A Kiss For Midwinter (Brothers Sinister series) by Courtney Milan

It's funny how in the last review I said when it comes to books I'm more a HBO than a Lifetime kind of girl, because that is the kind of book that I chose this time. It was like Sex and the City meets the 19th century and I postively loved it.

But first the book description: 

Miss Lydia Charingford is always cheerful, and never more so than at Christmas time. But no matter how hard she smiles, she can't forget the youthful mistake that could have ruined her reputation. Even though the worst of her indiscretion was kept secret, one other person knows the truth of those dark days: the sarcastic Doctor Jonas Grantham. She wants nothing to do with him...or the butterflies that take flight in her stomach every time he looks her way. 
Jonas Grantham has a secret, too: He's been in love with Lydia for more than a year. This winter, he's determined to conquer her dislike and win her for his own. And he has a plan to do it. 
If only his plans didn't so often go awry... 
A Kiss for Midwinter is a historical romance Christmas novella in the Brothers Sinister series.
I chose this book because it was a novella on this Goodreads list of Christmas and winter novellas. In all honesty, I don't particularly like historical romances especially those in the time period of the 19th century because well...they seemed pretty uptight when it comes to all matters regarding sex.
This novella describes Jonas Grantham which may well be the most progressive doctor to have ever fictionally lived in the 19th century. He's also the wittiest and has an amazing dry sarcastic sense of humor. Exactly the kind of man I go for. Maybe that's why I loved the book so much and tweeted that I didn't want it to end. Jonas Grantham is my type.
He's not every one's type though. He is obnoxious, crude, has questionable social skills, is far too forward, and offers advise about the use of prophylactics including the Dutch cup (cervical cap) and French letters (condoms). Yet all of these reasons are both why Lydia hates him and is drawn to him. She has to walk a careful line with him. She wants nothing to do with him but at the same time he knows a secret that could ruin her. 
Because of this she humors him at first and then agrees to a bet that just may get rid of him permanently. It's a 19th century version of Arianna Grande's lyric "I'd have one less problem without you." As the story progresses, she starts to wonder if she really does want to be rid of him.
My favorite love stories are those where the couple starts off hating each other. What's that saying? Hate is passion too. Or something like that. Whatever it is I loved this book and was disappointed when it ended. 
The book also had a surprising subplot. Jonas has to deal with his sick father who is a hoarder. The story explores the complex issue of having to deal with a loved one who suffers from hoarding. Since hoarding is caused by the mental health condition of obsessive-compulsive disorder, this book qualifies for the Mental Illness Advocacy Reading Challenge.
I will be reading more from this author in the future. She made me like historical romance and that's saying something. My rating is an enthusiastic 

The Christmas Cat by Melody Carlson

Let me begin by saying this is not the kind of book I normally read. There's just something about most Christmas novels that feel like Lifetime movies. There's nothing wrong with that. It's just that I'm more of a HBO kind of girl.
Despite that I did enjoy The Christmas Cat. Here is the book description:
After years abroad, Garrison Brown returns home to Vancouver to build a new life. When his beloved grandmother passes away a few weeks before Christmas, Garrison goes to her house to sort out her belongings, including six cats who need new homes. While Garrison hopes to dispense with the task quickly, his grandmother's instructions don't allow for speed. She has left Garrison with some challenging requirements for the future homes of her furry friends--plus a sizeable monetary gift for the new owners. Garrison's job is to match the cats with the right owners without disclosing the surprise gift. Along the way, he may just meet someone who can make him stay. 

Humorous and heartwarming, this latest Christmas story from bestselling author Melody Carlson is the perfect gift for pet lovers and anyone in whose heart Christmas holds a special place.

I suppose I probably enjoyed this book so much because I am a cat lover. I have four of them. I also really liked that the story was told from a guy's point of view. That rarely happens in romance novels.

I also liked that Garrison was not a super rich, perfect kind of guy. He was an "average joe." It was refreshing to read about the kind of guy I might meet at the grocery store instead of one that I would only bump into if I was in the Hamptons. Even though he was returning to his hometown he wasn't walking around thinking he was better than all the small town folk and about how backwards they were. Garrison truly knew and respected his roots.

The one thing I didn't like about this novella is that I wish Garrison had told more stories about his experiences in Africa. It was such an interesting backstory but Carlson didn't do much with it. I also wish she would have gone more into Garrison's adjustment to being back in the United States. He was gone for nine years. Can you imagine being in Africa for nearly a decade and then coming back home? Things would be so different.

It was a little disappointing that I could predict how the story was going to end by page 100 but it is a romance story. Besides the biggest love story in this book is not between Garrison and Cara but involves a small four legged hairy beast. And that was my favorite part of the book. My rating 

My Selfie for the Ho-Ho-Ho Read-a-thon

My selfie for #HoHoHoRAT

A photo posted by Julie Cornewell (@juliecornewell) on Nov 11, 2014 at 9:11pm PST

You can find the "Holiday Reading Selfie" Mini-challenge at The Book Nympho

The Ho-Ho-Ho Read-a-thon Goals (Revised 11/8)

I thought this read-a-thon started yesterday so I'm posting a day late. The Ho-Ho-Ho Read-a-thon is hosted by BookShelfery and Caffienated Book Reviewer. Here is more info:

Read-a-thon Rules

• For this read-a-thon you must read holiday themed or winter setting reads.
• Link-up Before or on November 6th post a goals post to your blog. (if you do not have a blog post to another social media site such as Goodreads, Tumblr, Facebook, Google+ etc ) Be sure and link back to Caffeinated Book Reviewer and BookShelfery 
• Grab the button and share ! 
• Participate in at least one challenge to be eligible for grand prize 
• Tweet your progress using #HoHoHoRAT 
• Twitter Party! Sunday November 9, 2014 at 4pm (EST) chatting and prizes to be had. 
• Challenge schedule and Grand Prize widget and rules will post on November 6th by 8 am (EST) 
• Read-a-thon starts on November 6th 12:o1 am (your time zone) and ends on November 11 at 11:59 pm(your time zone) 
• Challenges will be open from 8 am (EST) on the 6th and remain open until Nov 11th at 11:59 pm (EST) 
• Grand Prize Raffle will be open until November 13th at 11:59 pm (EST) to allow you to submit entries. 
• All winners of challenges and grand prize will be notified by November 15th.

The Ho-Ho-Ho Mini Challenges

Bea @ Bea’s Book Nook “Word Scramble Challenge”
Trish@ Between the Lines “Name That Book”
Sophia @ Bookwyrming Thoughts “Holiday Wish Challenge”
April @ My Shelf Confessions “Ho-Ho-Ho Read-a-thon Puzzle”
Melissa & Truffles @ Mochas, Mysteries and Meows  “Christmas Truffles’ Purr-fect Holiday Reading List Challenge”
Ginny @ Gin’s Book Notes “Build a Snowman Challenge”
Jennifer @The Book Nympho “Holiday Reading Selfie”

My Goals for The Ho-Ho-Ho Read-a-thon

Goal #1 Read A Winter's Tale by Mark Heprin. 
Now this book is far from a novella (see the Novella Novermber Challenge) but I have been planning on reading it for a few weeks now. I was worried I would have to put it off even longer so was really happy winter themed books are allowed.

Goal #1 Read as many Christmas and winter books as I can especially novellas

I made it to page 210 of Winter's Tale and thought I was going to lose my mind. It's not an easy read at all. I wasn't enjoying it. I may pick it up again in the new year but I have other books that are more of a priority.

At the top of my list is the recently released novella The Christmas Cat by Melody Carlson.