To remind us what Christmas truly is about…

Synopsis

A heart-warming collection of feel-good stories showing snippets of family life and friendship during the festive period.

Santa Paws Delivery
Blaze delivers Christmas cheer to a care home.

Christmas Wish – Part One
During the office Christmas party Cassie is forced to re-evaluate her life priorities.

For the Holidays
A stepdaughter’s not just for Christmas.

Chance Encounters
Two brothers must unite to do the right thing when faced with a life-threatening choice.

Christmas Wish – Part Two
As Lynn contemplates another lonely Christmas, can Harry provide a welcome distraction?

The Icing on the Cake
Preparing for a big family Christmas, will the day go as Jess plans?

Not Just For Christmas (extended version)
The Shelton family welcome a new addition to the family, but could it spell disaster for Christmas?

One Good Deed
Struggling with life after University, Sam is stuck in a rut until he meets a homeless man with an unexpected gift.

From the author of short story collections – Fantasy Short Stories and Love, Loss and Life In Between.

My review

Christmas is more than just Santa and gifts from/ for your loved ones. In this collection filled with lovely short stories, we get a reminder what Christmas truly is about, family, friendship, love and hope.
The books contains following stories: 

Santa Paws Delivery
Blaze delivers Christmas cheer to a care home. 

Christmas Wish – Part One
During the office Christmas party Cassie is forced to re-evaluate her life priorities. 

For the Holidays
A stepdaughter’s not just for Christmas. 

Chance Encounters
Two brothers must unite to do the right thing when faced with a life-threatening choice. 

Christmas Wish – Part Two
As Lynn contemplates another lonely Christmas, can Harry provide a welcome distraction? 

The Icing on the Cake
Preparing for a big family Christmas, will the day go as Jess plans? 

Not Just For Christmas (extended version)
The Shelton family welcome a new addition to the family, but could it spell disaster for Christmas? 

One Good Deed
Struggling with life after University, Sam is stuck in a rut until he meets a homeless man with an unexpected gift. 

Sometimes, when reading short stories, or novella’s, I feel a little bit unsatisfied. Not because the story is bad, but because I just wanted to read more about the characters, see more what the future would hold.
And yes, with this collection, there were many cases where I wished to have *more*. But more isn’t always needed, when we need to be reminded of the true meaning of Christmas, or just kindness and love in general. 

And while I wanted each story to be longer, to satisfy my curiosity, having to move forward to the next lovely story, I also understood the necessity of just having a snapshot of these characters’ lives. Otherwise the focus would shift to other events, but that is not what is needed. Even with just glimpses, I understood so much more of the characters and their struggles that a whole book could ever make me see. 

Obviously, the common thread IS Christmas, but I found there were several common threads, and while they were all linked, they were also all wonderfully unique! From a lovely therapy dog, to a woman trying to expand her family, to a woman trying to be loved by her stepdaughter, to two brothers with the wrong friends, each and one of them made me smile when their story came to an end. 

And secretly I have one favourite story that made my heart warm a little bit more than others…☺️

This author managed amazingly to put the focus on the most important feelings in the world, in a short amount, during the most wonderful time of the year.
The collection shows us that everyone has their own struggles in life, and things may not always be as easy for everyone. But it also shows us that sometimes one action, how small it is, can make a great, positive difference in someone’s life…