Review: Sweet with the warmth of Christmas
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 9, 2011
Small Town Christmas reviewSet in Shalvis's fictional town of Lucky Harbor, Washington, Kissing Santa Claus provides a happy ending for  Logan Perrish, NASCAR driver extraordinaire, who can't stop thinking of town clerk Sandy Jansen.  He'd already screwed up one marriage by neglecting his wife in lieu of fame, and he's determined not to repeat his mistakes. Sandy's trying not to be depressed at her favorite holiday of the year with missing Logan and being without family to celebrate with.  She's throwing herself into every event with all her enthusiasm. But when Logan arrives in town, wanting a second chance, Sandy dares to hope she might get her biggest Christmas wish ever. Maybe she just hasn't sat on the right Santa's lap before.  Full of fun and laughter, Shalvis's story is a winner!In I'll be Home for Christmas, Hope Ramsey introduces Staff Sergeant Matt Jasper, who has come to the small South Carolina town of Last Chance for Christmas only to deliver the gift his late friend Nick bought for his grandmother before being killed in combat.  When he meets Nick's former girlfriend Annie Roberts, he has no idea how much his life will change.  He's left the military and has nowhere to go.  Annie Roberts is trying to decide if maybe she should go somewhere besides Last Chance. With her mother dead, Annie is at loose ends, but still living in her childhood house that looks like it belongs to an old lady, doing old lady things day in and day out, without anything resembling a social life.  When Matt drops in on her, she drums up her Christmas spirit with a room for the night and the promise to help him run his Christmas errand.  As they are brought together by a lost kitten and the joy of the holidays, both find that maybe they've been given a gift neither of them expected.O, Little Town of Bramble, by Katie Lane, is a sweet story of country life and the love of old friends.  When Samantha returned to Bramble, Texas, with a brand new veterinary license in her hand, she didn't dare hope she could somehow get to stay.  She was sure she'd be head back to New York after the holidays to set up practice in a place she'd tried for years to fit in. But five minutes home in Bramble and she knew she hadn't purged the country girl from her heart at all.  When Sam showed up and admired his ass (the 4-legged kind), he didn't dare hope she could possible remember the feelings between them. At least he'd had feelings for Sam. He didn't have the slightest idea what she felt.  But with a live nativity planned that the whole town would take part in, Ethan found himself willing to  do whatever he could to get Sam interested, not only in staying in Bramble, but in staying with him.  All it takes is a dark and stormy night to bring these two love-birds together at last.  A sweet story, O, Little Town of Bramble, will satisfy all those romance readers who love cowboys and Texas.I really enjoyed this anthology, which is full of Christmas spirit and joy.  It's perfect for everyone who loves the holiday with a little romance mixed in.