Skip to main content

Quick Review: "The Christmas Bargain" by Shanna Hatfield






From Goodreads:  Luke Granger is about to get more than he bargained for…

As owner and manager of the Hardman bank, Luke Granger is a man of responsibility and integrity in the small 1890s Eastern Oregon town. Calling in a long overdue loan, Luke finds himself reluctantly accepting a bargain in lieu of payment from the shiftless farmer who barters his daughter to settle his debt.

Philamena Booth is both mortified and relieved when her father sends her off with the banker as payment of his debt. Held captive on the farm by her father since the death of her mother more than a decade earlier, Philamena is grateful to leave. If only it had been someone other than the handsome and charismatic Luke Granger riding in to rescue her. Ready to uphold her end of the bargain as Luke’s cook and housekeeper, Philamena is prepared for the hard work ahead. What she isn’t prepared for is being forced to marry Luke as part of this crazy Christmas bargain.


My Thoughts:  I didn't know what to expect when I picked up The Christmas Bargain but I was pleasantly surprised by what a sweet story it turned out to be!  I typically shy away from Christian fiction but I was pleased with how that aspect of the story was handled; I didn't feel beat over the head with it and it was well-integrated into the story. 

Philamena and Luke are the cutest couple.  From the very first pages, it was clear that Luke was an upstanding character and I loved watching Philamena come out of her shell and really blossom throughout the story.  I really enjoyed reading as their romance softly and slowly came about.  One of my favorite scenes was that of their wedding day and seeing Luke realize that things weren't going to go the way he planned with their 'arrangement'.  I also really liked the secondary characters: Abby and Chauncy were great and Luke's parents were quite an interesting pair.

I read this over the summer but it definitely put me in the mood for the holidays!  Ms. Hatfield's descriptions of all the amazing meals that Philomena prepared left me with my mouth watering.  The Christmas Bargain is a delightful read and is a great way to get in the mood for the upcoming holiday season! 3 1/2 stars.

Be sure to stop by the blog tomorrow for a guest post by Ms. Shanna Hatfield, author of The Christmas Bargain!

 I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Comments

  1. Thanks so much for the review, Denise! So appreciate it and glad you enjoyed the story!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ideal to get into the Christmassy mood.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review and Giveaway: "Distant Signs" by Anne Richter

Synopsis: Distant Signs is an intimate portrait of two families spanning three generations amidst turbulent political change, behind and beyond the Berlin Wall. In 1960s East Germany, Margret, a professor’s daughter from the city, meets and marries Hans, from a small village in Thuringia. The couple struggle to contend with their different backgrounds, and the emotional scars they bear from childhood in the aftermath of war. As East German history gradually unravels, with collision of the personal and political, their two families’ hidden truths are quietly revealed. An exquisitely written novel with strongly etched characters that stay with you long after the book is finished and an authentic portrayal of family life behind the iron curtain based on personal experience of the author who is East German and was 16 years old at the fall of the Berlin Wall. Why do families repeat destructive patterns of behaviour across generations? Should the personal take precedence over

Top Ten Books I Recommend The Most

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish . This week's topic:  Top Ten Books I Recommend the Most 1.) The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons   2.) Outlander by Diana Gabaldon           If you read my blog at all, you know I love these two books so much!  I am not afraid to suggest them to anyone who I think might enjoy them. 3.) The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - I was definitely recommending this book left and right when the first movie came out. 4.) The Fault in Our Stars by John Green 5.) A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin           These are two books that I just recently started recommending but they are books that can appeal to anyone so they are easy picks when someone asks for a recommendation. 6.) Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead  - I get a little embarrassed when I recommend this book to people but seriously, just because it has vampires does not mean it is like Twilight. 7.) The Giver by Lois

Book Blog Hop (11)

The Book Blogger Hop is a weekly meme hosted by Jen at Crazy for Books .  It's a way to meet other bloggers and check out some cool new blogs. This week's question is:  "Highlight one book you have received this week that you can't wait to dig into!" Okay, I have a confession to make.  I have been so busy this week that I have not had time to get any new books.  I have several waiting for me at the library but I won't be able to pick them up until this weekend.  : ( Did you all get any exciting new books this week?