Christmas Reads and Recommendations – week 4 of 6

This week’s reads and recommendations

Lisa Henry – All I Want for Christmas is Stu

Life isn’t going to plan for Charlie Mathis. He’s back in Cutler Lake with no job, no prospects, and no plan. But when he sees his old childhood crush, Stuart Harrison, working at Santa’s Grotto in the local mall, suddenly things don’t seem so bad.

When Charlie was growing up, Stu was always way out of his league. Well, not anymore! The guy is wearing an elf costume—he’s clearly failing harder at life than Charlie is right now. It’s a perfect match, right?

But Christmas has a surprise for Charlie, and it’s not what’s under the tree.

All I Want for Christmas is Stu is a 15000 word novella containing all the fun, chaos and total confusion of the season.

https://geni.us/LS-AIWFCIS

Release: 6/12/2023, KU

Tags: Vacation romance, Surprises, small town

My Review: TBR as soon as I can get my sticky fingers on it

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NR Walker – Holiday Heart Strings (Hartbridge Christmas Series Book 4)

Englishman Braithe Branson arrives in Hartbridge, Montana, to take on a brief substitute kindergarten teacher position. His introduction to the sleepy town is being pulled over for speeding. Not an ideal start, but at least the deputy was cute.

Colson Price takes being a deputy very seriously. After all, his job is all he has. Disowned by his family ten years ago, he’s vowed to stay closeted so it won’t cost him everything all over again.

But the holidays are tough for Colson, and the new guy in town is far too tempting. With a promise of some very private no-strings encounters on the downlow, he can’t resist.

Braithe is charmed by the handsome deputy, the gorgeous town, and the great group of friends he meets. But as the countdown to leaving gets closer, the more tangled the ‘no strings’ becomes.

Braithe and Colson have to hope that Hartbridge will find a way for this Christmas wish to come true.

https://geni.us/NRW-HHS

Release: Out Now – KU

Tags: Small town, Law Enforcement, Teacher

My Review: I love this series, and book 4 is just gorgeous – highly recommended.

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Bix Barrow – What’s Santa Got to Do with It? (A Bent Oak, Texas Novel)

A late-awakened bi guy and his secret crush try to play Santa for some kids. But there’s a hitman blocking the chimney…

Have you ever been locked out of your apartment shirtless, holding a wet rabbit and getting served with legal papers right when your super-hot neighbor walks by?

Maybe it’s just me.

After Baz stops to help, I finally have a chance to show him there’s more to me than the loud parties and one-night stands he’s witnessed over the years. And I find out he’s more than just an aloof work-from-home accountant. Who would’ve guessed we both love superheroes and have big hangups about Christmas?

When Baz finds a bunch of letters to Santa in the recycle bin, helping those kids’ holiday wishes come true is the perfect way for us to spend time together.

But we didn’t expect to get yelled at by the kids’ neighbors. (Okay, maybe the binoculars were a bad idea.) And we didn’t expect my estranged brothers to show up and take over Baz’s apartment. (Okay, but as a side effect, he’s staying at my place…)

And we never expected to interrupt a hitman in the middle of a job.

What’s Santa Got to Do with It? is a low-angst, humorous holiday romance featuring a bi-awakening, a chonky rabbit, learning work-life balance, forced proximity, avoiding THAT Christmas song, reconciling with (some) family, interfering friends, and a hitman with a heart of gold.

https://readerlinks.com/l/3679925

Release: 1/12/2023, KU

Tags: Forced proximity, Widower, Hurt/Comfort, Bisexual Awakening, Hitman, Pets/Animals, Found Family, Suspense

My Review: I started to read, then got waylaid by the excerpts, so decided to read without the excerpts of the story written by a character at the beginning of each chap, and that was perfect 🙂 A lovely HEA with friends, and a rabbit… 4.5/5

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Brina Brady – A Little Christmas! Blaine’s Secret

Looking for a Daddy? Looking for a boy?

This Christmas Party mixer is for you. (Males 18+ only)

This could provide the perfect solution for Blaine and Davie, whose minimum wage job has left them struggling to afford any housing except a dilapidated motel room with a single bed.

It could also provide the perfect solution for Daddy Jacob, a co-sponsor of the mixer who’s decided it’s time to find a boy.

Blaine and Davie are too poor to afford transportation to the mixer, but life in the group home they recently aged out of has made them determined and resourceful, so Blaine bravely calls the number on the poster and explains their problem. Jacob has never had to worry about money and something in Blaine’s honesty intrigues him, so he sends a car for them.

Daddy Jacob immediately knows he wants Blaine, but several things stand in his way. First, there’s a rule that he must mix with all the prospective boys for the five days and only make his choice on Christmas Eve, and second, he has to make Blaine choose him over the other daddies and finally; he knows Blaine won’t abandon Davie without a daddy of his own.

When Blaine reveals a secret, will it further complicate their situation? Can they overcome all these obstacles with the help of some Christmas magic?

Each book in A Little Christmas is a standalone. But each boy is silly, unique, lovable, and downright adorable, so why not read them all?

This book is part of A Little Christmas: Season Two 2023 multi-author series with themes loosely based on the classic book A Secret Garden.

https://geni.us/BB_ALCBS

Release: 5/12/2023, KU

Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Daddy/Little

My Review: I’ve never read a daddy/little, so maybe I should start here 🙂 After all, it is Christmas 🙂

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Have You Read?