Guess Who's Coming for Christmas?

From the back cover: Yes, Jamie, there is a Santa Claus... Or at least that's what Beth Cavell desperately needed her orphaned nephew to believe. Because the least Beth could do was fulfill his Christmas wishes. Besides, he only had two--snow...and a daddy! What was the recently dumped but devoted aunt to do? Rent a cabin in the Canadian wilderness for starters... Which is where she found Riley Keenan. Riley had the same tolerance for Christmas that he had for little boys and their beautiful aunts--i.e., none. But bit by bit, the lovely Beth and the adorable Jamie were melting the ice around his heart. And then snowflakes began to fall. Was Jamie's second wish about to be granted? And my review: This book was just wonderful! Seriously, I had not one single complaint about it. The characters were well-developed, and ones that you loved and felt you knew intimately by the end of the book. I was a little worried that I might not like the hero, with his "bah, humbug" attitude, but he did change by the end of the book. Also, he had a good reason for feeling the way he did. Also, the character of the little boy was well sketched. He always felt like more than just a flat plot device. And he was so cute! He made my heart melt. I really liked how the author brought together two wounded souls. Both were tortured characters, yet this wasn't an angst-riddled book. I found it so wonderfully uplifting. And so moving, which is really impressive, given that the author had less than 200 pages to work with. I actually had tears in my eyes at the end of the book--it was that touching. I just loved watching how the hero feel in love with the heroine (and Jamie), even when he was fighting against it. While the story takes course over the place of just a few days, it never felt rushed. The romance felt real to me. And I really liked that while the hero and heroine were sexually attracted to one another, it wasn't the only thing drawing them together. They also didn't just blindly fall into bed, either. In fact, the hero was so honorable that he refuses to take advantage of the heroine when he has the opportunity. There's no sex in this book--not even implied. And it doesn't need it at all. It's a sweet, touching Christmas story, exactly the kind of book I like to read. I also really liked that the Christmas aspect of this story was woven throughout the plot. It didn't feel like something tacked on to boost sales. I can't say enough good about this book. Highly, highly recommended. I'm a VERY hard sell, (see me other reviews if you don't believe me!), and I don't usually like Harlequin romances that much (usually they're too rushed or cliched) but this book is a keeper! If you're a fan of Christmas-themed romances, see my list "Christmas romance books worth buying" for my other recommended picks.

Another good Cara Colter story, showing up many of her strengths: real romance, family, optimism. It didn't feel specifically like Christmas to me, but it's good enough that that hardly matters.