The Nutcracker, Christmas lights, cookie making, and time with family plus a swoony single dad and a second chance at love? Sounds like the makings of a great Christmas love story! A Wright Christmas is a light, sweet read- with ample cuteness and swoony moments, an adorable 5 year old, a dash of humor, plenty of team, a little sprinkle of the festive spirit, and two characters that you just can’t help but root for.
This second chance love story begins when professional ballerina Peyton returns home for a month to guest dance in her Texas town’s Christmas production of the Nutcracker. She left Lubbock behind over 16 years ago, never looking back as she pursued her NYC dreams of being a dancer. But she left more than her family behind- she also left behind her first love- Isaac. The boy who let her go, who refused to stand in the way of her dreams. Sure enough, she quickly bumps into Isaac when she returns home, but not in the place she expected: at the ballet studio while Isaac is picking up his 5 year old daughter. Their unresolved feelings never went away- and even though these two are adults now and live totally different lives, the love between them still shines. They sweetly, but reluctantly, rekindle their romance, but the problems that existed before have never gone away, their priorities are still misaligned. Peyton still has dreams in NYC, and they now have something even more important at risk- the happiness of Isaac’s little girl.
The love story here is tender and sweet- with a bit of an instalove feel, but that is because these two have a history. The chemistry builds naturally, we have some delightful side characters, and Isaac is SO DREAMY. And as a dad? OH man, ovaries exploding. He’s kind, empathetic, sexy, considerate, and so forgiving. And he is so devoted to Peyton, despite years apart. He’s so likable immediately, but Peyton took longer for me to figure out- mostly because what we know about her is her career, and I felt like we didn’t get to know her as well until we see her start to interact at the dance school and with Isaac, then she had more dimension. They’ve got a warm little sizzle between them - their relationship both sweet and sexy. But, I did find myself having to suspend disbelief about their time apart- they seemingly ended civilly and Isaac knows all of Peyton’s family, yet they had no contact in 16 years and Peyton knew nothing about his life. That contrasted with how quickly they feel back together felt a smidge easy- but I also appreciate the lack of hostility of anger. IN fact, Isaac still respects and supports her decision. SEE? Dreamy.
This love story is one of second chances- of compromising and determining when love matters enough to make it work, even if it isn’t easy or even when you have to give a little. A mature kind of love. The way the story ended up was unexpected but charming- and even though I wanted a smidge more Christmasy stuff (it was less about Christmas and more just happened to be Christmas), I love nothing more than seeing people fall in love (or in this case, fall in love again) during the holidays! A sweet, charming read that will give you some swoons and some holiday feels.