The Thanksgiving Fix by Vicki Lewis Thompson
Finding Mr. Right is the furthest thing from Beth Davis's mind when the Reno professor takes Thanksgiving break at a colleague's Lake Tahoe cabin. Until Coinneach McFarland arrives to fix a suspicious leak. It looks like somebody's playing matchmaker for two people sworn to stay single. But as things heat up, Beth is astonished to find she has discovered her soul mate just as she'd given up looking.



The Christmas Set-Up by Jill Shalvis
Competing architects Zoe and Jason have two weeks to come up with the design to win a coveted new project. But when a snowstorm strands them together at a secluded cabin, Zoe sees her chance to show Jason how she really feels. With romance blooming under the mistletoe, can she get the gorgeous Scrooge into the true Christmas spirit?

 
The New Year's Deal by Julie Kenner
Five years ago, Cleo Daire and Josh Goodson said goodbye and went their separate ways. But first they made a promise to reunite. Now the ex-lovers are spending New Year's Eve in a romantic cabin, where passion takes them by surprise and long-wished-for dreams can sometimes come true.

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This anthology pulls together three festive stories that all focus around one particular cabin that's known to bring luck in love for all those who stay there. Perfect for warming up the cold winter evenings.



The Thanksgiving Fix by Vicki Lewis Thompson
This was a sweet story that worked even with the short time frame of the couple. I liked the setting that was built up in the story and as short stories goes I really enjoyed the story and the romance.

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The Christmas Set-Up by Jill Shalvis
I love a story of a couple that hide desire behind bickering and this one was great. It was funny, sweet and I very much enjoyed it. Would say that this was the best story of the three.

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The New Year's Deal by Julie Kenner
This was only so-so for me. I easily read it through but didn't really care for either Josh or Cleo. Josh was a little too spineless when standing up for what he wanted and Cleo seemed a little fickle and lacking emotion. It just didn't really do it for me, unfortunately.

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Overall, this was a fairly enjoyable anthology. It wasn't overly festive or filled with holiday cheer but you did get the sense of a nice cosy cottage on a dark winter night and that was enough to make my reading experience an enjoyable one. 4 stars. 

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381 pages

No fooling: hot sex is on the way!


Cam’s Catastrophe
A reckless adventurer, Cam is about to take the wildest April Fool’s Day risk ever: jumping into bed with Dr Jenna! But it’s her recklessness that amazes them both…


Darcy’s Dark Day
The clouds lift when Darcy has a sudden opportunity to reel in her long-time fantasy man, Evan! Who’d have guessed that a silly curse could set up this amazing sex…


Devon’s Dilemma
She’s about to take a sexy Chance…a sexy pilot called Chance? It’s a gamble. But it could transform Devon’s devilish dilemma into a delicious one!


Reg’s Rescue
Anne desperately wants Reg back in her life – for good! So she intends to help him break the family curse – just as soon as they get out of bed. . .

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This is a set of 4 short stories (or encounters) all based around April Fool's Day and the Franklin siblings who are all cursed to receive bad luck on this one day each year.

CAM'S CATASTROPHE by Kathleen O'Reilly
The oldest of the Franklin siblings, Cam refuses to be laid low by a curse. So each April Fool's Day he does something outrageous and laughs in the face of the curse that plagues his family. And each year he finds himself in the E.R. being cared for by Dr. Jenna Ferrar.

This story spanned about 4 years with the relationship building up over the space of a couple of hours over one day in each of those years. With that in mind, the fact that these two people could discover feelings for each other (or probably even remember each other) after such a teeny tiny amount of interaction made the story unbelievable and a little frustrating.

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DARCY'S DARK DAY by Julie Kenner
Darcy Franklin is determined to visit New York on April Fool's Day to show the curse can't hurt her. Determined to save her from the curse, Cam asks his best friend, Evan, to make sure no harm befalls Darcy. But what Cam doesn't know is that Evan has always had a crush on Darcy and this is the perfect opportunity for him to make his move.

Curse aside - this was a sweet story if a little unsatisfying in terms of romance. Not bad though and easily the best story of the four.

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DEVON'S DILEMMA by Kathleen O'Reilly
In order to hide from the curse, Devon holes herself up in a fortress of a house in a remote town. On April Fool's night she receives a visit from airman, Chance, who's happy to take her mind off the bad events that are sure to follow.

It wasn't the story that was ridiculous with this effort but the fact that Devon lived in such a state of fear from a curse that only struck one day a year. Regardless, Chance didn't seem like long-term material and I didn't believe in the romance.

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REG'S RESCUE by Julie Kenner
Reg Franklin is the one sibling determined to find the cause of and break the curse. Because of the curse he let go of the only woman he'd ever loved to keep her safe. But now she's back and the curse just might be ready to be broken.

While I liked this story and the two characters - to my mind Reg didn't love Anne enough to be with her and it was only his lust driving him to get back with her. Disappointing.

I feel I could really have got behind the premise of a curse that inflicts a whole family for one day a year if it had been handled a little less clumsily and with a little bit more reality - as strange as that may sound. As it was, the whole book was fantastical, a bit baffling and utterly ridiculous. Shame, really. 2 stars and the extra one is only because I finished all the stories and didn't mind Julie Kenner's attempts.

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217 pages