Neurosurgeon’s Christmas to Remember

Very good book. This book takes place simultaneously with the first book in the series, Falling for the Secret Prince, but concentrating on the king’s neurosurgeon and the hospital’s PR director. It can be read as a standalone, but the first book provides additional background and context.

Ayanna is the new PR director for the hospital and her first day is chaotic. The hospital’s upcoming fundraiser ball is way behind in its planning, a VIP patient arrived three weeks early for his surgery thanks to a car accident and his presence must be kept quiet, and she needs to pick up the patient’s neurosurgeon at the airport. She’s not happy to arrive at the airport and find he’s already gone.

Max has no time to wait around. Max must act fast with his patient badly injured to ensure that his future surgery isn’t jeopardized. He neither wants nor needs the hospital’s PR person’s constant attention, but he can’t get rid of her.

The sparks flew at the first meeting between Ayanna and Max, and they weren’t all antagonistic. Once they got past that earlier unpleasantness, they discovered they got along pretty well. Perhaps too well. Both were aware of each other in ways that they preferred to avoid. Max had locked down his emotions after his wife’s death – a death he blamed himself for. He deals with his loneliness by burying himself in his work. Ayanna swore off men and love after her fiancé ran off with her best friend. Now she’s concentrating on her career.

When Ayanna needs a place to stay while her apartment undergoes repairs, Max offers her the second bedroom in his hotel suite. As they spend time together, the attraction between them blossoms. I enjoyed seeing Max use his love of cooking to take care of Ayanna. It was fun to see Ayanna pull Max into her family’s circle by inviting him to Thanksgiving dinner with them. I loved the slow lowering of the walls around their hearts and seeing the trust build. But when each of them realizes that their feelings go deeper than expected, old fears resurface. I ached for them both when a careless comment set off an argument that ended in harsh words and hurt feelings. Though both realized their mistakes quickly, each believed that it was too late to fix it. I loved the support that Ayanna got from her family, including the advice not to give up. Max had to provide his own kick in the pants, and I loved the nod to Clarence and It’s a Wonderful Life. I adored the scene at Ayanna’s parents’ house, from her and Max’s reunion to her family’s antics.

Heartfelt and satisfying! With book two in the Royal Christmas at Seattle General series, Traci Douglass keeps the romance alive in NEUROSURGEON’S CHRISTMAS TO REMEMBER as the surgeon brought in to perform the King’s surgery in book one falls for the hospital’s PR guru. The pace was a bit slower, but the magic of watching her bring the holiday season to life again in his heart was rewarding. I’m looking forward to the continuation of the series!

Max is quite the complex character. He’s all business at first but then as he begins to warm up and let himself relax, he’s quite a kindhearted soul.

Ayanna was easy enough to like, but I felt that her backstory wasn’t completely fleshed out. One party that wronged her was mentioned often with feelings and thoughts being displayed, but the second party was barely named and no inflection of that betrayal was portrayed in her story.

I recommend this book as well as the entire series to anyone who enjoys a medical based romance series full of drama and strife as the couples find their way towards forever.