REVIEWED BY DEBBIEA Great Holiday Story
This was a bit of a surprise. I had no idea what this story was going to be about.
We had a year when my husband and I lost both of his parents and then my mom all within 30 days! When the holidays came around, it was so hard to face without them. This story basically gave me all the feelings from that time. You continue to move and function but always with your loss wrapped around your heart.
I loved Tina’s mom’s toast. That is how I look at the holidays now, enjoying whose there each time we are lucky enough to get together.
Thank you, Karen J. Mossman, for bringing my feelings to words and helping me realize that we are all celebrating with just a smidgen of sadness for the ones who aren’t there each year. I do love the memories, though!
I would recommend this short story to anyone who is struggling with finding the joy that Christmas is all about and to those who just love a good, heartwarming story.
We had a year when my husband and I lost both of his parents and then my mom all within 30 days! When the holidays came around, it was so hard to face without them. This story basically gave me all the feelings from that time. You continue to move and function but always with your loss wrapped around your heart.
I loved Tina’s mom’s toast. That is how I look at the holidays now, enjoying whose there each time we are lucky enough to get together.
Thank you, Karen J. Mossman, for bringing my feelings to words and helping me realize that we are all celebrating with just a smidgen of sadness for the ones who aren’t there each year. I do love the memories, though!
I would recommend this short story to anyone who is struggling with finding the joy that Christmas is all about and to those who just love a good, heartwarming story.
REVIEWED BY NICHOLEUnique and funny!
This is not the first story by this author that I have read, but it is a different genre. I can hear their voice in the work, but it feels a little rough around the edges still. The concept of the story is fascinating – no spoilers! – and I would absolutely want to continue the story. The characters are interesting and entertaining. The plot feels fresh and the world created is accessible, but still mysterious. The dialogue and description of action felt clunky at times, which is the only thing that took me out of the story.
I would recommend this book to lovers of fantasy – mixed with a bit of humor and mischief!
I would recommend this book to lovers of fantasy – mixed with a bit of humor and mischief!
REVIEWED BY TIFFANYA Sweet Christmas Anthology
Anything can happen between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and this heartwarming, magical trilogy proves it. This entire trilogy was lighthearted and fun to read.
In A Christmas Do-Over by Sheila Roberts, Darby absolutely doesn’t want to go home for the holidays. But, after a career set-back leaves her no more excuses to avoid going home, Darby slinks back to the small town she always wanted to escape when she was younger. Nobody except her parents and brother are particularly happy to see her, especially not her younger sister or childhood best friend, Gregory. Darby is working hard to become a better person but now she’s going to have to face the consequences for her former mean girl ways. Has she grown enough to eat humble pie and make amends? I’ve never read anything by Sheila Roberts but I will definitely be reading more of her work. Darby and her family were such relatable characters. I could absolutely understand how it feels to have to face the music for past misdeeds. This book is such a sweet story of forgiveness and second chances.
In Dashing Through the Snow, Melissa Ferguson tells the story of Willow. When her boyfriend of seven years, breaks up with her right before they were supposed to leave for a romantic Christmas adventure, she decides to go for the two week train adventure on her own. She was completely heartbroken so she couldn’t have predicted the hilarious rebound ride with conductor, Oliver, elf Ian, and aging former conductor and world traveler Oliver. As her heart heals, she begins to discover her sense of self worth. I absolutely loved Willow’s sweet story! I loved watching her rediscover who she is and realize that she deserves far better than the way her ex treated her. This is a story of new beginnings and I absolutely loved every second of it. I’d love to read more of Melissa’s work.
In A Perfectly Splendid Christmas, Amy Clipston takes us back to Splendid Lake and tells the story of Kacey. Kacey always dreamed of living in a city and she loves her life there. But, she returns home to Splendid Lake to help her sister run her bakery during a family crisis. While there, she falls in love with her former classmate and best friend, Drew. The only problem is she loves her life in the city and he’s a hometown guy, through and through. While she can work from anywhere, Drew is a teacher and loved by his students. Is there love enough for one of them to uproot their life? As always, Amy Clipston wrote well rounded, relatable characters. In this sweet story, she shows that sometimes your new beginning might involve going back to your roots.
In A Christmas Do-Over by Sheila Roberts, Darby absolutely doesn’t want to go home for the holidays. But, after a career set-back leaves her no more excuses to avoid going home, Darby slinks back to the small town she always wanted to escape when she was younger. Nobody except her parents and brother are particularly happy to see her, especially not her younger sister or childhood best friend, Gregory. Darby is working hard to become a better person but now she’s going to have to face the consequences for her former mean girl ways. Has she grown enough to eat humble pie and make amends? I’ve never read anything by Sheila Roberts but I will definitely be reading more of her work. Darby and her family were such relatable characters. I could absolutely understand how it feels to have to face the music for past misdeeds. This book is such a sweet story of forgiveness and second chances.
In Dashing Through the Snow, Melissa Ferguson tells the story of Willow. When her boyfriend of seven years, breaks up with her right before they were supposed to leave for a romantic Christmas adventure, she decides to go for the two week train adventure on her own. She was completely heartbroken so she couldn’t have predicted the hilarious rebound ride with conductor, Oliver, elf Ian, and aging former conductor and world traveler Oliver. As her heart heals, she begins to discover her sense of self worth. I absolutely loved Willow’s sweet story! I loved watching her rediscover who she is and realize that she deserves far better than the way her ex treated her. This is a story of new beginnings and I absolutely loved every second of it. I’d love to read more of Melissa’s work.
In A Perfectly Splendid Christmas, Amy Clipston takes us back to Splendid Lake and tells the story of Kacey. Kacey always dreamed of living in a city and she loves her life there. But, she returns home to Splendid Lake to help her sister run her bakery during a family crisis. While there, she falls in love with her former classmate and best friend, Drew. The only problem is she loves her life in the city and he’s a hometown guy, through and through. While she can work from anywhere, Drew is a teacher and loved by his students. Is there love enough for one of them to uproot their life? As always, Amy Clipston wrote well rounded, relatable characters. In this sweet story, she shows that sometimes your new beginning might involve going back to your roots.
REVIEWED BY THERESA HULONGBAYANFamily or Government
The fifth book in the gift legacy series, takes the story to a different level. The result of the prior book has set up this story showing the varied nature of paranormal detective work. Beginning with the loss of an infant from the hospital to the disappearance of her boyfriend, Emelynn has a lot of personal struggles. She needs to find who she can trust, fliers, or the government.
I liked the building nature of the personal struggles. It is remarkable how the events build on top of each other, creating a mountain of problems the characters have to surmount. The use of the gifted powers makes the idea of problematic investigation important. J. P. Mclean, shows how conspiracies can reach every level of society. The use of compartmental investigation makes the plausible deniability of the government.
I recommend this book to many readers. It can easily cross genres; it can be listed as thriller, paranormal, superhero, romance or mystery.
I liked the building nature of the personal struggles. It is remarkable how the events build on top of each other, creating a mountain of problems the characters have to surmount. The use of the gifted powers makes the idea of problematic investigation important. J. P. Mclean, shows how conspiracies can reach every level of society. The use of compartmental investigation makes the plausible deniability of the government.
I recommend this book to many readers. It can easily cross genres; it can be listed as thriller, paranormal, superhero, romance or mystery.