Hot for the Holidays (4-in-1)

So far I've only read the Breeds novella in this anthology, so this review is only for that.
This wasn't my favorite of the Breeds books. I get that it had to be short to be in a novella, but I felt it was a little too rushed. Thankfully, we already had a little back story from a previous book in the series, but I would have liked some more development into Hawke and Jessica's characters. That being said, I think the story was good within those limitations. I could have seen this easily filling a whole book instead.

Opening Sentence: ‘…Christmas had come to Walsh Drive…’

There are four stories in this collection, all set in and around Christmas, all paranormal and all just a little bit hot in parts – in fact so hot that I have to confess I skimmed over the very detailed sex scenes:

Vampire’s Ball by Angela Knight
Christmas is very hard for Kat Danilo but this year is different. A woman claiming to be her father’s wife has mysteriously appeared and insists that Kat’s father is Lancet du Lac, a Knight of the Round Table. The next minute Kat is accompanying a vampire, Ridge Champion, to the Mage’s Ball in the Mageverse. He’ll guide her through the process to find out if she has what it takes to be a Magae, and if she is her life will show more never be the same again.

A Little Night Magic by Allyson James
Jamison Kee walked out on Naomi two years ago without a word of warning – and for no apparent reason. Now he’s returned just before Christmas and Naomi is still hurt – until he reveals the reason he had to go and why he has returned. Jamison loves Naomi and her deaf daughter, Julie, and he’s determined to claim them both as his. The only trouble is someone is out to destroy them. Can their love survive the battle ahead?

Sweet Enchantment by Anya Bast
After his cruel denouncement of her, Bella has vowed never to have anything to so with Ronan – so it is quite a surprise for the court when she offers to marry Ronan to save him from the execution the Summer Queen has planned for him. Ronan has no intention of marrying Bella on her terms and rejects her proposal. He has a few tricks up his sleeve still and even though his life might be forfeit Ronan has every intention of making Bella his in every way possible. Does Bella dare trust this man after everything he has done?

A Christmas Kiss by Lora Leigh
Imprisoned as a traitor by the wolf breeds, Jessica isn’t feeling much Christmas spirit. However she is not the prisoner she believes she is. Hawke has no doubt that Jessica is his mate, but there are circumstances preventing him from being with her that must be dealt with first. An assassin has to be sniffed out and dealt with before this couple can have any chance of happiness. Who is the real traitor?

Other than the over the top erotic bits – I really enjoyed this book – which I read on my electronic reader. show less

I have to admit that the first caught my attention but it was basically downhill from there. I am not Lora Leigh's market. Vampire's Ball with Angela Knight is a Mageverse story and while I have some issues with the world, the female character is an ass-kicker and unwilling to let anyone take over from her. She has issues that she can't reallly overcome and they're not glossed over.

A Little Night Magic by Allyson James was an entertaining story of a woman trying to come to terms with the reasons her boyfriend left her, with or without coyote's help! I did like it.

Anya Bast's Sweet Enchantment felt almost like it stepped out of Laurel K Hamilton's Meredith Gentry series, it's a Fae Story with two fae trying to work out what they mean to show more each other and to keep each other alive.

Lastly A Christmas Kiss by Lora Leigh, I have issues with this series and the author isn't a good match to my preferences, societally or story-wise. The addiction to someone with the posessiveness is scary in my mind and not condusive to the building of healthy relationships.

The stories are fairly explicit, but good tasters of the different writers. show less

Shapeshifters, vampires, and fae, oh my. And they're each and every one smoking hot! "Hot for the Holidays" is a four-story anthology of paranormal stories, each incorporating a nod to the upcoming holiday season. Since I'm a fan of all four authors, what's not to love?

Angela Knight takes us on a short trip to her Mageverse with "Vampire's Ball" and the story of a vamp Knight and a potential Maja (witch). Is their overwhelming passion just a product of her change? When confronted with a demon from her past, they'll have to work together or die.

Next up is Allyson James with "A Little Night Magic". She fell in love with him and then he left her. Now he's back, but his enemies aren't far behind. It's a good thing Naomi's pretty show more open-minded since her man is now a Mountain Lion!!

"Sweet Enchantment" by Anya Bast looks to be a glimpse of an upcoming series (I hope!) about the Fae. It's a very different take on Romeo and Juliet with each from a different 'court' but meant to be together. Unfortunately, there's that wicked Queen to deal with!

Finally, with a "A Christmas Kiss" Lora Leigh's Breed fans will rejoice. The scientist drugged into betraying her Breed friends gets her happy ending while evading a murderous traitor in the Breed compound.

Four hot stories by four hot authors. Merry Christmas to me! show less

All of these stories have great potential, but none of them really live up to it, and the Christmas theme is really only as a vague background most of the time. Not really what I was hoping for.

A CHRISTMAS KISS

When I first read this story I didn't remember who Hawke and Jeeica were. It had been a long time between these two character's story and when they had originally appeared. Since I start reading the Breed books in chronological order I now remember. I am glad that Lora finally gave these two there happy ending. I am also glad that Lora explained why Jessica betrayed the Breeds that she loved. There is a lot packed into this book, a trust human once again betraying the Breeds, Christmas at Haven and Mating Heat. What more could a loyal fan ask for? This a great, quick read for a summer afternoon at the pool or the beach and a very good addition to the overall story.

I enjoyed this books cover more than these four paranormal stories. None of them really grabbed my interest. Most of them involved a reunion after male left 'for her own good' then steamy sex and bad guys to fight. I did finish though with a bit of skimming.