Free eBook The Christmas Treasury: A Home for Christmas/Season of Wonder/Sugar and Spice/A Season for Miracles download

From the back cover:

A HOME FOR CHRISTMAS by Laura Marie Altom
Harlequin American Romance
When Rachel's husband is presumed dead, she does what she thinks is best for her and her unborn child--she disappears. But her husband's best friend, Chance, promised to look after her, and he's determined to track her down. Now it's Christmas, a time for miracles and celebrations, so he feels hope when he gets a lead on Rachel's whereabouts. But is she ready to be found?

SEASON OF WONDER by Marta Perry
Steeple Hill Love Inspired
David is content with his laid-back life, and sees no reason to want anything more--intil he finds his old friend Allison on the beach one winter afternoon and realizes what he's been missing. But the girl who once reminded him of a Christmas tree angel has changed. Can he help her find her sense of wonder again?

SUGAR AND SPICE by Lynnette Kent
Harlequin Supperromance
Dr. Ian Baker moved to New Skye because he was needed in the small town. But with Thanksgiving fast approaching and his family scheduled to arrive for a holiday visit, he realise he needs a life outside the hospital--if only to convince his relatives that leaving Atlanta was not a huge mistake. Is take-charge Cass Stuart just what the doctor ordered?

A SEASON FOR MIRACLES by Cynthia Rutledge
Steeple Hill Love Inspired
Shannon has never met a man as perfect as Jake. There's only one problem: he's dating her twin sister, Erin. But when Erin makes plans to go out of town with another man, Shannon agrees to pose as her sister. It's Christmastime, and in this season for miracles, Shannon will discover that God works in mysterious ways. And that sometimes, when you least expect it, dreams really do come true.

And my review:

I love Christmas romance anthologies, and will read just about every one that I can get my hands on. Unfortunately, this was a collection I would have been better off skipping.

One big problem is that the stories are all way too short. That's to be expected in romance anthologies, but these stories were very short even for that standard. More novellas run around 100 pages or so. All of these stories were 40-60 pages. Even the most talented author would have a hard time writing a good read in that little space. There is just no room for any character development, or much tension in the plot. Every conflict must be introduced, then wrapped up easily and quickly, leaving no question as to the story's outcome. There's no time for the "dance of attraction", which is my favorite part of a romance novel.

A HOME FOR CHRISTMAS had me scratching my head for a lot of it. It made no sense why the heroine would run away; it wasn't as if her life was in danger. Your late husband's best friend, whom you've always secretly been attracted to, wants to help you out to fulfill his promise to said late husband, and you run away to live on the streets? With a baby? Huh??? Come on, does anyone really have that much pride that they would choose homelessness for their innocent child rather than accept charity? I wanted to smack the heroine one. If you want to be stupid, fine. But don't make your child suffer just because you have your head screwed on wrong.

SEASON OF WONDER, though it used the recycled plot of a woman once burned and twice shy, had a lot of promise, but it was really hurt by the page restriction. Also, this 60 page story is split up into 20 chapters! That meant that as soon as any scene just started to get interesting, it would be over, and on to the next scene. I was unable to get drawn into the story, because just as things would gain momentum, the chapter would end and it would be the next day.

SUGAR AND SPICE was a story I wasn't sure if I'd like. I've enjoyed some books by Lynnette Kent and hated others. This one was okay, up until it used one of my most hated plots: love at first sight. I know that some romance readers adore this plot, but I personally can't stand it. I think that it just shows laziness on the part of an author. It's easier to just say "they see each other and BAM, they're in love" than to bother developing a satisfying "do I love you? do you love me?" dance of attraction. Of course, part of the reason this author chose this plot is probably because of the page restriction, but it still bugged me.

(And before anyone blasts me for hating the "love at first sight" theme, I want to clarify: Do I believe in attraction at first sight? Yes. Do I believe that attraction can grow into love, once you get to know one another? Yes. Do I believe that you can love someone that you don't actually know just by looking at them once? No. True love takes trust, friendship and time. How many times have we seen a very physically attractive person who turns out to be a total jerk once we get to know them?)

A SEASON FOR MIRACLES uses another old plot: twins switching places, where of course the "wrong" twin then falls into forbidden love. Not that I mind reading old plots. Romance writing is all about escapism, so it doesn't have to be totally realistic. No, my problem was with how choppy this story was. This 60 page story is split into 18 chapters. Again, it was impossible to get drawn into the story, because scenes were always ending just when things started to get interesting. And of course, things are wrapped up so easily and quickly that it's hardly satisfying. This would probably have made a fun full-length novel, but the page restriction really hurt things.

There are better Christmas romances out there. Unless you're a hard-core fan of one of these authors and must have her entire backlist, I'd recommend you look elsewhere for your Christmas romance fix.

A great collection of short stories by some very good authors.