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Summer Santa
A Story from the Warmest Wishes: Dreamspinner Press 2018 Advent Calendar
Sam is a journalist struggling with the recent transfer to his magazine’s Brazilian office. He doesn’t speak the language and isn’t all that familiar with the customs. It also isn’t easy to make friends when you’re the new guy. Then there’s James, his friendly and gorgeous coworker, who is so out of Sam’s league, he knows he doesn’t stand any chance with the handsome Brazilian.
Just as Sam is preparing to spend Christmas away from his family, an unexpected surprise spins his lonely holiday plans around. Another unforeseen gift is James’s offer to show Sam some of the city’s holiday traditions. With his significant low self-esteem, Sam doesn’t know what to make of James’s offer and apparent interest. Can some last-minute decorations and an impromptu meal make Sam’s apartment feel more homely?
Maybe everything could come together in a wonderful way—if Sam can find the courage and confidence to accept all James wants to give.
Sam is a journalist struggling with the recent transfer to his magazine’s Brazilian office. He doesn’t speak the language and isn’t all that familiar with the customs. It also isn’t easy to make friends when you’re the new guy. Then there’s James, his friendly and gorgeous coworker, who is so out of Sam’s league, he knows he doesn’t stand any chance with the handsome Brazilian.
Just as Sam is preparing to spend Christmas away from his family, an unexpected surprise spins his lonely holiday plans around. Another unforeseen gift is James’s offer to show Sam some of the city’s holiday traditions. With his significant low self-esteem, Sam doesn’t know what to make of James’s offer and apparent interest. Can some last-minute decorations and an impromptu meal make Sam’s apartment feel more homely?
Maybe everything could come together in a wonderful way—if Sam can find the courage and confidence to accept all James wants to give.
52 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 1, 2018
22 people want to read
About the author
Ward Maia
7 books6 followersWard Maia was born and raised in Brazil and has seen almost every corner of that great and beautiful country. With a M. in Geology and Metamorphic Petrology, spending time in underground labs was more commonplace than interacting with real humans, which lead to the creation of entire fictional universes. The heroes that populate those universes are usually flawed and find love in unexpected places.
Having traveled throughout the country from North to South, Ward now calls the northwest of Brazil home. Alongside a grumpy sixteen-year-old poodle (that insists on always having the last word) and hundreds of paperback novels, Ward lives five minutes from the beach and enjoys drinking copious amounts of coffee and feeling the ocean breeze while writing about unexpected places and people.
Having traveled throughout the country from North to South, Ward now calls the northwest of Brazil home. Alongside a grumpy sixteen-year-old poodle (that insists on always having the last word) and hundreds of paperback novels, Ward lives five minutes from the beach and enjoys drinking copious amounts of coffee and feeling the ocean breeze while writing about unexpected places and people.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 19, 2018
3.5 Stars
Summer Santa follows Sam, an American newly living and working in Brazil, as he gears up to spend his first lonely Christmas away from home. But luckily for Sam, Christmas comes early when his immediate family surprise him with a visit so they can all spend the holiday together.
In the days leading up to Christmas day, Sam enjoys some quality time with his family, soaking up the Brazilian sun and experiencing the local festivities, while also growing closer to his gorgeous co-worker, James, who bumps into Sam and his family while out and about.
This story and its characters were both sweet and endearing. Sam was so shy and unsure when it came to James, but I loved that with some encouragement from his loving family Sam was able to embrace his feelings for James and throw caution to the wind for the first time in his romantic life. I also liked how adoring James seemed to be of sweet Sam - it was heart-melting stuff. They also shared one sexy on page scene together, which I found memorable not only for its hotness, but because this level of steam has been largely absent from the other advent stories I’ve read this year.
Aside from the lovely romance, I enjoyed the Brazilian setting and I adored the presence of Sam’s humorous and supportive family.
I liked this advent offering a good deal and I look forward to reading more from Ward Maia in the future.
Summer Santa follows Sam, an American newly living and working in Brazil, as he gears up to spend his first lonely Christmas away from home. But luckily for Sam, Christmas comes early when his immediate family surprise him with a visit so they can all spend the holiday together.
In the days leading up to Christmas day, Sam enjoys some quality time with his family, soaking up the Brazilian sun and experiencing the local festivities, while also growing closer to his gorgeous co-worker, James, who bumps into Sam and his family while out and about.
This story and its characters were both sweet and endearing. Sam was so shy and unsure when it came to James, but I loved that with some encouragement from his loving family Sam was able to embrace his feelings for James and throw caution to the wind for the first time in his romantic life. I also liked how adoring James seemed to be of sweet Sam - it was heart-melting stuff. They also shared one sexy on page scene together, which I found memorable not only for its hotness, but because this level of steam has been largely absent from the other advent stories I’ve read this year.
Aside from the lovely romance, I enjoyed the Brazilian setting and I adored the presence of Sam’s humorous and supportive family.
I liked this advent offering a good deal and I look forward to reading more from Ward Maia in the future.
November 27, 2018
Christmas stories generally aren't my thing, but this one was sort of a fun palate cleanser.
The short length didn't allow for tons of emotion, but having Sam's entire family in the story, and the fact that James was at times as unsure of himself as Sam, well, that kind of won me over.
There was one steamy scene and almost zero internal or external angst.
This one was all about two guys who really liked one another, but had to fumble around like idiots for a while, until they figured out that feelings were mutual.
The last chapter is a bit of an info-dumpy mini-epilogue, which was nice, but I would've liked for it to have been expanded on a bit more.
3.5 stars.
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My ARC copy of the story was provided by the publisher in exchange for a fair, unbiased review.
See All My Latest Reads (Review Quick-Links)
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January 1, 2019
Journalist Sam is preparing himself for his first Christmas without his family in his lonely apartment in Brazil, where he has recently transferred. But his family arriving for a unexpected visit for the holidays is just the first surprise of the season. Sam begins a sweet romance (with a very steamy sex scene) with hunky co-worker James and overcomes his natural shyness and low self-esteem, with the two men quickly getting a HEA in an epilogue of sorts. I liked this gentle slow-burn romance but would have liked some character development of James' (we get Sam's POV throughout). 3.5 stars.
I received an ARC from Dreamspinner Press in exchange for an honest review.
Review posted at Gay Book Reviews - check it out!
I received an ARC from Dreamspinner Press in exchange for an honest review.
Review posted at Gay Book Reviews - check it out!
December 20, 2018
Christmas in a foreign country with very different customs can be a challenge, especially if you don’t speak the language, have only recently moved there, and don’t know anyone. In Sam’s case, the fact that he is very shy and has low self-esteem makes things even more difficult. But not everything stays as glum as he thinks, fearing he’ll have to spend Christmas in Brazil, away from his family and all alone.
Please find my full review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Please find my full review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
December 16, 2018
ARC provided by the publisher through Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words in exchange for an impartial review.
Sam struggles with the climate, the job, and the language when he arrives in Brazil after accepting a job transfer. With the Christmas holidays coming, Sam is looking forward to being alone in his small, boring apartment and that’s about it. He wishes for more when his sexy coworker James helps him with a computer problem, but Sam’s too backward to ask him out.
A key phrase in the blurb is “significant low self-esteem” as that is the driving force of this story. His family surprises him with a holiday he won’t soon forget and he bumps into James on the beach and that leads to a night before Christmas Eve that fulfills his dreams. But Sam is not the driving force behind any of these good things, and his insecurity and inability to articulate what he wants form the crux of the story.
It’s evident the author is new as the writing style and repetitive words and phrases are quite elementary—he “found himself” once too often for me. The trope of the cute guy who’s insecure about his looks, his ability to find someone to love him, etc. is overdone and, unfortunately, not one I like at all.
A key element in the blurb is that Sam is a magazine journalist, and yet that’s not mentioned in the beginning pages of the story and when it finally is stated, it’s only in passing. Another issue is the language barrier he apparently can’t get past, and yet that, too, is only mentioned in the beginning and seems to disappear. We never learn whether James is also an American or if he’s Brazilian, and if a native, does he speak English fluently? Because Sam sure doesn’t speak anything other than English. Sam’s family members were a bit OTT as well, especially his aunt and his sister.
Though I didn’t enjoy it as much as I’d hoped, others may not be as bothered by the insecure and lonely MC theme as I am and so may enjoy the story.
Sam struggles with the climate, the job, and the language when he arrives in Brazil after accepting a job transfer. With the Christmas holidays coming, Sam is looking forward to being alone in his small, boring apartment and that’s about it. He wishes for more when his sexy coworker James helps him with a computer problem, but Sam’s too backward to ask him out.
A key phrase in the blurb is “significant low self-esteem” as that is the driving force of this story. His family surprises him with a holiday he won’t soon forget and he bumps into James on the beach and that leads to a night before Christmas Eve that fulfills his dreams. But Sam is not the driving force behind any of these good things, and his insecurity and inability to articulate what he wants form the crux of the story.
It’s evident the author is new as the writing style and repetitive words and phrases are quite elementary—he “found himself” once too often for me. The trope of the cute guy who’s insecure about his looks, his ability to find someone to love him, etc. is overdone and, unfortunately, not one I like at all.
A key element in the blurb is that Sam is a magazine journalist, and yet that’s not mentioned in the beginning pages of the story and when it finally is stated, it’s only in passing. Another issue is the language barrier he apparently can’t get past, and yet that, too, is only mentioned in the beginning and seems to disappear. We never learn whether James is also an American or if he’s Brazilian, and if a native, does he speak English fluently? Because Sam sure doesn’t speak anything other than English. Sam’s family members were a bit OTT as well, especially his aunt and his sister.
Though I didn’t enjoy it as much as I’d hoped, others may not be as bothered by the insecure and lonely MC theme as I am and so may enjoy the story.
April 6, 2019
A Christmas on the beach? Uh yeah! It's hard moving to a new place. Especially when you don't speak the language or know anyone. Christmas was going to suck. But Sam's family made it better, along with his crush from work, who was crushing on him. It was funny and charming and romantic.
December 24, 2018
3.5 Stars
Sam thinks he’s going to be spending Christmas alone in a new city where he doesn’t speak the language and he’s resigned himself to the idea. He’s not thrilled but he’s convinced himself that he’s going to run with this new job opportunity even if the timing was not ideal. One perk of the new job is the ability to ogle his dreamy co-worker James. Sam is convinced James is out of his league, he gets tongue tied when they interact and it’s really pretty charming. You know what was really charming though? When it became obvious that James was truly interested in Sam and James could be just as insecure when it came to putting himself out there with Sam.
The unexpected arrival of Sam’s entire family throws Sam off his routine and it works perfectly since he’s already off kilter from James attention and the new job. It’s good for Sam to be just a bit off center, it keeps him from overthinking and missing out on any James-centered activities. Sam’s family is great and this read like a true holiday story regardless of the weather. I totally bought the HEA for Sam and James, it was hopeful and real and gave me all the warm fuzzies.
**a copy of this story was provided for an honest review**
Sam thinks he’s going to be spending Christmas alone in a new city where he doesn’t speak the language and he’s resigned himself to the idea. He’s not thrilled but he’s convinced himself that he’s going to run with this new job opportunity even if the timing was not ideal. One perk of the new job is the ability to ogle his dreamy co-worker James. Sam is convinced James is out of his league, he gets tongue tied when they interact and it’s really pretty charming. You know what was really charming though? When it became obvious that James was truly interested in Sam and James could be just as insecure when it came to putting himself out there with Sam.
The unexpected arrival of Sam’s entire family throws Sam off his routine and it works perfectly since he’s already off kilter from James attention and the new job. It’s good for Sam to be just a bit off center, it keeps him from overthinking and missing out on any James-centered activities. Sam’s family is great and this read like a true holiday story regardless of the weather. I totally bought the HEA for Sam and James, it was hopeful and real and gave me all the warm fuzzies.
**a copy of this story was provided for an honest review**
January 2, 2019
Very short but emotional and sweet little goodie about Sam and James who meet as co-workers when Sam is transferred to position in Brazil. Dealing with the heat, his loneliness, his low self-esteem, poor Sam struggles each day. But Christmas is around the corner and things change for him. Loved the connection between Sam and James. Also loved the sexy bits which are surprising and utterly hawt!!! Great writing. Not too much back story but you get lovely bits about both MCs. Hope we can revisit them. This is my first book by this author and look forward to another that he is releasing later in January.
December 22, 2018
I really love how while Sam is trying to figure out a holiday without family it becomes a mote point. James seems more than wiling to be a part of Sam's holiday plans.
February 15, 2026
Probably 2.5* but rounded up as it is a Christmas story, fits the warmest wishes theme and really was OK.
Short story telling is an art and here I had too many questions about the background of both Sam and James - what they were doing, where they were from, why was Sam so insecure.
Otherwise, the story is fairly easy with Sam and James meeting at work and Sam finally getting past his insecurities to go out with James - and then get over every little obstacle.
Short story telling is an art and here I had too many questions about the background of both Sam and James - what they were doing, where they were from, why was Sam so insecure.
Otherwise, the story is fairly easy with Sam and James meeting at work and Sam finally getting past his insecurities to go out with James - and then get over every little obstacle.
December 20, 2018
Review to be posted.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews