I've already had some email from readers of my new book, "Home for Christmas," which was released just a couple of days ago! Thank you for the kind remarks and encouragements! It is very thrilling to hear from you.

One question I've been asked several times from readers not in the Pacific Northwest is whether some of the landmarks mentioned throughout the book are real.

Over the next few weeks, I thought it would be interesting, to those of you reading the book, to discover which landmarks are real and which are a product of this author's imagination.


Early in the story, Seattle's Great Wheel makes an appearance. It is a new but iconic landmark on the Seattle skyline.

The Seattle Great Wheel is a giant Ferris wheel located on Pier 57 on Elliot Bay and overlooking Puget Sound. On opening day, June 29, 2012, it was the tallest observation Ferris wheel on the west coast with 42 fully enclosed gondolas, each seating up to eight people.  And yes, mentioned in the book is a special gondola that Savannah and Austin ride in, and it really does exist. It is called the VIP Gondola and features four leather bucket seats and a glass floor. Can you just imagine how spectacular that ride would be? Or scary ... to some of us not fond of heights. Smile.

While the Wheel is an incredible vision in the daytime, it becomes pure magic once the sun sets over that Western horizon and the lights of Seattle begin to twinkle. The light show is a spectacular vision you'll not want to miss.

Christmas, to me, is about hope and promise. It is about dreams. The story behind the Wheel is a story of dreams ... and a lesson in tenacity and vision and determination. For 30 years, Seattle businessman Hal Griffith had worked to build his dream of having a second Seattle landmark. His dream finally came to fruition when he realized he could build it on a pier he and his family had owned for decades. Lesson? Never, ever give up on your dreams.

For more information on Seattle's Great Wheel, click here.

Thank you  to all you who are reading my latest book, "Home for Christmas."

Merry Christmas ... a little early.