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A Convenient Christmas Wife: An Uplifting Inspirational Romance
A makeshift Christmas family Might be just what he needs Injured and widowed after an accident, Joshua Miller desperately needs help caring for his four children. So when he proposes a marriage of convenience to their housekeeper, Esther King, she is thrilled. She’s always wanted a family of her own, but it’s never come to be. Now her heart is open to the children, but her new husband is a different story. Joshua’s still reeling from the death of his wife. And Esther’s got a secret that stands between them. Can a marriage of convenience become a love match this Christmas?From Love Uplifting stories of faith, forgiveness and hope.
- GenresChristmas
272 pages, Mass Market Paperback
Published October 22, 2024
11 people are currently reading
40 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
December 28, 2025
What is Esther’s secret? I couldn’t stop wondering what it was and how it was impacting all her decisions. It caused me to pick this up on a Saturday and finish on a Sunday, not something I do very often, but I just couldn’t put this one down. Between Esther’s quiet shyness around Joshua, her secret, and Joshua’s insistence that he can never love again, you just want to soak it all in and find out the breaking point when all hearts align and romance takes over.
Joshua’s pain seemed so real to me, and it brought out my mama bear in me. The affection his family poured into him made me long for deeper connections with my own children, and they were a blessing to Joshua in his own way. The story shows how God’s timing isn’t always our timing and how healing can come when hearts finally open.
This is a great book for those who love single parent or marriage of convenience stories. It really gets at the nature of what love can do for someone in pain, both physical and mental. This book opens your eyes to God’s healing and timing, if we just let go and let Him.
Joshua’s pain seemed so real to me, and it brought out my mama bear in me. The affection his family poured into him made me long for deeper connections with my own children, and they were a blessing to Joshua in his own way. The story shows how God’s timing isn’t always our timing and how healing can come when hearts finally open.
This is a great book for those who love single parent or marriage of convenience stories. It really gets at the nature of what love can do for someone in pain, both physical and mental. This book opens your eyes to God’s healing and timing, if we just let go and let Him.
December 17, 2024
Marriage of convenience? Single dad? Grumpy/sunshine? Christmas? Yes please! A Convenient Christmas Wife by Rebecca Kertz checks off several of my fave romance tropes/preferences which means I quickly became invested in Joshua and Esther’s story. If you’ve read this author’s last two books before this one, you will recognize Joshua as the son of Jonas Miller (the hero of The Widow’s Hidden Past) and the brother of Fannie (the heroine of His Forgotten Amish Love). If you (like me) have not read either of those books, don’t worry – you won’t be lost at all.
I immediately liked Esther and her winsome personality, including her sweet heart and nurturing spirit. She’s one of those people who genuinely cares about others and is always willing to lend a helping hand. Which is what leads to her being tasked with cleaning the home of her friend Fannie’s brother, Joshua – a grieving widower with 4 young children. He has recently moved back to New Berne to be closer to family after the tragic car accident that took the lives of his wife and unborn baby and left him seriously injured, and oh how my heart ached for those precious kiddos. To say that Joshua isn’t the most gracious recipient of Esther’s help would be an understatement lol… though, in my opinion, that made it all the more fun to watch his attitude shift from recalcitrant to friendly, then attracted, and then at last in love. (But my goodness, his dad’s view of ‘it’s been 4 months… it’s time to get married because your kids need a mom’ made my whomping purse a tad twitchy haha)
Bottom Line: A Convenient Christmas Wife by Rebecca Kertz is a lovely story of family and romance as well as a gentle exploration of grief, not only over the loss of a loved one but over the loss of a dream too. Joshua and Esther provide readers with two relatable characters that are easy to root for – especially as the possibility of a happily-ever-after becomes more tangible – and their respective personal growth journeys over the course of the story are ones that readers will also enjoy. Engaging side characters, like Joshua’s children & his father and sister, add dimension and warmth to the novel, and I particularly enjoyed watching Joshua fall in love with Esther. A quick read that’s perfect for a much-needed break from holiday shopping or baking or decorating – but make sure you have some yummy snacks on hand because the food they eat in this one all sounded so wunderbaar!
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book)
first reviewed at Reading Is My SuperPower
I immediately liked Esther and her winsome personality, including her sweet heart and nurturing spirit. She’s one of those people who genuinely cares about others and is always willing to lend a helping hand. Which is what leads to her being tasked with cleaning the home of her friend Fannie’s brother, Joshua – a grieving widower with 4 young children. He has recently moved back to New Berne to be closer to family after the tragic car accident that took the lives of his wife and unborn baby and left him seriously injured, and oh how my heart ached for those precious kiddos. To say that Joshua isn’t the most gracious recipient of Esther’s help would be an understatement lol… though, in my opinion, that made it all the more fun to watch his attitude shift from recalcitrant to friendly, then attracted, and then at last in love. (But my goodness, his dad’s view of ‘it’s been 4 months… it’s time to get married because your kids need a mom’ made my whomping purse a tad twitchy haha)
Bottom Line: A Convenient Christmas Wife by Rebecca Kertz is a lovely story of family and romance as well as a gentle exploration of grief, not only over the loss of a loved one but over the loss of a dream too. Joshua and Esther provide readers with two relatable characters that are easy to root for – especially as the possibility of a happily-ever-after becomes more tangible – and their respective personal growth journeys over the course of the story are ones that readers will also enjoy. Engaging side characters, like Joshua’s children & his father and sister, add dimension and warmth to the novel, and I particularly enjoyed watching Joshua fall in love with Esther. A quick read that’s perfect for a much-needed break from holiday shopping or baking or decorating – but make sure you have some yummy snacks on hand because the food they eat in this one all sounded so wunderbaar!
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book)
first reviewed at Reading Is My SuperPower
January 1, 2025
Finishing out the year 2024 with this exceptionally good book. I started it yesterday and could not put it down.
I highly recommend this 5 star read.
Esther King has always wanted a family, but with her hidden health problems she is convinced this will never happen. She has distanced herself from any possible boyfriends because of this. Being Amish she knows being blessed with children is very important and she doesn’t want anyone to learn her health secret. By the time Joshua Miller, a widower with four young children, begins to show interest in Esther, she has already fell in love with the children but when he tells her he wants her to agree to have a marriage in name sake only , to be a mom to his children, Esther realizes that this just might work. She would have a family but would not have to reveal her health problems. Will Joshua find out Esther’s secret? Will Esther and Joshua’s agreement to this marriage arrangement stick?
I highly recommend this 5 star read.
Esther King has always wanted a family, but with her hidden health problems she is convinced this will never happen. She has distanced herself from any possible boyfriends because of this. Being Amish she knows being blessed with children is very important and she doesn’t want anyone to learn her health secret. By the time Joshua Miller, a widower with four young children, begins to show interest in Esther, she has already fell in love with the children but when he tells her he wants her to agree to have a marriage in name sake only , to be a mom to his children, Esther realizes that this just might work. She would have a family but would not have to reveal her health problems. Will Joshua find out Esther’s secret? Will Esther and Joshua’s agreement to this marriage arrangement stick?
December 20, 2024
Fantastic Story
This is such a fantastic story! I loved the characters, the storyline, and everything about it.
Esther is just amazing. She has dealt with an issue that has changed her thinking and future dreams, yet none of that has changed her character. She is so caring and sweet that you root for her to have her happily ever after.
Joshua has certainly suffered a great loss and is working at recovering from all he's been through. However, he is so blessed to have his children, whom he loves dearly. He will do anything in his power for their benefit. And that's where Esther comes in.
Esther and Joshua's story is beautiful and touching, and the children add a sweet layer to their story. This story of loss, recovery, second chances, healing, love, faith, and family will deeply touch your heart. It is well worth reading, and you won't want to miss it.
This is such a fantastic story! I loved the characters, the storyline, and everything about it.
Esther is just amazing. She has dealt with an issue that has changed her thinking and future dreams, yet none of that has changed her character. She is so caring and sweet that you root for her to have her happily ever after.
Joshua has certainly suffered a great loss and is working at recovering from all he's been through. However, he is so blessed to have his children, whom he loves dearly. He will do anything in his power for their benefit. And that's where Esther comes in.
Esther and Joshua's story is beautiful and touching, and the children add a sweet layer to their story. This story of loss, recovery, second chances, healing, love, faith, and family will deeply touch your heart. It is well worth reading, and you won't want to miss it.
October 25, 2024
I enjoyed this one as i was reading it I realised that it is part of a series
While you don't know it was the people in it so i checked on books i have read by this author & yes it was my one critism is that it should be linked so people know that it is in a series even if they read it as a stand-alone one
I did enjoy the children in this book it does make me wonder if Amish children as more advance for what they do & say or is it just the authors taking licence to do it as it's not only in this book that i thought my kids couldn't do this or that or say what they say at their age
I do enjoy books by this author & if I like the synopis (have so far in all the books) i now get them without reading a sample
While you don't know it was the people in it so i checked on books i have read by this author & yes it was my one critism is that it should be linked so people know that it is in a series even if they read it as a stand-alone one
I did enjoy the children in this book it does make me wonder if Amish children as more advance for what they do & say or is it just the authors taking licence to do it as it's not only in this book that i thought my kids couldn't do this or that or say what they say at their age
I do enjoy books by this author & if I like the synopis (have so far in all the books) i now get them without reading a sample
November 22, 2024
I enjoy a marriage of convience story and the characters in this one were well written. However I often felt I was missing something and had to put the pieces together.
The author's writing style was very simplistic and I was missing not having more descriptions of people and places. Still it's a story you may enjoy so do give it a read.
The author's writing style was very simplistic and I was missing not having more descriptions of people and places. Still it's a story you may enjoy so do give it a read.
December 9, 2024
The characters in this book were so likeable. Very sweet and wholesome as most all Amish books are, but the interaction and conversation between the main couple was also very romantic. Always love a Christmas setting even if just a short part of the book.
December 24, 2024
This was a sweet holiday read. It was a marriage of convenience story which was well done. My favorite thing about this book is Esther and how she did so many kind things for people. I found that inspiring. If you are looking for an easy, Amish read, I recommend this book.
December 23, 2024
This was a very satisfying read! I highly recommend it to Amish fiction fans!
Want to read
February 21, 2025A
November 17, 2025
very good book
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews