Mary Beckwith lives in a magnificent English castle during the twilight years of the gilded age. With the help of an American millionaire, she has succeeded in renovating her beloved Whitefriars castle into a splendid estate just in time for Christmas. From across the ocean, millionaire Everett Wooten has spent a fortune propping up Whitefriars to add modern conveniences and rebuild crumbling old … crumbling old walls. Even though he’s never met Mary, they have enjoyed a lively business correspondence over the nine years they have been working toward a renovation. Now he has finally come to see Mary and the castle in person, but nothing is as he was led to believe.
Mary and Everett try to find a way forward, but red-blooded American entrepreneurship doesn’t always mingle with blue-blooded English tradition. Can a Manhattan business tycoon and an English lady come to an accord, or will their joint venture in Whitefriars result in heartbreak for them both?
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Wonderfully descriptive, this Christmas novella is just what your holiday season needs. When family and friends join together to celebrate, the family business must be addressed, making this holiday memorable. In addition, at this estate all the characters are quite the characters! Between these unique characters and the setting, Camden creates an atmosphere that makes me want to visit the Whitefriars estate. Of course, the author’s romantic scenes make me smile. Although this holiday romance is delightful, there are obstacles along the way. I liked how faith lessons propelled the main character to make decisions regarding her relationships and her beloved estate. Whitefriars itself has such interesting history. I enjoyed the bits of culture and history weaved through this engaging story. To me, that is the heart of Camden’s writing and probably the biggest reason that I pick up her books. This novella is related to two books in the Empire State Series, however the story can be read by itself. I was given a copy of this book by the publisher. All opinions are mine own.