Christmas Cards from the Edge

by Lisa Cach, Lisa Cach, Naomi Neale

A raucous collection of stories follows three women as they, desperate to return to New York City on Christmas Eve, become trapped in a place where they, while dealing with a colorful cast of characters, decide to be quite naughty, and not very nice. Original.

Genres: Romance, Anthologies, Christmas, Contemporary Romance, Short Stories, Fiction, Contemporary

354 pages, Paperback

First published September 27, 2005

About the author

Lisa Cach grew up in a farm near Portland, Oregon, a place she loves although she'd always trying to leave it. Wanderlust has led her to sail the Sargasso Sea, teach English in Japan, and trek the leech-infested jungles of Borneo. She has degrees in both English and psychology, two subjects that were fun to learn about but that guaranteed her low-paying jobs. Her father, she admits, may have been right about the MBA.

Lisa started to writing romances in her parents' basement during snatched moments from work. Since her writing career began her free time has become less and less as her novels become more and more popular. She's loved romance novels since Junior High School, and at least now she doesn't have to worry about getting caught reading one. Lisa married, and bought with her husband a home in Seattle, Washington. She describes her personal paradise as "...a pile of books, a plate of brownies, and the free time in which to enjoy them".

Reviews

[Lynn Broxmeyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each of these stories were interesting perspectives on why women choose to be single.

Return to Sender was the "he's a mysterious foreigner and she's hung up on her ex."
Enjoyable, but hard to read due to continuity issues.

The Single Girl's Guide to Christmas makes you hate family, namely, that one cousin who has no class.
My favorite. Anytime there is an ex-con uncle who's bros with the sheriff, that's a riot.

O' Little Town of Kettlebean gives you hope in humanity, while fearing small towns.
All over the place. Too many story lines, many unnecessary to carry the narrative or lacking detail to keep the story moving.

[Carmen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked "Return to sender" by Lisa Cach and "The single girl's guide to Christmas" by Jennifer Ashley (I would rate both 4 stars), but I couldn't finish Neale's "O little town of Kettlebean", so my final rating was 3 stars.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

RETURN TO SENDER by Lisa Cache was my favorite. In this cute story, the main character Tessa offers to be a host to her roommate's handsome cousin, Ian, who is in town by way of Scotland for the holidays. Tessa is still a bit on the downside after her breakup up with her ex and Ian - who is a bit of a playboy - is told very clearly not to make any moves on poor Tessa. Eventually the pair get to know each other better and the sparks begin to fly! The problem comes when Ian has to fly back home and Tessa is afraid she'll have to endure another heartbreak.

Angel is the funny and loveable character in THE SINGLE GIRL'S GUIDE TO CHRISTMAS by Jennifer Ashley. When Angel decides to visit her very big family in California for Christmas, she encounters Sean, her long lost love who she's never forgotten. Because of the horrible weather, Angel's family invites Sean to stay with them. It's during this time that Angel and Sean come to realize that the feelings are still there.

Finally, in O LITTLE TOWN OF KETTLEBEAN by Naomi Neale, Riley, a stage manager for Broadway and her colleague and good friend travel from Manhattan to upstate NY to bring one of their drunken actor's back to where he belongs. All hell breaks loose when their van breaks down in the middle of a very small and rural town by the name of Kettlebean. The town's mechanic and his son volunteer to fix the broken vehicle with hidden intentions. They purposely delay the job so that Riley and her crew can help their town with their annual Christmas Pageant. The whole situation brings to Riley the meaning of Christmas as well as a chance at true love.

Overall the book was just average. The first two stories held my attention whereas the final one had me bored out of my mind.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

12/16/05 #220
TITLE/AUTHOR: CHRISTMAS CARDS FROM THE EDGE by
Jennifer Ashley, Lisa Cach & Naomi Neale
RATING: 4/B
COMMENTS: Return to Sender by Cach -- Tessa a
costume designer in Seattle meets her roommate's
Scottish cousin Ian over the holidays. He misses
his flight and is left w/ Tessa. Tessa is strongly
attracted but knows this will only be temporary
since Ian not only lives in Scotland but is a
renowned ladie's man. Cute Story,
The Single Girl's Guide to Christmas by Jennifer
Ashley -- Angel has written a popular book that
has brought her some fame. She returns to
her family's home over Christmas and meets up
w/ Sean, the man she has never forgotten. She
thought it was just a summer fling 5 yrs ago.
He thought her careert in NY was more important
Lots of funny family members. Best of the 3
stories.
O Little Town of Kettlebean by Naomi Neale --
Riley, a stage manager from NYC gets stranded
in the small town of Kettlebean w/ the
wardrobe designer & has-been actor. They
get scammed into helping w/ the Christmas
Pageant while waiting for their car to be
repaired. Light, funny.

[Rochelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best line in "O Little Town of Kettlebean"?
"Shut up and look holy!" I love Naomi Neale - she always cracks me up!

"Return to Sender" was my first read by Lisa Cach, and I enjoyed it. She has a very similar style to Katie MacAlister, who is one of my favorites! ☆☆☆☆

"The Single Girl's Guide to Christmas" was a little hokey. I didn't really understand the narrators reasons for why she turned Sean away and why she was fighting her feelings. It had a cute twist, though. ☆☆☆

I was pleasantly surprised with this anthology. I had picked it up because I wanted more from Naomi Neale, and she hasn't written much. Normally I am disappointed with short-stories, but this was pretty good. ☆☆☆☆

[Roberta · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of three stories with a Christmas theme that were predictable but entertaining. A contemporary, not my usual regency, so I am not familiar with these authors: Jennifer Ashley, Lisa Cach, and Naomi Neale. I would read other books by them if they turned up but probably won't search them out.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a gathering of three delightful stories, each of them taking part just around the Christmas holiday. I can't think of a better way to start the New Year than with a really satisfying book. This was definitely a very great book! Each story was a little longer than I'm used to in an anthology, but still just the right length to enjoy a quick read before the next distraction came. MMMMMMMMM. For a bookaholic such as myself, these sweet and delightful stories were delicious!

[Nicki · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read two of the three stories. Not really a fan, I prefer a novel length story I can really get into. If you like short stories, or any of the three authors (I don't know any of them), you might like to check it out. They were okay, but not feeling all that festive at the moment. The first story in particular was not bad really, for what it was, and I did like the character of Ian.

[Patricia Solla · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a strange collection of short stories about Christmas. I like the last one O Little Town of Kettlebean by Naomi Neale best. Return to Sender by Lisa Cach was interesting and sort of funny but The Single Girl's Guide to Christmas was strange and not to my taste.

[Anne · Rating 1 out of 5]

terrible. don't waste your time.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really great read.