Access Instantly Five Golden Rings: A Christmas Collection Written And Illustrated By Sophie Barnes Disseminated As Publication Copy

collection of short stories was an excellent way for me to get acquainted with some of the authors Ive never read before, such as Rena Gregory, Vivienne Lorret and Sandra Jones.
Sophie Barnes and Karen Erickson are somewhat familiar to me as I read only a handful of their novels, but Ive been very impressed with both so far.


In “Mistletoe Magic” by Sophie Barnes youll find a pair of matchmakers in hero and heroine wholl make you laugh out loud with the antics they come up with to match the unsuspecting duo.
Loved it!

Karen Ericksons “His Perfect Gift” made me root for this Duke and his heroine.
I loved the story and the second characters of this story were also fun to read about, Loved it!

“War of the Magi” by Rena Gregory gave us a hero that needed someone like the heroine to point him in a right direction and show him the joy of the season.
Cute and sweet, with some interesting characters on the side, Liked it!

In “Her Christmas Knight” by Sandra Jones I was wishing for a Knight of my own! If you love stories with a second chances, this ones a must then.
It will make your eyes mist and the end will leave you satisfied and warm all over, Loved it!

Vivienne Lorrets story “Tempting Mr, Weatherstone” brings us two childhood friends who finally find courage to admit love for each other, but the road to it is funfilled with adventure our heroine is craving for.
Liked it!

Five Golden Rings was a wonderful collection of fun, entertaining and character driven short holiday stories.
Overall I found the writing very good and each story unique and fun, A great holiday read!
Since this is an anthology some stories rated differently than others, I liked all the stories, none were disappointing, All authors were new to me,

In each story the hero is pursuing the female, sometimes quite subtly but he doesn't need to be convinced.
He's either been in love with the heroine in the past or has been for quite some time or has been smitten recently.


Probably my favorite was "War of the Magi" because Ginny sets out to grant Christmas wishes for others even though she doesn't expect to get her own wish.


I also really enjoyed the last story "Tempting Mr, Weatherstone" because even though I knew the hero felt more for the heroine than she realized, how he eventually convinced her was so well done.
I also liked that the heroine set out to find her own happiness instead of allowing life to pass her by.



I had a hard time with Sophie's story because I didn't really like Leonora in the beginning.
She seemed a little snobbish, however as the story progressed her character became better, My favorite story was by Rena Gregory about Ginny and Phin, They were an adorable, contentious couple, The spirit of Christmas was very much evident in their story, Mistletoe MagicSophie Barnes
I have tried to read this author in the past, without success, It's not because the writing is bad but I had problems connecting to the characters, I wanted to like Leonora and Connor but couldn't manage to work up much enthusiasm for them, It wasn't dissatisfaction with the characters actions but more towards apathy, The interest to know more about them was not there,

His Perfect GiftKaren Erickson
I finished this story but did it grudgingly, I wished the heroine had shown more backbone towards the members of her family, Honestly, I was hoping the hero was playing a trick on the heroine and was in fact going to leave her and her horrible family in the dust.
What really upset me was that the hero paid off the father's debts and accepted the assumptions of her family that he would take care of them and any other "problems" i.
e. the father's gambling debts in the future, Really! I was incredulous that he accepted this as part of his due for loving Eleanor and Eleanor who before thought not to be a burden was smiling and happy to have Ashton take care of all the family's problems.


War of the MagiRena Gregory
This was a cute enemy to friends story, I wished there had been more explanation on the hero's background, I had trouble understanding why exactly he was in this town as opposed to one of the others his family had holdings in to look for a potential bride.
If it was explained, I completely missed it, I understood where Ginny was coming from and I give props to her taking charge of Phin and trying to show him the light.
She could have been snooty and mean with the lesson but she was kind and firm and funny.


Her Christmas KnightSandra Jones
This, too, was another instance where I was apathetic towards the characters.
Additional information on the heroine and hero's shared past might have peaked my interest, especially since it was such a defining moment in both their lives.
I also didn't like the the sister Serena and saw no reason why the main heroine was so accepting of her.


Tempting Mr. WeatherstoneVivienne Lorret
This story was my favorite, Immediately I connected with Pen and her desire for more out of her life, What person hasn't woke up one day, realizing that they're stuck in a rut and wanting to change The author's voice was a good one as well I liked the pacing of her words.
There was an exact balance between drama, humor, romance, and intimacy, I will definitely be on the look out for more of her work in the future,
copy provided by publisher through Edelweiss for honest review, The holidays are a time for wishes, magic and, of course, love, Celebrate the season with this delightful collection of Christmas tales, What better way for Connor Talbot, Earl of Redfirn, to spend the holidays than convincing Leonora Compton that the only match she needs to make is with him!

The Duke of Ashton has had three years to plan for his perfect Christmas presentthe Lady Eleanor Fitzsimmons as his wife.
Now, all he has to do is convince the reluctant lady

Phin Baldwin does not believe in Christmas magic until the clever and beautiful Ginny Overton gets it into her head to show him how wonderful it can be when wishes come true.


Just returned from the Crusades, marriage is the last thing on Sir Caerwyn's mind, But will he be able to

resist Lady Nia, the thief of his boyhood heart, when she tempts him yet again

Responsible Ethan Weatherstone is determined to save Penelope Rutledgeand her reputationfrom her silly scheme, but can he save himself from the temptation of her lips
Five Golden Rings.
. .

By Codi Gary

On Dec,

I started Five Golden Rings several days ago and have finished the first two novellas by Sophie Barnes and Karen Erickson, which were funny, engaging and had so many great phrases I smiled the whole way through.
Sophie Barnes plot was something new and inventive, a secret societyof women who help the"Wallflowers, bluestockings, and such women who would make excellent wives if someone would only take them under their wing.
"That's a quote from the heroine's mentor, The Duchess of Arbergail who for some reason makes me picture Julie Andrews.
: Karen Erickson's heroine, Eleanor, has a family that had me grinning the whole time I comefrom a large family and had two sisters still living at home when I was a kid.
The bickering never ended. Even my mother andgrandmother were not immune to the nasty habit, One memorable family trip, while my grandmother, mother, and I started sparring not ten minutes into our trip, I sarcastically said, "Gee I love these family outings.
" It broke the ice and became a way to break throughall the sniping at future family events and on long trips in cars.
I am going to"borrow" several of the comments made to the youngest sister, Penelope, to say to my children when they are naughty.
: I've started the third novella, War of the Magi by Rena Gregory, and will update this blog as I finish them all.
I love Anthologies like this because it gives you a chance to sample several new authors and fall in love with their work!

Blog Update for War of the Maji by Rena Gregory

Ms.
Gregory's debut novella had such a great story, bittersweet through out with a lovely touch of humor, Ginny goes from a quiet lamb to a tiger when Phin doesn't take their town's Christmas tradition seriously and I love how the love story builds slowly and sweetly.
The whole message of kindness for others is beautiful and I look forward to reading more from Ms.
Gregory!

Her Christmas Knight by Sandra Jones was a delightful surprise! I love to read romance, from all time periods and Five Golden Rings has been such a fun collection.
So far regency,

medieval, and early's have been the novella's settings and I find it refreshing.
I always love stories about young lovers torn apart by misunderstanding who reunite years later, My favorite character though, is the complicated Serena, and although I wont give away anything, I like the twist Ms.
Jones delivers that shows us she's not as cold as you think,

"She possessed every single heart beat and the space in between, " Amazing line from Vivienne Lorret's Tempting Mr, Weatherstone. In most books of a romantic nature, the scene where the hero realizes his deep love for his heroine is my favorite part of the story and she wrote the scene beautifully.
I loved the contrast between the two, the neat and orderly Ethan and the dreamy, adventerous Penelope and like Penelope, I wanted to mush Ethan's cravat.


Brava ladies! Excellent novellas all and I can't wait to read more from you!
I loved the story of Caerwyn and Nia.
Their complex back story and potential for the future had me cheering in the couple's favor from the getgo.
Truth be told, I read Her Christmas Knight twice, Really looking forward to reading more of Sandra Jones's work, I liked the first two stories, I hated therd one with Phin, He was so childish and really irredeemable to me, We were told they spent time together and fell in love, but we werent shown, Her reasons for falling in love with him werent shown, so it felt disingenuous and hollow, I never warmed to the jerk hero, I had already read the last story and enjoyed it, I didnt reread It. I skipped the medieval story, Its starts out by telling us she was his fist love and first kiss and she betrayed him.
Nope. Like any collection, some stories are good and some are bad, Courtesy of HarperCollinsAvon through Edelweiss in exchange of an honest review,

Christmas tales mixed with love What a wonderful way to bring this season and one of my favorite genre's together! Five Golden Rings was an outstanding collection of five holiday stories.
Each one holding their own treasure in what makes them great, Overall I found the writing beautiful and delightful, from authors that were new to me but I was very eager to read their little stories.
I devoured this book as fast as I could,

My favorite of them all had to be the story of Caerwyn and Lady Nia, it was beautiful as well as emotional with a wonderful storyline that had me rooting for them.
After Nia steals Caerwyn's heart she also manages to hurt him, Years later when her father sets up a Christmas tournament in hopes of marrying off his daughters, he finds himself letting Nia into his heart again.
As long as he could put away his past, I found the story emotional and absolutely loved it! Yes there was even a part that left my heart aching for them.


The other story that I found wonderful was of Ethan and Penelope, Two childhood friends, both in love with each other, both are too scared to submit to their feelings in fear of losing the other.
Of course Lady Penelope is bored of the same daily routine and wants some excitement and adventure in her life, will Ethan finally be the one to let her There where parts that made me want to scream simply in hopes it would push the two together faster, it was very endearing.


And of course the story of Phin and Ginny and Christmas wishes with miracles, I loved this one because Ginny was just the right kind of trouble Phin needed in his life.
After inheriting a three small figurines that are suppose to bring wishes to the person who won them for Christmas, Phin acknowledges to Ginny that he does not believe in wishes.
Ginny is just the type of person that might make him believe in them, She is very stubborn, and takes actions into her own hands, It was very heartwarming.

This book was definitely a pleasant surprise, I had enjoyed each and every story in it's own way, I loved the characters, the relationships, Everyone had their own adventure, It was also a great way to be introduced to authors that are particularly new to me, A great holiday read!

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