For Want of a Christmas Miracle is the first book in the ‘Holiday Hopes’ series. It’s told in third person through the eyes of Rhys, an out of work gardener, and Toby, the owner of a local garden centre. From the way the story reads, I’m guessing it’s set in Britain.



First I’d like to start with the cover. It’s eye-catching and very holiday looking, I like it a lot.

I had high hopes for this book, it’s the kind of story I enjoy reading. It sounded like a comfy, low angst read with ordinary characters with ordinary jobs. But unfortunately it didn’t live up to my expectations. The characters were flat, as was the whole story, and I blame that on the tremendous amount of telling instead of showing that happened. There was a lot of ‘he knew, he felt, he realized,’ etc. In fact on one page I found three, ‘he realized.’ The telling kept me on the surface, and I couldn’t feel the emotions or descriptions like I wanted. I don’t know who betaed or edited this story for the author, but I would’ve thought they’d have pointed out the overuse of the repetitive phrasing.

There was no depth to the characters, especially Rhys. He was an unmotivated, boring character who lived at home with his mother. He didn’t seem to have a personality. Toby was better. He came across as cheerful, happy and outgoing. There was instant lust between the two, dancing around each other until they quickly decided to sleep together, but the speed was expected in this short story. I also don't remember much of Rhys' or Toby's appearance. Which tells me the descriptions weren't vivid enough for me to remember.

However, despite all the telling and the boring Rhys, I did like the plot, it was cute. I just wish the author had shown, instead of told, and maybe the story wouldn’t have ended up being as flat as it was.

For Want of a Christmas Miracle is a very fast, but flat read. It’s all telling, but I found the plot fun. If you’re looking for an easy, no angst holiday read, this book could be for you. I give this story 3 Stars.


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