Blog Tour: Christmas in Eternity Springs (Review + Excerpt)
Christmas in Eternity Springs
Emily March
Eternity Springs #12
St Martin’s Press
Releasing October 4th 2016
336 Pages
Book Summary
Can Miss Christmas find her spirit again?
After a devastating betrayal, Claire Branham packs up the pieces of her life, along with a twenty-million-dollar secret, and moves to Eternity Springs. She opens a specialty shop—Forever Christmas—and, with the help of a surprise romance with the town’s sexy new handyman, Claire’s heart begins to heal. Until her past comes knocking…
Jax Lancaster never questioned the need to abandon his career as a Navy submariner in order to care for his young son in the wake of his ex-wife’s death. Desperate to help with this loss, Jax straps on a tool belt to give Nicholas the one thing he wants: A life in Eternity Springs. What Jax never expected to find a second chance at love with a fascinating woman for whom Christmas has become a business. But when the truth about Claire threatens their newfound happiness, can Jax prove to her that in Eternity Springs, the spirit of Christmas is real. . .and will last a lifetime?
Christmas in Eternity Springs is the twelfth installment in Emily March’s acclaimed Eternity Springs series.
Buy Links
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Macmillan
My Thoughts
*ARC provided by Publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review*
Eternity Springs is a special place to many people. For Claire, Jax, and Nicholas the town becomes a place to settle, a place to get to know each other and to heal the broken shards inside them to create a new beginning for them all.
Well-written and moderately paced, Christmas in Eternity Springs is a heartwarming tale about the healing power of love and the strength it takes to face our fears and share our secrets. It’s a beautifully-sweet love story filled with healing and hope and sprinkled with a little holiday magic that is guaranteed to draw you in and take you on a journey through the heart of Christmas and the depth of love.
I really, really loved the characters in this one. Claire, Jax, and Nicholas each stole a little piece of my heart and I couldn’t be more thrilled with the way their story turned out in this book. It was so well done and the perfect read for a crisp, Fall evening.
Highly, highly recommend this beautifully sweet book that is chock full of amazing characterizations and brilliant messages and insights.
Final Analysis
“An Excellent Read!”
5 “heart-tugging, soul-smiling” Stars
Book Excerpt
From Christmas In Eternity Springs by Emily March:
December
Dallas, Texas
The fragrance of Christmas swept into the house along with the tree that the garden center’s deliverymen carried inside. As they placed the twelve- foot- tall blue spruce into the stand she’d positioned in front of the living room picture window, Claire Branham allowed herself to reflect on the once- upon- a- time memories triggered by the scent.
Days of Christmas Past. Such happy times— laughter and excitement and family traditions. A home filled with love. All lost, wiped away by the reality of illness and death and broken hearts.
As she watched the workers secure the tree to the stand, she reflected upon what a momentous occasion this was for her. She hadn’t put up a Christmas tree in a very long time. For Claire, Black Friday didn’t represent the beginning of the holiday shopping season. It signified the day the doctor’s office called and changed the lives of everyone she loved.
Fifteen Christmases had passed since that first life-altering year. Some years, she’d gone through the motions of participation, even though her heart wasn’t in it. Other years, she did her best to ignore it entirely. Mostly, she’d muddled through, grumpy and unhappy and counting the days until the season was over for another year.
“That should do it,” said the deliveryman, stepping back from the tree. He handed Claire a little green bottle of preservative. “Mix this with water according to the directions. Add water as needed. Doesn’t hurt to check it every day, but it needs to be watered at least every other day.”
“Thank you.”
“You picked a pretty one, Ms. Branham. You have a perfect spot for a tree in this home. Now . . .” He flipped a page on his clipboard. “Are we decorating the tree, too, or just doing the outdoor lighting and decorations?”
“You’re hanging the outdoor lights and helping with the high things inside the house. I’m saving the tree to decorate until my fiancé gets home from a business trip tomorrow.”
Claire showed him the outdoor decorations in her garage, then went back inside to begin draping garland on the staircase. Anticipation made her feel like a child on Christmas morning. It had been years since she’d decorated a tree, and she couldn’t wait to do it again. This year, Claire wasn’t spending her holiday season with her Grinch on. She was going all Elf. Because for the first time in forever, the thought of the holiday season made Claire happy.
It started on Black Friday. Rather than launching her usual month- long depression, Black Friday this year got Claire off to a joyful holiday start. After she and Landon ran the Turkey Trot 10K on Thanksgiving morning, she’d sent him off to the airport with a kiss and a turkey sandwich so he could make his early afternoon flight to the West Coast where he had meetings scheduled with movie executives. Friday morning, rather than lie in bed with her covers over her head as in years past, Claire had bounded out of bed early, joined the shopping hoards, and had a ball doing it.
It set the tone for her days as she anticipated Landon’s return. Claire was happy and excited and joyful. With Landon’s help, she had climbed her way out of the valley of loss and loneliness and found her happiness. Now, she was finding her Christmas spirit again.
Copyright © 2016 by Emily March and reprinted by permission of St. Martin’s Paperbacks.
About the Author
Emily March is the New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty novels, including the critically acclaimed Eternity Springs series. Publishers Weekly calls March a “master of delightful banter,” and her heartwarming, emotionally charged stories have been named to Best of the Year lists by Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Romance Writers of America.
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