„A Matchmaker’s Christmas“ by Donna (Lea) Simpson is a standalone.
It’s a Christmas story, like the title says. An 80 year old lady, Lady Elizabeth Bournard wants to make a change this Christmas and organizes with the help of her nearly 40 year old companion Beatrice Copeland a Christmas party – or let’s say a matchmaking get together.
She has invited two young females and two males but very contrary ones. One is a Canadian sent to England to find a husband, one is going to be a reverend and doesn’t care for earthly goods and knows that no lady would marry him because he isn’t of rank or money. Vaughan is the complete opposite. He’s a lord, a rough but he also needs to get married and he would prefer a lovely young lady who takes care of house and children, while he lives the life he wants to live – not with her. And the fourth one is a young lady, a sweet and silent one, who is sent to Lady Bournard because she refused to marry a lord.
And then there is David. He’s over 40, a widower of more than twenty years with a son that age. He is Elizabeth’s godson. He is different because he doesn’t interfere with Lady Bournard’s matchmaking of the young ones.
This book tells the story of six people, four rather young ones and two around 40. Beatrice has a story of its own, why she is unmarried and tries to flee the room whenever David is around.
Of course things seem easy in the beginning but it isn’t. It’s of course a mix of emotions, lots of chemistry and long, long dialogues. And that’s exactly my point – it’s boring.
I don’t mind a story with a twist but the twist here – Beatrice’s background story – is not even just boring, it’s irrelevant and that she even tortures herself for 20 years because of it is silly. I really was like “That’s all. Cannot be!” The story about the other couples is rather predictable from the very beginning, even the one of David and Beatrice. Really, there is no point of the book where you do not know what will happen next.
That’s one point. The other is that the book has, in my opinion, not a single hot moment in it. They kiss. They kiss again. They kiss passionate – that’s more or less the description of the romantic moments. I mean if I want to read a PG rated book, I grab one of my student’s. Not every book has to be a Kate Perce or a Jess Michaels (I adore both) but this was too little.
So the short version: If I want to read a PG rated predictable story, try this one!
Why 2 stars – because I liked the Canadian girl a lot, she was different.
I’ll probably will never read another book by this author again because there are others that are steamier and more my kind of tea than this one. The idea of the story would have been nice …
Rating: 2**
Buck is reading .... 