Review: Flirting with the Beast by Jane Porter

A woman expecting to spend the holidays alone finds warmth in the iciest man she knows in this steamy and charming later-in-life romance by New York Times bestselling author Jane Porter.

It’s been five years since Andi McDermott lost her husband, and she's finally starting to feel like herself again, ready to live fully—she’s even started dating again. But when her holiday plans with her stepson and his fiancée fall through, she refuses to spend another Christmas alone while everyone is celebrating with their families. Impulsively, she decides to go up to her cabin in Lake Arrowhead, a place she used to love to visit but hadn’t gone to in years, not since the feud started between her husband and their nearest neighbor.

Andi starts to rethink her decision when being alone at the cabin proves to be more challenging than she expected—a heavy snowstorm hits the area, and Andi finds herself trapped there with no one to help except for her neighbor, Wolf Enders. A military vet who lives full-time on Lake Arrowhead, Wolf is as grumpy and intimidating as Andi remembers. But he’s also unexpectedly kind and uncomfortably sexy—his presence reminds Andi that she may be older, but her body still works perfectly fine, thank you very much. But can this good girl tame this sexy beast of a man, and will this snowy fling turn into a love of a lifetime?

 

My Review:

One of the best books I have read in a while.

This is a Beauty and the Beast type story, but told in such a way that it became an addiction to me.  I wanted to know what happened, but I didn’t want the book to be over.  It is a very emotional story.  Many times, I had to stop reading because my eyes were too blurry with tears.  And then there were the happy parts that were just so perfect and felt so real.  I love the characters, the locations, the plot; I just loved everything about this book. 

I was happily surprised when Andi finally saw Wolf for who he was and not just the neighbor her late husband disliked.  Their love was so real, so raw, so much like everyday life; with all the emotions and thoughts women of a certain age go through.  This is my new favorite Jane Porter book. 

 

 

Review: Texas Christmas Magic (The Rossis of Whiskey River #3) by Katherine Garbera

Sometimes a fresh start requires a Christmas miracle…

Angelica Rossi moved to Whiskey River, Texas, for a true second chance. As Christmas approaches, she’s ready to rebuild her reputation and help her community by launching a nonprofit aimed at providing resources to the town’s underserved residents. To pull off this miracle, she’ll need to grab the attention of billionaire Max Parrish who’s offering business grants. How? By crashing his holiday party.

Max Parrish is a successful entrepreneur who prides himself on seeing through people’s characters and ulterior motives. When Angelica approaches him during his business Christmas party, he knows she’s not on his carefully curated guest list. Still, he lets her make her pitch. Her beauty and confidence intrigue him, and her proposal is nearly as tempting as she is. Max knows firsthand how important second chances are, so he agrees to fund Angelica’s grant with strings…him.

Max and Angelica find themselves collaborating over her business plan during the town’s festive holiday traditions. But Max has been fooled before. Will Angelica’s good intentions last beyond the holiday?

 

My Review:

A beautiful Christmas miracle.

When Angelica and her cousin crashed Max Parish’s party, she never expected more than gaining his help backing her charity project in The Barrels, Whiskey River’s low-income area.  She never expected to start dating Max; much less, fall in love with him.

Max is a business man.  His work was all over the country.  He didn’t plan on staying in Texas, but he never met anyone like Angelica.  His plan was to set up his next project and then head back to New York after Christmas.  But he couldn’t get Angelica out of his mind.  Will the magic of the season lead Angelica and Max to their happiness they both deserve? 

It was easy to get caught up in this story.  I enjoyed seeing how Angelica and Max we’re about to move past their painful pasts and learn to trust each other so they could fall in love.

Review: The Christmas Clues (Christmas Wishes Book 5) by Scarlet Wilson

What is Christmas without some healthy competition?

When successful Chicago sports journalist Dawson McLeod and botanist Piper Davis receive a mysterious summons to an attorney’s office, they learn they are the potential benefactors to a famous and reclusive author's historic estate—including her mansion, famous gardens, greenhouses, and more. Neither of them has had any contact with the author of their favorite Christmas book since they were both scheduled to interview her as children. But only Piper, who arrived early, succeeded, much to Dawson’s envy.

Both Piper and Dawson have ideas for how they plan to benefit the community with their potential winnings, but the legacy has strings. The author has left them a series of clues to be solved around the city starting twenty days before Christmas. Once childhood rivals and now strangers, Dawson and Piper must work together to uncover the clues by Christmas if they want either of their dreams to come true.

Will working together during the most magical time of year open their hearts, or will their lingering feud get in the way?

 

My Review:

A fun Christmas story.

Twenty-six years ago, when Piper and Dawson were just kids, they both planned to interview Margaret Smith, a famous children’s author.  Only, Piper got to Margaret’s house ahead of Dawson and she did the interview on her own.  Dawson never forgave Piper for stealing the interview away from him.  Piper and Dawson are reunited when they are both named in Margaret’s will.  They have been given the task of solving some clues before they can receive their inheritance.  But there is more to it than just an inheritance; a little mischief has been thrown into the mix as well.  And it is all in the name of love.

This is the kind of book where the characters are easy to love.  I only wanted the best for them.  As they searched for answers to the clues they were given, the locations that they went to were easy to visualize through the author’s words.  I was drawn into the story from the start and had a hard time putting it down.  It is the perfect Christmas story.