Well, hello my darlings, long time no see! I'm delighted to be back with you and chatting about my absolute favourite thing: CHRISTMAS BOOKS! Christmas is tremendously special for me, and combining the love of the season with romance is a complete winner. I've got ten special books to share, so I'm going to dive straight in.
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DEAR SANTA by Debbie Macomber is a lovely way to kick off your festive reading; I always enjoy her Christmas books. How many of you remember writing letters to Santa when you were little, with a wish list? How many wishes came true? Lindy Carmichael's just had her heart broken - then her mother gives her all her old Santa letters, and Lindy realises sometimes Christmas wishes do come true, with a little help from you-know-who. No, not Voldemort, of course I mean Santa!
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Fancy a cowboy for Christmas? Don't we all! Vicki Lewis Thompson gifts us the scorching novella It's Christmas, Cowboy, and we do need to pop this in our Christmas stocking. With the always-poignant trope of second-chance-at-love, old school friends Tucker and Lacey reconnect. And boy howdy, do they ever! This is fast and furious, so if you've only got a short break, choose this.
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And speaking of cowboys - ranchers - ranch builders - Kelly Hunter's Must Love Christmas is totally fabulous, one of my 5 star reads this year. Seth Casey is such a dream hero, strong and rugged and sexy and capable and, well, also nice. Madeline is the rich girl who owns the ranch he wants to own, and she says no to his offer to buy it. I thought this might degenerate into a fight (sorry Kelly, I should've known better), but they're both so heroic it turns out to be a heart-grabbing romance. The scene on Christmas Day here is enough to move even the stoniest of Christmas scrooges (sniff).
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Rebecca Raisin is a new-to-me author this year, and I read the two books loosely linked to Flora's Travelling Christmas Shop and loved them: Rosie's Travelling Tea Shop and Aria's Travelling Book Shop. Both were terrific, especially the latter (it's about books!). I couldn't resist the third one, set in the most fairytale of all places at Christmas: Lapland! I'm not kidding. With reindeer and snow and hot chocolate and omigosh the food, and Christmas trees and, cough, Connor, a bit of a Christmas grinch. Flora's about the sort that out, quick smart. This is a gentle romance, and it's sparkly with tinsel and glitter and everything Christmassy.
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From Lapland to Edinburgh! I discovered Jenny Colgan last year, and she combines warm humour and romance with festive fun and food: a complete reader seduction. When you add in the booky setting for The Christmas Bookshop, it's winning all the way. At first I wasn't sure if I was going to like Carmen: she was aimless and a bit thoughtless. When her mother and sister foist her into a pretty hopeless destined-to-fail job at the bookstore, it takes a while for Carmen to shine. But, happily, shine she does, and just in time for Christmas. The romance is a little bit different, and the quirky characters totally capture your heart.
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Sweet Christmas Secrets is a stunning anthology with ten festive Regency stories written by ten Aussie authors. Kudos to them all! I had a fabulous time reading my way through the lushly romantic stories. Every one is just long enough to sit and enjoy as a mini break in-between all your Christmas busyness. They each feature a letter and/or a secret, and there are many misunderstandings and broken hearts before we get our happy ending. What a Christmas bliss bomb.
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While we're in Regency mode, treat yourself to the charming novella A Christmas Love Redeemed, by fan favourite Alison Stuart. It's a second-chance-at-love story, and it's simply lovely. Another one to enjoy with a quick hot chocolate and a fruit mince pie. Our hero is French (swoon) and the heroine English, so that leads to high tension when the hero is caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. Such a special treat.
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Who can resist the two sweet cherubs on the cover of Their Yuletide Healing? Not I! This is another new-to-me author, Mindy Obenhaus, who writes for Harlequin Love Inspired, a series where faith is a main element in the books. Have to say, faith and Christmas sort of go together, and also reconciliation and forgiveness and healing. Here the town Scrooge suddenly finds his guarded, lonely heart invaded by these two little foster kids and their foster mom. Just. Beautiful.
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It truly is a pleasure to read another Christmas story from Sarah Morgan, and The Christmas Escape is marvellous. And, again, shock, off we go to Lapland! Is the Universe telling me something? Do I need to book an escape to Lapland? (Yes. The answer is obviously yes.) It's not just snow and the cold and festivities, however. This is a deeply moving story of a little family in crisis, of reconciliation, and a zinger do-I-hate-you-or-love-you? romance. (Spoiler: love. The answer is obviously love.)
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I've been told the cover of Trisha Ashley's book One More Christmas at the Castle is all glittery and gorgeous, so it almost seemed sacrilegious to read it on my Kindle. I wanted all that razzle dazzle in my hands, sigh. But any which way you read this book you'll love it. You'll also put on weight just reading about the lavish food, oh my. I have no idea how these characters stayed trim. All that walking in the snow? An elderly widow invites a few key people from her family and friends - and the Heavenly Houseparty catering company - to mastermind her last Christmas at the castle (bit sad). The burning question is who will inherit, but I kept getting distracted by the Christmas cake and cheese straws and...never mind. Not one but two romances here, so terrific, and a fabulous cast of characters. And I'm not going to mention decorations or the food any more. Although there was the mulled wine and the mistletoe...no. A wonderful book that happily wallowed in Christmas from beginning to end, and it made me happy. I now want to live in a castle and have Heavenly Houseparties cater for me, forever. Enjoy.
So that's my little list. Happily I have many, many more also ready to go, including my annual reread of the classic A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. If you click on the link you'll see I've indulged in a very special new edition.
Merry Christmas, dear readers. May your festive time be merry and bright, and I hope Santa brings you some wonderful reading.
Do stay safe and well, and hug your precious ones tight.
Loads of love from Miranda xxx
Love to love: Christmas! Everything and all things Christmassy!
Love to laugh: I'm a bit like Cassandra Samuels, I love funny Christmas movies.
Love to learn: What are you reading? And some last minute hot tips for the Christmas stockings? Please tell? Pop it all in the comments. below.
