A Regency Christmas

“A Regency Christmas Story”: Penelope Cooper pinches pennies and barely makes ends meet. She is chagrinned to learn her younger brother has gambled away more than their quarterly allotment, and Lord Leighton has come to collect. He wants her virtue until he sees the many kind acts Penelope does, then he sees her in a different light.

“The Best Christmas Present”: Malinda and Winston met and kissed nineteen years ago. Now her daughter is a young debutante whom Winston is drawn to until he sees her mother. He is taken back to the night they met and wants her again, but as a mistress. He needs a debutante for a wife to give him an heir, but Malinda harbors a secret.

“Sugar Plum Christmas”: Michie is a pastry chef, and Lord Hedley first falls in love with the treats she makes before realizing it is the woman he really craves. But Michie is of a lower class and is hiding her mother, so she wants nothing to do with the Earl. Lord Hedley investigates this French fugitive to discover her past, and he vows he will marry her.

This anthology focuses on the Christmas season. One can feel the desperation of the women as they sort through their money issues. The class issues add a little spice to the tales. The men are bigger-than-life characters who can solve problems with the flourish of a pen, but these independent women want to make it on their own. A plethora of editing errors mar these otherwise delightful stories. These errors become distracting and interrupt the pacing of the tales. The outcomes of the stories are predictable but enjoyable nevertheless. A delightful collection of stories to put one in the Christmas mood!

Belinda Wilson