Customer Reviews

The Heart of Christmas: A Handful of Gold\The Season for Suitors\This Wicked Gift

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Collections like "The Heart of Christmas" are a mixed blessing: Readers can sample short works by authors who are familiar or new, but the volume usually contains a mixture of good and not-so-good stories. This collection seemed like a sure winner. Mary Balough is a long-time favorite of many and Nicola Cornick has published a good series recently. I'd never heard of Courtney Milan.

Here's my verdict: I'd buy the book again. On a curl-up-in-a-chair-and-pretend-to-be-elsewhere day, the book would be just right. I'd give the collection as a whole a 3.5 out of 5.

Mary Balough's entry, "A Handful of Gold" follows a wealthy rake, Julian Dare, who decides he must give in to his family's wishes and marry a woman not of his choosing. As a last fling, he agrees to spend Christmas week with a friend, and the friend's mistress, at a hunting lodge. Since Dare has no mistress at the moment, he pays an opera dancer to accompany him. Of course, she is a lady fallen on hard times and, although she is a virgin, she agrees to the arrangement so she can pay for medical care for her ill sister. The story was irritating in a couple of ways. The blatant manipulation of the reader's emotions (bring on the Kleenex)was a bit much. In addition, the story becomes very "preachy." The heavy-handed references to the meaning of Christmas were hard to accept. Comparing the birth of Christ to a rake's paying for and bedding a virgin (even if it turns into love) is over-the-top.

Nicola Cornick's "The Season for Suitors" is an oddity. I would guess this was an early effort that she brushed off and submitted for the book. There is an amusing role reversal. Sebastian is in his 30s and everyone points out to him that he is now old. Once he holds twin infants, his biological clock begins ticking and he wants babies. Clara boldly courts him. And Sebastian, the greatest rake in London, is almost "missish" around her. In fact, she really does unman him, he says, and she must seduce him to cure his impotence. There are a number of blind alleys in the story (the blurb says she asks him to teach her about rakes, for her own safety, but that thread, along with others, disappears).

Courtney Milan definitely got my attention with "This Wicked Gift." The story is original and encompasses a wealth of subject matter in a short space. Lavinia operates her family's lending library while caring for her ill father and her rambunctious 15-year-old brother. William Q White is a subscriber to the library. He visits often in his quest for self-education--and to surreptitiously watch the lovely Lavinia--who secretly watches him. William finds a way, he thinks, to coerce Lavinia into his bed--and then hates himself for doing so. William is a bitter and angry man. He has no family, works long hours for an ogre of a boss, and is consumed by guilt. Lavinia refuses to give up on him. She has the ability to tune out the words of the ones she loves and read what their actions say, instead. Of course, William eventually becomes the man she knows he can be. She also reforms herself to become the sister she should be. The main characters are not titled or wealthy. Their lives are portrayed quite realistically and are filled with hard work, mended clothing, and weak tea (since the leaves must be used many times over). The characters were interesting and well developed, the plot was multi-layered, and there was no "misunderstanding" contrived to keep the lovers apart. Instead, there was a man who had lost faith in himself and a very determined woman who had enough faith for both of them until his intelligence (and luck)resolved their difficulties.

I read these stories on my day off, and I would recommend them to any romance reader.

For all the pros and cons of the story lines, each book is well written, and are at a decent enough length to where you can get a satisfying read.

Mary Balogh writes a solid book and has the elements of a classic regency romance. Her book comes across as meaty despite its length, and we see character development with the hero.

Nicola Cornicks offering was an enjoyable one. The heroine was definitely spirited but not a brat. My one issue was the fact that the initial storyline made no sense to me. I won't discuss it however overall it was a lighthearted read.

The last story by Milan is a departure from the sparkling romances that we seem to get. I thought that it was an awesome story because it showcased reality and the growth of the hero AND the heroine. (Well moreso the hero)

All in all, I think that this is a must have for any regency/historical romance fan. Each story stands on its own, and is different from the next one so I felt that I got my moneys worth.

Typical Mary Balogh, but she has written better stories. I've read many of them.
The Nicola Cornick story was all right--the plot was convoluted, but a little light Christmas romance reading, so it was fine. I've read a few of her novels, and I'm never sure if I like them or not.
I saved the Courtney Milan story for last, because I didn't think it sounded as appealing, and I didn't know who she was. What a great surprise! I quickly became invested in the characters and stayed up late reading the story. What a wonderful short story.
The book is worth buying for the Courtney Milan story, but I wasn't impressed with the other two.

I only read "This Wicked Gift" because I wanted to read about poor people. I really liked it; it was like a Regency version of The Jeffersons.

I really liked the book! Courtney Milan's story was my favorite. Imagine - a regency romance with the hero and heroine members of the "deserving poor"! I loved it.

Nicola Cornick's story was ok. I felt like I'd been there, read that, but it was well written.

Mary Balogh's story was also ok. A little predictable, but I still liked it.

This anthology gets 5 stars purely because it is where we are introduced to the wonderful new author, Courtney Milan. The other two stories by Mary Balogh and Nicola Cornick are fine, but are not new - both of them have been previously released in other collections.

"This wicked gift" by Courtney Milan is so refreshing because presents the lives and loves of people who are not aristocrats...it gives us a glimpse into the lives of "poor" people. Our hero is flawed and some times I just wish he'd get a grip, yet you cannot help but feel for him. The heroine is spunky, knows what she wants and goes for it. I highly recommend this story as well as Milan's later books Proof by Seduction (Thorndike Press Large Print Romance Series) and Trial by Desire (Hqn).

If you are intrested, I have a review on "Christmas Keepsakes" The reason for my disappointment was because of the re-print. Mary Balogh's "A Handful of Gold" was in Christmas Keepsakes and The Gifts of Christmas, so it has been printed in three Christmas anthologies. Nicola Cornick's "The Seasdon For Suitors" was also reprinted from Christmas Keepsakes. Soooooooooo if you have read this one, don't bother spending your money as I did. In this economy a person can not afford to buy duplicate books. I hate that when authors do that or when they change the name of an older book and re-release it under false pretenses. I have been caught up in that too. So, all I can say is buyer/reader beware.

I haven't read the other two stories in this anthology, but Mary Balogh's "A Handful of Gold" was previously published in The Gifts of Christmas: A Handful of Gold/ A Drop of Frankincense/ A Touch of Myrrh, 1998.

"A Handful of Gold" is not one of my favorites of Balogh's Christmas anthology contributions (many of which I love to re-read when that time of year comes around), so I thought it worth mentioning that Balogh fans may already own it or could purchase it more cheaply in the older volume, if they wish.

A Handful of Gold by Mary Balogh was my least favorite story in this anthology. We have the same old rehash of a plot with a gentleman rake who is bored in London surrounded by all his wealth. Julian Dare, Viscount Folingsby is out of sorts because his father is forcing him to marry. He's twenty nine after all and it's about time he settled down and has an heir. Julian has not finished sowing his oats but decided some relaxation is in order when his friend, Bertrand (what is up with that name?) invites him to his hunting box for the holidays. Bertie has his mistress to keep him satisfied and wants Julian to bring his own mistress and come along for some cheer and holiday shagging. Julian has the perfect woman picked out. She is Blanche Heyward, a dancer in the opera with "long, shapely legs with long titan hair and emerald eyes."

Blanche is actually Miss Verity Ewing, a virginal young miss who pretends to be a worldly opera dancer in order to pay for the costly medicine for her sick sister. Verity's mother and sister have no clue about her secret life and tells them some laughable excuse about being a hired companion for a eccentric lady who needs Verity mainly at night. When Julian meets her at the opera and takes her to dinner, he explains how he longs for company for the week and will pay her five hundred pounds. Verity accepts because the money will help her sister. And all of London society thinks she's a fallen woman anyway (except her clueless mother) because an opera dancer could never be a virgin!

Julian and Verity head off for their week long adventure and even though Verity is nervous about being ruined by Julian, she decides to welcome his advances because Julian should have wonderful skills in the bedroom because of his reputation.

A Handful of Gold was a ridiculous little story. How many times have I read before about the acclaimed opera singer actually being some virginal and precious young miss who catches the eyes of the biggest rake in all of London? Verity had no personality to speak of and Julian was a dullard.

Nicola Cornick's The Season For Suitors was a cute and fun read about two people who are so right for one another but try to ignore their feelings because they think they want different things in life. Sebastian, Duke of Fleet is yet another London rake who is bored with life in general. Things begin to look up when he receives a letter from Clara Davencourt. Sebastian is surprised to hear from Clara due to the falling out they had eighteen months ago because he rejected her offer of marriage. She was insulted, hurled a few choice words at him and they haven't spoken since then. Now Clara is asking Sebastian for advice. Sebastian longs to be friends with her again. Clara is also pleased with renewing their acquaintance because Sebastian is a skilled rake. She needs him to help her with all these new rakes that keep popping up and trying to seduce her because she is now a rich heiress due to her godmother who died and left her a fortune. Clara is not ready to be married and since Sebastian isn't either, he'll help her out.

The Season for Suitors is a witty little tale with two lovely characters who can see how special each other is with their quirks and all. Both Sebastian and Clara are fun loving individuals and there are a few laughs withn the pages that makes for fun reading.

Courtney Milan's His Wicked Gift was my favorite of the three. Courtney takes a Charles Dicken's Christmas Carol and gives it a nice twist with a regency romance where a mysterious man finds love with a poor girl who runs her father's lending library business.

Lavinia Spencer has cut corners and saved every penny of her hard earned money to give her father and younger brother a very special Christmas. Times are tough and Lavinia spends her days running her family's business because her father can't any longer due to an illness. She also looks forward to seeing a special subscriber on certain days. William Q. White makes Lavinia's heart flutter. The way he speaks makes her tingle. There's something so very special about this man who uses long vowels when he talks. Instead of William using the smell of sandalwood to make Lavinia, giddy, all he has to do is to recite the alphabet to seduce her.

Unfortunately Lavinia's younger brother James does something foolish that will ruin their whole holiday. Lavinia thinks everything is lost until Mister William Q. White comes to her aid. William has come into a bit of money and will give Lavinia what she needs if she gives him her body. William has gone through tough times and is barely making ends meet working in a counting house for a man who is a total scrooge. But he has been given ten pounds from the death of someone in his past who he felt owed him a great deal. And since William feels he has sacrificed so much, he wants one bright thing to get him through the harsh unforgiving winter and that is Lavinia.

This Wicked Gift was very sexy and sweet. The physical side of William and Lavinia's relationship happens a bit too fast, and Lavinia's reaction to William's "help" was a bit unbelievable, but overall I really did enjoy how these two clicked. Too bad the story was so short because I would have loved to read something meatier between the two. Courtney really knows how to keep a reader interested, because what could be better than making some steamy love among a room full of books?

Two out of three isn't a bad thing and I would say that The Heart of the Christmas anthology is nice for those who want to get in the mood for the holidays with their historical romance reading.

Katiebabs

I bought this book for my mother-in-law for her b'day this year. She says that it's a great read, and that she knows I will enjoy it, too. I will be reading it soon, because I always enjoy this author's writing. It was a great buy, and came in the mail so quickly, I was surprised.