Secret wishes, sweet surprises, and gifts straight from the heart. Delight in this season’s most joyous presents with these four sparkling tales…“Making Spirits Bright” by Fern Michaels Melanie McLaughlin desperately wants to adopt two orphaned siblings and give them a real home for Christmas. A just-for-the-holiday marriage to Bryce Landry fits her plan perfectly…until unexpected sparks have Melanie dreaming of forever by his side…“Runaway Christmas” by Elizabeth Bass A glass of wine, lounging in pajamas, and catching up on movies—that’s Heidi Bogue’s idea of a perfect Christmas. Until her thirteen-year-old niece makes a surprise visit—and a snowstorm turns Heidi’s café into a community refuge. Now one handsome cop is giving Heidi plenty more reasons to celebrate…“Home for Christmas” by Rosalind Noonan Jo Truman needs a replacement Santa for her gift shop’s Christmas Eve party. She’ll do whatever it takes to convince lonely soldier Sam Norwood that he’s perfect for the part...and that the season for love is always…“Christmas on Cape Cod” by Nan Rossiter Maddie Carlson would do anything for her best friend. And helping Asa Coleman babysit a rambunctious puppy Christmas Eve night is her one chance to help the troubled teacher put his past to rest…and give the sweetest gift of all.
Fern Michaels isn’t a person. I’m not sure she’s an entity either since an entity is something with separate existence. Fern Michaels® is what I DO. Me, Mary Ruth Kuczkir. Growing up in Hastings, Pennsylvania, I was called Ruth. I became Mary when I entered the business world where first names were the order of the day. To this day, family and friends call me Dink, a name my father gave me when I was born because according to him I was ‘a dinky little thing’ weighing in at four and a half pounds. However, I answer to Fern since people are more comfortable with a name they can pronounce.
As they say, the past is prologue. I grew up, got a job, got married, had five kids. When my youngest went off to Kindergarten, my husband told me to get off my ass and get a job. Those were his exact words. I didn’t know how to do anything except be a wife and mother. I was also a voracious reader having cut my teeth on The Bobbsey Twins, Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, Cherry Ames and the like. The library was a magical place for me. It still is to this day. Rather than face the outside world with no skills, I decided to write a book. For some reason that didn’t intimidate me. As my husband said at the time, stupid is as stupid does. Guess what, I don’t have that husband any more. Guess what else! I wrote 99 books, most of them New York Times Best Sellers.
Moving right along here . . . Several years ago I left Ballantine Books, parted company with my agent, sold my house in New Jersey that I had lived in all my married life and in 1993 moved to South Carolina. I figured if I was going to go through trauma let it be all at one time. It was a breeze. The kids were all on their own at that point. The dump was a 300 year old plantation house that is listed in the National Registry that I remodeled. Today it is beyond belief as are the gardens and the equally old Angel Oaks that drip Spanish moss. Unfortunately, I could not get my ghost to relocate. This ghost has been documented by previous owners. Mary Margaret as we call her, is “a friendly”. She is also mischievous. It took me two weeks to figure out that she didn’t like my coffee cups. They would slide off the table or counter or else they’d break in the dishwasher. I bought red checkered ones. All are intact as of this writing. She moves pillows from one room to the other and she stops all the clocks in the house at 9:10 in the a.m. at least once a week. When the Azaleas are in bloom, and only then, I find blooms on my night stand. I have this glorious front porch and during the warm months I see my swing moving early in the morning when the air is still and again late in the day. She doesn’t spook the dogs. I always know when she’s around because the five of them line up and look like they’re at a tennis match. As of this writing we’re co-habiting nicely.
Most writers love what they do and I’m no exception. I love it when I get a germ of an idea and get it down on paper. I love breathing life into my characters. I love writing about women who persevere and prevail because that’s what I had to do to get to this point in time. It’s another way of saying it doesn’t matter where you’ve been, what matters is where you’re going and how you get there. The day I finally prevailed was the day I was inducted into the New Jersey Literary Hall of Fame. For me it was an awesome day and there are no words to describe it. I’ve been telling stories and scribbling for 37 years. I hope I can continue for another 37 years. It wasn’t easy during some of those years. As I said, I had to persevere. My old Polish grandmother said something to me when I was little that I never forgot. She said when God is good to you, you have to give back. For a while I didn’t know how to do that. When I finally figured it out I set up The Fern Michaels® Foundation.
Typical of the genre in many ways. I found the first, by the headliner Fern Michaels, to be badly written and to have annoying characters. The other three varied in quality but were, without exception, better than the Michaels in almost every respect.
Not my favorite in the genre (anthologized Christmas novellas) by any stretch of the imagination. I'm only vaguely interested in reading any of these authors again, which is my test for one of these. Oh well--better luck next Christmas!
I have read the first two books in this set, Making Spirits Bright and Runaway Christmas. Both were excellent books. Kept me interested from the start to the finish. I would highly recommend the set to anyone interested in a good romance.
I have always enjoyed Ms. Michaels’ novels, and now, three literary stars join her in this volume—Elizabeth Bass, Nan Rossiter and Rosalind Noonan. With Fern Michaels’ “Making Spirits Bright”, we are introduced to wealthy graphics Designer Melanie McLaughlin who, even though she seems to have it all, condo, car, her own business, plus friends and “Fur-Family”, lacks 2 precious items in her life—a special someone (that is until she is reunited with friend from long ago, the extremely handsome Bryce Landry) and her heart aches for motherhood. Melanie summons her courage and calls the “World Adoption Agency”, ready to complete the first steps in acquiring a family of her own. What a chaotic and nerve-wracking time! Melanie and Bryce begin to get closer and closer as, unknown to Bryce, Melanie survives her meeting with Adoption Agency Manager, caustic Olga Krause. Melanie is well prepared and all goes well until Ms. Krause informs her that the agency requires a private meeting with her husband. Uh-Oh! She doesn’t have one! Will that cancel her dreams of a long-awaited family? Will Bryce bow out of their possible relationship after he learns of Melanie’s maternal plans? In “Runaway Christmas” by Elizabeth Bass, we identify with 13 yr. old Erica’s sadness at Christmastime. Not only is she missing her Mom, but her Dad has remarried and she’s coping with her new Step-Mom, Leanne and infant Step-Sister, Angelica, plus snarky and pregnant Aunt Laura and Uncle Webb have no Christmas Spirit, not even a tree! Erica feels unwanted, invisible and surrounded by babies and babies-to-be. When Uncle Webb advises her to keep her eyes open and grab an opportunity when it presents itself, he never could have imagined the adventure that would unfold. Who would understand how she feels? None other than Laura’s nemesis and former Step-Sister, Heidi who lives and works in Brooklyn, N.Y.—a long way from Texas! Erica, Laura, Heidi, and even Erica’s Dad, William learn a lot about the true meaning of Christmas. Rosalind Noonan’s “Home for Christmas” finds single Mom, Jo Truman, her cousin, Molly and 5 yr. old daughter working hard in their store, “Cousin’s Christmas Shop”. Sad memories of Jo’s late fiancé’/famous skier/ Ava’s Father, Shane Demerit haunt Jo, especially when a rude customer keeps poking at the past. But things take a wild turn when Jo learns the identity of the woman’s husband, Sid Diamond who has come to town to purchase large amounts of real estate, demolish the centuries-old structures and build one of his world famous spas in their place! This includes “The Cascade House”, where Jo’s family works and even Jo and Molly’s shop! In the midst of all the turmoil, a special person from Jo’s past arrives from his stint in Afghanistan. Both he and Jo have to come to grips with their past and present, then, perhaps their yuletide will shine brightly. If you have read Nan Rossiter’s “ Words Get in the Way” and “The Gin and Chowder Club”, you will be familiar with Asa Coleman and his son, Noah. We find Asa coming face-to-face with haunting memories of a love and friendship he is sure will never be equaled. Son, Noah will always be a reminder and Maddie Carlson is now a special part of his life and hopes to be more if she can help him past the memories and remove his blinders. Along with Asa’s parents, fond remembrances turn into the first of many wonderful Christmases to come. Don’t miss this heart-tugging volume—it will warm you like something fresh from the oven! Nancy Narma
Making Spirits Bright: This was a very cute story, but I wish she had done more research on the cat, it just wasn't very realistic at times. But while the animals were cute, they weren't part of the actual romance. Melanie really steals the show in this one in her quest to adopt a child. Her determination was amazing and was something she wanted with all her heart. Bryce was a great guy. He was fun and all, but a bit too much of "whatever you want I want". There really wasn't a conflict there. I don't need much, but a little would have been nice.
Runaway Christmas: This was my favorite of the bunch! Heidi's world is really turned upside down this Christmas as everything seems to go wrong! Even the weather has it in for her and her dreams of a quiet, peaceful Christmas by herself are shattered. Her niece was just the right touch, but I'm not entirely sure how necessary she was to the story. It's almost as if she was added just to give another potential complication. There's a couple romances, and both are really sweet.
Home for Christmas: This one had a back story and a lot going on for a novella. Very well layered, with a great small town versus big corporation running through it as well. Sam is a great hero - with lots of depth and a lot of development as we move along. Jo was a tad too sweet for my taste. Just a little to goodie.
Christmas on Cape Cod: This one was my least favorite. A very sugary couple with a very sugary Christmas story. It just wasn't my style at all.
Overall, this was a great mix of Christmas tales. Some were better than others, but it was a great addition to my Christmas reading for the year.
I gave up on the first story after 3 chapters - too cheesy and not well written. The second story was pretty good, though very predictable. The third story would have been good but there were some things I didn't like about it. The gratuitous use of the word "wicked" (very cliche) and religious references. There was also a slightly sexist remark, which I didn't appreciate. The last story was very heartwarming, but predictable. Cheesy but cute. The writing was for very young adults. I would not recommend.
The title story, by Fern Michaels (whose writing I have enjoyed in the past) was the worst of the batch. It was like she had the idea for two stories and just kind of muddled them together and then removed half of it. Nothing made sense. Less than a hundred pages, every conversation should be meaningful, but she had loads of throwaway comments. (A whole conversation with her friend's daughters about weddings; promises one daughter she can be her bridesmaid someday... then gets married in Vegas two chapters later. Why did we have this conversation!?) Is part of the problem the fact that my youngest sister was adopted out of foster care, so I spent most of this story going That's not how this works!? To me, it was very off-putting the way that the MC just decided she HAD to have a kid, and even though she just thought of this idea literally today, she wants the kid IMMEDIATELY - it just basically felt like the child was a commodity that she had the right to go out and buy like you would a puppy, and it gave me the icks. In the end, she marries a guy she barely knows and ends up with two small children, all at the same time. Definitely sounds like a recipe for happiness and not a complete mess...
Runaway Christmas was my favorite of the four. Teenager in Texas is having a rough Christmas since her mom died last year and now she's living with the dad/stepmom she barely knows. She decides to run away to visit her aunt in NYC, who owns a coffee shop. Meanwhile, the aunt is having a complicated few days and keeps getting saddled with various extra responsibilities (the neighbor's dog, for instance), and on top of everything else the power goes out at her house, so the coffee shop ends up being a kind of spontaneous shelter for the neighborhood. These characters were fun and the situation managed to stay just on the right side of ridiculous while still being funny.
Home for Christmas was okay, but this was one of those books where it felt like it was the middle of a series and the author just assumed you already knew all of her characters and their relationships and motivations. The FMC is a single mom and she's bizarrely obsessed with staying single because of ONE book she read that said that you shouldn't have "temporary men" drifting in and out of your child's life. Okay, that's fair, but she literally wants to marry this guy...??? The whole thing where she acted like she was embarrassed to be dating him just because she didn't want her (five year old) daughter to know about it just seemed dumb.
Christmas on Cape Cod would have been a perfectly pleasant story about a single dad and his son getting a puppy for Christmas, except the author couldn't be bothered to give me a one-page explanation as to what the heck was going on with their entire family relationship. Obviously the kid's mom is gone... eventually we find out she's dead. But then something something he was living with some other guy he called dad, but I guess that wasn't his real dad, because this guy is his real dad?? I THINK what happened is Guy A was dating Girl and she got pregnant and they broke up and Girl married Guy B and then a few years later Guy B died so the kid went back to Guy A, who is the actual birth dad. But then there is also this throwaway line about how Girl died WHILE GIVING BIRTH...??? It would have taken two paragraphs to explain to me the actual situation, but because it never happened, I spent the entire time in detective mode trying to figure out what the heck was going on with these relationships instead of actually enjoying the otherwise perfectly-fine story.
I always enjoy Christmas books, and this was no exception. It included 4 short stories and some of them ended abruptly, and I felt they could have been longer to explain more. One was about a single lady wanting to adopt, one about a single lady thinking her Christmas would be watching movies by herself, one about a man who had been scarred in the war, and one about a girl who has loved her best friend who has no idea. I think my favorite and least favorite all tied into one was the first one.
I was not a fan of this. Several times I caught myself saying I must of read this before. It's too familiar. Then I realized it was the Fern Michaels Formula. Some things never change. That includes the framework to ALL of her books. The writing is really not that good. I think she's gotten used to writing the same thing over & over again & come to depend on the blind loyalty of her dedicated readers. (I'm thinking they may not get out much.) Read at your own risk.
This Christmas offering, with 4 different authors, under the banner of Fern Michaels, was a much better group of stories. The were light hearted, quick reads and made your spirits bright - perfect for this time of year. Have a merry Christmas!
Four touching, loving and fun stories that remind you what the Christmas season is all about. What the true meaning is and how it isn’t just for the month of December. I absolutely loved all four of them and highly recommend this book for the Christmas season.
If you like mushy love stories then this one is for you. I love 💘Christmas and I love love stories. Since it's the season for love and you are feeling it, read this book. That's all I have to say. Merry Christmas.
Some very good stories. All very interesting. The Home For Christmas one I believe I enjoyed best. It involved a soldier and I fully enjoy reading about soldiers, who have served for our freedom and come home different men!
The first one was bad, so bad, I put off reading the rest for awhile. I'm glad I came back to it though cause I rather enjoyed the last 3. Overall cute Christmas stories.
Highly recommend to any Hallmark/romance fan. Fern Michaels' story was only okay but better than her last title I'd read. Bass and Noonan's stories were my favorite.