ISBN: 9781426890826
Publisher: Carina Press
Source: NetGalley
Release date : Dec 6, 2010
Holiday Sparks By Shannon Stacey
House-sitting for her parents seemed like a good idea, until the microwave blew up and the lights went out.
Now Chloe Burke thinks upgrading the electrical system of her childhood home while they are away would make the perfect Christmas gift. Fortunately, there’s an electrician in town who can get the job done by the holidays.
Scott Quinn has wanted to get his hands on the Burkes’ wiring for almost as long as he’s wanted to get his hands on their daughter. Chloe didn’t notice Scott back in high school, but she’s noticing him now, and soon they’re indulging in a little festive fun: no strings, no expectations. After all, Chloe plans to get out of this goldfish bowl of a town and back to her real life in Boston by New Year’s.
But Chloe and Scott discover they enjoy each other’s company just as much out of bed. Could their holiday fling turn out to be the real thing?All She Wants For Christmas By Jaci Burton
Country singer Riley Jensen would never have returned to her small Missouri hometown if her publicist hadn’t come up with the scheme to tape a Christmas special there. So she never would have known that the man who broke her heart at eighteen-causing her to flee to Nashville-was now a widower with a seven-year-old daughter. Riley has ten years of angst-filled hit songs and Grammy awards to prove she doesn’t need Ethan Kent. But suddenly, she can’t help thinking of all she gave up by running away…
Ethan Kent knew Riley had the talent and the drive to make it as a singer. He also knew she wasn’t going anywhere if she stayed in their nowhere town for him. Then one night and one huge mistake sent her running on the road to fame. Which doesn’t mean he ever stopped loving her…
But with so much separating them, can Riley and Ethan find their way back together one magical country Christmas?Unwrapped By Megan Hart
Newlyweds Leah and Brandon Long are finally taking a honeymoon. But just a few days into their Christmas-in-Vail vacation, Leah takes a tumble on the slopes, severely spraining her ankle. Being stuck indoors isn’t so bad though: the luxurious chalet boasts a hot tub and cozy fireplace. Besides, sitting with her feet up while Brandon serves her in every way a man can serve a woman is exactly how both of them like to spend their time.
Leah would be in heaven, if only Brandon didn’t insist on playing with the dynamic of their relationship. With kinky sex and deep conversation the only things on the agenda, Leah can’t avoid the discussion of how things might change. Will she be ready to take their marriage to the next level in the New Year?Rori is thrilled when Jude whisks her away to a luxury resort in the mountains. Spending Christmas away, just the two of them, is the perfect time to show him she’s ready to give herself to him completely…
Naughty and Nice is a collection of four short stories put together by Carina Press just in time for Christmas with a release date of Dec 6th. It is a great collection of two nice tales and two more spicy tales.Believe By Lauren Dane
Their First Christmas, Bound Together…
All Jude wants for Christmas is Rori, all to himself. It’s their first holiday season as a couple, and staying home, seeing friends and family, means they’ll be surrounded by the memory of Rori’s late husband. It’s time for Jude and Rori to create their own traditions. Time for them to fully explore their most intimate desires to dominate and submit.
The first story, Holiday Sparks, is about Chloe who is home for the first time in years, house-sitting for her parents who are on a cruise. She becomes aware how run-down her childhood home has become when she blows up the microwave trying to heat up a cup of coffee. When she calls an electrician for help, Scott Quinn answers the phone. Scott had a crush on Chloe during high school. When Chloe decides to hire Scott to re-wire her parent’s house as a Christmas present, they have the opportunity to spend some time in close quarters!
What results is a sweet love story! I loved how the author brought together two people who, despite a high school history, had much more in common as adults. I like how they stayed true to their personalities and how those personalities meshed. The secondary characters – so typical of a small town – interfered in a comical way with their developing relationship. Just a feel good, Christmas themed gentle love story to warm your heart this Christmas!
The second story, All She Wants for Christmas, is the story of Riley Jensen, a country music star, who comes back to her hometown, to shoot some footage for a biography being done of her. She ran away many years ago when she caught her best friend in bed with her boyfriend. Although it was tough after she ran away, she has managed to make a success of herself; she isn’t prepared to run into her old boyfriend, especially since he is now a widower with a little girl. Ethan Kent made a mistake, which resulted in Riley leaving town and reaching her potential, but he has held her in his heart ever since.
This book is another winner from Jaci Burton! Ms. Burton essentially uses the innocence of a child to rekindle the relationship between Riley and Ethan. I thought it was a wonderful way to use a little kid’s uncensored honesty. I could just imagine my daughter when she was little, reacting just like Zoey does in the story. What the adults don’t have the nerve to say, Zoey does!
The third story is Unwrapped by Megan Hart and is on the spicy side. It is the story of Leah and Brandon who are newlyweds, taking the opportunity of time off at Christmas to have a little honeymoon in Vail. Leah and Brandon have a healthy sex life with similar tastes in the games that they enjoy playing, but Brandon is the athlete of the two. When Leah injures herself trying to keep up with Brandon on the ski hill she has the opportunity to be pampered by her loving husband.
As this is one of the “Naughty” stories, the sex is graphic. The underlying story of a young couple coping with unexpected injury and what is really important at Christmas was wonderfully written and a nice addition to this book!
Believe by Lauren Dane is the last story in this set of 4. Sadly, it took me several pages to figure out that this is continuation of the story that is started in Second Chances. In Second Chances, Rori is a girl that is just out of a relationship and moving home to be closer to her sister and family. Although she dates Jude, he immaturely screws up their relationship and she kicks him to the curb. She meets and marries Zach and they live happily ever after until an explosion kills him and injures her. When she comes home after leaving hospital, she’s cared for by Jude. They live together in her apartment platonically. This short story tells the story of Rori and Jude reconnecting and getting away for the holidays so that they can be together without interruptions.
With my given bias of absolutely loving Second Chances, I was amazed yet again by the continuation of Rori and Jude’s story! I discovered in Second Chances that Ms. Dane can write a sensitive love story that drove me to tears with it’s beauty. The sex is graphic, yet absolutely fits in with the story and not gratuitous. This trend is continued in Believe. Rori is recovering and going on with her life after the death of her husband and forming a new relationship with Jude that in no way detracts from what she had. This short story forms a wonderful conclusion to our involvement in Rori, Zach and Jude’s lives. Thank you for such a realistic, comforting, yet highly erotic story!
