Gift of Love

Title: Gift of Love

Authors: Carol Cox, Pamela Griffin, Veda Boyd Jones and Darlene Mindrup

Publisher: Barbour

ISBN: 1577488105

More Information: http://www.barbourbooks.com

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Practically Christmas by Carol Cox

4 out of 5 stars
Sara Jennings was a practical lady.  So why did she break up with her practical fiance?  When an urgent message from her aunt came, Sara took it as her chance to visit and sort out her life.  What she didn't expect was a conversation with a handsome stranger on the train there.  When she arrived, her aunt explained there was a complaint, and possible lawsuit, about her huge Christmas lights display.  But what was the bigger surprise was that the stranger from the train was the lawyer for the other side!

With the problems with anthologies, the character and story development tend to suffer from the lack of pages.  However, this wasn't the case.  You immediately get an idea of everyone's personality right from the start.  So, there wasn't any wasted pages on that aspect.  Everyone's change of rediscovering their faith was believable and relateable.  The ending was too rushed but everything worked out satisfactorily.   

A Most Unwelcome Gift by Pamela Griffin

4 out of 5 stars
After 4 years, Jared and Tessa Baker's marriage was in trouble.  Tessa's parents decided to use Christmas as a chance to get these two to reconcile.

Normally, I would pass over this type of plot line.  But I just can't stand skipping a book in an anthology and forced myself to turn the pages.  Sincerely, I'm glad I gave this story a shot.  The serious tone of the problems of their marriage came through without going too heavy.  However, it does not mean that the author glossed over it.  Quite the opposite.  I'm sincerely glad that both Jared and Tessa realize what they needed to do to find their way back to each other.

The Best Christmas Gift by Veda Boyd Jones

4 out of 5 stars
Clay Stevenson escaped to his mountain retreat during the Christmas break to find his inner peace.  However, his peace was destroyed when Elaine Stevenson and her choir girls found themselves stranded during an ice storm.

This wasn't really a romance per se.  The novella was more of an introduction to something more.  The simplicity of the plot was the main draw.  All the characters, even the choir girls, had sweet dispositions despite their harrowing experience.  They took things as they came along and didn't complain.  All they wanted was the celebrate the spirit of Christmas.  I wanted more when the the story ended.  But somehow, making this longer would probably ruin the flow.  Anyways, I wholeheartedly enjoy it.

The Gift Shoppe by Darlene Mindrup

5 out of 5 stars
Amy Latimer was burned by men before and ever since been wary.  Michael Compton, a new addition to their church, seemed to have his eye on Amy and heard that Amy would never give any guy the time of day.  Determined to earn her friendship, Michael vowed to visit Amy's shop once a month and allow her to see him as someone she can trust.

The piece de resistance of the anthology.  I absolutely love the plot and premise.  It was incredibly romantic and the author was brilliant in the way she handled the division of the story.  Each chapter represented a month.  In total, the story spanned a year, making their growing attraction and love very believable.  A must read!

Amazing.  This was the best holiday Christian anthology I have read in a loooong time.  I couldn't put this book down.  The anthology had unique plot lines, great writing, and an awesome cast of characters.  I only deducted half a star because I wouldn't read this again but this book definitely is worth reading and getting.