A Joyful Christmas

What a nice collection—all six historical stories are set during Christmas. They all have a “feel good” ending, which I really like. I read all six stories in a weekend so my interest was captured and held throughout for almost all of them.

Of course, I have my favorites. An Irish Bride for Christmas by Vickie McDonough tugged at my heart. Jackson’s niece is kept from him and Larkin believes the lies told about him.

Christmas Service by Erica Vetsch was a touching story with a great ending.

Under His Wings by Liz Tolsma had characters that readers will love—and one they definitely won’t.

A Star in the Night by Liz Johnson and Shelter in the Storm by Carrie Turansky were page turners for me. Not only were they set during the Civil War, but also the same location as one of my novels—the area of Franklin, Tennessee.

A portion of my Civil War romance, A Musket in My Hands, takes place a year later. The tragic Battle of Franklin happened on November 30, 1864, and is an important part of my story.

-Sandra Merville Hart

Christianbook.com

Christmas at Carnton by Tamera Alexander

Aletta Prescott struggles to make ends meet for her young son. She just lost her husband in this War Between the States as well as her job. Her baby is due in a couple of months and there’s no money to pay the mortgage. She prays for help.

Captain Jack Winston, a sharpshooter in the Confederate army, is recovering from battle wounds. His eyes aren’t healing as fast as he’d like. He yearns to get back to the battles but instead his colonel assigns him the task of assisting the Women’s Relief Society in Franklin, Tennessee.

Aletta feels fortunate to land a temporary position at the Carnton Plantation but she thinks the captain could better serve his country on the battlefield.

I really liked this story. It was a page turner for me. The characters were lovable and real. The struggles of the wives left back home while their husbands were at war tugged at my heart.

Part of the reason it snagged my interest was the setting—Franklin, Tennessee, in 1863. A portion of my Civil War romance,  A Musket in My Hands, takes place a year later. The tragic Battle of Franklin happened on November 30, 1864, and is an important part of my story.

-Sandra Merville Hart

Christianbook.com

An Ivy Hill Christmas by Julie Klassen

A Tales from Ivy Hill Novella

Richard Brockwell wouldn’t be going home for Christmas if his mother hadn’t insisted. She held the purse strings so he left London on a cold December day in 1822. He’s lived a selfish lifestyle for so long that he doesn’t know how to rise above it … not that he wants to.

His mother, brother, and sister-in-law have invited guests to stay for the Twelve Days of Christmas. Among them is Arabella Awdry, who makes it clear she’s not interested in him.

But coming home reminds him of all the childhood hurts he has run from for years.

I loved this story! The author does a great job portraying Richard as a selfish bachelor that I didn’t like him for a while. The characters are believable and they tugged at my heart.

An especially fun part of this story for me was taking part (vicariously through the story) in the Christmas traditions of nearly 200 years ago. The parlor games, decorating for Christmas, and Christmas and Boxing Day traditions were an intriguing look at how our ancestors celebrated the holidays.

I’d love to read more books in this series!

-Sandra Merville Hart

Christianbook.com