Zachary's Virgin

Zachary's Virgin by Catherine Spencer is a delight. She knows how to weave character, plot, and setting into a seamless whole that draws the reader into a world s/he doesn't want to leave. I devoured the book through from cover to cover twice, and I have put it on my "keepers" shelf to enjoy again whenever I'm in the mood for a really good read.

Yes! Love is sweeter than wine when we feel it through the skin of a lonely French woman who meets the Canadian man of her dreams and cannot have him.Claire Durocher does Christmas at a small, exclusive BC ski resort to recharge batteries worn down by work and the social whirl.Zachary Alexander, luxury innkeeper, widower tied to his deceased wife, is the possessive father of a budding teenager.Claire destroys his peace and brings out the worst in him. With the toughness of a Marseilles street kid, she befriends his child and endures Zach's anger. He must resolve guilty grief for a dead wife and learn to share his daughter with a woman he brands a wealthy playgirl. Claire struggles to hide her true heart from this man who reviles her.Her comical efforts to grasp North American English expressions infuse the story with gentle humour as their love grows amid starry nights and glittering snowclad days.FIVE GLORIOUS STARS to Catherine Spencer for this Christmas masterpiece of loving and learning to love again.

Catherine Spencer's romance, Zachary's Virgin, is an exciting romance with the sexual tension we long for and the sweet joy of its tension resolving.The main characters, Zachary and Claire, are so true and believable. They are exciting, attractive, sophisticated, and yet so human you would dream you've seen them somewhere.I was delighted with the descriptions of the winter beauty of Bristish Columbia. I could smell the evergreen and feel the feathery, damp snow falling and see the huge, snow capped mountains.Best of all was the plot. Claire's childhood was described so skillfully and poignantly. I could admire her willpower in remaining a virgin while I ached feeling the hurt she had endured that cut her off from so much of life. Zachary's attractiveness was stunning from the moment the reader discovered him. I liked the way his thoughts were expressed in his own vernacular. He is such a completely male character with competence, good looks, education, love for his daughter and finally the ability to yield to his attraction for Claire.Melanie's teenage turmoil was so apparent as was her wonderful young charm that Claire elicited from her. How fully drawn was all the caring Claire felt and the connection Mel felt. Catherine Spencer gave me a romance that sparkles with her understanding of passion and warms with her compassion for women. It put me in the holiday spirit and in a romantic mood.What nice little Christmas gifts this book will make. They will warm any woman's heart with memories of Christmas past and hopes for a romantic holiday to come.Has anyone started a fan club for Catherine Spencer yet?