Review: A lovely "second chance at love" Christmas romance...
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 18, 2011
At only 28 years old, Claire Rutledge has already been a widow for two years.  As Christmas approaches she finds herself contemplating the idea of a new romantic relationship, and is caught off guard by the attraction she feels for her best friend, Justin.  Justin's unwavering support helped to see her through the darkest days of her grief.  He's good-looking, hard working, solid, thoughtful and funny.  In other words, he's perfect...except that he was her late husband's best friend.I loved these characters.  Claire was dealt a really lousy hand, losing her husband at such a young age, but she's strong and resilient and refuses to let that tragedy define the rest of her life.  And Justin?  Justin is perfect.  Not Romance Novel perfect - he's not outrageously rich, or a former SEAL.  Not a famous athlete; not so over-the-top Alpha that he leaves a trail of testosterone in his wake.  No, Justin is that rare breed rarely seen in captivity...just a really great guy.  Down to earth, blue collar and masculine, he has that "guy next door" sex appeal.  ( Though in all honesty I've never been lucky enough to live next door to a guy like this.  My neighbor looks like a cross between Jerry Garcia and David Crosby and likes to mow his lawn wearing nothing but teeny little tennis shorts and Crocs.  But I digress).This is short - novella length - but the characters are fully developed and come off as realistic.  The dialog has a genuine, unscripted feel to it and I liked the way the author manages to have Claire's love for Justin never seem second best to her love for her late husband.  This can be tricky to pull off, and it's done quite well here.  I really enjoyed this and would highly recommend it.BUT...There's no denying that while this is a sweet and ultimately hopeful story, there's an underlying sadness that I never could completely shake off.  I came close to tears a couple of times (and for a lifelong "Yankee", that's an unseemly display of emotion!).  There are few things sadder than having the person you love ripped from you when you're young and just starting your lives together.  So while I would recommend this, just know that it's not a light and cheery holiday romance; it's more of a thoughtful and emotional one.Some occasional strong language and sexual content.