Tag Archives: bit of magic

Santa falls in love and it’s super sweet

Posted on by

Santas Secret coverSanta’s Secrets by K.C. Wells

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

That was super sweet with a really lovely sharpness which stopped it becoming overly sentimental or cloying.

Inspired by last year’s Christmas advert for the Norwegian Post Office When Harry Met Santa, which celebrated that 2022 marked 50 years since the country removed its illegality laws on homosexuality and which you can watch here – Posten Norge – this book follows Anthony from an 11-year-old through to his early 50s.

When he first meets Santa, it’s completely by accident and their first few years of exchanges are simple and sweet, catching up on the things which have happened in Anthony’s life, including the AIDS crisis.

But things slowly change and it becomes increasingly obvious there’s not just a friendship here, but something that could be close to love. But how do you tell Santa you might be in love with him?

By interweaving a number of Santa origin stories alongside the Christian tradition of Saint Nicholas, K.C. Wells takes the reader on a sentimental and heartfelt journey as two men make the most of just one day a year.

With enough of an edge to prevent it turning into total schmaltz, this is a lovely festive read.

#ARC kindly received from the author in return for an honest and unbiased review

View all my reviews

I adore this small town series from Amy Aislin

Posted on by

55590737._SY475_Gingerbread Mistletoe by Amy Aislin

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was just delightful, a real treat for the festive season with a romance which just naturally progressed through the normal hiccups without any overly dramatic intervention.

I liked book one in this series, but this one just shades it into top spot because while I adored Zach in Christmas Lane, Holland was harder to warm up to.

Here, instead, both Mika and Jeff were easy to like characters even if Jeff was a bit grumpy at the start.

This small town setting really suits these festive-y romances and Amy has a deft hand for them, intertwining snippets from her other series as loose background Easter Eggs, which I appreciate because they don’t affect the main narrative but make me smile to see other characters mentioned that I’ve enjoyed reading about.

With this one, it’s a bit of a frenemies to lovers type plot as the initial meeting between Mika and Jeff is somewhat fraught. But 12 months later, they’re brought together under unusual circumstances and slowly build up a friendship which leads to attraction and love.

I liked everything about this one, including the more ghostly interventions which pushed it almost into the paranormal zone but reads closer to the whole magic of the festive season.

The same bunch of secondary characters are along for the ride too and I really love Lighthouse Bay as a setting and can’t wait for more.

#ARC kindly received from the author in return for an honest and unbiased review.

View all my reviews