In Kristi Ann Hunter’s “Legacy of Love,” Sarah Gooding never suspected returning a brooch to an elderly woman would lead to a job . . . and introduce her to the woman’s grandson, a man far above her station.
In Karen Witemeyer’s “Gift of the Heart,” widow Ruth Albright uses the family brooch as collateral for a loan from the local banker. But the more she comes to know the man behind the stern businessman, the more she hopes for a second chance at love.
In Sarah Loudin Thomas’s “A Shot at Love,” Fleeta Brady’s rough-and-tumble childhood means she prefers hunting to more feminine activities. She never expected her family’s brooch might be how a fellow hunter turns her attention from competition to romance.
In Becky Wade’s “Because of You,” Maddie Winslow has spent years in love with a man whose heart was already spoken for. When a church Christmas project brings them together and she stumbles upon an old family brooch, might it finally be her turn for love?
My Thoughts:
Edited to add: Y’ALL!!!! I just went to look at the book on Amazon and I noticed that The Christmas Heirloom is only $2.99 on Kindle right now! That is an awesome deal! When I saw that I knew I had to come edit this post to let y’all know so you could snatch it up at such a great price. If you click on the book cover above, it will take you to the Amazon page for the book. I have no idea how long it will be that price, so make sure you double check the price when you click through before you make the purchase! Now, onto the original post! 🙂
Okay, so this cover. Is. So. Gorgeous! I think I’ve raved over several covers of books I’ve reviewed recently, and they are, indeed, wonderful covers. But this one right here? Well, I just fell so in love with it that I might have had an hour long photo shoot with it after I got it in the mail. I just love the beautiful brooch and that red winter coat on that background of white snow. It makes for a such a lovely cover! I took SO many pictures of this book. Maybe I’ll share a couple at the end of this post.
Anyway, if you, for some crazy reason didn’t immediately fall in love with this cover of the book as I did, I believe you will definitely fall in love with the stories within the pages of the book. This collection of novellas made for a fantastic holiday read this year. I was so excited to get to review this one because two of my favorite authors have books in the collection. Those that have read my previous reviews probably know that I am a huge fan of Karen Witemeyer and Becky Wade. I love their books! And their novellas here were no exception. I had not previously read anything by Kristi Ann Hunter or Sarah Loudin Thomas, but I think I can safely say that I will be looking into their other books after reading their novellas in The Christmas Heirloom.
Legacy of Love by Kristi Ann Hunter
Legacy of Love starts the set out and gives us a bit of the history of how this beautiful brooch came to be passed down. This was a very sweet novella. I did feel a bit like I was missing some pieces of Sarah’s backstory at times. Hints were given, but never really developed and so I felt as though Sarah remained a bit of a mystery to me. I did look into Ms. Hunter’s other books and based on the information I read about them, I’m guessing that the more to the story that I was looking for is probably in those novels. It wasn’t something that made me want to stop reading, I just felt a little confused at times, like there was more that I should have known that I didn’t. Though Sarah felt like a bit of a mystery to me at times and I wished that more of her story had been told so that I could have gotten to know her better, what I did know of her, I liked. I loved her relationship with the dowager as well as the dowager herself, so much so that I actually shed a few tears as certain events took place in the book. Even with feeling like there was more to the story than I was getting here and there and the occasional odd thing (Ex: One small thing that I found odd was that at the end of the book, the grandson did not know the name of his grandmother who he was supposedly quite close to. Maybe it’s not really all that odd and I just don’t know enough about the time period to know that it isn’t unusual, but it did stick out to me that he didn’t know that.), I still enjoyed this sweet novella.
(For more of my favorite quotes from each novella, see the end of my blog post.)
Gift of the Heart by Karen Witemeyer
Next up in the collection is Gift of the Heart by Karen Witemeyer. Y’all, I fell right into Ms. Witemeyer’s story. Bo and Ruth just about melted me into a puddle. I loved Ruth and her zeal for and approach to life. I loved Bo, especially when he set his attentions on making Ruth his own. I loved Naomi and her sweet, yet so smart and lively little self. I loved the unruly cat that did his part in making sure Ruth and Bo ended up together. I loved the supporting characters and their relationships with the main characters. I loved the way Bo and Ruth’s relationship developed. I loved the bits of humor interjected throughout as well as the words of wisdom woven into the story and the little ways that this story is a tribute to the story of Ruth and Boaz of the Bible. As it always does, Ms. Witemeyer’s writing quickly and so easily drew me into the story. It didn’t feel like I was on the outside reading it, but rather like I was right there in the story. I loved pretty much everything about this selection from the collection.
(For more of my favorite quotes from each novella, see the end of my blog post.)
A Shot at Love by Sarah Loudin Thomas
Ms. Thomas’ A Shot at Love was set in a setting and time that I have very rarely read, and I very much enjoyed this different setting. The characters, story, and community created seemed so real and like they could truly exist. I could easily picture the world Ms. Thomas brought to life and I enjoyed the journey there. I did feel a little irritation with Fleeta over the way she treated Hank after he did what she herself should have done. I felt more like she owed Hank an apology than he did to her. Even with the minor frustration I felt, I still enjoyed the novella and the trip into a time gone by.
(For more of my favorite quotes from each novella, see the end of my blog post.)
Because of You by Becky Wade
At the end of this collection of novellas, we have Because of You by Becky Wade, and I found it to be a wonderful way of bringing the set to a close. I loved getting to know Maddie and her love interest, Leo, and watching him fall just as in love with her as she has been with him. It can be a tricky story line to play out, but Ms. Wade did a fantastic job of making me fall in love with both Maddie and Leo as well as with their story. As with her other books, Ms. Wade beautifully wove spiritual truths throughout this novella while also causing more than one chuckle to make it past my lips.
(For more of my favorite quotes from each novella, see the end of my blog post.)
Y’all, The Christmas Heirloom was a wonderful Christmas read! If you happen to find yourself pushed indoors by the weather, this collection of novellas would be THE perfect thing to keep you company by a cozy fire. Even if you haven’t got any rainy or snowy inside kind of days coming up, I highly recommend purchasing The Christmas Heirloom for yourself or checking it out from your local library (or asking your library about adding it to their collection if they don’t have it). No matter which of those ways you acquire the chance to read the book, it should most definitely be added it to your TBR list. And if, in the busyness of this time of year, you don’t get the chance to read it this holiday season, it can still bring you some good cheer anytime during the year!
GIVEAWAY
The authors of this book have come together and put together one of the coolest giveaways I have ever seen! It includes a copy of the novella collection signed by all four authors, some fun Christmas goodies, AND the actual brooch used in the photo shoot for the cover. Not only that, the keepsake bag that matches the one described in the stories has been created with the characters’ initials and wedding dates embroidered on the back and it also is included in the giveaway! How cool is that?! The giveaway is up and running through December 7th, so please don’t miss out on this chance to win such a cool prize!
Some of the pictures from my photo shoot with the book! 🙂
More of my favorite quotes from The Christmas Heirloom!
**I received a copy of this novel from the publisher. All opinions are my own.
Redeemed Hope Dweller 