A random act of kindness ignites a wave of Christmas miracles in USA Today bestselling author Barbara Hinske’s heartwarming holiday classic, The Christmas Club.Verna Lind expects Christmas of 1952 to be the best holiday she’s had since the war ended. But as she’s leaving the bank, a frigid wind off Lake Erie catches her hard-earned Christmas Club savings, whisking the bills into the busy streets of downtown Cleveland and devastating her plans. Strangers come to her aid, though no one anticipates the power of their chance encounter or the seeds of happiness Verna’s lost money will sow.
When Edward and Carol help Verna recover her lost Christmas Club savings, Edward is convinced that Carol might be the soul mate he’s been longing for. They part ways without exchanging contact information, and he desperately searches to find her again. Will the magic of Christmas bring them back together?
Meanwhile, on Christmas Eve, a first-class passenger generously gives up his seat to a struggling young mother traveling with her infant. Taking the seat meant for her, Art meets Rosemary—and quickly realizes that fate may have led him to something extraordinary.
As Verna reflects on the kindness of strangers, will her own Christmas wish inspire Howard to reveal his long-hidden feelings for her?
Full of unexpected connections, second chances, and heartwarming moments,
The Christmas Club is a festive tale of hope, love, and the season's magic.
Interview with the Author
Q: Have you always wanted to be a writer?
A: I'm an attorney and have done a lot of technical writing, but knew I wanted to write novels. I thought I'd find time when I retired. Fate stepped in, as it often does, and put me on this path sooner. I broke my neck in an auto accident and suffered from double vision for months. I couldn't read or watch TV, so I conceived the plot for my Rosemont series.
Q: Why did you decide to write a series?
A: I prefer television series to movies. The longer format of television allows for deeper character development. The same holds true for series fiction. I like to fall in love with a character or hate a character (but root for them to change their ways). I feel like Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi from Alexander McCall Smith's Ladies' Detective Agency series are old friends. I wanted to recreate that sort of connection in the Rosemont series.
Q: What other authors do you read or admire?
A: I'm a fan of women's fiction, women's sagas, romantic suspense, domestic suspense, crime fiction, and romance. I love Rosamunde Pilcher's later trilogy -The Shell Seekers, Coming Home, and September. Jan Karon's Mitford series creates an enchanting world, as does Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove. My Rosemont series is set in the current day, but I've tried to capture a feeling of camaraderie and connection (among the good guys) that takes us back to a slightly simpler time and place.
Q: What are your favorite books?
A: A Man Called Ove, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, and Remarkably Bright Creatures.
Q: What are the high points of your author journey?
A: There are 3 things I hold very dear: 1) hearing from readers--especially newly blind adults--that my Guiding Emily series has given them hope and provided comfort, 2) having my novella The Christmas Club and my novel Guiding Emily made into Hallmark Channel movies of the same name (2019 and 2023), and 3) seeing my name on the USA Today Bestseller List.
Q: What of your own interests have you written about in the Rosemont series?
A: I love my home and all things related to homemaking: cooking, gardening, decorating, and entertaining. I love
celebrating all of the seasons and I change my decor for Easter, 4th of July, fall, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and spring.
BARBARA HINSKE is an attorney by day, bestselling author of the Rosemont series of novels by night. She inherited the writing gene from her father who wrote mysteries when he retired and told her a story every night of her childhood. She and her husband share their own Rosemont with two adorable and spoiled dogs. The old house keeps her husband busy with repair projects and her happily decorating, entertaining, cooking, and gardening. Together they have four grown children and live in Phoenix, Arizona.