Ho, Humbug, Ho by Kate AngellMy Thoughts: Christmas themed books are ones that I can only read around this time of year. I just can't get into people decorating trees and battening down the hatches for a huge storm when it's 100F outside. Sorry. I wish I could. But no. That means that all these free Amazon reads that happen to be Christmas-y are going to get read fast. There's a very small window of opportunity here, people. Very small.
Forced into a scratchy white beard and a red velvet suit two sizes too small, hotshot ballplayer Alex Boxer knows his goose is cooked when the woman supervising his community service turns out to be cute as a Christmas elf but channelling the nutcracker.
Naughty or Nice by Sandra Hill
Anyone can hold up a convenience store on Christmas Eve. But to do it impersonating Santa Claus, on behalf of a nun, handcuffed to a gorgeous hostage--that takes brass...bells.
Christmas Unplugged by Joy Nash
Two sisters, plus two brothers, plus one romantic Christmas weekend at Dutch Lodge with zero electricity. It all adds up to a sleigh load of mix-ups, breakups and happily-ever-after hookups.
So. A couple of things. I almost passed this book up when I first saw it. For one, short stories by authors I'm not already familiar with/invested in tend to leave me cold. Usually the length of the story doesn't give the author enough time to really shine and bring their voice to the table. Stories end up flat and I'm left disappointed. Second, the cover. Holy smokes, the cover is horrendous. I know that authors have very little, if any, input in what their covers look like, but this one does not make me in any way want to read what's between the pages.
However, in a burst of pre-turkey goodwill, I picked it up. Guys, the book is good. I actually liked it. A lot.
My favorite is the first story which is lighthearted and snarky and leaves you feeling good. Kate Angell's writing style really grabbed me. The fact that the main character is a baseball player and I still liked the story is pretty amazing because I don't do books about sports. Seriously. The second story has a bit of a rocky start- as in, I was confused as to what was going on and blinking in befuddlement- but it settled down and straightened itself out enough that I was pleased with the ending. Story #3 was a classic "snowed in with the hunky man in the woods" story, which I'm kinda a sucker for.
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