The edition I read was comprised of two separate stories: Call Me Mrs. Miracle, and The Christmas Basket. What I love about Debbie Macomber's books (similar to Deborah Smith and Melody Carleson novels) is the magic. I don't mean wizardry or sorcery. I mean a spiritual, magical change of heart that the characters undergo. It fills my own heart and reminds me of the beauty of my fellow man. These stories are Christmassy, and I enjoyed reading them as much now as I would have in December. In Call Me Mrs. Miracle, Holly meets Jake Finley, heir to the successful Finley's department store. With a little help from Mrs. Miracle, Holly and Jake develop a friendship, Holly's nephew gets a Christmas surprise, and old Mr. Finley gets the best Christmas present anyone could wish for: peace. The Christmas Basket illustrates how a petty grudge between two families turns into an embarrassing feud, one that undermines the romance of two beautiful people. One loving person arranges for two disputing women to work on a project together: filling a Christmas basket for charity. Aggression, blame, and making a scene at the discount store ensue. I cried and laughed with these poor women, knowing that at times I too have been too proud to change my tune. These are feel-good family stories with distinct romantic subplots. I liked them for their sweetness, their love, their faith in humanity. And for their magic. NetGalley provided an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. This short novel is set in New York City near Christmas.J.R. Finley runs a large department store and his son Jake is currently managing the toy department. Despite the advice from others, Jake has bought a large quantity of a toy that he believes will be the toy to have this Christmas. The toy is called Intellytron and is a programmable robot. J.R. is unhappy with Jake about this and makes is clear that this will be a test of Jake's skills.The two men haven't celebrated Christmas personally in years, since the death of Jake's mother and younger sister in a car accident on Christmas Eve.Jake finds a new seasonal salesperson in his department and isn't sure of her suitability. She is an older woman and her name tag reads Mrs. Miracle, although she says that that is a mistake and her name is really Emily Merkle. But Jake finds that she may be more helpful to sales than he expected.Meanwhile Holly Larson is struggling as she tries to fulfill her work obligations to fashion designer Lindy Lee, and serve as temporary caregiver to her 8-year-old nephew Gabe. Gabe's mother died when he was a baby and his father Mickey is in the National Guard, called to serve in Afghanistan for the next 15 months, on leave from his normal job as a manager of a large grocery store.Holly wants to make Gabe feel happy with her, and is determined to make this a good Christmas for him.When Holly and Jake meet in a Starbucks line-up, a connection is made and Mrs. Miracle helps things along.A feel good novel with real Christmas spirit.
