Christmas from the Heart
Sheila Roberts
On Sale Date: September 24, 2019
9780778309611, 0778309614
Trade Paperback
$16.99 USD, $21.99 CAD
Fiction / Romance / Contemporary
304 pages
~Book Blurb~
USA TODAY bestselling author Sheila Roberts takes readers to a small, snowbound town, where a young woman fights to save her family’s charity that brings Christmas to families in need, and a stranded millionaire loses his heart and finds the true meaning of Christmas.
Sometimes you need to look beyond the big picture to see what really matters.
Olivia Berg’s charity, Christmas from the Heart, has helped generations of families in need in Pine River, Washington, but this year might be the end of the road. Hightower Enterprises, one of their biggest donors since way back when Olivia’s grandmother ran the charity, has been taken over by Ebenezer Scrooge the Second, aka CFO Guy Hightower, and he’s declared there will be no more money coming to Christmas from the Heart.
Guy is simply being practical. Hightower Enterprises needs to tighten its belt, and when you don’t have money to spare, you don’t have money to share. You’d think even the pushy Olivia Berg could understand that.
With charitable donations dwindling, Olivia’s Christmas budget depends on Hightower’s contribution. She’s focused her whole life on helping this small town, even putting her love life on hold to support her mission.
When Guy’s Maserati breaks down at the edge of the Cascade foothills, he’s relieved to be rescued by a pretty young woman who drives him to the nearby town of Pine River. Until he realizes his rescuer is none other than Olivia Berg. What’s a Scrooge to do? Plug his nose and eat fruitcake and hope she doesn’t learn his true identity before he can get out of town. What could go wrong?
~My Thoughts~
This book would make a perfect Hallmark Christmas movie simply because it’s wholesome, predictable, romantic, and filled to the brim with holiday spirit. Honestly, how the people in these books and movies can drink so much cocoa is beyond me. I can’t remember the last time I sat down with an adult to drink hot chocolate. Then again, maybe that’s my loss. Hmmmm…
So here, we have a grumpy Scrooge, Guy, who is trying to rescue his family company by tightening its belt straps and cutting extraneous spending. Then there’s Olivia, who runs a nonprofit called Christmas from the heart, that depends on funding from Guy’s company. After a few emails and terse phone calls, both Guy and Olivia lose their tempers and insult each other.
So, as is always the case, something happens to bring our star crossed together for an unusually extended period of time. Which can only mean one thing. *sigh*
As a consumer of all kinds of cheesy, ridiculous Christmas movies, I am not above loving a ridiculous storyline because it makes me feel good. Especially, around the holidays, when all I want are holly jolly feelings, I will let some weak plot points slide because we’re just running out of ways to get people together and mistletoe can only do so much.
Here, my issue lies with the initial confrontation. Olivia’s hostile overreaction didn’t endear me to her, and therefore, I wasn’t that interested in rooting for the couple. Then, because Guy lies to her about his identity, we are supposed to be on her side in the end, and I just couldn’t get there. No right minded charity worker, let alone leader, would respond in the way she did. She needs money and con’t be pissing off people who have it, even when they won’t share. It would be like a salvation army bell ringer slapping you in the face when you don’t drop in change. Merry freaking Christmas.
Otherwise, this book was a lot of fun to read. The romance was a slow burn with a little bit of insta-attraction. The ancillary characters were cute, but no one really stood out for me as extra special. The heart of the story really lies with the charity, and I really felt like it anchored the book in a beautiful way.
Christmas from the heart is an adorable book, full of candy cane sweetness and mistletoe kisses. Perfect for hopeful romantics looking for a quick holiday read.
~About the Author~
Sheila Roberts lives on a lake in the Pacific Northwest. Her novels have been published in several languages. Her book, Angel Lane, was an Amazon Top Ten Romance pick for 2009. Her holiday perennial, On Strike for Christmas, was made into a movie for the Lifetime Movie Network and her novel, The Nine Lives of Christmas, was made into a movie for Hallmark . You can visit Sheila on Twitter and Facebook or at her website (http://www.sheilasplace.com).
~Social Media & Buy Links~
Social Links:
Author website
Facebook: @funwithsheila
Twitter: @_Sheila_Roberts
Instagram: @funwithsheila
Buy Links:
Amazon
Google Play
Barnes & Noble
Apple Books
Kobo
**Special thanks to Sheila Roberts and HarperCollins Publishers/ Harlequin for a copy of Christmas from the Heart in exchange for an honest review.
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