The Shadows of Christmas Past (Mass Market Paperback)

by Christine Feehan (Author), Susan Sizemore (Author) "COLE STEELE COULD HEAR the screams coming from the room down the hall..." (more)
Key Phrases: rocky mountain miracle, susan sizemore, wolf form, Rocky Mountain Miracle, Christine Feehan, Touch of Harr (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Bestsellers Feehan and Sizemore deliver a pair of sensual holiday novellas, each featuring a female vet who can communicate with animals. In Feehan's Rocky Mountain Miracle, Maia Armstrong is forced to accompany Cole Steele to his Wyoming ranch a few days before Christmas to try to save his teenage brother Jase's favorite horse. When a blizzard socks them in, Maia learns about Cole and Jase's abusive father, who was especially cruel at Christmastime and who was shot to death a few months earlier. Before long, it becomes apparent that whoever killed evil old dad is looking for something hidden on the ranch—which is where Maia's ability to commune with animals comes in handy. In Sizemore's A Touch of Harry, vet Marj Piper rescues handsome Harry Blethyin, part-time werewolf/full-time PI, from a pair of dog thieves while he's in canine form. Harry is actually in town to help the council of shapeshifters track down five of their runaway teenage offspring, one of whom is romantically involved with a human girl. As all werefolk know, unions between shapeshifters and humans rarely work out. So what's Harry to do when he finds himself falling in love with Marj? Fans of sexy, over-the-top paranormal romances will enjoy discovering this unusual offering tucked inside their Christmas stocking.
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Product Description

Love and magic triumph over evil in two sizzling holiday novellas.

CHRISTINE FEEHAN

"Rocky Mountain Miracle"

When Cole Steele, a womanizer rumored to have killed his father, meets Maia Armstrong, a veterinarian rumored to practice magic, the sparks that fly could melt all the snow on his Wyoming ranch. And when an injured horse brings them together, Cole can't help but believe that Maia casts spells on animals and men. What else could explain the burning passion he feels for her and the thawing of his heart around the holidays?

SUSAN SIZEMORE

"A Touch of Harry"

When the injured wolf Dr. Marjorie Piper takes back to her kennel turns into a man, Marj is stunned, and keeps his subsequent escape a secret. The only thing more difficult to hide is the burning desire she feels for Harrison Blethyin, a stranger in town who brings out her animal instincts. But when Marj and Harry join forces to find a pack of runaway teens before Christmas, truths are revealed that will bind their souls together forever.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Star (October 26, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743482964
• ISBN-13: 978-0743482967
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #214,542 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars EXCITING BOOK, GREAT READING, October 31, 2004

By	Elaine C McTyer "avid reader" (Dawson, GA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Cole Steele has come back to his abusive father's ranch, to try to salvage the 14 year old brother he never knew he had. Brett Cole was a controling abusive monster. Now Cole who is as damaged as Jase, must try to give the attention to his brother that was never given to him. He is a loner himself and doesn't know how to open himself to anyone.

Jase is so untrusting he can't even let himself hope. Their father killed anything they showed interest in, whatever, an animal or a friendship. Beatings, brandings, and both think he killed their mothers.

Maia Armstrong is a traveling vet. She does not stay anywhere too long because people begin to think she is strange. She seems to have an affinity for animals almost as though she can talk to them. She can calm the meanest animal and sheds warmth wherever she goes. Cole meets her in town and is fasinated by her. But she knows a predator when she sees one.

Strange things are happening at the ranch, while Cole is in town Jase calls to tell him one of the horses has crashed into a fence. The one Jase has let himself become attached to. Cole rushs Maia and her portable clinic to the ranch. They arrive ahead of a major snowstorm and are stranded on the ranch.

Can one woman full of love and understanding reach these two lost souls, can she somehow see and reach in to calm two hurting hearts and redeem what has been beaten out of them?

Can Cole discover who murdered their father and why? What secrets live in the cold murkiness of the house and ranch?

This is one of Christine Feehan's best novellas. I was delighted and warmed by this sensitive insightful story.

Susan Sizemore gives us a werewolf Christmas story. Harry, a werewolf is hunting for 5 missing cubs. The trail leads to Marj Piper, a vet, she also can talk to animals. Harry an alpha male, finds in Marj an alpha female. Between searching for the missing youngsters and seduceing Marj, we have an interesting view of Christmas in a small mountain town.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars two fun paranormal veterinary romances , October 27, 2004

By	Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews (#1 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

"Rocky Mountain Miracle" by Christine Feehan. In Wyoming, most townsfolk suspect that Cole Steele murdered his abusive sadistic father Brett when he retuned to the family ranch after years away to inherit the multi million dollar estate that he splits with his teenage half-brother Jace. Many locals expect to find Jace dead too because $64 million plus the ranch is double that of 32 million. Cole struggles to do the right thing for Jace, but has his own baggage to contend with as he too cannot trust anyone. That is until he meets veterinarian Dr. Maia Armstrong. She has the uncanny ability to sooth wild beasts with the Steele siblings being her prime patients. This is a fabulous full length paranormal romance starring a fantastic courageous healer (perhaps too perfect) and her scarred beloved that only she can heal.

A Touch of Harry" by Susan Sizemore. Using his wolf form for speed and olfactory purposes, werewolf private investigator Harry Blethyin tracks down missing teen shapeshifters when he is shot with a tranq dart. The men take the comatose Harry still in his wolf body to veterinarian Dr. Marj Piper. She locks the animal in a cage, but the next morning finds the human Harry locked inside. Fans of werewolf romantic long novellas will take immense delight with this strong tale of love between the werewolf sleuth and the human vet.

These two paranormal veterinary romances are terrific tales that will elate sub-genre readers as both stories contain delightful lead characters and a sold support cast that brings out much of the prime pairs.

Harriet Klausner

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A touch of Magick for a cold day, October 31, 2004

By	Diane E. Griffith (Romulus, MI USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Christine Feehan once again creates a magickal world of love and healing. This time a lonely man struggling to over come his past abuse at the hands of his own father, and help a younger brother do the same, meets a most unusual healer in the form of the local vet. Her amazing ability with animals is nothing compaired to her ability to bring warmth and love into their lives. Maia turns Cole on but can he let his wall's down to trust her ?
In the second book, Harry a man with a heart of gold is also a man with an unusual problem, he becomes a wolf. You will love this unusual story of love. A great read for a cold winters day