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Jingle All The Way
Feeling the chill of winter? Then grab a glass of egg nog, take a seat by the yule log, and warm yourself heart and soul with these four captivating tales of passion that make mistletoe seem so unnecessary...
A Bright Red Ribbon Fern Michaels
Being dumped by your boyfriend on Christmas Eve has got to be the worst. Still, Morgan Ames promised she'd wait two Christmases for his return -- tonight -- and she always keeps her promises. But a sudden snowstorm has other ideas, including a romantic turn Morgan never imagined...
The 24 Days of Christmas Linda Lael Miller
A matchbox advent calendar first brought Frank Rayner and Addie Hutton together. But that was years ago. There's no way the miracles of Christmas -- and the magic of true love -- could possibly be hidden under one of its tiny flaps. Or could they?
Santa Unwrapped Theresa Alan
When Aimee Lachaussee offers to drive three volunteer Santas to a children's hospital, she finds herself stranded in a bar with two really obnoxious playboys -- and the quiet, hunky, wheelchair-bound Ryan, who's about to show Aimee that the very best presents come in unexpected packages...
Maybe This Christmas Jane Blackwood
Laura Randall thinks life has passed her by, until a Christmas angel grants her wish to live one, important, destiny-shaping Christmas over. Now that she's got her second chance, can she manage this time to hold on to the love that got away...?
While the weather outside is frightful, unwrap a gift of your own, and delight in these sparkling stories of holiday romance!
350 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2004
82 people are currently reading
741 people want to read
About the author
Fern Michaels
424 books6,514 followersFern 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.
READ FERN MICHAELS' FULL BIOGRAPHY HERE: http://www.fernmichaels.com/biography/
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.
READ FERN MICHAELS' FULL BIOGRAPHY HERE: http://www.fernmichaels.com/biography/
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
December 26, 2018
Great collection of holiday short stories! These all had a great dose of candy canes and holiday pageants, putting us all the way at 5 gingerbread men on the cheer scale. I loved all of these, and especially the inclusive messages, like the first story by Theresa Alan which featured a romance which started with a volunteer trip to the hospital to play elves and Santa. The chemistry was cute and I loved the disabled rep. Yay for complex, sexy heroes in wheelchairs! And the third story by Linda Miller, we have a second-chance romance in a small town where a divorced stepmother proves that it’s choice and love that form families as she makes the holidays merry for two adorable kids.
Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.
Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.
December 4, 2019
Review is based on A Bright Red Ribbon. This is my first Fern Michaels story. I see her name everywhere so she must be popular, but unfortunately this was a huge thumbs down from me. My biggest problem isn't the improbable storyline or the doormat heroine or even the "gosh, sweetie, we knew your boyfriend was a massive tool but we didn't want to rescue you from a miserable marriage by telling you what we think about him" parents. Even the dog with impossibly human-like traits wasn't all that bad, though unrealistic.
No, for me it was the super weird interactions and stilted conversations between the two main characters. I don't know if it was because it was an earlier example of her work or what, but I really hope her writing became more polished. Both characters would take turns being rude to each other for no reason, burst out with non sequiturs, or just spontaneously bursting into random verbalizations of douchery. You know what? Hold my beer. I'm going to grab my book and share some examples.
Is this just a terrible sample of Fern Michaels' writing? I'd like to try again, if I know it's much better now. This one was just so hard to power through.
No, for me it was the super weird interactions and stilted conversations between the two main characters. I don't know if it was because it was an earlier example of her work or what, but I really hope her writing became more polished. Both characters would take turns being rude to each other for no reason, burst out with non sequiturs, or just spontaneously bursting into random verbalizations of douchery. You know what? Hold my beer. I'm going to grab my book and share some examples.
Is this just a terrible sample of Fern Michaels' writing? I'd like to try again, if I know it's much better now. This one was just so hard to power through.
January 4, 2017
Wow! I was just so heartily disappointed in this compilation. I was looking for a light christmas read (though, it took me over a week past Christmas to finish it.... probably a reflection on how much I liked the book.) This compilation did NOT deliver. Don't get me wrong, there wasn't much depth to it, though not all the stories were awful. The _24 Days of Christmas_ was a reasonably enjoyable little read, though I couldn't help wondering where-the-hell Henry's bio-Mom was, and why wasn't she taking care of her kiddo. But, the kiddo helped move the story along, so whatever. *shrug* _Maybe This Christmas_ redeemed it's rough start with a HEA that was a little TOO sappy, but not an awful way to finish, either. The other two stories _Santa, Unwrapped_ and _A Bright Red Ribbon_ were actually quite painful to read. I'd thoroughly anticipated _Santa, Unwrapped_ but found the characters obnoxious and not interesting in the least. With _A Bright Red Ribbon_ I wanted to literally reach into the book and slap the characters around quite a bit. Morgan was beyond obnoxious, and so flipping scatter-brained that it made my daughter's ADD look mild by comparison. I actually had to STOP myself from saying "SQUIRREL" during EVERY DAMN PARAGRAPH of dialog spoken by "Mo." And there was a TON of dialog by "Mo." Most of it delivered in monologue for several sentences. Murphy was beyond unbelievable, even for a service dog, though it wasn't indicated that he'd ever been INTENDED to be a service dog, as he'd belonged to Marcus before the accident, it certainly wasn't indicated that Murphy'd ever gotten formal training as a service dog. But yeah, the dog can pack his own luggage for travel, no help what-so-ever. *rolling my eyes* Marcus was a bit of a jackass. And WTF was with naming 4 of the characters with "M" names? We've got "Marcus," "Morgan," "Murphy, the dog," and "Marcie", Marcus' deceased sister. The story went from unbelievable, to so freakin' far-fetched that I doubt I will ever bother to pick up any of Fern Michael's full-length novels, though the premise of some of them have piqued my interest in recent months.
Won't bother re-reading this book again. Won't be recommending it to anybody, either. Don't waste your time, at least not on the whole book. Maybe the two decent stories mentioned. The rest were a waste.
Won't bother re-reading this book again. Won't be recommending it to anybody, either. Don't waste your time, at least not on the whole book. Maybe the two decent stories mentioned. The rest were a waste.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 14, 2014
Review originally posted to: Author Unpublished.
This Christmas-themed anthology was a bit of a mixed-bag. I think out of the four stories, Maybe This Christmas by Jane Blackwood and The 24 Days of Christmas by Linda Lael Miller were my favorite of the bunch, with A Bright Red Ribbon by Fern Michaels and Santa Unwrapped by Theresa Alan falling disappointingly behind. The latter two stories seemed rushed (particularly A Bright Red Ribbon) and I found it hard to sink into their narratives. The romances just felt a little too forced for me to enjoy. A Bright Red Ribbon in particular felt as if the dialogue had been force-fed a dose of holiday candy. The pace was so swift that the characters came across as hyper-active. It was a little weird—and although the plot was fantastic… I found myself cringing.
As for Maybe This Christmas and The 24 Days of Christmas, I found both stories to be heartwarming and enjoyable. They too had some issues with the romances being a bit quick (as is usual with short stories) but they didn’t feel nearly as forced as the other two stories, and in the end, I enjoyed them more. They were very well written.
I don’t want to delve too much into the stories individually (because we’ll both be here all day), but I think overall I really enjoyed the anthology—though the religious bits came across as a little preachy in parts. Still, I’m glad I gave this anthology a shot, and though it’s not my favorite Christmas-themed anthology so far this year, it was still a good read. There’s a gem or two in here for romance readers who are looking for quick, heartwarming holiday reads.
This Christmas-themed anthology was a bit of a mixed-bag. I think out of the four stories, Maybe This Christmas by Jane Blackwood and The 24 Days of Christmas by Linda Lael Miller were my favorite of the bunch, with A Bright Red Ribbon by Fern Michaels and Santa Unwrapped by Theresa Alan falling disappointingly behind. The latter two stories seemed rushed (particularly A Bright Red Ribbon) and I found it hard to sink into their narratives. The romances just felt a little too forced for me to enjoy. A Bright Red Ribbon in particular felt as if the dialogue had been force-fed a dose of holiday candy. The pace was so swift that the characters came across as hyper-active. It was a little weird—and although the plot was fantastic… I found myself cringing.
As for Maybe This Christmas and The 24 Days of Christmas, I found both stories to be heartwarming and enjoyable. They too had some issues with the romances being a bit quick (as is usual with short stories) but they didn’t feel nearly as forced as the other two stories, and in the end, I enjoyed them more. They were very well written.
I don’t want to delve too much into the stories individually (because we’ll both be here all day), but I think overall I really enjoyed the anthology—though the religious bits came across as a little preachy in parts. Still, I’m glad I gave this anthology a shot, and though it’s not my favorite Christmas-themed anthology so far this year, it was still a good read. There’s a gem or two in here for romance readers who are looking for quick, heartwarming holiday reads.
January 3, 2011
Four stories set at Christmas time by 4 different authors. Obviously, some were better then others. I didn't read the "previews" for other of these author's books that were placed after each story simply because I generally don't read these authors / type of books, so I certainly didn't want to get into 1 or 2 chapters and then be cut off.
I have to say, in general, these Fluffy Romance novelist do have the recipe down pat for writing fun reads that suck you in. Settings and dialog are modern and realistic. Quick reads and so very nice to stay up late and read on cold, snowy nights during the Christmas holidays.
These stories have sex in them. Mainly a "one time deal" for all of them and didn't go on for page after page. However, what there was was fairly detailed and I wouldn't want my teenage daughter reading them.
The 24 days of Christmas was the sweetest story and least amount of sex.
"Maybe this Christmas" by Jane Blackwood was my favorite. It was about a woman who is so grief stricken over the loss of her stillborn baby that she drinks everything else away too--her husband, children, kindness, etc. She gets to go back and relieve the pre-divorce days again and try to keep her worn out husband from leaving her. I liked the idea of 2nd chances, changing your course, etc. Definitely my favorite.
The book is off my "To read" shelf of Christmas stories (literally, not on Good Reads) and off to the yard sale pile. Too much sex to keep and/or want to read again, but delicious, naughty fun during stressful holidays.
I have to say, in general, these Fluffy Romance novelist do have the recipe down pat for writing fun reads that suck you in. Settings and dialog are modern and realistic. Quick reads and so very nice to stay up late and read on cold, snowy nights during the Christmas holidays.
These stories have sex in them. Mainly a "one time deal" for all of them and didn't go on for page after page. However, what there was was fairly detailed and I wouldn't want my teenage daughter reading them.
The 24 days of Christmas was the sweetest story and least amount of sex.
"Maybe this Christmas" by Jane Blackwood was my favorite. It was about a woman who is so grief stricken over the loss of her stillborn baby that she drinks everything else away too--her husband, children, kindness, etc. She gets to go back and relieve the pre-divorce days again and try to keep her worn out husband from leaving her. I liked the idea of 2nd chances, changing your course, etc. Definitely my favorite.
The book is off my "To read" shelf of Christmas stories (literally, not on Good Reads) and off to the yard sale pile. Too much sex to keep and/or want to read again, but delicious, naughty fun during stressful holidays.
March 18, 2015
“Unwrap something sexy this holiday…” – four short stories based around Christmas and a little more spicy than the usual romance novel.
1.Santa Unwrapped (Theresa Alan)
Meeting a handicapped wheelchair Santa at a children’s hospital sparks a romance for Aimee and Ryan.
Bonus except from The Global Guide to Guys by the same author.
2.Maybe this Christmas (Jane Blackwood)
A Christmas angel gives Laura a second chance to save her marriage and family. Liked this one the least.
3.The 24 Days of Christmas (Linda Lael Miller)
Moving back to her hometown, Addie gets a second chance at her past love Frank. Centered around the daily opening of the advent calendar. Most like the typical holiday romances for the season.
4.A Bright Red Ribbon (Fern Michaels)
I enjoyed this story the most although Morgan’s waiting two years for a boyfriend seemed a little extreme…
Morgan is determined to go home after waiting two years for her boyfriend’s promise to meet at her parents by the tree. Caught in an extreme snowstorm she is rescued by a dog and finds romance with her hospitable host (who is also in a wheelchair).
1.Santa Unwrapped (Theresa Alan)
Meeting a handicapped wheelchair Santa at a children’s hospital sparks a romance for Aimee and Ryan.
Bonus except from The Global Guide to Guys by the same author.
2.Maybe this Christmas (Jane Blackwood)
A Christmas angel gives Laura a second chance to save her marriage and family. Liked this one the least.
3.The 24 Days of Christmas (Linda Lael Miller)
Moving back to her hometown, Addie gets a second chance at her past love Frank. Centered around the daily opening of the advent calendar. Most like the typical holiday romances for the season.
4.A Bright Red Ribbon (Fern Michaels)
I enjoyed this story the most although Morgan’s waiting two years for a boyfriend seemed a little extreme…
Morgan is determined to go home after waiting two years for her boyfriend’s promise to meet at her parents by the tree. Caught in an extreme snowstorm she is rescued by a dog and finds romance with her hospitable host (who is also in a wheelchair).
December 22, 2014
Santa Unwrapped 4 stars. Heartwarming story about Aimee who has a dead end job and recent breakup with her boyfriend. She volunteers to help deliver presents to a children's hospital and ends up in lust over the hunky, wheelchair bound Santa, Ryan.
Maybe This Christmas 4 stars. Wonderful story about second chances. Laura has made a wreck of her life and now she had a second chance to make it right and she is determined to do just that and, God willing, erase the heartache she caused her family.
The 24 Days of Christmas 4 stars. Great story that proves you can indeed go home again. Addie make some choices that set her on a path her father didn't like, so he wrote her out of his will and promptly died. Addie made an error in judgment that cost her the career she loved. She moves back home and reconnects with Frank. She also has to deal with Henry, the son of her ex husband, when he arrives by bus, because the new wife just can't deal with him.
A Bright Red Ribbon 1 star. For an author with over 150 bucks to her credit, this story is just plain awful.
Maybe This Christmas 4 stars. Wonderful story about second chances. Laura has made a wreck of her life and now she had a second chance to make it right and she is determined to do just that and, God willing, erase the heartache she caused her family.
The 24 Days of Christmas 4 stars. Great story that proves you can indeed go home again. Addie make some choices that set her on a path her father didn't like, so he wrote her out of his will and promptly died. Addie made an error in judgment that cost her the career she loved. She moves back home and reconnects with Frank. She also has to deal with Henry, the son of her ex husband, when he arrives by bus, because the new wife just can't deal with him.
A Bright Red Ribbon 1 star. For an author with over 150 bucks to her credit, this story is just plain awful.
December 23, 2011
Santa Unwrapped -- wasn't too bad. The ending was a bit abrupt.
Maybe This Christmas -- I liked this one. It was solidly written and had just enough of everything.
24 Days of Christmas -- was pretty cutesy. The kids made it interesting.
A Bright Red Ribbon -- Laughably horrible. Like, embarrassingly so. It was poorly plotted, poorly written, the ending was ridiculous. I had to skim this just to see where it would go, and it went to a bad place. The male character was bossy, up-tight, and seemed to be suffering from some mental disorder, and the female character was freaking nuts. From her manic, desperate hope that her idiotic ex-boyfriend was still in love with her, to her stupid decision to go out in a blizzard, to the babbling on and on with Marcus...completely unlikeable. I seriously hope this isn't representative what what Fern Michaels writes, because if so that is a travesty on the publishing world.
December 8, 2016
The 24 days of Christmas was easily my favorite of the collection, with Santa unwrapped coming in a close second. I had to skip over Maybe This Christmas because the first 3 pages were not at all giving me that warm glowey feeling I was seeking in my Christmas reads, soooo ver-rah depressing...In its defense, after going back and reading the blurb, I see how it could've come around. Finally, the red ribbon story....no. Very little in this one worked for me. Why was she so down on herself? Why was he pretending to be drunk? Why did he have to note how much she looked like his twin sister? Seriously, a whole new place and then almost a YEAR? Why did the second half of the story feel like a very bad reflection of Jane Eyer (Was the dog the little French girl)? I wish this story had come first in the book. Instead, its imprint overshadowed the enjoyable parts.
May 6, 2016
So on Saturday I went to the Greater St. Louis Book Fair and bought two totes full of books, including this one. Later Saturday, I slipped in a Bread Co. (Panera for you non-St. Louisians) and broke my left ankle and a bone in my left leg. When trying to figure out the important decision of what books to take to my parents house for recovery (second floor apartment) my mom just grabbed the two totes plus some books I specifically asked for.
I picked this as my first read because I thought the short stories would be easier to concentrate on. It was sort of interesting that it featured two heroes in wheelchairs which I didn't know going in. But it kept my attention post-ankle surgery which is all I can ask. But that is how I ended up reading a Christmas romance in May.
I picked this as my first read because I thought the short stories would be easier to concentrate on. It was sort of interesting that it featured two heroes in wheelchairs which I didn't know going in. But it kept my attention post-ankle surgery which is all I can ask. But that is how I ended up reading a Christmas romance in May.
November 23, 2016
This book is composed of 4 stories by 4 different authors. All 4 could easily be made into Hallmark Christmas movies. Each one is quick and fun to read leaving you with a warm heart and a thankfulness for Christmas. My favorite one was The 25 Days of Christmas. It is a story of true love being reunited, the true spirit of Christmas in action and the love children have for Christmas. If you love dogs then A Bright Red Ribbon is a must read for you. This is a great book to kick off your Christmas season.
December 9, 2011
I actually bought this book and read it years ago when it was a new release. I have read it a few times since then, but there is one story "Maybe this Christmas" that I absolutely love. It is a story that always touches me, one that brings me back again year after year. It is really the only reason I kept this for my shelf. If you ever chance upon this book, I recommend it solely for this story alone.
December 22, 2011
Book rating (average of four stories)= 2.5 stars
Santa Unwrapped by Theresa Alan
2 stars
Maybe This Christmas by Jane Blackwood
2.5 stars
The 24 Days of Christmas by Linda Lael Miller
3 stars
A Bright Red Ribbon by Fern Michaels
2.5 stars
With the title of the book I was expecting happier stories.
Santa Unwrapped by Theresa Alan
2 stars
Maybe This Christmas by Jane Blackwood
2.5 stars
The 24 Days of Christmas by Linda Lael Miller
3 stars
A Bright Red Ribbon by Fern Michaels
2.5 stars
With the title of the book I was expecting happier stories.
November 5, 2013
This was actually a fairly mediocre set of stories. I had actually read the Fern Michaels story before in another Christmas anthology. I could not get through the first two stories by Theresa Alan and Jane Blackwood. I did like the story by Linda Lael Miller.
December 5, 2009
Fun reading for Christmas.
January 18, 2010
I really liked the second story about the lady changes her life!
June 19, 2012
I loved the three short stories and found the very enjoyable at the holiday time of year. Great as they are not long but each is different and enjoyable.
June 24, 2012
Blhhh!
June 18, 2013
Four short stories, Fern Michaels is the best.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 28, 2014
The only story I liked was the one by Ms. Miller. The others seemed contrived or were just boring
March 28, 2016
I LOVED Jane Blackwood's 'Maybe this Christmas'. I laughed and cried. It was soooo good for a short story. It had the right amount of everything nice :)
December 9, 2016
Not my idea of a Christmas book and not what I was expecting when I downloaded it from the library!
December 14, 2016
Read the first of four short christmas stories. I thought they would be cute holiday stories, but, YUCK, no
December 29, 2016
The 1st and 4th stories were OK at best. I did really enjoy the 2nd and 3rd story. Light and fluffy, no thinking required. A good read for a snowy afternoon with a cup of tea.
February 4, 2017
Some of the short stories were good and would have been more entertaining if they were a full length book.
February 27, 2021
All of these short stories are new to this book, with the exception of Fern Michael's offering (published in 1995, instead of 2004, like the others). The only author I have any experience with is Linda Lael Miller. At the end, I will rate the stories from favorite to least.
SANTA UNWRAPPED (Theresa Alan) -- 3 stars
Aimee Lachaussee has volunteered to distribute Christmas gifts at a hospital for Christmas. The three men who are partnered with Aimee are all hunks; Ryan is one of the handsome men -- in a wheelchair. Aimee asks Ryan to take a chance on her.
MAYBE THIS CHRISTMAS (Jane Blackwood) -- 1 star
Laura Randall gets to travel back to a previous Christmas before her world dropped into the trash. She gets a second chance; I think this is a time-travel story. Not going there.
THE 24 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS (Linda Lael Miller) -- 4 stars
This is a complex plot; Addie Hutton is returning to her hometown after a disappointing marriage and a disastrous career crash. She rents the garage apartment on the property where she used to live (in the larger house on the same property). Frank Rayner inherited the property and lives in the larger house with his daughter. He's a widower of 2 years and is the police chief. A matchbox advent calendar brings them together. Pleasant holiday read.
THE BRIGHT RED RIBBON (Fern Michaels) -- 3 stars
Morgan Ames is dumped by her boyfriend on Christmas Eve. He says he needs his space before committing to marriage. He'll see her in 2 years. This story is so improbable, I can't believe it.
**Best to least: Miller, Alan, Michaels, Blackwood.
SANTA UNWRAPPED (Theresa Alan) -- 3 stars
Aimee Lachaussee has volunteered to distribute Christmas gifts at a hospital for Christmas. The three men who are partnered with Aimee are all hunks; Ryan is one of the handsome men -- in a wheelchair. Aimee asks Ryan to take a chance on her.
MAYBE THIS CHRISTMAS (Jane Blackwood) -- 1 star
Laura Randall gets to travel back to a previous Christmas before her world dropped into the trash. She gets a second chance; I think this is a time-travel story. Not going there.
THE 24 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS (Linda Lael Miller) -- 4 stars
This is a complex plot; Addie Hutton is returning to her hometown after a disappointing marriage and a disastrous career crash. She rents the garage apartment on the property where she used to live (in the larger house on the same property). Frank Rayner inherited the property and lives in the larger house with his daughter. He's a widower of 2 years and is the police chief. A matchbox advent calendar brings them together. Pleasant holiday read.
THE BRIGHT RED RIBBON (Fern Michaels) -- 3 stars
Morgan Ames is dumped by her boyfriend on Christmas Eve. He says he needs his space before committing to marriage. He'll see her in 2 years. This story is so improbable, I can't believe it.
**Best to least: Miller, Alan, Michaels, Blackwood.
January 3, 2022
Jingle All the Way by Fern Michaels, Linda Lael Miller, Theresa Alan, Jane Blackwood
This book of short stories is like the season - all a jumble of everything! One favorite was about an advent calendar and a couple that had been married previously to other people and now found their way back together. Another story, Santa Unwrapped, was one that should have an age warning before reading-it was just on the edge, not something for preteens or many teens.
Such a tumble of stories though the genre is in common, It seems that a publisher/editor put these together to sell a Christmas themed book. Not worth the money in my opinion.
This book of short stories is like the season - all a jumble of everything! One favorite was about an advent calendar and a couple that had been married previously to other people and now found their way back together. Another story, Santa Unwrapped, was one that should have an age warning before reading-it was just on the edge, not something for preteens or many teens.
Such a tumble of stories though the genre is in common, It seems that a publisher/editor put these together to sell a Christmas themed book. Not worth the money in my opinion.
November 25, 2023
This is the first book I didn’t finish that I’m keeping on Goodreads. It is a reminder that trying out modern Christmas novels are not always a good idea. If within the first chapter, the heroine’s time is dragging and mine with it, signs are it isn’t great. Also do they have to sound so Neanderthal? Give me even a poorly written historical/Regency novel, and I would prefer their inappropriately modern turn of phrase to this.
Actually, maybe not, either… but I would stay for the balls.
Actually, maybe not, either… but I would stay for the balls.
March 18, 2023
2 of the 4 stories were good - The 24 Days of Christmas and Maybe This Christmas. Santa Unwrapped was ok. It's the first story, and I almost didn't continue because of it. The last story was A Bright Red Ribbon. "Saved the best for last" does not even come close to applying. It was the worst. So poorly written and developed.
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