Author Spotlight Header Image
Author Spotlight,  Giveaway,  Hope-filled Fiction

Danielle Grandinetti: Spotlight on The Neighbor and the Gifts & a Giveaway

July 16, 2025 /

I hope you’ll enjoy a little Christmas in July through this spotlight post by Historical Romantic Suspense author Danielle Grandinetti.

For a chance to win a copy of her new release, The Neighbor and the Gifts, be sure to comment below by July 22! (US winner’s choice of paperback or ebook; International winner will receive an ebook)

The inspiration behind The Neighbor and the Gifts came from asking myself a series of “What Ifs.”

What if … 

Do you enjoy Christmas music? I do! I also love discovering the story behind the song. One such carol is The Twelve Days of Christmas. According to the Smithsonian Magazine, the poem was originally published in Mirth Without Mischiefin 1780, but has been around much longer. While the history of the poem and song is difficult to trace, I personally like the theory that it is a sort of catechism, telling the Bible Story in verse. But …

What if … I wrote a Christmas romance around this song?

A lot of the romances I’ve read that do involve the 12 gifts, it’s usually the hero or heroine giving the gifts. Twelve drummers, eleven pipers, ten lords a-leaping, nine dancing ladies, eight maids a-milking, seven swans, six geese, those five golden rings. All on down to the partridge in a pear tree. (Though a partridge isn’t native to Wisconsin, so it would have to be a pheasant). So many options for fun gifts to give! But …

What if … the bad guy in a suspense story was the one giving the gifts?

This got me thinking. If the bad guy was giving secret gifts, it would be likely he was a stalker of some kind. Only, the term stalker wasn’t used in this sense until the late 1900s. Thus commenced the research into the history of stalking. During the early 1900s and before, it had a psychiatric term: Erotomania. Only, back then, erotomaniacs tended to be female as opposed to today when stalkers are often male. However, at the end of the day, an erotomaniac is obsessed with love, which was the perfect opportunity to run with the question of …

What if … 

Titus paused. Would it be okay to mix his job of protecting Ollie with the possibility of seeing where a relationship could go? “She has this other person who wants her attention. I won’t be compared to him. I won’t push her.”

“Which is the point.” Osborn glared at him. “She needs someone to show her what True Love really is. And the way you stormed into this cabin when you thought she could be in trouble? Well, there was nothing at all about your entrance that had anything to do with your job.”

Titus swallowed. He hated to admit that the old man was right. 

Keep reading in The Neighbor and the Gifts.

Thanks for the peek into the inspiration behind The Neighbor and the Gifts, Danielle! I love your process of asking questions to get to the heart of the story.

Visit the #HopeFilledFiction blog and comment on Danielle Grandinetti’s author spotlight by 7/22 for a chance to win her #HistoricalRomanticSuspense, The Neighbor and the Gifts! #giveaway

Tweet

Join the conversation. Does Danielle’s post pique your interest about her book? What draws you in the most? Do you enjoy reading Christmas stories? What questions or comments do you have for Danielle?

Be sure to comment below by July 22 for a chance to win a copy of Danielle’s book! (Paperback or ebook for US winner OR ebook for International winner)

The Neighbor and the Gifts book cover

The Neighbor and the Gifts by Danielle Grandinetti

Click the book cover for purchase links

Twelve days. Twelve gifts. One unlikely hero.

Wisconsin, 1930—When Manitowish Waters librarian Olivia “Ollie” Larson finds a package on the library steps, she expects the children’s books she ordered, not a taxidermied partridge. By the fourth gift from her unknown and unwelcome True Love, disappearing to her grandfather’s isolated cabin in the Northwoods is the only way she can escape him.

Deputy Titus Wilburn is happy to escort the lovely librarian to her grandfather’s house on his way to the neighboring Yarwood cabin. After all, he’s been smitten with her since they attended school together, and she needs his protection. However, the plan fails when Ollie’s uninvited suitor discovers her new location.

As the man’s actions become more desperate and his gifts more dangerous, an unexpectedly bedridden Titus decides to free Ollie from this menace, which puts the enemy’s sights directly on him. Ollie refuses to let her injured hero sacrifice himself, but with the days ticking closer to Christmas, she may have no choice but to accept whatever fate her suitor has in store for her if she wants to save Titus’ life.

One cabin in the Northwoods … a decade of Christmas miracles.

Danielle Grandinetti is an award-winning inspirational romance author fueled by tea, books, and the creative beauty of nature. Her stories combine romance, mystery, and suspense against the backdrop of the 1930s to tell the tale of finding home and hope in hard times. Learn more at daniellegrandinetti.com.

Connect with Danielle HERE.

Danielle Grandinetti headshot

Please share Danielle’s spotlight on social media to help spread the word about her book!

If you missed Jenelle Hovde’s interview last week, FIND IT HERE!

As a Jesus girl for more than thirty years, Deena Adams understands how important hope is to daily life, which fuels her passion to inspire others through hope-filled fiction based on true to life stories. She is a multi-award-winning author, an active ACFW member, and a six-year ACFW Virginia board member. Connect with Deena through her website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

You May Also Like

Author Interview Header Image
Abbey Downey: Spotlight on An Uncharted Dream & a Giveaway
July 2, 2025
Author Spotlight Header Image
Terrie Todd: Spotlight on Lilly’s Promise & a Giveaway
May 31, 2023
Author Spotlight Header Image
Penelope Marzec: Spotlight on Angel of the L Train
September 14, 2022

28 Comments