The Heart of Christmas by Brenda Novak

• Title:  The Heart of Christmas
• Series:  Whiskey Creek #7
• Author:  Brenda Novak
• Genre:  Contemporary Romance; Christmas
• Published:  October 2014 – Harlequin MIRA
• Source:  Publisher

Synopsis:  Just call her Christmas Eve…  Eve Harmon has always enjoyed Christmas, but this year it reminds her of everything she doesn’t have. Almost all her friends are married now, and that’s what Eve wants, too. Love. A husband and kids of her own. But the B and B she manages, and even Whiskey Creek, the small Gold Country town where she was born and raised, suddenly seem…confining. 

Eve’s worried that her future will simply be a reflection of her past. There’s no one in the area she could even imagine as a husband—until a handsome stranger comes to town. Eve’s definitely attracted to him, and he seems to have the same reaction to her. But his darkly mysterious past could ruin Eve’s happily ever after—just when it finally seems within reach. And just when she’s counting on the best Christmas of her life!  (publisher)

My take:  The Heart of Christmas is one of those books that’s almost impossible to stop reading – at least it was for me! It’s book 7 in the Whiskey Creek series but it can stand alone.

The Heart of Christmas is filled with romance, suspense and a mystery. I loved the story of Eve and her handsome stranger. I couldn’t imagine how Brenda Novak would find a way to happiness for these two but I think she really hit this one out of the park (no spoilers here).

I can’t wait to see what she dreams up next for the group of friends in Whiskey Creek. Recommended to fans of the series and anyone who enjoys a good story.

Note:  Several weeks ago I happened to see a tweet from Brenda Novak telling readers that a characters from her book INSIDE would be one of the featured characters in The Heart of Christmas. Many readers requested his story going forward from INSIDE. You don’t have to read INSIDE but I did and learned a lot of background on the character. That said, Novak does a great job informing readers of his background in The Heart of Christmas.