Winter Warmers Review

Winter Warmers

Carole Matthews

Kindle Book

Three short stories from the wonderfully warm Carole Matthews: Winter Warmers - a gift for you.

All I Want for Christmas is You
Christmas is around the corner but Maria just can't get into the spirit - will she ever find Mr Right? But when a secret admirer starts leaving her poems and notes, it looks as though her luck is about to change . . .
Cold Turkey
Tara is in love with a man she can't have. She expected to spend Christmas with him but when the big day arrives, she finds herself alone. Sad and upset, Tara just wants to ignore the festive season - and then a chance encounter changes everything.

About Gardening
I love my husband Sam but our relationship isn't what it used to be. Can I find a way to bring us back together?

This is a lovely short selection of stories set at Christmas time with some romance added in. The first story – All I Want For Christmas is a sweet, sugary delight of a story. Nothing amazingly original, but a delightfully cute story about wanting to be with someone over Christmas – and looking in the right places for them.

Cold Turkey is more poignant about who we decide to spend Christmas with and being realistic. I liked this as a variation on the sweetness of the first story – it feels like a cheese course – tangy and refreshing with some bite to it. I really liked Tara as a character and hope she finds her happy ending!

The third story, About Gardening is the shortest and blandest of the three – nothing is wrong with it but I struggle to remember much about it. Like a glass of water – nothing wrong with it, but no memorable either.

Overall, these are a nice range of seasonal stories that should provide something for most Chick-Lit fans this Christmas!

Recommended for fans of Trisha Ashley and Marian Keyes. 7 out of 10

Wolfsbane and Mistletoe Review

Wolfsbane and Mistletoe

Edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P. Kelnor

Publisher: Gollancz

The holidays can bring out the beast in anyone. They are particularly hard for lycanthropes. Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner have harvested the scariest, funniest and saddest werewolf tales by an outstanding pack of authors, best read by the light of a full moon with a silver bullet close at hand. Whether wolfing down a holiday feast (use your imagination) or craving some hair of the dog on New Year's morning, the werewolves in these frighteningly original stories will surprise, delight, amuse, and scare the pants off readers who love a little wolfsbane with their mistletoe.

This is an anthology which combines Urban Fantasy and Christmas specifically werewolves and features many of my favourite authors including Patricia Briggs, Karen Chance and Carrie Vaughn. This is one of the strongest anthologies I’ve read - for some reason werewolves and Christmas seem a strong match creating many iconic images. One story that will stay with you is the idea of a werewolf leading Santa’s sleigh in Kat Richardson’s The Werewolf Before Christmas- it just brought a smile to my face!

Another idea that will stay with is a self-help group for Shifters – SA by J.A. Konrath. This story is packed full of ideas that will linger with you – transforming into a coral, the idea of the Salvation Army as a real army, what a shifter has to live with after changing back to human. It’s imaginative and fun. I’m not going to go through every short story but the only one that really disappointed me is Gift Wrap by Charlaine Harris. It’s a quick catch up with Sookie during the holiday season, and while I completely believe that authors know their characters best, Sookie disappointed me with her actions.

Overall, this was fun read – mixing up classic urban fantasy and werewolf tropes with festive greetings. There are even a couple of new authors who’s other work I will be checking out – I certainly hope Dana Cameron has written more books about her Fangborn world!

Recommended for fans of Rob Thurman and Kelley Armstrong. 8 out of 10

The Magic of Christmas Review

The Magic of Christmas

Trisha Ashley

Publisher: Avon Books

In the pretty Lancashire village of Middlemoss, Lizzy is on the verge of leaving her cheating husband, Tom, when tragedy strikes. Luckily she has welcome distraction in the Christmas Pudding Circle, a group of friends swapping seasonal recipes – as well as a rivalry with local cookery writer Nick over who will win Best Mince Pie at the village show…
Meanwhile, the whole village is gearing up for the annual Boxing Day Mystery Play. But who will play Adam to Lizzy’s Eve? Could it be the handsome and charismatic soap actor Ritch, or could someone closer to home win her heart? Whatever happens, it promises to be a Christmas to remember!

The book follows August to December in the village of Middlemoss where Lizzy is trapped in a loveless marriage with an emotionally abusive man, merely waiting for her son to go to university until she can escape. But when a tragedy occurs, she is given a second chance – the question is will she take it?

The village where Lizzy leaves is a typical chick-lit/Richard Curtis – an old fashioned village, still holding onto traditions in modern times and populated with eccentric characters that are basically kind-hearted but a little out-there. In fact if the cover and the brief description hasn’t warned you already, this could be an incredibly cloying and perfect. Lizzy is one of these perfect women – self-sufficient through growing fruit and vegetables and raising hens and quails. She bakes more or less continuously and is actively involved in the local community – helping with the Boxing Day Mystery play and preparing the hampers for the WI’s Christmas parcels. And off course her teen-aged beau is still sending her postcards with recipes on despite the fact they are both married to other people.

Lizzy is not very pro-active – the book follows her life for five months but she spends most of her time baking or dog-walking and never really makes any decisions to change or be pro-active. As such I found her rather lacking as heroine and wasn’t that fussed if she got her happy ending or not. I find the joy of chick-lit books is the journey on the way and apart from some wonderful descriptions of food (honestly I was starving after every chapter!), I didn't have much need to find out what happens next. The one major twist was signposted very early and so not a surprise to me. That said it was well written and would pass a few enjoyable hours if you miss the ‘traditional’ idea of an English country village!

Recommended for fans of Sophie Kinsella and Carole Matthews. 6 out of 10

Novella Review: Six Geese a-Laying

Six Geese a-Laying

Sophie Kinsella

Kindle Book

In Six Geese a-Laying, Christmas is approaching, and Ginny is looking forward to the birth of her first baby. It's a pity her partner Dan is so useless, and she has to keep reminding him where he's going wrong. Luckily she's enrolled into the most exclusive antenatal class going - all the highest achieving, smartest mothers-to-be aspire to be taught by the legendary Petal Harmon. Like the other five women in the class, Ginny already knows exactly what she wants, and how she's going to handle motherhood.But when they turn up for the final class it isn't quite what they expect. As Ginny discovers what parenthood is really going to be like, she begins to realize the things that really matter...

This is a sweet short story set days before Christmas at an exclusive pre-natal class for six women (whose names all begin with ‘G’). It’s their last class before their due dates and they are all chatting away comparing notes on nurses, names and worries they have about the birth and the child they are carrying. However, the last class is different from others as their instructor is able to give them all glimpses of what lays ahead (pun intended!).

I really enjoyed this – especially as it seems a lot of my friends are pregnant at the moment! It addresses a lot of the concerns expectant mothers have about themselves, their health care, their child and even their relationships, but at the same time is amusing and light. It’s not a long story but a fantastic little break from real life and easily read within half an hour.

Recommended for fans of Trisha Ashley and Marian Keys. 8 out of 10

Novella Review: Hidden

Hidden (Otherworld #10.5)

Kelley Armstrong

Kindle Book

Hiking through the snow, holiday baking and playing board games by the fire – what’s not to love about an old-fashioned family Christmas?
Werewolves Elena Michaels and Clayton Danvers want to give their four-year-old twins, Kate and Logan, something their parents never had: a nice, normal holiday. No Pack responsibilities, no homicidal half-demons or power-hungry sorcerers to deal with – just the four of them, alone, at a chalet outside Ontario’s Algonquin Park. Then a strange werewolf shows up at their door…while the town is buzzing about a young man, back from college, found half-eaten in the woods. And there’s the missing little girl …
With all the signs pointing to a rogue mutt with a taste for human flesh, Elena and Clay have no choice but to investigate. But are they the hunters – or the hunted?

It’s no secret that I adore Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld series – they were the first Urban Fantasy books I read and really introduced into the type of books I didn’t even know I had been wanting to read for ages. Hidden is a novella which follows Elena and Clay as they take their twins away for a family Christmas only to find some Strays in the area...

While the investigation into the local strays is interesting, the real joy are the discussions between Elena and Clay on how to raise their children. This was a wonderful story – really in keeping with Elena’s character as she balances her Alpha in waiting duties with her new parental responsibilities. It’s a fantastic insight into a character who I’ve been following for the last ten years and seeing her grow from the angry woman she was at the beginning. Clay is much softer now as a father but still able to wield that ‘grrr’ factor for want of a better description! I loved the little insight into Noah and Reese, the two new members of the pack – they really round out the pack and bring some young blood in now that Elena, Clay and Nick are growing up.

The writing is as fabulous as ever, while all the Christmas preparation from hot chocolate by the fire to gingerbread baking really gets you into a festive mood. While this isn't a full length novel, it is long enough to really feel involved (approx 193 pages) and getting to know the characters. Christmas with werewolves can’t get any better! J

Recommended for fans of Patricia Briggs and Ilona Andrews. 9 out of 10

Novella Review: A Karma Girl Christmas

A Karma Girl Christmas (Bigtime Superheroes #3.5)

Jennifer Estep

Kindle Book

It's Christmas time in Bigtime, New York, but society reporter Carmen Cole isn't in the mood to celebrate since her husband, Sam, has to go on a business trip and might not make it home for the holiday. But Carmen has plenty to keep her busy, since she moonlights as Karma Girl, a member of the Fearless Five superhero team. On Christmas Eve, Carmen, as Karma Girl, is assigned to guard toys, clothes, food, and more that are intended for needy children and their families. But an ubervillain also has his eye on the toys and plans to steal and then sell them to the highest bidder. Carmen will have to use all her empathic powers just to stay alive, not to mention make sure Christmas is a happy one for all the kids who are counting on her. It's all in a night's work for a superhero ...

A return visit to Bigtime at Christmas time to see how Carmen aka Karma Girl is getting to grips with being a superhero instead of uncovering their secret identities. This Christmas instead of snuggling up with her new husband Sam aka Stryker Carmen has to guard piles of presents for under-privileged kids…and of course it’s too tempting a target for the Uber-villians to just leave alone…

Carmen is a great character – warm and understanding, but with a piquant line of snark that stops her being too perfect. While most of the characters we’ve met so far appear at some point in cameo scenes or just in the background this is Carmen’s story and a nice catch up to see how she has coped with becoming a superhero. Her powers are fun to investigate and it was nice to see how she was able to handle the role without the rest of the Fearless Five around. Like the books, there are a lot of clichés in the story but you know it’s been included on purpose knowing you’d recognise them and enjoy them! My one criticism is that it is too short – I would love Carmen to feature as the main character in another full length novel!

Overall this is a very sweet story which reads like a cheesy Christmas special from one of you favourite TV shows – light, fun and full of seasonal cheer!

Recommended for fans of Lois and Clark and Christmas! 8 out of 10

Novella Review: Miracle at the Museum of Broken Hearts

Miracle at the Museum of Broken Hearts

Talli Roland

Kindle Book

Does every relationship deserve a second chance?
When chief romantic Rose Delaney scores her dream job at London's quirkiest new attraction, The Museum of Broken Hearts, she thinks she's got it made. Sure, it's a little depressing dealing with relics of failed relationships each day, but Rose is determined not to let it break her 'love conquers all' spirit. After discovering the museum's handsome curator is nursing a broken heart of his own, Rose steps in to fix it. Can Rose heal the rift, or will this happy ending go awry?

The Christmas theme is purely a matter of when it is set – the Museum of Broken Heart is due to open on 15^th December. The Museum of Broken Hearts aims to share with the world the remains of all those relationships that ended – from underwear worn on the last night to a salt shaker that stood through years of marriage. Rosie bored of her job at the British Museum applies to be assistant curator to the museum despite believing in happy ever-afters and fairy tale endings, but her new boss makes her start to question that belief.

This is a sweet short story about expecting happy endings verses making them happen. Rosie is a nice character – a little naive perhaps but basically good-hearted wanting everyone to be happy. Her new boss is a little aloof, but very handsome and it doesn’t take a genius to guess what will happen between the two of them. However, you don’t read Chick-Lit for original stories. The journey is sweet and well-worn and it does leave you with a big smile on your face.

A perfect wintery tale for those incurable romantics wanting their heart strings pulled in the run up to Christmas.

Recommended for fans of Sophie Kinsella and Carole Matthews. 7 out of 10

The BLI Holiday Reading Challenge

Through some miracle I'm managed to complete the required reading on the challenges I signed up for in 2012 - I'm still reading British Books and trying to shorten the TBR pile though! However, I spotted this challenge over at the wonder Book Lovers Inc and thought it sounded like the perfect mini-challenge to finish the year! So what the details...?

Challenge Rules:

1. The BLI Holiday Reading Challenge will start on November 14 and will end on December 31.

2. You can read as many holiday themed books for the challenge as you wish, pick your level:

Santa’s Helper: read 1-3 holiday themed books [This is my aim as I already have a lot of review books due before the end of the year!]
Serial Mistletoe-er: read 4-6 holiday themed books
Candy Cane-aholic: read 7 or more holiday themed books 

3. The books you read for this challenge must all be holiday related books. The holiday doesn’t matter, it can be Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, etc. and the story can have any connection to the holiday (for example set around Christmastime, or having Santa or an elf as a character, the cover being festive, featuring snowflakes, etc.).

4. The format, length or genre of the books do not matter, they can be ebooks, paperbacks, audiobooks, and short stories and novellas do count as well. It’s okay for the book to overlap with other challenges. The only thing is that they can’t be children’s books, but YA novels are good. Re-reads are also fine.

5. Start the challenge by signing up! Leave a link back to your challenge post in the linky below where you state your challenge level (and if you already know which books you’ll be reading a list as well).

If you don’t have a blog, no problem, you can still sign up with your name and e-mail address.

(There will be posts later where you can leave your links to your reviews and of course there will be a challenge wrap up post at the end).

6. And of course there will be prizes! There will be separate giveaways where you can win some holiday themed novels (the rules for those will be set out on the separate posts) and there will be the Grand Prize Giveaway: at the end of the challenge we will draw 3, yes THREE winners from all the review links. Meaning the more books you read, review and link up, the more chances you have at winning. 

1st winner: shopping spree of $15 USD 

2nd winner: shopping spree of $10 USD 

3rd winner: shopping spree of $10 USD 

of any holiday themed books at the Book Depository or the online ebook retailer of winner’s choice if they accept payment through Paypal.

And now that the rules are set, let’s start the challenge!

So look out for some festive themed reads over the next 6 weeks! I have a couple on my TBR pile already that I've been saving for this time of year! Why don't you join in...?