Ring in the New Year with Author Alicia Joseph's Favorite Holiday Cookie and Her Latest Young Adult Read...

This is a favorite holiday cookie for my family. Mom whipped them up and us kids fought to lick the spoons. Now as adults, we try to have a little more decorum as we wait for these delicious chocolate balls to come out of the oven. Although I must admit, I do swipe my index finger in the bowl when no one is looking.

CHOCOLATE BALLS

1 stick butter
1 ½ cup sugar
½ cup cocoa
4 cups flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. cloves
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. vanilla
1 cup coffee at room temperature

PREHEAT oven to 350° F.

COOKIE DOUGH

MIX butter, sugar, and cocoa together in a medium-sized bowl. Add the other ingredients in a large bowl. Stir well. Blend in the butter mixture.

FORM the dough into little balls.

BAKE 10 minutes. DO NOT OVERBAKE. The balls will get hard.

FROSTING

1 cup powdered sugar
2 tbsp. milk
½ tsp. vanilla

ADD milk slowly to the sugar to make right consistency. Stir in vanilla. Mix well. If too thin, add more sugar. If too thick, add a few more drops of milk until you get a spreadable consistency.

Grab a few chocolate balls and then pour yourself a glass of milk. Get comfy and enjoy a little from my latest release.

  “When a train runs over a penny, the penny changes form, but it can still be a penny if I want it to be. Or, I can make it be something else.”

Lyssa and her best friend Abbey discover a hideout near the train tracks and spend the summer before sixth grade hanging out and finding freedom from issues at home. Their childhood innocence shatters when the hideout becomes the scene of a tragic death.

As they’re about to graduate from high school, Abbey’s family life spirals out of control while Lyssa is feeling guilty for deceiving Abbey about her sexuality. After another tragic loss, Lyssa finds out that a penny on the track is sometimes a huge price to pay for the truth.

Prologue

1993

I was jerked from my sleep while the phone was still buzzing its first high-piercing ring. I glanced at the clock on the nightstand beside my bed. It read 4:17 a.m. I knew something was wrong.

The second ring was abruptly broken up and my mother’s muffled voice carried into my room. I was already sitting upright in my bed when my bedroom door squeaked open. My mother’s slight figure appeared as a shadow near my door.

“Lyssa? You up?” she asked.

“What’s wrong?” My voice was no louder than a whisper.

I watched my mother slowly make her way into the dark room. I couldn’t make out the expression on her face, but the stiff movement of the outline of her body was hesitant.

She turned on the lamp and sat down beside me. Her face was pale. She let out short, shallow breaths. It seemed difficult for her to look me in the eyes.

“What is it?” I asked. “What’s happened?”

Finally, my mother looked at me with pain in her eyes. “Lyssa . . .” She smoothed her hand gently across my arm. “Abbey’s dead.”

I took in her words without an ounce of denial. The reality of what my mother had told me was instant.

My best friend was dead.

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Alicia Joseph grew up in Westchester, Illinois. Her first novella, Her Name, was published by Musa Publishing in 2014. Her Name is a sweet, romantic story about a woman who believes the beautiful woman she dreams about is the real love of her life.

Loving Again is her second published novella. Alicia is currently working on a new novel called A Penny on the Tracks, a coming of age story about love and friendship. Alicia has many works-in-progress that she hopes to finish soon.

When she is not writing, Alicia enjoys volunteering with animals, rooting for her favorite sports teams, and playing “awesome aunt” to her nine nieces and nephews.

Learn more about Alicia Joseph on her blog. Stay connected on Facebook and Twitter.