Authors celebrate holidays with Love, Laughter, and Merrily Ever Afters set

Happy Thanksgiving, HEA readers!! To celebrate, the authors of the Love, Laughter, and Merrily Ever Afters boxed set join HEA to share their favorite holiday traditions with us. The set (99 cents!) includes authors Sawyer Bennett, Mari Carr, Janelle Denison (aka Erika Wilde), Violet Duke, Karen Erickson (aka Monica Murphy), Jessie Evans, Cathryn Fox, Melody Grace, Alannah Lynne and Marquita Valentine.

Karen Erickson (aka Monica Murphy), author of Fairies & Wishes

Q: What's your favorite holiday tradition?

Karen: Making sugar cookies with my kids. We have so much fun, and it makes a total mess, but oh, well. I have lots of cookie cutters in various Christmas shapes, and we frost and decorate them, using different colors and all sorts of sprinkles. I used to do the same thing with my grandma when I was little, so I'm trying my best to carry on the tradition!

Q: Please tell us about your story in the set.

Karen: My story features a holiday fairy (Lily) who's been sent down to earth to teach a lonely doctor how to love. My silly, innocent Lily didn't think things through, though, and ends up falling madly in love with Tim. And he falls madly in love with her. It has a bit of a fantasy aspect to it since she's a fairy and it's a light, fun, sexy read.

Violet Duke, author of Decking Drew

Favorite holiday tradition? Since my parents immigrated here to Hawai'i from Japan, my sister and I didn't celebrate many American holiday traditions growing up (i.e. we ate sushi on Thanksgiving, which was quite awesome since my dad is a former sushi chef). As the saying goes, "Lucky we live Hawai'i." Japanese holiday traditions are also popular here with the locals, and of those, my favorite is the making/eating of osechi ryori, the traditional foods eaten on New Year's in Japan. Now with my own kids, I love blending my family's traditional Japanese traditions with my husband's local Japanese traditions for a grand feast.

Story in the set?Decking Drew is the holiday tale of Skylar Sullivan from my NYT bestselling Can't Resist series and Drew Lawson from my USA TODAY bestselling Cactus Creek series (yes, my characters enjoy crashing each other's series). Both have gone through so much in their lives, and while Skylar chooses to keep believing wholeheartedly in the magic of Christmas, Drew simply doesn't. Of course, if anyone could make him believe, it would have to be the addictively sweet, mind-wreckingly beautiful girl-next-door of his dreams he'd classified as off-limits two years ago. The same one now standing on his doorstep on Christmas Eve.

Sawyer Bennett, author of If I Return

Favorite holiday tradition? Growing up, Thanksgiving was about so much more than just eating dinner with family. I grew up in a military community. My dad, who is a retired Marine, would go out on Thanksgiving morning and drive around town. There were always a few lonely Marines walking up and down the strip (where all the bars were) and he'd pull his car over and say, "Get in the car. You're going to eat dinner with my family." So, Thanksgiving was always about having strangers who needed a nice home and a warm meal while they were away from their own families. It was truly about the spirit of giving and sharing.

Story in the set?If I Return is about a chance meeting between two people that are destined to be with each other, but it just isn't the right time for them. After meeting and falling into a hot fling over a Christmas resort holiday, shy college student Hope Camden and gorgeous Army helicopter pilot Jack Freeman have more of a connection than just what they discover between the sheets. These two just click … on all levels.

Janelle Denison (aka Erika Wilde), author of Seducing Santa

Favorite holiday tradition? Thanksgiving is one of my most favorite holidays of the year. It's the one day that I know my family will be all together to celebrate and enjoy each other's company. Our tradition for the day includes everyone making their special dishes, then fun card games that bring out the competitive nature in our family!

Story in the set? All Faith Roberts wants for Christmas is one sexy night with Matthew Carlton, the hot, gorgeous pediatric surgeon posing as Santa for a visit to the children's ward where she volunteers. Matthew has been interested in Faith for months and is more than willing to fulfill her naughty wishes, and more. As Faith seduces her Santa, it's Matthew who steals her heart. She might have only asked for one night, but Matthew is determined to show her that he's the kind of gift that keeps on giving.

Cathryn Fox, author of Holiday Spirit

Favorite holiday tradition? My favourite holiday tradition is we all get to open one gift on Christmas Eve before we sit down and watch the Grinch. Every year I get the kids pyjamas and always pretend I didn't. They play along, and always act surprised! I love it.

Story in the set? My story in the bundle is a fun, sexy story to help put you in the "mood" for Christmas. The holidays are a hectic time so I wanted to write something that was short enough for a harried reader to devour in one sitting and walk away with a smile on their face. A voyeuristic holiday spirit? That ought to do it!

Mari Carr, author of Wild Irish Christmas

Favorite holiday tradition? There are lots of traditions attached to the season in my family, and it would be impossible to choose a favorite. It could be devouring my aunt's crab dip, the fireworks as soon as it's dark enough, the amazing lamb dinner my husband makes for us on Christmas Eve, or spending Thanksgiving with a houseful of family and friends as we eat ourselves into turkey comas. I love having the chance to relax with my family, listen to carols while we decorate the tree and then huddling under the blankets with my daughter for a Harry Potter marathon. It's a magical, wonderful time.

Story in the set?Wild Irish Christmas embraces some of the same traditions I enjoy in my own family. Everyone coming together to eat, drink, open gifts and tell stories. My Wild Irish family is all grown up and married with kids of their own when the story begins. When they decide to re-create Christmas' past for their father, Pat, the seven siblings spend the evening in the apartment where they grew up. They gather around the Christmas tree with a bottle of Jameson as Pat tells them the story of how he met their mother, Sunday.

Jessie Evans (aka J. Evans), author of Twelve Dates of Christmas

Favorite holiday tradition? My boys and I love getting up early on Nov. 1 and going to hit all the post-Halloween sales. We're such a Halloween-loving family — we plan our costumes in advance for months every year — and we love stocking up on costume pieces, decorations and extra pairs of skeleton socks for half price. And you can never have too much orange funfetti cake mix. That's a fact right there. ;)

Story in the set?The Twelve Dates of Christmas: The Ballad of Lula Jo is a Grinch story with a twist and a lot more holiday gnomes. We meet our holiday hater when she's a sweet young thing falling hard for a dashing young treasure hunter and catch up with her years later when the man who left her behind comes back determined to win a second chance with the only woman he's ever loved. And there are gnomes and maybe a gnome miracle — did I mention the gnomes?

Alannah Lynne, author of A Christmas Heat Wave

Favorite holiday tradition? I don't know how it started, but rather than having traditional turkey or ham for Christmas, we always had spaghetti and meatballs (and we're not Italian!). LOL One year, my mom decided to be a little more traditional and fixed a roast. That was when she found out just how much everyone looked forward to our family's tradition, and after that, she stuck with the spaghetti and meatballs.

Story in the set? All Samantha Mazze wants for Christmas is to create the perfect Christmas Eve celebration for her friends and family. The house is decorated, the meal has been prepared, the guests are arriving … and then all hell breaks loose. There's no salvaging the burned garlic knots. Her husband's ex-girlfriend makes an appearance. And the unexpected delivery of a new arrival all ensure that while this isn't a picture-perfect holiday, it will go down in history as the Heat Wave gang's most memorable and best holiday ever.

Marquita Valentine, author of His Christmas Wish

Favorite holiday tradition? One of my favorite Christmas traditions is when Hot Builder (the husband) and I round up our kids, brew up some hot chocolate and hit the road to look at Christmas decorations on Christmas Eve. We search for the best, most lit-up house out there and usually find it on a back road with homemade cardboard signs guiding our way. By the time we're done looking, the hot chocolate is gone and the kids are nearly asleep.

Story in the set?His Christmas Wish is a story about coming home and second chances at love. Joaquin Morales is a veteran and all he wants to do is rekindle his marriage with his estranged wife, Sage Caswell. But it won't be easy. For one, he and Sage became pen pals while he served in Afghanistan — only he lied to her about who he was, which she only just discovered. Second, no one actually knows they ran off and got married while they were in college because their families hate each other. Luckily, a snowstorm arrives to offer him a little help.

Melody Grace, author of Unwrapped

Favorite holiday tradition? When Christmas is approaching, I love taking an afternoon to bake cookies! I put on some festive music, get out the nutmeg and cloves, and fill my apartment with the scent of the holidays. Plus, I love packaging the cookies up and giving them as gifts.

Story in the set?Unwrapped is a fun stand-alone novella about spontaneous Lacey and straight-laced Daniel, who get stranded together on the way home for the holidays. Outside, it may be freezing, but inside, a racy game of truth or dare will get them all heated up …