Customer Reviews

A Virgin River Christmas (Virgin River, Book 4)

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Marcie's husband, Bobby, came back from war in Iraq with a spinal injury and in critical condition, he never recovered. For more than three years Marcie cared for him and nursed him, always grateful for the time they still had. The person responsible for that time was Bobby's best friend and Sergeant, Ian. Ian had saved Bobby in Iraq and he managed to look in on or write Marcie when he had the chance. Then suddenly he went missing. No one had seen or heard from Ian in years. It's been almost a year since Bobby has passed away and Marcie has made it her mission to find Ian. She wants to talk to him about what happened, make sure he's OK and finally have some closure.

Her search leads her to the northern California mountain town called Virgin River. She finds her man, though hardly recognizable, and begins the last chapter of her healing process.

This is the 4th Virgin River book, though the time frame takes place approximately midway through the 3rd book, Whispering Rock. Marcie is a feisty little heroine and although she has been through the unthinkable she is a modern day Pollyanna. She never regretted that her husband came home to her half alive, instead she savored and embraced each second they were given.

Ian has his battle scars, but his emotional scars are what have him living a hermit like existence in the mountains. Taking one day at a time, he never stood a chance when Marcie came knocking on his door. Two people dealing with loss in very different ways, manage to find some common ground and help one another more than they anticipated.

This was a fantastic addition to the series. The scenes written about Bobby are painful to read. I had tears in my eyes, a lump in my throat and an ache in my heart. The writing made it so real I couldn't keep from sobbing. Despite the depressing nature that brings these two people together, the book was full of laughs. Marcie is sarcastic and sassy and she and Ian had me cracking up. Visits from the Virgin River folks we have come to know and love only enhance this tale. A wonderful Christmas tale; friendship, love, healing and happily ever after.

Cherise Everhard November 2008

Marcie Sullivan has been searching for Ian Buchanan, the best friend of her deceased husband. Ian saved Bobby's life in Fallujah, brought him back home to Marcie, and then disappeared. Marcie wants to deliver Bobby's treasured baseball card collection to Ian and understand why he deserted them during Bobby's last years of life.

Ian is tucked away in Virgin River, quietly living life on the outskirts. Marcie is a reminder of a past he wants to forget, but Marcie's stubborn nature just won't let go. Maybe this Christmas will be one to remember....

No one does contemporary romance quite like Robyn Carr! Her Virgin River series exemplifies why she is so beloved and A VIRGIN RIVER CHRISTMAS only continues her tradition of producing superb romances.

While A VIRGIN RIVER CHRISTMAS can be read as a stand alone, the nuances of the town and the various people populating Virgin River will be better appreciated if read in the context of the series as a whole. Part of what makes the Virgin River series so unique is the town itself as it is practically a character. Robyn Carr captures the beauty and the harshness of a small, isolated town and brings it vividly alive. Ian and Marcie are perfect additions to such a town as they both have their own burdens to bear.

A VIRGIN RIVER CHRISTMAS isn't always an easy read but it's a very satisfying one. Ian's journey hasn't been an easy one and the emotional scars run deep. Only a woman as stubborn as Marcie could break through his barriers. Robyn Carr shows the grieving and healing processes quite well, almost too well as there are some scenes that should come with a warning that Kleenex will be needed. A VIRGIN RIVER CHRISTMAS is a tearjerker that is highly recommended!

COURTESY OF CK2S KWIPS AND KRITIQUES

to curl up with in your favorite reading spot. A book that is set in a small community with old fashion values. Where neighbor helps neighbor. This book got my attention from page 1 where Marcie is packed up and on her way to try to locate her deceased husband Bobby's friend, an ex-Marine named Ian, who saved his life and brought him back to her. A man who chose to leave everyone behind and live a solitary life and Marcie's determination to thank him for the time she was given with Bobby. Robyn has a way of writing that makes it easy to visulize the people and locations. After reading this book, I ordered the previous books written about virgin river.

Okay, I have to admit, I am hooked on Robyn Carr's Virgin River series. Initially, I got a galley of Harvest Moon from Net Galley, read it and loved it. Then I got another in the series...and loved it, too. Finally, I decided that I need to read these books in order. I have just finished A Virgin River Christmas, and while it's not essential to read this in the order of the other books, it helped to understand what had transpired previously since many of the other characters make appearances in this book.

Young widow, Marcie Sullivan, is on a mission to find her deceased Marine husband's best friend, the sergeant he adored and who saved his life. Rugged Ian Buchanan left the Marine Corps shortly after Bobby was injured, visited once briefly, then disappeared. Marcie needs closure, needs to talk to him about her dead husband and has something to give to him. Against the wishes of her older sister Erin and her younger brother Drew, she sets off for Humboldt County in search of the elusive man who never answered any of her letters.

Ian Buchanan has lived in a one-room cabin in the mountains near Virgin River for nearly four years. He's more or less a hermit, and Marcie's visit is most unwelcome. But Marcie is suffering from cold exposure and Ian takes her in. It turns out she has the flu and needs to stay put for a few days. Her time in Ian's cabin begins a gradual thawing of Ian's wild man persona, and over the course of ten days, the two learn much about each other and some profound truths about themselves.

Experience picturesque Virgin River as the townspeople erect a meaningful outdoor Christmas tree, share cookies and togetherness. At a nearby church, Ian and Marcie hear a meaningful sermon that starts them thinking about the meaning of their lives.

Once again, Ms. Carr has delivered a warm, meaningful story guaranteed to touch your hearts. She has an extraordinary understanding of the human psyche and it is so very visible in the lovely story of redemption.

Marcie Sullivan came to Virgin River looking for Ian Buchanan. Ian had saved her husband's life while both men served as marines in . Bobby had lived several years almost comatose before he finally passed away a year ago and Marcie is determined to find Ian and find out why, after one visit, he never came back to see his friend again. She finally finds Ian, she finds a damaged soul who has been living as a hermit. Ian has never been able to forgive himself for the way Bobby died and has lived his life trying to escape the nightmare of Bobby's vegetative state. But Marcie's arrival brings light and laughter back into Ian's life. As they spend the days together love blooms between them. Can they forge a new life between them?

Robyn Carr's Virgin River Series is simply excellent. From one book to the next the characters you fell in love with in other books keep the story moving and remind the reader why we love this series. A Virgin River Christmas is just the right touch for the season. Readers can't go wrong with this book. I can't recommend A Virgin River Christmas highly enough!

Melissa
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

Marcie Sullivan travels to Virgin River to seek out the man who saved her husband Bobby's life when he was critically injured in Iraq. Since saving Bobby, Ian Buchannan has withdrawn from everything and everyone and is living the life of a hermit. Ian gave Marcie three more years with Bobby before he died from his injuries, something that Ian feels guilty about, but Marcie is thankful for. Marcie feels she can't move on with her life until she thanks Ian. She didn't expect to find a man who was hurting and didn't understand her gratefulness at saving her husband's life. Can Marcie continue to reach out to this rough and brute man?

Since this is romance, you know the answer to that. Being snowed-in in a little cabin with no electricity, and bang, you have yourself a romance. A Virgin River Christmas is the fourth book in Carr's Virgin River series, and is probably my least favorite of the books so far, but it is still a good book. I thought Marcie was a little too gold-hearted and not real enough. Also, in all the other Virgin River books, before the main characters engage in sexual relations, birth control is discussed or used, but it was never addressed between Marcie and Ian. I was bummed because I thought Carr was setting a precedent in her previous books.

This is one of Robyn Carr's best.

Marcie and Ian have been through hell thanks to the war in Iraq, and while Marcie seems to have come out the other side a stronger person, Ian is struggling, cutting himself off from the world. When Marcie goes in search of him she fights her way into his life and forces him to see how life should be.

You'll laugh and cry, and really enjoy this one. It is without a lot of the problems in the other Virgin River books (too many stories, too many babies), and is a tighter, more powerful read.

This was a beautiful story, with much better structure than most of the other books in the series. Ian and Marcie had serious heartbreak in their pasts, but as well as being very sad in some parts, this was a very uplifting, fun book.

We got to revisit a lot of the other characters from Virgin River, but they didn't play a big part in the story like they do in most of the other books.

Other reviewers are right in commenting it was a bit too `rustic' - the way they lived was a bit too basic, and that kind of killed the romance a bit sometimes.

Keeping in mind this was a Christmas book, it was a great read, but usually I wouldn't let an author get away with the cheesy ending.

This was a very different book to the others in the series - completely different in style. It was much more of a romance novel than any of the others, in that it focused on one couple instead of the lives of a few dozen characters in the town.

Marcie tracks down her late husband's best friend, Ian, who has been isolating himself from the world since the tragedy that left the husband seriously disabled for years before his death. I knew there would be some strong emotions here, but I didn't think I would be moved as much as I was. I found myself both laughing and crying while reading this book, and it takes A LOT for something to make me do that.

This book is actually set about halfway through book three. The two main characters are removed enough from the town that this can happen. It is like a trip into the past - seeing the book three storylines through the eyes of newcomers. What an interesting concept!

Robyn Carr is a very talented writer who can write humour as well as drama, but in other books she has written I've taken issue with a number of things. Here, without the distraction of so many characters so much of the time, she was able to show just how wonderful she can be.

There was a blessed absence of many of the things that held me back from rating the earlier books higher - such as a lack of lengthy discussions about women's health and childbirth. Melinda pops up quite often in this book, and I got to remember why I liked her in the first place (I was getting sick and tired of seeing her in other books). Same goes for Jack. And we get some snippets of the others, but not too much as to distract you from the main story (though I could read about Mike and Brie forever if Ms Carr is inclined to write more about them!).

One star is taken off for a few reasons. One of those reasons is something others have mentioned - what's with all the toilet talk?! Do we really need to hear about every single trip to the outhouse? Additionally, Ian's lifestyle is a bit too primitive - as another reviewer said, the romance was sometimes hard to come by!

Now, I really do admire the way Ms Carr handles so many characters and separate storylines in her other books. It is nothing short of amazing that she can animate an entire town in the space of a book. What would make me enjoy her books more is if she took some of the positives from A Virgin River Christmas and applied them to the other books in her Virgin River series.

I had been reading the series and REALLY enjoying them. This book seemed almost a departure from the "family of charachters" I'd been getting to know if the first 3 books. It's a nice, easy read and I did enjoy it but as I was reading it I was wishing I was on to book 5 and back to "my new friends in Virgin River." If you skip over this book, you will not miss anything from the rest of the gang.