Begins in Oct 1882 in Wyoming Territory & ends, of course, at Christmas. What a lovely story. This more of a novella than a novel but such a light & wonderful read. We have a widow in a small town in Wyoming Territory with a new baby girl. The baby was born several months after its father died. The woman's family is Swedish and the marriage, while not unhappy, had been arranged. The widow has a boarding house but is barely making ends meet. She has two bachelors who would want to marry her but she is determined this time to marry for love. The "hero" of this story is a man who has been searching for his father for two years. The father left him & his mother when he was very little. He has a clue that leads him to this small town and he asks where he might stay. As he enters the building he finds the mother in a panic because her sweet baby is sick. Can our "hero" help save the child? Does one of the bachelors win the widow's hand? Does the hero find his father? And does the preacher's wife (who provides advice whether it is wanted or not) add more pearls of wisdom?You'll enjoy finding out why the book is titled "Christmas Roses". I truly appreciated the way the author wove the story of Christmas and God's love for us -- even when we are open to receiving that love. Celia Anderson is a young widow with a baby daughter running a boarding house in Wyoming Territory, during the late 1800's. She doesn't want anything for Christmas except a few boarders, which are hard to come by in the small mining town. She certainly does not need a husband, but when wandering carpenter Mark Williams finds lodging in her boarding house, she begins to think that maybe she would like to be married again, if she found the right man.Even though the romance part of this story was predictable, it was a quick and enjoyable Christmas read, and it did have a surprise at the end that had nothing to do with the romance. I did find the story a little "preachy" towards the end, and if that is not your thing, you could easily skim over those parts without missing the main points of the story.
What do You think about Christmas Roses (2012)?
Sweet Christmas-themed Christian romance, super-chaste, with a little mystery.
—phoenix_slp
Very sweet story of second chances and finding the love you've always wanted.
—Sammiii
It was a nice easy romantic novel to fill my craving for some holiday magic.
—bubbles
