Will the perfect Christmas be enough to convince Beau that a life with Ansley could be equally perfect? Born and raised in Winter, Montana, Beau Bradley can’t imagine life anywhere else. During the holiday season his coffee shop, Mountain Grounds, is as busy as ever and now that his girlfriend is back in town, things finally seem to be lining up—until he gets a call that could change it all. … it all.
Ansley Strauss is back in Winter after a nine-month, art intensive in Canada and she’s ready to celebrate the Christmas season in the tried and true Winter-style. There’s only one problem: her boyfriend lacks Christmas spirit. Her solution? Make this Christmas perfect to remind Beau just how special this time of year is.
Set on a course for ultimate Christmas joy, Ansley and Beau find that life doesn’t always work out the way they hope it will. Beau faces the reality that plans can’t account for everything and sometimes risking it all is the only way. Ansley will have to come to the realization that no matter how perfect things are, it’s the imperfections in life that make it worth living.
It’s another Christmas in Winter, Montana where the coffee is always hot and the mistletoe beckons lovers to share a kiss.
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The Perfect Christmas by Bell Renshaw is a sweet, romantic page-turner filled with well-crafted characters who are unique and endearing. The setting is lovely Winter, Montana, a place that makes one long for a cozy blanket, a cup of hot cocoa, and a warm fire. The timely themes in this sweet story definitely get the reader thinking. And, the various accidental mishaps of Ansley and Beau had this reader laughing out loud. Truly, The Perfect Christmas has it all, and I am leaving my time in Winter, Montana quite the satisfied reader!
Beau loves Ansley very much, but he has allowed fear to overtake his heart and his life. Beau has become emotionally paralyzed. Ansley is one of the most patient characters I have ever read, but that is what makes her such a great character. While Beau is busy painstakingly planning each and every second of their future, making sure nothing bad happens, Ansley just loves her man. Things do come to a crossroads, however, and Beau needs to make a choice — life with Ansley or without? It is during a brilliant conversation with Ansley’s brother, Ky, that Beau wakes up to his truth. Ky lost his young wife to an illness and has been a single father for the past two years. But, Ky has recently found new love. This all confounds Beau, whose number one goal in life is to never feel pain again. Beau asks Ky if he is scared to love again. Ky explains that he does feel a little afraid, but “there’s a difference between recognizing fear and giving in to it.” Ky refuses to give in to fear and instead lives life knowing that love is a risk worth taking. Beau realizes that he has let fear rule him and this is not how he wants to live. He comes to understand that life lived in fear is no life at all. I very much appreciated this message. Too many times in my life I have let fear dictate my life, and because of that, I know that I have lost out.
The Perfect Christmas is another home run by Bell Renshaw. The plot is highly engaging and fast-paced, the characters are relatable and endearing, and the messages are timely. If you are in the mood for a romantic and sweet Christmas novella, then The Perfect Christmas is the book for you!
I received a review copy of this novel in eBook form from the author, Bell Renshaw. In no way has this influenced my review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.
Did you ever doubt your love and if you should give it up for someone else? If you say a person is slow or cautious with everything? It feels like you are good enough for you. Well, this book somewhat shows that struggle with the two main characters Beau and Ansley?
Beau Bradley has some struggles he seems to fight? But maybe it has to do with what happened with his father passing? Ansley has a problem of her own to deal with that she wants a perfect in everything or at least in things. Will she realize that all things are mean to go as perfect as she wants them? Will Beau realize that all things can be planed out?
The author does wonderful with the job with the story and making the world and characters so real. Is Love worth the risk? If you enjoyed the first book, this one is quite more of a good story of two slow-moving into love and take a risk for it all? The perfect Christmas is the second story of the story of Beau Bradley and his girlfriend. We catch up with Holt and Jessica a little bit.
This is the second book in Bell Renshaw’s Winter, Montana series, but it easily reads as a stand-alone. I was so happy to go back to this perfect little Christmas town. As I read, I felt like I was in the middle of a Hallmark Christmas movie! I love Bell Renshaw’s writing style. You are immediately drawn into the story and the lives of the characters.
Ansley was definitely my favorite character. She’s so friendly, easy to like, and patient. Beau, while I liked him, was a bit harder for me to warm up to. He is a tad slow to make up his mind on whether or not to take the next step in his and Ansley’s relationship. He is dealing with some feelings of guilt that make him super cautious. But, once he finally does make a decision about Ansley, well, let’s just say you will for sure be in the mood for Christmas! I am looking forward to Bell’s next story. I can’t wait to see what she brings us next!
I received a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.