Review: Laugh out loud, feel good holiday story
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 28, 2012
MEMORABLE QUOTE:  "Spank me like the bad, bad girl that I am. ..."NAUGHTY OR NICE by Kari Lee Harmon (a NTM author) was a real surprise by being much more than I expected.  (But alas, no spanking *wink*)  This quick, very well-written novelette had a twist of "A Christmas Carol" and a dash of "The Gift of the Maji", all wrapped up in a fairy tale-like package.So just firmly suspend your disbelief, go with the storyline and simply enjoy this laugh-out-loud, heart-warming holiday story about Samantha Darling, a "goody goody" who realizes that "[n]ice was safe, but safe left her cold and lonely."  Unfortunately, this particular insight comes after way too many Peppermintinis and her misguided-by-liquor judgment turns out to be the best mistake of her life.Truth be told, the character of Nathan Snow could've been developed more.  Gorgeous, successful and rich, he's the penultimate bachelor playboy.  But inside, he's still the lonely little boy afraid to care too deeply.  There are enough clues so that the reader can guess the reasons why but it's not as important as the changes which occur after he meets Sam.  Similar to Scrooge, Mr. Tall, Dark and Stuffy needs a little help in finding the Christmas spirit.Expecting a light Christmas-themed read, I enjoyed NAUGHTY OR NICE enough to try out some of her longer works.HEAT LEVEL:  Sensual (1 sex scene: not too explicit; comparable to current category romances)TECHNICAL:  Well-formatted, with editing/proofing errors within the "we're all human" range