Kissing Santa Claus

Pretty standard Christmas romance anthology

3 Stars

LOCK, STOCK & JINGLE BALLS – Donna Kauffman

Holly Berry hates everything to do with Christmas. So it’s no great joy to her when she inherits her mother’s Christmas shop in the small town where she grew up in and then left as soon as she was able. But her childhood crush Sean Gallagher is determined to make sure this is a Christmas season that Holly won’t soon forget.

This story lacked any sparkle, Christmas or otherwise. The plot was quite plodding, the characters lacking depth and the main focus of the story, a diary of secrets, was seemingly the prelude to another story by Kauffman. Disappointing.

BAH, HANDSOME! – Jill Shalvis

Hope O’Brien is struggling to keep her Colorado B&B in the black. She can’t afford to turn down any paying customers but when accountant Danny Shaw (who just happens to be the man who’s trying to put her out of business) turns up she might just change her mind. But the sparks that are flying aren’t out of anger so the B&B staff attempt a little holiday matchmaking.

This was an adorable story that kept my interest from beginning to end. I do love a sexy geek as a hero and Danny definitely was that. The couple had chemistry, there was humour and there was lots of snow. Not terribly Christmassy but it doesn’t matter when the story is as good as this one is.

IT’S HOTTER AT CHRISTMAS – HelenKay Dimon

Marissa just can’t believe her luck – all she wants is to leave Hawaii and head home to Philadelphia to enjoy some snow at Christmas yet she’s been the victim of two thefts and now can’t get a flight. The only person that can help her is police deputy Ted who is determined to show Marissa that Christmas doesn’t need snow to be perfect.

While I did enjoy this story, it didn’t really have any real excitement. The plot was predictable and quite unrealistic and the characters weren’t particularly endearing. It’s not a horrible story but not one I can really remember despite only finishing it a couple of days ago.

If you’re looking for some light, festive, sexy reads then this might be the book for you. For me, the Jill Shalvis story is excellent but I could take or leave the other two. 3 stars.

To All A Good Night

Sexy and entertaining romantic anthology

4 Stars

UNLEASHED by Donna Kauffman

Emma Lafferty has just landed her biggest job to date – pet-sitting for a multi-millionaire in his remote, palatial mansion over Christmas. What she doesn’t expect is her peace to be interrupted by the billionaire’s rather distracting and delicious great-nephew Trevor whose reasons for being there are definitely suspicious. And that’s before the pair get trapped together in the house during a snowstorm.

An enjoyable story with two likeable characters and a romance that you can suspend belief and just believe in. While being wintry and a perfect story for a night in by the fire, it wasn’t at all Christmassy and I was rather irritated to find that the ‘great mystery’, which was the whole reason for Trevor being there, was actually just the premise for another of Donna Kauffman’s books.

FINDING MR RIGHT by Jill Shalvis

Brilliant scientist Maggie Bell is an absolute dating disaster, always managing to pick men who turn out to be Mr Wrong. Sexy contractor Jacob Wahler, despite being gorgeous and sweet, definitely seems like a Mr Wrong, but Maggie has decided that a Mr Wrong might turn out to be oh-so right.

Again this story wasn’t Christmassy but it had wonderful characters and was fun, sexy and romantic. Jacob is a hero to die for while Maggie was someone most people could identify with. The story of the ‘mysterious potion’ was funny and kept the pages turning.

CAN YOU HAND ME THE TAPE? by HelenKay Dimon

One week before Christmas and Natalie Pritchard is in a complete panic. The sexy tape that she made for her ex-boyfriend is missing and she desperately needs help to get it back. Unfortunately the only person she can turn to is her nemesis, deliciously handsome and sexy defence attorney Spencer Donovan but will Natalie be willing to pay his price?

This was a cute story about a curvy woman who is still coming to terms with the way her last relationship ended and her insecurities about her body. Spence is a great hero and perfect for Natalie but the story really does suffer from being so short and the Christmas theme is quite thin on the ground.

This set of three, sexy Christmas stories is let down by the lack of festive content, but all of the stories are still fun, sexy and very readable. These will still warm you up and are perfect for a cosy winter night by the fire. 4 stars.