Longing for a Cowboy Christmas

Brimming with holiday magic, this feel-good anthology of historical romance novellas, all centered on the cowboy mystique and second chances, will delight and charm. Greenwood opens with “A Fairy Tale Christmas,” a sweet tale of Nan, a lonely Shenandoah Valley spinster and healer, and Will, a single father at his wits’ end. Linda Broday’s “A Christmas Wedding” and Anna Schmidt’s “One Snowy Christmas Eve” are heartfelt stories of love lost and regained through years of careful kindness. Rosanne Bittner’s “Christmas in Paradise” and Amy Sandas’s “Through the Storm” showcase couples overcoming external adversity. While all of the stories feature strong, independent female leads, the heroine of Margaret Brownley’s “A Love Letter to Santa” steals the show. Holly, a young schoolteacher and reluctant choir director in the small town of Haywire, Tex., during a time of economic hardship, goes to great lengths to ensure the town is touched by the spirit of the season. Few in Haywire are safe from her machinations, including Tom, the newly arrived blacksmith, who is charmed first by her looks and then by her giving spirit. These lighthearted stories will appeal to a wide variety of readers looking for stories of Christmas joy. (Oct. )