Discovering the true Spirit of Christmas (and not only that…)

Synopsis

From disco balls to Christmas baubles …

Ex-dancer Emily Williams turned her back on the sparkle of popular dancing show Strictly Dancing with Celebs to help those in need. Now the only dancing she does is teaching lonely pensioners to waltz, and the closest she gets to disco balls is making baubles with the homeless people in her Christmas crafts class.
She’s certainly not star-struck when Hollywood heart-throb Blake Harris is sent to her at short notice for community service, and has no desire to babysit the arrogant actor with his bad boy antics and selfish ways. Christmas might be a time for miracles, but Blake seems to be a lost cause.
But Emily’s reasons for abandoning her dancing passion means she understands the Hollywood wild child more than she’d like to admit. Could their time together, coupled with a dash of Christmas spirit, lead to a miracle change of heart for them both?

Book 3 in Helen’s Spotlight series but they can all be read as standalone stories.

My review

Emily Williams had a short appearance on dancing show Strictly Dancing With Celebs, and she loved every minute of it.
But she has turned her back on the world of dancing, and the only time she gives in to her passion, is when she is teaching the waltz at the community centre where she works.
So when Hollywood actor Blake Harris has to do community service, Emily surely is everything but star-struck.
Especially when Blake appears to do whatever he pleases, is never on time and whatever he does, has a selfish reason.
But what nobody knows, is that Emily understands Blake’s behaviour better than anyone else, because she left the dancing scene for a reason…
And maybe that is exactly what Blake needs, someone who truly understands him, without prejudice. And with the preparations for Christmas at the centre, maybe these two broken souls find each other to mend what has been broken…

When I read a story from this author, whether it’s Christmas or not, it’s always something magical…
The inner – Tiziana would love to stand in a ballroom and feel the thrill of dancing a waltz, salsa, rumba and I don’t know what else. But me being clumsy, it’s just something to dream about 😀

When we first meet Emily, she is starting her dance with her celebrity partner on Strictly Dancing With Celebs, but it’s obvious that her partner won’t be winning the final.
So when we see present – Emily, I was surprised seeing that her passion had been stored away and now she is working in a centre, helping those in need.
Of course it’s a noble thing she is doing, and she truly wants to make a difference, even if it’s on a smaller scale compared to the rest of her family.
But I couldn’t see what would have caused such a change of plans for her.

However, seeing Emily trying to help everyone at the centre, with limited resources, but with passion, was something I admired.
Not everyone can handle or behave correctly, without showing pity to those less fortunate.

I have to be honest, that’s the whole point of writing a review… for a big part of the story I did not like Blake.
He has issues, like so many, and when it’s time to pay for his mistakes, he doesn’t take his task serious. He arrives late, leaves early, and when he does something good, he makes sure it’s mentioned in the paper… And that is not the kind of people Emily and the other volunteers need at the centre.
But he redeems himself, because when I got to know where he is coming from, and he shows his true emotions, well, it made more sense.
And the more he shows the real Blake, the easier it was to like him and in the end he even stole my heart…

This was a wonderful story about people that made mistakes, but also are doing their bit to make the world a better place (wow, sounds rather melodramatic 🤣). Every one of us can make a difference, no matter how big or small it is. Not everyone is as lucky to have a comfortable life, and sometimes bad luck can strike us all.

It’s also a story about seeing behind the mask some of us carry, and even if we think that someone is not a nice person at all, we can be wrong, because we don’t know what caused to make that person behave in this particular way.
And just maybe, the real person is someone worth of falling in love with…