Nora Bonesteel's Christmas Past: A Ballad Novella    by Sharyn McCrumb Order:  USA  Can Abingdon Press, 2014 (2014) Hardcover, e-Book      Reviewed by Mary Ann Smyth I feel as though I have received an early Christmas present. I am now the proud owner of Sharyn McCrumb's novella, Nora Bonesteel's Christmas Past. Keep this one in mind for a present for that voracious reader on your gift list. This is the eleventh in the Ballad Novels series. Summer people have just bought the house nearest to Nora Bonesteel in the mountains of Tennessee. They wanted to experience a mountain winter! They are doing renovation work to revive a house that had been idle for years. The wife invites Nora, ostensibly, for tea. What she really wants is an answer to the question of how their Christmas tree was knocked over. Nora can understand why that pink monstrosity hit the floor but decides not to tell her hostess her opinion. While there, Nora reminisces about past Christmases as a child and how the times have changed. In the meantime, the sheriff and his deputy have been given the order to arrest a man on Christmas Eve for a hit-and-run accident. They hate to arrest anyone on this night but have orders. Their attempt results in a wily old man getting the upper hand. Delightful! Thank you, Sharyn McCrumb for brightening my day. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Mystery books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews