you for the giveaway. This sounds like a great read.

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  14. Great post...have never tried a warm mince pie, something to do for this year! Thanks for the giveaway.

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  15. We hang up all the sad looking ornaments the children made years ago. Love traditions.

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  16. Want to read this.

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  17. I read this book earlier in the year and loved it!

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  18. would love to win this

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  19. This book has been on my wish list for a while now :) thanks Shaz and good luck everyone!

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