A Christmas Waltz

Christmas #3

by Jane Goodger

To Lady Amelia Wellesley, it seems utterly romantic to surprise her dashing fiance at his home in Texas so the two can marry by Christmas. But Amelia's surprise goes awry when Carson Kitteridge calls off their wedding as soon as she arrives, leaving Amelia in disgrace. . .

With nowhere to turn, Amelia finds an unlikely savior in Carson's brother, Dr. Boone Kitteridge. Boone offers to marry Amelia, sparing her the shame of returning to England unwed. But Boone isn't just protecting Amelia's honor; secretly, he finds her irresistible, and the thought of indulging his desire for her is too tempting to ignore. As Boone and Amelia forge a fragile bond, something goes terribly wrong--and it will take nothing less than a Christmas miracle for Amelia to discover who she is destined to love. . .

Genres: Romance, Historical Romance, Christmas, Historical, Holiday, Marriage Of Convenience, Regency

338 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

I grew up in western Massachusetts and have lived most my adult life in New England. Thanks to my adventurous husband, I've also done brief stints in Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Naples, Italy. Although I've written four contemporary romances under the name Jane Blackwood, my first love is historical romances set in Victorian times. I've written 17 of those with more on the way.
I have three kids, one a college grad, one in college, and one still in high school (who's a fantastic writer). I love the Red Sox and the New England Patriots. I work full time, have an editing business, and in my free time write like a fanatic.
Above the desk in my office is this sign: "And They All Lived Happily Ever After." It may not be reality, but it's real nice to think about...

Reviews

[Patti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amelia was more than a little immature and annoying, as she was in the last book, but she eventually came around. It just took too long, in my opinion. Boone was pretty stellar. I enjoy the strong silent types (and a virgin hero to boot!).

[Nath · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I read a book by Ms Goodger, I expect something emotionally poignant. A story that will make my heart ache and my eyes tear. However, it didn't happen with A Christmas Waltz. It was missing that omphf factor, that little something that pull the readers into the story and make them care so much about the characters. Part of the problem is that it was very hard to sympathize with Amelia. Yes, it was unfortunate that she got sweet-talked by Carson and that she fell in love with a man that didn't exist. However, leaving England in pursuit of her fiancé was her decision and therefore, the situation was her own doing ^_^; Also, there was Amelia herself. To me, she came across as immature, spoiled and selfish. It didn't show too much in the beginning of the book, but when she was reunited with her brother and sister-in-law. Not wanting to assume the consequences of her action - the fact that she'd be ruined because of her decisions if she returned to England unmarried. Then, later when she did return to England with Boone, it felt like she didn't think of Boone. Didn't try to understand his discomfort with her obvious wealth or even help him adapt to his new surrounding. Not adjusting to her new situation either - wanting such a grand house, such a big staff, etc. It was a lot of "me, me, me" and that really got on my nerve... Mostly because despite her foolishness, she ended up with a great man. Really unfair. Luckily, what saved the book for me was Boone's character. He's pretty much Amelia's opposite, the strong and silent type, very observant, with a pure heart and so generous. He deserved a lot more than what he got in life. It was very heart-breaking, his childhood and his belief that he was not lovable :( I felt that Boone's character was well-developed and layered and his relationship with Carson was quite interesting.

The rest was pretty decent. The storyline was okay, I liked the setting and the book did have its moments. One that comes to mind is when Carson comes to Amelia and tells her to take care of Boone, that he deserves to be loved. That was very touching. So really, the H/H is what made and broke A Christmas Waltz and while Boone was a great hero, he unfortunately cannot make up completely for Amelia :(

[Aly is so frigging bored · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5*
It wasn't as good as books 1 and 2 from the series... And I also don't like historicals that take part in the US.

[Hannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

“And that’s why you can never judge a book by its cover… or title… or description.” -McKenzie

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

In dire need of an editor; the sentence structure is rough through most of it, there are factual inconsistencies (calling characters by the wrong names), and the plot feels really stilted. But the one-star rating is really earned by what happens to Julia. Seriously, what the fuck.

[Sophie Carbone · Rating 1 out of 5]

I liked the premise well enough but what in the fuck did this have to do with Christmas? The synopsis is incredibly misleading as well as the cover, as their “Christmas Waltz” doesn’t happen until the last two chapters and don’t even need much encouragement to actually get together by that time so there’s no need to call it a Christmas “miracle” I liked that we took time with Aemilia spending time in America but it definitely went on longer than I expected end didn’t seem that necessary. I think having Texas during Christmas would’ve been funnier too, so just set the whole book during the last half of November and then back into December or something like along those lines or else the synopsis snd cover/title didn’t make much sense. The last two words of the book are a Christmas waltz and they kind of just feel like a slap in the face since this book had barely anything wintery or Christmasy at all. And on top of that the characters got annoying pretty quickly, but as was holding out hope for something cozy Christmas… something! Anything! But nope! They spent so much time in Texas that any time spent in England was just so so rushed, snd of course that was when December rolled around… ugh… this book was so disappointing. I’m surprised I even read the whole thing!

[SuperWendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this story. Some past characters come into play towards the second half, but even though this is the third book in a trilogy I thought it stood alone well. I enjoyed the "kinder gentler" hero - although by the end I was ready to shake him senseless and scream at him to "talk to her already!" The heroine is rather naive and trusting at the onset, but I liked that she realized fairly quickly (and without too much outside prodding from other secondary characters) that the man she thought she loved was a smooth talkin' liar. However others may feel she hangs on to residual feelings for him a tad too long. A solid western, and really, really light on "the Christmas stuff" if you're a reader who generally likes to avoid those.

[Mary23nm · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't like it quite as much as the first two books, but it was a good ending to an enjoyable series.

[Natalija · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my second book by Ms. Goodger and I can easily say that I enjoy her writing. In a way, the title is misleading, because 2/3 of the book take place in Texas and only the final part, where the waltz actually happens, is set in England. Strangely enough, that part was my least favorite.

Boone Kitteridge, the main hero, was close to perfection without being flawless. For me, he shone in Small Fork, Texas and lost a lot of his personality after moving to England.

Amelia was a crybaby. I understood why the author portrayed her in such a way, but it made her unlikeable. Boone could do so much better. She is so fickle that it made me doubt whether she could remain faithful in the future.

Another thing that felt weird was that so many things were left in air, like Boone closing his medical practice in Small Fork without a second thought about the people who were left without a doctor, his nightmares or how worried he was that his salary wouldn't provide Amelia with the lifestyle she was used to.

Bottom line, it's a great book with some shortfalls, but what made it stand out was the character of Boone Kittridge.

[Qi Feng · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly all went well
I love Boone, I love Amelia.
But, unfortunately the characters in Texas and even when they are back in England, are all pointless. They are either there just to fill the moments or not.
Both are blind and clueless of their feelings. And stretchy plot.. waste of time. And didnt have anything to do with Christmas - a very misleading theme here.
I hope the writer could improve her writinng style - especially when it comes to how the characters feels and perhaps the intimate moment of the leads.

[Dana Francis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Amelia played a rather foolish role thinking herself in love. For such an intelligent girl. The story line dragged on too much.

[Mum · Rating 3 out of 5]

Our heroine is a spoiled brat. Our hero is man mistreated by his family but is rescued by a shop owner. Their weaknesses and scars make for an interesting read.

[Catheryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really the only thing Christmas about this story is that last 5%.

I liked seeing English aristocracy in the wild west. I thought that part was pretty interesting. But I just felt so bad for Boone. She really did keep hurting his feelings at every turn and most of the time by accident. I wanted them to come together sooner and get over this Carson issue earlier. I was very confused by their relationship in the last third of the story.

Overall, it was pretty ok. Mostly confusing and frustrating at times. Boone was the only thing that saved it for me.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amelia didn’t deserve Boone.. she was self serving and spoiled.

[Mrs Giggles · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Christmas Waltz is related to A Christmas Scandal, in that a subplot in that previous book is developed into a story of its own here. This one can be read on its own, but do be warned that various characters from previous books in this series show up later in this story, so it's probably a good idea to read the previous books first.

Lady Amelia Wellesley, sister to one of the loftiest members of the aristocracy, is impulsive and naïve. She thinks herself madly in love with Carson Kitteridge, a cowboy performer in a Wild West Show. He told her he had a grand ranch and a dashing career as a Texas Ranger, and really, he would send for her once he gets back to America. You know where this is heading, right? When no word comes after his departure, Amelia decides to lie to his brother, claims that Carson has sent for her, and takes off with her maid to America, to seek her beloved and get him to marry her.

Arriving alone and without funds (long story), she finds out that Carson is pulling a fast one on her. There is no grand ranch, he is never a Texas Ranger, and worst of all, he has no intention of marrying her. Fortunately, Carson's brother, Boone, takes pity on her and lets her stay at his place. She learns how to do the laundry and helps around his place as payment for lodging and all. This also means that she is completely ruined, and, realizing this, Boone steps in to marry her. This is... going to work, right?

There is plenty to like here. Amelia's transformation from spoiled and silly girl to a more caring and mature lady is well done and believable. She may be impulsive and silly, but she is smarter than she seems to be at first. In fact, she turns out to be the smarter one between her and Boone, and she practically hauls the man to their happy ending.

Boone, oh Boone. You know, at first, his feelings of self-inadequacy and lack of confidence are actually quite adorable, as this makes him a refreshing change from the usual oversexed alpha males that populate the genre. I'm willing to overlook the fact that he, a hot doctor, manages to stay celibate all this while without professing any beliefs to stay that way (his brother certainly has no problems spreading the love around), because, hello there, sweetheart. Unfortunately, he is also one of the worst heroes I've come across when it comes to communication.

Okay, he grunts and mumbles most of the time, and it's sweet at first as his lack of eloquence goes with his surly shy hero personality. However, this mumbling soon spills over to become a stubborn refusal to say anything. This causes Amelia to reasonably believe that he doesn't love her and even dislike her for being an anchor around his neck, prolonging the story by a few painful dozens of pages. Boone's reaction in any conflict is to just drop everything and abandon Amelia, and often, Amelia becomes far more hurt by this than anything else he could have done. By the last page, yes, he ends up with her, but if he doesn't open his mouth anytime soon, I don't think this couple is meant to last, and he's going to hurt her very, very badly.

There are some hard-hitting emotions here, a realistic portrayal of a small town with both good and bad highlighted, and a likable heroine whose character growth is believable and enjoyable to follow. The hero, however, can be too clueless and stubborn for my liking, and some of the hard-hitting emotions I experience include a burning desire to wrap my hands around this throat and squeeze very, very hard.

A Christmas Waltz is a pretty good read, at the end of the day. Just watch out for Boone's more frustrating antics, especially in the later parts of this story.

[REEMA LOVES TO READ · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Doctor is the Groom, the Groom is the Doctor!" - The Wedding Planner

Ladies and Gentlemen, we are now in Texas. (But also thank God they left Texas. The heat! And that dreadful town!)

Amelia you will never feel lonely another day in your life <3 He saves things <<<<<333333

[Rosario · Rating 2 out of 5]

Turns out Carson's every word to Amelia was a lie. He's not a rich rancher, Two Forks is a tiny dump, rather than the lovely, prosperous town he described, and he never intended to marry her (to paraphrase his reasoning "Well, she wouldn't let me touch her otherwise, what was I supposed to do??"). Oh, and his brother, Boone, is not a bit slow. In fact, he's a doctor and runs the town's general store, and he's the one left to care for this strange lady once Carson runs off as fast as he can.

I quite liked the setup here. Yes, it's completely preposterous, but I suspended disbelief. Yes, Amelia's actions are incredibly stupid, but the narrative acknowledges this completely and never tries to tell us otherwise. Furthermore, it's all pretty consistent with her character. And yes, this is the third book in a series and that's kind of obvious, but I felt Goodger caught us up quite well (at least at the start).

And Boone was a lovely character. Boone and Carson grew up with a violent drunk of a father who idolised Carson and detested Boone (it's never really explained why). So while he took every excuse to beat up Boone, the man celebrated every one of Carson's actions. Carson's grown up to be a spoiled arsehole and a womaniser, while Boone (who had the fortune to escape as a young teen and be raised by a local), is cautious and somewhat awkward and has never had anything to do with any woman. He is fascinated by Amelia and thinks she's beautiful, and can't understand why Carson would run away from her.

So the first sections, while Boone and Amelia get to know each other and Amelia makes friends in Two Forks, were quite nice. I liked her (she might be silly, but she's kind), and found him sweet. But then Amelia's brother and his new bride show up, and the book started going downhill.

Basically, the entire rest of the book is based on Boone and Amelia refusing to communicate. Boone is particularly bad at this. There really is not much of a conflict. It seemed like the location could be one: Amelia really does not like Two Forks and misses home, but Boone feels he can't leave due to some responsibilities he has there. But that soon gets resolved (in a quite startling way that I felt cheapened the issues involved), and all we're left with is two people who just won't talk to each other honestly. And it wasn't even that their motivations for not speaking made sense!

We also have quite a bit of space devoted to Amelia's brother and his new wife (hero and heroine from a previous book), who did not intrigue me in the least, and some ridiculous and unbelievable interactions between Amelia and her former friends.

So this was quite a disappointment. I only finished it because there wasn't too long to go, since by the end I really didn't care about these people.

MY GRADE: A C-.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are three books in this Christmas trilogy and last year I recommended ‘A Christmas Scandal’ which is book two, and today I’m recommending book three [tomorrow I’ll do book one, ‘Marry Christmas’].

For someone that’s always reading any series in order, I’ve no idea why I read this trilogy out-of-order. It really isn’t necessary for them to be read in order… however, maybe I should have. Because they would have flowed better time wise.

In any case, I’m here to let you know that this is a well written, plotted and executed sweet, sensual and very charming tale.

What I liked best about it is the dialogue and the fast pace of the story as well as strong characterization of hero and the heroine.

I adored Lady Amelia Wellesley who might seem flighty and naïve, but this woman was one strong female. For her to leave her native England and pursue the love of her life [an American Cowboy who proposed to her only because he wanted to bed her] all on her own takes guts.

Boone Kittredge is this small town’s doctor and her fiancé’s brother. He’s also a total opposite of Carson, and Amelia is having a hard time coming to terms with the man she remembers from England, with the man that he is now, here in America.

Boone is a Beta hero all the way, and I just loved him to pieces. Once we get to know his background, we love him even more. This man has survived much abuse from his father, and it was something that made him into a somber and strong person. As well as someone who has always been there to pick up the pieces of his older brother leaves behind.

I also loved the secondary characters in this tale and was heartbroken at the life and hardships they lived through.

This is a story for every age and any time, not just Christmas.

Melanie for b2b
Book provided by the publisher through NetGalley

[Trisha · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can't say I liked this book it was alright. I've read all three in this series and not sure if it's the books or the authors style of writing I don't like. I'll start with Amelia this is where my problems are. Just to start you don't travel half way around the world when your "fiance" hasn't sent for you. When she gets to Texas and finds that everything Carson said was a lie she still believes that he's the man that he pretends to be. Amelia admits that she know he lied about most of the stuff he said in London yet that doesn't set off warning bells in her head. She believes the new lies which just makes her look very dumb. Carson has a moment of goodness when he comes into Amelia's room and tells her about Boone's past and that he was leaving that was a touching moment. When Amelia wakes up she completely seems to forget that he said he was leaving and is surprised by the news. When Boone and Amelia go back to London they go to a ball. Boone tells her he is very nervous and when they attend the ball Amelia spends no time with Boone where she should be. Amelia spends the whole night dancing with other men she doesn't seem to care about anyone but herself most of the time. Boone really needed her and all she thought about was herself. I didn't really like Amelia but I did like Boone very much. Boone had less experence than she did when it came to sex and Amelia was his first kiss this is different from any book I've read and it just made to like Boone even more. Boone had a horrible childhood which explanes alot about why he puts up with Carson.

[Regina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was excited to get my hands on this book yet terribly disappointed that it was such a let down! My main complaint was with the heroine, Amelia. I thought she was immature and one dimensional. The man she ran after, Carson, was a no-good cad. Boone, the man who loved her, however, was achingly vulnerable, innocent, and thoroughly appealing. He saved the day, or rather, the story. Boone was open to change. In fact, he longed for it and was eager for his chance to begin a new life in another country. I liked that about him. Regardless of his lack of experience, he had a maturity that balanced the sometimes over sweet lightheartedness of Amelia. I believed in Boone's love for Amelia, but not hers for him. It's too bad because this could have easily been a wildly romantic tale. 3.2 stars.

[Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so happy that this book caught my eye in the Christmas section at my library. I was searching for a Christmas romance and got so much more from A CHRISTMAS WALTZ.

I haven't read the other two books in the series but this book could be a stand alone. That's how good it was!

I absolutely identified with Amelia and fell more and more in love with Boone as Amelia did!

It was a true love story.

I've read a lot of romance novels and loved all of them but there was something so special about Amelia & Boone's love story!

What I loved most about the story was that Amelia was wrong and that Boone really did love her!

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know how a woman could be SO stupid. I don't mind naive or sheltered ladies but this one was like REALLY? I guess she had her reasons but to put blinders on yourself...
but beyond that she did at least grow as a character and Dr. Boone was a really great gruff character. I kinda just wanted to go awwww a lot where he was concerned. Poor little baby.
Over all this was a good Christmas read.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love Jane Goodger's Christmas romances!

[Isalys B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

RATING: 3.5

[Kendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast read, 3rd in the series. Sweet, simple romance sort.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read by JG. I didn't realize it was the 3rd in a series. It was good enough that I'm going back to read the first two.

[Jenny Q · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well that was a disappointment. Talk about a TSTL heroine. And only the very last scene took place at Christmas! Bah humbug!

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice ending to the series.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent!

[Cheli Barfus · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to strangle Amelia for being so stubborn with Boone.