Hot Chocolate Kisses: A Snow Globe Christmas Book 9, Jackie North

First impressions are not always correct, especially if you're coming from a place of past hurt and current frustration.  Alex and Cory both have their own demons to fight before they can feel the magic of Christmas and a love neither man was expecting.

Cory was interesting right from the start.  He had a whole life that wasn't always synonymous with trouble, but grief and being alone spelled out a whole lot of it.  I love the idea of a second chance at life when you're really trying to become the best version of yourself.  While he sees himself as worth so much less than everyone else he's still trying.  Attempting to do it independently is admirable, though a bit unwise as he learns that support and love are more important than pride.  His evolution is one of subtle changes as he tries to give another lonely man what might cheer him up and possibly open a path for more between them.

Alex is far less open to the idea of more as his own pride and hurt color his every interaction with Cory until he truly sees the man beneath the "bruiser" appearance.  I had a far harder time connecting to Alex because he had an annoying inability to sincerely apologize.  He never tried to make amends for his crappy attitude and hurtful words to Cory.  Sure, we could see a little flicker of remorse every once in a while, but no action was made to correct his uncharitable behavior.  Only when he opened his home to a very hurt Cory did we see that things could get better for him, and them by extension.  His icy edges were slowly thawed under the constant warmth of Cory's gigantic heart.

They were a good pair and my frustrations with Alex were overshadowed by how much I enjoyed Cory in all of his vulnerability and seeming flaws.  The whole community gave the idea of living in a small town merit, where perhaps everyone knows everyone else's business but they use that information to find ways to love and serve instead of gossip and judge.  I loved the warmth of the setting and the essence of what the holiday spirit really is as it was apparent in so much of we saw and experienced in this story.

*$3.99 on Amazon

Alex had to leave the mean streets of Chicago in a hurry. Now he's weathering his first Christmas in a small town in Colorado.

Cory had a boyfriend and now he doesn't, which means the Christmas holiday is turning out to be the loneliest he's had in years.

When they meet at a Holiday Fair, Alex finds himself being drawn into Cory's world. A world where there is grace to be found in a simple, home-cooked meal, books read out loud by firelight, and the golden glow of welcome.

Alex has never wanted anything as tame as hearth and home. Now that he wants it, it's not anything he can have. Nothing feels he deserves, at any rate.

Can Cory and the Spirit of Christmas Present prove to Alex that love is love?