rabck from J4Shaw; read the Carr story to continue with the Virgin River series, then will finish the other two authors later. In under the Christmas Tree, a box of abandoned puppies is found..under the town tree. Local single gal Annie talks Jack into taking the box home & calling the vet to check them. Only the local vet isn't the older man she knows, but his son who is sexy and single.
In Silver Bells, Carrie meets single father Philip, in the apartment elevator, and his daughter is matchmaking; In The Perfect Holiday, single Mom Savannah inherits her great aunt's Vermont B&B, only Aunt Mae also told friend Trace that he had to spend Christmas at the B&B in an attempt to matchmake from the grave! ( )

Maybe I wasn't in the mood for some Virgin River story or maybe this just didn't agree with me, because I usually really enjoy those guys up at Virgin River. This one though bored me to death and it was just a short story. Both Nate and Annie were good characters, but I'm almost thankful that they didn't get a full novel all for themselves.
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Silver Bells by Debbie Macomber - Silver Bells is the final, wrap-up novella for Debbie Macomber's Those Manning Men series. Before I started reading it, I wondered who this story was about as all the Mannings had already found their HEAs. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the heroine is Carrie Weston, the daughter of Charlotte and step-daughter of Jason (Bride on the Loose). In their book, she'd been the meddling, matchmaking teen who brought her mom and step-dad together. Now, in her own story, Carri gets a taste of her own medicine as the daughter of a divorced man who lives in the same apartment building decides to do a little meddling of her own in her dad's love life.

Carrie is a fun and free-spirited young woman who has been rather attracted to her neighbor since he moved in. She's kind-hearted toward everyone, even the other tenants who are an odd, eccentric bunch. She willingly helps one of them by going out to feed the stray cats in the neighborhood for which the other woman normally cares. She also barely bats an eyelash at taking Philip's thirteen-year-old daughter under her wing along with her two little brothers, baking cookies and just having fun together. Carrie is an all-around great girl who would be impossible not to like, and much to his chagrin, Philip feels the same way. After a messy divorce, he's still pretty gun-shy around women. He's not really looking to get involved with anyone until his daughter pushes him and Carrie together. Then he can't ignore his pretty neighbor anymore, and reluctantly comes around to realizing she's perfect for both him and Mackenzie.

I'd say the one weakness in this novella is that it was a little to short too fully develop the characters and their romance. Their feelings for one another come about pretty quickly, perhaps a little too quickly to be entirely believable. That's mostly been the case with all the stories in this series, but with the others there were a few more pages to make that all-important connection. Here I didn't feel it quite as palpably, and there were a few moments of telling rather than showing. However, for a short, holiday-themed novella it wasn't bad, and it was nice to read about another Manning celebration. These people know how to throw a party where everyone feels welcome. Overall, I thought Silver Bells was a nice wrap-up to the series. Star Rating: ****

The Perfect Holiday by Sherryl Woods - The Perfect Holiday was a sweet, heartwarming Christmas tale and my first read by Sherryl Woods. The author really managed to set the Christmas mood at a snowy bed & breakfast in Vermont with all the trappings of the holiday season. The way the heroine's aunt was still playing matchmaker from beyond the grave added a fun, whimsical touch to the story. Mae was obviously a very wise woman who knew that her niece and the young man who'd become a dear friend to her would make a perfect couple.

Savannah was a wonderful single mother who was struggling a bit with loneliness and a sense of belonging after an unpleasant divorce from her workaholic husband. Aunt Mae had bequeathed her bed & breakfast, Holiday Retreat, to Savannah when she passed away. The place is badly in need of repairs and refurbishing though. The inn has been in Savannah's family for generations, so in spite of having very little money, she is determined to do what needs to be done to get the place running again. Savannah had obviously raised her daughter well, because Hannah was simply excited by the holiday season and didn't even complain about not getting gifts for Christmas when Savannah told her they couldn't afford it. Savannah also was a great cook and a hard worker, who I was convinced could set the inn to rights and would be a success running it.

Trace was a workaholic himself which initially scares Savannah away from him even though she's very attracted to him. Trace proves himself far different from her ex-husband though, when he lays aside his work to help her with repairs on the inn and holiday preparations. He never had happy Christmases growing up and is surprised to find spending the holiday season with Savannah and Hannah is fun. Trace had been a great friend to Mae and learned many valuable lessons from her. At first, he only goes to Holiday Retreat to honor Mae's memory, but soon it becomes far more than that to him as he finds himself falling in love with Savannah.

The Perfect Holiday takes place over just a few days time, so it requires some suspension of disbelief to accept that Trace and Savannah could fall in love and be ready for a lifetime commitment so quickly. Between the magic of the holiday season and Mae's matchmaking from beyond the grave, it wasn't too difficult for me to believe in this couple's HEA. Overall, this was a perfect little story to get me in the holiday spirit, and it has definitely left me open to trying Sherryl Woods other works. This novella was also previously published in the anthology, So This Is Christmas. Star Rating: ****

Under the Christmas Tree by Robyn Carr – A hot veterinarian, a kind-hearted, Christmas and animal loving beautician, and a litter of eight abandoned newborn puppies combine to make Under the Christmas Tree another heartwarming holiday story in Robyn Carr's Virgin River series. Not that I'm complaining or anything, but most of the books in this series have some fairly heavy themes, so it was a nice change of pace to relax and unwind with a fun, lighthearted story that didn't contain any real angst. It also marked the first time in the series that one of the main characters wasn't a former service member.

Annie is an occasional visitor to Virgin River. She stopped by to see their famous Christmas tree and was just in time to witness the discovery of a box of abandoned puppies underneath it. Annie is a caring animal lover and couldn't bear to see the puppies taken to a shelter, so she generously offered to come back every evening after work to help take care of them. Most people wouldn't be nearly so committed, but Annie worked tirelessly to ensure the puppies well-being until she could find homes for them. She's also a big family person, who loves spending the holidays with her parents and siblings, and loves Christmas in general. The way she's always helping her mom bake or decorating for the holidays is something I admire and wish I had the time and patience for. Throughout all this mayhem, Annie gets reacquainted with Nathaniel, someone she knew as a kid, but she recently had her heart broken by a philandering ex and isn't quite sure if she can trust Nate.

Nathaniel lives in the area and is a large-animal vet. When Jack calls him about the puppies, he comes to the bar as a favor but doesn't intend to get too involved until he sees Annie. Nate remembers her as a gangly, freckled-faced girl with a mop of curly, orange-red hair and braces. Needless to say, they've both changed a lot, and Nate quickly finds himself wanting to get to know her again. Nate is a consummate charmer, who is slightly cocky and self-assured, but in an endearing way. He had intended to spend Christmas in the Bahamas with his vet school friends, but finding Annie makes him start to rethink his plan.

There was much to enjoy about this novella, not the least of which are the puppies and the wonderful sense of Christmas cheer. I also liked that instead of falling right into bed with one another, Nate and Annie have some leisurely make-out sessions while taking their time getting to know one another. It was fun to see Jack, Preacher, their sons, Christopher and David, and some of the other Virgin River residents rounding out the cast. Overall, Under the Christmas Tree was another short story from this anthology which left me with a warm, fuzzy feeling and really put me in the mood for Christmas. Star Rating: ****1/2 ( )

Another glimpse at Virgin River with secondary characters but still lovely and charming.
As for the other short stories, they were nice and charming too. ( )

I only read the Robyn Carr story. Good story. Nice turn away from the entire collective of characters. ( )