I received this book via Amazon Prime, Kindle First Program. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.
Christmas in Good Hope by Cindy Kirk Series: A Good Hope Novel,
Published by Montlake Romance on 2015-12-01
Length: 302 pages
Reviewing eARC from Amazon Prime, Kindle First Program
Rating:
Ami and Beck would rather forget the past, but this Christmas of love is one to remember.
Amaryllis “Ami” Bloom’s cheerful smile greets everyone in Good Hope, Wisconsin. But her merry facade hides a dark secret she won’t ever forget. Still, she throws herself into celebrating Christmas—and convinces her handsome, and stubborn, new neighbor to join her.
Beckett Cross, however, is determined not to celebrate the holidays. He moved to Good Hope to leave behind reminders of how he’d had it all…and lost everything. But it’s hard to resist adorable Ami, the designated keeper of the small town’s holiday traditions, when she asks for help with the Twelve Nights celebrations. And Ami has a hard time resisting Beck’s soft Southern drawl and gentle eyes. Will a Christmas miracle give them a second chance at love and the hope to heal both of their hearts for good?
Christmas in Good Hope by Cindy Kirk is a sweet, contemporary romance about grief and second chances. This is such a sweet story about two people from very different backgrounds finding each other and bringing out the other’s best. Ami and Beckett’s story is one that you should not miss!
Ami Bloom is the eldest of four sisters and the only one to stay in the small town of Good Hope, Wisconsin after their mother died. She’s a devoted daughter to her father, filling in the quiet for him and keeping him on his toes. She’s also a successful business owner, having started her own bakery when she moved back to town. I love her! She’s independent, loving, and yet she is still broken. She’s broken over her mom and something I don’t want to reveal as it plays a BIG part in the story (no spoilers here!!!).
Then enters Beckett Cross, the southerner who moved to Good Hope earlier in the year, bought her dream house AND the diner next door to her bakery. Beckett is mysterious, keeps to himself, is a bit of a Scrooge, and very, VERY broken. He loved once, once he was a very different man, but he lost everything. So Beckett ran from his past to the little town of Good Hope. Beckett is…he’s amazing! He’s caring, sweet, but trying to be set in his ways. He’s closed off to everyone except for Ami, who quietly slips into his heart.
The plot of the story revolves around the relationship between Ami and Beckett. At the onset, Ami is asked to get Beckett to decorate his shop for the Twelve Days festival (a Christmas festival in the town) AND to get him to agree to open his house for the Victorian Christmas tour. Ami goes along with it and Beckett pretty much caves to everything she asks. Their relationship is built on the fact that neither of them knows the other. It’s a novelty for Ami who grew up in a small town where everyone knows everyone else and for Beckett because no one looks on him with pity. The question really becomes what will happen to them when they do find out each other’s secret.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It is such an endearing story set during my favorite time of the year. The author gives a great voice for Ami and Beckett as the chapters alternate POV and she brings to life the charm of living in a small town. If you enjoy contemporary romance, the holidays, or you’re looking for a heart-warming read this weekend, grab a copy of Christmas in Good Hope, you won’t regret it 😉
Final Conclusion:
About Cindy Kirk
Cindy Kirk is a lifelong Nebraska resident who started writing after taking a class at a local community college. But her interest in the written word started years before when she was in her teens. At sixteen she wrote in her diary, “I don’t know what I would do if I couldn’t be a writer.”
Not until her daughter was heading off to college did Cindy return to her first love---writing. Unlike some writers, Cindy wasn’t interested in newspaper or magazine articles, short stories or poetry. When she decided to start writing, she jumped feet first into book length fiction. She loves reading and writing romance because she believes in the power of love and in happily ever after. An incurable romantic, Cindy loves seeing her characters grow and learn from their mistakes and, in the process, achieve a happy ending.
She and her high school sweetheart husband live on an acreage with two cats…one of whom loves to sit next to the computer and supervise her writing.
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