Sarah Goldman loves Hanukkah, and she’s thrilled to be appointed as vice chair of the Hollowville Hanukkah Festival. So when the festival is threatened with cancellation, she comes up with an idea: a new slogan and advertising campaign topped off with a metal menorah large enough to fill the center of town. But even though her heart and dreams are large, the committee’s budget constraints … threaten to stop her grand plans right in their tracks.
Famous metal sculptor Isaac Lieberman also loves Hanukkah. But his vision of a perfect Hanukkah isn’t a commercial community event—it’s spending time with family, following age-old traditions. He’s not interested in the festival, no matter how many times his grandmother, his bubbe, asks him to contribute one of his sculptures.
Then Sarah comes tumbling into his life…can she change his mind about more than just the holidays?
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A wonderful holiday story.
A different take on your typical holiday story.
I was super excited to find a Hanukkah romance book but I struggled a bit. I honestly didn’t care that much about the main character Sarah, I couldn’t understand why everyone in the whole town acted as if she was some sort of treasure to be protected. I liked Isaac well enough, and certainly adored his bubbe Elsa.
I read this book last week, and it was the perfect blend of small town meet city – but both have heard of trains, small town festival, delightful food, and of course trying to figure out how to smooch when literally everybody is watching.
(Spoiler, they do figure out the smooching thing.)
Sweet, festive romance with wonderful characters who share a relationship that is as heartfelt as it is believable. The town and setting are drawn so richly, and with a degree of depth that adds an unforgettable element of personality to the story. Comforting, uplifting, and absolutely lovely.
Stacey Agdern’s new Hanukkah romance, Miracles and Menorahs, is an utter delight, complete with a holiday festival and what might be the biggest menorah you’ve ever seen. There are also soofganiyot lattes! Count me in.
Miracles and Menorahs is the debut book by Stacey Agdern. It is the first in her Friendship and Festivals series. I loved reading this story because you can tell she put her heart in it as she wrote about her beloved Hanukkah. I will definitely be looking for more books by her in the future. Sarah and Isaac story revolves around the Hollowville Hanukkah Festival. Sarah is the new vice chair of the festival, only thing is that it may be the last year of the Hanukkah festival. She will try pulling out all the stops to keep her beloved festival going including trying to get a menorah for the town square. That is where Isaac comes in, only thing is that he does not want to sculpt a menorah. Can she show him all the traditions surrounding the festival and get him to change his mind. As they spend time together love starts to bloom.
I have learned so much from this story about Hanukkah that I did not know before. I loved that she used all the references to so many things in this story. Including some of the different foods eaten during Hanukkah such as latkes, gelt, and sufganiyot. I wish i could have the experience to enjoy a festival like the Hollowville Hanukkah Festival. I was given a ARC from the publisher in return for a honest review, all thoughts and opinions are my own.
I’m going to start with the fact that I love this cover, it’s so pretty. It gives a feel for the essence of the story and I appreciated the attention to detail, especially with the different Hanukkah decorations in the storefront windows. It’s not often you see a Hanukkah-focused story or cover, so this was extremely refreshing. Props to the publisher for this delightful cover and for publishing a Hanukkah-centric book.
Overall, I enjoyed reading ‘Miracles and Menorahs’. I liked the concept of the Hanukkah festival, and the societal emphasis on Christmas was relatable. I enjoyed the friendship, connection, and chemistry that Sarah and Isaac had and built over the course of the book. This had a very Hallmark-esque feel to it, in all the best ways (although keep in mind that means that it’s also at a Hallmark heat level). This would be a wonderful Hallmark movie to stand on its own and to balance out the hundreds of Christmas movies that are aired during the holiday season.
You don’t need to celebrate Hanukkah to enjoy this book. If you’re looking for a cute and enjoyable (holiday) read, I would recommend this book.
I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This is a voluntary review, all opinions are my own.
I had such fun reading Miracles and Menorahs from this debut author, which begins her Friendships and Festivals series. In the small town of Hollowville, their Hanukkah Festival gives the town a unique spot for tourists, friends, and families to visit. Unfortunately, not everyone is on board with the festival as it stand right now – one newly elected councilman with his own ideas of what celebration should be showcased is causing tensions within this community. And to be fair, the Hanukkah Festival does need some sprucing up, some replacement pieces and that is where Sarah comes in – with a zest for bigger and better, new ideas, and advertising campaign, as well as the desire for a huge menorah to decorate the town square and show the uniqueness of this town’s celebrations.
The trouble comes when that huge menorah is far beyond their budget and one skilled craftsman refuses to allow one of his pieces to be used because Issac believes that Hanukkah is a private, family celebration and should not be commercialized. And he is refusing all of his grandmother’s crafty ways to get him to agree to use one of his sculptures.
Although they’ll have to come to an “agree to disagree” arrangement, that’s not going to stop the attraction that is growing from the new friendship between Sarah and Issac.
Miracles and Menorahs is a touching romance with little conflict as we watch Sarah and Issac grow closer as time moves on. I loved Sarah’s zest for life, her personality, and her stubbornness as well. Issac grew on me, his beliefs are strong yet his feelings for Sarah are becoming stronger and soon they’ll have to address the elephant in the room… can they agree to disagree or will that put a stop to the love that’s growing between them.
The town is lovely and its residents lively. The secondary characters will touch a familiar chord with many as some of us have those same types of people as family members. (except maybe one grumpy, mean councilman) The conflict between Sarah and Issac is low-key, the growing attraction between them and what to do about it is their focus. I enjoyed myself here and will gladly return for another visit.
*I received an e-ARC of this novel from Tule Publishing. That does not change what I think of this story. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*
I received this arc from Tule Publishing Co. in exchange for an honest review. This was my first book by Stacey Agdern and I enjoyed it a lot. I also learned a lot as I wasn’t familiar with a lot of the terms Stacey used about Hanukkah, the traditions and the food and drink, etc. The plot was very entertaining and the characters were all very likable. However, as I read, I noticed that there were some editing and spelling errors and so I gave it 4 stars.
Miracles and Menorahs is the story of Sarah and Isaac. Sarah lives in the town of Hollowville and is on the Hanukkah festival committee. Each year the festival gets bigger and bigger. Previously Sarah‘s dad has been on the committee and this is her first year on the committee. Sarah works at the library as well as the bookstore as an event planner. She has been tasked with finding a giant menorah to display in town for the festival, creating a logo and promoting it. Another person in town offers to handle the promotion work. She goes to nearby Manhattan and meets with her friend Anna to see if she can help her get a logo and a sculpture. While waiting on Anna at her work, she meets a hot guy and they get into a discussion about menorahs and commercialization of the holidays. They have a difference of opinion and she calls him a snob and walks out on him.
Sarah is quite beloved in Hollowville. Her nickname is the Hanukkah fairy. A Hanukkah festival is quite unusual and the townspeople don’t want to give up having this. A new trustee has decided that he wants to make it into a holiday festival with a Christmas tree and ignore the Hanukkah aspect. This has put pressure on Sarah and the committee to deliver in order that the trustee can’t take over and their festival will remain. Her friend Elsa Lieberman suggests she contact her grandson Isaac and meet with him about designing a menorah. Sarah learns that Isaac, the hot guy, is actually the grandson of Elsa. She is someone she looks up to and a town matriarch. At the meeting, Isaac and Sarah agree to be friends and realize that they each like the other person. Isaac still won’t do the sculpture. Both Isaac and Sarah have communication issues. They aren’t able to let the other know what they are thinking. They see each other on several occasions and both are interested in the other. As time goes on, things change with the ideas and plans and the story becomes quite interesting and intriguing.
I enjoyed having a holiday story be about a different holiday than Christmas. I can see the possibility for Anna’s story as it seems there’s some suspense there. I hope to read more by this author in the future.
This book is all heart. Community, family, friends, tradition, and yes, Hanukkah.
Miracles and Menorahs takes on the small town romance trope head on, with the characters speaking directly to it. Everyone knows you, everyone has expectations, can you meet them, do you even want to try, how to be true to yourself, and can you still be true to all the other parts of you.
It is those other parts that are really examined here, family and tradition. Loving Hanukkah has meant different things to Sarah and Isaac. Sarah’s love has translated to her work on her community’s Hanukkah festival, trying to keep it alive and make it successful, while still being true to the holiday. Isaac’s memories are about family, especially his grandmother. Anything commercializing Hanukkah, feels inauthentic and he wants nothing to do with it. When Sarah tries to enlist his help in the festival, he says no. But then reconsiders. Will it work? And is he doing it because of his attraction to Sarah or is it because he wants to be a part of his grandmother’s small town celebration? The love and light of Hanukkah are definitely all part of this story.
The pacing at times can be uneven. The growing relationship between Sarah and Isaac basically takes the entire book. This is not a hot and heavy romance. If that’s what you’re looking for, this is not it. It is at least 75% of the way before they kiss and there are no sexy times on the page. I did not have any issue with there being no explicit intimacy, but it really took a long time to get these two together. I think that may be too slow for some readers. I personally thought it felt like a real, normal relationship growing from friends to more.
There is a wide cast of side characters and they were all interesting and fun, except for the villain and he won’t be back.
I absolutely appreciate the message that we do not need more “holiday” festivals that are really secular Christmas festivals of red and green and a tree, with maybe a menorah over in the corner. They are generic and ultimately work to suppress other non-Christian traditions. Just stop. And open your community up to other festivals that are true to their traditions. And I wish there was a small town near me with a Hanukkah festival, and all of the food highlighted here.
I thoroughly enjoyed this!
A new author for me to read starting off a new series Friendships and Festivals. Miracles and Menorahs by Stacey Agdern is a Hanukkah romance that was a pleasure to read. Small towns seem to have their troubles no matter the type of festival it is. I enjoyed reading this one concerning the Hollowville Hanukkah Festival. I especially liked Sarah Goldman. She was a breath of fresh air. Without a doubt she was my favorite character in the story.
Isaac Lieberman is likable but not quite as lovable as Sarah. While his views on Hanukkah are admirable I guess. Why not help out the town? I’m not of the same faith as the characters but loved the idea of this festival staying true to Hanukkah. I would want to attend so I was glad I could through the story.
A lovely story of faith, traditions, and of course, love. A new author for me to look forward to reading more of her books, especially I hope in the Friendships and Festivals Series.
An ARC of the book was given to me by Tule Publishing which I voluntarily chose to read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This is my first book my Stacey Agdren and my first book about this holiday as well. It most def will not be the last book I read by this author as her style of writing grabbed my attention but more than that I am really interested in learning more about about her faith and how it comes out through her books. In this book Miracles and Menorah we have a town that has a festival that is based around the holiday of Hanukkah. What is so wonderful is that the town has for the most part loves this festival and it continues to grow and grow. The only issue is there are a few people who want that red & green holiday to be recognized as well. When I picked up this book I knew a little bit about the Jewish holiday being Catholic myself. After reading this I am so wishing there was a festival in my town like this so my granddaughter could be exposed to other faiths in such a positive way.
I really enjoyed reading this holiday storyline with Sarah and Isaac. I didn’t know too much of the Jewish faith when I started reading but,I didn’t have to worry about that because the author took me through the background of Hanukkah ,the food like latkes and the meaning behind the Menorah.This definitely should be made into a Hallmark movie.I highly recommend this one.
I really enjoyed Miracles and Menorahs. Sarah Goldman, our plucky heroine, is determined to continue the traditional town-sponsored Hanukkah festival and not give in to turning into a “generic holiday festival” with red and green decorations, and trees.
(As a non-Christmas celebrant, it irritates me how often I have to explain that, yes, those things are Christmas decorations, not holiday or winter decorations, and please don’t tell me I’m wrong because pagans… Just don’t. It’s insulting.) Sarah Goldman understands.
Isaac Lieberman is adorable. I mean, he’s an artist, so of course. He’s not into community-sponsored holidays. He just wants to spend time with his bubbe, and I am here for that and her cooking. There is a lot of food in this book and it all sounds delicious!
I appreciated hearing my grandmother’s Yiddish through Isaac’s grandmother. I felt connected. Language matters, and I’m so glad Ms. Agdern chose to use the loving, familiar words that remind me of my own family. For those who don’t speak Yiddish, there should be enough context not to have to look words up.
The romance was sweet and slow-building. Sarah and Isaac don’t know each other at the beginning of the story, but they become friends, and then more.
I’m so glad publishers like Tule remember that there are more holidays in winter than Christmas. It makes a difference to be able to read a holiday romance that includes my experiences and traditions.
I voluntarily reviewed this book in exchange for an honest review.
A sweet heart warming slow build romance between Sarah and Isaac. Sarah loves Hanukkah and is in charge of the Hanukkah festival, she would love to have a large metal menorah. Isaac is a famous metal sculptor and Sarah would love for him to sculpt the menorah, but this is not his idea of celebrating Hanukkah. As these two meet soon they can’t deny their chemistry that they share,
So enjoyed this story, so many wonderful traditions that I learned of Hanukkah. Loved the small town of Hollowville, such a sense of community and family. Loved, Isaac’s Bubbe, a little matchmaking she performed. This is the first book that I have read of Stacey Agden, and now looking forward of reading more.
Miracles and Menorahs by Stacey Agdern
Sarah Goldman loves Hanukkah, and she’s thrilled to be appointed as vice chair of the Hollowville Hanukkah Festival. So when the festival is threatened with cancellation, she comes up with an idea: a new slogan and advertising campaign topped off with a metal menorah large enough to fill the center of town. But even though her heart and dreams are large, the committee’s budget constraints threaten to stop her grand plans right in their tracks.
Famous metal sculptor Isaac Lieberman also loves Hanukkah. But his vision of a perfect Hanukkah isn’t a commercial community event—it’s spending time with family, following age-old traditions. He’s not interested in the festival, no matter how many times his grandmother, his bubbe, asks him to contribute one of his sculptures.
Then Sarah comes tumbling into his life…can she change his mind about more than just the holidays?
This is Sarah Goldman and Isaac Lieberman’s story.
“The Chair recognizes Trustee Gregory Webster.”
“Thank you, Mister Chair, and Miss Goldman. You know,” the trustee had said, “this Hanukkah stuff is wonderful, but I’m feeling like we need a change. If we want to include the whole village, even the whole community, we need to turn this into a ‘holiday’ festival next year. And invite Santa Claus.”
And despite all of the enthusiasm the board of trustees had expressed only seconds before, Hanukkah suddenly became an afterthought, lost in the excitement of plans and thoughts for next year.
It had taken every bit of restraint Sarah had not to scream about how taking away a celebration wasn’t inclusive, not to mention that turning Hollowville’s festival into a carbon cookie-cutter copy of every single ‘holiday’ celebration that existed wasn’t going to make people want to come to Hollowville.
Isaac Lieberman saw her out of the corner of his eye. Rather, he heard the excited exhalation after the click of footsteps against the tile floor.
That’s when he turned; she was shorter than he was, though it didn’t take much considering his height. She had pink undertones in her pale skin with a few random freckles on her arms, and intense brown hair which looked as if it had been flattened within an inch of its life.
But her smile?
That was something he’d like to draw
I highly recommend reading.
Miracles and Menorahs by Stacey Agdern is a wonderful well written 5 star book.
I am looking forward to reading more books by Stacey Agdern.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book.
What an enjoyable and insightful read. Miracles and Menorahs was my first book by Stacey Agdern. I will definitely look into reading more of her titles. While I don’t personally celebrate Hanukkah, I loved and connected with this book. I especially loved the characters of the town of Hollowville and how most of them came together to help make the annual Hanukkah celebration a success. The author describes the small NY town in detail with such entertaining narrative that I felt truly connected to the town and the story. I loved learning about the traditions of Hanukkah in a way that I hadn’t before. This book was beautifully written and a gem for anyone who loves small-town holiday romance.
As romances go, the relationship growth between Sarah and Isaac is very slow and doesn’t culminate until the end of the book. But I appreciated the slow build because otherwise this book wouldn’t have been so realistic. There are many secondary characters that help to move the story along, each bringing a certain depth. While this book was just a touch angsty, all the characters (except one ignorant antagonist) were loyal, mature, and friendly.
As you’ve learned from the blurb, Sarah is in charge of the annual Hanukkah festival this year. While she is honored and excited to make the festival a success, there is a great deal of pressure worry that she will fail. This year could be the last for the festival and that can’t happen. Sarah continues to work toward her goal of making sure every aspect of the festival is successful. But what would be the best offering, a giant sculpted metal menorah for the town square, may not happen.
Isaac loves Hanukkah but not the commercialism of it. He will not contribute to a festival whose goal is to only make money. Isaac is devoted to age-old traditions and this is why he refuses to help. So, you have to wonder how Sarah and Isaac even become friends. As I said earlier in my review, the characters are mature as well as charming, friendly, and considerate.
I definitely recommend this sweet story; it is sure to inspire in many ways. This is my honest and unbiased review and I that you for taking the time to read it. 🙂
Sarah and Isaac’s story in Miracles and Menorahs by Stacey Agdern, book one in her Friendships and Festivals series, is a fun, heartwarming, sweet romance that brings two people together when they least expect it. This story is a story from Ms. Agdern’s heart. For those non-Christians, Christmas can be a difficult time of the year. People don’t understand what you are going through, and you are surrounded by red and green, Christmas trees, and a feeling like you don’t belong anywhere. This story provides joy to some of those non-Christians, giving them a place, a home, a community, where they can feel accepted and a place where they belong. This is the perfect story to be turned into a Hallmark holiday movie.
Sarah Goldman loves Hanukkah and is honored to be appointed vice chair of the Hollowville Hanukkah Festival. Unfortunately, one of the town trustees wants to turn the festival into a carbon copy of every of town’s holiday celebration, focusing on Christmas only. Sarah decided to make some improvements to the Hanukkah Festival; a new slogan, a logo, a major advertising campaign, and a metal menorah, large enough to fill the center of town. The only thing to derail her plans is the committee’s budget constraints and locating a sculptor willing to create her dream. Isaac Lieberman is a famous metal sculptor who also loves Hanukkah. His vision of the perfect Hanukkah is not a commercial community event but spending time with family and taking part in age-old traditions. He is grandmother, his bubbe, lives in Hollowville and sends Sarah to talk to him. Sarah and Isaac have an unusual meet cute, and sparks do fly, but the difference in their visions for the celebration does cause a few obstacles. Spending time in Hollowville visiting his bubbe and Sarah, getting to know more about the celebration and the town just might be the key to changing Isaac’s mind about creating the sculpture; or will it?
Ms. Agdern wrote a wonderfully sweet, heartwarming, and moving story that is not to be missed. This story contains perfect chemistry, romantic dates, fun banter, the magic of love, and charming characters giving Sarah and Isaac a chance a chance at love, happiness, and a future together. I highly recommend Miracles and Menorahs to other readers.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.
Hanukkah, Miracles and Romance
The future of Hollowville’s Hanukkah festival is in jeopardy and it’s up to Sarah Goldman, also known as the Hanukkah Fairy, to make it the best ever in order for it to continue for future generations. Sarah is so desperate, she is willing to ask Isaac Lieberman, the artist she called a Hanukkah snob, for his help building a menorah for the center of town. Isaac doesn’t want to be part of a festival. He says it commercializes the holiday. But with a little Hanukkah magic and a budge from Isaac’s friends and Bubbe, he agrees to create the menorah. In the process, Isaac and Sarah fall in love.
I enjoyed this book quite a bit. It was different form the usual holiday books I read. I knew a little bit about Hanukkah and this book filled in the areas that I wasn’t familiar with. It took me a little longer than usual to read this book as I was curious (and googled) some of the terms used in it. So, I got a good lesson there too. I enjoyed the romance part of the story along with the friendship, family values and sense of community in Hollowville.