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canadianbookaddict's review
5.0
Well good thing I had nothing else to do the day I read this ebook because I just couldn't put it down. I loved each stories in this anthology. They are all very well written. I will very much look for other books by the authors of these stories.
I highly recommend this.
5 out of 5
I highly recommend this.
5 out of 5
jasmyn9's review
4.0
A cute collection of stories revolving around love and the holidays across the ages. I have a hard time picking a favorite - they were all wonderful and a great way to start easing into the holiday spirit. Some sweet romance to relax to before all the shopping hordes descend.
The collection takes us from Regency England to WWII, with a stop in the 1920's (which is a time period that is neglected in my opinion). Filled with women willing to take a risk to find their love and men willing to fight to keep what they want in their lives, each story was heartfelt with just a little big of scandal thrown in to keep everything really interesting.
Go read this if you're looking for some holiday cheer and love.
- See more at: http://hotofftheshelves.blogspot.com/2013/10/review-very-scandalous-holiday-anthology.html#sthash.DFF554FP.dpuf
The collection takes us from Regency England to WWII, with a stop in the 1920's (which is a time period that is neglected in my opinion). Filled with women willing to take a risk to find their love and men willing to fight to keep what they want in their lives, each story was heartfelt with just a little big of scandal thrown in to keep everything really interesting.
Go read this if you're looking for some holiday cheer and love.
- See more at: http://hotofftheshelves.blogspot.com/2013/10/review-very-scandalous-holiday-anthology.html#sthash.DFF554FP.dpuf
dedicatedreader's review
3.0
Review of A very scandalous holiday by Amber Lin, Crista McHugh,
This book is composed of four short novellas that are all in connection with Christmas period. A good read for the holidays. I received an ARC for an honest review, here it is;
Letters at Christmas by Amber Lin
This is the first story we are introduced to and honestly I think it was a rather sweet and good story. If I were to rate this story alone it would stand as a 3 star.
Set in the 1815 England this story introduces us to Sidony Harbeck and Hale Martin. Yes I know what you are thinking, I thought the same too. Weird names huh but trust me the story makes it worth reading.
This love story begins with Hale coming back after being gone for almost three years without ever trying to communicate with Sidony. It gets intriguing when I was reading and trying to think if they were really going to get back together but on a honest note you can see their love for each other slowly unveiling and it is a good read especially if the Christmas lights are on.
The author’s voice was simple and fun. The story remained short and uncomplicated but a fun read. I certainly recommend this book to the readers out there who love a book based on romance, a bet, letters and the historical setting.
Eight Tiny flames by Crista McHugh
This is a two star for me.
This is a short story mainly based in the war times where the two main characters fall in love. It contains a lot of Jewish moments and is mainly based on the Hanukkah holiday.
Ruth and Joe make a wonderful couple and I enjoyed reading the book though it was not so in the beginning but as I continued on it turned into a nice sweet romance. Ruth with her beliefs in her religion and her good heart and Joe with his love for her.
All in all I urge for you not to give up on the book because of the first pages it is a nice sweet romance that will make you learn a bit more of Jewish holiday Hanukkah.
A two star form me because it lacked a bit of the Shiver factor I look for in books.
Erin’s Gift by Nancy Fraser
First and foremost I always love a romance with a lawyer in it. What can I say? There is just something hot and sexy about a man who knows the law.
The story was very nice; I got the chance to experience a nice story of some sort I can say. What I love about reading is enough details and all I can point out from this book is that it was fun and ended well.
The nanny and the father…isn’t it always so?
Nevertheless Seth and Erin make a good couple. On an honest note though I think they fell in love too fast and too hard, anyway it is just my opinion!
I liked Abby…for those of you who have read this you know what I am talking about…and for those who have not well please do go read. She is an excitement to our world…a little trouble maker who for sure makes the story that much nicer.
A 2.5 star for this book…
An eternity of you by Sophia Garret
To begin with this story is probably my favorite in the whole anthology. It was sweet and very well written though truthful I just wish the author would have made it a standalone and add more and more details to it.
The characterization in this short story was rather simple and interesting.
Andrew heir to a dukedom left Rebecca years back knowing that their positions in life would never allow them to be together. Years later he comes back to town only to realize sometimes you should never really care about what other people will think rather care about your own happiness.
Rebecca, a sweet brave young woman and a single mother shows us every proper reason to just love her. She is an amazing woman and even with lack of enough details the author has managed well to bring her to life. I really liked her…it is in my opinion though that she could have resisted him a bit more…but who am I to say no to a duke..a handsome duke?
All in all it was a splendid read. Three stars as at some points it gave me the nice shivers…
All in all the book get a three stars from me. it was a good read. for more splendid reviews visit http://dedicatedreaders.wordpress.com/
This book is composed of four short novellas that are all in connection with Christmas period. A good read for the holidays. I received an ARC for an honest review, here it is;
Letters at Christmas by Amber Lin
This is the first story we are introduced to and honestly I think it was a rather sweet and good story. If I were to rate this story alone it would stand as a 3 star.
Set in the 1815 England this story introduces us to Sidony Harbeck and Hale Martin. Yes I know what you are thinking, I thought the same too. Weird names huh but trust me the story makes it worth reading.
This love story begins with Hale coming back after being gone for almost three years without ever trying to communicate with Sidony. It gets intriguing when I was reading and trying to think if they were really going to get back together but on a honest note you can see their love for each other slowly unveiling and it is a good read especially if the Christmas lights are on.
The author’s voice was simple and fun. The story remained short and uncomplicated but a fun read. I certainly recommend this book to the readers out there who love a book based on romance, a bet, letters and the historical setting.
Eight Tiny flames by Crista McHugh
This is a two star for me.
This is a short story mainly based in the war times where the two main characters fall in love. It contains a lot of Jewish moments and is mainly based on the Hanukkah holiday.
Ruth and Joe make a wonderful couple and I enjoyed reading the book though it was not so in the beginning but as I continued on it turned into a nice sweet romance. Ruth with her beliefs in her religion and her good heart and Joe with his love for her.
All in all I urge for you not to give up on the book because of the first pages it is a nice sweet romance that will make you learn a bit more of Jewish holiday Hanukkah.
A two star form me because it lacked a bit of the Shiver factor I look for in books.
Erin’s Gift by Nancy Fraser
First and foremost I always love a romance with a lawyer in it. What can I say? There is just something hot and sexy about a man who knows the law.
The story was very nice; I got the chance to experience a nice story of some sort I can say. What I love about reading is enough details and all I can point out from this book is that it was fun and ended well.
The nanny and the father…isn’t it always so?
Nevertheless Seth and Erin make a good couple. On an honest note though I think they fell in love too fast and too hard, anyway it is just my opinion!
I liked Abby…for those of you who have read this you know what I am talking about…and for those who have not well please do go read. She is an excitement to our world…a little trouble maker who for sure makes the story that much nicer.
A 2.5 star for this book…
An eternity of you by Sophia Garret
To begin with this story is probably my favorite in the whole anthology. It was sweet and very well written though truthful I just wish the author would have made it a standalone and add more and more details to it.
The characterization in this short story was rather simple and interesting.
Andrew heir to a dukedom left Rebecca years back knowing that their positions in life would never allow them to be together. Years later he comes back to town only to realize sometimes you should never really care about what other people will think rather care about your own happiness.
Rebecca, a sweet brave young woman and a single mother shows us every proper reason to just love her. She is an amazing woman and even with lack of enough details the author has managed well to bring her to life. I really liked her…it is in my opinion though that she could have resisted him a bit more…but who am I to say no to a duke..a handsome duke?
All in all it was a splendid read. Three stars as at some points it gave me the nice shivers…
All in all the book get a three stars from me. it was a good read. for more splendid reviews visit http://dedicatedreaders.wordpress.com/
beckymmoe's review
4.0
Review posted on my blog, Becky on Books.
A Very Scandalous Holiday is a fun collection of holiday-themed historical romances, with two British Regency-era-ish stories acting as bookends for a World War II and 1920s era romance in between. There isn't a bad story in the bunch, but I definitely have favorites!
"Letters at Christmas" by Amber Lin is the first story in the collection. Sidony Harbeck has to deal with the return of her former lover, Captain Hale Prescott. Three years earlier, he left to make his fortune at sea and she hasn't heard from him since. Now he's back, and determined to win her back. She's just as determined not to let him, though....
This late Regency period romance was a sweet reunited lovers/second chance story. I enjoyed the characters and found their situation to be mostly believable, but it was pretty standard fare. A nice way to spend an hour or so, and I wouldn't mind re-reading next year if the Christmas-historical mood strikes me, but it didn't stand out in any major way--though it did feature a cat as a secondary character, which is always fun. B+ rating.
The second story blew me away, both for its unique twist on the traditional holiday story and its location and characters. Christa McHugh's "Eight Tiny Flames" is set during the Battle of the Bulge, right at the edge of the action. Lieutenant Ruth Mencher is a nurse in the 64th Medical Evacuation Unit, and she has long been attracted to the unit's all-business doctor, Captain Joseph Klein. Ruth decides to take a chance, and on the second night of Hanukkah she shows up at his desk with coffee, potato chips, and the inexpensive menorah her family sent in their latest care package.
Ruth wears a Star of David necklace each and every day, and is proud of her heritage. Joseph, on the other hand, learned while growing up in Texas that it was sometimes better to hide his faith away. In Nazi-infested Europe, this seems doubly important. He's unsure what to make of Ruth's overtures at first, and fairly certain that getting involved with a nurse is a bad idea all around. As Hanukkah progresses, though, so does their relationship.
I loved that this holiday story wasn't about Christmas, and I adored the WWII setting. Out of the four stories here, this one was definitely the most fleshed-out; it had a very strong story arc and felt complete despite its short length. I will absolutely be reading more from this author in the future, and re-reading this story again during the holidays. A solid A rating.
I also really enjoyed the third story, "Erin's Gift" by Nancy Fraser, as well. It's set during the Prohibition era, which again was unusual for a historical holiday romance. Erin O'Mara is a shop girl struggling to make it on her own in Chicago--her parents had died several years earlier, ending her dream of becoming a concert violinist. She still hangs out with two friends she made during her single year at the music academy, though, Abby Harrison and Will Packard, even though their social status is now worlds above hers.
An ill-advised trip to a speakeasy with Abby and Will ends Erin in jail, where Abby's older brother, Seth, a lawyer, bails them out. Representing her in court, Seth is taken with Erin's quiet beauty, but he has no intention of falling in love again. A widower, he's decided that his young son Ben and his family are all he needs. But that was before Erin was fired from her job, and moves in to act as Ben's nanny....
"Erin's Gift" was a sweet little story, and I loved the characters of Erin, Seth, and Ben. The relationships between those three characters were nicely done. However, two things kept me from rating this one higher: one, Erin was at times too sweet. She really didn't seem to have any flaws save extreme innocence and a tendency to undervalue herself. Secondly, there really wasn't a strong story arc here--a true climax (except for *that* kind of climax. We had several of those here) just never occurred. The biggest barrier between Erin and Seth was all in their heads, and quickly overcome. Absolutely everything comes fairly easily to these characters at the end. Still, it was a pleasant diversion--and I loved Ben and Seth. B+ rating.
The final story, "An Enternity of You" by Sophia Garrett, was set just after the Regency era in 1833. The new Duke of Sharrington, Andrew Wingate, is returning to his family estate after spending six years away caring for his earldom in Sussex and trying to forget the girl he left behind in Wiltshire. Now a widower, he brings his young daughter Alice with him, determined to make a new life for them both...and perhaps rekindle an old flame at the same time--though he fears it may be too late.
As far as Rebecca Rycroft is concerned, "too late" is just the tip of the iceberg where Andrew Wingate is concerned. She once believed his promises of love and forever, but that was before he left her without a word--and carrying his child. Her six years of letters have gone unanswered, and her circumstances--and those of the town that depends on Andrew's duchy--are becoming worse every day. Her son Thomas is all she has left. Can Andrew possibly convince her to give them another chance? Or will it take a Christmas miracle?
This story had some pretty heavy issues going on--Rebecca's situation as the novella opens is really pretty dire, and the town is clearly declining fast. Andrew's dealing with major amounts of guilt--he left the girl he loved years ago and married one he clearly didn't, and he ignored the fact that his father wasn't fit to govern the duchy on his own during his absence, even though he should have known better. The motivations given for his actions really don't paint him in a favorable light, and for much of the story I wasn't sure if I liked him all that much. It especially bothered me that he never opened any of the correspondence from the estate manager in all that time. At least the reason why Andrew wouldn't have known he had a child--which admittedly was unfathomable to me at first--is explained in a fairly credible way eventually.
The two children in the story steal the show, but in the end I felt like Andrew should do even more grovelling--both to the town and to Rebecca. I just wasn't convinced *he* deserved the HEA yet, though I was definitely rooting for Rebecca, Thomas, and Alice all the way. B rating.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
A Very Scandalous Holiday is a fun collection of holiday-themed historical romances, with two British Regency-era-ish stories acting as bookends for a World War II and 1920s era romance in between. There isn't a bad story in the bunch, but I definitely have favorites!
"Letters at Christmas" by Amber Lin is the first story in the collection. Sidony Harbeck has to deal with the return of her former lover, Captain Hale Prescott. Three years earlier, he left to make his fortune at sea and she hasn't heard from him since. Now he's back, and determined to win her back. She's just as determined not to let him, though....
This late Regency period romance was a sweet reunited lovers/second chance story. I enjoyed the characters and found their situation to be mostly believable, but it was pretty standard fare. A nice way to spend an hour or so, and I wouldn't mind re-reading next year if the Christmas-historical mood strikes me, but it didn't stand out in any major way--though it did feature a cat as a secondary character, which is always fun. B+ rating.
The second story blew me away, both for its unique twist on the traditional holiday story and its location and characters. Christa McHugh's "Eight Tiny Flames" is set during the Battle of the Bulge, right at the edge of the action. Lieutenant Ruth Mencher is a nurse in the 64th Medical Evacuation Unit, and she has long been attracted to the unit's all-business doctor, Captain Joseph Klein. Ruth decides to take a chance, and on the second night of Hanukkah she shows up at his desk with coffee, potato chips, and the inexpensive menorah her family sent in their latest care package.
Ruth wears a Star of David necklace each and every day, and is proud of her heritage. Joseph, on the other hand, learned while growing up in Texas that it was sometimes better to hide his faith away. In Nazi-infested Europe, this seems doubly important. He's unsure what to make of Ruth's overtures at first, and fairly certain that getting involved with a nurse is a bad idea all around. As Hanukkah progresses, though, so does their relationship.
I loved that this holiday story wasn't about Christmas, and I adored the WWII setting. Out of the four stories here, this one was definitely the most fleshed-out; it had a very strong story arc and felt complete despite its short length. I will absolutely be reading more from this author in the future, and re-reading this story again during the holidays. A solid A rating.
I also really enjoyed the third story, "Erin's Gift" by Nancy Fraser, as well. It's set during the Prohibition era, which again was unusual for a historical holiday romance. Erin O'Mara is a shop girl struggling to make it on her own in Chicago--her parents had died several years earlier, ending her dream of becoming a concert violinist. She still hangs out with two friends she made during her single year at the music academy, though, Abby Harrison and Will Packard, even though their social status is now worlds above hers.
An ill-advised trip to a speakeasy with Abby and Will ends Erin in jail, where Abby's older brother, Seth, a lawyer, bails them out. Representing her in court, Seth is taken with Erin's quiet beauty, but he has no intention of falling in love again. A widower, he's decided that his young son Ben and his family are all he needs. But that was before Erin was fired from her job, and moves in to act as Ben's nanny....
"Erin's Gift" was a sweet little story, and I loved the characters of Erin, Seth, and Ben. The relationships between those three characters were nicely done. However, two things kept me from rating this one higher: one, Erin was at times too sweet. She really didn't seem to have any flaws save extreme innocence and a tendency to undervalue herself. Secondly, there really wasn't a strong story arc here--a true climax (except for *that* kind of climax. We had several of those here) just never occurred. The biggest barrier between Erin and Seth was all in their heads, and quickly overcome. Absolutely everything comes fairly easily to these characters at the end. Still, it was a pleasant diversion--and I loved Ben and Seth. B+ rating.
The final story, "An Enternity of You" by Sophia Garrett, was set just after the Regency era in 1833. The new Duke of Sharrington, Andrew Wingate, is returning to his family estate after spending six years away caring for his earldom in Sussex and trying to forget the girl he left behind in Wiltshire. Now a widower, he brings his young daughter Alice with him, determined to make a new life for them both...and perhaps rekindle an old flame at the same time--though he fears it may be too late.
As far as Rebecca Rycroft is concerned, "too late" is just the tip of the iceberg where Andrew Wingate is concerned. She once believed his promises of love and forever, but that was before he left her without a word--and carrying his child. Her six years of letters have gone unanswered, and her circumstances--and those of the town that depends on Andrew's duchy--are becoming worse every day. Her son Thomas is all she has left. Can Andrew possibly convince her to give them another chance? Or will it take a Christmas miracle?
This story had some pretty heavy issues going on--Rebecca's situation as the novella opens is really pretty dire, and the town is clearly declining fast. Andrew's dealing with major amounts of guilt--he left the girl he loved years ago and married one he clearly didn't, and he ignored the fact that his father wasn't fit to govern the duchy on his own during his absence, even though he should have known better. The motivations given for his actions really don't paint him in a favorable light, and for much of the story I wasn't sure if I liked him all that much. It especially bothered me that he never opened any of the correspondence from the estate manager in all that time. At least the reason why Andrew wouldn't have known he had a child--which admittedly was unfathomable to me at first--is explained in a fairly credible way eventually.
The two children in the story steal the show, but in the end I felt like Andrew should do even more grovelling--both to the town and to Rebecca. I just wasn't convinced *he* deserved the HEA yet, though I was definitely rooting for Rebecca, Thomas, and Alice all the way. B rating.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
aprice12's review
5.0
I sat and read this book in one sitting. All four stories are very engaging, with wonderful characters that are well very thought out. The story lines are all interesting and different from each other. I found it refreshing that I didn't feel like I was reading a different version of the same story four times over.
In Letters For Christmas you will find a story of a young love that has been put on hold. There are misunderstandings keeping the young lovers from being together. Will Sidony forgive Hale when he gives her an unexpected Christmas gift? Will the young lovers finally marry, or will the misunderstanding always come between them? I really enjoyed this story. I love the imagery of sleigh rides in the snow and all the romance that can come with the Regency period. I found myself really hoping that the misunderstanding could be resolved and they could live happily ever after.
In Eight Tiny Flames you will find a Hanukkah celebration in a setting that would seem ill fitted for any kind of celebration. The romance quickly kindles between the two main characters and gets pretty steamy. You will find yourself eager to see what will happen when the Nazis start closing in! I love that this story shows you that no matter where you are or what you are doing, love can appear in a blink of an eye.
In Erin's Gift a lawyer finds himself attracted to his son's nanny. She is his sister's best friend whom he met when his sister took her to a speakeasy and got her arrested. Now that is an interesting way to meat the woman of your dreams!
An Eternity of You is probably my favorite of the four stories. I really enjoyed how the Duke reacted to everything that was happening around him. The doctor is obviously a strong female in a time when females weren't considered equal. There were many elements to this story that makes it memorable, but the lovers finding each other and falling back into each others arms after years apart is my favorite.
This is a very steamy read, so you should be sure to have a cooling beverage and maybe a fan at hand! I recommend this to any reader that loves romances, steamy sex scenes, and historical settings.
Read more at http://mytangledskeinsbookreviews.blogspot.com/2013/10/a-very-scandalous-holiday-virtual-book.html#k2eJXBdLAxxofZzd.99
In Letters For Christmas you will find a story of a young love that has been put on hold. There are misunderstandings keeping the young lovers from being together. Will Sidony forgive Hale when he gives her an unexpected Christmas gift? Will the young lovers finally marry, or will the misunderstanding always come between them? I really enjoyed this story. I love the imagery of sleigh rides in the snow and all the romance that can come with the Regency period. I found myself really hoping that the misunderstanding could be resolved and they could live happily ever after.
In Eight Tiny Flames you will find a Hanukkah celebration in a setting that would seem ill fitted for any kind of celebration. The romance quickly kindles between the two main characters and gets pretty steamy. You will find yourself eager to see what will happen when the Nazis start closing in! I love that this story shows you that no matter where you are or what you are doing, love can appear in a blink of an eye.
In Erin's Gift a lawyer finds himself attracted to his son's nanny. She is his sister's best friend whom he met when his sister took her to a speakeasy and got her arrested. Now that is an interesting way to meat the woman of your dreams!
An Eternity of You is probably my favorite of the four stories. I really enjoyed how the Duke reacted to everything that was happening around him. The doctor is obviously a strong female in a time when females weren't considered equal. There were many elements to this story that makes it memorable, but the lovers finding each other and falling back into each others arms after years apart is my favorite.
This is a very steamy read, so you should be sure to have a cooling beverage and maybe a fan at hand! I recommend this to any reader that loves romances, steamy sex scenes, and historical settings.
Read more at http://mytangledskeinsbookreviews.blogspot.com/2013/10/a-very-scandalous-holiday-virtual-book.html#k2eJXBdLAxxofZzd.99
darlenemarshall's review
3.0
Like most anthologies, some stories pleased me more than others. I especially enjoyed "Eight Tiny Flames" by Christa McHugh, because of its excellent evocation of place and time in a WWII Army celebration of Chanukah. I also enjoyed "Erin's Gift" because the Roaring 20s are a period ready for full historical fiction treatment, and this was a good entry.
I'd recommend this for fans of holiday stories looking for something out of the ordinary.
I'd recommend this for fans of holiday stories looking for something out of the ordinary.
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