The Christmas season has arrived and soon our lives will be filled with hustle and bustle. In addition to our daily responsibilities, there are many things that grab our attention: baking bread, buying presents, decorating, attending events, hosting parties, getting together with friends, etc.
One of my favorite things to do during the Christmas season is to wind down and read a few chapters of a Christmas book before bed. Sitting quietly and immersing yourself in a story is a great way to relax and unwind. If you’re looking for a cozy Christmas book this season, you’re sure to find a story that will capture your attention on this list.
1. Christmas at Bramble House by CJ Carmichael
I just finished reading this book and it was amazing. Children’s book illustrator Finn Knightly wants to know why his late father left his nurse $50,000 after they had known each other for just a few weeks. He headed to Bramble House B&B. The father had just paid for the nurse and his son to stay there during the holidays. However, Willa Fairchild is not the conniving woman he imagines, and soon she and her son Scout begin to steal his heart. Is Willa the shady woman he thinks she is, or did her father have a good reason for leaving her the money?
2. “Christmas Tree Compendium” by Jesse Guzman
I just started this six-book novella series and am loving it so far. Set in a Christmas tree in Pennsylvania, it features a colorful cast of characters in a small, Christmas-loving town. This set consists of the following titles: Trapped Under the Christmas Tree, Tangled in the Tinsel, Under the Mistletoe Accident, Snowed on Christmas Day, Caught in the Candy Cane Mess, and Caught in the Christmas Conundrum.
3. Mrs. Miracle by Debbie Macomber
Seth Webster, a single father, has lost his wife and is struggling to raise twin boys on his own. His house is in turmoil, and his nannies quit one by one. He needs a miracle. One day, a new nanny named Mrs. Merkel (affectionately called “Mrs. Miracle” by the twins) suddenly arrives. From the moment she arrived, everything changed. She is intuitive, treats the boys perfectly, and even encourages Seth to invite Reba, a beautiful travel agent who has experienced hurt and betrayal and is afraid to love again. Is Mrs. Miracle the miracle everyone needs?
4. “Christmas Train” by David Baldacci
Journalist Tom Langdon has to go from Washington to Los Angeles in time for Christmas. Having to travel by train, he goes on a magical journey of thrilling adventures and holidays. Along the way, he dives into the wild, hardened parts of his own mind and rediscovers the goodness in people, and the goodness in someone special he thought he had lost.
5. Wrapped In December (Steele Family Saga Book 5) by Carrie Lowrance
Love and new beginnings are in the air…
The air in Peachtree, Illinois is filled with love and Christmas cheer, but for Heaven Steel, the holiday season has even more meaning. That’s when all her children come home. This year, his son Essex brings his brother along, but during the layover he meets a woman who fascinates him like no one has ever seen before. When fate brings them together again, he convinces her to spend the holidays with his family, despite her resistance.
Plans are underway for a double wedding between Haven and her granddaughter, but an unexpected problem threatens to derail the entire event. But amidst the turmoil, Essex and Ransom grow closer, and their feelings for each other grow stronger with each passing day. Always cautious and independent, Ransom questions her true desires, but Essex, hurt by her past, begins to let down her defenses.
But as the holidays draw to a close and Ransom’s departure looms, will their newfound love be strong enough to endure the distance? Or will they end up breaking each other’s hearts in the process?
6. “Season of Angels” by Debbie Macomber
Angels Shirley, Goodness, and Mercy are each given a prayer to answer this Christmas season. Shirley needs to find a new father in Timothy Potter. Goodwill will help Monica Fisher find a husband and start her own family. Marcy must help midwife Leah Lundberg, who is desperate to raise her own child with her husband Andrew. However, there is a catch. Each angel must teach her a lesson before God answers her prayer.
7. Maggie’s Christmas Miracle by Karen Kingsbury
Megan Wright had a magical summer with her teenage boy. Even though I made some bad decisions in my life, I never forgot his magical definition of love. Now a talented lawyer and widow, she seeks help for her lonely son. Casey Cummins is grieving the death of his wife and searching for hope and purpose. This leads him to a children’s organization and connects him with fatherless children. After many twists and turns, Megan learns that the boy she spent that summer with long ago has kept his promise, and that the miracle she prayed for as a girl is right in front of her.
8. Double Chocolate Christmas by Juliet Brilee
The story is about Grace, who runs a bookstore with her aunt in a small town called Seastarkey. But when country music singer Austin Lane arrives at the Sea Star Inn looking for peace and a new start, her carefully laid Christmas plans become the beginning of something more. Caught between the hustle and bustle of the season and fruitless plans, Grace is forced to make a difficult decision. Will Grace and Austin be able to open themselves to the gifts that life has to offer, even when things don’t go as planned?
9. Christmas Promise Box Set (Morris Fenris)
This was the first Morris Fenrise book I read and it was amazing. This is a clean small-town romance collection featuring tropes like heartbreak, second chances, and learning to love again.
10. Mae North’s Christmas in the White Mountains
This five-book box set follows a woman whose husband leaves her just before Christmas, leaving her alone to plan Christmas for her family. With her best friend by her side and the local townspeople offering words of comfort, Sally never thought her life was falling apart.
11. Mother of Christmas Jackie Weger
Decker Davenport must renovate the Victorian in St. Augustine within a month or the owners will sell it. His decorator is on his honeymoon, so Annalize Owen takes his place. As she casts a spell over the house and his daughter, it is as if they have known each other forever.
As Decker works toward a Christmas Eve deadline, he can’t help but notice the haunted look in Annalize’s eyes, a look that no kiss can banish. What secret does she have? And when he finds out, will it bring happiness to him and his daughter or tear their world apart?
12. “The Twelve Dates of Christmas” by Charlie James
Copywriter Grace McGovern is tired of her unconventional dating life and decides to write a novel that combines her love of Christmas with her desire for romance. Her book features a heroine who goes on a date so unrealistic that it sweeps her off her feet. A chance encounter with a gorgeous man makes her intrigued by their conversation and fun date. However, some of them seem so familiar that she suspects he is taking his cue from her book.
Owen Ellis is more comfortable with computers and coding than he is with women. After his last girlfriend called him boring and unromantic, she threw a romance novel at his head. Owen thinks he’s ready to give love another try when he meets a woman he finds intriguing, but knows he needs help. So he does what an insecure man would do. He borrows some date ideas.
Can the magic of Christmas last forever or will their love turn into another holiday fling?
A Christmas Story is the perfect way to get hooked this holiday season. Grab a book from this list, a blanket, and a cup of coffee, cocoa, or tea and get ready to relax for the next few hours.
Photo credit: Getty/maximkabb
Carrie Laurence is a freelance writer and author. Her work has been featured in Crosswalk, iBelieve, Huffington Post, and The Penny Hoarder. She is also the author of three children’s books, three pretty romance books, one romance novel, three poetry collections, and one nonfiction book. When she’s not writing, she enjoys cooking, baking, reading, and spending time with her husband and cute cat, Cupcake. For more information about Carrie and her writing, please visit www.carrielowrance.com.
