Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Review: What Happens Under the Mistletoe by Sabrina Jeffries, Karen Hawkins, Candace Camp, Meredith Duran



Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Publication Date: October 27, 2015

Blurb:

New York Times bestselling authors Sabrina Jeffries, Karen Hawkins, and Candace Camp, and USA TODAY bestselling author Meredith Duran come together for a sizzling historical romance holiday anthology.

Stunned by the heat of an unexpected kiss on a cold winter’s eve, two strangers from vastly different worlds turn hotheaded principles into burning passion in Sabrina Jeffries’s delightful yuletide story, The Heiress and the Hothead. In the snowy Scottish countryside, Karen Hawkins’s rakish duke has an unforgettable holiday encounter in Twelve Kisses when the alluring lady he surprises under the mistletoe is not who he expected, but a long-lost love with a score to settle. In By Any Other Name, Edinburgh is aglitter for Christmastime as Candace Camp sends a curious gentleman in hot pursuit of an intriguing lady in disguise—one who refuses to reveal her true identity, though she fears he has already stolen her heart with his kiss. In Sweet Ruin, will the festive spirit of the season sweep Meredith Duran’s feisty heroine beneath the mistletoe—and back into the arms of the dashing rogue whose carelessness soiled her reputation and sent her into exile in London?

In this all-new story collection sparkling with sexy charm and heartwarming wit, four beloved bestselling authors reveal the mix-ups and make-ups, the missed chances and golden opportunities that come but once a year.

Review:

What happens under the mistletoe is a collection of four short stories from  Sabrina Jeffries, Karen Hawkins, Candace Camp and Meredith Duran. Most of the stories are part of a series, but the magic of the stand alone books worked again and it doesn't affect the reader if he hasn't read the series. The only thing that was affected was my bank account because I added a bunch of books on my to read list.

All the stories are short which means that some aspects of the book is not as developed as the others. It's mostly about the romance which was fine by me. I don't expect from stories under 100 pages to have the characteristics of a full elnght novel (aka developed charcaters, full background story if needed, all the threads tied etc.) so I am advising to consider that before you buy the book. When a novella has all that I applaud it, but I don't expect every short story to have that.

The connection between these stories is a kiss under the mistletoe and it's the only thing they have in common. Their genres are different. My favorite story was In By Any Other Name. Each story is unique and fun to read. It's a good book to gift to someone and I am thinking of buying it for my best as a Christmas gift. Below you can read my review for two of the stories.


The Heiress and the Hothead by Sabrina Jeffries: If I had to describe the story in one word that would have been mills. Other than the romance, the mills are the most mentioned thing in this book, which made me feel weird, but makes complete sense since we are talking about an era where people were working on them. It gives to the reader a deeper knowledge of how things worked then and it's heartbreaking.

In By Any Other Name by Candace Camp: This was a very satisfying story and I am glad I had the chance to read it. There is something in this story that captured me and when I finished it I though that it was going to be my favorite. It's the best story I read since Walk Through Fire. I finished it with a happy smile on my face. An added bonus was Andrew and Eleanor's story. You could see it from a mile away that these two were meant for each other and I was willing to read their story if the author decided to publish one. I liked how the heroine went to find out what happened to her brother. She had balls. 


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