Hot Christmas Nights Anthology

Title:  Hot Christmas Nights

Series:  N/A

Author:  Anthology

Genre:  Christmas

Blurb:  Baby it’s cold outside, so stay warm with three sexy and sizzling-hot holiday stories… 

Tuscan Nights by Farrah Rochon 

It’s not the breathtaking scenery that brings Aiden Williams to Italy for Christmas—it’s gorgeous pastry chef Nyla Thompson. Five years ago Aiden’s older brother was fool enough to let Nyla go. Now a mature and sexy Aiden is determined to turn their Italian fling into everlasting amore…. 

Vegas Affair by Terra Little 

Professional dancer Wendy Kincaid thinks she knows her best friend, Frazier Abernathy, inside out. But he’s got a season of surprises in store for the woman he’s always desired, leading to a Las Vegas rendezvous, where he’ll raise the stakes in an all-out merry seduction…. 

Tied Up In Tinsel by Velvet Carter 

Entertainment agent Landis Keates is stunned to learn that his old college classmate is now an international singing sensation! Back then, he was too clueless to notice Brooke Lynn Samuels. Now a friend’s winter wedding in picturesque Bridgehampton is the perfect backdrop to a very intimate Yuletide reunion….

Thoughts:  As usual with anthologies, some stories were better than others.  My favorite out of this grouping was the very first story, Tuscan Nights, which revolved around love lost and refound.  It’s a little bit of a forbidden love, seeing as how Nyla had previously been engaged to Aiden’s older brother.  I found this tale especially poignant and bittersweet, and it alone was worth snatching this set up for.  I would rate it by itself with an A.

It went a little downhill from there.  Vegas Affair was an okay read, but the reactions of Wendy were just all over the place.  I didn’t really care much for her character after the first few chapters, and some of her reactions just didn’t make sense!  This one was a B-/C for me.

Then we have Tied Up In Tinsel, which was my least favorite.  The story alone actually could have been good, but a lot of it was the writing style for me.  I’m not sure if it was because it was the shortened length due to it being an anthology, but the sentences were just short and choppy.  It felt very stilted and awkward for me.  On top of that was repeating reactions…(for example, one thing that annoyed me was Brooklyn, who says,”I’m…I’m…coming!” I don’t know how many times – in the exact same way during sex!)  And that’s just one example.  It went from eye rolls on my part, to just wanting to laugh at the ridiculousness, to just being fed up with it!  This one was a D for me.

Overall Rating:  B-