Erin's Reviews > A Christmas Spark

Oh. My. Gosh.
This novella was hysterical and swoony, all wrapped up into one delectable miniature package.
I don't think I can express how much I loved it. Like, really, really loved it.
It was... PERFECT.

I don't do a lot of highlighting when I read on Kindle, but I couldn't NOT highlight in this book. The banter was AMAZING. And hilarious! And, to my delight, very plentiful. After highlighting about 50% of the book, I thought, "I'm going overboard...," while sheepishly highlighting another paragraph. It was just so funny! This is probably the best compliment I can give to a hero, but he really reminded me of my husband. What a tease! (But with a sweet "I'm devoted to you"/"Get over here and kiss me" undercurrent to it.) No wonder I loved the novella so much!

But it wasn't just funny. It was also super romantic. The chemistry was off the charts. Some awesome scenes here and swoony situations. What a great example of a "clean" book that has amazing sexual tension. It can be done, people! So, so good...

I really liked both the H and the h. Their dynamics were perfect. I liked the snark (because it wasn't cutting - it was funny) and I liked the sweet. This had a perfect balance. It also had a great balance between their roles. I liked that Penny wasn't too bold. It was the guy who did the chasing and she allowed herself to get caught. I'm into that. (Especially considering he had some distance to make up based off their past.) She was funny and witty, but when he was coming on to her, she got a little shy. It was endearing and perfect. That last scene when he bared his heart to her was swoony! And that last kiss... well, I can't do the writing justice - it was so perfect. I'll make my kindle highlight public, but you have to read the whole novella to get the full yummy effect! (*Nevermind - I didn't make that one public - you just have to read it in context.)

PS Speaking of tender kisses - I liked how this author made the kisses delicious and sexy instead of violent and forceful. She nailed it. Besides, it matched Penny's personality better. I read another novella recently that had the latter sort of kissing and instead of increasing the chemistry it was just... jarring. (Beauty & the Duke by Nadine Millard - I gave it 2 stars - wouldn't recommend.)

(Oh, one more thing - sometimes 2nd chance books make me feel kinda sad that they wasted all that time when they could have been together. In this book, they are 28 yrs old but I never felt sad about the years they spent single. This author did a great job of portraying their adult lives as being fulfilling, successful and happy instead of them pining away for years and years.)

K. Gotta go. I'm going to spend the next 10 minutes adding all Cindy Steel books to my TBR list and deciding which to read first. Yay! Can't wait!

Content:
Language - just one "damn"
Sex - no sex scenes; very mild innuendo. Some making out and high sexual tension, but still very much 'clean.'
Violence - none
I read this on Kindle Unlimited.

****I have crushing news. Apparently this is the only book the author has written so far (1/21). I'm going to go cry a river of tears. This author was so entertaining - I thought I had a month's worth of books lined up! Well, I'm first in line for her upcoming release. Can't get it soon enough. :)


REREAD NOVEMBER 2022
This was just as good as the first time! And I don’t ever reread books. No joke. But I absolutely loved it all over again! It’s still my favorite Cindy Steel book. So much chemistry, so much delightful banter. This is one of my all time favorites.