A Gift of Christmas Hope by Kaye Spencer

This is a delightful and steamy little Christmas tale to warm you up on the cold winter night!

I adored the history/connection between Mara and Neal, which provides the perfect set up to deepen their re-connection. Their banter and tenacity with each other kept me entertained.

Mixing in some treasure and some Christmas hope, this short story sweetly satisfies.

Longing for a Cowboy Christmas - an anthology

This is a wonderful collection of Christmas short stories - each one giving a couple hour dose of a feel-good story to snuggle up with. I totally read this book out of order, going first with the stories I was looking forward to the most and working my way through the rest, and not being disappointed in any of them!

Christmas in Paradise by Rosanne Bittner
I was so thrilled when I found out we were getting more of Sage and Maggie from Paradise Valley (one of my favorite RB books)! I had faith going in I'd love the follow up to their story, and I wasn't disappointed. Sage is still all protective of Maggie, and patient with her as she's settling into her spot as his wife. He knows he's got a treasure in her and makes sure she knows it deep down. Maggie is still as sweet, determined, and strong, as much as she's vulnerable and struggles with some insecurities. But Sage won't let those fears keep their grip on her. Loved the touch of adventure and drama, and the beauty of their Christmas miracle, both in seeing them settled, and in seeing their happily-ever-after come full circle. Honestly, this just made me want even more of their story, and I'd love to see a sequel novel someday for Sage and Maggie and their family.

A Christmas Wedding by Linda Broday
Christmas in Hope's Crossing, pouring out good on people who deserve all the good they can get! Loved getting to know Rebel even more, watching her big heart dig deep to find joy and spread it around. And then Travis finally getting the new start he needed and finding his way home again to wrap his family up in his protective arms and shower them with love. Add in some breath-catching moments and some giggles along with a few tears, and you get a sweet addition to Linda Broday's Outlaw Mail Order Brides series. So glad that there's more coming for this town and hopefully we'll get to see more of Rebel and Travis in future stories.

Through the Storm by Amy Sandas
Through the Storm starts off with a sweet, slow burn that builds to an inferno, keeping you needing more. George is fully captivated by Lucy when he first meets her, and fate helps to bring her back to him. George is an interesting character with his charm and gentleman ways mixed in with outlaw edginess. Lucy is an adorable mix of sweet and capable, the best match for George! Loved watching the embers of their attraction grow into a steady burning flame. This story probably surprised me the most in how much I ended up enjoying it!

A Fairy Tale Christmas by Leigh Greenwood
This is a super sweet story of a man and a woman who both desperately need something the other can provide, but fears and plans and a touch of stubbornness get in the way. Nan desires a family with everything she has, but isn't willing to settle for less than what she deserves or wants. But she does know how to open her heart and grasp to what she is given. Will has a mapped out plan for his life, even if he's struggling with some of the consequences and hanging onto the past. Luckily, a winter storm, the love of a child, and some words of wisdom combine to grant dreams and love to three people who deserve their family and own special happily ever after.

A Love Letter to Santa by Margaret Brownley
Holly and Tom's story melted my heart with all the joy and goodness that Christmas can bring. Holly brought a smile and cheer to a town that was hurting, and wiggled her way into the heart of a man who was lost. Loved her heart and charm. Tom proved to be a man worthy of his Holly, and had a heart of gold as well. This story left me with a few tears but a heart overflowing with good. Definitely a Christmas story to experience! Also, despite being a short novella story, I felt like I got all the feels for a full length novel!

One Snowy Christmas Eve by Anna Schmidt
Evie and Collin's story is one of second chances, letting go of pride, and chasing down your hearts' desires. A little bit of fate stepped in to give them the opportunity needed to reflect on the past, where they're at now, and grasp hold of what they still want now. Toss in a little meddling and a leap of faith and you have a delightful Christmas blessing story! I loved how we got flash backs of their history, giving us a deeper sense of their connection and showing what was worth fighting for.

This is a collection of Christmas shorts not to be missed!!

Robyn: A Christmas Bride by Jacqui Nelson

Max and Robyn's Christmas love story delivers alot of sweet and charm.

From the first pages, you can feel Max and Robyn's love for each other - and for family. But you can also feel their struggle to figure out how exactly to express that love, and what's truly the best for the other. They truly are the perfect compliment to the other, loving the other as they come, not needing anything else. Watching them dance around the other, you can't help but cheer them on! And that moment when Max finally captures Robyn in his arms? *TOSSES CONFETTI*

Grandpa Gus and Robyn's brothers kept threatening to steal the show -- and I'm hoping from the sounds of things, we aren't going to be saying goodbye to this family quiet yet!! I loved getting to reconnect with Jack and Birdie as well.

This is a cute story that is a perfect little read for Christmas.

The Wishing Tree by Cheryl Pierson

Oh boy! This story gave me all the warm fuzzy feel goods of a Hallmark Christmas movie!! Maria and Pete lit up the pages with their sweet and their sparks. Add in a charming little boy and your heart can't help but melt!

We meet Pete at a tough moment in his life, facing judgment and fear due to war injuries visible on his face. But along comes Maria, with her soft, open, and loving heart, shocking him with how much she sees past the outward scars and nestles into his heart quickly. I loved watching how, with Maria and Miguel, Pete was able to believe in himself again, and see he was still all strong protector. We also see a hint of him grasping ahold of more than one dream he thought he had lost.

Maria absolutely captured my heart, and I connected very quickly to her and Miguel. I felt her struggle and fears, and her relief that she found a man she could trust in her and her son's life. She desperately needed someone to be by her side, have her back, and someone who could jump in danger's way and make her feel safe. Her sweet and abundance of love just poured off the pages.

Miguel - his heart held such beautiful child like love and faith. His belief that there was something special going on that Christmas brought treasured moments to life. If only more kids (and adults) had such innocent beauty in them!

With a splash of danger, a dash of spice, and a whole lot of heart-warming beauty, The Wishing Tree is the perfect little Christmas story to snuggle up with.

White Christmas by Cheryl Pierson

A little bit of spicy and alot a bit of sweet mix up nicely in this insta-love Christmas short story.

From the moment Derek and Carlie meet in the hospital, they have a special connection. Carlie needs to learn that she's worth loving and Derek need to learn that life's worth living. Their connection sparks off some much needed healing and delivers a quick hea, thanks too to some matchmaking sneakiness from Carlie's uncle.

This story makes for a quick and easy spicy Christmas read.

Sir Conrad and the Christmas Treasure by Lindsay Townsend

What do you get when you mix a resourceful, smart, and determined peasant girl with a good-hearted but tough knight? Sparks and insta-attraction that quickly ignite into something beautiful and sweet and worth fighting for!

Maggie is desperate to find her brother and is ingenious in finding help when she accepts she can't do it on her own. Her drive, passion and smarts in working through both her desire to find her brother and her desire to pursue a relationship with Conrad captures your emotions. Her skills in protecting others in her own way melts your heart and her worries about herself connects you closer to her.

Sir Conrad captures your attention with his honor, chivalry, and wisdom. But then he turns around and steals your heart with his protectiveness of Maggie - and in more ways that you think to expect. Sometimes that care had some rough edges -which just made me love him all the more! I adored falling in love with him along with Maggie and didn't want to let go when the last page was turned.

I appreciated how we got to see these two together from almost the first page. I was charmed watching their insta-attraction grow into a forever bond. We get to see things from both their perspectives and be in each of their heads, which I think added so much more, because... after all... there's intrigue and danger and games at play within the ranks of nobility!

I was delighted to experience this Christmas story and get yet another wonderful taste of medieval story telling by a new-to-me author. This longer novella delivers on the feels you'd expect from a longer length story, making it a wonderful holiday read!

Kissing Until Christmas: A Mail Order Bride by Livia J. Washburn

Ohhh! Talk about an intriguing mix of sweet and mysterious and heart-warming and heart-pounding all wrapped up in a pretty Christmas story!

Abby heads off to Texas to meet her groom... only she gets quite the surprise once arriving there. I adored her strength, her stubbornness, and the way she worked through opening up her heart to Shawn and Wes. The secrets she had hounding her -- whew, they sure catch you off guard and make her all the more desirable and worthy of a woman, wife(to-be), and mother(to-be).

Shawn -- he's definitely a mystery as well and manages to keep himself pretty closed off. You just want to dig in like Abby does and find out what's hidden in his head and chaining up his heart so you can give him the love and healing he so desperately shows he needs, and wants, but is scared to accept. Same as Abby - when those secrets are revealed - whoa baby - they're a shocker.

Wes, Shawn's boy, is just absolutely sweet and has so much love to give. Even to cantankerous geese.... haha!

If you're wanting a charmin' sweet Christmas story with just a bit of suspenseful intrigue, grab Kissing Until Christmas. It'll keep you warm and smilin' from beginning to end!

Mr. Christmas Elf by Stephanie Burkhart

EEK! I just felt like I lived out a Hallmark Christmas movie - with all the sweet, heart-warming cuteness you expect!

Jules is where we all have been -- things are weighing heavy on her and she just can't seem to catch a break. But then finally, with just a bit of faith in Christmas magic and the help of Elvis and his elf friends, more than her Christmas wishes gets answered.

This is the best kind of story that if you're in a mood for a feel-good Christmas movie but don't really want to have the tv on. Mr Christmas Elf is an easy and sweet read, and even includes the token life-lesson. Definitely a cute and fun story to dive into.

One Yuletide Knight anthology

A Marriage Made in Hell by Deborah Macgillivray

Omgoodness!! This novella just BLEW ME AWAY! After I got into the swing of how Deborah uses her words to build the atmosphere of her story, I was totally immersed into Grantham and Lesslyn's story and didn't want to leave. Add in the fact that it was a short story, but yet I was able to connect to the characters, that just made this story all the better!

What started seemingly as a innocent "swap places" decision turned into something meant-to-be but figuring out the who and what to get to their HEA was quite the trip!

Grantham swept me away with just how manly he was and how he claimed and settled into his new role. Lesslyn was endearing in how she approached her new life and sweetly fell for her man. They were the perfect compliment for the other.

This was the first book I've read from Deborah Macgillivray, and it won't be my last! I definitely need more of her stories in my life!

The Protector by Patti Sherry-Crews
A surprising amount of intrigue and twists are packed into this cute story where everyone has secrets and their own agendas. Tempers flare and stubbornness digs in amidst a swiftly growing admiration that turns into a sweet love.

Juliana finds herself frustrated with having to deal with Sir William, especially when he verbally manhandles her into something she thinks is ridiculous. Will is just following orders trying to protect her, but he can't seem to keep his attention off more fun things to do with her - even when she's stashed away safe.... maybe....

I loved watching their banter and how they connect even though they're often at odds with each other. This is a fun story if you enjoy a heroine who's determined and spunky and gives just as good as she gets.

Counting Down To Christmas by Patti Sherry-Crews

A Christmas Cowboy to Keep: A Contemporary Western Romance Collection

Counting Down To Christmas by Patti Sherry-Crews

With heartwarming sweetness and cute giggles, Melody and Leland's story is just that, sweet and warm! Well... There's some sassy sparks and growly attitudes that needs to be worked through first (of course!), but after that, I loved watching them figure out their hea together. I also enjoyed the feeling of home and warmth and family that flowed from the story.

Some other stories are on my tbr pile still.

Her Christmas Wish by Tracy Garrett

Her Christmas Wish is the sweet 2nd chance love story for Will and his Katie.

Life throws challenge and heartbreak Katie's way over and over again until she finally finds herself digging deep in her inner strength to make it on her own. Then when she allows a past memory of a lost love to slip in, to her shock, wishes seem to come true.

Will has his own set of challenges and pain he's struggled with for years, and when he finds his Katie, he doesn't back down from claiming his woman and showing her he still loves her - and always did.

I loved watching these two work through things and find their way to their Christmas happily ever after, where wishes are granted, just not always on our time table. This is a sweet, easy read with lots of warm feel goods mixed in.

A Christmas Visitor by Sarah J. McNeal

What a cute Christmas story! Matilda and Sterling were sweethearts, but Sterling decided before he could marry her, he needed to make something of himself. Sadly, miscommunication left Matilda behind feeling lost and abandoned while Sterling strove and struggled to become worthy of her. Years past before Sterling returned, finding things weren’t quite as he expected.

Matilda used her stubbornness and strength to survive everything life had thrown at her after Sterling left, and your heart hurts for the depth of her dashed hopes and dreams. You also find yourself cheering for her as she works through her pride and reaches out to grab hold of her happy.

Good thing Sterling also had a stubborn streak to keep up with Matilda and kept proving to her over and over his love for her - and it’s a good thing his heart was in the right place! I loved how he refused to give up and gifted Matilda with something she desperately needed.

This second chance love story offers a sweet and short Christmas time heart-warming happily ever after.

Luke: A Scrooged Christmas by CP Smith

Are you looking for a short, swoony, easy-to-read Christmas story that's heartwarming and fun and has a positive message? Then you want to get Luke!!!

Luke has a very good (heartbreaking) reason for being a Scrooge. But when he collides with Anna, his walls start to crumble... and quickly! Anna is definitely his angel and helps light the path he needs to let go of the past and lead them to a treasured future together.

For this being a short story, so much beauty was packed inside that by the end it felt like a full length book. I can't wait till it's time to revisit Luke and Anna's story again and be swept away.

A Hero for Christmas anthology by Cheryl Pierson

The Gunfighter's Girl
Sweet story of a man finding redemption and forgiveness from his past and learning that his future could be even better than he hoped for.

Meant To Be
Stinkin' loved this time travel story!! It made me want to find a portal and a Jake Devlin of my own.

A Night for Miracles
Super cute insta love story about miracles and Christmas wishes coming true for sweet orphans and lonely adults needing to belong. Loved it!!

Sweet Texas Christmas anthology

Sweet Texas Christmas is a fun, light, easy to read set of Christmas happily-ever-after short stories that just make you smile.

I adored Santa's Secret -- such fun to see Audra and Grady dance around each other and finally figure out they're meant to be. 5 stars

Kidnapping Kalli. Haha! Loved it and how these two met and fell in love. Adventure abounds and sweetness made my heart smile. Shiloh and Kalli's story gave me the excitement and the sweetness I love to read. 5 stars

Miss Miller's Molasses Cookies: cute story, lighthearted, not alot of depth. The "drama" keeping James and Josie apart kinda seemed to be missing something and didn't make me really fall/like either of them that much. 3 stars

A Christmas Visitor - Another cute story! Matilda was almost too stubborn and prideful for her own good, and Sterling for a moment (or two, or three) made me so mad! But then I kept going and when I fully learned what he did, it made sense and I forgave him quickly. haha! Second chance love story. 4 stars

The recipes at the end are a sweet (haha!) touch and funny enough, we have a treasured family cookie recipe I made earlier today that is almost exactly like one of the recipes in the book. Someone's family has great taste! :)

The Devil and Miss Julia Jackson by Cheryl Pierson

The Devil and Miss Julia Jackson is a sweet, adorable story of a rough and tumble rancher who finds his hea with a prim and proper southern belle. Devlin is struggling with moving on from the loss of his first wife and daughter, just keeping it barely together for his toddler son, when Miss Jackson and her (surprise!) niece arrive in answer to his search for a caretaker for his son. And thus begins a tale of falling in love, choosing and giving forgiveness, learning to trust, and finding the happily ever after that was meant to be. And let's just say, it wasn't uneventful despite the snow quickly piling up! Several twists and turns keep you on your toes as Devlin and Julie grow closer to each other and build a family.

This is a sweet and adorable little tale that provides a feel good easy read many readers seek out at Christmas time! Don't miss it!

Daxton by Julia Goda

(Cedar Creek #3)

Fun, short, insta-love story between Emersyn and Daxton. Loved how they were able to connect so fully and quickly (and in a way I could feel and believe!) and help each other begin to heal and let go from their pasts.

This is one book that I'd love to have had it be longer, just because they both really touched my heart, but it also worked out well being short and still giving me the feels I love to get! Plus, with this being part of the Cedar Creek series, who knows!? Maybe I'll get more glimpses of them in a future book!

The Calling Birds by Jacqui Nelson

Jacqui Nelson continues her unique voice in giving us Jack and Birdie's story. I giggled my way through Jack and Birdie's initial meeting and enjoyed wating them learn to open up and trust each other to fall into their happily ever after. Jack had me swoonin' with his attitude along with how he held himself (leanin' in the door frame? Let me be there, under his arm and gaze, pretty please!), and with the love he had for his grandfather. Birdie took a bit for me to fully connect to, but once she finally got to the place where she was vulnerable and open with Jack, she won me over! Gus.... Grandpa Gus! He made me laugh and smile and want to keep him close. Put all three of them together and it made for a fun book to escape into for an easy Christmas read.

I also enjoyed the tie into Choosing Bravery and how we got to see Birdie's hea in Noelle. She definitely deserved it.

Moonshine & Mistletoe: A Placerville Christmas Novella by Dee Burks

Cute and spicy insta-love romantic suspense kinda story. Low on angst, high on adventure, JJ and Maggie give you a feel good entertaining read. I loved their interactions, and while it did seem a bit too easy, the suspense worked well to bring them fully together and keep the momentum going.

The Dove: The Second Day by Shanna Hatfield

(The 12 Days of Christmas Mail-Order Brides, #2)

I adored this sweet book! Culver and Zee's story captured my heart with all the beauty and vulnerability and leaps of faith they took to claim their hea with each other. This is definitely one of my favorite historical Christmas books I've read this year.