Title: A Chance at Christmas
Author: Beppie Harrison
Genre: Historical Romance, Regency Holiday Romance
Book Blurb:
A Chance at Christmas tells the story of a Christmas that very nearly never happened for Catherine and her younger brother, struggling with poverty and the boy’s serious disabilities. But an invitation does come for a splendid Christmas at a friend’s great house, and Catherine dares to form a plan that might provide a future for her brother. What she never dreams about is a future for herself as well. Can romance come as a shocking Christmas surprise?
My Review:
Catherine and her younger brother, John, are forced to live in poverty and just when she thinks she’ll have to send her brother off to the poorhouse before she takes up a domestic/governess position, she receives an invitation from her wealthy friend, Katie. Katie invites them both to spend Christmas with her family. Catherine sees this not only as a rescue from the doldrums of their rooms but as a fortuitous opportunity to secure her brother’s future. What she never anticipated was romance.
Catherine soon meets Katie’s brother, Viscount de Montjoy, and while he’s the most handsome man she’s ever met, she knows it can’t go further than his harmless flirtation. She has to keep her head on straight and not get distracted from her plan.
But when she’s accidentally discovered in his warm embrace, her brother steps forward and demands Montjoy marries her. What started out as a lovely holiday has turned into a nightmare the ton will never forget. Montjoy can’t possibly marry her, can he? Or is Catherine doomed to live a life or poverty?
What a touching sweet holiday romance set in the Regency era. While there is a slow-burning romance between Catherine and Montjoy, the heart and soul of A Chance at Christmas is the love between Catherine and her brother. They love each other fiercely and take care of each other. Regency society is quite cruel when it comes to disabled people and Harrison shows the prejudice accurately. The growth and acceptance between John and Montjoy made all the strife worth it. I was upset when the story ended because I wanted to keep reading. Highly recommend!
Favorite Character/Quote: Catherine. I loved experiencing all that she goes through her eyes, from how society views her crippled brother to the delicious cuisine of a great house. Catherine has been given an opportunity of a lifetime and even though she thinks Katie’s brother is only flirting with her, she may be surprised when he reveals his true feelings.
My Rating: 5+ stars
Buy it now:
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Author Biography:
Beppie Harrison lives on Boston’s South Shore close to the ocean in a big white New Englandish house with her husband, a lawyer daughter, and an assortment of dogs and cats. They live a somewhat trans-Atlantic lifestyle. Her husband is an English architect, and they lived in London at the beginning of their marriage, only moving to the States when they had young children. Now the children are grown, they return to old friends and familiar places as frequently as they can. In many ways, England still feels like their second home.
For Beppie, the pull from across the Atlantic comes not only from the dales of Yorkshire and the buzz of London, but from Ireland. Did it start with its literature, its green beauty, or its wonderfully garrulous people? However it happened, both England and Ireland draw her now.
Her first fiction trilogy, the Heart Trilogy, is placed primarily in Ireland during the Regency period. The Grandest Christmas, a companion novella for the holiday season, is a warm and cozy read for Christmastime. Her upcoming quartet of novels is placed again in Regency times, but, as introduced by the novella The Dowager’s Season, introduces four cousins to the excitement and romance of London’s presentations and balls.
Social Media Links:
Learn more about Beppie Harrison and sign up for her newsletter at http://www.beppieharrison.com or join her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/beppie.harrison, or Twitter @queenskeys or her group blog, Romancing Yesteryear, at https://www.romancingyesteryear.com
Reviewed by: Mrs. N